Saturday, February 10

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A preview of Atlanta Ballet's "Coco Chanel: the Life of a Fashion Icon" by Celia Wren in The Washington Post.

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A dance sequence with dancers’ bodies evoking the famous interlocking C’s is one part of “Coco Chanel: The Life of a Fashion Icon,” now making its North American premiere at Atlanta Ballet through Feb. 17. The moment is just one of the ways in which the acclaimed choreographer Annabelle Lopez Ochoa addresses the lingering, complex influence of her subject, the French designer Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel.

 

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Alexei Ratmansky talks about his new work for New York City Ballet.

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It seems right that Ratmansky, arguably the most important ballet choreographer working today, is entering that territory at New York City Ballet, where he has made some of his most personal and original work, tapping into the furthest reaches of his imagination. Because of the company’s repertory, built on the ballets of George Balanchine, and because of the dancers’ ethic — “it’s about the choreography and the music, not about them,” he said — Ratmansky feels an open-endedness in the creation process here. “I can say, let’s go in this direction,” he said, “and I know that something will happen.”

 

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Carolina Ballet presents an all-Gershwin program.

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The spotlights shone on the Fletcher Opera Theater and heralded Carolina Ballet’s latest performance, “Rhapsody in Blue,” which opened Feb. 1. Choreographed by Zalman Raffael, the performance was accompanied with live music celebrating American composer George Gershwin’s work known for twisting classical music with American jazz elements from the 1920s. “Rhapsody in Blue” is a delightfully breathtaking performance that brings uniquely American music and dance styles to the stage.  

 

[dirac]

A review of San Francisco Ballet by Rachel Howard in The San Francisco Chronicle.

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“Song of the Earth” plays against the tremendous drama of Mahler’s music with pared-down clarity. No flashy costumes, just practice-style leotards in white, black and beige. The movement is equally exposed, its inventiveness entirely within the discipline of ballet logic. When the dancers push through an extension with a flexed foot, you might think of George Balanchine’s “Apollo.” But other motifs, like swaying deep crouches, or a bend into a sitting-on-air position with legs turned in, bring to mind Asian forms of theater and highlight “Song of the Earth’s” cultural mélange. After all, the text of these German-composed songs is six poems by the venerated eighth century Chinese poet Li Po.