Saturday, March 16

[dirac]

A review of the Norwegian National Ballet by Maggie Foyer in Bachtrack.

Quote

Swans are no stranger to the ballet stage, but a wild duck is something of an anomaly. However, following on from the success of Norwegian National Ballet’s productions of Ghosts and Hedda Gabler, Ibsen’s The Wild Duck seemed inevitable. The dancers, in collaboration with Marit Moum Aune, have again worked their magic. Aune, one of Norway’s top theatre directors, knows her Ibsen, the dancers know their craft and in the studio the drama came to life in movement.

 

[dirac]

A review of New York City Ballet and Birmingham Royal Ballet by Rupert Christiansen for The Spectator.

Quote

Of the three new pieces, by far the most impressive was Pam Tanowitz’s austerely elegant Gustave le Gray No. 1, in which four priestly figures in voluminous scarlet robes seem to take control of the music to the point of comically propelling the piano and pianist across the stage. This may sound banal, but Tanowitz’s choreographic imagination is inexhaustibly inventive and her intentions are subtle. Justin Peck’s Rotunda was a pleasant but unremarkable opener that puts a lively band of dancers in leisurewear through some gymnastic paces. The delicious leggy blonde Miriam Miller was enchanting in her solo, but there was nothing much else to take away from it. I was even less engaged by Kyle Abraham’s trendy Love Letter (on shuffle), with its super-cool score by James Blake and fanciful costumes by Giles Deacon – altogether chic and gimmicky in ways that I feel Balanchine would have deplored.