(no subject)
Dear heavens above, I agree with Sarah Kaufman's critique of the Washington Ballet Theater's most recent production Bolero (+). There were three pieces, Wunderland, Brahams on Edge (a world premier) and Bolero. The dancing in all three was magnificent, but the three were almost identical in temperament and they type of choreography.
We had seen Wunderland last year, although I barely remember it. Watching it, all one can think is, "That's impossible. How do they do that? No one can do that!" As the first piece, it was breathtaking.
Then came Breahms on Edge. It was an expression of seriousness and angst as well. The choreographer, Karole Armitage, wrote in the program about her edgy work, "I create group movement in a radical way -- rather than have all the dancers face the same direction and move together in unison as is traditional, they flow like a flock of birds . . . ." This was news to me, 'cause, gee, I've seen an awful lot of performances where the dancers face different directions and move in a complementary fashion. And all of them were better than this piece.
Last came Bolero with it's magnificent music and movement. Unfortunately, it was also filled with seriousness and angst.
If only Septime Webber (usually so skilled at bundling the WBT's performances) had included a different, contrasting middle ballet, this program would have been a stunner. Sadly, it wasn't.
We had seen Wunderland last year, although I barely remember it. Watching it, all one can think is, "That's impossible. How do they do that? No one can do that!" As the first piece, it was breathtaking.
Then came Breahms on Edge. It was an expression of seriousness and angst as well. The choreographer, Karole Armitage, wrote in the program about her edgy work, "I create group movement in a radical way -- rather than have all the dancers face the same direction and move together in unison as is traditional, they flow like a flock of birds . . . ." This was news to me, 'cause, gee, I've seen an awful lot of performances where the dancers face different directions and move in a complementary fashion. And all of them were better than this piece.
Last came Bolero with it's magnificent music and movement. Unfortunately, it was also filled with seriousness and angst.
If only Septime Webber (usually so skilled at bundling the WBT's performances) had included a different, contrasting middle ballet, this program would have been a stunner. Sadly, it wasn't.