Saturday Matinee

Pacific Northwest Ballet principal dancers Lucien Postlewaite and Carla Körbes in Jean-Christophe Maillot’s Roméo et Juliette. Photo © Angela Sterling.

This past weekend, I took a trip up to Seattle and got to experience the wonder that is Pacific Northwest Ballet’s Romeo et Juliette. It was a production totally worth the trip.

Truth: Romeo and Juliet has never been my favorite ballet. Despite the witty music by Prokofiev that accompanies the ballet wonderfully conducted with acerbic bite and lush overtones by conductor Stewart Kershaw, I’ve become so numb to the overtold plot. The characters are just a tad precious and one-dimensional victims blamed on a closed-minded society. The Elizabethan costumes feel outdated, and Romeo and Juliet spend an awful lot of time running around the stage, emoting, either alone or with each other.

The PNB production changes all of this for me, and more. It reminds me that it truly is a timeless story, with a wealth of untold beauty still left to discover. Choreographer Jean-Christophe Maillot ingeniously uses a seamless mixture of gestures, ballet, and sharply modern angles to tell a richly detailed and dramatic story. With its sleek and minimal sets by Ernest Pignon-Ernest and lighting by Dominique Drillot, this production solves the problem of bringing this overdone story of Romeo and Juliet into a production that the modern ADHD blockbuster loving audience will clamor to see. And so it succeeds.

Pacific Northwest Ballet principal dancer Olivier Wevers (center) as Friar Laurence, with (L&R) corps de ballet dancers Jordan Pacitti and Jerome Tisserand in Jean-Christophe Maillot’s Roméo et Juliette. Photo © Angela Sterling.

Choreographer Jean-Christophe Maillot made this ballet read more like a well-written novel, rather than a ballet where characters and plot are mere vehicles for spectacular dancing. The result is a production that’s smart, ingenious, heartfelt, dramatically tragic, and wickedly funny. The ballet opens grippingly with the freakishly weird Friar Lawrence, danced deliciously by Karel Cruz, a character torn with the responsibility and burden of playing a vital part in this tragedy. Romeo lies dead on the side. Friar Lawrence’s mouth opens in a horrified, soundless scream at the horrific results. This opener brings to mind the prologue of the Shakespearean play, where the conclusion is presented before the play flashes back to the events leading to the conclusion. Themes of fate and destiny and chance are reflected in his tortured movements, and at one point, he tries to stop the sets as they move around the stage, as if trying to prevent the deadly ending.

Carla Korbes. Photo © Angela Sterling

Juliet danced by Carla Korbes, is not the typical Juliet, naïve and virginal, unaware of her entry into womanhood and marriageability, a sacrificial lamb in the hands of fate and family pride. This Juliet is the one who first spots Romeo in the crowd. She’s the one who, after escaping his advances, runs to him and makes the first move to kiss him. In an emotional climax in the balcony pas de deux, Romeo slides through her legs and she flings herself back in a gorgeous moment of vulnerable and eager surrender (photo above). Dancing before the bed in the bedroom scene, she reaches urgently towards the bed first as they are spinning around in the throes of young love, and lays seductively on the bed to urge him to join her. Korbes’ Juliet is a woman with spirit and wit, and for the first time, I believed that this is a Juliet that could have the brains and courage to participate in such a risky plan. Korbes’ performance is one of the moment with every moment fresh and new, perfused with thrilling spontaneity and heartbreaking determination.

Pacific Northwest Ballet principal dancers Lucien Postlewaite and Carla Körbes in Jean-Christophe Maillot’s Roméo et Juliette. Photo © Angela Sterling.

Romeo and his friends act as a lot of college boys that I know, and they aren’t the gentlemen or as old-fashioned as they are sometimes made out to be. They’re hormonal, passionate, moody, and have fiery tempers that flare at alarming rates. Romeo, danced with boyish vulnerability by Lucien Postlewaite, hesitates at first in the balcony pas de deux that’s refreshingly awkward, hesitant, ecstatic, and more than a little erotic. He reveals his uncertainty, insecurity, and doesn’t always know what he wants. He cops a feel during the normally pure and ideal balcony pas de deux (ah, young love), and gently and wholeheartedly grows into the passionate lover who stumbles onto the love of a lifetime. When he kills Tybalt, he seems to lose it as he kills with unspeakable violence. Mercutio is the class clown who knows no bounds where everything is a joke. Harassing the nurse, he accidentally ends up palpating Tybalt’s pecs instead. He doesn’t realize when things go too far, leading to his self-destructive tragic demise. Jonathan Porretta skyrockets through the air as Mercutio, giving him a heart of fire in an explosive performance that’s unexpectedly heartfelt as well.

Pacific Northwest Ballet principal dancers Batkhurel Bold (as Tybalt) and Jonathan Porretta (as Mercutio) in Jean-Christophe Maillot’s Roméo et Juliette. Photo © Angela Sterling.

There are many more noteworthy characters to mention. Lady Capulet and Tybalt, danced by Ariana Lallone and Batkhurel Bold, represent the stern and severe Capulet family. Lallone’s tall lines give Lady Capulet a regal, proper air that leaves no room for love in her daughter’s plan for marriage. Bold, as Tybalt, was an intimidating force. And was I the only one who imagined a disturbing incestuous relationship between Lady Capulet and her nephew?? Jeffrey Stanton as Paris sniffs Juliet in a creepy manner in a brief moment near her, revealing himself to not quite be the ideal husband material as Juliet’s mother made him out to be. Carrie Imler took over the stage as the nurse who was both sassy and motherly.

Maillot’s richly cinematic Romeo et Juliette proved to be that classics never grow old. Classics were never meant to be museums of tradition or to be coddled, but to be infused with fresh intellect, humor, and emotion. Audiences want to be swept up and entertained as well as intellectually challenged, and this moving production wildly succeeded. This production is a rare jewel that deserves to be seen again and again.

Pacific Northwest Ballet website

Pacific Northwest Ballet principal dancers Lucien Postlewaite and Carla Körbes in Jean-Christophe Maillot’s Roméo et Juliette. Photo © Angela Sterling.

Hi everyone – I’ve been feeling guilty about being so behind on my blogging. Right after coming back from Seattle, I got swamped preparing for a huge committee meeting today (wish me luck!), and then I’m off to Smuin Ballet tonight. I really wanted to give Pacific Northwest Ballet’s Romeo et Juliette a thoughtful, detailed review. So for now, I’m posting a curtain call photo of the performance’s luminous leads, Carla Korbes and Lucien Postlewaite.

I also have to share a giddy fangirl moment – Tonya, you inspired me! The backstage crew at PNB were nice enough to lead me backstage to meet Carla and to say hello. There couldn’t have been a more thrilling moment for me, and it was a pleasure to tell her how amazing her performance was. She was so sweet to meet with me, even though she hadn’t even changed out of her costume yet.

It’s a production that was totally worth the flight up to Seattle, and it’s a production that the world needs to see. More to come soon.

Check out PNB’s Facebook page for photos and videos, and Carla Korbes’ personal take on The Winger.

Smuin Ballet rehearsing Amy Seiwert's world premiere piece

Last weekend, Smuin Ballet invited a group of bloggers and journalists to attend a rehearsal of their opening night gala at their sunny studio in San Francisco. With their opening night only a week away on Friday October 2, it was a thrill to be able to preview a performance so close to the final product.

Click photos to enlarge

For me, it was a rare thrill to be able to take a peek behind-the-scenes about a company that I’d heard so much about. The folks at Smuin Ballet were also nice enough to set up a casual interview with their artistic and executive director, Celia Fushille. An ex-dancer herself with the Smuin Ballet and associate director working directly alongside Michael Smuin, Fushille painted a picture of a company that still lives very much under the legacy of Michael Smuin, who passed away less than three years ago. The company continues to present Michael Smuin’s broad range of work, ranging from classical ballet to Broadway, set to music from Mozart to the Beatles. Fushille stresses the importance of continuing on in light of Michael Smuin’s absence, and diversifying to keep new works in its repertory. Choreographer in residence Amy Seiwert shares many of Michael Smuin’s traits as a choreographer, Fushille explained, sharing a keen sense of musicality and innovation. The company is also proud to acquire new works as well, including Jiri Kylian’s Petite Mort, which the company will perform in the spring.

It was a thrill, as a ballet enthusiast, to be able to watch from such close proximity. You get a real sense of how much effort it takes, and the physicality of it is impressive.

The pieces presented began with Amy Seiwert’s new piece, set to the music of the Kronos Quartet performing “Pieces of Africa”. Some of the dancers told me that they finished it just as recently as two days before the rehearsal, although you couldn’t tell since it looked so finished. The choreography and music at first glance was delightful – quirky, gentle, intelligent, and joyful. Smuin’s Medea followed, and I was surprised when I was drawn into the familiar story, even without the dramatic elements of costumes and lighting.

The rehearsal ended with Michael Smuin’s “Fly Me to the Moon”, set to the music of Frank Sinatra and a big Broadway style.

This company’s repertoire seems perfect to introduce new generations to ballet with its ease of style, yet it proved to me, as the seasoned veteran, that dramatic storytelling through dance never gets old. There is a sense of fun and drama that’s infectious and easy to get lost in. I’ll be watching the full performance next week, and will review it more fully then. But judging from this rehearsal, the opening night program seems like it’ll be a really fun one.

A random note: this was my first attempt at dance photography. I learned several things – 1) it is very, very, very difficult. I got a good pose about 10% of the time, and even then, the lighting or something else would be off. 2) I’m horrible at it. But the dancers are too beautiful not to post, so I’m posting a lot of my photos anyways. I hope you enjoy.

Click here for tickets, and be sure to check out the soiree for young professionals on October 10.

Links:

• More links and photos on the Smuin Ballet blog
• sfmike’s take here and here with lots of pretty pictures and a lot more history of the Smuin Ballet and its reputation

A sneak peek at Amy Seiwert’s new ballet, with a lovely duet by Erin Yarbrough-Stewart and Aaron Thayer.

Dancers of the San Francisco Ballet group perform during the Tomasson's Swan Lake in Shanghai. September 23, 2009. REUTERS/Nir Elias (CHINA ENTERTAINMENT SOCIETY)

San Francisco Ballet is currently touring in China. Check out the excellent firsthand coverage of the events on the frontlines on SF Ballet’s blog. Another great photo, here.

Jonathan Roberts and Macy Gray in ABC's "Dancing with the Stars"

Come on, ABC producers, throw Jonathan Roberts a bone.

I haven’t watched it of late, but Jonathan Roberts first caught my eye during the first season of ABC’s Dancing with the Stars. It was his elegant carriage and a classy presence that probably did it, although his tall, dark and handsome looks didn’t hurt either. I know to the ballroom world he isn’t ranked the best in the world, yet I’ve always liked watching him. And he continues to get kicked off early in the show. Isn’t it time for him to get paired with a young hottie, just once? I recommend Taylor Swift, or wouldn’t Britney Spears be cool?

With Macy Gray, I couldn’t think of a pair that was more mismatched or more opposite. Yet they still made an admirable effort that was refreshing to watch, capitalizing on her strengths and sassiness that have long made her popular through her songs. Judge Carrie Ann Inaba said astutely, “It was beautiful in it’s own bizarre way.” Not classic ballroom, mind you, but with her proportions (towering above Roberts in her low heels) and personality, it was impossible to be. It was a great message that anyone can dance. And now, she’s gone.

This was the first time I’d seen the show in a long time, probably since the second season or so, and I was a bit appalled at the number of promotional ads that run DURING the show. A rapper singing a song whose album is dropping the next day, and pulling in stars from ABC sitcoms to sit in the audience? I wonder how many teeth they had to pull to get them to sit there.

I probably won’t continue to watch. Is anyone still watching it? Any thoughts on how the show has evolved over the past few seasons?

There’s lots of fun things coming up for fall, and the newspapers are alive with fall previews. Here’s Claudia LaRocco’s NY Times fall preview (which includes SF Ballet’s upcoming season) and a more local one in the SF Weekly. And from a more audience-and-not-professional-critic point of view, here’s Patrick’s observant take on the upcoming fall offerings. I’ll be featuring some events that are coming up for fall.

Pacific Northwest Ballet principal dancer Lucien Postlewaite and former principal Noelani Pantastico in PNB’s 2008 staging of Jean-Christophe Maillot’s Roméo et Juliette. Photo © Angela Sterling

Starting this Thursday on September 24, our northwest neighbors, the Pacific Northwest Ballet, will be opening their season with Jean-Christophe Maillot’s ultra-sleek Roméo et Juliette. Maillot will be familiar to San Francisco audiences thanks to a visit from the Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo last year (Maillot is that company’s director and principal choreographer). From the images and videos being released by the Pacific Northwest Ballet, it looks to be a production that promises to update a classic into this century, with sleek sensitivity and stark emotion. If you’re not already, be sure to be a fan of their Facebook page, which is a paradigm for dance marketing, offering excellent media presentations of performance, interviews, and every fan’s gold standard – rehearsal footage. Check it out, here.

Here are some preview photos from the Pacific Northwest Ballet and an interview with the two lead couples, including a tantalizing look at the promising choreography. All photos © Angela Sterling.  Click on the image to enlarge.

Pacific Northwest Ballet principal dancer Olivier Wevers (center) with corps de ballet dancers Josh Spell and Jerome Tisserand (l-r) in PNB’s 2008 staging of Jean-Christophe Maillot’s Roméo et Juliette. Photo © Angela Sterling

The Death of Tybalt: Pacific Northwest Ballet company members in PNB’s 2008 staging of Jean-Christophe Maillot’s Roméo et Juliette. Photo © Angela Sterling

Pacific Northwest Ballet principal dancer Lucien Postlewaite and former principal Noelani Pantastico in PNB’s 2008 staging of Jean-Christophe Maillot’s Roméo et Juliette. Photo © Angela Sterling

Former Pacific Northwest Ballet principal dancers Louise Nadeau and Noelani Pantastico in PNB’s 2008 staging of Jean-Christophe Maillot’s Roméo et Juliette. Photo © Angela Sterling

Pacific Northwest Ballet principal dancer Jonathan Porretta in PNB’s 2008 staging of Jean-Christophe Maillot’s Roméo et Juliette. Photo © Angela Sterling

Former Pacific Northwest Ballet principal dancer Casey Herd and principal Jonathan Porretta in PNB’s 2008 staging of Jean-Christophe Maillot’s Roméo et Juliette. Photo © Angela Sterling

Roméo et Juliette runs from Sept 24 – Oct 4. Click here for more information.

Pianist Lang Lang

Last night at the opening night gala for the San Francisco Symphony, the Davies Symphony Hall sparkled with the usual glamor and glitz of concertgoers dressed in their finest to celebrate the opening of the season. Despite the glittering decadence and the appropriate celebratory atmosphere, I sensed an undercurrent of respect acknowledging the current economic situation that has been especially hardhitting for the arts. This sensitivity seemed to be reflected in the programming as well, with a rather cautious program geared towards appealing to the familiar.

Led with stylish charm by Michael Tilson Thomas, the program opened with three waltzes – Liszt’s Mephisto Waltz No. 1, Ravel’s La Valse, and Richard Rodgers’ Carousel Waltz. These waltzes were not your mother’s normal antediluvian tame tunes. Playful rhythms and a pulsing momentum shaped the Mephisto Waltz, setting the stage with brisk anticipation. Ravel’s haunting La Valse built to a rollicking climax, fraught with suspense and regret the entire way. Rodgers’ Carousel Waltz opened with gentle, atonal chords that quickly morphed into a Broadway-esque chick flick of a high school romance blossoming on a hot summer night at the fairgrounds. The effect was lushly romantic.

Even though the three waltzes were different, nostalgia was the common thread. Waltzes conjure up images of tradition and days gone by, and there’s a comfort in experiencing up the good old days. Who doesn’t love a waltz? I grew up listening to Strauss waltzes and the Waltz of the Flowers in the Nutcracker, and my date and I spent intermission humming familiar waltzes that we knew.

Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 3 yanked the audience to the 20th century featuring the celebrity pianist Lang Lang. Famous for performing at the opening ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics as well as making People Magazine’s 2008 Sexiest Men Alive list, he is well-known for his infamous ostentatious style. Technically beyond belief, Lang Lang perfectly captured the brashness of the Prokofiev concerto. There were moments of heartstopping beauty in the quieter sections, played with sensitivity and tenderness. But overall, I thought his playing lacked clarity and direction. His playing was very in-the-moment, with no sense of the overall structure of the piece. Each moment alone was beautiful, but I felt a bit like being jerked from one measure to the next. The second movement also began to sound tediously unvaried in volume and style, where I craved more contrast and character. But there’s no denying that Lang Lang has passion to spare spilling through every pore, and he’s really fun to watch. (I was admittedly disappointed he wasn’t wearing his self-designed gold-emblazoned Adidas kicks however.)

Put together a series of familiar (yet slightly edgy – it’s still San Francisco, after all) waltzes and a celebrity pianist that everyone knows, and you’re guaranteed an evening of content customers. It’s nothing revolutionary, yet a solid showcase for the San Francisco Symphony nonetheless. In this economic climate, people seem to prefer comfort over risky innovation. It’s also guaranteed to satisfy the audiences who rarely attend classical music performances, yet still continue to support the arts. And that alone is cause to celebrate.

Other links:

• sfmike’s take
• Kosman’s review
• Photos from the SF Chronicle’s take on the fashion. A brief note: dress was generally black tie, although despite what this article suggests, there was a broad range of dress. (Click on sfmike’s take to see more photos of attendees.) I witnessed everything from “church” casual formal (or even more casual) to formal ballgowns to the ever-popular Scottish kilt. My date didn’t even wear a suit, and I wore a $25 dress from a bargain store. I only say this because I feel like articles like this promote the inaccessibility of classical music to general audiences, yet it’s not a completely fair accusation especially during the year when there are great seats for $15. Maybe the Chronicle should run a fashion photo essay on what people normally wear during the SF Symphony season on a non-gala night. It wouldn’t make for awe-inspiring photos, but it would be more realistic.
• Serious Music, Played Seriously

A huge thanks to Tonya of Swan Lake Samba Girl, who posted this video, as well as others, from the Vail International Dance Festival, seemingly an Olympic-caliber showcase of dance with the best varied dancers from around the world. From capoiera to ballroom to ballet, kudos to the Vail International Dance Festival for making these videos available for everyone to see. It’s nice to see the dance world catch up to what the internet has to offer. (For more videos, check out the link to Tonya’s blog.)

It just happened that this weekend, I was showing my aunt (an ex-ballet dancer) Forsythe’s in the middle, somewhat elevated, with Svetlana Zakharova and Andre Merkuriev of the Mariinsky. Being trained in classical ballet with very little exposure to modern ballet, she admitted she didn’t know what to think of it.

Ok, summer break homework for my blog readers – what differences do you see between the two interpretations of the same duet (Sylve and Ball, Zakharova and Merkuriev shown below)? The Mariinsky version really gets going in about a minute or so. I find differences in gravitas and split-second reaction time. There’s a sharpness in both, but a very different kind of sharpness.

If you like these pieces, remember SF Ballet will be performing this piece in its 2010 season. Check it out, here.

Also found: Sofiane Sylve and Simon Ball in Giselle. Can SF Ballet fans hope to see Sofiane’s Giselle some day?? Vail International Dance Festival, you guys are awesome!!

Taken from the Vail International Dance Festival blog. Photo © 2009 Erin Baiano

There’s something so idyllic about the idea of watching ballet in the park. Yesterday, I spent most of the day at the beautiful Stern Grove in Golden Gate Park to watch a San Francisco Ballet performance in the outdoor venue. Surrounded by tall majestic trees, it was a picturesque setting for anything, really, and a great chance to spend some time outdoors. Such an experience is never about watching the ballet itself, and it requires a certain sense of composure and flexibility in the bright outdoors with lots of distractions to be had, including people milling about with hats blocking your view. It was a great day for a picnic, and a particular highlight was watching little girls dressed up in tutus – future dancers of the San Francisco Ballet, perhaps??

The drawback to being in such an environment is the onstage theater will compete with the nature of its surroundings. Everyone smiled when a pair of screeching scrub jays began to compete for attention with the onstage birds in the second act of Swan Lake.

The opening piece of Helgi Tomasson’s On a Theme of Paganini however wasn’t magnetic enough to rival the distractions of the outdoors and its crowds. Its crystalline elegance was a bit muted for this environment, and a piece like this is best showcased like jewels that sparkle when held up against black velvet in a quiet room where people talked in hushed tones. In addition, the smaller dimensions of the stage cramped the flying bravura that characterizes the choreography, especially in the men, notably Jaime Garcia Castilla and Pascal Molat. The only moment that stood out was a particularly lovely melody in Rachmaninov’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, with pianist Roy Bogas singing a plaintive, heart-tugging melody that fueled Maria Kochetkova and Davit Karapetyan in a dramatic duet that swept the audience up in its phrasing. In a dark theater, the choreography in this duet came off as too blatant for my taste, but in this environment, it captured the audience’s attention and held it.

In the second act of Tomasson’s Swan Lake, the audience immediately gets catapulted into the middle of the action with Prince Siegfried, danced by Ruben Martin Cintas, running around the forest holding a bow and arrow. Anthony Spaulding made an all-too-brief appearance as the imposing Von Rothbart, complete with impressive soaring jumps. The swan corps de ballet were in top-form, portraying both fragility and the intimidating nature of a group of wild birds in unison. Swan Maidens Elana Altman and Lily Rogers embodied bold drama with their tall lines and big movements. Vanessa Zahorian danced the lead as Odette, and I saw a softer side of her dancing in the white swan adagio. Her arms whispered of tragedy and surrender, yet she always seems to come truly come alive in faster tempos, especially a series of small, quick turns that were breathtaking and seamless. Dancing with clean lines, Zahorian favors pristine refinement over doomed vulnerability in her portrayal of Odette.

The show ended with Balanchine’s Stravinsky Violin Concerto, a veritable crowd pleaser that pleased both ballet lovers and newbies alike. I was struck by how differently I perceived this piece from my first viewing, and I attribute this to the difference in casting choices. The razor-sharp tension that I saw in my first viewing transformed into mercurial resilience and tongue-in-cheek humor with Sarah Van Patten, Katita Waldo, Pierre-Francois Vilanoba and Ruben Martin Cintas in the leads, dancing with unguarded transparency and witty camaraderie. The Stern Grove performance of the Stravinsky Violin Concerto had more joy – a quirky, celebratory romp. Van Patten and Vilanoba perfectly captured the chaos of the moment, embodying a beautiful mess in a flash of desperately reaching arms and sexy sashaying hips. Their timing and chemistry was impeccable. Waldo and Martin brought a propulsive energy, a touch of lean austerity and a keen sense of musicality to their pas de deux, with Waldo’s legs unfolding for days. The group finale, Capriccio, was a rousing folk dance that brought the audience to its feet and a fun way to end an afternoon at Stern Grove.

The Stern Grove Festival ends next week, with an appearance by the San Francisco Opera. Click here for more information.

Vanessa Zahorian and Ruben Martin in Tomasson's Swan Lake. © Erik Tomasson

Hi everyone! I hope everyone’s been having a nice summer. Sorry this blog has been rather quiet lately – it’s the usual summer lull with the ballet and symphony not performing their usual season material. It’s usually a time when other things in my life ramp up, including work and even a little summer romance! The only theater I’ve seen lately was at my friend’s wedding in Hawaii just last weekend. The scenery of the outdoor wedding was art in itself, but the bride did a solo Polynesian dance for her new husband that brought tears to everyone’s eyes. Her movements were warm and inviting, and even though I didn’t know the meaning behind her arms’ gestures, it made you want to believe every word she was saying.

Sunset in Hawaii. © www.saturdaymatineeblog.com

Well one big event IS coming up, and it’s free! This Sunday, San Francisco Ballet will be performing at Stern Grove at 2 pm for the annual Stern Grove Festival. Admission is FREE – it’s advised to get there a few hours early. At noon, there will be an event for kids put on by the San Francisco Ballet’s Center for Dance Education, as well as a pre-performance talk with Bruce Sansom, Ballet Master and Assistant to the Artistic Director of the San Francisco Ballet. Click here for more info. Be on the lookout as there have already been some cast changes. It’s a great program, and it should be a lot of fun to see the ballet before they leave for their tour in China to and a long hiatus until the Nutcracker.

Stern Grove Festival