Mary Cargill

Cholkettu and Ganesha Sthuti", "Sankara Sri Giri", "Anandavalli", "Amrapali"
Neena Prasad
The World Music Institute's "Dancing the Gods"
Symphony Space
New York, New York
April 22, 2017

The World Music Institute's Dancing the Gods sixth annual festival was a two-day presentation of classic Indian dance at Symphony Space; as its curator, Rajika Puri noted, this was the only evening-length program of Indian dance with live music present in New York this year.  Neena Prasad, with three musicians (the singer

"Allegro Brillante", "The Four Temperaments", "Symphony in C"
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
New York, New York
April 18, 2017

The New York City Ballet's spring season opened with three popular (judging from the packed house and prolonged ovations) Balanchine ballets. Not surprisingly the women were front and center with some tremendous performances and Alston MacGill's impressive debut in the third movement in "Symphony in C".  "Allegro Brillante", one of Balanchine's most concise and exhilarating salutes

"Sinfonietta Giocosa", "Motion of Displacement", "Ten Poems"
Scottish Ballet
Joyce Theater
New York, New York
April 16, 2017, matinee

The Scottish Ballet brought fourteen of its dancers and three works for its New York debut, a week-long season at the Joyce Theater. The dancers and the repertoire were not especially Scottish – this was no tourist-eye view of the country.  Christopher Hampson, the British born Royal Ballet trained choreographer who has directed the company since 2012, selected one Puerto Rican

"Five Songs for Piano", "Les Neuf Danseuses", "Harmonic", "Serenade" (excerpt), "Troublemaker", "Diagnosis", "Blooming Bouquet"
Columbia Ballet Collaborative
Miller Theatre
New York, New York
April 15, 2017, matinee

Ten years ago, a group of students at Columbia and Barnard, some of whom had danced professionally and all of whom had studied ballet seriously, decided to put on a show. Though these students have long since graduated, the Columbia Ballet Collaborative, run entirely by students, is thriving, offering classes, commissioning new works,

"Goddesses & Demonesses"
Blanca Li Productions
New York City Center
New York, New York
March 31, 2017

Blanca Li is a Spanish choreographer with modern and flamenco roots, and in 2015 she teamed up with the renowned Bolshoi dancer Maria Alexan- drova to create an exploration of womanhood refracted through various Greek myths. She used their two amazingly strong bodies, imaginative lighting by Caty Olive (who knew Venetian blinds could be so beautiful?), stunning video wizardry by Charles

Le Sacre du Printemps (the Rehearsal)", "The Open Door", "Brandenburgs"
Paul Taylor American Modern Dance
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
March 26, 2017, matinee

The final performance of Paul Taylor's New York season featured three Taylor works set to great music (by Stravinsky, Elgar, and Bach), outstanding dancing, and one farewell, as Francisco Graciano make his last New York appearance with the company.  The afternoon opened with Taylor's oblique take on Stravinsky's "Rite

"Continuum", "Ports of Call", "Syzygy"
Paul Taylor American Modern Dance
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
March 24, 2017

In addition to the standard two new Taylor pieces, Paul Taylor's recent New York seasons have featured works by other choreo- graphers, with predictably mixed results.  Lila York, whose "Continuum" had its New York premiere this season, danced with Taylor in the 1970s and 1980s, and has choreographed many pieces since retiring from dancing.  The

"Danbury Mix", "Ports of Call", "Black Tuesday"
Paul Taylor American Modern Dance
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
March 18, 2017, evening 

Paul Taylor's takes on heroic and absurd America were on view Saturday night, as each work dealt with aspects of American life.  "Danbury Mix", choreographed in 1988 for the New York City Ballet's American Music Festival, combines (or mixes) three excerpts from pieces by Charles Ives (of Danbury, Connecticut, the program explains)

"Served", "Counterpoint", "Oasis"
TomGoldDance
Gerald W. Lynch Theater
John Jay College
New York, NY
March 14, 2017

Tom Gold, a former soloist with the New York City Ballet, has been choreographing for his small company (made up of a revolving group of dancers, several from is old home company) and for his sixth New York season he presented one premiere and two works from 2016, an impressive output. His choreography is musical, light-hearted and very enjoyable and his dancers look

"Scènes de Ballet", "The Two Pigeons"
A Tribute to Ashton
Sarasota Ballet
Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall
Sarasota, Floria
March 10, 2017, March 11, matinee, 2017, and March 11, evening 2017

Iain Webb has directed the Sarasota Ballet for ten years, and helped celebrate this milestone by presenting an all-Frederick Ashton program.  Though tin is the official tenth year wedding gift, Webb's programing was pure gold, giving the audience the Sarasota Ballet's premiere of Ashton's 1948 

"Fast Forward", "Gravity", "Anna's Last Day", "Sunrise", "Dark Forest"
New Chamber Ballet
City Center Studio 5
New York, New York
February 11, 2017

Miro Magloire's all-female six-member New Chamber Ballet performed five of his works in his usual home, the modest, informal Studio 5.  It has no wings, lighting, or sets, which allows the audience to get up close and personal with the dancers.  Magloire, as usual, introduced each piece, making it seem as if the audience were

"The Sleeping Beauty"
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
New York, New York
February 12, 2017, evening

Peter Martins' version of "The Sleeping Beauty" is a bit like the girl with the curl in the middle of her forehead – when it is good, it is very, very good, and when it is bad it is, not horrid certainly, but certainly disappointing.  Both aspects were on view Sunday night.  Tiler Peck and Tyler Angle as the