book review
Book: Edwin Denby – His Life, His Dance Essays, His Poetry
Author: William Dunas
Publication: 2008 in Woodside, NY, USA
This home-made book is a proposal for producing a professionally printed book. The proposal consists of many un-numbered pages of text contained in a black 3-ring folder. The text is photocopied only on the frontside of each sheet of firm white paper. On the cover is the basic bibliographic information and a 1964 drawing by Red Grooms of
book review
Book: “Alles tanzt” issued by Andrea Amort
Published in 2019 by Vienna’s Austrian Theater Museum and Berlin’s Hatje Cantz
This big, weighty volume (almost 380 pages, 10.7 x 8.5 x 1.7 inches) has a German text with English summaries. In addition to the summaries, its plentiful and plush illustrations are proving to be of interest to those who do not read German. The book served as catalog for the exhibit “Cosmos of Vienna Dance
"Romeo and Juliet"
The National Ballet of Canada
Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts
Toronto, Canada
March 11, 2020
Before Toronto (and much of the world) went on lockdown, the National Ballet of Canada gave a spirited performance of Alexei Ratmansky's "Romeo and Juliet". The original cast from the world premiere in 2011, Guillaume Côté and Elena Lobsanova, shone as the passionate yet doomed lovers. They were supported by a strong supporting ensemble, as well as by Ratmansky'
"Chroma", "Marguerite and Armand", "Angels' Atlas"
The National Ballet of Canada
Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts
Toronto, Canada
February 29, 2020
The National Ballet of Canada's winter mixed program was a strong one, highlighted by the world premiere of Crystal Pite's captivating "Angels' Atlas", her second ballet commissioned by the NBoC. She created the powerful "Emergence" for the company in 2009 and "Angels' Atlas" follows in a similar stylistic vein while still feeling fresh. This program
“Fruits borne out of rust”
Tabaimo and Maki Morishita
Japan Society
New York, NY
March 7, 2020
Japanese visual artist Tabaimo is a woman on the verge of mid-life, determined to make that transition productively. “Fruits borne out of rust” is a multi-dimensional collaborative performance piece, weaving imagery, sound, and movement to tell mesmerizing stories through scenes that also provoke laughter and discomfort. Co-created with choreographer Maki Morishita and dancer Chiharu Mamiya, the “fruits” partnered Tabaimo’s
Demo: Now 2020
with Damian Woetzel, Jon Boogz, Robbie Fairchild,
Lil Buck, Lauren Lovette, Roman Mejia, Dario Natarelli,
Melissa Toogood, Brooklyn Rider quartet, Kate Davis, Alberta Khoury
Eisenhower Theater
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
Washington, DC
March 2, 2020
There wasn’t the familiar sparkle. This series of highbrow vaudeville acts usually comes to a sizzling climax. Not this time. I don’t think the coronavirus can be blamed. Moreover, the program got off to
“Defile”, “Birthday Offering”, “Meditation from Thais”,
“Allegro Brillante”, “Slaughter on Tenth Avenue”
Eisenhower Theater
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
Washington, DC
February 20, 2020
It is a fun program, the Balanchine and Ashton (and Kent) quintuple bill that The Washington Ballet is flaunting this February week. An audience that seemed to fill the theater enjoyed itself from start to stop – especially the stop: Balanchine’s “Slaughter”, which isn’t one of his sublime
"Polyphonia,” “Bright,” “Opus 19/The Dreamer,” “Voices”
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
New York, New York
February 12, 2020
"There are no new steps, only new combinations". So said George Balanchine. At New York City Ballet, the company he founded, that statement has given rise to the rubric New Combinations, most often incorporating a new work, and other modern or modern-looking works; tutus and tiaras need not apply. Such was the case here, with wholesale debuts
New York City Ballet
"Haieff Divertimento", "Concertino", "Episodes", "Rodeo: Four Dance Episodes"
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
February 6, 2020
New York City Ballet's February 6 performance was a look back, featuring two revivals (Balanchine's "Haieff Divertimento" from 1947 and Robbins' "Concertino" from 1982), a rarely performed solo from "Episodes" which was choreographed by Balanchine for Paul Taylor, then a member of the Martha Graham Company. (The first episode by Martha Graham
"Soul + Alma"
Theatre Flamenco of San Francisco
Herbst Theater, War Memorial Building
San Francisco, CA
February 1, 2020
Last November the Cowell Theater celebrated “100 Years of Flamenco in the Bay Area” with a Gala performance that packed the house with current and past Flamenco dancers/aficionados. For the 53rd home season, Artistic Director Carola Zertuche of Theatre Flamenco of San Francisco, the oldest local Flamenco company, presented Flamenco as a 21st century art. Even though it is
“A Tribute to Marian Anderson”
Dana Tai Soon Burgess Dance Company
McEvoy Auditorium
National Portrait Gallery
Washington, DC
February 3, 2020
She was one of the world’s greatest singers. Marian Anderson (1897-1993) specialized in German lieder and African American spirituals. Opera she had the chance to try only late in her career because prejudice against her African ancestry had, earlier, kept her off stages such as New York’s Met. Currently, Marian Anderson is the subject of a
“Polyphonia,” “Bright,” “Opus 19/The Dreamer,” “Voices”
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
New York, New York
January 30, 2020
The premiere of Alexei Ratmansky’s “Voices” on Thursday aptly illustrated the Balanchine aphorism (“There are no new steps, only new combinations”) that New York City Ballet employs as the motto of its annual winter New Combinations evening. Highly classical in it steps but unexpected in its mise-en-scène and conception, “Voices” proved a refreshing bit of