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The American Ballet Theater Mixes Things Up
- Details
- Parent Category: Film and the Arts
- Category: Reviews
- Published on Wednesday, 20 July 2022 19:10
- Written by Jack Angstreich
Scene from Single Eye. Photo: Marty Sohl.
I had the privilege of attending the marvelous American Ballet Theater matinee performance on Saturday, July 9th—at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center—of this season’s excellent Mixed Repertory program, which upheld the impressively high standard of the current season as a whole.
The program reached its pinnacle with its opening presentation, an exquisitely realized version of the magnificent Theme and Variations, choreographed by the titanic George Balanchine and set to the enchanting eponymous movement of Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Orchestral Suite No. 3–here splendidly conducted by David LaMarche—and with attractive scenery and gorgeous costumes designed by Zack Brown–it seems certain that no more perfect masterpiece could be encountered in performances by this company during this season. The work is one of the greatest of Balanchine’s highly formalized, gracefulhommagesto the vanished world of the Imperial Russian Ballet.
The fabulous cast was led by a brilliant Herman Cornejo—who with the recent departure of David Hallberg is surely the finest male principal at Ballet Theater—and an astonishing Skylar Brandt, who has ascended to the first rank of ballerinas in the company. The secondary cast included Zimmi Coker, Zhong Jing-Fang, Breanne Granlund, Luciana Paris, Patrick Frenette, Cameron McCune, Garegin Pogossian, and Luis Ribagorda. The dancers were admirably supported by the sterlingcorps de ballet.The artists deservedly drew enthusiastic applause.
Less immediately accessible, but featuring some engaging choreography by Alonzo King, and conveying at least the impression of an ultimate expressive unity, was A Single Eye—a new Ballet Theater commission here receiving its local premiere—set to a contemporary score by Jason Moran, with appealing costumes by Robert Rosenwasser. The accomplished primary cast included: Christine Shevchenko, who was memorable this season in the lead role of Alexei Ratmansky’s new Of Love and Rage; Thomas Forster who also was notable as the other lead in Of Love and Rage, as well as in Swan Lake, as Prince Siegfried; Calvin Royal III; and Devon Teuscher.
More charming was the ebullient Zig Zag—which premiered at Lincoln Center last year during the fall season and held up well on a second viewing—choreographed by the talented Jessica Lang, set to songs performed by Tony Bennett, with delightful costumes by Wes Gordon. As to what the songs are that are featured, I quote here, with slight emendation, from my review of the original presentation:
“What the World Needs Now” by Burt Bacharach with lyrics by Hal David; the signature “I Left My Heart in San Francisco”; "Fascinating Rhythm" by George and Ira Gershwin; “Spring in Manhattan”; Cole Porter’s “It's De-Lovely,” a duet with Lady Gaga; "Just One of Those Things,” also by Porter; “Smile” by Charlie Chaplin, from the theme to his classic late feature,Limelight; “Blue Moon” by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart; Duke Ellington’s "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)”; and "How Do You Keep the Music Playing?" with music by Michel Legrand and lyrics by Alan and Marilyn Bergman.
The alluring main cast included: Teuscher and Paris again, Jarod Curley, Blaine Hoven, Cassandra Trenary, and Joo Won Ahn, who was outstanding in the lead role of Don Quixote, in the opening week this season. The dancers were again rewarded with a standing ovation.
The current season will close with a final week of performances of Kenneth MacMillan’s superb ballet of Sergei Prokofiev’s glorious Romeo and Juliet.
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