“Hope Hunt and the Ascension into Lazarus” “Navy Blue” Oona Doherty/OD Works Ted Shawn Theater Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival Becket, Massachusetts Sunday, July 30, 2023 by Gay Morris copyright ©2023 by Gay Morris To be honest, I was a little afraid of Oona Doherty. The press materials sent out by Jacob’s Pillow, where Doherty’s company, Oona Doherty/OD Works, performed last week, made her sound angry and aggressive. Who needs more negativity after two-plus years of pandemic trauma? But Doherty confounded expectations. To be sure, there is anger in her dance. She is a native of Northern Ireland ..read more

"Giselle" American Ballet Theatre Metropolitan Opera House Lincoln Center New York, New York July 5, 2023 matinee by Mary Cargill copyright © 2023 by Mary Cargill ABT's policy of giving as many principals as possible a shot at a role limits the opportunities to explore and to grow into a role--one or two performances of "Giselle" every few years makes it difficult to play around with different interpretations and also means that dancers get cast in roles for which they might not seem suited. But this policy does stretch the dancers and can provide some exciting surprises. The the red-headed, r ..read more

"Giselle" American Ballet Theatre Metropolitan Opera House Lincoln Center New York, New York July 4, 2023, matinee by Mary Cargill copyright © 2023 by Mary Cargill ABT celebrated the 4th of July with their solid version of the Russo/French "Giselle", a ballet with few fireworks though with plenty of drama. The two American leads, Devon Teuscher (in her New York debut) and Aran Bell, gave rich, detailed, and committed performances. Teuscher, a tall, regal dancer, is not a typical Giselle (she is a stunning Myrta, a combination of fire and ice), but she used her natural authority to create a mem ..read more

“The Look of Love” Mark Morris Dance Group Ted Shawn Theatre Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival Becket, Massachusetts Saturday, July 1, 2023 by Gay Morris copyright ©2023 by Gay Morris In the early 1980s, a young Mark Morris rode the cutting edge of the zeitgeist with works that gave an important place to gender identity and fluidity. Forty years later, his dances are those of an established master; no need to unsettle or provoke. However, Morris hasn’t lost his ability to sense the tenor of the times. Today the mood is more somber than rebellious, while at the same time demanding some relief from ..read more

"Romeo and Juliet" The National Ballet of Canada Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts Toronto, Canada June 15, 2023 by Denise Sum copyright © 2023 by Denise Sum The last time Toronto audiences saw Alexei Ratmansky’s “Romeo and Juliet” was in March 2020. Just two days into the run, theatres in Toronto (and around the world) shut down when the pandemic hit. As the National Ballet of Canada gradually resumed live performances, the return to Ratmansky’s production marked a full circle moment. Dancers who have been preparing for “Romeo and Juliet” could at long last perform this dramatic bal ..read more

"Like Water For Chocolate" American Ballet Theatre Metropolitan Opera House Lincoln Center New York, New York June 24, 2023, matinee by Mary Cargill copyright © 2023 by Mary Cargill Balanchine once famously said that there are no mothers in law in ballet--that is certainly not true, and his revered "The Sleeping Beauty" proves; no one has trouble figuring out the relation of the Queen to the Prince in Act III. But his point that ballet is not suited to complex plots is certainly valid, and Christopher Wheeldon's new "Like Water For Chocolate", inspired by the Mexican writer Laura Esquivel's no ..read more

"Frame by Frame" The National Ballet of Canada Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts Toronto, Canada June 2, 2023 by Denise Sum copyright © 2023 by Denise Sum It is rare that a new work shows us something we truly have never seen before. When "Frame by Frame" premiered in 2018, it did just that. An ambitious, multidisciplinary collaboration between choreographer Guillaume Côté and famed Quebecois multi-hyphenate Robert Lepage, "Frame by Frame" is a homage to the life and work of Scottish Canadian animator Norman McLaren (1914-1987). In addition to artists of the National Ballet of Canada ..read more

“La Source”, “Namouna, A Grand Divertissement” New York City Ballet David H. Koch Theater Lincoln Center New York, New York April 29, 2023, evening by Mary Cargill copyright © 2023 by Mary Cargill “La Source” and “Namouna” were both elaborate 19th century ballets first presented at the Paris Opera choreographed by Frenchman to French music. “La Source” (1866,) with music by Léo Delibes and choreography by Arthur Saint-Léon and “Namouna” (1882), with music by Édouard Lalo and choreography Lucien Petipa (Marius’ older brother), have complicated plots, full of exotic locations, put-upon heroines ..read more

“Concerto Barocco”, “Kammermusik No. 2”, “Raymonda Variations” New York City Ballet David H. Koch Theater Lincoln Center New York, New York April 20, 2023 by Mary Cargill copyright © 2023 by Mary Cargill The three ballets on this all-Balanchine program were all abstract responses to music with energetic corps and intense pas de deux, yet each ballet had its own distinctive character. “Concerto Barocco”, from 1941, is one of Balanchine’s greatest works, a jazzy take on Bach, celebrating female dancing (the lone male turns up briefly to partner one of the ballerinas and then disappears), the spi ..read more

"Cinderella" The National Ballet of Canada Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts Toronto, Canada March 10, 2023 by Denise Sum copyright © 2023 by Denise Sum James Kudelka’s “Cinderella” has been a perennial favorite at the National Ballet of Canada since its premiere in 2004. With its broad appeal, “Cinderella” was programmed over March break to draw in families and hopefully gain some new audience members for the company. Kudelka’s modern take on the familiar fairy tale has something for everyone – humor, romance, intricate choreography, stunning designs and high production value. The l ..read more