Testing Assumptions
The current global zeitgeist of uncertainty and the tendency to jump to judgment inspired veteran dancer-choreographer Beth Corning's latest dance-theater work, “Foolish Assumptions.”
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World-class review of ballet and dance.
The current global zeitgeist of uncertainty and the tendency to jump to judgment inspired veteran dancer-choreographer Beth Corning's latest dance-theater work, “Foolish Assumptions.”
Continue ReadingAt a time when the roots of toxic masculinity are still being hotly debated within society (I'd argue nature and nurture aren't necessarily mutually exclusive bedfellows) the excellent “Boys Don't Dance” arrives, fully formed at a festival for children, but with enough layers to appease any audience.
Continue ReadingJust as The Wizard of Oz to the United States or Pinocchio to Italy, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is the coming-of-age novel of English childhood. The reception of Christopher Wheeldon’s ballet of the same name depends heavily on this legacy.
Continue ReadingDirector and choreographer Naoya Homan’s reimagining of “Aleko,” a one-act ballet where art takes center stage, dazzles the eye with a tragic meditation on the limits of freedom.
Continue ReadingIn “Me Time—Danza al Museo” by choreographer Camilla Monga, dance becomes a tool for deeper seeing. Through choreography, the museum becomes a space of cognitive and emotional activation. The result is an encounter that lingers long after the performance ends.
Continue ReadingIn San Diego, a surprisingly robust number of ballet companies compete for a relatively small audience. While two such companies, City Ballet of San Diego and Golden State Ballet, present mixed repertoire programs, San Diego Ballet performs almost exclusively the work of director-choreographer Javier Velasco.
Continue ReadingJulie Mehretu’s current exhibition at the Marian Goodman Gallery is astronomical. Our Days, Like a Shadow (a non-abiding hauntology) is a series of large, new, multicolored paintings that seem to float like planets, inviting viewers to walk around and in between them as if orbiting through a cosmic labyrinth.
Continue ReadingAn insistent electronic beat suffuses the dark-wood auditorium while people are milling about and locating their seats.
Continue ReadingDoug Varone and Dancers celebrated its 40th anniversary at the Joyce this final week of May with a time-honored formula—“something old and something new.”
Continue ReadingThe world premiere of Remi Wörtmeyer's "La Bohème" marked a seminal moment in the history of BalletMet. The two-act production was unlike any that the 48-year-old Columbus, Ohio-based company has ever staged and showed a marked ascent in its artistic merit.
Continue ReadingIn rehearsal, Dionne Figgins is exacting. She has an eagle eye as she runs choreography in short sections, making sure each detail is accounted for.
FREE ARTICLEWhere do you go when you’re at the theatre? Are you looking for escape or confrontation? Do you want to weep for the world or tap your toe? In their latest tour to London for A Festival of Korean Dance, Korea National Contemporary Dance Company straddles somewhere in the middle.
Continue ReadingLong before the dancers take the stage, Dance Theatre of Harlem’s season at New York City Center feels like one of the most energizing cultural events of the spring.
Continue ReadingIt is rare for George Balanchine’s grand, bedazzled “Symphony in C” to open a program. Its champagne-popping finale for 52 dancers tends to be a nightcap.
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The Spring is Blooming festival, by Dance Reflections by Van Cleef & Arpels, now in its fifth year, has become a highlight of the spring dance circuit.
Continue ReadingAs the audience come to their feet at the end of this ballet there is a noted difference to be seen on stage. Three women stand with joined hands, taking their call as the romantic leads of a loud and proud lesbian ballet.
Continue ReadingOne of San Francisco Ballet’s greatest assets is its home venue, the Beaux-Arts style War Memorial Opera House, with four rings of seating that require performers to project their energies practically to the exosphere.
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