Friday November 19, 2010 - Miro Magloire's newest ballet was the opening work at tonight's New Chamber Ballet evening at City Center Studio. Conceived as a duet for two women, Miro weaves movements from three Handel violin sonatas into a lovely totality, drawing on alternating tempi and shifting from major to minor keys which give the dancers varying moods for each segment. Dressed in Candice Thompson's elegant deep blue Empire-waist tunics which show off their long legs (and which give a slightly Isadora feel) Victoria North and Alexandra Blacker seemed truly to enjoy dancing to Handel. In one particularly nice duet, the girls are seated on the floor throughout, moving their arms and upper bodies in sync or in mirror-image. Violinist Erik Carlson and pianist Melody Fader gave perfectly paced renditions of the music. I wonder why choreographers don't look to Handel more frequently; the dances from his opera ALCINA alone seem like a veritable goldmine of possibilities.
Top photo by Kristin Lodoen Linder.
Moments to Salvatore Sciarrino's Caprices for violin is a duet for dancer and violinist. Lauren Toole weaves Miro's patterns around violinist Erik Carlson, first in slow plastique and then in more lively, space-exploring moves. At the end she plucks the violin strings for an ironic final image. The piece must be fiendish to play: buzzy, insect sounds which must be sustained. Lauren danced expressively and with fine control in the slow passages.
In Miro Magloire's 104 Farenheit, set to his own score, dancers Alexandra Blacker, Elizabeth Brown and Madeleine Deavenport each have solos which express the effects of summer heat - from languid to frenzied. Pianist Melody Fader turns the demanding score into a tour de force.
Allegretto, Innocente with music by Haydn is also set as a trio: Lauren Toole, Victoria North and Maddy Deavenport are the three women who take turns dancing and posing in black black velvet capes. The velvet panels also serve as a drop curtain - in one passage only the dancer's legs and feet are seen, in another only the upper body. This witty piece was underlined by Melody Fader's rhythmically alert playing.
Emery LeCrone's Five Songs for Piano is a piece Kokyat and I have followed since its birth. To music of Mendelssohn, this ritualistic piece for five women is one of the choreographer's most appealing works. The five New Chamber Ballet women actually danced this piece twice today: a noontime showing at the 92nd Street Y and then here at City Center.Tonight each brought touches of personal drama to the work, and pianist Melody Fader gave Mendelssohn's melodies their full flight of lyricism.
Emery LeCrone (above, in Kokyat's photo) is one of the busiest choreographers in the business. Now choreographer-in-residence for New Chamber Ballet, she also premieres another work this weekend for the Columbia Ballet Collaborative. I'll catch it for sure, at MMAC on Sunday afternoon. Come and meet me there!
Tonight I enjoyed catching up with my friend Monica Wellington whose first visit to NCB this was. Also wonderful to run into Emily SoRelle Adams and Nancy Richer.
New Chamber Ballet's next performances are set for February 4th and 5th, 2011.
I really enjoyed the evening, being so close to the beautiful dancers and excellent music in the studio setting. I know I will go again!
Posted by: Monica | November 20, 2010 at 12:57 PM