Saturday November 22, 2008 - Tonya and I attended Miro Magloire's New Chamber Ballet who were performing four works at Studio 4, New York City Center. Photo from SILENT SHADOWS/photo by Kristin Lodoen Linden.
Miro spoke briefly before each piece and refreshingly, rather than talking about his choreography, he told us about the composers and his reasons for being attracted to the works he set. As a musician who choreographs, Miro's perspective in terms of choosing music is somewhat different from other choreographers so that he could use something like Giacinto Scelsi's Xnoybis - which would not at first hearing seem to be conducive to dance - and convince us that it works perfectly.
The opening work, DREAMS in fact is danced to near-silence. Three women - Emily SoRelle Adams, Elizabeth Brown and Emery LeCrone - provide the 'score' by whispering, speaking quietly and later clicking their tongues. Miro's dances are all on pointe, all rooted in classical technique. His style is fluid and gestural, intimate and elegant.
What set this evening apart from other dance performances in smaller venues was the presence of the musicians: Erik Carlson (violin) and Victoria Tzotzkova (piano) performed with scrupulous musical detail and full-bodied tone. In Karlheinz Stockhausen's Sonatine for the solo ballet of the same title, Erik and Victoria gave the music a other-worldly glow which was mirrored in the beautifully expressed dancing of Madeline Deavenport.
In SILENT SHADOWS Miro presents a vision of the after-world which is haunting in its simplicity and dreamlike serenity. In a way, the work is a counter-poise to Balanchine's CHACONNE with the three dancers (Mlles. Adams, Deavenport & LeCrone) as dark-clad spirits united in reverie in some imagined Elysian Field. Erik Carlson's sustained playing of the drone-like Scelsi music, which pulsates shimmeringly between semi-tones, showed his masterful control. Creating an illusion of death-like slumber, the girls danced the third movement with eyes closed. While I did wish at the end for lighting which would have underlined the final images, I felt this evocation of life-after-death to be both moving and calming.
To the unabashed lyricism of Dvorak's Four Romantic Pieces, the evening drew to a close with the lush playing of Erik and Victoria for the premiere of Miro's ROMANTIC PIECES. Emily SoRelle Adams and Elizabeth Brown moved thru the pointe-lingering ebb and flow of steps with fluent grace; and Emery LeCrone - sister of NYC Ballet's Megan - was a thorough delight in both the sustained balances and the flowing lines her solo demanded. She also happens to be a distinctive beauty (photo, above) with a captivating smile.
The performance was well-attended and both the dancers and musicians were warmly applauded. For its meshing of live music and movement, the evening was really enjoyable. I'll look forward to Miro's future performances.
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