Tag Archive Barret Anspach

ByGD

Signature at PNB’s Themes & Variations

As I mentioned in my summary post, I have seen Signature before. But that time I was looking forward to seeing something else, and didn’t give it quite the attention it deserves. This time, I think it was my favorite piece in the mixed rep program that ends PNB’s 2018/2019 season, Themes & Variations.

Unexpected Directions

Signature starts with the lights down low – literally. The lighting truss was dropped down so low that it framed the stage. Eventually the frame expanded, and the lights became brighter. But by that time your attention was already focused on the dancers in practical blue and olive body suits. It was a simple thing, but unexpected, much like the rest of Signature.

Choreographed by PNB soloist Price Suddarth in 2015, Signature used a very familiar vocabulary. Except for some pointy snowflake lifts in the middle part, all of the movement was standard ballet. But every movement was different from what you expected to come next. That sense of constant mild surprise was like the fizz in a summer drink, giving the performance a delightful sense of lightness. To me, the unpredictability elevated Signature from merely pretty to something more substantial even as it injected humor.

Something Unique

Suddarth’s notes say the intent of the piece is to explore the value inherent in each of us as unique individuals, even when we struggle to identify anything in particular that is special about any one of us.

“The most beautiful thing we each have to offer is that we are 100% irreplaceable, distinctively singular, and utterly unmatched.”

Price Suddarth, program notes

That idea is perfectly captured in the unusual combinations of familiar movements in Signature.

In contemporary ballet, you often have a small cast where each dancer is doing their own thing. In Signature, you still have groups of people performing the same steps en masse. But compared to more traditional pieces (like Sleeping Beauty earlier in the season or Theme and Variations later in the program) the dancers in Signature are all doing the same thing in their own way. That looseness reminded me of the dancers I saw in Oslo. But coming from a company that excels in the military precision of classical ballet, those little variations in arm position felt like strong statements – signature moves, even.

Lasting Impressions

I have already said a bit about the music in a previous post, but it bears repeating here. VVLD, the Vivaldi-inspired double violin concerto with orchestra that local composer Barret Anspach wrote for the ballet was some of the best music I’ve heard in a while. Ballet music can disappear behind the dancers sometimes, but VVLD was like an extra dancer. Drawing attention to its own beauty without detracting from the dancers’, it contributed a lot to the celebratory feeling of the piece.

Elizabeth Murphy and Jerome Tisserand in Price Suddarth’s Signature, Photo © Angela Sterling c/o PNB.

I also mentioned in a previous post that I came into this program tired from a super stressful week. Getting too tired always starts the negative self-talk loop in my brain, so this lighthearted affirmation that you don’t have to be special to be unique was a timely breath of fresh air. But it was a joy to watch even if you weren’t in need of a pick-me-up.  

Changing Impressions

Finally, I have one observation that I haven’t previously shared. For years there were a handful of dances that I would never miss. But I mostly sought out novelty and skipped familiar programs. Cost was a factor, and when you just can’t afford to attend everything, it often makes sense to prioritize new work. But whenever you can, it’s so worth seeing things again. Your mood and energy level are different every time you see a ballet. Your knowledge of dance continues to grow. There are different dancers every time a piece is staged, and they each bring unique talents and interpretations to a piece – even when that’s not what the piece is about. You never know when your favorite ballet might turn out to be something you thought was okay a couple seasons ago.

Details

Remaining performances: June 6 – 8 at 7:30 pm and June 9 at 1:00 pm

Tickets ($30-$187) are on sale online, by phone – 206.441.2424, or in person at 301 Mercer Street at Seattle Center. Subject to availability, tickets are also available 90 minutes prior to show times at McCaw Hall.

Music: Barret Anspach (VVLD, 2015)
Choreography: Price Suddarth
Costume Design: Mark Zappone
Lighting Design: Randall G. Chiarelli
Running Time: 30 minutes
Premiere: November 6, 2015, Pacific Northwest Ballet

Cast I Saw

There was a cascade of substitutions in the casting on opening night. I’m not even going to try to list the dancers because I know I’ll get it wrong.

{I attended Theme & Variations program courtesy of Pacific Northwest Ballet. The tickets were theirs, but the opinions are mine.}



ByGD

Themes & Variations at Pacific Northwest Ballet

The final ballet of Pacific Northwest Ballet’s regular season is Themes & Variations, a mixed program of four ballets that seems kind of random at first glance. Lately I’ve been trying to study more about the ballets I attend, but last week was a whirlwind that left me craving a quiet night on the couch with a book. I dragged myself to the ballet all unprepared and discovered once again that dance is a balm even for the introvert’s soul.

Pieces of a Puzzle

I never used to think much about how the ballets in a mixed rep program fit together, but lately I can’t help but notice. I don’t know if that’s because I’m developing as a viewer or Artistic Director Peter Boal has just been building some really great programs.

Despite being performed from newest to oldest, the four pieces in this program created a progression of ideas. Starting with a celebration of the individual and ending with a celebration of technique, with variations on both those themes throughout, the evening felt like an exploration of everything that’s wonderful about dance.

Signature

Music: Barret Anspach (VVLD, 2015)
Choreography: Price Suddarth
Costume Design: Mark Zappone
Lighting Design: Randall G. Chiarelli
Running Time: 30 minutes
Premiere: November 6, 2015, Pacific Northwest Ballet

I’m pretty sure I’ve seen Signature before, and I’m sure for the same reason that I can’t really remember seeing it. Signature premiered on a bill with Emergence, once of my favorite ballets. There’s no way I would have missed that night, but I would have spent the whole evening just waiting for Emergence. And that was a mistake. Because watching Signature this weekend, I really loved it.

Elizabeth Murphy and Jerome Tisserand in Price Suddarth’s Signature, Photo © Angela Sterling c/o PNB.

The choreographer, PNB soloist Price Suddharth, has described Signature as asking the question “Why me?” Not in the self-pitying sense, but in the imposter syndrome sense of self-doubt. This was a timely question for me, since exhaustion and discouragement go hand-in-hand. So I especially appreciated Suddarth’s answer, “Because me.” The dance celebrates the uniqueness of each individual person, whatever their strengths or weaknesses may be.

Plus, the music by Barret Anspach was just gorgeous.

Tarantella

Music: Louis Moreau Gottschalk (Grande Tarantelle, Op. 67, c.1866), reconstructed and orchestrated by Hershy Kay
Choreography: George Balanchine © The George Balanchine Trust
Staging: Peter Boal
Costume Design: Mark Zappone
Lighting Design: Randall G. Chiarelli
Running Time: 8 minutes
Premiere: January 7, 1964, New York City Ballet
PNB Premiere: January 31, 1985

Tarantella is one of those faux-folk dances that classical ballet choreographers love to throw into the middle of story ballets, and that’s not usually my thing. Those dances often feel pretentious to me, like an academic in overalls. But Tarantella is energetic and cheerful with just a hint of camp embedded in its humor, and I was with my 15-year-old daughter, who loves all of those things. Watching her delight made me enjoy Tarantella more. The fact that Angelica Generosa was performing helped, too. I’ve always thought nobody does saucy like she does. At least I did until my daughter whispered, “He’s a saucy boi,” thus proving that Generosa’s partner Kyle Davis can lay it on thick, too.

Angelica Generosa and Kyle Davis in Tarantella, by George Balanchine, Photo © Angela Sterling c/o PNB.

How does it fit into the program? Signature was about our character as individuals. Tarantella is about two individual characters, Neapolitan street performers. Compared to the contemporary ballet choreography of Signature, Tarantella takes a more academic approach, using classical technique even as it tells a story of common people.

The Moor’s Pavane

(Variations on the theme of Othello)

Music: Henry Purcell (The Gordian Knot Untied, Abdelazer, or The Moor’s Revenge), arranged by Simon Sadoff
Choreography: José Limón
Direction and Staging: Alice Condodina
Costume Design: Pauline Lawrence
Lighting Design: Randall G. Chiarelli
Running Time: 24 minutes
Premiere: August 17, 1949, José Limón Dance Company
PNB Premiere: November 12, 1986

Shifting from a common story told through classical technique, The Moore’s Pavane tells a classical story (Othello) through experimental technique. I know I’ve seen The Moore’s Pavane before. Even though it was probably back in the 1990’s, the choreography is instantly recognizable. Back then, I remember disliking it. It was just too weird. If they had prelectures back then, I never went, so I had no idea that the choreographer, José Límon, was experimenting with a particular philosophy of movement that made it look unlike any other ballet.

(L-R) Lindsi Dec, Steven Loch, Joshua Grant, and Elizabeth Murphy The Moor’s Pavane, Photo © Angela Sterling c/o PNB

Armed with that information, the entire piece looked different. The pendulous Límon movements were forced into rigid patterns among the four dancers that gradually disintegrate as the story progresses and the characters’ own behavior deviates from social norms.

It is still weird. But this time it was also intellectually engaging and as a result, emotionally satisfying. Like Heironymous Bosch, a little Límon goes a long way. But you do need a little bit of it.

Theme and Variations

Music: Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Suite No. 3 in G Major, 1884; last movement)
Choreography: George Balanchine © The George Balanchine Trust
Staging: Judith Fugate
Scenic Design: Charlene Hall
Costume Design: Mark Zappone
Lighting Design: Randall G. Chiarelli
Running Time: 26 minutes
Premiere: November 26, 1947, Ballet Theatre (New York)
PNB Premiere: October 16, 1985

When I first started watching ballet, I couldn’t wait to see a “real tutu ballet.” I was so disappointed when I did. Compared to the contemporary choreography I really love, tutu ballets are so rigid and predictable. With a name like Theme and Variations, it’s easy to suspect you’re being tricked into watching dancers perform practice drills. Sometimes traditional classical ballets do feel like that.

Jerome Tisserand and Lesley Rausch in Theme and Variations, by George Balanchine, Photo © Angela Sterling c/o PNB.

But sometimes, when you’ve had a rough week, predictable is soothing instead of boring. Sometimes, when you’ve just watched academic choreography based on an experimental philosophy, it’s easier to enjoy academic choreography based on traditional technique. Instead of looking for novelty or surprises, you can just enjoy flawless execution of high level technique.

Details

Remaining performances: June 6 – 8 at 7:30 pm and June 9 at 1:00 pm

Tickets ($30-$187) are on sale online, by phone – 206.441.2424, or in person at 301 Mercer Street at Seattle Center. Subject to availability, tickets are also available 90 minutes prior to show times at McCaw Hall.

{I attended Theme & Variations courtesy of Pacific Northwest Ballet. The tickets were theirs, but the opinions are mine.}

ByGD

Music I Like – Live Performances

Last weekend was intense. On Friday night I saw the final program of Pacific Northwest Ballet’s season, Themes & Variations. On Saturday night I saw the Barboza lineup of Northwest Terrorfest. I intend to write about the ballet and the festival in more detail later, so I won’t say too much here, but naturally, I heard a lot of music I like.

Barret Anspach

There is alwasy good music at the ballet, but one piece in particular really grabbed me last Friday. Barret Anspach is a local-to-me composer. The double violin concerto VVLD was inspired by Vivaldi and written for the ballet Signature. I could not find an embed of the music, but it is worth clicking through to hear it on his webpage. http://barretanspach.com/#/music/vvld

And if you really can’t be bothered, here’s some of his older work.

Shrine of the Serpent

I saw five great bands at NW Terrorfest on Saturday, but of course I had my favorites. As often happens with me, I was most interested (and then impressed) by the opening band. Shrine of the Serpent from Portland were crushingly heavy. I recently read an article about Henry VIII and their set reminded me of his habit of executing people by “pressing.” But unlike most ridiculously heavy bands, Shrine of the Serpent have loads of melody.

Immortal Bird

I love the name Immortal Bird, which reminds me of Thao Nguyen’s feminist rage in “Meticulous Bird.” But the music is much different. This Chicago trio is more like the prize box at the dentist. Yeah, you had to let someone drill holes in your mouth bones, but look at all the fun goodies you can pick from!

If that sounds like a backhanded compliment to you, just ask yourself if you’ve ever seen a kid who wasn’t stoked to dig through the dentist’s prize box? (Plus, if you bought tickets to NW Terrorfest, you probably kind of like the sound of the dentist’s drill.)

Pelican

No, I did not see Pelican live last weekend, but since when have I ever been able to stick to a theme for an entire Music I Like post? The first time I ever heard Pelican, I realized there had been a seabird-shaped hole in my life up to that point. So when I found out this weekend that they are releasing a new album, Nighttime Stories, next week, you can bet I listened to the available tracks and loved them. I’ll probably like them again in next week’s post.