Little did I suspect when I watched the final performance of Yardbirdat Seattle Opera that it would be the last performance anyone saw at McCaw Hall for the foreseeable future. Like many others, I had tickets to see Pacific Northwest Ballet’s new program 1000 Pieces the following weekend. But two days before the program was to premiere, the governor shut down all large gatherings. In the midst of pandemic, it was a minor tragedy, but it wasn’t a total loss. In fact, it turned into a special event, the memory of which I will both cherish and grieve.
When I heard that Pacific Northwest Ballet principals Noelani Pantastico and James Yoichi Moore were starting their own off-season dance company, I knew it was going to be something special. I gladly took the ferry to Vashon to see Program One of the Seattle Dance Collective performed at the Vashon Center for the Arts. As you know, I was so impressed with both the facility and the overall program, I ran out of space to talk about the specific dances. So here are some of my impressions of the first three pieces: “The Grey Area,” “Shogun,” and “Sur Le Fil.”
PNB fans will already be familiar with the choreography of David Dawson (when I saw “Empire Noir” at PNB, it struck me as very metal.) “The Grey Area” suffered from being a good ballet surrounded by remarkable ones. While there isn’t any intriguing backstory or bizarre staging involved, this stripped down, architectural pas de deux was exactly the sort of contemporary ballet that you would want to build a company repertory around.
Angela Sterling photo c/o SDC
Devoid of bells and whistles, with a minimal violin soundtrack and neutral, almost nonexistent costumes, there was nothing to focus on here but the lines and angles of competent dancers. This was the only piece on the program with pointe work. It was a perfect introduction, establishing the company’s technical chops before challenging viewers with the more adventurous choreography to follow.
Angela Sterling photo c/o SDC
Shogun
Choreography: Ivonice Satie Music: Milton Nascimiento, Fernando Bryant Staging: Liris do Lago Lighting Design: Ivonice Satie
Cast I Saw: James Moore, Ezra Thomson
Moore has a personal connection to Shogun because he grew up watching Ivonice Satie’s ballet about passing down Japanese cultural heritage to the next generation in San Francisco. But this was one of the pieces I was most excited to see because of a different personal connection. Satie dedicated the piece to her grandfather who taught her the traditional Japanese arts of laido and Shinto-ryu. My husband is one of only three Americans certified to teach that style of sword work.
Fumichigai?
Angela Sterling photo c/o SDC
So of course we were looking for evidence of Shinto Ryu, and though the dancers wore hakama, the choreography was not nearly so literal. “Shogun” explores the relationship between master and disciple, which was much more obvious than martial tradition in the choreography, with one dancer often mimicking the other. On the other hand, we are only familiar with the sword arm of the Shinto Ryu curriculum. Another branch of the school practices kenbu (martial dance) which includes the use of fans. Maybe Satie was literal after all?
Angela Sterling photo c/o SDC
Sur Le Fil
(By a Hair’s Breadth)
Choreography: Penny Saunders Music: Mike Wall, Moon Dog, Yann Tiersen Staging: Jacqueline Burnett Lighting Design: Ben Johnson
Cast I Saw: Liane Aung, Angelica Generosa, Jim Kent, Elle
Macy, Elizabeth Murphy, Miles Pertl, Ezra Thomson, Dylan Wald
Between the suspenders and the fedoras, it was inevitable
that “Sur Le Fil” would remind me of Twyla Tharp’s “Waiting at the
Station.” But costuming is really all those two dances have in common. In
contrast to Tharp’s jazzy soundtrack, “Sur Le Fil” starts out with a poem
recorded in French and moves through field recordings of a child talking, radio
news broadcasts, muted drums, and the Amelie soundtrack.
Angela Sterling photo c/o SDC
The fedora hats are more than just costuming. They become props
to the dance, earning so much attention from both dancer and audience that they
start to feel meaningful. Unlike “Waiting at the Station,” I never discovered the
metaphor in “Sur Le Fil,” but eventually the hats became a more abstract focal
point. Like a mantra.
Angela Sterling photo c/o SDC
My first impression was of “Waiting at the Station,” but in the end, “Sur Le Fil” was more like “Little Mortal Jump.” It inexplicably made me want to cry.
{I attended Program 1 courtesy of SDC and Vashon Center
for the Arts. The tickets were theirs; the opinions are mine.}
In kindergarten, almost every kid has the same favorite subject in school – Choice Time. Choice time usually disappears in third grade, but when it does appear in later life, it’s usually still a favorite. For me, that means the annual Director’s Choice program at Pacific Northwest Ballet. Of course, it’s the director’s job to pick the programs, so in a sense every program is the director’s choice. But the idea behind Director’s Choice is that for this one program, the director picks ballets he likes best without consideration for budgets and ticket sales. I doubt that the director is ever free from those considerations, but it’s a nice idea and it is true that Director’s Choice includes more premieres and bolder works than other programs throughout the season. Which is why I always end up liking it best.
This year was even more special to me, because for once, I only brought my kids to the introduction of the blog post, but was free to attend and enjoy the actual ballet for myself, without consideration for what kind of value it may have for kids or how to help kids understand and enjoy it. Even better, my companion for the evening is a dancer herself, so I could share her insights that I would never get on my own. Read More
The Director’s Choice program is always one of my favorite ballet performances of the year. I look forward to Peter Boal’s selection of modern, intriguing, challenging pieces all year. So when I ran a 102 F temperature the day before I was supposed to go, I hated the thought of missing it. Fortunately, as a season subscriber, I was able to call the box office and change my dates without any fees. Unfortunately, on the day of the final performance, I was still completely out of commission, so I ended up sending my husband and daughter. My daughter has been attending the ballet for half of her life. That’s only five years of ballet, so her opinions are not necessarily the same as mine. But her opinions (lightly edited) are the ones you’re getting today.
