ByGD
PNB company dancers in Yuri Possokhov’s RAkU, 2018. Photo © Angela Sterling.
Not gonna lie. I didn’t really like RakU, the ballet that premiered in Seattle as part of Pacific Northwest Ballet’s Emergence program last week. Despite absolutely loving some elements, there were a couple things I just don’t think audiences should tolerate. Even so, I keep turning the piece over in my mind, worrying at it like a splinter that won’t come out. There’s just so much to say about RakU. Read More
ByGD
The ballet has left me breathless before, but breathless and speechless? That’s new. There is so much to say about the current mixed rep at Pacific Northwest Ballet, Emergence, that I’m paralyzed before I begin. The title comes from the final piece in the rep, Crystal Pite’s Emergence. It’s an audience favorite capping off Little Mortal Jump and the Seattle premiere of RakU. I always go on about how Director’s Choice is the best rep of the season, but this one is so powerful. I wanted to go to the artist Q&A after the performance, but I was too wiped out and had to go straight home. Emergence left me exhausted and wrung out, like I had been through something. But in a good way. Mostly. Anyway, it felt more like an experience than a performance. Read More