NYCB 5/14 – Contemporary Choreography I

        Tuesday evening’s Contemporary Choreography I program was not the spectacular, uplifting evening that we expected. 

 

        Alexei Ratmansky’s Pictures at an Exhibition was originally a hyperkinetic romp of artistry to Mussorgsky’s music which was inspired by an art exhibition of the work by Mussorgsky’s friend, painter Viktor Hartmann. Since the premiere of Pictures at an Exhibition nearly ten years ago, Ratmansky's homeland, Ukraine, has been shattered by Russian ethnic aggression which has, for the time being, re-shaped his artistic output. His most recent creation for NYCB last February, entitled Solitude, drew its inspiration from a journalist’s photo of a Ukrainian father kneeling over his son who had just been killed by a Russian bomb. Somehow Solitude with its clear imagery, some of which was also in Ratmansky’s earlier Pictures, reverse-informed that earlier work on Tuesday and made it decidedly more political than it was originally. The characters in Pictures at an Exhibition were far more dark, serious, and angry than they were a decade ago. When the men lifted the women from behind who then aimed one leg out in front like a rifle, it seemed to have a hostile and militaristic seriousness that was not present at the premiere in 2014. The solo for Baba Yaga, which originally depicted a whirling unhinged crazy character (Amar Ramasar) was on Tuesday more menacing when danced by Chun Wai Chan. Almost from the outset, the viewpoint from Solitude had suddenly influenced Pictures at an Exhibition. In any event, we’ve all seen enough of women holding their legs like rifles in Ratmansky’s choreography — and in Wheeldon's.  

 

        From a technical standpoint, Pictures at an Exhibition was strong and vivid. Mira Nadon’s uninhibited dancing in The Gnome was anything but the flailing abandon that audiences lapped up a decade earlier. Mira had absolute control over her wicked wildness. Her impulsivity was engineered to perfection. What a joy it was to witness this dancer apply her imagination to her art. Emma Von Enck, another protostar who is just heating up and was promoted to principal on Thursday evening, thrilled with her articulation and surprise punctuation of phrases. Alexa Maxwell showed great lyrical skills and promise in her adagio with Tyler Angle. A slight stuttering on an exit where she was supposed to rise from Angle’s torso was an insignificant blip in an otherwise beautiful pas de deux that brought us exquisite imagery such as Alexa “in flight” over her partner’s right shoulder.

 

        The opportunity to hear Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition played in its original piano solo form by Stephen Gosling is an opportunity that should not be missed. On Tuesday, his dazzling mastery over a grueling 35 minutes pretty much exceeded everything else on stage that night. 

 

        Ulysses Dove’s Red Angels received strong performances from Mira Nadon, Dominika Afanasenkov, Adrian Danchig-Waring and Joseph Gordon. It seemed a little subdued compared to the last performance of this ballet that we saw outdoors at Lincoln Center where Ashley Hod, Davide Riccardo, Emilie Gerrity, and Peter Walker devoured the choreography like a school of sharks and in doing so sent the Damrosch Park audience into a feeding frenzy.

 

          Gianna Reisen’s Play Time should be renamed Waste of Time. We cannot complain enough about the waste of money, time and talent that this nonsense represents. NYCB should be embarrassed about allowing this piece back on its stage. Actually, NYCB should be punished for allowing this piece back on its stage. There weren’t 30 seconds of watchable choreography. If the idea behind Play Time was to be obnoxious, juvenile, and TikTok-ish, well then, success! This piece had no chance whatsoever of succeeding because its musical foundation was sawdust. 

 

        Glass Pieces completed the evening with a gorgeous PdD by Unity Phelan and Adrian Danchig-Waring. How can we not miss the length of line that Maria Kowroski brought to this ballet? However, Unity’s lines were beautifully shaped, and Adrian’s extraordinary partnering created an effortless quality that nearly looked celestial. The soloists in the Rubric section were an odd collection of dancers who were either emotionally flat or trying way too hard to be dramatic —  while intentionally throwing their ribs out as far as possible. The Corps de Ballet was mostly fine on this first night, but lacked energy. Samuel Melnikov as the first man out of the gate during Akhnaten covered the stage impressively with his length and power.

 

        The HH Pump Bump Award is bestowed upon piano man Stephen Gosling for his superb solo playing of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition.

 

 

Comments

[Erich Yetter]

Haglund, you are not alone in your feelings about Play Time. Gia Kourlas's September 29, 2022 New York Times review of Play Time’s premiere was not the most complementary…”(the dancers) were less living in a dance than existing inside a holiday display. Perhaps weighed down by their costumes and fearful of flying crystals, they spent more time separate than together; closing in on one another they would turn in profile and undulate their arms — a signal, it seemed, to keep a safe distance. This ballet had a puerile side — an expensive game of dress-up. What do I wish for Reisen? That City Ballet would just let her make a dance with her own collaborators on a regular program. Her recent work for the City Ballet-affiliated School of American Ballet — which she attended — was a delight. She doesn’t need a gimmick.”
And Luke Lyman’s November 4, 2022 review of Play Time for The New Criterion shared your distaste for this piece…
“An aimless tension meanders in and out, shy at most points and completely reticent in others. No internal nor relational tension can project itself outward; there is no “fitting together” of the dancers (how can something with no form fit with something else?), no erotic embrace. A disconnect remains even in moments of meeting.
What we are left with is a ballet defined by its own invisibility. All organic substance and light vanishes behind the artificial protrusions and projections. A dancer cannot dance when his body is made invisible, nor can a choreographer choreograph an invisible body, nor can a musician compose a score for invisible choreography. This disappearance of substance, here both literal and figurative, is the endpoint of this thirst for total deconstruction.
Glamorized hostility and glitzy nihilism—that’s what Play Time offers. The choice to sever the audience from the art is nothing if not offensive.”
Finally, Ivy Lin’s May 15, 2024 review of the program you saw corroborates even further…
“The middle part of the program was poorly thought out. Ulysses Dove’s Red Angels and Gianna Reisen’s Play Time are both short ballets that make almost no impact. Red Angels at least has a catchy score played on an electric violin, and the cast (Mira Nadon, Adrian Danchig-Waring, Domenika Afanasenkov and Joseph Gordon) looked gorgeous in their red unitards. Play Time has a meandering score by Solange Knowles, even more meandering choreography, and the costumes by Alejandro Gómez Palomo are these hideous, bedazzled 80s power suits with huge shoulder pads. Worst of all, the ballet is only 12 minutes but seems interminable. The middle pieces just came across as filler.”

[Laura]

I’m really enjoying watching Dominika come up! She’s the whole package and it’s clear they have their eye on her. She especially seems to be cast in a lot of Wendy’s old roles.

[Haglund]

Laura, Dominika is interesting as is Ava Sauter. Both have gorgeous limbs and lines and seem to have the confidence to project what they can do. My sense is that they both will soar in Balanchine's black & white canon, and hopefully develop beyond that.

[Haglund]

Erich, I have to laugh hard at Gia Kourlas trying to make Gianna Reisen's disaster not Gianna's fault. If she could figure out a way to do it, Kourlas would blame it all on Peter Martins just so she could continue to revive his history. Reisen's lousy choreography is Reisen's fault -- nobody else's. However, her lousy choreography showing up on NYCB's stage is management's fault -- nobody else's.

[Rachel Perez]

I saw a rehearsal of Red Angels yesterday, and am looking forward to seeing Bradley/Stanley's debuts in these roles. It was a special treat that the electric violinist was there for the rehearsal. Gerrity and Riccardo are the other couple and were really great during rehearsal.

[Haglund]

Hi, Rachel.

I saw Red Angels last night. The debuts were fine (Taylor & Bradley) except for an awkward double pirouette toward the beginning by India. I do wish that she would learn how to make eye contact with the audience. She lifts her head but then continues to focus downward toward the front of the orchestra level rather than looking outward or upward. Gerrity and Riccardo were on fire and seemed very comfortable working together.

Missing Ashley Hod and Peter Walker in this piece, however.

Pictures at an Exhibition (with Nadon subbing for Mearns and Angle subbing for Danchig-Waring) was all the high powered energy it was supposed to be but the dancers seemed to be pushing their smiles rather hard. The two corps members in the cast Rommie Tomasini and Andres Zuniga were fine -- just not up to the level of the others. Tomasini needs to improve the shape of her feet which were not always as stretched and pointed as they should be. Zuniga needs to show us who he is other than a pristine technician. As usual, pianist Gosling was the star of this piece--just awesome.

Ava Sautter and Aaron Sanz were more than just serviceable in their Glass Pieces PdD debuts. The potential for spectacular was obvious. Both have exquisite lines and squeaky clean placement. Looking forward to seeing them again on Saturday when the debut pressure has dissipated.

[Rachel Perez]

Oof. I was shocked at how bad Play Time was. Nothing worked. The music, the choreography, the horrificly bad costumes (both shape and fabric). I cannot believe they brought this one back and put it on the program. Overheard dialogue in the theater post curtain suggested other patrons felt the same way.

On the other hand, despite groans from the audience at the casting change announcement, I thought Mira was a stunner in Pictures at an Exhibition. Seeing her and Tiler dance in the same piece, it made me think those are two (and Sterling to throw in a third) that I really would have liked to see Mr. B choreograph on. Tiler's inate musicality is incomparable, and Mira just "goes for it" - she is immediately identifiable as a City Ballet ballerina. You are spot on, Haglund, about the rifle pose. I noticed it and then it was confirmed in my rereading your review.

Glass Pieces was great. I forget how much I enjoy that ballet. It says something when you want to watch the corp traverse the stage in silhouette when there is an excellent couple dancing downstage. The men in the 3rd movement were full of energy.

[Haglund]

Hi, Rachel.

After today's extraordinary performance of Pictures at an Exhibition from all the artists but especially solo pianist Stephen Gosling, I decided that was how I wanted my day to end. There are some things that are so good that nothing should follow them. I felt that way today about Pictures at an Exhibition. So while I knew that I would be missing fine dancing in Glass Pieces (which I saw in the previous three performances), I wanted the Mussorgsky/Ratmansky/Gosling/Nadon/Peck et al experience to linger without interruption. Apparently a few others felt the same way.

[Rachel Perez]

A Gia article I can fully cosign: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/29/arts/dance/mira-nadon-new-york-city-ballet.html