Symphony In C, Australian Ballet, State Theatre, Arts Centre Melbourne, Wednesday August 20th 2017

"Symphony In C", Australian Ballet, State Theatre, Arts Centre Melbourne, Wednesday August 20th 2017

"Symphony In C", Australian Ballet, State Theatre, Arts Centre Melbourne, Wednesday August 20th 2017

For those new to my blog I write about the holistic experience of attending the theatre. I buy my own tickets. So if you want a re-telling of the story please refer to the links for further information or for further insights.  Note, that I may provide different links for repeated main words or phrases.  I write for my memories of what I have seen, and is more of a stream of consciousness.

The Australian ballet has redeemed their repuation after viewing a very ordinary performance of "The Sleeping Beauty" with the "Symphony In C" programme of works.  

In The Australian Ballet's annual subscription brochure this programme was advertised as "Symphony in C" plus two new one act ballets by Richard House and Alice Topp.  When I read that instead of the traditional triple-bill it was to be truncated into one act of five short works, including the two new works by Richard House and Alice Topp, I was not happy.  I wanted to see fully completed one act works by these two choreographers.

Gladly I can say that the night was worth it.  I can understand why the extra three short works were added to act one.  The two new works by these young choreographers were long enough to show their work and I did not feel cheated by the length of their works.  It is better to have quality than quantity.

Congratulations to the Arts Centre for the pre-show announcement with a slightly different message.  The gentleman informed the audience that there were five short works in Act One and requested that patrons please not turn on mobile phones and other devices in between.  People of course still turned them on, and one Stalls' usher shone her light to tell them to turn off their device.  Good on the usher for being so vigilant.  The view from the Dress Circle at times is like watching a Christmas tree light up with the rude patrons switching on their "Fear-of-missing-out" devices!

"From Silence" choreographed by Richard House opened the evening with audible gasps of appreciation from the audience.  The raising of the red curtain revealed the most sumptuously long red train hanging from the back of a Amanda McGuigan.  It was such a breathtaking opening.  Then when she was raised into the air there were more audible gasps of surprise as he had been hiding under the long red train.  The dancing was fine and will become more secure with more performances.  The four dancers did Richard House proud and with more confidence will relish in the beautifully constructed pas de deuxs.  Some of the lifts are tricky and with a new work the dancers need time to be in their "skin".  The first couple were juxtaposed with a second couple who wore costumes to counterbalance the odd splash of red.  Each dancer wore red in a different part of their costume and this is so in keeping with the theme of silence.  You never know where stillness or silence can appear.  The same with the slight red splash - we had to seek it out.

Costumes and Set Design by Kat Chan could have overpowered the work and added to what is hidden beneath the surface of any situation.  The union between dance and costumes paid homage to the iconic Alwin Nikolais.

"The Grand Pas Classique" choreographed after Viktor Bsovksky was brilliantly danced by Lana Jones and Brodie James.  Lana Jones, who has recently returned from maternity leave, danced with impeccable precision and accurate footwork that was like tatting a delicate lace table cloth.  I have rarely seen such precision in my fifty plus years of seeing ballet.  My heart was racing with the excitement and accuracy that this fine couple displayed. She was sharp and he was a fine bravura partner to show off his virtuosity.  Lana Jones displayed the most incredible finesse with epaulement and captured so nuanced movement qualities.  I was gasping and trying to remember the list of movement qualities that I witnessed.  One word: WOW.   Note the capital letters.  Repeat: WOW!
Oh by the way, I forgot to mention that I have not seen Lana Jones dance so well before.

"Pas De Trois From Imaginary Masque" choreographed by Stephen Baynes and costume design by Michael Pearce begins with the two, topless, athletic men on the floor.  The back cloth shimmers and reveals an exotic lady, Rina Nemoto.  Joseph Chapman and Cristiano Martino are strong and robust in this beautiful opening sequence.  They support Rina Nemoto in many complex sequences in a considered and fluid manner.  There is not a hint of doubt these men will honour this beauty as if a piece of fine porcelain.  This pas de trois teased me wanting to see more.

"Little Atlas" choreographed and with costumes designed by Alice Topp.  A large lit ring rose, angled and finally lowered to capture Leanne Stojmenov as if a prisoner of her own environment.  This was easily the best ballet so far and what competition had preceded this new piece.  There was a large curved beam upstage that also acted as a spacial divide between universes.

"Diana and Acteon Pas De Deux" concluded the first act of mixed works.  This pas de deux choreographed after Agrippina Vaganova and Joseph Mazilier was danced by guest artist Gillian Murphy and Ty King-Wall.  The audience laughed at his entrance as he wore a Grecian style tunic that was very camp and ridiculous.  His dancing and bravado made up for the historic and hysterical costume with his clean, sharp and polished technique. He displayed strong lines and crisp finishes to his sequences.  Gillian Murphy's angled her right wrist and poked her chin forward that detracted from her lines.  I do not know if this is choreographed but it looked corny.  "Diana and Acteon Pas De Deux" was my least favourite ballet for the first half of the programme.

After interval "Symphony In C" choreographed by George Balanchine begins with an opening tableau that received appreciative applause from the audience.

As an aside, remember the name Katherine Sonnekus as her photo did not appear in the programme.  Is she a new recruit, a contractor, a dancer on exchange with another company or from the Australian Ballet School? Who ever she is, she did not stand out but blended in with the style of the company.  I am so curious and look forward to seeing more of Katherine Sonnekus dancing with the company.

Leanne Strojmenov was in top form with Guest Artist David Hallberg in the first movement. They shone as a partnership with his assured support and his dynamic and explosive sautes.   He is as light as a feather and suspends in space with his ballon.  His batterie is sharp and precise.  

The second movement showcased the return of Lana Jones and this time partnered by Ty King-Wall.  They make a great duo and I look forward seeing them teaming up together again in the future.

The third movement saw Ako Kondo partnered by Chengwu Guo in another powerhorse pas de deux.

The third movement pas de deux was danced beautifully by Jade Wood and ANdrew Killian.

The corps de ballet framed the ballet with their neat spacing and accurate port de bras.  It is such a delight to see the dancers coached to display a consistent wrist shape.  One dancer on stage left in the opening sequence was so fragile that her port de bras required effort.

Overall the dancers were in top form and redeemed themselves with a great night of dancing.

Overall this performance obtained a 7.5/10.

Bodytorque - DNA June 18 2014

Bodytorque - DNA June 18 2014

State Theatre, Victorian Arts Centre, Melbourne.

This is the first time that the Australian Ballet has presented their Bodytorque season in Melbourne. The theme this year was DNA and five works were presented with varying degrees of success.

"CORPUS CALLOSUM" choreographed by Richard Cilli with music by James Wade and costumes by Monica Morales was easily the highlight of the evening.

This piece had the best flow and segues between movements.  Visually it made sense like an animated science explanation of DNA.  The groupings and relationships created a variety of shapes and images.  At times it was like we were looking under a microscope with the ripple effect of moves.

This work seemed to be the most polished of the evening with their precision and finish to the choreography. It did not appear to be just a series of impressive groupings or tricks but instead showed us a depth of choreographic understanding to keep the audience intrigued.

"I CANNOT KNOW" with  choreography and costume design by Joshua Consandine  and music by  George Lentz showcased an Alice In Wonderland style adventure.  Starting in silence before the main curtain our "Alice" type character reveals a galaxy of moving images.  They could be stars, moons or comets.  It was like a variation of the above animated science explanation of DNA, each moving in their own unique manner.

The dancers wore beautiful black and sparkling unitards which glistened against the blue lit back curtain.  These costumes made an instant impact that wanted you to watch these bodies move.

The choreography varied at times and really showcased the dancer's strengths.  This was evident in Chengwu Guo's brilliantly executed and explosive jetes and sautes.   Yes it made you sit up and take notice that he created dynamic shifts in attention but to the detriment that his impressive solos were jarring and incongruent to the rest of the choreography. 

I loved the partner work and worry there is not always a natural flow to create the final beautiful image of various challenging lifts.  Some of the lifts or images are created at the expense of the choreography.  What I really admire is the ability of Joshua Consandine to create such innovative lifts and images.

"SAME VEIN" choreography and costume design by Alice Topp with music by Sergei Rachmaninov began with a soloist toying with a pair of antlers and creating various images.

The media artist Brendan Harwood provided a swirling kaleidoscope of images.  This to me was where the real dancing occurred and distracted from the physical dancers.  I thought there was too much reliance on the multi media as at times it was hard to see the dancers against the rear backdrop and due to the lighting design.

The "fluffy" costumes were impracticable as "fluff "was falling off and could be dangerous if a dancer slipped on them.  These costumes were designed for impact and not for the rigours of dance wear.

The stillness moments or freezes were shaky and needed more composure.  This was the work that I thought needed more refinement to the choreography - when I  could see it against the competing multi-media backdrop.

Act Two began with "CONTROL" choreographed by Richard House and music by Gabriel Faure and costumes by Kat Chan.  This was supported by Graham Silver's lighting design of green spotlights and white fluorescent lights that created a pulse and a dance of images.

This work showed us variations of what is to be in control and when out of control.  It was like a visualisation of Martin Seligman's master work "What You Can Change and What You Can't."  I loved how one partner controlled the other in off-balance positions.  It showed the reliance on each of the dancers.  This was evident in the over-extended pointe-work and the exaggerated shifts in their centre of balance.

The men wore black shorts while the women wore black leotards with various designs. The most impressive costume was Ingrid Gow's costume that had a horizontal cream stripe across her upper chest and a stripe down the  side of her body. The choreography seemed to be made to highlight this costume superbly.  The most impressive image was when her stripes were highlighted in a seamless extension of her arabesque penche en-pointe.  They showed to great dramatic effect - either the strip on her chest or along her side depending on whether she was in epaulment or not.  The lines were perfect and the image is imbedded in my mind.  Even though the other women's costumes looked great, it was a shame that they did not create such a holistic image in concert with the choreography. 

I thought this piece was so well rehearsed and danced beautifully with poise, grace and respect for their partner.

"EXTRO" choreography and costume design by Timothy Harbour was danced to harpsichord music by Henrik Mikolaj Gorecki.   This work was like a ballet class with enchaiments joined together with some linking phrases. 

At times, due to some of the groupings, this reminded me of a ballet class version of the "Jets" and "Sharks" from "West Side Story."  Also with the repeated and explosive developpe with arms through fourth  reminded me of the opening sequence of the above movie.   This overused phrase had wrists flapping inconsistently with both the men and the women.

This piece was like a historical musical visualisation by Ruth St Dennis.  The men seemed to be like Ted Shawn with their crawling positions.  The men seemed to be the introverts when they were in the crouching and crawling positions similar to Hofesh Shechtor's "Political Mother."

The harpsichord music and the groupings reminded me both the music of Phillip Glass' and the frantic pace of Twyla Tharps' "In The Upper Room."

The finale image was powerful with the support of the focused triangular shaped lighting was like an advertisement for "So You Think You Can Dance Australia."

 I enjoyed this work though felt it could do with some refining and polish of some arm positions and purity of group line formations.

Overall, three out of five good works and two that need a bit of work. 

Let us hope that Bodytorque is a regular event that is shown in more cities annually.  This will give an opportunity for these new works to be seen by more audiences and give the dancers an opportunity to showcase new choreographers.  I think that Bodytorque should be a part of the Australian Ballet's season and would be the perfect vehicle for a second arm to their touring arm.