This article originally appeared in the Culture section of Bloomberg News on December 5, 2008. Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater’s Jamar Roberts, left; Amos J. Machanic, Jr., center; and Olivia Bowman rehearse in this photo taken on May 9, 2007. Photographer: Andrew Eccles/Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater via Bloomberg News Dec. 5 (Bloomberg) — The […]
Archives for 2008
Balanchine Casts Christmas Spell With ‘Nutcracker’
This article originally appeared in the Culture section of Bloomberg News on December 1, 2008. Dec. 1 (Bloomberg) — It’s too easy to yield to the magic of George Balanchine’s “The Nutcracker,” performed by the New York City Ballet. It’s harder to define that enchantment. Is it the Christmas tree that grows to a height […]
Thoughts on Balanchine’s “Nutcracker”
New York City Ballet: The Nutcracker / New York State Theater, NYC / November 28, 2008 – January 3, 2009 School of American Ballet students in New York City Ballet’s The Nutcracker. Photo by Paul Kolnik. Marie awakens to witness startling transformations. The Christmas tree grows to gargantuan size. The toy soldiers, neatly arranged in […]
Richardson Brings Eye Candy, Grace to Complexions
This article originally appeared in the Culture section of Bloomberg News on November 21, 2008. Nov. 21 (Bloomberg) — The multiethnic, multicultural Complexions Contemporary Ballet, which opened its two-week season at New York’s Joyce Theater on Tuesday, is devastatingly handsome and just as slick. Founded in 1994 by former Alvin Ailey stars Dwight Rhoden and […]
What Ever Happened to Bebe Miller?
Bebe Miller Company: Necessary Beauties / Dance Theater Workshop, NYC / November 11-15, 2008 Kristina Isabelle in Bebe Miller’s Necessary Beauty. Photo by Yi-Chun. I remember the veteran dancer-choreographer Bebe Miller for two qualities: the ferocity of her performing–she was a wild, thrillingly unpredictable woman when she was dancing–and, later, for the choreography of a […]
Lubovitch Group Brings Vintage Dances, New Dancers
This article originally appeared in the Culture section of Bloomberg News on November 7, 2008. Nov. 7 (Bloomberg) — The gala opening night of the 40-year-old Lar Lubovitch Dance Company, Wednesday, at New York’s City Center, revealed a great deal of what we’ve come to expect of this choreographer: grace, lyricism, easy musicality, clear structure […]
Tudor’s Stricken Lovers End Ballet Theatre Season
This article originally appeared in the Culture section of Bloomberg News on November 4, 2008. Gillian Murphy, right, and David Hallberg perform the pas de deux from “Romeo and Juliet (Romeo’s Farewell)” during American Ballet Theatre’s Tudor Centennial Celebration in New York on Oct. 21, 2008. The celebration runs at New York’s City Center through […]
An Enduring Connection: De Keersmaeker and Reich
Steve Reich Evening (Choreography by Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker) BAM Howard Gilman Opera House, Brooklyn, N.Y. / October 22-25, 2008 All told, Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker’s “Steve Reich Evening” had the deep civility of work made for an audience expected to think as well as to look and to listen. Cynthia Loemij and Tale Dolven […]
S.F.’s Laid-Back Balanchine Is Pretty as a Picture
This article originally appeared in the Culture section of Bloomberg News on October 14, 2008. Tina LeBlanc takes part in the San Francisco Ballet’s production of George Balanchine’s “Divertimento No. 15” at New York City Center in New York on Oct. 10, 2008. Performances by the San Francisco Ballet will continue in New York through […]
In the Flesh: Personal Indulgences No. 11
The old French saying is all too true: After a certain age, a woman must choose between her face and her figure. The added flesh that diabolically accretes to one’s middle with the passing years will keep the face attractively plumped out. Cut calories to preserve the figure and the face grows pinched and wrinkled. […]