nyc.dancr
Congratulations Anita Mannings, Julia Parma, Brianna Ford, Timonthy Downing, Katie Wetmore, Sharné De Wet, Jamaelya Hines, and all the Broadway Dance Center Professional Semester graduates.
Amazing showcase!!! Loved seeing your incredible artistry on stage tonight. So glad to have danced with or met you over the past few months. Best of luck on your next adventures!
Celebrating International Dance Day with a night out at the New York Jazz Choreographer Project.
Great job Ashley Stafford on your fun playful piece! I couldn’t take my eyes off you all Maya Wassermann, Monica Azpeitia, and Kim Senisi. Also enjoyed the wonderful piece by Sue Samuels and the Jazz Roots Dance Company.
Some new favorite choreographers and dancers…
Absolutely love “Who Is She”: a touching narrative and beautiful movements created by Kavin T. Grant and danced by Cory Nicole Hinton and Ke’Yana Robinson. “Man’s World”: an expressive and emotional solo choreographed by Rachel Leigh Dolan and danced by Hannah Jennens. “windows within our very flesh”: a contemporary take on jazz by Antuan Byers. Bookending the show were two dynamic group pieces, a fierce “Men’s Medley” by Billy Griffin and a sweet “The Cave” by Ali Koinoglou and Koin & Co Dancers.
Missed the show tonight? Catch the second performance tomorrow 4pm at Peridance Capezio Center!
Had a wonderful time tonight at New York City Ballet Here/Now Festival featuring works by Christopher Wheeldon. Thrilled to see many of my favorite dancers on stage.
My favorite piece goes to American Rhapsody. Set to the music of George Gershwin, the choreography reminds me of An American in Paris: a love story filled with playful moments, cheerful music, and non-stop movements that make everything feel larger than life.
Unity Phelan was absolutely amazing in the lead role in American Rhapsody. Also loved her duets in Polyphonia especially the 9th piano piece. How is Unity only a soloist?????
Tiler Peck was incredible in Mercurial Manoeuvres with so much control, so much speed, and yet perfect stillness when the music demands it. So beautiful.
Finally saw Lauren Lovette in a lead role after two seasons with NYCB. Loved watching Maria Kowroski again. Bravos to Amar Ramasar and Russell Janzen as well.
What a treat! At the ballet tonight with Aspen Santa Fe Ballet at the Joyce Theatre.
Thanks for putting the biggest smile on my face in “Eudaemonia.” You stole my heart with the gorgeous duet at the end of “Silent Ghost.” You then put those beautiful, sensual beating hearts on stage in “Huma Rojo” to entertain us, mesmerize us, and tease us. Ha! Loved every minute of it!
In tears again tonight watching Miss Saigon.
Live theatre makes me feel so sentimental. But how do you not cry, when a love story taking place in the midst of a savage war ends with a scream of “Noooooooo!” before the curtain drops and the lights go out to end the show.
Thank you so much Jennifer O’Connor for the treat. Love the performance!
History, progress, and why dance matters.
Dance is a reflection of our times. I’m lucky to see two amazing shows in two days, that mark the progress we’ve made in the past 70 years.
Yesterday, I saw a 1940s classic choreography, set in New York and forged at a time when the city needed an escape from the great war. In the dance, sailors on leave looked for beautiful women on the streets, catcalling them, grabbing them by the ass, and snatching their purse for fun. A smash hit in 1944, the work enlivened the city when its inhabitants needed it the most.
However, in between the gorgeous movements and comedic scenes, the story also reflected its own times when men had power, control, and are the only ones with a character and a voice on stage. Women looked pretty in their dresses.
Today, I went to see Ballet Hispánico one more time this season at the Joyce Theater, and re-watched their new work premiered earlier this week. The dance is a coming-of-age story about growing up Latina in Texas, created by a female choreographer, told by a female character, through the movements of a ballerina. The external struggles to be more Mexican than the Mexicans and be more American than the Americans. The internal struggles to beautiful, to be perfect. The character merged, at the end, strong and confident in her own identity.
Coincidentally, I sat next to a 12-year-old pre-professional dancer training at Alvin Ailey. She loved the show. More than just enjoying the performance, she now has an incredible story to guide her (she’s Latina) and a role model she can look up to.
And that’s why dance matters.
Dance has the power to entertain, communicate, connect, empower, and inspire people. Let’s keep dancing. Let’s keep telling the stories that need to be told. Let’s make a difference.
At the ballet today with New York City Ballet featuring three creative choreographies by Jerome Robbins. Feeling inspired and looking forward to my classes with Dorit Koppel this week!
Saw the magic of Robbins’ first choreography, Fancy Free, that eventually went onto Broadway as On the Town. (Wish Tiler Peck danced more than just the passers-by role though.) Sterling Hyltin was gorgeous and lovely and funny in the comedy, The Concert. Finally, Moves, a ballet in silence, was full of beautiful, powerful, and (as Miss Dorit would call it) juicy movements. My favorite has to be the Pas de Deux in Moves, with 11 dancers constantly weaving in and out of the many duets happening at all once on stage.
Musicals that bring me to tears, latest addition: Groundhog Day
What if you could do everything and learn about everyone, but nobody would ever know of you or remember you. What would you do? What kind of life would you lead? Would you still dream? Would you still care? Would you still love?
Bravos to an incredible story and a fabulous cast, especially Andy Karl for putting an amazing show a week after his injury.
Girl Power and Strong Women! A stunning performance tonight by Ballet Hispánico featuring all female choreographers at the Joyce Theater.
Love the sensual yet explosive fusion of flamenco and ballet in “Línea Recta” by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa. Love the storytelling in “Con Brazos Abiertos” by a lead female character who has depths, is expressive and thoughtful, and who evolves and grows with the story. Thank you for the choreography, Michelle Manzanales. Wow! Just wow!
Plus, an educational post-show curtain chat.
Plus, taking Pinguino to his first show at the Joyce. Hello, Penguin Ballerina!
Ballet class and wine tonight at the American Ballet Theatre. Thanks for the fun class, Connor Holloway!
