Zeroing in to the very essence of Ezio Bosso’s Symphony No. This was its stage premiere following an on-line debut performance in April. It is taking over as the Joffrey pit orchestra with the company’s move to the venue.īut the work that really sticks in the memory from this program is the poetically titled “Under the Trees’ Voices” by Nicholas Blanc, Joffrey’s rehearsal director and principal coach who is clearly coming into his own as a choreographer. The work is set to Giuseppe Verdi’s timeless music, which was ably performed by conductor Scott Speck and the Lyric Opera Orchestra.
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Also included are six short solo variations, and, of those, Valeria Chaykina’s performance particularly stood out, as she made the most of seemingly very little - a series of skip jumps and a few other choreographic bits.
“Birthday Variations” features three ensemble sections (at first, five women and one man) and the refined pas de deux stunningly realized by Amanda Assucena and Alberto Velazquez. One lovely half-lift in the pas de deux features the female dancer running her feet in the air, an uncomplicated and oft-used choreographic device, but it is done here, like everything else, with a sense of decorum and grace. This work is suffused with gentle, unhurried elegance, and while it has its moments of bravura technique, that is not the emphasis. Although Joffrey puts an accent on the contemporary, classical ballet remains at the heart of everything it does, and this work, which was very much choreographed in that style with tutus and opulent jackets, seemed like the perfect way to re-launch the company’s live performances. The Joffrey’s mixed-rep offerings often include only recent works, so it was a wonderful surprise to find “Birthday Variations,” a 1986 work by Gerald Arpino, one of the company’s co-founders, heading the program, and it proved to an ideal opener. There was an appealing diversity of styles and moods among the four works as well as a smart intermingling of solos, duos and larger ensembles - a mix that kept the evening fresh and engaging.
This well-chosen, often high-voltage program seemed to be just the thing for an audience hungry for live dance.
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