Saturday's Gala of International Ballet Stars at the
Aronoff was a night to remember.
The evening of short works assembled by ballet tech
ohio's Claudia Rudolf Barrett, Alexei Kremnev, Anna Reznik
and Marvel Gentry Davis brought together: Charles Askegard,
Jennie Somogyi and Kathleen Tracey from the New York City
Ballet; Amanda McKerrow, Paloma Herrera and Gennadi
Saveliev from the American Ballet Theatre in New York;
Christina Johnson, Donald Williams and Desmond Richardson
from Complexions of New York; Anastasya Meskova from the
Bolshoi Ballet; Greta Hodgkinson and Geon van der Wyst from
the National Ballet of Canada; Ms. Reznik and Mr. Kremnev,
who are guest artists, Northern Ballet Theatre, England.
If you like getting lost in a full-length work, then a gala is
not for you. It is short works thrown at you at a rapid-fire pace.
Classical pas de deux share the stage with edgy modern
works. There's no identifiable theme except the excellence of
the dancers.
All left their hearts on the stage, and the audience
responded with a standing ovation and applause that wouldn't
stop. When the lights came up, people were reluctant to leave.
There wasn't a shoddy performance, and with thirteen works to
choose from there was something for everyone.
It wasn't perfect — there were a few missteps and the
taped music, particularly for George Balanchine's “Apollo,” was
distorted at times. But perfection wasn't necessary; the event
was too exciting for it to matter.
Desmond Richardson is often described as the finest
African-American dancer in the world. In incredible form, his
“Solo,” choreographed by Dwight Rhoden to the music of
Prince, certainly distinguishes him as a solo artist. His control
and total commitment to the movement is absolute.
Local favorites Ms. Reznik and Mr. Kremnev made their
strongest statement with Val Caniparoli's fantastic “Fade to
Black” to the music of Nina Simone. There were major
fireworks between the two in this sassy, sultry, rough-love
duet.
Paloma Herrera was a delicate slave girl to Gennadi
Saveliev's bounding pirate in Le Corsaire pas de deux. Her
single and double fouettes (wonderful, continuous turns) were
bested by his wild, explosive jumps that brought gasps from
the audience. It's a dance meant to thrill, and that it did.
Other thrilling moments: Ms. Meskova's kicks as high as
her head in “Esmerelda”; Ms. Anderson and Mr. Walsh,
passionately involved in Ben Stevenson's dreamy “End of
Time”; Ms. Johnson and Mr. Williams, electrifying in Mr.
Rhoden's “Ave Maria”; Ms. Hodgkinson and Mr. van der Wyst's
right-on realization of William Forsythe's “In the Middle
Somewhat Elevated.”
The next gala is August 9, 2003. Mark your calendars
now.
