Tonya Plank's Blog, page 22

Giselle: The Royal Versus the Bolshoi

Last Wednesday I went to see the Royal Ballet's Giselle live-streamed direct from London. Today, I saw the Bolshoi's live-streamed from Moscow, both via Emerging Pictures' excellent Ballet in Cinema series. I have to say I think this new series is one of the most exciting things happening in ballet right now, if not the most exciting. You can see the world's greatest ballet companies perform live in your hometown via your local movie theater (if, of course, you're lucky enough to have a local cinema that's participating – and hopefully you are!). Not only do you get to see the live performance, but the camera also takes you behind the scenes to see things even those in the theater can't see – to the makeup rooms, the rehearsal areas where the dancers are warming up, getting dressed, and sewing their shoes, etc., behind the curtain during and after the performance where you see the dancers prepare for curtain calls, and down into the orchestra pit where camera focuses on the conductor and members of the orchestra. You also get a good view of the theater – from inside the auditorium to the lounge areas, even to the outside front. You really feel like you're there. And knowing it's in real time makes it all the more fun. I kept wanting to wave out to the audience members as they took their seats, some looking at the camera. But of course they couldn't see us…

Anyway, it's such an experience, and hopefully everyone will be able to have it at some point soon.

So, the Royal's Giselle: the dancers were Marianela Nunez in the lead, Rupert Pennefather as Albrecht, Gary Avis and Hilarion, and Helen Crawford as Myrtha. Also, one dancer who wasn't a lead but who I was just really captivated by was Yuhue Choe, who danced the female peasant in the peasant pas de deux.

Overall, I liked but didn't love this production. My biggest problem was Pennefather, who I just didn't find at all compelling – either in his dancing or his acting. He was definitely good-looking and had a regal bearing so I understand why they cast him, but his dancing was just nowhere near the level of someone like David Hallberg's. In the second act in the would-be dance-to-death scene where he went to do his high jumps with the many braided entrechats, they just didn't look polished or sharp enough. They almost looked fake – like he wasn't really weaving his feet backward and foreword. I'm sure he was, it just looked sloppy. And as a character his Albrecht didn't make much sense. At the beginning, when his servant helps him change into his peasant costume, he looks down at the costume, and smiles to himself, pleased. Then, he has fun dancing with Giselle, tricking her with the altered flower, etc. Later, when he's found out and his betrothed asks him why on earth he's dressed as a peasant, he immediately laughs it off, and practically runs toward her, kissing her hand. It's never clear what he hopes to accomplish by pretending to be a peasant and seducing the unknowing peasant girl; what his motivation is for doing any of it. But he didn't seem particularly dumb or playboy-like either. It just seemed like a role that wasn't thought-out.

I did like Nunez. I thought she was a tremendous dancer, and she acted very well too. Her mad scene was real, completely believable, not at all overdone, with depth, one of the best I've seen. Of course it helps that the camera's so focused up close on her face! You can easily see the emotions. The only thing was that body-wise she didn't seem like a Giselle to me. She didn't seem weak and delicate and fragile. And that strength came through in her dancing too. Her performance reminded me a little of Paloma Herrera's Giselle. I thought Herrera was terribly miscast. I thought Nunez was such a remarkable dancer though that I was able for the most part to suspend disbelief, more so than with Herrera.

I thought Gary Avis was a really hot, hunky Hilarion He's a very good actor too. I think he was actually the best actor in the whole production. I really believed his love for Giselle, his urgent need to keep Albrecht away from her, and his devastation over what ended up happening to her. And ditto for the Bolshoi's Hilarion (or Hans as he's called there), Vitaly Biktimirov – at least in the hot & hunky department. He was a good dancer, but less of a good actor than Avis. I was talking with a friend and fellow blogger, Art, during intermission, and he said he thought the British were simply just trained to be actors as well as dancers, probably because of their history. The Russians weren't so trained. And I agree with him. The Russians seem to do everything in a very melodramatic, somewhat phony way. I mean, not Veronika Part, not the Russians who come here. But when you see a production by a Russian company it just seems like everything is very performance-y, not natural.

I really loved Choe in the Royal's peasant pdd and found myself wondering what type of Giselle she'd make. She looked perfect for the part. I thought her dancing was lovely, but I'm not sure if, had she danced Giselle, it would have been at the level of Nunez's. Has anyone seen more of Choe? She's a beautiful dancer.

Interestingly, Helen Crawford, who danced Myrtha, was a tiny little thing. Very pretty, very fine features, very delicate-looking. She also had the appearance of a Giselle. She did a superb job though acting the controlling, sometimes damning Queen of the Wilis. It was just interesting casting, though, because all of our Myrthas are the larger, more physically-imposing ballerinas.

I hate to say it, but I really didn't like the Bolshoi's very much. But I LOVED their performance of The Class Concert, a one-act that preceded their Giselle. The Class Concert was created in 1960, by Asaf Messerer,  and it's one of those storyless ballets that takes place in a classroom and that are meant to highlight the magnificence of ballet, from beginning at the barre, and ending with the grand jumps and high overhead lifts of center-work. Kind of like Harald Lander's Etudes or Christopher Wheeldon's Scenes de Ballet. Anyway, those dancers are incredible. I mean, I was almost on the floor I was so in awe. From the small children to the young adults doing all the lifts and crazy chaine turns and high jumps – every hip was completely perfectly turned-out, every tendu perfectly pointed, every single body's form was absolute perfection. They weren't always moving in unison, but just the perfection of each of them individually made me not care that they weren't always in sync. It was amazingly beautiful, but in a way, it was also slightly creepy. I mean, to attain that kind of miraculous perfection, you realize these children must do nothing but eat, sleep and ballet every day from the time they're 2 years old foreword. Talk about Tiger Mothers. It's a whole Tiger State.

Anyway, their Giselle I felt was lacking. I loved their Albrecht – Dmitry Gudanov. He had everything Pennyfather lacked – at least in the acting. Gudanov had definitely thought through his motivations for the character. Gudanov's Albrecht was in love with Giselle. His servant tried to tell him he was going to hurt her, but he just blew his servant off. He was reckless but his heart was with Giselle. Later, when the princess, his betrothed, sees him in the peasant costume, at first he doesn't know what to do, how to act. Then he slowly, begrudgingly takes her hand. But it's clear he's not in love with her and he really wants Giselle. He remains torn between her and Giselle even after he realizes he must chose his betrothed – at least for the time being. And then he's shocked when Giselle reacts so badly. And then he's devastated along with Hilarion, even going after him with a sword, when she dies. I still wasn't in love with his dancing, though. Actually, he did everything very very well. He was a very good dancer. What I wasn't in love with was Grigorovich's choreography for him. I didn't feel that the dance to death scene was in any way a seriously dangerous dance. It looked rather lyrical. There were no brises or jumps with the entrechats; instead there was a series of tour jetes back and forth, and they weren't done particularly fast. It looked like he was flying gracefully through the air not like he was exhausting himself to the verge of death. And when he'd "collapse" he'd go down so lightly, it was like he was going to sleep, like Sleeping Beauty. No crashing to the floor in sheer exasperation ala Marcelo Gomes at all.

But who I really didn't like was Svetlana Lunkina as Giselle. I've heard so many good things about her and my hopes were so high, but now I can't understand the big deal at all. She seemed really really wooden to me. She really didn't act at all. Her face was devoid of emotion throughout. And, unlike Nunez or Osipova, or any other dancer I've ever seen in the role, her dancing was nothing to write home about at all. She was adequate but she looked like a corps dancer to me. What am I missing? Maybe she was really just having a bad night, because during the wilis scene when she had those several slow turns on one leg, her balance looked very off. I really thought she might actually lose her balance and fall. So maybe it was just the pressure of the cameras and knowing so many people were watching.

Again, I really liked the ballerina who danced the peasant pas de deux – here, Chinara Alizade – and wondered what she would have looked like as Giselle.

Oh, and speaking of the peasant dances: hehe, these were the absolute fanciest peasant costumes I've ever seen! Art joked that these were peasants flown in from Paris for the occasion!

I had a blast though. And the Sunday performances are so nice because there are so many more people. I met two new dance fans who regularly read my blog! I felt kind of half-dead today – probably because of a late night last night – but I'm always so flattered when people recognize me and come up and talk to me. I'm always so thrilled to find that people like this blog and find it valuable and my viewpoints interesting and all! So thank you!

DARK HABITS

James Wolcott just linked to this video and it's far too tantalizing for me not to embed it here. Seriously – too cool, huh! I do think Larry Keigwin makes the best promo videos in the dance world.

This Week at New York City Ballet

I hope everyone had a nice holiday weekend, and happy belated Martin Luther King Day!

Tonight begins the Winter season at NYCB. Highlights for the season will be a world premiere by Susan Stroman on January 28th, and Peter Martins' Swan Lake in February. I highly recommend seeing Sara Mearns as Odette / Odile (White Swan / Black Swan), especially if you are a new dance-goer in search of a good Swan Lake after seeing the Black Swan film. The Martins production is very modern, and very accessible to contemporary audiences, and Mearns is a beautiful dancer who manages to excel at both roles. Her swan queen is very human, with great emotional depth. She has a way, like ABT's Veronika Part, of making you feel like you're inside her character's world, going through everything right along with her. She's not just a great ballerina, but a compelling actress, in other words. And her black swan is a thrill. Here's what I wrote about her last year. I'm not sure yet which days she'll dance, but casting should be announced very soon. All of the ballerinas will be good (and I'll need to see Ashley Bouder's this year!), but try hard not to miss Mearns.

My recommendations for this week are:

January 18 (tonight), opening night, early 7:30 curtain

It's a mixed rep program including Walpurgisnacht Ballet, Duo Concertant, Valse-Fantaisie, and one of Balanchine's most revered works, The Four Temperaments.

Thursday night, January 20th, 8 p.m.

Another night of mixed rep: Mozartiana, Concerto DSCH, and Cortege Hongrois. The special things about this evening are that it's another in the excellent See the Music series, and Millepied is dancing Ratmansky's DSCH (one of my favorites of Ratmansky's). Plus, will be interesting to see if there's any kind of crowd increase for Millepied now after all the fanfare. Also SLSG favorite Tyler Angle is debuting in Mozartiana.

Friday night, January 21st 8 p.m.

Sara Mearns will debut in Concerto DSCH. Also showing are Robbins' well-loved Dances at a Gathering, and Walpurgisnacht again.

Saturday, January 22nd, all day.

It's an all-day celebration of George Balanchine, in honor of his birthday. In addition to the regular matinee and evening performances (all Balanchine of course), there's a movie at 10:30 a.m., a studio talk in the afternoon, and a performance by students at the School of American Ballet at 6 p.m. The movie, studio talk and performance by SAB students are all free but require tickets. Everything takes place in the Koch Theater at Lincoln Center. For more info on the Saturday events, click on the link below.

Saturday At The Ballet With George

On Saturday, January 22 NYCB will celebrate the birthday of its Co-Founder George Balanchine with a full day of performances and free events all taking place at the David H. Koch Theater.

Saturday At The Ballet With George will begin at 10:30 AM with a free screening of the renowned 1984 Dance in America documentary film Balanchine. The 2 PM matinee performance will offer an all-Balanchine program including Walpurgisnacht Ballet, Duo Concertant, The Four Temperaments and Cortège Hongrois.

Between the matinee and evening performances will be a free Studio Talk on the Promenade of the David H. Koch Theater with Company artists discussing the timelessness of George Balanchine and his work as well as a rare viewing of a School of American Ballet class taught onstage by Ballet Master in Chief Peter Martins. The day will conclude with live music on the Promenade before the 8 PM performance which will feature an all-Balanchine program of Mozartiana, Prodigal Son, and Stars and Stripes. A complete schedule of events follows.

-more-

NEW YORK CITY BALLET – WINTER 2011 PERFORMANCES – Page 3

SCHEDULE: Saturday At The Ballet With George

January 22, 2011 at the David H. Koch Theater

10:30 AM Film Screening – 1984 Dance in America Documentary Balanchine (FREE)

2:00 PM Matinee Performance – All Balanchine Program

5:00 PM Studio Talk – Balanchine Now (FREE)

6:00 PM Onstage SAB Class Demonstration with Peter Martins (FREE)

7:00 PM Live Music on the Promenade of the DHKT (FREE with performance ticket)

8:00 PM Evening Performance – All Balanchine Program

The film screening, Studio Talk, and onstage class demonstration are free events but tickets are required. Tickets for the performances and free events can be obtained at the theater's box office, at www.nycballet.com, and through Center Charge at 212-721-6500. (Please note: tickets for the free events ordered online or via Center Charge are subject to a handling fee. There is no handling fee when ordering a free event ticket in person at the David H. Koch Theater Box Office. Standard handling fees apply when purchasing performance tickets.)

For more information and a detailed schedule of events for Saturday At The Ballet With George visit www.nycballet.com/balanchine.

Natalie Portman's Black Swan Golden Globe Acceptance Speech

Did you guys watch last night? I thought she looked radiant, and her speech was really sweet. She seemed genuinely happy about both the film and her personal life. She still seemed to be in a state of blissful shock about the latter. I found the part where she reminded the audience about Benjamin Millepied's character smirking when Vincent Cassel's character asked him if he would sleep with Portman's black swan, then said, "see – he's a good actor because he really does want to sleep with me!" sweetly innocent, though I can imagine some might have thought it a bit crass or childish. Millepied to me looked a little out of his element though. He looked uncomfortable when the camera focused on him.

Some dance fans on Twitter noted that Portman thanked everyone involved in the film but the dancers. I think that's more of a testament to the fact that this wasn't really a dance film – the other dancers had the relevance and necessity of extras – than to any forgetfulness on her part.

Dance film or not, I'm glad she won. I think she was by far the best of the actresses nominated in her category.

And did you guys see Jackie Reyes sitting next to Aaron Sorkin! I know one person did! I guess she's no longer with ABT though; she's now a student at Columbia. I wonder why she left ABT. Though she was in the corps she always stood out to me and she was only 24 and had time to work toward a promotion…

I'm also glad The Social Network won so many awards, including the biggest – best film. I think it had the most reach and breadth and depth and importance of the films nominated. It also had great acting by everyone all around, great writing, great story-telling – everything you'd expect an award-winner to have. I wished Jesse Eisenberg could have won for best actor because I think he did a tremendous job. He found the vulnerability in that character and really created sympathy for him – that's hard to do when your character is generally a supreme jerk. But there was no way with him going up against Colin Firth.

And speaking of social networks these days, I don't know how many of you are on Twitter, but as I was watching I was following the #goldenglobes hashtag. I love doing that now when I'm watching something popular. I do it often during big sports games now. It's one of my favorite things about Twitter because you can connect with people all over the country – all of the world really – who you don't know but who are doing the same thing you're doing at that moment. And sometimes people say very funny, clever things – especially during a big celebrity fest like this.

Anyway, Twitter puts the "top tweets" on a given subject at the top of its hashtag list. These are usually – or have been in the past – the tweets that have been the most re-tweeted. This is a way of rewarding the funninest, wittiest tweets on something, or a tweet that has resonance to many – people re-tweet and those tweets rise to the top of the list. Well, last night as I was following along on the hashtag, all of a sudden a tweet by Paramount was suddenly planted at the top. And it was obviously an advertisement for one of their films. It wasn't a tweet that was clever or funny and had been re-tweeted. I assume the studio had purchased it as ad space from the Twitter execs. That's what it seemed like anyway. And then several tweets like that started appearing at the top of the hashtag list. If you were reading on a cell phone with a small screen, you had to do some real scrolling down every time you refreshed the page to see the newest tweets.

After a while it became annoying and I just stopped following the hashtag. It really kind of saddened me though. What would Mark Zuckerberg say? According to The Social Network, at first he didn't want advertising on Facebook because he thought it would ruin it by being too intrusive, not to mention corny. And he was right. But at least on Facebook the advertisements don't interfere with your ability to use the site for what it's for – to socialize.

Sample Sunday: Poison Ivy

For this week's #SampleSunday, here is a passage from chapter four of Swallow, entitled "Poison Ivy." (For a synopsis of the novel, go here).

Four

Poison Ivy

I met her the following Friday night. Stephen had an alumni cocktail party at the Harvard Club in midtown. I'd only been a couple of times with him, and I really didn't like the place. The people seemed so arrogant and could talk only about their undergraduate days, even the ones who graduated at the turn of the century — last one, that is. When Stephen would introduce me to someone and they'd ask where I went to college — and they always did — they'd look at me like I was mildly retarded when I answered. And then they'd look at him with these quizzical smiles, like they couldn't understand what one of their ilk was doing with someone so mentally challenged.

Friday's mixer was special: a childhood friend of Stephen's, Alana, had just moved back to town from Oxford, where she'd been studying for an advanced law degree. I didn't know what to expect. Most of his female friends, family members, and former girlfriends whom I'd met were smart, sophisticated, glamorous, and wealthy with posh educations. In his twenties and early thirties, Stephen was, as he said, "rather female identified," in that he just had a knack for getting along well with women, and thus couldn't help remaining good friends with his girlfriends after they ceased to be romantically involved. He didn't so much have classic good looks as he did this combination of commanding-voiced virility, intellectual sophistication, worldly charm, and older-man protectiveness that seemed to attract women. I wasn't sure whether Alana was a former girlfriend or a friend. When I asked him, he laughed and said they were like brother and sister and not to worry.

Thankfully, I'd managed to rope my best friend from law school, Samia, into the evening's shindig. Her fiancé, Roger, was an alumnus of the school, so it worked out perfectly. I hadn't seen much of Sami lately; she'd graduated a year before I did and had been doing a women's rights fellowship at Georgetown, but, in a shocking 360-degree turn, moved to New York in the fall to work for a big firm. Since she began the firm job, I'd since seen her all of about twice.

Stephen found us a table smack in the center of the room, smack in the center of attention. One look at the platters and I didn't even want to think of eating. Nearly apple-sized sushi rolls, grapefruit-sized dumplings, a mangled web of snaky noodles labeled "vegetarian." But nothing for non-solid-eating nutters. I ordered a Merlot. Heavy reds usually filled me up.

"What do you want to eat?" Stephen asked.

"I'm not hungry."

"Oh c'mon," he laughed. "They've got soft-shell–"

"No," I snapped without meaning to. I did like the rainbow sushi rolls — the ones filled with soft-shell crab, which they had in abundance. Normally I would have rushed the table, ecstatic to be there before the crowd, to load up.

"I'm sorry," I said. "I'm just … kinda nervous."

Stephen frowned. He knew I felt uncomfortable here, but couldn't understand why and hated that I did. I worried it was going to cause some friction, but fortunately she arrived just then, or I should say, made her grand entrance.

"Oh my gaaawd! Stevie!" she screamed out, gliding toward us.

She had long, silky blonde hair, which she wore parted practically all the way to her left ear and which would have covered the entire right side of her face if she didn't repeatedly fling it back. The fling was quite extravagant too: she dipped her head till her chin touched her chest, then with one swift motion swung it up and over until her forehead nearly grazed her back, golden strands cascading. She was tall, with bronzed skin, and wore a champagne-colored silky dress with high-heeled sandals and a blood-red Pashmina — same basic color as mine but a much richer sheen, as it was, unlike mine, most definitely not a discount. She came with an exotic-looking man who had olive skin and jet-black hair, pulled back into a short ponytail at the nape of his neck.

"Oh my gaawwd," she howled again, throwing the shawl over the back of the chair next to Stephen, thus revealing her quite voluptuous frame — particularly so up top. The sheerness of her dress and its light color revealed two rather pointy nipples. I was dressed in a black suit which now resembled a nun's habit.

"I can't fucking believe it," she hooted, emphasis on the 'fucking,' as she plastered a cherry outline of her lips on each of Stephen's cheeks, peering over each of his shoulders at me.

"It has been a while," Stephen said, with a cocked smile.

"Too fucking long, baby, too fucking long."

She had a way of saying 'fucking' that made it seem like she wasn't just using it as an adjective.

"Whew," she said, plopping down, her D-cups doing practically a full foot-high jounce. "Oh my gawd," she said once more. "This is Costa, my good friend from Oxford." She smacked him, rather hard, on the thigh. "Costie, Stephen, my best best friend from home, from Harvard, from life."

I was beginning to wonder whether she was on something.

"And this must be the Sophie I've heard so much about," she said, frowning slightly at my suit jacket, buttoned practically all the way up to my chin. I self-consciously undid the top button.

"This would be she," Stephen smiled, putting his arm around my waist as I moved forward to shake Alana's hand.

"Hello," Costa said rather demurely with an accent I couldn't really place.

"Now Sophie," Alana smacked the table with her hand making her boobs bounce again. "Tell me all about yourself."

"Well, um…" I hated being asked open-ended questions about myself. "Um Stephen and I met in school … I mean while I was in law school …"

"Right, at Yale. Stevie was afraid he wouldn't be able to hack law school, so he had to go somewhere that had a no-ranking policy. Too bad," she said cocking her head and making a faux pout. "Didn't get the benefit of a real education."

I began to feel about two feet tall when she burst out laughing, Stephen laughing with her. I then remembered the Harvard and Yale rivalry thing and realized she was joking.

"I stayed at Harvard for my J.D.," she went on, "I mean after traveling first in Asia then Africa for a year, did a clerkship in the Ninth Circuit, came to New York for a job at Freedes Wyne, who sent me to Oxford for my L.L.M., and now here I am, back in Freedes' head office to make youngest female partner," she said in one breath, followed by a full-force hair flip that landed a few strands in the martini glass of the man passing behind her at the moment.

At first he didn't notice and continued walking, her wet ends trailing along with him, in the glass. But a second later, when she clearly felt the pull, she turned around and said, "Hey!" now calling the guy's attention to his sullied drink.

"God, you look a certain way and every man thinks it's his prerogative to just reach out and take a part of you," she shouted more than loudly enough for him to hear, upon which I, being in his line of vision, was the recipient of his angry glare. Costa and Stephen looked bemused but entertained.

"Oh wow, um, and, um, do you like your firm?" I asked stupidly, trying to calm her and avoid a scene with martini guy.

But, thankfully, I spied just then a petite, multi-pierced-eared woman with bouncing black curls, pulling behind her a small, red-haired, bespectacled man.

"Samia, Roger!" I cried, flailing my arms about madly.

She cantered over, black mane and fiancé flying behind her. When she reached me, she left what I can only imagine by her lipstick to be bright red implants on each of my cheeks similar to those left by Alana on my fiancé's. I wasn't sure whether I'd ever get used to the East Coast kissy kissy culture. Out West, we just said, "hey" in greeting.

"Hi, hi, hi," Sami chirped, sweetly trying to direct her smile to everyone simultaneously as I nervously made introductions. "Did you go to Harvard?" she asked Alana, who nodded. "Oh, well, I'm Holyoke Yale," Sami continued, extending her hand. "And he's Harvard Hopkins Princeton," she said swinging her arm at Roger, smacking him in the chest with the back of her hand. Sami always kind of babbled when she was nervous; she must have thought it would be fitting here to introduce people by their alma maters.

"Hmmm," Alana laughed, looking at Stephen quizzically as if for interpretation.

"Are you at Lord Pniphken?" Samia asked.

"No, I'm not at Stevie's firm," Alana said, looking at Stephen with a somewhat wicked grin that I didn't like one bit. Perhaps her definition of a sibling-like relationship was different than his. "I'm at Freedes Wyne."

Her eyes were still focused on my fiancé, who was sitting back in his chair now, seemingly mesmerized by her. He must have caught my glance in his periphery, because he reached for my hand and gave my palm a lovable squeeze, but still without taking his eyes from her.

Imagine Edward Gorey in Fur Coat and Sneakers, Nightly, at NYCB

I met this writer, A.N. Devers, at a party last week, and when she enthused about a piece she wrote recently for the Paris Review about a favorite writer of hers, the late Edward Gorey (in photo above, from Squidoo) and his fur coat collection, I made a mental note to find it on the web. I'd forgotten, but just remembered to look for it this morning. It's a sweet piece about her attending a recent auction of his furs where she was determined to hold her own amongst the seriously seasoned bidders and, despite her comparably meager bank account, get herself a coat.

She also mentions that Gorey (who was best known as an illustrator) often attended New York City Ballet – decked out in fur coat and Converse sneakers. This was during the 70s, when, according to some quick internet research I did, he was well known at the ballet, was quite the eccentric, and knew Balanchine. He even wrote and illustrated a book about NYCB, The Lavender Leotard.

(top image from the Winger, bottom two from StoryCulture)

Actually, he wrote a couple books about the ballet.

He also created a poster:

(image from Chisholm online gallery)

He supposedly so loved NYCB he was there every night. He must have been quite the figure in those full-length furs and tennis shoes. Kind of sounds like something out of a Jonathan Ames novel. But this was all in the 70s. Sometimes I really feel like I'm in NYC in the wrong era…

Anyway, just found all this interesting and thought I'd share. Is there anyone here who remembers him?

Is Millepied a K-Fed or a Baryshnikov?

I've seen a good number of articles like this one popping up on various celebrity gossip blogs, contending that Benjamin Millepied poked holes in his condoms and is basically just after Natalie Portman for fame and money – I guess like Kevin Federline arguably was with Britney Spears. Millepied has always seemed kind of like a romantic, like a Balanchine, always falling for his muses, so it didn't really faze me when I heard he was dating the latest ballerina he'd choreographed on. Of course I don't know him, and everything on those blogs is hearsay. I'm more interested in the public perception though.

I'm just wondering if anyone remembers well the Baryshnikov era. Was Baryshnikov similarly attacked for impregnating Jessica Lange? I was a very small child when that all happened but it seemed like the public just adored him, the two of them together. Or maybe that was just me lost in my little girl ballerina dreams. Actually, come to think of it, I don't remember when the two first became a couple; I have no memory of him until they'd already split and I was terribly jealous of their beautiful daughter because she got to go to the White Nights premiere with her father in Hollywood. Anyway, if he was perceived differently, I wonder what is different.

In other Hollywood/ballet gossip, Aaron Sorkin is allegedly dating ABT's Jacqueline Reyes.

Giselle Live-Streamed into Theaters – This Time by the Bolshoi and the Royal

A reminder that Emerging Pictures will be live-streaming two different productions of Giselle into movie theaters around the world in the next couple of weeks.

On January 19th, the Royal Ballet's production will be live-streamed from London, and on January 23rd, the Bolshoi's will air live from Moscow.

If you're in New York, the showing on the 19th is at 2:30 p.m. at the Manhattan Big Cinemas. It will also be shown later that evening at 7:00 p.m. at Symphony Space (the latter showing will obviously be recorded from earlier in the day).

On January 23rd, the showing in New York will be at the Manhattan Big Cinemas at 11:00 a.m.

If you're outside of New York, check the website for times and theater locations near you.

Above photo of the Royal Ballet's Giselle, taken from the Ballet in Cinema website.

Jittin' Genius

My favorite from last night's Live to Dance semifinal. I hadn't heard of jitting, which he described as a more modern version of the jitterbug of the 50s. To me it looked like original break dancing or krumping without the attitude, but the jitterbug connection makes sense. I loved it. I hope America votes him into the finals.

I wasn't so in love with the child ballroom duo. Whenever anyone dances to The Beat I just can't keep from thinking of Yulia Zagoruychenko and her old partner Max Kozhevnikov and whatever's before me just pales in comparison. Their legwork and some of the partnering was sloppy. I know they're kids but I've seen much better at ballroom competitions.

I am glad the public voted the ballet dancers – White Tree Fine Art – into the semis for next week.

Jacob's Pillow Announces 2011 Season With Highlights Including Annie Liebovitz Exhibit and POB

Jacob's Pillow, the summer dance festival that takes place in the Berkshires, has announced this year's season. Highlights (to me) include a summer-long dancer photo exhibit by Annie Liebovitz and the Paris Opera Ballet. I don't have much time to write today, so am including the whole press release here. Click on the link below to view it.

JACOB'S PILLOW ANNOUNCES FESTIVAL 2011: JUNE 18 – AUGUST 28

160 PERFORMANCES FROM CUBA, FRANCE, NORWAY, SOUTH KOREA, AND BEYOND

MORE THAN 300 TOTAL TALKS, PERFORMANCES, EXHIBITS, AND EVENTS SPAN THREE MONTHS

January 12, 2011 – (Becket, Mass.) In 2011, Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival will present more than 160 ticketed and free dance performances by companies from Argentina, Cuba, Canada, France, Germany, Norway, South Korea, Switzerland, and across the United States. Executive Director Ella Baff has crafted an international festival of dance, music, and the visual arts spanning three months and including six world premieres, seven U.S. premieres, five engagements with live music, three U.S. company debuts, and more than 300 total ticketed and free events, talks, performances, classes, and tours.

Performance highlights of Festival 2011 include the U.S. debut of 3e Étage: Soloists and Dancers of the Paris Opera Ballet, the world premiere of Beauty by Jane Comfort, the U.S. debut of DanzAbierta, one of Cuba's leading contemporary dance companies, exclusive joint engagements, one featuring Jodi Melnick and David Neumann and another with Kyle Abraham and Camille A. Brown, and celebratory appearances honoring the significant company anniversaries of Trisha Brown Dance Company and Mark Morris Dance Group.

"The Pillow is so much more than performances; it is a center for art and culture of many kinds and a gathering place for many different groups of people. Dance connects with and is inspired by so many art forms and sources – the visual and media arts, fashion, music, science, literature, and theatre," comments Ella Baff, Executive Director of Jacob's Pillow. "This season the choreography spans ballet, contemporary, tango, dance-theatre, social dance, and martial-arts inspired movement. The music is just as eclectic, including works composed by Sergei Prokofiev, Astor Piazzolla, Johannes Brahms, and Robert Schumann, as well as music by Toshi Reagon, Iggy Pop, Nina Simone, Aretha Franklin, and many, many others. Whether you're a dance aficionado or have never attended a dance performance before, there is something for everyone at the Pillow."

At the Season Opening Gala on June 18, Jacob's Pillow will open an Annie Leibovitz dance photography exhibit.  Created specifically for the Pillow, this exhibit will be open to the public throughout the Festival in the Blake's Barn gallery, free of charge. One of the most widely-known portrait photographers, Annie Leibovitz has long been interested in capturing the human body, photographing dancers such as Suzanne Farrell, Darci Kistler, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Paul Taylor, Merce Cunningham, and David Parsons. Leibovitz has worked with choreographer and Festival 2011 artist Mark Morris and his company on numerous occasions. The exhibit will officially open to the general public on June 21.

"We are truly excited to share with the public the uniquely beautiful and insightful dance images of Annie Leibovitz. She is a great artist, and she has captured many of the most interesting, if not iconic, people and circumstances of our time. Her connection with Mark Morris is especially meaningful for Jacob's Pillow, as Mark and the Pillow share a long history. So this Annie Leibovitz exhibit, during a season when we are celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Mark Morris Dance Group, is a perfect combination, a way of honoring two acclaimed artists – and as always at the Pillow, of bringing more people to dance," comments Baff.

"An important part of Jacob's Pillow's mission is to engage and deepen appreciation for dance, and this includes encouraging new and younger audiences to become involved," notes Baff. "We host more than 200 free performances, exhibits, talks and events every Festival. 'Virtual Pillow' offers behind-the-scenes features, online talks with artists and other fascinating people, and a video tour of the Pillow. And this year we're happy to expand our popular 'Under 35' ticket program, encouraging more young adults to try something new and experience dance at Jacob's Pillow."

The Pillow's "Under 35" ticket program was first launched in 2009 to engage younger audiences. New this season, a limited number of Under 35 tickets (for individuals ages 35 and younger) will be available for every Friday evening performance, for each of the 20 Festival companies. Under 35 tickets are available at special rates of $35 in the Ted Shawn Theatre and $19 in the Doris Duke Theatre. This program is sponsored in part by Blue Q. Tickets go on sale for Under 35 Fridays on April 4; see jacobspillow.org for details.

Community Dance Day, the Pillow's annual "open house" event, will take place on July 10 with free performances, activities, and dance workshops especially well-suited for teens and adults. During the second annual "Weekend OUT" August 5-7, Jacob's Pillow welcomes LGBT individuals and families with a full schedule of free and ticketed events, including a special behind-the-scene tour spotlighting Ted Shawn and his Men Dancers on Sunday, August 7 at noon.

Festival 2011 runs June 18 through August 28. In April, the full schedule of more than 200 free events will be announced, including PillowTalks, pre and post-show talks, and presentations on the newly reconstructed Inside/Out stage, the Pillow's free outdoor performance space. The grand re-opening of the Inside/Out stage will be held June 22.

THE 2011 FESTIVAL PERFORMANCES

Season Opening Gala

Saturday, June 18

The Season Opening Gala kicks off Festival 2011, marks the private opening of the new Annie Leibovitz dance photography exhibit, and includes an exclusive program of performances by Festival artists. A world premiere created by Houston Ballet Artistic Director Stanton Welch, learned in four days, will be performed by dancers of the Ballet Program of The School at Jacob's Pillow. The prestigious 2011 Jacob's Pillow Dance Award will be presented to a distinguished artist, to be announced at a later date. Dinner, dancing to live music, and silent and live auctions on the Pillow's Great Lawn follow. The Season Opening Gala is a benefit event; funds raised support the artistic and educational programs of Jacob's Pillow, a not-for-profit organization. For tickets and information call 413.243.9919 x126.

Ballet du Grand Théâtre de Genève

Ted Shawn Theatre

Wednesday, June 22 – Saturday, June 25, 8pm

Saturday, June 25 & Sunday, June 26, 2pm

SWITZERLAND

U.S. PREMIERE

Following a critically acclaimed U.S. debut at Jacob's Pillow in 2007, Ballet Genève returns to perform the U.S. premiere of Romeo and Juliet, an evening-length contemporary ballet by French choreographer Joëlle Bouvier. Created in 2009 for twenty-two classically trained dancers and set to Sergei Prokofiev's classic score, this contemporary ballet is full of drama and style. Traditional sets are reimagined, the familiar balcony is replaced with a sweeping stage-wide circular ramp designed by Rémi Nicolas and Jacqueline Bosson. Tickets $59.50-64.50. $10 Saturday/Sunday matinee youth tickets (sponsored by ALEX®; must be accompanied by an adult).

Keigwin + Company

Doris Duke Theatre

Wednesday, June 22 – Saturday, June 25, 8:15pm

Saturday, June 25 & Sunday, June 26, 2:15pm

Larry Keigwin's fresh, witty work stretches from contemporary dance and cabaret to New York Fashion Week and MTV, and bears his distinct choreographic style Jennifer Dunning of The New York Times calls "a parcel of pure explosive energy mediated by impressive technical skills." Keigwin + Company's program includes Megalopolis, danced to "Sextet-Six Marimbas" by Steve Reich; Runaway, which "exemplifies true fierceness, and laser focus, utilizing poses to go beyond poses into new enigmatic terrain" (James Wolcott of Vanity Fair), and Love Songs, comprised of three sets of duets danced to the songs of Nina Simone, Roy Orbison, and Aretha Franklin. Tickets $34.50-37.50.

Carte Blanche

Ted Shawn Theatre

Wednesday, June 29 – Saturday, July 2, 8pm

Saturday, July 2 & Sunday, July 3, 2pm

NORWAY

FULL COMPANY U.S. DEBUT

Norway's award-winning National Company of Contemporary Dance performs a program of contemporary works by Hofesh Shechter and Sharon Eyal, both former members of Ohad Naharin's Batsheva Dance Company. Inspired by the 2006 suburban riots in France, Shechter's dramatic all-male work Uprising is danced to a pulsating percussion score he composed.  Pillow audiences are familiar with Shechter's work; Hofesh Shechter Company made its U.S. debut at Jacob's Pillow in 2008 and he served as a faculty member for The School at Jacob's Pillow in 2010. Originally choreographed for Batsheva Dance Company in 2003, Eyal's work Love is a multi-layered study of movement, structure, and physical power. While members of Carte Blanche performed as part of Houston's Dance Salad Festival in 2009, this six-performance Jacob's Pillow engagement marks the U.S. debut of the full company. Tickets $43.50-64.50.

Jane Comfort and Company

Doris Duke Theatre

Wednesday, June 29 – Saturday, July 2, 8:15pm

Saturday, July 2 & Sunday, July 3, 2:15pm

WORLD PREMIERE

For more than 25 years, Jane Comfort has challenged the boundaries of dance and theatre. Deborah Jowitt of The Village Voice comments,  "Few of Comfort's peers who are into dance drama have her gift for melding singing, vocalizing, speech and movement into an inseparable whole…Words, music and movement seethe together, united, their rhythms whirl the morsels of meaning into life stories." This engagement will include the world premiere of Beauty, a serious and funny dance-theatre work that explores the American notion of female beauty and its metamorphosis over the last 50 years, through the lens of the iconic Barbie doll. The company will also perform Comfort's Underground River, originally commissioned by Jacob's Pillow in 1998 and honored with a Bessie Award that same year as a "risk-taking and profound theatrical tour de force." Underground River exists in the fantasy world of a young girl, with melodies by singer/songwriter Toshi Reagon and puppets by Basil Twist. Tickets $34.50-37.50.

Tangueros del Sur

Ted Shawn Theatre

Wednesday, July 6 – Saturday, July 9, 8pm

Saturday, July 9 & Sunday, July 10, 2pm

ARGENTINA

LIVE MUSIC

Artistic Director Natalia Hills, an original member of the Broadway and London hit Forever Tango, leads an ensemble of some of the world's best tango artists in Romper el Piso (Break the Floor). The company showcases the intricate footwork, partnering, sensuality, and drama that comprise this classic Argentinean dance style, from its traditional beginnings to its modern ballroom interpretation. Featured performers include Hills and Gabriel Missé, one of the great milongueros of his generation; Alastair Macaulay of The New York Times calls Hills "a completely appealing and stylish dancer: delightful at a brisk tempo, sensuous at any pace" and Missé, "one of the most intoxicating dancers I have seen." Onstage master musicians perform the rhythms and melodies of composers from Juan D'Arienzo to Astor Piazzolla, on bandoneón, cello, guitar, piano, and percussion.  Tickets $59.50-64.50. $10 Saturday/Sunday matinee youth tickets (sponsored by ALEX®; must be accompanied by an adult).

Kidd Pivot Frankfurt RM

Doris Duke Theatre

Wednesday, July 6 – Saturday, July 9, 8:15pm

Saturday, July 9 & Sunday, July 10, 2:15pm

CANADA/GERMANY

Crystal Pite is widely regarded as one of the most talented contemporary choreographers of today and her company is now based in both Vancouver and Frankfurt, where she danced for years with William Forsythe. Pite has created work for Nederlands Dans Theater, Ballett Frankfurt, Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal (where she was Resident Choreographer 2001-2004), Ballet British Columbia, Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet, and her own company. Her full-evening production Dark Matters is a mystery thriller told in dance, as unseen forces are at work when a lonely artist creates a puppet with fateful results. The dancers of Kidd Pivot lure audiences into a world of puppetry, contemporary dance, theatre, fantasy, humor, and thrilling twists and turns, set to compellingly ominous original music by Owen Belton. Tickets $34.50-37.50.

Community Dance Day

Sunday, July 10, 10am-1pm

Jacob's Pillow will again offer its community-wide "open house" event on the morning of July 10, aimed at encouraging participation in dance. Community Dance Day will include free performances; open dance classes and workshops especially suited for adults and teens in a variety of movement styles including Pilates, social dance, and more; a master class and meet and greet with Doris Duke Theatre artists Kidd Pivot Frankfurt RM; music; raffles; food and drink; and other attractions. All performances, classes, events, and workshops are free.

DanzAbierta

Ted Shawn Theatre

Wednesday, July 13 – Saturday, July 16, 8pm

Saturday, July 16 & Sunday, July 17, 2pm

CUBA

U.S. COMPANY DEBUT

Cuba's preeminent dance company, DanzaAbierta, was founded in 1988 by Marianela Boán and is currently led by Artistic Director Guido Gali. In its first ever U.S. engagement, DanzAbierta performs Mal Son, choreographed by Susana Pous. Awarded the Villanueva Critics Award in 2009, Mal Son is set in an imaginative, virtual world with videos and music by X Alfonso, one of South America's most innovative Afro-rock/fusion composers. In this high-energy dance of love and longing, dancers interact directly with choreographed film vignettes of people, places, and movement including Cuba's busy streets, cityscapes, and the sea. Originally from Barcelona, Spain, and now based in Havana, Pous studied at the Martha Graham Center of Contemporary Dance and Limón Institute, and graduated from Catalonia's Center of Cinematographic Studies. Tickets $43.50-64.50.

Louise Lecavalier

Doris Duke Theatre

Wednesday, July 13 – Saturday, July 16, 8:15pm

CANADA

TWO U.S. PREMIERES

An icon of Canadian contemporary dance, Louise Lecavalier is a formidable force on stage. In 1981 she joined La La La Human Steps, directed by choreographer Édouard Lock, and performed with the company for the next seventeen years. In 1985, she became the first Canadian to win a Bessie Award for her performance in Businessman in the Process of Becoming an Angel and in 1999 she received the Jean A. Chalmers National Award, Canada's most distinguished dance prize. The duet Children, choreographed by DV8 Physical Theatre's Nigel Charnock, is a vision of fervent physicality, opening a window into a relationship at its breaking point. In A Few Minutes of Lock, Lecavalier revisits the signature athletic choreography of Édouard Lock, including excerpts of 2 and Exauce/ Salt, set to soundscape of Iggy Pop music. Four performances only. Tickets $23.50-37.50.

Lar Lubovitch Dance Company

Ted Shawn Theatre

Wednesday, July 20 – Saturday, July 23, 8pm

Saturday, July 23 & Sunday, July 24, 2pm

Lar Lubovitch has been hailed as a master of musicality for more than 40 years. This program features two new works from 2010 including Coltrane's Favorite Things which reimagines the choreographic possibilities of jazz music, inspired by and danced to John Coltrane's 1963 "Live in Copenhagen" interpretation of Richard Rodgers' "My Favorite Things" from The Sound of Music. The Legend of Ten, also from 2010, is danced to the first and fourth movements of Brahms' "Quintet in F Minor (Op. 34)," recorded by Glenn Gould and the Montréal String Quartet. One of the first contemporary concert dances set to music by Philip Glass, Lubovitch's North Star was first performed in 1978, and this revival delivers a "trance-inducing aesthetic at its purest and most satisfying" (Boston Globe). Tickets $59.50-64.50. $10 Friday evening youth tickets (sponsored by ALEX®; must be accompanied by an adult).

zoe | juniper

Doris Duke Theatre

Wednesday, July 20 – Saturday, July 24, 8:15pm

Saturday, July 23 & Sunday, July 24, 2:15pm

WORLD PREMIERE

Karen Campbell of The Boston Globe has called zoe | juniper's work "…a crazy dream you just can't shake. At the center of it all, there's a furious little heart that pumps equal parts vitriol and grace." The world premiere of A Crack in Everything, created by Seattle-based choreographer Zoe Scofield and visual artist Juniper Shuey, was commissioned in part through a Creative Development Residency at Jacob's Pillow. This evening-length work uses movement, video projection, and lighting to explore the themes of justice and revenge in private and public universes, inspired by questions posed in the Greek tragedy The Oresteia. A Crack in Everything offers a surreal feast for the senses in movement and visual effects and Scofield makes a unique and energetic dance language from a range of contemporary movement, performed by an ensemble of seven dancers. zoe | juniper has produced numerous dance, film, and artistic collaborations, from their 2004 piece I am nothing without you to Dave Matthews Band's 2007 music video for the song "Eh Hee." Tickets $23.50-37.50.

LDP (Laboratory Dance Project)

Ted Shawn Theatre

Wednesday, July 27 – Saturday, July 30, 8pm

Saturday, July 30 & Sunday, July 31, 2pm

SOUTH KOREA

Founded in 2001 by the young choreographer Shin Chang Ho, this award-winning contemporary company from South Korea specializes in physically charged dance. The ensemble has performed around the world including the Venice Biennale (2006 and 2007) and will now make its Jacob's Pillow debut. They perform a wide-ranging catalog of contemporary works, including the hip-hop and martial arts infused No Comment, in which seven men leap, lunge, flip, and fall in acrobatic euphoria, Are You Glad to See Me?, and Modern Feeling, which won the Grand Prix award at the Seoul International Choreographer Festival in 2008. Tickets $43.50-64.50.

Big Dance Theater

Doris Duke Theatre

Wednesday, July 27 – Saturday, July 30, 8:15pm

Saturday, July 30 & Sunday, July 31, 2:15pm

WORLD PREMIERE

Annie-B Parson and Paul Lazar have won multiple Bessie and OBIE Awards, and were the inaugural recipients of the Jacob's Pillow Dance Award in 2007.  Co-Artistic Directors of Big Dance Theater, Parson is a former member of Sincha Hong's company, Laughing Stone, and has choreographed for stage, TV, and film including Jonathan Demme's Philadelphia; Lazar is a seasoned actor and director whose film career includes roles in Silence of the Lambs, Beloved, Lorenzo's Oil, Philadelphia, and Henry Fool. The world premiere of their work Supernatural Wife is a modern take on the Greek tragedy, Alcestis, in which a king avoids his own death by sending his wife in his place. Legendary myths and timeless issues are explored through a free-wheeling combination of dance, theatre, music, song, and video in an inventive adaptation of this great dramatic literary work. Tickets $23.50-37.50.

3e Étage: Soloists and Dancers of the Paris Opera Ballet

Ted Shawn Theatre

Wednesday, August 3 – Saturday, August 7, 8pm

Saturday, August 6 & Sunday, August 7, 2pm

FRANCE

U.S. COMPANY DEBUT

Named for the third floor of the Palais Garnier, where young dancers of the Paris Opera Ballet start their careers, 3e Étage is a contemporary ensemble featuring some of the most exceptional dancers from the legendary French ballet company. Founded by Samuel Murez, who first joined Paris Opera Ballet in 2001, the company performs classical and contemporary repertoire with a distinct French style. This U.S. debut program is a lively blend of serious virtuosity and fun, with a wide variety of work including excerpts of William Forsythe's Limb's Theorem, the witty duet me2, inspired by the bilingual poem "Me Too" by Raymond Federman, and Les bourgeois, a solo from the one-act ballet Brel, in which choreographer Ben van Cauwenbergh translates one of the most famous songs of his fellow Belgian Jacques Brel. Tickets $59.50-64.50.

Jonah Bokaer

Doris Duke Theatre

Wednesday, August 3 – Saturday, August 6, 8:15pm

Saturday, August 6 & Sunday, August 7, 2:15pm

U.S. PREMIERE

Jonah Bokaer is "contemporary dance's renaissance man" (Roslyn Sulcas of The New York Times) and has been acclaimed internationally as a gifted performer, choreographer, and media artist. A former member of the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, he has collaborated with some of today's most respected artists including writer Ann Carson and theater director Robert Wilson. Bokaer brings a program designed by the much talked about visual artist Daniel Arsham and the design firm Snarkitecture, including RECESS and the U.S. premiere of Why Patterns, in which a single ping-pong ball initiates choreographic games and unpredictable events such as 10,000 more ping-pong balls cascading from above. Tickets $23.50-37.50.

Trisha Brown Dance Company

Ted Shawn Theatre

Wednesday, August 10 – Saturday, August 13, 8pm

Saturday, August 13 – Sunday, August 14, 2pm

40TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

Trisha Brown's pioneering style is acclaimed as a cornerstone of modern dance. This 40th anniversary program celebrates the range of Brown's invention and includes Set and Reset, a masterpiece of collaboration with fluid, geometric movement by Brown, set and costumes by famed visual artist Robert Rauschenberg, and music by Laurie Anderson. Anna Kisselgoff of The New York Times calls it "Brown at her most tantalizing…dartingly quick but so fluid that the body seems a conduit for flowing energy." Additional works include Brown's recent choreographic endeavor for the opera Pygmalion, with music by composer Jean-Philippe Rameau. Tickets $59.50-64.50.

Jodi Melnick and David Neumann/advanced beginner group

Doris Duke Theatre

Wednesday, August 10 – Saturday, August 13, 8:15pm

Saturday, August 13 & Sunday, August 14, 2:15pm

PILLOW COMMISSION

WORLD PREMIERE

LIVE MUSIC

This exclusive engagement brings together two New York choreographers in a diverse program. Claudia La Rocco of The New York Times comments, "By now the line on Mr. Neumann is well established: He is the smart joker of dance. What's not said as often is how deeply felt and deeply moving his work can be." Deborah Jowitt of The Village Voice notes "Trying to convey Melnick's brilliance is like trying to grasp a silver trout in a running stream. She is indeed a force of nature, but not the earth-mother type those words convey." Bessie Award-winner Jodi Melnick performs Fanfare, a sophisticated dance of rhythm and gesture, set against a kaleidoscope of light and sculpture designed by visual artist Burt Barr. David Neumann and his company, advanced beginner group, perform works of signature wry humor and creativity, including Big Eater. The evening culminates in a world premiere duet commissioned by Jacob's Pillow and choreographed and performed by Melnick and Neumann. Tickets $23.50-37.50.

Aspen Santa Fe Ballet

Ted Shawn Theatre

Wednesday, August 17 – Saturday, August 20, 8pm

Saturday, August 20– Sunday, August 21, 2pm

LIVE MUSIC

Aspen Santa Fe Ballet is one of America's leading mixed repertoire contemporary ballet companies, and a Jacob's Pillow audience favorite. Founded in 1990 by Bebe Schweppe and currently directed by Tom Mossbrucker and Jean-Philippe Malaty, the company famously blends its dancers' classical training with a variety of traditional and adventurous work by international choreographers including Jorma Elo, George Balanchine, Itzik Galili, Jiří Kylián, and Trey McIntyre. The Pillow program includes Spanish choreographer Cayetano Soto's Uneven, which is performed to live onstage cello music composed by Maya Beiser. Additional works to be announced. Tickets $59.50-64.50.

David Dorfman Dance

Doris Duke Theatre

Wednesday, August 17 – Saturday, August 20, 8:15pm

Saturday, August 20 & Sunday, August 21, 2:15pm

As Newsday notes, "Robust eccentricity and earthy humanism coexist harmoniously in David Dorfman's ingenious works."  In his newest project, Prophets of Funk–Dance to the Music, Dorfman and company make sure audiences feel part of the vitality and revelry of the 1970s. This exuberant work is set to the popular funk music of Sly and the Family Stone, including "Turn Me Loose," "I Want to Take You Higher," "Dance to the Music," and nine other songs. A vibrant dance revue, Prophets of Funk–Dance to the Music, is a full-evening work delivered with humor and heart by a cast of dancers who have been honored with eight Bessie Awards over the company's twenty-five year history. Tickets $34.50-37.50.

A Jazz Happening

Sunday, August 21, 8pm

Benefit Event for The School at Jacob's Pillow

LIVE MUSIC

This year marks the 5th anniversary of this one-night-only benefit featuring students of the Jazz/Musical Theatre Dance Program performing alongside Broadway stars after three weeks of intense study and preparation at The School at Jacob's Pillow. Directed by Broadway's Chet Walker, A Jazz Happening includes original choreography by the Jazz/Musical Theatre Dance artist faculty and live music by an onstage jazz band. Former guest performers have included Donna McKechnie, Andrea McArdle, Malcolm Gets, Teri Ralston, and Desmond Richardson, and this season's event will feature an all-new program and cast.  Proceeds benefit The School at Jacob's Pillow. Tickets $100 (includes premium seating and reception with performers) and $75 (performance only).

Mark Morris Dance Group

Ted Shawn Theatre

Wednesday, August 24 – Saturday, August 27, 8pm

(Additional matinee)Thursday, August 25, Saturday, August 27 & Sunday, August 28, 2pm

30TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

LIVE MUSIC

Mark Morris has been called "the most important choreographer since Balanchine" (The Boston Globe), and he and his company have a longstanding relationship with Jacob's Pillow spanning the past three decades. In a rousing Festival finale, this program of classic revivals and new work celebrates the lush, witty movement that makes Mark Morris one of America's most acclaimed dancemakers. The engagement includes Resurrection, danced to Richard Rodgers' "Slaughter on 10th Avenue;" Ten Suggestions, the famous solo originally danced by Morris himself; V, a work for fourteen dancers set to the music of Robert Schumann; and Dancing Honeymoon, performed to a medley of classic tunes from the 1920s and 30s. Musicians from the Tanglewood Music Center participate in a complete evening of dance and music. Tickets $64.50-69.50.

Kyle and Camille

Doris Duke Theatre

Wednesday, August 24 – Saturday, August 27, 8:15pm

Saturday, August 27 & Sunday, August 28, 2:15pm

WORLD PREMIERE

New York based choreographers Kyle Abraham and Camille A. Brown have known one another for years but have never performed together. Both were breakout hits of Festival 2010 and now they are brought together along with their ensembles, Abraham.In.Motion and Camille A. Brown and Dancers, in this exclusive production titled Kyle and Camille.  Abraham founded his company in 2005 and was awarded a 2010 Princess Grace Award for choreography and a 2010 Bessie Award for his work The Radio Show (performed at Jacob's Pillow in 2010). Brown is also a 2006 Princess Grace Award recipient for choreography (the first woman to receive this award), and has choreographed for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Urban Bush Women, Ballet Memphis, Philadanco, and others. Both choreographers perform with their own ensemble of dancers and then join up for the world premiere of an Abraham/Brown duet commissioned by the Pillow. Additional works to be announced. Tickets $34.50-37.50.

2011 Ticketing Information

Subscriptions: Jacob's Pillow Subscribers receive early ordering privileges, free ticket exchange (up to 48 hours prior to performance) and 10% off ticket orders. Subscription options are: Full Season Subscriptions, in which subscribers purchase tickets to all ten Ted Shawn Theatre or Doris Duke Theatre performances, and Flex 5+ Subscriptions, in which subscribers create their own schedule choosing five or more performances, any day, any time.  Refer to the Ticket Ordering Calendar at jacobspillow.org for details.

Members: Jacob's Pillow Members receive earliest ordering privileges and other benefits. Memberships are available at any time, starting with donations of $60/year and $40/year for students. To become a Jacob's Pillow Member, call 413.243.9919 or donate online at jacobspillow.org.

Single Tickets:  Single tickets go on sale to the general public on Monday, April 4. Single tickets go on sale to Jacob's Pillow Members beginning March 7. Refer to the Ticket Ordering Calendar at jacobspillow.org for details.

Contact Information: Box Office phones open to the general public April 4 (as early as January 24 for Subscribers and Members, depending on level) Monday-Friday, 10am – 4pm, with additional hours during the Festival.  Box Office: 413.243.0745 or jacobspillow.org.

For complete ticket information and Box Office policies, visit jacobspillow.org.

Free Public Programs During the Festival

Free Performances:  Of the more than 50 dance companies to be presented at Jacob's Pillow in 2011, more than half can be seen performing on Inside/Out, a unique outdoor performance space nestled in the bucolic hills of the Berkshires, for free.  The Inside/Out series includes presentations of emerging dance companies, artists from all over the world, and informal showings by the professional-track students of The School at Jacob's Pillow, Wednesdays through Saturdays at 6:15pm.  Roster of performers to be announced in April; visit jacobspillow.org for additional information.

Exhibits and Archives:  Annual exhibits in four venues throughout the Pillow's National Historic Landmark grounds display photographs, video, artifacts and other engaging visual material that enrich the visitor's experience. The Archives, documenting dance and Pillow history from 1894 to the present, welcome the general public to view videos of recent performances or historic films from years past, and browse dance or related art and history books.  Two interactive touch screen kiosks, one in Blake's Barn and another in the Welcome Center, offer video clips, photos, and information spanning the Festival's history.  The full resources of the Archives are available to the public free of charge on a drop-in basis Tuesdays through Sundays during the Festival, from noon until final curtain.

Talks:  More than 155 enlightening and informative talks range from in-depth hour-long PillowTalks, to brief Pre-Show Talks which introduce audiences to the performance they are about to attend, and Post-Show Talks with the artists just after they step offstage.  PillowTalks take place in Blake's Barn, Thursdays at 5pm and Saturdays at 4pm, providing varied opportunities to gain insight from dancers, choreographers, musicians, filmmakers, visual designers, historians, and other experts. Pre-Show Talks are given by Pillow Scholars-in-Residence and take place in Blake's Barn and on the Doris Duke Theatre porch 30 minutes before every performance.  Post-Show Talks with artistic directors and dancers are moderated by Scholars-in-Residence and take place following the performances on Thursdays in the Ted Shawn Theatre and Fridays in the Doris Duke Theatre.  All talks are free and open to the public.

Tours, Classes, Observations, and More:  During the season, free guided tours of the 163-acre campus leave from the Welcome Center every Friday and Saturday at 5:30pm, and patrons can pick up a self-guided tour map anytime to explore the grounds on their own.  Patrons are also welcome to visit The School at Jacob's Pillow and observe renowned artist faculty working with emerging professional dancers, either on a drop-in basis or pre-arranged for groups larger than four.  Dance and Pilates classes are offered to the public Mondays through Thursdays at 8am and are open to all experience levels (class fee required).  Master classes with artists of the Doris Duke Theatre are offered every Sunday at 10am for intermediate to advanced dancers (class fee required).  Master classes are also open for public observation, without charge. For Community Class information call 413.243.9919.

Dining:  Jacob's Pillow offers many dining options including the Pillow Café, a full-service open air restaurant on the Great Lawn; the Pillow Pub offering casual fare, ready-to-go picnics, and a full bar; the Coffee & Ice Cream Bars, and catering services for groups and events.

The Pillow Store:  Visitors can shop onsite for logo items, clothes, gifts, books, and music; all proceeds benefit Jacob's Pillow.