Boston Ballet puts on a flawless performance<\/p>\n
By Mariam K. Sutalaksana<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The stars of the Boston Ballet who performed in
\nJakarta last week were enchanting and in command of the ballet
\nsteps they performed. One could only wonder if they were ever
\ngoing to make a mistake. Their execution of leaps, jumps and
\nturns was almost perfect.<\/p>\n
Unlike many other ballet company's that have visited Jakarta's
\ntheaters, the Boston Ballet's dancers seemed to specialize in
\nsmooth movements influenced by Balanchine American and Vaganova
\nRussian training. Another specialty seemed to be duets. Many
\nengaging images sprinkled their three night performance at Graha
\nBhakti Budaya, Taman Ismail Marzuki, Central Jakarta.<\/p>\n
In Tchaikovsky's pas de deux, a ballerina dashed across the
\nwooden stage amidst the ocean blue backdrop. Leaping through the
\nair with her right leg bent, her left leg extended to the back,
\nand her arms reaching out. She was floating for a second,
\ncreating the image of a fairy flying across the sky. Her consort
\nturned and moved to the tune of Tchaikovsky's symphony and caught
\nthe blond nymph, just in time, before they moved together in a
\ngraceful and glittering white reverie.<\/p>\n
In Gluck Melody, a lady carried a flowing white fabric given
\nlife by the colorful lighting. She waved this piece of cloth as
\nshe turned and was raised by her partner in such refinement that
\naudience was in awe. These pas de deux or duets were snippets of
\nthe Boston Ballet's technical prowess on their first night
\nperformance on Thursday.<\/p>\n
These eleven dancers, out of fifty eight company members, were
\ninvited by the Namarina Ballet school to show their skills in
\nboth modern and classical ballet to an Indonesian audience. Each
\nnight they performed a three section show with numerous fouettes
\nor whipping turns, many flights into the air, many effortless
\nlifts by the male dancers and powerful jumps. The first section
\nwas Nine Lives by Daniel Pelzig. The second section consisted of
\nfour duets by different creators, while the last was an upbeat
\nchoreography by Elisa Monte called VII for VIII.<\/p>\n
Being the United States' fourth largest ballet company, with
\nsome of the world's best ballet dancers, it was no wonder the
\nmodern ballets were entertaining and the classical ones charming.
\nThe whipping turns or the fouettes in the pas de deux impressed
\nthe spectators so much that they applauded after each fraction of
\nthe dance.<\/p>\n
The first modern piece, Nine Lives, was accompanied by the
\njazzy country music of Lyle Lovett. In one part, called Hot To
\nGo, Paul Thrussel, a principal dancer originally from England,
\nmade the audience smile with his mischievous and flirtatious
\ngestures. The deliberate movements of his arms and feet and his
\nchanging facial expressions were comical yet seriously powerful.
\nThis piece was a nine dancer composition combining classical
\nballet steps with American cowboy kicks and yee-ha and a little
\nbit of jazz. After a daunting high speed movement across the
\nstage and precise turns in the air, the male dancers paired with
\nthe ballerinas to end the piece.<\/p>\n
Following Nine Lives was a section of duets. On the first
\nnight there was one dance from George Balanchine, two from
\nRussian classics: Le Corsaire and Don Quixote, and Gluck Melody
\nby Asaf Messener. Their presentation was beautiful and elegant.
\nWith a simple 45 degree leg lift and curving of an arm, each
\nballerina was able to capture the audience's attention. The way
\nthe male dancers lifted the ballerinas appeared effortless,
\nespecially when Thrussel thrusted Larissa Ponomarenko to the
\nheavens in Balanchine's duet. She looked like a feather raised by
\na human finger.<\/p>\n
Though each of the eleven dancers were stars in their own
\nright, in Monte's VII for VIII they proved they could also
\nperform well in unison. This was especially true in a routine by
\nJennifer Gelfand, Jennifer Glaze and Ponomaremko. They wore
\nshining red, white and green costumes. They curved their upper
\nbodies to the front and bent their arms in the same angle, moving
\nas one to David Van Tieghem percussion work.<\/p>\n
The solid, colorful costumes served as an accessory to the
\nengaging choreography and performance. The music helped the
\ndancer's rapport as they kept pace with the music and worked its
\nflow. The many hoists of the ballerinas by the male dancers
\ncharacterized the piece. Then, as the dance came to a close the
\naudience gave the dancers a standing ovation.<\/p>\n
It was a pity the theater was nowhere near full. This might
\nhave been because tickets were expensive. But for those who did
\nshow up, it was an appetizer to entice anybody to watch a full
\nproduction by the Boston Ballet Company. Perhaps the classic Nut
\nCracker production which they will perform during the holiday
\nseason in December in Boston's Wang Theater. Maybe one day
\nJakarta can host a full production by the Boston Ballet or
\nperhaps an Indonesian Ballet company of the same caliber. Just
\nfood for thought.<\/p>",
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