Not often, almost never anymore, do ballet dancers set rivers on fire.
But the flames lit up Thursday at the Auditorium Theatre in a performance to be repeated (with one notable exception) Friday. True, the hit-parade lineup of a program billed as Principal Dancers of the New York City Ballet, the Bolshoi Ballet and American Ballet Theatre has points good and bad.
It’s tough to transcend the circus feel of this programming, and those expecting anything like a full-scale George Balanchine masterpiece will be disappointed-this is a string of pas de deux introduced by one lone sextet.
But there were moments Thursday as magical as any Chicago has seen in years. Two noteworthy ballerinas, NYCB’s Kyra Nichols and ABT’s Paloma Herrera, are near the height of their powers. Another, Heather Watts, retired last winter and is probably dancing in Chicago for the last time, her first appearance here in more than 15 years.
And in Damian Woetzel, City Ballet boasts an iridescent star and one of the most accomplished male dancers alive. His is that rare artistry that marries dazzle with command, poise and brilliant technique.
He and Herrera perform the grand pas de deux from Act II of “Don Quixote” in a version as breathtaking as you’re likely to see, an exhilarating piece handled with magnificent showmanship.
More spectacular, and infinitely more subtle, is the partnership of Woetzel and Nichols in Woetzel’s own “Glazunov Pas de Deux.” Beautifully flowing from its score, the duet is an intricate exercise in expressive balletic teamwork. For starters, they are two dancers who execute any classical moves with near perfection. But the lush, evocative, soaring confection in Woetzel’s choreography has an infection all its own and enables them to indulge in fireworks and demonstrate exquisite performance artistry.
The stage was already set for high emotion, anyway. In a last-minute surprise, Robert LaFosse, a favorite here before leaving ABT for NYCB more than a decade ago, stepped in to dance his “A Salute to Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.” Though lovely, the best dancing in the piece comes oddly in the solos, especially his sassy, immaculate turn to “I Won’t Dance.” In any event, his return (he isn’t expected to hang around Friday) was a welcomed one.
Watts and Jock Soto are memorable nightshades in Peter Martins’ “Ecstatic Orange,” a twisting, erotic piece that paradoxically spotlights the warmth and vulnerability ennobling these final days of her dancing.
In another surprise, Martins’ son, Nilas, made his Chicago debut, albeit in the thankless walkabout role as prince to Julie Kent’s delicate, fluttering swan in the Act II pas de deux from “Swan Lake.”
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“Principal Dancers” perform through Sunday at the Auditorium Theatre, 50 E. Congress Pkwy. Phone 312-902-1500.
