When a classically based dance company wants to show off the breadth of its repertoire, that often means the injection of contemporary choreography. But to understand that stylistic eclecticism has no direct relationship with chronology, attend the beautifully danced second program that the increasingly vital Joffrey Ballet of Chicago presents at the Auditorium Theatre this weekend.
At once retro and interdisciplinary, this unusual evening not only showcases live music but also reminds us that our current sampling culture does not have a monopoly on progressive art forms or the exploration of connections between multiple dance and performance traditions.
Each of the four pieces here was first choreographed at least 30 years ago. Three of the pieces premiered in 1957 or earlier.
When, in 1957, Alwin Nikolais first crafted “Tensile Involvement” (in which dancers interact with long elastic bands hanging from the ceiling), no one had heard of post-modernism, neo-vaudevillians, or the style of the Cirque du Soleil. Yet the seeds of all those movements are contained in a crowd-pleasing piece of choreography that still feels fresh and exciting
Hearing Nikolais’ original score for this wonderful melange of dance, shape, sound, motion and color, you’d swear he penned the thing on a computer. No wonder many critics argue that the late Kennedy Center honoree was the true father of both multimedia and the notion of dance as total theater.
For his “Square Dance,” George Balanchine first combined classical ballet, live music by Vivaldi and Corelli, American folk-dance traditions and an authentic square-dance caller nearly half a century ago.
Balanchine’s main point was that both types of movement are obsessed with order and what the choreographer once termed the “richness of metrical invention.” Aside from the interest of the deconstructive juxtaposition, this piece is still a lot of fun, even if the loose-limbed elegance of Tracy Julias was best enjoyed when the caller was not yacking about the dancer’s legs going “wickety-wack” or some such nonsense.
An injury necessitated a last-minute replacement in Jennifer Scanlon’s loyal re-creation of Jose Limon’s “The Moor’s Pavane,” a justly celebrated dance exploration of themes contained within Shakespeare’s “Othello,” and the most serious and meditative piece in a night dominated by lighter themes. Watching this 1949 treatment of the music of Henry Purcell, one is struck by Limon’s clever juxtaposition of internal angst with the overall framework of a stately court dance. The quartet of dancers did not fully gel on Thursday night, but that did not detract from the searing presence of passionate Domingo Rubio as the Moor.
Because it has been three decades since Gerald Arpino created “Trinity,” it now offers an audience the rather bizarre experience of seeing a period rock ballet. “Hair” redux, the live score is a mix of bubble-gum pop and protest vibes. But chronological remove hasn’t killed any of the inherent joy in an unwieldy but exuberant piece that showcased the wavy charms and sheer physical strength of Calvin Kitten, Sam Franke and Davis Robertson, the three Berkeley-esque soloists featured in the 22-minute ballet’s “Saturday” section.
Like the rest of this very pleasing night of dance, “Trinity” encapsulates Arpino’s unquestioned ability to create a timeless balletic bottle of the excitement of the human spirit.
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The Joffrey Ballet of Chicago
Where: Auditorium Theatre
When: Through March 26
Phone: 312-902-1500
