LetZ Talk Before I Catch Some Zzzzz’s.

Disclaimer: The note below is all in good fun and written to those known as the Ballet Boyz/George Piper Dances.

Dear Ballet BoyZ,

I think that “N*Sync” clearly established the fact that “creative” spelling is a no-no. The first order of business is to remove the “Z” from your name ASAP, as in it’s gone NOW. No one should be allowed to commit this travesty but most especially no one over the age of 10. From the looks of it you were pushing 40, therefore making the crime that much more pressing. Not only is the “Z” completely unnecessary, but you also made it apparent from the moment the curtain went up at City Center last week that you were NOT going to be dancing anything that was TRULY ballet. Sure you threw in a few drape lifts and a few ballet jumps for good measure, but the majority of it was a lot of walking in circles and upping the homoerotic tension. My point being, you might as well have named your troupe “Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves,” it would have been just as relevant but at least I would have had a Cher song running through my head, not that trance music you were dancing to. That should be outlawed too. Don't market yourself as something you are not, enjoy what you are. That is the "Sesame Street" Lesson of the day. I think that’s all for now. Kisses from this side of the pond.
-M
P.S. What is happening with the photo above? I only ask because the file name was “bigwet.jpg” I think you need to have a general “naming” lesson.
P.P.S I WAS drugged up on cold medicine during this performance but unless it was laced with something I really don’t think I hallucinated what I saw last Saturday.
P.P.P.S. I just wasn’t crazy about the performance, the rest of the audience seemed to be….except my friends and I.

Okay, now that I have gotten that off of my chest, let me do a few more brief thoughts about the two performances of “Fall For Dance” I saw last week. I should start by reiterating what is already common knowledge; this festival is an INCREDIBLE opportunity. Not only for the audiences, but for the dancers as well and the entire arts world. You could tell when looking around the theater that this was an eclectic group of theater- goers that were genuinely excited to be there. I mean nothing can seem TOO bad when you only paid ten dollars for it so you know going in that you are pretty much in for an enjoyable evening.

As eclectic as the audiences were, the array of companies that were on display each night proved even more so. What began as a classical evening with PNB, quickly turned into a modern romp accompanied by Marilyn Manson during the performance of “Random Dance.” That company, as well as “ASzURe & Artists” (the “Z” is fine there because it is a person’s name) take the cake for the most exciting pieces I saw. Both took a new approach to movement that I was familiar with, contemporary and African respectively, and infused them with a modern life that literally burst off the stage. Something I would love to accomplish when I choreograph. Recently I have been such a fan of unison movement and all of the power that it can pack. This point was further reitterated with the brilliant opening trio by “AsZure.” The audience around me was gasping at how well these boys moved and I could have watched them for at least another hour. Instead I was treated to “Ballet BoyZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ,” and we all know how that ended. Of course before all of that I got to see my fabulous friends in Streb rock their stuff to the delight of everyone in the theater.

What is so brilliant about “Fall For Dance” is that it serves as a kind of party platter for new companies. I would quickly buy tickets to see either of the companies I praised and will avidly avoid others I didn’t like. Perhaps most frustrating to me was PNB’s performance which displayed some nice dancers but left me a little cold on the choreography end. I would enjoyed seeing some of Peter Boal’s work presented but I guess they were trying to whet my appetite for next year. That is the beautiful trap of “Fall For Dance,” it gets you all excited about dance, but you have a full year to wait to enjoy something as spectacular again!

Wow, this got too long. Sorry. It’s not called “RANTING Details” for nothing…..Coming Next Week: Ranting DetailZ.

Comments

[Scottish Missy]

Greetings

To be fair, I don't think they came up with BalletBoyz name. Seems to me that name was thought up some BBC or ITV PR person when they first did their TV show here in the UK. In actual fact, the name of their company is George Piper Dances. And they never promise ballet - their performances have always been more modern than balletic.

I saw them here in Edinburgh, and that program was fabulous. I'm not sure what the program was at Fall for Dance, but perhaps they are experimenting a bit too much now and/or chose badly. If they're ever back you way, give 'em a second chance as there are some real gems in their repertory like Broken Fall. And I give them credit for aging gracefully - their rep has changed and adjusted as they've gotten older. I'm sure they would have had many more productive years as principl/first soloist at the Royal, but they choice to explore beyond ballet, and kudos for them being brave enough to do that.

Anyway, hope you feel better - the flu is raging here in Scotland. Bleh.

Kate

[M]

I absolutely agree about them aging gracefully; everything I said was just in good fun. I really am attacking the name more than the dancers as I have a huge amount of respect for anyone that keeps going and explores new styles.

[7th Wave]

RANTING? I'll say, you must have just been sick and tired, but I appreciate your candor in the moment. Don't you wish there could be such a thing as true objectivity? Probably not because then we wouldn't exist.

[Anonymous]

For an old lady these two oldies look pretty good!

[tonya]

Ha ha ha -- I agree with Anonymous! I missed their performance at FFD, but saw them talk at the last panel discussion on the future of ballet (and thought they were both pretty cute -- albeit a bit older ... and married...) They said they were trying to take ballet in new directions and they thought the future of ballet was to do just that. They said they thought ballet could join in reaping the benefits of the current resurgence in dance popularity (on tv and in the movies --ie: ballroom, hip-hop, contemporary, etc.), and feared it may be left behind if more ballet choreographers were not open to experimenting with ways of blending ballet with these other dance forms. They were a lot more articulate than I am, but their main point was that they were trying to experiment and push ballet beyond what they felt were its current boundaries.