EMERGING CHOREOGRAPHERS TO WATCH: POSSOKHOV AND ELO 
                                              By Paul Hertelendy 
        artssf.com, the independent observer of San Francisco Bay Area music and dance 
                                                                 Week of May 4-11, 2009
                                                                  Vol. 11, No. 98
           Yuri Possokhov’s half-hour long “Fusion” links modern ballet to traditional Sufi dancing in ingenious, alluring ways to create what was arguably the most forward-looking of the nine world premieres presented by the S.F. Ballet here last year.  The USSR-born choreographer’s versatility was never better demonstrated; I predict that before long an imaginative American dance company is destined to bring him aboard as head.
            As seen in the SFB’s May 2 performance, “Fusion”  has four (male) Sufi dancers in traditional dress do epaulements and snake-like arm movements never taught in ballet school, contrasted by four Western ballerinas with partners. The fusion is contagious; the ballet dancers get caught up in midriff-flexing and moves while sitting down or kneeling, most of it at a giddy pace, as if to prove you don’t have to leap about the stage for dazzling dance. The Sufis do a whirling-dervish routine, and occasionally serve as a gate for the varied magical entries of the ballet group. Enhancing the work is a midpoint pas de deux of the infinitely pliable Yuan Yuan Tan and Hansuke Yamamoto. Added magic comes from the deft lighting design (James Ingalls) and scenic design (ex-SFB dance Benjamin Pierce), and the apt fusion music of jazz and eastern influences dominated by saxophone.
            Jorma Elo’s “Double Evil” suffered from two incompatible musical compositions---one a pounding two-timpani concerto, the other a romantic string-dominated piece. Here too the virtuosic males were dominant---unusual, for a female-dominated company---with Pascal Molat drawing cheers for his solos. The resident choreographer of the Boston Ballet, the Finnish-born Elo here created  an attention-getting piece for four women in tutus and their partners, working at breakneck speed propelled by the kettle drums. Moves are unorthodox---rondes de jambes, and swooping of arms like dophins diving back into the water.  Lifts and carries abound in the cacophony, where things happen so fast you wonder if there is any substance at all.  
            A late scratch of an an Alexei Ratmansky “Russian Seasons” led to a happy solution: the familiar “Rubies,” to a Stravinsky piano concerto. It is the most modern portion drawn out of the evening-length “Jewels” by Balanchine, whose output works much better in smaller doses than the SFB’s preferred profusion. Also it is laced with a lot of whimsey and humor, hardly commonplace in Balanchine’s oeuvre. The lush décor and the lavish burgundy costumes gave a large cast a chance to shine, especially the petite marvel Tina LeBlanc, about to retire after close to 20 years here, alongside the leggy Elena Altman and the company’s most exciting male this season, Pascal Molat. LeBlanc is not only a high-class ballet dancer, but, as the old jazz song goes, she can also shimmy like my sister Kate. <> 
            Conducting an effective orchestra this night were David Briskin and Martin West. 
            San Francisco Ballet in Program 8. Opera House, S.F. Through May 8. Season ends May 10. For info: (415) 865-2000, or go online. 

        ©Paul Hertelendy 2009
                                       #
           Paul Hertelendy has been covering the dance and modern-music scene in the San Francisco Bay Area with relish -- and a certain amount of salsa -- for years.
    These critiques appearing weekly (or sometimes semi-weekly, but never weakly) will focus on dance and new musical creativity in performance, with forays into books (by authors of the region), theater and recordings by local artists as well.
                      #
                 Return to main menu