Local Tourism II

Local Tourism II: DANCECleveland Ballet X

And that was only Part I of our evening out on the town. After an hour in paper wonderland we got in the car and motored it to the E. J Thomas Performing Arts Hall, at Akron University, to see the first concert in our DanceCleveland subscription: Ballet X, a dance company out of Philadelphia that focuses on new and emerging choreographers. E.J. Thomas is a wonderful hall that evokes fond memories for us, specifically of last spring's recital from Thomas Hampson - but I digress, and could digress for hours about this wonderful recital.

3 Dances were performed - the first was called Still@Life choreographed by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa and somehow refers to the process and work of Michelangelo to the lively strains of Bach. Though I didn't see the connection specifically to Michelangelo, it was definitely a celebration of form, structure, animation and color. To see wonderful dancers is to let some part of your middle-aged and limited body take flight along with them. Irad and I really felt inspired and uplifted and entranced during this entire first dance, and even Fat Rabbit, who came along to this part of the evening reluctantly, was transported.

The second dance, Silt, by Alex Ketley, was dark, jerky, depressing and full of a collage of caterwauling sounds. I know dance companies need to create balanced programs, but I didn't enjoy the work and it was a downer, though technically excellent.

And the finale, Glass, by their co-assistant artistic director, Matthew Neenan, was a wonderful, brawling tableau of beautiful images and moving vignettes set to the music of Indie band Beirut, who I will now look up. It left us excited and uplifted, and Fat Rabbit, too, despite herself loved it and was full of questions about the meaning of the dance.

excerpts from Glass 

I was struck by how well organized this series is, as was the Morgan Conservatory event. These are events created by mature cultural organizations that pay attention to every detail. The DanceCleveland event began with a few words from a student, who described to us briefly the week in residence that Akron U dance students had with the dancers. There was a pre-concert lecture and a post concert Q & A with the dancers, and abundant cookies and punch in the lobby on the way out, and Ballet X buttons to join the series of buttons commemorating the dance companies in residence, who always kick off the Dance Cleveland subscription. This is loving detail and perhaps the function of being a smaller city who prizes its arts events. I've never been given cookies at Lincoln Center!

Home in time to read a few more pages in Keith Richards "Life." Stay tuned for a review of this amazing book in my book review section.