OKC BALLET ENDS SEASON
WITH A LOVELY CLASSIC BALLET AND A
MONUMENTAL WORLD PREMIERE
OF “MOZART’S REQUIEM”
Three young ladies nicely performed a small class for
young people, and many adults, before the afternoon's matinee. Photo by Nancy Condit
By Nancy Condit
Last Sunday at the Civic Center, OKC Ballet ended its 2010-11 season with a the lovely classic “Paquita Grand pas Classique,” choreographed by Marius Petipa, restaged by ballet master Jacob Sparso, with music by Delibes, Drigo, and Minkus, and the monumental world premiere of the collaboration of “Mozart’s Requiem,” conceived, choreographed and directed by artistic Robert Mills, also performed with the Canterbury Choral Society and the OKC Philharmonic, both under the direction of Dr. Randi Von Ellefson.
“Paquita” was a series of dances in the grand 19th century style. The series of dances were precise and generally well-executed. Miki Kawamura performed beautifully and exquisitely, and was well-partnered by Ronnie Underwood. Soloists Stephanie Foraker Pitts and Grace Medaugh were also very good. The piece was well staged by Dale Hall with candelabra, chandeliers, and a swag of pink and rose fabric across a light backdrop.
The company has a good feel for this style of ballet. With the technique and style of classic ballet well in hand, this reviewer is looking forward to a little more grace in the corps.
Mills’ huge “Requiem” celebrated a person’s going to heaven in a requiem mass – mass of rest, said for the dead by joining over 150 members of the Canterbury Choral Society, the Oklahoma City Philharmonic and the OKC Ballet. Dr. Randi Von Ellefson, who went to Mills about the possibility of such a collaboration in ’09, conducted both Canterbury
The ballet performed Mills’ enjoyable choreography well in a piece that celebrates the ultimate goal of Christianity. The program quoted Mozart,” …death is the key which unlocks the door to our true happiness.”
The symphony was at the front of the stage, with the Canterbury Choral Society at the back. As the musicians were lowered, somewhat noisily, into the orchestra pit, they revealed the ballet sitting with their backs to the audience, white wigged heads nodding in time to the music, and black caped clad figures, as a few angled white tighted and toe shoed legs and feet appeared to the side of the figures.
With cloaks and wigs abandoned to reveal broadly horizontally banded black, red and white short unitards, the dancers performed a contemporary ballet on point. Fluid moves, even through the hands, in the first part of the ballet emphasized that each dancer was a person. Except for their shoes, no one danced an identifiable male or female role.
The first part effectively gathered everyone into a community as the dancers danced with arms on each others’ shoulders, in a line from classical ballet with their arms crossing in front of each other, danced as partners, and then danced in a line, simply hand in hand. It was reminiscent of author Arthur C. Clark’s Childhood’s End, as people throw off the divisions of the current world, and join together for the new one to come. When a person was left without a hand to hold, they shook it humorously, but the humor was not carried out long enough to be effective.
For much of the ballet the dancers performed in groups of three or seven – running, leaping, and partnering each other in classical turns, sometimes sitting, and then standing to join the dancers behind or beside them. The emphasis was on joining,
Amanda Herd performed well on the black silks that were lowered from the top of the stage, climbing them, dancing where they were knotted, including an upside down split, and sliding down the symbol of death, swirling the fabric around her, and then swinging around the stage.
The program gave special thanks to Perpetual Motion Dance, the first company in Oklahoma
Towards the end, very effective choreographically, the dancers changed into flesh colored leotards, the stage light became mottled, and the dancers, terrified, undulated their arms and upper torsos. Eventually they reached a state of peace as they felt accepted, and well chosen flecks of gold dropped down over them. At the end, one of the male dancers sprouted a full set of wings, and was raised to heaven on a sling of red silk.
The one big disappointment was the difference between the advertisement, with what appeared to be a winged angel offering solace to a woman, perhaps for whom the mass was written, which implied interaction between the angels and humans. This did not occur in the ballet.
Next season the ballet celebrates its 40th anniversary..
c. Nancy Condit
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