Sunday, January 14, 2007

Miami City Ballet


Miami City Ballet

This wonderful company is hardly unknown nationally and internationally but all the publicity it gets is deserved. Under the direction of Edward Villella the Miami, like the city itself, has become renown for its cutting edge creativity. Its move from the Jackie Gleason theater to the Carnival Center is a fitting showcase for this gem of a company. A gem performing in a gem.

There were four performances on Saturday night starting with Agon by Balanchine, for whom of course Mr. Villella danced. That was followed by Afternoon of a Faun which was written expressly by Jerome Robbins for Mr. Villella, so taken was the former by seeing Villella, then a 16 year old prodigy, simply limbering up at the New York City Ballet one day. Mr. Villella's virility was clearly intended as the focus of this pas de deux.

The third performance was another pas de deux, the erotic Liturgy by Christopher Wheeldon. The male-female interplay was sensually performed by coquettish Haiyan Wu and desirous Daymel Sanchez.

There were two intermissions in the evening and after the second was the concluding performance, Twyla Tharp's In the Upper Room. It has become a signature of the Miami to end the evening with a "fun" piece. What Ms. Tharp's composition lacked in classical character it made up for in fun. The performance was almost as much modern dance as ballet and invigoratingly fast-paced. The dancers were clearly having fun. One ballerina performed most of the piece with a smile on her face. This viewer wore a smile on his face during the entire performance.

Two of the things that make the Miami stand out are its stage design and its costume design. With the Carnival Center's dramatic stage and the company's new wealth the stage design is almost opera-like in its grandeur. The lighting is as good. But besides Mr. Villella the other genius at the Miami is Costume Designer and Director of Wardrobe Haydee Morales. Every night, every performance, Ms. Morales' brilliant, cutting-edge, and inspired eye are evident.

In a city that has escaped its fun and sun tackiness only recently the Miami City Ballet stands out, above Art Basel, the Museum of Contemporary Art, the New World Symphony and every other component of Miami's exciting cultural present. I am Benjamin Harris.

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