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The Washington Ballet 'Bolero(+)'
April 17, 2010 -- Harman Center for the Arts, Sidney Harman Hall, Washington, DC In an appropriate goodbye to a brutal winter the Washington Ballet’s (“TWB”) April performance included “Wunderland,” Edwaard Liang’s beautiful snow-globe inspired ballet. I have seen “Wunderland” three times, and I am not tired of it yet. To the contrary, I admire the piece more with each viewing. Much to everyone’s pleasure, TWB’s dancers have found increasing ease and majesty in Liang’s lovely work. “Wunderland” has it all – arresting choreography, award-winning lighting (designed by Jeff Bruckerhoff), affecting music (composed by Philip Glass), and attractive costumes (constructed by Monica Leland, Joan Lynch, and Emily Vallozzi). Plus, there is a delicious tension throughout. In “Wunderland,” the program’s opening work, the knees of the women drew up to their chests repeatedly as they were lifted by the men, then carefully placed, unfolded gently like napkins, back on the stage. The duet between veteran dancers Elizabeth Gaither and Jared Nelson stirred hearts. The petite and pliable Maki Onuki was also at her best, appearing both unusually tough and delicate as she sailed through the air. Already an audience favorite (it has never ceased to elicit gasps), “Wunderland” is likely to stay in TWB’s repertoire for the long run. As an added bonus, it also provides the company with an opportunity to recycle the paper-mâché snow from their annual Nutcracker!
While “Wunderland” suits the company spectacularly, TWB’s dancers looked rather out of place in “Brahms on Edge.” Onuki and rising star Brooklyn Mack, along with the rest of the company, floundered in this alienating work. In response, audience members shifted restlessly in their seats. The blues and grays of the costumes by Peter Speliopolous kept the temperature icy. The company was strongest when they danced tightly together in a flock. Indeed, the huddles were among Armitage’s most interesting choreographic contributions. When Onuki and Mack attempted to generate passion, however, one was unsure whether they liked one another, despite the occasional caresses. Their motivations and feelings, unfortunately, remained well hidden. Mack lifted Onuki mechanically, making their duet seem stilted.
Fonte’s “Bolero” began slowly and seriously with periods of silence and eerie rumbles resembling the sound of an oncoming train or approaching earthquake. Sona Kharatian and Nelson were the first couple to take the stage. Their partnering was dramatic and almost angry. From behind the shiny metal rectangles, outstretched feet and arms somewhat humorously emerged. Eventually, there was only one rectangle remaining, off center, hovering above the stage like an exclamation point. The work suffered from a deficiency of unison, perhaps due to a shortage of rehearsal time. Overall, the movement neglected to deliver the sort of unsettling but pleasantly dizzying passion that Bolero typically arouses, and the piece did not seem to develop to a desired climax. Instead, “Bolero” ended with Kharatian inexplicably wrapping herself in a rectangle of thick red fabric that descended from above like a long, threatening tongue.
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by Carmel Morgan
Next, TWB premiered a new work, “Brahms on Edge,” by the so-called “punk ballerina” Karole Armitage. Mezzo-soprano Cynthia Hanna and pianist Joy Schreier appeared live courtesy of the Washington National Opera’s Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Program. “Brahms on Edge” may have been slightly edgy (dancing to Brahms is definitely a challenge), but the ballet failed to launch any genuine feeling, other than confusion, especially for those like myself who couldn’t understand a word of the pained German love songs. 
The final work of the mixed bill program was “Bolero,” TWB’s premiere of a contemporary ballet for five couples by Nicolo Fonte. The Oregon Ballet Theatre first performed “Bolero” in February 2008. The Industrial Revolution purportedly inspired Ravel’s beloved composition “Bolero,” and Fonte pursued this theme in his ballet of the same name. The clever set and lighting design by Michael Mazzola consisted of steely corrugated metal rectangles that hung from the ceiling. The rectangles gradually disappeared upward into the sky like skyscrapers being unbuilt. Long shadows stretched across the pale floor. Like in “Wunderland,” the costumes, by Mark Zappone (on loan from the Oregon Ballet Theatre), were a vivid brick color.