Martin Luther King Jr. Day visit
New York City
American Ballet Theater | October 2017 /
At the end of October, I had the privilege of seeing the American Ballet Theater perform its 2017 Fall Season at the David H. Koch Theater in Lincoln Center.
I have seen a number of their classical performances (i.e. Romeo & Juliet and The Nutcracker) in past seasons, but was particularly excited to see the contemporary choreography of this fall. Also, Misty Copeland! The dances included:
Her Notes
Symphonic Variations
Elegy Pas de Deux
Thirteen Diversions
In particular, I enjoyed Her Notes. Choreographed by Jessica Lang. Her Notes had a striking visual introduction in which the dancer floated through a square in a transparent screen. I do not have the exact words to describe it, but I will say it reminded me of a very artful transition into a new dimension.
All of the dancers were effervescent and ethereal in their pastels. Entrances and exits were particularly exciting in this performance as bodies floated on stage from all stage directions, often entering the stage while performing a phrase repeated throughout the piece.
Excited to say I saw Misty Copeland perform live. I had met her in person a few times on the Upper West Side—casually running into her in front of Fairway UWS. She was lovely then and now on stage.
It is worth noting that Elegy Pas de Deux (From With a Chance of Rain) was also literally breathtaking. It was a beautiful performance and I gasped a few times during dismounts from dramatic lifts and turns. It was performed by Hee Seo and Roman Zhurbin. Hee Seo has been popping up on my timelines and I'm excited to see her career blossom. Unfortunately, we were not allowed to photograph during the performance.
