NYCB - 20th Century Violin Concertos

I received a tiny bonus to my finances recently (very tiny) and of course I used it all up on tickets to this and that.  Last night, I was happy to have a TDF ticket to see the New York City Ballet's fall season program 20th Century Violin Concertos.  I love violin concertos and I confess to being very uneducated in 20th century/contemporary music, so I looked forward to learning something new.  Plus, when I saw that the ballets were choreographed by Peter Martins, Jerome Robbins and George Balanchine, I figured I was in for a treat.  And I was!  With some minor exceptions...

I was a tad disappointed to be seated in the third ring - usually when I get TDF tickets to NYCB, I get placed into an empty single on the main floor.  I guess I shouldn't have expected that.  But I was in the center of the third ring and I do enjoy watching new-to-me choreography from above, to see the patterns, so I guess I can't complain too much.  I can maybe complain a little about my seat neighbors, who perhaps should stop drinking liquids after, say, noon.  Their up-and-down to the bathrooms got on my nerves.

photo credit: Paul Kolnik (not the cast I saw)

The first piece was Peter Martins' The Red Violin, scored by John Corigliano based on his film score of the same name.  It's a relatively new ballet, premiering in 2006.  I have to admit, I wasn't all that keen on it.  I know the music, a bit (I used to be a collector of film scores on CD), and it was very nicely played (the solo violinist was Philippe Quint), but I didn't really see a connection between the music and the steps.  There didn't seem to be a plot, though there were some vague hints at relationships between some of the dancers.  It was very attractively danced by the cast of eight, it just wasn't very interesting to watch.  Maybe I was just tired, but my mind wandered throughout and this ballet didn't grab me at all.  Darn.

a photo from the NYCB website (not the cast I saw)

The second piece was Jerome Robbins' In Memory Of, scored by Alban Berg.  The story goes that Berg was so devastated by the death of a friend's young daughter, that he put aside his opera Lulu to work on a violin concerto to honor the girl.  The ballet, which premiered in 1985, is so lovely; it simply throbs with ache.  A young girl dances through her life, then struggles through her death, only to be lifted into a higher plane at the end.  Tiler Peck danced the girl and she was stunning.  So light and free, yet complex and vulnerable.  The ballet starts with the girl dancing with (I think) her father, and there's an ease and comfort there.  Then there is a terrific pas de deux between the girl and death, which obviously has more tension and danger, where she struggles then succumbs.  Death is personified, of course, by a handsome man, beautifully danced by Zachary Catazaro.  The steps seemed to me to exemplify classical ballet at its best, with lifts and shapes and patterns that were deceptively simple.  And the end was pure magic, with the girl, now in white and with flowing hair, just floating around the earth and then effortlessly taken off the stage by the two partners who shaped her life.  Really gorgeous, gorgeous stuff.  Obviously, I loved this one.  Oh, and Kurt Nikkanen was the excellent solo violinist.

photo credit: Paul Kolnik

The third piece was Stravinsky Violin Concerto, choreographed by the great George Balanchine.  Boy, ending with a Balanchine sure puts the rest of the stuff into context.  This ballet premiered in 1972 (though he had choreographed a different ballet to this concerto in the 40s), but like most of Balanchine's work, it's timeless.  There are four sections, danced in rehearsal clothes, and it's just a sublime match of music and movement.  It seriously seems as if they are one and the same.  The two pas de deux that are in the center of the ballet are fascinating.  One is totally gymnastic and physical and the other more ethereal and lyrical.  Even using the classic form, there is boldness and strength in these idiosyncratic pas de deux.  There were shapes and patterns I hadn't seen before, with startlingly complex partnering moves that seemed almost impossible to get right.  And the beginning and end sections, with the entire cast, were terrific.  The whole piece was terrific!  The solo violinist was Arturo Delmoni and I will confess to being disappointed that none of the soloists last night were women.  I mean, the gents played beautifully, but still...

All in all, it was a lovely night of dance and music that I hadn't experienced before and I enjoyed myself.  I do so love the Balanchine pieces - maybe I should split my money between ABT and NYCB a little more next year.  I'll have to think on that.