{"id":35798,"date":"2018-05-26T08:34:56","date_gmt":"2018-05-26T14:34:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/?p=35798"},"modified":"2018-09-09T20:08:26","modified_gmt":"2018-09-10T02:08:26","slug":"national-choreographic-festival-program-b-keeps-the-spotlight-on-female-choreographers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/national-choreographic-festival-program-b-keeps-the-spotlight-on-female-choreographers\/","title":{"rendered":"National Choreographic Festival Program B Keeps the Spotlight on Female Choreographers"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

Ballet West artist Joshua Shutkind rehearsing Natalie Weir\u2019s Jabula. Photo by Beau Pearson.<\/p><\/div>\n

The second weekend of Ballet West\u2019s National Choreographic Festival features three pieces created by women: Jennifer Archibald\u2019s\u00a0\u201c<\/em>Myoho,\u201d<\/em>\u00a0<\/em>performed by Cincinnati Ballet, Robyn Mineko Williams\u2019s\u00a0\u201c<\/em>To Clear,\u201d<\/em>\u00a0<\/em>performed by Charlotte Ballet, and \u00c1frica Guzm\u00e1n\u2019s\u00a0\u201c<\/em>Sweet and Bitter,\u201d\u00a0<\/em>performed by Ballet West. Like the first weekend of the festival, each choreographer presents a different approach to contemporary ballet, revealing a diversity of aesthetics as well as the significance of including women\u2019s voices in ballet programming.<\/p>\n

The director of Cincinnati Ballet, Victoria Morgan, has brought financial stability and artistic excellence to the organization during her 20-year tenure as both CEO and artistic director. At a panel discussion of women in leadership roles, hosted by Ballet West on May 23, Morgan said, \u201cIt\u2019s ironic, in part, because you don\u2019t see women in these roles, you don\u2019t realize that you have that capability. \u201dHer statement speaks to the politics of representation and who has, historically, decided how women are presented and represented. Scholar and theorist\u00a0bell hooks<\/a>\u00a0 (Gloria Jean Watkins) writes about how \u201cthe field of representation (how we see ourselves, how others see us) is a site of ongoing struggle.\u201d In an essay called \u201cIn our Glory: Photography and Black Life,\u201d hooks writes that photography was a \u201cpolitical instrument, a way to resist misrepresentation as well as a means by which alternative images could be produced.\u201d In many ways, the festival presented by Ballet West is another reworking of these \u201cmisrepresentations\u201d and a place where \u201calternative images\u201d of capable women are made visible and tangible.<\/p>\n

Jennifer Archibald\u2019s choreography exemplifies the importance of the politics of representation. Archibald was named resident choreographer of Cincinnati Ballet in 2017 and\u00a0\u201c<\/em>Myoho\u201d<\/em>\u00a0<\/em>marks her fourth creation for the company (following 2014\u2019s \u201cSit,\u201d\u00a02016\u2019s \u201cRedeem,\u201d and 2017\u2019s \u201cNever.Nest\u201d).\u00a0Cincinnati\u2019s dancers shine in her creations, which is a testament to both their talents as performers as well as Archibald\u2019s extraordinary creativity and craft. Her choreography updates ballet\u2019s vocabulary by intertwining elements of jazz, modern, and hip-hop with the classical vocabulary. The results are neither gimmicky nor acrobatic but rather intensely fascinating and evocative. Archibald brings ballet into the 21st century with the kind of imagination and intelligence that George Balanchine brought to ballet in the last century: sections of\u00a0\u201cMyoho<\/em><\/a>\u201d<\/em>\u00a0look like \u201cAgon,\u201d but newly resonant. Exquisite feats of partnering and careful attention to dancers\u2019 formations make\u00a0\u201c<\/em>Myoho<\/em>,\u201d<\/em>like \u201cAgon,\u201d a physical and emotional contest.\u00a0The piece<\/em>\u00a0tests the dancers\u2019 limits and capacities, and it was incredible that, coming from Ohio the night before, they adjusted to Salt Lake City\u2019s elevation just in time for this demanding performance.<\/p>\n

In the panel discussion on May 23, Archibald said, \u201cFor me, when I walk into a studio I see more than dancers\u2019 physical abilities. I am checking in with them emotionally\u2026 I look at them as humans, instead of what they execute from point A to point B. When you invest in that aspect of their humanity, I think the ensemble work is stronger and the experience is better for myself and for them.\u201d These words sum up perfectly what happened on stage last night: the dancers combined steely strength with lightning-fast accents. Partnering sections allowed both men and women to occupy roles of resisting, relishing, and evading one another. The entire cast of 10 inhabited Archibald\u2019s movement as both a challenge and an affirmation, as if to say, \u201cNot only can I dance this phrase, I can also add my own nuances to it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Two men, Cervilio Miguel Amador and James Cunningham, were fascinating in a duet that was as much a demonstration of leaning into support and interdependencies as it was a showcase for their exceptional dancing. Again, Archibald\u2019s vocabulary enables this kind of emotional insight: she has a keen eye for both formal elements, as when couples enter the stage in similar lifts, creating a sense of dynamism and equilibrium, and for highlighting dancers\u2019 relationships with one another. In a brilliant touch, one of the women placed her finger on a man\u2019s lips after a virtuosic duet, as if to say, \u201cThat\u2019s enough for the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n

Indeed the title of her piece can be translated as\u00a0\u201c<\/em>Myo<\/em>\u201d<\/em>\u00a0which means mystic or wonderful, and\u00a0\u201c<\/em>ho<\/em>,\u201d\u00a0<\/em>which means law. According to the Soka Gakkai International website, \u201cMyoho\u201d is \u201cthe wonder of ordinary people, beset by delusion and suffering, awakening to the fundamental law in their own lives, bringing forth wisdom and compassion and realizing that they are inherently Buddhas able to solve their own problems and those of others. The Mystic Law transforms the life of anyone\u2014even the unhappiest person, at any time and in any circumstances\u2014into a life of supreme happiness.\u201d<\/p>\n

In many ways, Archibald\u2019s work with Cincinnati Ballet brought me supreme happiness: I spent three days in San Francisco recently for the\u00a0Unbound<\/em><\/a>\u00a0festival of new choreography and none of the works had the nuance and vibrancy of Archibald\u2019s. This is also a compliment to Cincinnati\u2019s dancers: they tap into a place where they are fearless and they excel. Their costume design, by Archibald, placed the women in yellow leotards with futuristic collars that extended over the napes of their necks, suggesting the top of a cape and heightening their sense of invincibility. The score included music by Nico Muhly, Robert Honstein, and David Lang and the intertwining of instruments and machines contributed to the idea that Archibald makes ballet relevant to our digitally enhanced 21st century.<\/p>\n

During the panel, Archibald also said, \u201cI love teaching and I continue to teach high school through university students. How I attack all of my classes is to not only see the star in the room. It\u2019s important for me to see the dancer that may not be at the forefront, but has the skill level and the talent, but not the confidence to step forward. It\u2019s important to see everyone and motivate everyone.\u201d Based on last night\u2019s performance, it\u2019s clear that her choreography motivates her audiences as much as it motivates her students, and\u00a0\u201c<\/em>Myoho\u201d<\/em>\u00a0<\/em>received a standing ovation.<\/p>\n

Charlotte Ballet is now directed by Hope Muir, who trained and performed in Great Britain before joining Hubbard Street Dance Chicago (HSDC). Muir selected a work by Robyn Mineko Williams, who danced with HSDC for 12 seasons, to bring to the National Choreographic Festival. Called\u00a0\u201cTo Clear<\/a>,\u201d the piece was a brilliant choice for the contrast that Williams\u2019 choreography provided. Working in a more exploratory and grounded style, Williams developed scenes that evoked poetic and enigmatic interactions: the piece began with one woman standing on a folding chair, as a man, Anson Zwingelberg, walked slowly from downstage to upstage, toward her. Two technicians, working handheld lights in the downstage corners of the stage, created shadows that duplicated their actions on the backdrop. The imagery suggested that this relationship was similar to other human interactions, and as the piece continued the cast of seven created duets, trios, and quartets that felt poignant and dreamlike: in one section each cast member slid a hand around one dancer\u2019s waist, as if about to hug or embrace them from behind, but then abandoned the gesture.<\/p>\n

Costumes by Aimee J. Coleman contributed to the pedestrian environment, with the men and women in socks and distinct outfits, wearing long-sleeved and sleeveless tops, with pedestrian shorts, capris, and even a pants suit. The muted tones added to the casual environment and the commissioned score by Robert F. Haynes and Tony Lazzara enriched the atmosphere with blankets of sounds that felt like they were enveloping the scenes. Actions segued seamlessly: for example, a deep lunge morphed into a turn, and then into an arabesque, allowing the momentum of each part to determine the course of events rather than lingering in any position. Zwingelberg, who graduated from Juilliard with his BFA last year, stood out among the cast of beautiful performers.<\/p>\n

Ballet West chose \u00c1frica Guzm\u00e1n\u2019s\u00a0\u201cSweet and Bitter<\/a>\u201d<\/em>\u00a0to close the program and its merger of dramatic interactions and spectacular partnering created a powerful ending. Allison DeBona and Chase O\u2019Connell were stellar as the lead couple, and their closing pas de deux was poignant and haunting, ending with O\u2019Connell lifting and cradling DeBona in his arms.<\/p>\n

Katherine Lawrence, Katlyn Addison, Chelsea Keefer, Hadriel Diniz, Alexander MacFarlan, and Jordan Veit added vibrancy and playfulness to the piece, embodying the \u201csweet\u201d part of Guzm\u00e1n\u2019s title. The women especially lingered in balances as if savoring the movement and this added allure to their performances. Guzm\u00e1n\u2019s choreography, a fusion of theatricality and physical feats, evokes a lineage of European ballet-makers like Nacho Duato (whom Guzm\u00e1n worked with for 20 years) and Ji\u0159\u00ed Kyli\u00e1n, and was complemented by a score by Ezio Bosso, which combined both driving and demure sections.<\/p>\n

During the panel, Guzm\u00e1n acknowledged the importance of powerful women, such as Maya Plisetskaya, her first director, in her career, and Hope Muir added similar observations. Great Britain, said Muir, is \u201cquite a small island. Ninette de Valois founded the Royal Ballet and Marie Rambert started Ballet Rambert, which is the oldest company in Britain, and one that I was fortunate to dance with\u2026 Now you\u2019ve got National Dance Company Wales with a female director [Caroline Finn] and Scottish Dance Theatre has a female director [Fleur Darkin] and there\u2019s Tamara Rojo at English National Ballet.\u201d For Muir, such examples of women in leadership roles led her to believe \u201cit was possible,\u201d a statement that contrasts with Morgan\u2019s observation about seeing so few female directors during her performing career.<\/p>\n

The French philosopher Jacques Ranci\u00e8re presents a theory that explains these observations: it\u2019s called \u201cthe distribution of the sensible,\u201d which means we can only see or \u201csense\u201d those ideas that have been presented or framed for us. As a result, aesthetic approaches are deeply entwined with politics, and those works deemed \u201cgood\u201d or \u201cvaluable\u201d are supported by particular regimes of seeing and thinking. Another way of stating this idea is that aesthetic choices are also political choices: when we support the voices and ideas of people who are not equitably represented, we are enriching our knowledge of the world we live in.<\/p>\n

What the National Choreographic Festival makes abundantly clear is that female choreographers are a vital part of our ballet landscapes. While the festival presents a vibrant spectrum, I believe there are still more artists to include. Salt Lake City is home to several distinguished dance-makers, including Penny Saunders, who just premiered an\u00a0acclaimed full-length for Grand Rapids Ballet<\/a>, and Melissa Bobick, who was selected for this summer\u2019s prestigious Choreographic Institute at the University of North Carolina, School of the Arts, which is led by another vital female leader, Susan Jaffe.<\/p>\n

As Morgan said during the panel discussion, \u201cI might say confidence is important, but then I realize I didn\u2019t feel confident when I stepped into these roles. I think it\u2019s interesting that there\u2019s this theme of recognizing the potential of dancers who are around you. It\u2019s not always necessarily about confidence, but a lot about being vulnerable and creating relationships where dancers feel safe. The ability to generate that kind of atmosphere in a studio is essential.\u201d As this festival proves, it\u2019s also essential to generate support and opportunities for these women who are keeping ballet real.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

This article is published in collaboration with\u00a0loveDANCEmore.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The second weekend of Ballet West\u2019s National Choreographic Festival features three pieces created by women: Jennifer Archibald\u2019s\u00a0\u201cMyoho,\u201d\u00a0performed by Cincinnati Ballet, Robyn Mineko Williams\u2019s\u00a0\u201cTo Clear,\u201d\u00a0performed by Charlotte Ballet, and \u00c1frica Guzm\u00e1n\u2019s\u00a0\u201cSweet and Bitter,\u201d\u00a0performed by Ballet West. Like the first weekend of the festival, each choreographer presents a different approach […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1573,"featured_media":36411,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-35798","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dance"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/ArtistJoshuaShutkindrehearsingNatalieWeirsJabula.PhotobyBeauPearson-1.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-24 09:17:38","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35798","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1573"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=35798"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35798\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36412,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35798\/revisions\/36412"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36411"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=35798"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=35798"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=35798"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}