Pacific Northwest Ballet The Times are Racing Review
October 3, 2024 | Digital
I’m a digital native but a classicist at heart, admittedly skeptical of the idea of a digital dance program. But I’m coming around to it.
Last weekend, Pacific Northwest Ballet (PNB) opened its fourth (my first) digital season with a serious triple-bill that makes a persuasive case for this new(ish) normal.
The Times Are Racing, a mixed program that can be synthesized under no overarching theme other than excellence in performance, features pieces by acclaimed choreographers Edwaard Liang and Justin Peck as well as the world premiere of Jessica Lang’s latest masterwork Black Wave.
Pacific Northwest Ballet The Times are Racing Review
The program opened with Liang’s The Veil Between Worlds.
Set to Oliver Davis’s richly orchestrated and deeply melodic score, The Veil Between Worlds is a visually stunning, unapologetically neoclassical ballet that delves into the uncanny relationship between the ordinary physical and unseen spiritual worlds.
The piece starts in spectacle, opening on the striking silhouette of a dancer (Soloist Leah Terada) decked out in a sumptuous ball gown… or so we think.
As our makeshift protagonist begins to levitate, the lights lift to reveal an alternate reality – one in which there is no levitating sorceress in a gown but rather a no less remarkable woman balanced on the shoulders of a man and draped in a billow of silk. Through clever stagecraft, Liang invites us to consider the illusory nature of the barrier between worlds.
The merit of this ballet, however, lies not in extraordinary illusions but rather in the dancers’ virtuosity.
Principal Dylan Wald made particular impressions with his exceptional control of his body, executing each movement with a blend of bold clarity and grace that showcased both strength and technical finesse.
So too did Angelica Generosa, another Principal Dancer, who drew the audience in with her fierce lines, purposeful transitions, and generally commanding presence.
Liang’s prodigiously bright The Veil Between Worlds was followed by Lang’s much doomier Black Wave. According to program notes, Lang’s latest work was
“inspired by mental health awareness and rooted in the philosophy behind Kintsugi, the centuries-old Japanese art of repairing broken pottery by mending the breakage of treasured objects with gold lacquer.”
I’ll admit, the latter influence was lost on me, but the former was well-pronounced.
The ballet opens on a dimly lit stage where a solitary, gnarled bough extends ominously from the wings. As the opening notes of Salina Fisher’s haunting score ripple through the air, a barely perceptible figure appears at center stage. Although the ballet is technically plotless, it seems to orient around this figure and their struggle to choose between lightness or darkness.
The central figure in the version I watched was danced by Soloist Leah Terada whose performance was nothing short of spectacular. Each movement not only demonstrated immense technical skill but also resonated with an emotional depth that transformed the stage into an intimate world – even on screen. Terada makes the audience feel like silent observers gazing upon her inner turmoil.
In the end, though, it’s the composition of the entire cast that gives greatness to Lang’s newest work.
Following Black Wave, Justin Peck’s The Times Are Racing drove the program home.
Set to the rousing four-movement suite from Dan Deacon’s “America”, The Times Are Racing is an athletic, incredibly powerful sneaker-ballet that belies the classical lexicon with welcome doses of hip hop, party dancing, and tap.
While the work was choreographed and had its premiere around the 2016 U.S. presidential election, it easily plants itself in the present political climate thanks to its not-so-subtle undertones of dissent and assertion of life that are apparent from the start.
The piece opens on a tight horde of dancers who, with heads uniformly bowed, huddle around a solitary figure (Corps de Ballet member Zsilas Michael Hughes) who stands stoic and bares an expression of defiance that seems to dare the world to challenge them.
As the music steadily crescendos, the huddle bursts, and dancers rush around the stage in sweeping circles before reuniting around a new central figure of equal resolve. This process is repeated several times before the cast splinters into a fantastic flurry of high-flying kicks, sharp canons, exciting turns, rhythmic tapping, and more.
The dancers are outfitted in streetwear – a mix of T-shirts, crop tops, hoodies, jeans, dresses, and – you guessed it – sneakers.
Leaving little room for interpretation as to the ballet’s chief message, many of the costumes – designed by Humberto Leon – are actually emblazoned with words like “defy,” “shout,” “fight,” and “protest.”
Of the 20-dancer cast, there were several standouts.
First was Soloist Amanda Morgan whose dancing, particularly in the quartet, surged with an infectious energy; it was clear she was fully in the moment.
Another one to watch was Christopher D’Ariano who met Peck’s exacting choreography with confidence and ease.
My principal critique for what was an otherwise phenomenal program is about the delivery.
I was thoroughly impressed by the streaming experience and relished the opportunity to observe the dancing from rare angles and dramatic closeups – an experience that’s not possible from even the best seat in the house.
Yet, there was a certain quality missing overall. If digital programs really are the future of ballet, perhaps how they’re designed warrants a refreshed approach.
Featured Photo of Pacific Northwest Ballet’s Principal Dancers Elle Macy and Dylan Wald in Edwaard Liang’s The Veil Between Worlds. Photo by Angela Sterling.
