January Journey
Joffrey recently toured to Florida January 15th thru the 22nd with a “Cool Vibrations” program. We traveled to West Palm Beach, Naples, and Sarasota with one performance in each venue. The program consisted of Twyla Tharp’s Deuce Coupe, Donald Byrd’s Motown Suite and Laura Dean’s Sometimes it Snows in April. It’s a pretty upbeat mix of repertoire with music of the Beach Boys, Motown classics, and Prince. It was a special treat for the company to escape the frigid and snowy conditions in Chicago, but the overwhelming response from the Florida audiences was especially rewarding. We returned to Chicago after tour to prepare for our upcoming winter season at the Auditorium Theater. We will perform Anthony Tudor’s Dark Elegies, Lilac Garden and Offenbach in the Underworld to celebrate the Tudor Centennial.
Maia Wilkins and Michael Levine in Motown Suite (Above and below)
Mauro Villaneuva in his solo in Motown Suite.
Dancer Calvin Kitten observes from the wings during Motown Suite.
Thomas Nicholas and Jennifer Goodman during their pas de deux in Motown Suite.
Sometimes it Snows in April. (above and below)
Lido Beach Resort in Sarasota, FL.
Meet me in St Louis…
For the past week, Joffrey has been on tour in St. Louis opening our 2007 season of Robert Joffrey’s Nutcracker. We arrived on Sunday December 2nd and departed back to Chicago on Sunday December 9th. Having finished 6 performances at the Fox Theater in St. Louis, we embark on the bulk of our season at the Auditorium Theater in Chicago opening on Wednesday December 12th-December 30th.
On our day off, many dancers visited St. Louis’ Gateway Arch located in the downtown area.
The ornate ceiling and upper balcony of the Fox Theater.
The backstage area of the theater is covered with murals of each show that passes through–the ceilings, doors, elevators, walls are heavily decorated to insure that every performer is remembered. It’s such a treat to see each one and recognize friends that have performed in the past at the Fox Theater. Above is our 4th floor dressing room door, The Full Monty.
Dancer Mauro Villanueva signs our own creation for the 2007 Joffrey Nutcracker season.
During Friday Night’s performance I was able to capture a few moments from Act II. Above, dancer Joanna Wozniak as a flower.
The opening of the waltz of the flowers.
Mother Ginger, performed by puppeteer Francis Kane.
Clara, performed by Heather Aagard and Drosselmeyer, performed by Michael Smith react during Mother Ginger’s dance.
Sugarplum pas de deux-performed by Valerie Robin and Fabrice Calmels.
Aspen Santa Fe Ballet performs at the Harris Theater
Program, ticket and advertising insert
Last night I attended ASFB’s debut in Chicago at the Harris Theater. Tom Mossbrucker and Jean-Philippe Malaty, who direct the company, are both former Joffrey dancers. The company comprised of ten dancers performed Jorma Elo’s “1st Flash,” set to Jean Sibelius’ Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in D Minor; Twyla Tharp’s rarely seen “Sweet Fields,” set to early American hymns by 19th-Century composer William Billings; and “Noir Blanc,” set to a New Age collage and created for the troupe by Moses Pendleton. Each piece showcased the versatility and strength of the dancers; they especially excelled in Elo’s “1st Flash” with its demanding choreography and non-stop movement. A former SAB roomate of mine, Samantha Klanac, is now dancing with ASFB in her sixth season. It was great to see her perform with such magnitude after not seeing her since the SAB summer program in 2000. Enjoy some photos I uncovered from that summer and you might notice a fellow winger in the bunch!
Blast from the past: summer 2000 roomates-(left to right) Me, Ashley Dawkins, and Samantha Klanac
Matt Murphy and I with our friend, Danielle Welch, that same summer course at SAB
Back to the Grind!
After a two week layoff following the closing of Giselle in Chicago, Joffrey returned to work this past Monday to start rehearsals of Nutcracker and Tudor’s Dark Elegies. We will tour to St. Louis to first perform Nutcracker, December 3rd-9th and return to Chicago for our Auditorium Theater season until the 30th of December. It has certainly been a busy week for us, to say the least! The first few days after layoff are always rough and our demanding schedule this week made it especially challenging. Over the layoff, I visited my family back home in New Hampshire and Boston, got a chance to rest, and guest taught at my home studio, Southern NH Dance Theater in Bedford, NH. I returned to Chicago a week ago, and got a chance to see Complexions perform at the Auditorium Theater. This was my first time seeing them dance as a member of the audience, the last time they were in Chicago, Joffrey dancers appeared with them on the same bill for the Chicago Dancing Festival in August at the Pritzker Pavillon. Their energy and obvious talent was much inspiring and their demanding program made it even more so exhilarating to watch. I especially enjoyed Rhoden’s Solo danced by Desmond Richardson, his movement quality is so expansive and unique. Following the performance, a few friends and I celebrated Jonathan Dummar’s birthday. Jonathan is a fellow dancer at the Joffrey. It was great to see everyone rested from their break and ready to start Nutcracker! Tis’ the season!
A program page from Complexions performance at the Auditorium Theater
Happy Birthday:from left to right-Katherine Selig, Jonathan Dummar, Michael Smith, David Gombert, Jessica Wyatt, and myself.
Farewell Giselle
After a two week stint, the curtain closed on Sunday, October 28th, ending Joffrey’s performances of Giselle at the Auditorium Theater in Chicago. However, this does not mark the end of performances this season, for we will be touring to Detroit in March 2008 and performing it there at the Detroit Opera House. Staged by Frederic Franklin and his assistant Christina Johnson(former dancer of Dance Theater of Harlem), the version staged by Mr. Franklin was based on the creole one he did for DTH. It was truly a success, and was received well by audiences and critics alike.
Currently Joffrey is on a two week layoff until we resume to rehearse Nutcracker and Tudor’s Dark Elegies on November 12th. For the female corps, it will be a much needed rest from the demanding work executed in Giselle.
Below are a few pictures from backstage:
Prop table: urn, goblets, rakes for villagers, etc.
Act II: A view of the corps from the wings.
Village Men prepare for their scene opening Act II with Hilarion’s entrance.
Willies prepare for Act II.
Tales from the Windy City: Top Ten Facts about Lauren Stewart
Greetings from Chicago! I wanted to quickly introduce myself and share some important details about my life in Chicago. Thank you Kristin for allowing me to join the winger family–I have always enjoyed reading it and am excited about officially becoming a winger and being part of this global comprehensive dance forum. In the spirit of the “Late Night Show” a la David Letterman, I present a top ten:
10. I love Chicago- This is my fourth season dancing for the Joffrey and living in Chicago and I’m continually exploring the city year after year. With so many unique neighborhoods to explore, there is always something new to experience.
9. Seeing Double? I’m a fraternal twin. My twin sister Liza is my only sibling. A non-dancer, she works for Fidelity Investments in Boston and is a grad student at Northeastern University.
8. Crossword Puzzles- I can’t live without doing the daily crossword from the Chicago Red Eye newspaper. It often accompanies me on my commute to the studio.
7. Guilty Pleasures- After a long day of rehearsals or performances, I often relax with a favorite tv show–usually your typical ‘mindless’ broadcast. I find myself lately obsessed with the ever-popular Grey’s Anatomy and Mtv’s The Hills, any show on The Foodnetwork, and Project Runway.
6. Traveling-I love to travel-explore new places, experience different cultures, etc. With the Joffrey, I have been fortunate to tour quite often during each season. Amsterdam has been most enjoyable thus far in my travels.
5. Bookworm- I will always be reading something–whether it be a novel, a New York Times, or a book on Diaghilev. Favorite authors include Austen, Murakami, Coelho, Capote, and Burroughs.
4. The Green Table- One of my favorite ballets-I performed it last season with Joffrey. A ballet in eight scenes that comments on the futility of war and the horror it causes. Choreographed by Kurt Jooss, it has a chilling yet beautiful piano score by Fritz Cohen. It is well known for its table scenes–the gentlemen in black–who discuss hypocritical negotiations around the green table.
3. What’ cha Listening to? As a dancer, music is a vital ingredient to performance or daily class. Many genres of music interest me, obviously classical, and I’m constantly exploring new artists. Whether it be on the train, cleaning my apt, or working out , I always surround myself with a good beat appropriate for the time of day or activity. A few of my favorite artists would include The Stars, The Decemberists, Lily Allen, The Beatles, Arvo Part, Dashboard Confessional, John Legend, Broken Social Scene and Radiohead.
2. Match point- As a child I always enjoyed playing tennis and ever since I have maintained this hobby. Usually during a layoff or the summer months (when the rehearsal schedule is not so rigorous) I like to take advantage of the public courts Chicago has to offer.
1. The Granite State-I was born in Boston, MA and resided in Manchester, NH until my graduation from Central High School. A smaller state in the Northeast, I’m proud of my upbringing in NH. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean, Vermont, Massachusetts, and Maine. Known politically for its primary elections, the state rock is granite, lilac is the state flower, and its motto is “live free or die”. It boasts beaches, mountains-great for skiing and winter sports, and the fall foliage there is globally renowned.
Ms. Lauren Stewart
Hello Wingers,
I’m happy to introduce you to Ms. Lauren Stewart, of the Joffrey Ballet in Chicago. A fellow Bostonian like myself, she’ll be joining our happy family of dance contributors, by sharing her unique perspective from the windy city.
Welcome Lauren!
