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Archive for saratoga performing arts center

Long pause…

MIKI ORIHARA
Martha Graham Dance Company
New York, NY USA
BIO | POSTS


Saratoga Performing Arts Center

It has been a long pause since I posted my last entry…
“Water,water”, a dance that I did about 25 years ago, which we performed at LaMaMa Theater.

After LaMaMa, I went to join MGDC for our residency at the Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs to put MG’s master piece “Clytemnestra” back. Of course it was a residency so we had summer program dancers too. Technique classes, repertory, choreography and media classes are part of this residency. I ended up setting “Panorama”on these 37 dancers. They performed with us at SPAC on June 13. So it was a crash course of this wild dance…


Skidmore residency with Clytemnestra set desigh by Isamu Noguchi

Anyway, during this residency, yes we were putting Clytemnestra back together. But the students were leaning some parts, then making their own dance inspired by this piece. It was a very intersting process. and that process was captured on their blog at Clytemnestra Project.


Stephen Pier rehearsing his new ballet “Nameless Garden” in Nagoya

Then MGDC went to the American Dance Festival, unfortunately I was not cast for this so I went to Japan for a week. My husband Stephen was in Nagoya, Japan choreographing a new dance and setting a ballet on Ballet Studio M-deux. They also performed my new work, too. So I needed to see it. Stephen’s new piece “Nameless Garden” was inspired by his visit to Kyoto’s Moss Garden and Rock Garden. It is a beautiful piece with many images that I had too. I really wanted to see the perofrmance, all together with costumes and lighting, I am sure it was magical…


Berlin’s Staat Oper

Well my visit to Japan was just a week (5 days really) then off to Berlin, Germany for 2 weeks. We performed at the Staats Oper in Berlin. 5 shows in the first weekend, 8 in the second. Yes it was a lot of dancing…I am pretty beat…


Berlin’s Old and New, I like Berlin, it is an alive city…


Berlin in the evening…

So now I am back in NYC, rehearsing with Muna Tseng (Water,water) again, and we are going to Jacob’s Pillow tomorrow. We will have “Inside/Out” performance at 6:30 pm. It is a free performance so if you are close, stop by!!! We will perform a part from “Water Mysteries”, “water,water” and 2 new solos. I will dance one and Muna will dance the other.

Then I will go to Atlanta Ballet’s Summer Program. I will be teaching for 2 weeks. Some classes are 1 hour, so I am thinking this year I will teach more standing up and cross over exercise. Past years I tried to teach floor work, but it is very hard… I will not entirey cut the floor work but give them a little more moving in class than sitting on the floor in a cold studio… in the south, it is always cold inside since the outdoor tempture is pretty high. but that is so bad for your body. you have to have a lot of warm up clothes… I should pack them too!!!

After this, MGDC will be a part of a new festival in Chicago in August 17 . I should get more info regarding this. but I will be dancing ” Cave of the Heart” Legend of Media. It is a beautiful dance by MG with a set by Isamu Noguchi. I think we share a program with a few other dance companies. I will let you know when I know more about it… but until then,
HAVE A GREAT SUMMER!!!

Recent Posts by miki orihara

A Little More From Saratoga

GWYNETH MULLER
New York City Ballet
New York, NY USA
BIO | POSTS

A few last backstage shots from Saratoga…

Sterling Hyltin adjusts her shoes before “Jeu de Cartes”.

Alina Dronova rests between entrances of “Serenade”.

Katie Morgan waits her turn in the wings.

Dara Johnson gets dressed for “Aurora’s Wedding”.

Glenn Keenan and Craig Hall on stage at SPAC before a rehearsal.


Vinny Paradiso and Tyler Angle watch their colleagues from the wings.

Dancers preparing to enter from stage left.

Audience members enjoy the performance from the lawn during a Saturday matinee.

Recent Posts by gwyneth muller

Jewels in Toga

GWYNETH MULLER
New York City Ballet
New York, NY USA
BIO | POSTS

Hi guys! I’m back from Saratoga and finally had the chance to post more of the pictures that I took while I was up there. Below are three shots of the stage during a performance of Jewels, just before the curtain went up for Emeralds, Rubies and Diamonds respectively.



More to come soon…

Recent Posts by gwyneth muller

Lake Placid with Nilas Martins and Friends “Stars of Ballet”

miki_40 USA_flag Japan-flag Posted by Miki Orihara

Last night at Lake Placid Center For The Arts was Nilas Martins and Friends “Stars of Ballet” performance. Program for this performance was:

Valse Fantasie, Edge(World Premier), Tchaikovsky Pas De Duex, Agon Pas De Duex, La Sylphide, and Carrie Okay(World Premier)

My partner Stephen Pier Choreographed “Edge” for Ask La Cour and Sara Mearns. And we found out on Saturday afternoon that Sara is not able to perform that she has very bad hip pain. So Stephen had 2 choices. 1 is to take this piece out , and 2 it to teach to somebody. Well the piece had 3 sections. So.

I suggested that I could dance the first section if somebody could do tthe Pas De Deux section which is defenitely nice with on point, that is NOT possible with me. Saturday night, I learned the section and on Sunday, Megan LeCrone who is dancing Agon Pas De Duex with Nilas stepped in and she learned it. So this piece became a trio!

Nilas, Stephen and Meagan on Tappanzee…

That night we left for Saratoga where NYCB is going to have their 3 week season at Saratoga Performing Center. We took the West side highway and Sawmill ParkWay to Tappanzee bridge. We saw some smoke before getting on the bridge, and when we were on middle of the bridge, the bridge closed! Well everybody waited, nothing was moving, and finally they backed everybody up and we had to make another plan to get Saratoga. We took Taconic Park Way and I-87 and finally got to Saratoga around midnight.

LONG DAY!!!

Next day, was even longer…

We left Saratoga, headed to Lake Placid. It took about 2 hours and 15 mins to get there. It is beautiful there. Air is so clear and actually too cold for summer, and inside the theater is ususally TOO cold for me. Theater has a dance studio. The wall of the studio is painted with famous dance people/episodes. Martha Graham, Paul Taylor, Twyla Tharp, Alvin Ailey. They all had residency there in the past. Graham was there last in 1970’s or early 1980’s.

At the theater, we had dress/tech rehearsal. I am the only modern dancer. Some of the dancers do not even know me… I am kind of shy, not able to introduce myself to them. But everybody in Nilas’s group were so nice. On stage, they are great artists and off stage, they are just young people.( Sounds like I am such a old person…but )

So for the perofrmance. It went really well. I was pretty nervous but I had fun! Meagan danced beautifully with such confidence that it is hard to believe that she just learned it the day before. and of course for Ask to deal with these new changes, he is such a nice person to begin with and he was great in it.

After that, I could watch them dance. After intermission, I went out to the audience and watched the second half. Agon Pas de Deux is a beautiful duet. It is so contemporary, even though that ballet is old. Something about Balanchine, it is so slick and stark.

And such a classic La Sylphide was amazingly danced by Joaquin De Luz. His amazing jumping, I felt so sorry since the floor was very hard. but we did not even notice it from his dancing. He was flying!!!

Final dance was the world premier of John Selya and Nilas Martins “Carrie Okay”. this was very sweet and broadway/entertainment piece that the audience loved it. Four guys dressed like stage hands, and Carrie who is a singer dances with them off stage. this was a very sweet short version musical. John and Nilas did a great job!!!

Well then reception and after that we drove 2 hours to North River where it will be my first vacation in 4 years!!! a lot of hiking, fishing and swimming if it is not too cold…

Recent Posts by miki orihara

Stage migration

sloan_thumb USA_flag Posted by Sloan | via mobile phone

As class nears the end, dancers migrate to the stage to practice particular steps or go over choreography. Meanwhile, the first act of Prokofiev’s Romeo + Juliet is being rehearsed in the pit.

Recent Posts by kristin sloan

The orchestra members are early risers

sloan_thumb USA_flag Posted by Sloan | via mobile phone

Arriving at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center for 10:30 class and the orchestra is already in full swing rehearsing Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 2, which will be performed tonight.

Recent Posts by kristin sloan

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