A full spectrum of Balanchine’s black and white ballets.
Meagan Mann, Georgina Pazcoguin and Anthony Huxley in The Four Temperaments. © Paul Kolnik
Lincoln Center: David H. Koch Theater, New York City – October 10, 2015
In the program ‘Balanchine Black & White’, New York City Ballet presented five of George Balanchine’s works in the style of his ‘black and white’ ballets. It describes not only the colours of the simple costumes that the dancers wear – essentially, leotards and leggings in black and white – but also the contrast to the ornate, classical-styled ballets of the era that preceded these works. Balanchine removes the narrative, characterization, costumes and set, while retaining the rigour of classical ballet technique. What emerged was far from minimalistic, rather, Balanchine’s vocabulary created an intricate relationship between dance and music, through choreography that invites one to, as he had said, “See the music, hear the dance.”
Read the review in BachTrack.
The evening presented the following works:
NYCB in Monumentum Pro Gesualdo. © Paul Kolnik
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