DANCE REVIEW: Ballet Hispanico at Jacob’s Pillow

Ted Shawn Theatre

August 26-30, 2009

 

 

Review by Robin Catalano

 

 

(BECKET, Mass., August 28, 2009)—Ballet Hispanico has been fusing classical ballet, modern dance, and Latin social dances for forty years now, but its choreographic selections have yet to live up to the company’s exquisite dancers. For the troupe’s season-ending performance at Jacob’s Pillow, they’ve chosen four pieces from their repertory and one world premiere, all of which showcase the highly refined technique and athleticism of the Ballet Hispanico dancers.

 

In Goodnight Paradise, Catalan choreographer Ramón Oller delves into the heart of darkness in theatrical vignettes set in a brothel. The dancing is very balanced, with a bit of everything—complicated rhythms and steps, high-flying leaps, muscular lifts, and interesting floor work. But other than the witty section where three male-female couples repeatedly switch partners, only to find two men pairing up, the piece takes itself too seriously, telegraphing sensuality and desperation with dancers writhing on the floor or pouring wine over their chests. Much of the passion seems to be directed outward, to the audience, rather than between the dancers, which dilutes the overall effect.

 

Tito on Timbales takes the opposite tack, combining elements of flamenco, salsa, and tango with ballet for a lively, non-narrative dance choreographed to the music of master percussionist Tito Puente. Candice Monét McCall is a joy here, displaying a unique elasticity of the torso and great sense of Latin spirit. The biggest problem with Tito on Timbales is that the formality of choreographer William Whitener’s classically based vocabulary gets in the way of the freedom of movement so characteristic of Latin dance, and makes much of the piece look rigid.

 

Carmen is reinterpreted in Destino Incierto (“Uncertain Destiny”), with the superb Angelica Burgos in the lead role, and the powerful Rodney Hamilton and Eric Rivera as her lovers, Don José and Escamillo. The choreography, by Broadway dancer Carlos Sierra Lopez, is strongly rooted in classical technique, with an emphasis on elegant lines, and nicely contrasts fluid, sweeping movements with sharp, staccato bursts. (Anita Yavich’s excellent costuming only enhances the effect.) In many ways, this is the most traditional piece on Ballet Hispanico’s program, but it’s also one of the best, with unexpected twists on the story and an authenticity of expression that’s lacking in many of the other works.

 

The company also premieres Locked Up Laura, a duet between Burgos and Jeffery Hover that explores the frustration of the artist when the emotional content of her work is sublimated to the practical and the expected. Set to a contemporary score by Bart Rijnink and choreographed by European star Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, Locked Up Laura is an exciting paradox. Despite being performed en pointe, it’s the edgiest of all the pieces on Ballet Hispanico’s program, and makes the best use of interesting body shapes and creative partner work. When Hover wrestles the scantily clad Burgos into a traditional ballet skirt, we feel her sense of restriction. When she finally pulls it off for good and walks offstage, we know she’s triumphed over the limitations imposed on her.

 

The program closes with Club Havana, a popular piece in the Ballet Hispanico repertory, and an energizing coupling of modern dance and Latin social styles, such as mambo, cha-cha-cha, and rhumba. In this club, slinky women smoke cigars alongside their macho counterparts, two men are seduced by a femme fatale, and everyone is moved by the spirit of Cuban jazz. It’s cheeky and fun, and even throws in a few well-placed Fosse references.

 

Still, it’s hard not to be a little disappointed with this show, Destino Incierto and Locked Up Laura notwithstanding. While the dance is often beautiful to watch, the style-over-substance approach means that too many of the pieces are, ultimately, forgettable. Perhaps brand-new artistic director Eduardo Vilaro (who replaces founding director Tina Ramirez) will be the one to help Ballet Hispanico achieve its impressive potential.

 

Robin Catalano is Berkshire Living’s dance critic.