Utah Ballet offers original works and classic favorites
The School of Dance will present the Fall Utah Ballet Performance, Nov. 2-11, 2017, at the Marriott Center for Dance, showcasing a wide variety of styles, from classic favorites to works created in 2017. The performance will feature original choreography from School of Dance faculty member Melissa Bobick, school director Luc Vanier and guest artist Roderick George, along with a performance of Danish choreographer and ballet master August Bournonville’s classic “Konservatoriet,” staged by Ballet West’s Jeff Rogers.
In her work “135,” Bobick explores a raw and visceral quality of movement inspired by the emotions present in life’s most chaotic and unexpected moments. Caught in this unfamiliar place, between the past and the future, the dance holds onto a turbulent present that can only be eased by the fleeting glimmer of hope.
Vanier will present his original piece, “Women if Possible.”
“’Women if Possible’ was first created in 1991 in honor of Judy Shoaff-Reading, who was one of my long-time dance partners at Ohio Ballet,” says Vanier. “The piece is about empowerment and I encouraged dancers to transition from the mind of a student who is always looking to please and do things ‘right,’ to the approach of an artist who ‘owns’ the work.”
The program also features an original work by guest choreographer George, entitled “F.E.M. Queen,” which draws inspiration from the game of chess.
“In chess, the queen is able to do all the moves that each piece can do and is the deadliest,” said George. “With this piece, I wanted to empower the women and convey that in the choreography.”
The concert will also include the classic masterwork, “Konservatoriet,” staged by Rogers. “Konservatoriet” is a two-act vaudeville ballet created by Bournonville in 1849 for the Royal Danish Ballet. Set in a dance studio at the Conservatoire de Paris, the first act is a recreation of a Vestris dance class of the exact type attended by Bournonville during his Paris sojourn in the 1820s. In the second act, Monsieur Dufour, an inspecteur at the Conservatoire, writes a matrimonial advertisement in the newspaper but ends up marrying his housekeeper, Mademoiselle Bonjour. Typical of Bournonville’s ballets, the plot provides opportunities for different dance divertissements. In the second act, for example, the pupils of the Conservatoire make a fool of Monsieur Dufour by disguising themselves as attractive women
Tickets are available online at tickets.utah.edu, by phone at 801-581-7100 or at the door 30 minutes prior to curtain. For more information please visit dance.utah.edu.