Volume 5, Number 13 | March 30 – April 5, 2006
7 Days in Dance
Now Showing:
UPCOMING:
JAMES SEWELL BALLET James Sewell has a fresh approach to ballet that sparks emotions and delights the eyes. He brings three New York premieres to his company’s performances at the Joyce Theater. In “Guy Noir: The Ballet,” Garrison Keillor’s radio character comes to life, with the author narrating, along with an accompanying jazz score—and power tools. Sewell, who had listened to the radio broadcasts for years, met Keillor at a benefit for the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, and was asked to choreograph a man-can; they danced together, for two minutes wearing tutus, tuxedo jackets, and sneakers. “He thought Guy Noir as a ballet was a neat idea,” says Sewell. “He taught me the rules of interaction, for instance—if there’s a woman, he always falls hard for her, and never gets her. “It’s a murder mystery,” says Sewell. “Who’s out to get this one ballerina?”
“How would we move if we were dancing, but conscious of the way we were directing our energy?” asks Sewell. “Within the company there are many different practices of energy control.” “Involution,” choreographed in collaboration with the dancers, draws on yoga and Qigong—juxtaposed with an opposing loss of control. “It shows that we can’t move without emotions—there’s a disconnect; it becomes a metaphor for social interaction.” Schubert’s Sonata for Arpeggione and Piano in A minor provides the soundtrack for “Anagram,” structured as a series of sections connected through improvisation. 175 Eighth Ave. at 19th St. Apr. 4, 5, 7 & 8 at 8 p.m.; Apr. 6 & 9 at 7:30 p.m.; Apr. 8 & 9 at 2 p.m.; $40 at 212-242-0800 or joyce.org. (Brian McCormick)
THE KEVIN WYNN COLLECTION will appear in the premiere of Wynn’s “Tracing Sirocco,” which he describes as “a hallucinogenic ensemble work for 16 dancers.” Apr. 7-9 at the Citigroup Theatre/Ailey School, 405 W. 55 St. $18 at 212-868-4444 or smarttix.com.
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