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Recent Review

Posted Wednesday, June 17, 2009

By LIZZIE GENDLER
Special Contributor to The Dallas Morning News

FORT WORTH – From classical to contemporary, Metropolitan Classical Ballet does it all. In its season finale Saturday at Bass Performance Hall, the Arlington-based company showcased that diverse heritage with a satisfying mix of traditional Russian grandeur and Balanchine-inspired modernism.

The evening opened with Leonid Lavrovsky's Paganini, a psychological study of the brilliant but tormented Italian violinist and composer Niccolo Paganini. Pianist Gleb Ivanov and the Metropolitan Classical Ballet Orchestra performed the Rachmaninoff score with vivid finesse.

As Paganini, Shea Johnson danced with passion and abandon, frantically playing the violin as red-cloaked men moved ominously about him. Ethereal muses dancing gracefully with white scarves punctuated the darkness. Marina Goshko was airy and celestial as the Muse of Music.

The highlight of the evening was Webern Pieces, choreographed by Paul Mejia and danced by Olga Pavlova and Yevgeni Anfinogenov. Mejia's innovative choreography gave a texture and melody to Anton Webern's dissonant music. The choreography was both simple and complex, as deconstructed primary ballet positions morphed into sophisticated movements.

Clad in a black leotard and tights, Ms. Pavlova stood in first position below a solitary spotlight, her hyper-mobile arms drifting around her head. Her sinewy legs wrapped around Anfinogenov's body like snakes as he manipulated her like a rag doll. When he turned away, her feet would dance feverishly with insect-like precision, though when he looked back she was once again still as a statue.

Minimalism turned to opulence in Paquita, one of the most treasured ballets of imperial Russia, staged by Alexander Vetrov. Marianna Ryzhkina, a principal dancer with the Bolshoi Ballet, danced the lead role. With understated elegance, Ryzhkina executed Marius Petipa's demanding choreography with a dazzling sense of ease. Her partner, Andrey Prikhodko, displayed effortless bravura in his virtuosic turns and jumps, which seemed to linger in the air.

This piece also displayed the skill of the corps de ballet, who performed the intricate footwork and stylized port de bras with skill. Sarah Marr shined in the second variation and Maiko Abe wowed with soaring leaps and difficult pirouettes..

Lizzie Gendler is a Dallas freelance writer.

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