Friday, December 07, 2012
BALLET HISPANICO WITH PAQUITO D'RIVERA AT THE APOLLO
BALLET HISPANICO
WITH PAQUITO D'RIVERA
AT THE APOLLO
AT THE APOLLO
The distinguished dance company, Ballet Hispanico “explores, preserves, and celebrates Latino cultures through dance,” maintaining a professional company that presents dance programs all over the world, a school of dance in New York City, and educational and outreach programs.
Last weekend, the company performed an ambitious, entertaining and interesting program at the Apollo Theater.
At this one-night-only event, they presented three dances, all premieres. This was the first (and, for now, only) performance of these dances, dances which combine intricate solo, duo, and company choreography to music. (To me, it seems far more complicated than a dramatic presentation, yet theater gets a whole lot of “previews” before they “open”, while this dance company goes live and public on the first and only night and carries it all off beautifully without any conspicuous hitch.)
The first dance was a tango inspired piece that featured topless male dancers with hats, and stark sleek ladies. The color palette was all black & flesh.
Ballet Hispanico at the Apollo
In the second piece, the style went from the severe order of the tango, to controlled and visually rich chaos, beginning with dancers listening to sound-only-they-could-hear on earphones, each in their own universe, costumes all over the place. The dancers coalesced to form intricate and striking stage pictures from time to time.
The final piece was performed to terrific live jazz by the Paquito D’Rivera Ensemble. This dance featured some notable duos, of which the most interesting, and the highlight of the evening, was an improvisation by Paquito -- onstage! -- and a solo dancer.
Paquito D'Rivera and Mario Ismael Espinoza
Ballet Hispanico with Paquito D'Rivera at the Apollo
The first and second dance presentations were each followed by a long intermission, and the audience, which seemed to be at a big party, seemed to enjoy every social minute of the intermission. (And, indeed, as it turned out, much of the audience was there for a celebration... upstairs in a ballroom at the Apollo after the show.)
The (legendary) Apollo is a quite lovely theater, easy to get to (and park nearby) on 125 street in Harlem. (And, as noted, they can host huge receptions as well as present major stage shows.)
To experience the Ballet Hispanico, and the Paquito D’Rivera Ensemble, here are some interesting dates:
APRIL 8, 2013
www.ballethispanico.org
APRIL 16-28, 2013
NEW YORK SEASON
www.joyce.org
www.ballethispanico.org
JANUARY 30, 2013
PAQUITO D’RIVERA ENSEMBLE
GIFT OF MUSIC BENEFIT
THURNAUER SCHOOL OF MUSIC
jccotp.org/category.aspx?catid=301
And... if you are interested in dance, you might want to check out the Dance On Camera program coming to the Film Society of Lincoln Center -- with several films on Hispanic dance...
DANCE ON CAMERA - Feb 1-5, 2013
www.dancefilms.org
www.dancefilms.org
HERE'S MORE INFORMATION ABOUT BALLET HISPANICO
http://www.ballethispanico.org/about/history-mission
SOME MORE ABOUT PAQUITO D'RIVERA
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paquito_D%27Rivera
SOME MORE ABOUT THE APOLLO THEATER
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_Theater
SOME MORE ABOUT THE GIFT OF MUSIC GALA BENEFIT SERIES
http://qporit.blogspot.com/2011/02/extraordinary-musical-event-wed-feb-9.html
Labels: Apollo Theater, Ballet Hispanico, Gift Of Music, Joyce Theater, Mario Ismael Espinoza, Paquito D;Rivera, Spring Gala
