The Ballet Hispanico,at the Joyce Theater, presented
three ballets, of which two were world premieres. It
began with El
Viaje, choreographed
by Edwaard
Liang ,
with all eleven dancers. They displayed rigorous
training, being lifted and raised over their male
dancers' heads. It was an impressive beginning. The
second ballet was Sombrerisimo ,
choreographed by Annabelle
Lopez Ochoa ,
with six female dancers, wearing bowler hats. It was the
highlight of the evening, and the skill and agility of
the dancers was amazing. The program concluded with Homebound/Alaala ,
by Bennyroyce
Royan .
It consisted of boxes and boxes, moved and thrown by the
eleven member cast. Part of the music was from the
Philippines, Bayanihan, which is the name of the
folklore company from that country. The highlight of the
ballet was when all the dancers danced across the stage
in unison like the conclusion of a Balanchine ballet. It
was a varied, interesting program, and the female
dancers were outstanding.
MoMA is presenting Modern
Matinees: B is for Bacall, Mar 1-Apr 26. I
returned again to see Designing Woman, by Vicente
Minnelli, USA, 1957, starring Gregory Peck,
Lauren Bacall and Dolores Gray. A sports
writer (Peck) meets a fashion designer (Bacall) in
California. After a few days together, they fall in love
and marry. Returning to New York, their professional
lives seem incompatible. A former girlfriend (Gray) is
starring in an upcoming Broadway show, and Bacall is
asked to design her costumes. That's when the trouble
begins; that and a few gangsters after Peck, who
displays his very funny side in this delightful comedy.
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Charlie's Waiting,
by Melisa
Annis,
at Theaterlab, is a Parity Production. Louise (Xanthe
Elbrick)
(photo below of the three actresses) is
making last minute preparations for her wedding
to Kelly (Stephanie
Heitman).
A mysterious stranger Annie (Amy Scanlon)
arrives, who Louise mistakenly believes is a
guest of Kelly. Annie wants to see Kelly, but
cannot wait for her. She reveals a secret to
Louise, which leaves Louise bewildered and
shaken in her trust of Kelly. Kelly finally
arrives home, and Louise is reluctant to tell
her all Annie has said. It is short, clever
play, full of suspense, seventy minutes without
an intermission. The three actresses are superb,
under the expert direction of Ludovica Villar-Hauser
(photo below with
the playwright). We congratulated the cast and
creative team at the opening afternoon reception
in the theater. Among the guests was Xanthe's
proud mother, who came from upstate New York, to
enjoy her daughter's wonderful performance.
What the Constitution Means to Me, by Heidi
Schreck, at the Helen Hayes Theater, takes
place in an American Legion Hall. The playwright
plays a fifteen-year-old competitor in a contest
to tell what the Constitution of the United
States means to her. Mike Iveson in a
legionnaire who introduces her. Later, she
removes her jacket, and becomes a later
forty-year-old woman, and relates the story of
the brutal treatment of the female members in
her family by men. Iveson also removes his
jacket, tie and glasses, and addresses the
audience for a brief moment as a friend who has
an incident at a bar to tell. A
fourteen-year-old girl come on the stage after
eighty-minutes to debate with Schreck for twenty
minutes. The
three member cast was directed by Oliver
Butler. A
copy of the Constitution was given to the
audience with advice from ACLU. It is
more a lecture than a play
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