Brooke took me to the ballet again today. I’m not the dance fanatic that Brooke is, but I do appreciate the hard work and creativity. The highlight of today’s performance was Elite Syncopations, a ballet choreographed to the ragtime music of Scott Joplin and others. I loved the looseness of the dancing, which seemed sometimes like a cross between ballet and the choreography of Bob Fosse. The costumes were wildly garish, too. The best piece was The Alaskan Rag, a number danced by the tallest female dancer (my newest crush, the gorgeous Julie Hay) and the shortest male dancer (the impish Daisuke Ohno). It’s played for laughs, but making yourself look clumsy takes real skill.
Another highlight of the mixed programme was The Judgement of Paris, a twist on the classic Greek tale where Paris must judge the beauty of the three goddesses Juno, Venus, and Minerva. Choreographer Antony Tudor has updated and turned the tale on its head, setting it in a sleazy “nightclub” to the music of Kurt Weill’s Threepenny Opera. A “customer” is choosing between three aging “dancers” who end up robbing him.
For more information, including our seat numbers, check out Brooke‘s site. 🙂