Pittsburgh Dance Council Presents BALLET BOYZ On 3/14
The Pittsburgh Dance Council will captivate Pittsburgh audiences on Saturday, March 14, 2009 at 8:00 p.m. at the Byham Theater with an invigorating performance of award-winning repertoire by Ballet Boyz - Broken Fall, Propeller, EdOx, and Yumba vs. Nonino. The New York Times writes, "Ballet's most charming ambassadors...make dance immediate, accessible and exhilarating."
Founded in 2001 by former lead dancers with The Royal Ballet-Michael Nunn and William Trevitt-Ballet Boyz has made a dramatic mark on the British dance scene, thrilling audiences and dance critics alike. In just a matter of a few years, the company earned a reputation for commissioning new works in its repertoire crafted by some of the most influential choreographers of our generation.
Ballet Boyz' televised dance programs in Great Britain have further expanded their audience following and their most ambitious television dance project, The Rough Guide to Choreography, aired in June and July of 2004 reaching an audience of two million. Film work has also become an intrinsic part of Ballet Boyz performances and a way for them to demystify the art of dance and the choreographic process. This past fall, Ballet Boyz Michael Nunn and William Trevitt won the International Emmy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Arts Programming for their documentary Strictly Bolshoi.
Ballet Boyz has a unique approach to the presentation of their programs. "It's been our way of breaking down the barrier between the audience and what can seem like a bunch of rather forbidding people on stage," explains Nunn. "There's this idea that dancers are serene higher beings who eat lentils and sit in the lotus position. We show them what it's really like. . . It would be terrible if every company blew their secrets the way we do, but it does give people a way in." Guardian Unlimited further assures us that "Nunn and Trevitt's intimate, easy presentational style manages to be informative, even impassioned about dance, without audiences feeling that they are being lectured or patronized."
Broken Fall, choreographed by Russel Maliphant, was commissioned by the Ballet Boyz and became the first of Maliphant's works to be performed at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Broken Fall won the 2004 Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Dance Production. "Maliphant's language is shaped by the discipline of yoga and the athleticism of martial arts, but it's made beautiful by the extreme articulation of the classical technique," The UK Times said.
The second piece on the program, Propeller, was choreographed by Liv Lorent. It has been described as "...a simply exquisite sliver of mystical intimacy, where bodies slowly arc into flying curves as if energized by a caress" by The Herald. "The choreography of balance and counter-balance is knitted into a dazzling display of co-dependency, the seesaw of need and fulfillment suffused with a vibrant emotional resonance...," adds The UK Times.
The third piece on the program, EdOx, is a duet choreographed by Rafael Bonachela. According to Guardian Unlimited, its choreography "...has a tough, agitated energy, its gluey partner-work punctuated by slicing lines." It is set to a cello score composed by Ezio Bosso.
The fourth and final piece, Yumba vs. Nonino, is a duet choreographed by Craig Revel Horwood set to a tango by Osvaldo Pugliese and Astor Piazzolla. The Independent notes that in Yumba vs. Nonino, "Their dancing is sharper and more deadpan than ever, the footwork crisper."
For more information on the Ballet Boyz, visit balletboyz.com and http://www.shaganarts.com/ballet_boyz_home.html
Tickets ($19, $25, $32, $40)for the Ballet Boyz may be purchased at the Box Office at Theater Square (655 Penn Avenue), online at www.pgharts.org, or by calling (412) 456-6666. To purchase 10 or more tickets at special discounted rates, please call (412) 471-6930. First Commonwealth is the proud season sponsor of the Pittsburgh Dance Council. WDUQ is the media sponsor of the Dance Council.
Each year the Pittsburgh Dance Council, a division of The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, showcases a world-class season of dance. As the largest presenter of international performances in the city, the Dance Council continues to help make our Cultural District one of the country's leading arts and entertainment centers.
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