2018

Dance

Kids’ Night Out: Ballet Tech Kids Dance at The Joyce Theater

The young dancers of Ballet Tech are a remarkable bunch—poised, fluid, comfortable in sneakers or pointe shoes and full of joy in movement. As wonderful as I found the dancers, I was not delighted with Elliot Feld’s choreography finding it highly repetitive with the same steps repeated one dancer after another. Perhaps this is deliberate, to allow each dancer a shot at the identical move or does it stem from the misguided idea that these students can’t handle more complex steps? The music selections were almost as annoying—by the third “Irish jig” my ears went on hold.
Music

Where Words Fail, Music Speaks: SoHarmoniums—In Between: Sounds and Spaces

Said Hans Christian Anderson. Indeed, sixty women singers can make a lot of joyful noise. Among the many pleasures of listening to the SoHarmoniums is their eclectic repertoire which, on the night I heard them, ranged from classic American spirituals to a piece without lyrics to an international tango written by an Italian composer with words by an Uruguayan poet and a strong Spanish feel. Top it with the closing number, Hooked on Classics, that merged ten famous classical pieces (Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5, Rossini’s Carmen Prelude, the 1812 Overture, etc.) adding entertaining words and give this group and their leader additional points for showing their sense of fun.
Music

Bach’s Mass in B Minor with the New York Choral Society and Orchestra under Music Director, David Hayes

The New York Choral Society, which has provided New Yorkers with a wonderful variety of mainstream and neglected choral works. Alongside Beethoven's Ninth, Brahms' German Requiem, and Berlioz's Grande messe des morts, their recent programs have included Hindemith’s When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom'd, Holst’s The Hymn of Jesus, Arvo Pärt’s Te Deum, MacMillan’s St. Luke Passion (New York premiere), Mendelssohn’s Paulus (St. Paul), and Vaughan Williams’ A Sea Symphony. Next season we have Tippet’s A Child of our Time, Finzi’s Requiem da Camera, Honegger’s Le roi David, and Randall Thompson’s Requiem to look forward to. One can only admire their comprehensive representation of the choral repertoire.
Music

Stéphane Denève Leads the San Francisco Symphony in Ibert, Saint-Saëns, Connesson, and Respighi, with Cellist Gautier Capuçon

There's much to be said for keeping personal politics away from concert music. Composers know this. Audiences prefer pictorialism and evocation to propaganda. That's why they are in the hall. Even Shostakovich, chronicler of Soviet political events, composed that way. But not all critics have the self-discipline to leave smug prejudice at home. The San Francisco Chronicle's local reviewer, who normally precedes New York Arts into print and shall be nameless here, launched an atavistic attack this week on Stéphane Denève's program choice of Respighi's Pines of Rome, calling the work "proto-fascist" and condemning it's march up the Appian Way as an appeal to nationalist sentiment. How ridiculous!
Food & Drink

Grazie, Milano! Three Restaurants

Although like most Italians Milanese breakfast on the run, they always make time for a good lunch. At Salumentaria di Parma, the wine comes in small bowls, the coffee in shot glasses and the crowd, many of them local professionals, pile in starting at noon. As the name suggests, inspiration for the food is that of Parma in northwest Emilia-Romagna, home to the richest tract of farmland in Italy. Parma is associated with parmigiano reggiano, prosciutto and pasta with emphasis on filled versions such as tortellini, tortelli and ravioli, all of which are part of the restaurant’s offerings. Verdi was a regular at the original location in Parma; in tribute, his music fills the air.
Dance

Women’s Work: Ariel Rivka Dance with Amy Marshall Dance Company

As part of a celebration of women, this program of about empowering female expression featured work choreographed and mostly performed by women. For me, the three most successful pieces were Ne Me Quitte Pas, a modern apache duet with Chad Levy and Alyssa Weidman; Shakambhari, a full-throttle, almost-Bollywood-style, turquoise-and-orange swirl and No Exit, a pure rush of movement danced all out by Levy, Weidman, Lisa Borres, Caitlin Sheppard, Julia Neto, Jillian Foley and Parker Heren.
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