Fall season at American Ballet Theatre continued with a fantastic triple bill of Balanchine’s Ballet Imperial, Alexei Ratmansky’s Neo, and Twyla Tharp’s pulsating, exciting In the Upper Room.
Last season, ABT danced a rather ponderous, unmemorable Ballet Imperial. This season, they commissioned new costumes and sets by Jean-Marc Puissant, and the ballet has gotten a facelift. The company still does not have the speed and attack of NYCB (the ballet clocks in three minutes longer than it does at NYCB – I timed it), but there is a crispness, a cleanness, that was not previously present. Last fall, they looked like they were just getting through it. The company is dancing with more authority and confidence now.
The costumes are old-fashioned tutus with accents of champagne on a white background for the leads, and blue bodices with champagne and white for the corps. I did not like the mesh fabric and faux pearls around the neck area, but they were nice looking tutus. The sets had ascending and descending chandeliers that were somewhat distracting, but you had a sense of imperial grandeur that does not exist with NYCB’s version.
Christine Shevchenko was lovely if flawed in the main ballerina role. Some of the allegro work lacked definition. Nothing wrong with it, but it looked fuzzy. Part of it is that Shevchenko's jump is not one of her strengths. In the opening cadenza, her coupé jetés were not particularly airborne. Another thing about Shevchenko is that she doesn't have the sharp musicality of a true Balanchine dancer. A for effort, B for execution. Calvin Royal did a decent job as the male danseur. He is such an open, likeable dancer who always conveys tenderness towards his partner. He only seemed to struggle with the big carry lifts of the final movement. But the star was Chloe Misseldine in the second ballerina role. Now there was the crispness! There was the attack! I’d love to see her tackle the main ballerina role one day.
Ratmansky’s Neo was a short duet (about 10 minutes). The music by Dai Fujikura is played on a shamisen. The ballet reminded me a lot of Ulysses Dove’s Red Angels. Same red costumes, somewhat sharp music, ultra-modern style with an emphasis on sky-high extensions and rather emphatic partnering. It was minor Ratmansky, but it was exciting. Isabella Boylston and Jarod Curley (a last minute sub for an injured James Whiteside) looked pretty and sold it well. The audience loved it.
Twyla Tharp’s irresistible In the Upper Room closed the program. And what a thrill to see this again! Philip Glass’s propulsive score, the atmospheric fog, Tharp’s hyperkinetic choreography, all make for an applause machine. The performance was anchored by the truly fierce sneaker stomper trio of Gillian Murphy, Devon Teuscher, and Catherine Hurlin. Whenever they came onstage, the energy and adrenaline levels went through the roof. They were matched in energy by the “shirtless trio” of Aran Bell, Joseph Markey and Cory Stearns. But I’m convinced that just as there can never be a bad performance of Serenade, there is no bad performance of In the Upper Room. It practically dances itself.