Ballet for all seasons, from Nutcracker to Summer Summer classic features seven works from Nutcracker! to Summer By: Holly Harris Posted: 6:28 PM CDT Wednesday, Jul. 24, 2024

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The Royal Winnipeg Ballet kicked off its 85th season with a grab bag of eclectic offerings as one of its most cherished annual traditions, Ballet in the Park, opens Wednesday night at Assiniboine Park’s leafy Lyric Theatre.

First conceived in 1972, BITP showcases dancers from both the company and RWB School professional and recreational divisions. It has weathered the storms — literally — throughout its 52 years, as well as a global pandemic that completely shuttered the al fresco production between 2019 and 2022.

Though it’s still free to all, audience members who register for complimentary tickets online at rwb.org will receive weather updates, as well as other goodies, including a chance to win a full season subscription.

The nearly 90-minute program of seven works, ranging from funky jazz to ethereal classical ballet, is hosted by the RWB’s newly minted principal dancer, Stephan Azulay, who helmed Tuesday’s dress rehearsal following welcoming remarks by longtime artistic director André Lewis.

The London, U.K.-born dancer, 31, who joined the company in 2017, has also been carving out a rising career as a choreographer, with the mixed repertoire program premièring two of his latest works.

The first of those, his aptly titled Summer — inspired by Vivaldi’s set of four violin concerti The Four Seasons — spotlights principal dancer Alanna McAdie and soloist Peter Lancksweerdt in a pas de deux dedicated to revered Winnipeg philanthropist Kathleen Richardson, who served as backbone for the troupe before her death in 2019.

The dancers take turns stretching their limbs out towards each other throughout the 11-minute, classically based duet, with McAdie also showing off her rock-steady pointe work, not to mention nerves of steel, as Lancksweerdt lifts her sky-high before twisting her around his body like a cobra.

However, the piece overall lacked sizzle, with the couple mostly positioned centre stage, creating sense of stasis. More dynamic movement, including propulsive leaps and dramatic contrasts, would have matched the exuberance of Vivaldi’s iconic score.

His show-closing second work, Kick, Kick, Snare, features 18 company members filling the stage for an ambitious 26 minutes, set to music by Grammy-winning jam collective Snarky Puppy that’s a fusion of jazz, funk and rock.

It’s always a joy to see these wholly committed, thoroughbred dancers up close and personal, as the larger ensemble, clad all in sombre black, breaks apart into smaller groupings of solos, duos, trios and quartets. The piece also teems with the choreographer’s trademark daring lifts, with both McAdie and fellow principal dancer Elizabeth Lamont thrillingly flipped like starfish several times by their male counterparts.

But the piece really comes alive when Azulay eschews classical idiom for vernacular touches of hand jive, Charleston and social dance, as well as several “surprises.” One of those includes the male dancers coaxing the audience to clap along while perched on the edge of the stage, breaking the fourth wall and allowing the dancers to cut loose while fully flexing their typically more reserved onstage personalities.

The night’s sleeper hit was Quit Clowning Around, choreographed by up-and-comer Grace Frazer-Sneddon from the RWB’s Anna McCowan-Johnson Aspirant Program. Katrina Ouellette appears as a clown-like Pierrot figure in stocking feet as she leaps and tumbles across the stage in this highly visceral, athletic solo.

A gifted actor, Ouellette also created an ocean of subtext, showing us the razor’s edge between comedy and tragedy, with her compelling interpretation of this dynamic solo one wants to see again — and soon.

Purists who prefer their dance en pointe are treated to an excerpt from Spanish-flavoured Don Quixote, with the Grand Pas de Deux — sans variations — admirably brought to life by aspirants Teodora Dvoretski and Oliver Bastin (alternating with Aylin Contreras-Diaz and Timothy Gaulke).

There are two jazzier pieces: Used to Know, choreographed by award-winning RWB recreational school principal Nicole Kepp, which features an eight-member ensemble from the senior jazz program; and newly promoted second soloist Joshua Hidson’s Burning Love, titled after Elvis Presley’s hit tune, and featuring six young dancers from the junior program shimmying and shaking for all they’re worth.

Last but not least, yuletide comes early with an excerpt from holiday favourite Nutcracker. RWB ballet master/former company member Jaime Vargas nearly steals the show as Drosselmeier, his animated portrayal lighting up the stage like a Christmas tree as he bakes a cake with eight rosy-cheeked cherubs from the RWB School; a cameo by second soloist Katie Saito’s radiant Sugar Plum Fairy is the cherry on top.

holly.harris@shaw.ca