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Thursday, February 02, 2017
Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre to kick off season with 'Dracula'
TribLIVE: Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre's 2017-18 season includes a classic masterpiece, a centennial tribute that requires singing dancers, a collection of brand new works from company choreographers, and a couple of audience favorites.
5 comments:
Rebecca Meckler
said...
This is a really interesting season. Though, like most ballet companies, in includes the classics, like Swan Lake and the Nutcracker, it also has some interesting additions, like Dracula. I think the idea of a dark but beautiful ballet sounds fascinating. I really like Terence Orr’s quote about how the choreography being delightful and how it combines with the horrifying aspect of the plot. It sounds as if it makes a dramatic combination. I also think that the idea of doing West Side Story is an interesting choice. Sometimes ballet dancers feel scared when they're asked to sing. However, this is an iconic story that will most likely attract a large audience. This season seems to be focused on ballets with widely know stories that will get audience members. I think that this is a good idea because people are often scared of the ballet. Since ballet is often told without words people are scared that they won’t understand the story and by doing stories that they know, they are more likely come and get people to see ballet. That being said I was excited to see there is a new works program that uses company dancers as the choreographers. I hope to see some of the ballets in PBT 2017-2018 season.
It's interesting to see how ballet companies incorporate new work into their seasons. With ballet being seen as such a classical art form, seeing new takes on the traditional dance is always refreshing to see. A genre often not really associated with ballet is horror, so it would be intriguing to see how elements of that genre with their production of Dracula are integrated into the ballet piece in contrast to the traditional dance moves. With companies consistently repeating Swan Lake, although a popular favorite, I'd like to see what work goes into keeping a piece like Swan Lake present and relevant in today's world, and what design choices go into making the visuals of a piece still seem new and exciting despite it's extensive history of preexistence. With their production of West Side Story, I would like to learn about how they're going to incorporate singing into ballet, and to see where the line is between ballet and musical theatre in a production like this. Companies like the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre help to give exposure to the art of ballet by giving it new life with the types and styles of the productions like in their upcoming season.
I am not one hundred percent sure why attending ballet here in Pittsburgh has never occurred to me before. I know I was previously aware of the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre's Presence, but although I love ballet, I have never sought out tickets. Seeing this article reminded me just how close and accessible the theatre is. We are blessed to be located in a place that allows us to be so close to a massive amount of art. That being said, PItssburgh Ballet Theatre’s upcoming season is incredibly exciting. I love that it blends classics, and my personal favorites, such as the Nutcracker and Swan Lake, with more experimental and edgy work. I feel like Ballet has really evolved in ways I had not recently noticed. Like Taylor mentioned, they have to adapt and design in ways that are engaging and fresh for today’s audience. I certainly would say that they are succeeding. I personally am trying to make more of an effort to attend ballet, and I’m particularly excited for this upcoming season!
I have not yet seen any ballet here in pittsburgh, I've know about The Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre and how it is widely reputed. Maybe this will be one of the first works I see. I agree that this article has sparked an interest in me because we are all artists trying to accomplish very similar messages through different mediums of expression. I never fully realized how much art is cultivated here in pittsburgh. This city is fantastic,with multiple top drama & dance schools, incredible venues, amazing museum exhibits, etc. Pittsburgh is really such a beautiful town. I think that it should be a requirement to see other performances/exhibits in pittsburgh the same way that we utilize conservatory hour to do that with our own season. I am interested to see this performance of Dracula because the play didn't go over very well. Perhaps that was not its medium to be performed?
This season has a good balance of classics, like Nutcracker and Swan Lake, and I wish this article would have gone more in depth about the production of Dracula, as that's something I'd really like to see. My only experience with that show was when my high school did it last year and I saw it during fall break. Imagine a bunch of freshman running around in bat costumes with red LED eyes while a melodramatic junior with a terrible accent had a dramatic fight scene onstage. Yeah, not so great. I'm excited to see what this would be like as a ballet, as the script of the show that I saw wasn't very good. I think it has a lot of potential as a dance piece as a lot of the cheesiness good be taken away and made much more expressive. I've never been to a ballet here in Pittsburgh, but I'd love to see what they do with Dracula.
5 comments:
This is a really interesting season. Though, like most ballet companies, in includes the classics, like Swan Lake and the Nutcracker, it also has some interesting additions, like Dracula. I think the idea of a dark but beautiful ballet sounds fascinating. I really like Terence Orr’s quote about how the choreography being delightful and how it combines with the horrifying aspect of the plot. It sounds as if it makes a dramatic combination. I also think that the idea of doing West Side Story is an interesting choice. Sometimes ballet dancers feel scared when they're asked to sing. However, this is an iconic story that will most likely attract a large audience. This season seems to be focused on ballets with widely know stories that will get audience members. I think that this is a good idea because people are often scared of the ballet. Since ballet is often told without words people are scared that they won’t understand the story and by doing stories that they know, they are more likely come and get people to see ballet. That being said I was excited to see there is a new works program that uses company dancers as the choreographers. I hope to see some of the ballets in PBT 2017-2018 season.
It's interesting to see how ballet companies incorporate new work into their seasons. With ballet being seen as such a classical art form, seeing new takes on the traditional dance is always refreshing to see. A genre often not really associated with ballet is horror, so it would be intriguing to see how elements of that genre with their production of Dracula are integrated into the ballet piece in contrast to the traditional dance moves. With companies consistently repeating Swan Lake, although a popular favorite, I'd like to see what work goes into keeping a piece like Swan Lake present and relevant in today's world, and what design choices go into making the visuals of a piece still seem new and exciting despite it's extensive history of preexistence. With their production of West Side Story, I would like to learn about how they're going to incorporate singing into ballet, and to see where the line is between ballet and musical theatre in a production like this. Companies like the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre help to give exposure to the art of ballet by giving it new life with the types and styles of the productions like in their upcoming season.
I am not one hundred percent sure why attending ballet here in Pittsburgh has never occurred to me before. I know I was previously aware of the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre's Presence, but although I love ballet, I have never sought out tickets. Seeing this article reminded me just how close and accessible the theatre is. We are blessed to be located in a place that allows us to be so close to a massive amount of art. That being said, PItssburgh Ballet Theatre’s upcoming season is incredibly exciting. I love that it blends classics, and my personal favorites, such as the Nutcracker and Swan Lake, with more experimental and edgy work. I feel like Ballet has really evolved in ways I had not recently noticed. Like Taylor mentioned, they have to adapt and design in ways that are engaging and fresh for today’s audience. I certainly would say that they are succeeding. I personally am trying to make more of an effort to attend ballet, and I’m particularly excited for this upcoming season!
I have not yet seen any ballet here in pittsburgh, I've know about The Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre and how it is widely reputed. Maybe this will be one of the first works I see. I agree that this article has sparked an interest in me because we are all artists trying to accomplish very similar messages through different mediums of expression. I never fully realized how much art is cultivated here in pittsburgh. This city is fantastic,with multiple top drama & dance schools, incredible venues, amazing museum exhibits, etc. Pittsburgh is really such a beautiful town. I think that it should be a requirement to see other performances/exhibits in pittsburgh the same way that we utilize conservatory hour to do that with our own season. I am interested to see this performance of Dracula because the play didn't go over very well. Perhaps that was not its medium to be performed?
This season has a good balance of classics, like Nutcracker and Swan Lake, and I wish this article would have gone more in depth about the production of Dracula, as that's something I'd really like to see. My only experience with that show was when my high school did it last year and I saw it during fall break. Imagine a bunch of freshman running around in bat costumes with red LED eyes while a melodramatic junior with a terrible accent had a dramatic fight scene onstage. Yeah, not so great. I'm excited to see what this would be like as a ballet, as the script of the show that I saw wasn't very good. I think it has a lot of potential as a dance piece as a lot of the cheesiness good be taken away and made much more expressive. I've never been to a ballet here in Pittsburgh, but I'd love to see what they do with Dracula.
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