DANCE REVIEW:
NBOC MIXED PROGRAM-
MOZARTIANA; OTHER DANCES; IN THE UPPER ROOM
16 JUN/11

JOHN COULBOURN - QMI Agency
Rating: 4.5 out of 5

TORONTO - With a veritable mountain of work behind her, Greta Hodgkinson is today standing, in every sense, at the very apex of her career. So it is fitting that the National Ballet of Canada affords the principal dancer the chance to not only dance in the sunshine but to savour the view as well as she marks 20 years with the company.

That in affording her that honour, they give audiences a chance to savour yet again the ever-growing artistry and skill she has shared with us over two decades is merely the icing on the cake. Some icing, as they say, and some cake!

Happily, Hodgkinson has several moments to shine as she takes to the stage in the centrepiece of a new mixed program — a program that brackets the company première of Jerome Robbins’ OTHER DANCES (acquired in celebration of Hodgkinson’s anniversary with the company) with George Balanchine’s masterful MOZARTIANA and Twyla Tharpe’s edgy and thrilling IN THE UPPER ROOM. The three dances opened Wednesday on the stage of the Four Seasons Centre.

Created in 1976 to showcase the talents of Mikhail Baryshnikov and Natalia Makarova, OTHER DANCES is a breathtaking piece of work for accomplished artists. And as such, it proves to be a near-prefect showcase for the long-limbed Hodgkinson, elegantly paired here with Zdenek Konvalina, in a work (and a workout) of timeless beauty set to the music of Frederic Chopin, masterfully served up by pianist Andrei Streliaev.

Exquisitely costumed by Santo Loquasto — Hodgkinson in particular looks spectacularly ethereal here, as though she could be blown away, like smoke, by a strong breeze — they tackle a rich blend of Chopin’s mazurkas and waltzes with an ease and grace that belies the demanding complexity of the choreography. They are two mature artists as much at play as at work in the medium they love.

Challenged perhaps by Hodgkinson’s grace, Konvalina claims the stage with his usual technical acumen, coupled with an uncharacteristic authority that is perfectly suited to this demanding role. But finally, it is all about Hodgkinson, and she makes the most of it as she savours every graceful step, every nuanced gesture, every second in this timeless dance as a fitting reward for 20 years of hard and memorable work. With seemingly effortless style, she serves up a mix of skill, experience, knowledge and artistry that is as intoxicating as it is sweet, leaving one wishing she could dance for 20 years more and almost convinced that she can.

The casually classic style of OTHER DANCES proves a lovely contrast to the more formal demands of MOZARTIANA which opened the evening. It is a work which not only offers a delightful showcase for four young ballerinas-in-training on loan from the National Ballet School but for principals Sonia Rodriguez and Alexandar Antonijevic and members of the NBOC Orchestra as well, who under the baton of David Briskin milk every last drop of magic from Tchaikovsky’s Suite No. 4, Mozartiana Op. 61.

But finally, nothing can really prepare an audience for Tharpe’s glorious IN THE UPPER ROOM, which closes the program, not so much set to the music of Philip Glass as relentlessly driven by it. Featuring a host of the NBOC’s finest dancers, it is a work that merrily kicks aside any questions of how many angels can dance on the head of a pin in favour of a breathtaking demonstration of how many talented artists can dance on an ever-shifting cloud.