This year the Aileys revived an iconic work by the guru of European counterculture and pioneer of Euro-trash, Maurice Béjart, who died this past November at age 80. Firebird (1970) used one of the suites from Stravinsky’s famous ballet. Dispensing with the original plot, which was first choreographed in 1910 by Michel Fokine, Béjart made a formal composition for a group of eight partisans in guerrilla uniforms who get their inspiration from a mythic figure in a red unitard (Clifton Brown).
This spirit — Béjart identified him as a poet, revolutionary, symbol of life and joy — dances balletic leaps and spins as the group hover decoratively around him, inhaling the essence of rebellion. Eventually he dies, but his expiring figure merges with a new Firebird (Jamar Roberts) to carry on the image of resistance. No one actually fights in this formalist appeal to the fervent revolutionaries of its day. Maybe modern viewers will read it as a plug for gay marriage.
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The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater is like a car company that’s developed such a perfect product, there’s no way to make a better one.
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Closer inspection, however, shows a choreographer making a series of perplexing musical choices that don’t always serve him well.
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Photos from George Balanchine's Jewels, performed by the Boston Ballet.
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Half a century ago something known as dance drama occupied a large part of the modern-dance repertory.
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The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater offered two milestones in the development of contemporary dance during its annual Celebrity Series visit to the Wang Theatre last week.
- Sunday school
Ronald K. Brown’s flamboyant choreography comes with a big serving of spirituality.
- Dancing across the city
The ICA’s Barbara Lee Family Foundation Theater, with its sprung wood dance floor and wrap-around windows framing the harbor, is positioned to become Boston dance’s most significant venue.
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If you’re hot for Victoria’s Secret ads and addicted to Dancing with the Stars, Tango Fire will be right up your alley.
- Pas de divorce
It’s been a roller-coaster six weeks at Boston Ballet.
- Two tales retold
The big ballet companies are shackled tighter than ever to the idea of the story ballet.
- Keeping it fresh
The ’80s were a fertile time for dance in Rhode Island, spawning the still-thriving Island Moving Co., Everett Dance Theatre, and Fusionworks.
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Dance
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