[NEohioPAL] Berko review: JOFFREY BALLET/CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA

[Roy Berko]

Orchestra shines, but disappointing Joffrey Ballet at Blossom

Roy Berko

(Member, Dance Critics Association)

--THE TIMES NEWSPAPERS--

Lorain County Times--Westlaker Times--Lakewood News Times--Olmsted-Fairview 
Times

--coocleveland.com-

Last year my review of the Joffrey Ballet/Cleveland Orchestra program read:  
“Combine the world-class Joffrey Ballet, with the world-renowned Cleveland 
Orchestra, and place them in the lush Blossom Center on a crisp August evening.  
The results?   A very special experience.”  Not so this year.  The dancers 
seemed distracted, lacking in precision and vitality, and, in spite of several 
highlight moments, generally were disappointing.  The orchestra, on the other 
hand, was marvelous.

How can dancers, when accompanied by the finely tuned sounds of the world famous 
Cleveland Orchestra, be so flat and lax? 

A man who I talked to at intermission said, “I don't know anything about ballet 
but when the dancers are in lines, aren't the lines supposed to be straight; 
and, in group movements, aren't the arms supposed to be moving together; and, 
aren't the dancers supposed to jump and land in tandem?”  Yes, he was right on 
all counts.  This is a world-class company.  What we saw, at least on opening 
night, was not world-class dancing.

The evening opened with 'REFLECTIONS,' danced to the “Variations on a Rococo 
Theme' by Piotr Tchaikovsky, featuring the thrilling sounds of Cleveland 
Orchestra cellist Mark Kosower.  It is neoclassical in the Arpino style, 
consisting of high lifts, a fast pace and traditional balletic beauty. Though 
the dances seemed uninspired, with the exception of weak synchronization of 
corps movements, the piece was adequately interpreted.  

'AGE OF INNOCENCE,' performed to the music of Philip Glass and Thomas Newman, 
which was more tonal than most of Glass's works, told a story of societal 
repression.   Again, the corps timing was off with crooked lines and out of sync 
movements, especially by the male dancers.  Compelling Christine Rocas and 
athletic Mauro Villanueva were excellent in the “First Dialogue” segment, while 
Victoria Jainai and Fabrice Calmels were convincing and dynamic in “Obey Thee.” 
 

'TARANETLLA,' a sprightly southern Italian folk dance characterized by a fast 
upbeat tempo, was adequately, but not spectacularly danced by Yumelia Garcia and 
Derrick Agnoletti.  There are so many occasions for the dancers, especially the 
male dancer to shine, but there was little enthusiasm or showcased talent 
expressed by Agnoletti.

The highlight number of the evening was the “PAS DE DEUX FROM LE CORSIARE.'   
Set to music by Adolphe Adam, with new music by Riccardo Drigo, the number is 
loosely based on Lord Byron's poem, “Corsair.”  It featured lovely music, well 
played by the Cleveland Orchestra, and was nicely danced by Victoria Jaiani and 
Miguel Angel Blanco, who displayed good partnering, with fine toe work and 
excellent circle jumps.  Finally, the audience saw what the entire evening 
should have been!

'PRETTY BALLET' was set to “Symphony No. 2” by Bohuslav Martinu.  The highlight 
was Movement II in which Valerie Robin and Fabrice Calmels flowed as one to 
create a cohesive piece.  Again, when the full cast was present in Movement IV, 
the sync was off.

The tell-tale clue to the audience's reaction was that the usual “mandatory” 
Cleveland standing ovation was missing at the end of the performance and many 
left well before the evening was concluded.

Capsule judgement:  Joffrey Ballet's latest trip to Blossom paled by comparison 
to last year's performance and other showings that I have seen.  It was almost 
like the powers that be sent in a secondary set of dancers who were seemingly 
neither prepped for, nor enthused about, this appearance. We deserved more from 
this world-class company! 
Roy Berko's blog, which contains theatre and dance reviews from 2001 through 
2010, as well as his consulting and publications information, can be found at 
http://royberko.info
His reviews can also be found on www.coolcleveland.com and NeOHIOpal (to 
subscribe visit http://mailman.listserve.com/listmanager/listinfo/neohiopal.)