Chamber Dance Project: Poetry, Feathers and Gatsby [REVIEW]

Chamber Dance ProjectAmerican University’s Greenburg TheatreWashington, DC June 16, 2022Grace, Grandeur & Gatsby Program: Prufrock, Gravity to Grace (world premiere), Four Men (excerpt), Dwellings, Extremely Close (excerpt), Gatsby (world premiere) Steve Sucato for CriticalDance.org While always something to look forward to each summer for greater Washington, DC area audiences, it is almost criminal to have to wait so long between mainstage productions by Diane Coburn Bruning’s Chamber Dance Project (CDP). The project-based company, made … Continue reading Chamber Dance Project: Poetry, Feathers and Gatsby [REVIEW]

Cincinnati Ballet: Triumphant Bold Moves Festival [REVIEW]

Cincinnati BalletProcter & Gamble Hall at the Aronoff Center for the ArtsPittsburgh, PA May 21, 2022, afternoon and eveningBold Moves Festival Program 1: Petal, Nine Sinatra Songs, Minus 16Program 2: Children of the Passage (Dayton Contemporary Dance Company), Our Story (world premiere), Bolero Steve Sucato for CriticalDance.org For her last production as Cincinnati Ballet’s Artistic Director, Victoria Morgan programmed a mix of tried-and-true repertory favorites along with a new ballet by company dancer … Continue reading Cincinnati Ballet: Triumphant Bold Moves Festival [REVIEW]

Sidra Bell Dance New York: Highlights Program Shows Company in its Best Light [REVIEW]

By Steve Sucato for CriticalDance.org In celebration of Sidra Bell Dance New York’s 20th Anniversary Season, company Founder/Artistic Director/Choreographer Sidra Bell put together a program of eleven excerpts from her works for the company since its founding in 2001. The highlights show, dubbed IN|REP, presented by Mutual Dance Theatre, strung together those excerpts without pause or intermission to create a finely curated, deep dive into Bell’s … Continue reading Sidra Bell Dance New York: Highlights Program Shows Company in its Best Light [REVIEW]

Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre: ‘Season Premiere’ [REVIEW]

Pittsburgh Ballet TheatreBenedum CenterPittsburgh, PAOctober 23, 2021Season Premiere Program: Petal, Grand Pas Classique, Through the Window (world premiere), Diamonds Steve Sucato To kick off its 2021-22 dance season and the return to in-theater performances, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre presented the mixed repertory production Season Premiere with the PBT Orchestra. It was the first offering in artistic director Susan Jaffe’s inaugural season of programming (postponed by the pandemic) and made good on … Continue reading Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre: ‘Season Premiere’ [REVIEW]

Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre: Distinction and Delight [REVIEW]

Pittsburgh Ballet TheatreOpen Air: A Series in Celebration of the Performing ArtsPrograms A and BMay 21 and 22, 2021 Flagstaff Hill at Schenley ParkPittsburgh, PA Steve Sucato As the hosts of the much-anticipated “Open Air: A Series in Celebration of the Performing Arts,” Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre (PBT) gave audiences a heaping helping of the kind of repertory new artistic director Susan Jaffe will be bringing to … Continue reading Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre: Distinction and Delight [REVIEW]

Radacovsky’s ‘Romeo & Juliet’ a triumph for Grand Rapids Ballet Company

Reviewed by Steve Sucato Re-envisioning Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet must be a little like trying to re-envision the act of breathing. The story is so ingrained in popular culture that any retelling automatically carries with it the burden of knowing expectation. Despite this, seemingly every dance season another choreographer adds their dance interpretation to the bountiful “Romeo & Juliet’s” already out there. Choreographer Mario Radacovsky took a contemporary … Continue reading Radacovsky’s ‘Romeo & Juliet’ a triumph for Grand Rapids Ballet Company