A Suite of Dances
ChoreographerJerome Robbins
MusicJohann Sebastian Bach
PremiereMarch 3, 1994 (1994-03-03)
New York State Theater
Original ballet companyWhite Oak Dance Project
DesignSanto Loquasto
Created forMikhail Baryshnikov

A Suite of Dances is a ballet choreographed by Jerome Robbins to Johann Sebastian Bach's Cello Suites. The ballet was created for Mikhail Baryshnikov and premiered on March 3, 1994, at the New York State Theater.[1]

Production

Jerome Robbins had earlier attempted to choreograph Bach's Cello Suites with dancers Victor Castelli and Peter Boal, although the project was abandoned. He used the music for A Suite of Dances with Mikhail Baryshnikov, who was in his 40s, as the sole dancer instead.[2][3] As Baryshnikov was touring and Robbins was staging his works in Paris and St. Petersburg, A Suite of Dances was made over the course of two years, and according to Robbins, most of the choreography was made without Baryshnikov's presence,[2][3] before the ballet, a 16-minutes-long solo,[2] premiered at a performance of the White Oak Dance Project, Baryshnikov's company, with Wendy Sutter on the cello.[4]

Music

The ballet uses the following music from Bach's Cello Suites:[1]

Revivals

In May 1994, at a New York City Ballet performance, Baryshnikov performed A Suite of Dances as a guest artist, with Sutter also returning.[5] The ballet then entered Paris Opera Ballet's repertory, and New York City Ballet's members danced it for the first time in 1997.[6] In subsequent revivals, the ballet is usually danced by an experienced dancer.[2] In March 1999, eight months after Robbins died, Nicolas Le Riche danced A Suite of Dances at a Robbins tribute gala organized by the Paris Opera Ballet.[7] In 2008, at New York City Ballet's Jerome Robbins Celebration program, Le Riche reprised the role.[8] The ballet has also been performed at Carlos Acosta's solo program in 2009 and the Vail Dance Festival in 2018, by American Ballet Theatre's Herman Cornejo.[9][10]

Videography

In light of the impact of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic on the performing arts, Paris Opera Ballet released a recording of A Suite of Dances, as a part of the Tribute to Jerome Robbins program.[11] The Vail Dance Festival released a video of an excerpt danced by Cornejo online.[12]

References

  1. ^ a b "A Suite of Dances". New York City Ballet. Retrieved September 30, 2020.
  2. ^ a b c d Harss, Marina (May 4, 2019). "Dancing to Bach's Cello Suites". The New Yorker.
  3. ^ a b Kisselgoff, Anna (May 29, 1994). "Dance; For Jerome Robbins, a 'Siege by Terpsichore'". New York Times.
  4. ^ Kisselgoff, Anna (March 5, 1994). "Review/Dance; Baryshnikov Introduces Masters and Novices". New York Times.
  5. ^ Anderson, Jack (May 12, 1994). "Review/City Ballet; Baryshnikov, an Evening's Guest". New York Times.
  6. ^ Anderson, Jack (May 22, 1997). "Alone Except For a Cellist And Bach". New York Times.
  7. ^ Riding, Alan (March 12, 1999). "In Paris, Paying Tribute to Jerome Robbins With Pomp and Humor". New York Times.
  8. ^ Kourlas, Gia (June 16, 2008). "The Jerome Robbins Touch: Playful as a Somersault or Ethereal as Glass". New York Times.
  9. ^ Tommasini, Anthony (July 11, 2009). "A Hit at the First Manchester Festival Returns for a Second Helping". New York Times.
  10. ^ Macaulay, Alastair (August 5, 2018). "At Vail Festival, Dance Artists Renew and Extend Themselves". New York Times.
  11. ^ "5 free performances and films to stream live (and later)". All Arts. April 14, 2020. Archived from the original on June 25, 2020.
  12. ^ "Opening Night". Vail Dance Festival. Archived from the original on July 31, 2020.
Categories