SAN JOSE, CA –  In “POPULAR MUSIC, Transcendental Dancing” (Presented on March 21,22, and 23 at the certer of the Performing Arts) the Company dancers of  Ballet San José  performed in pointe, used gymnastic movements, swayed their hips,  jumped, walked, bended and burned the floor in a passionate dancing of “Tango Nuevo." that even created a simulated two-men’s fight in the smoky cabaret in Buenos Aires.

The Company premier of Infinity choreographed by IGAL PERRY to the music of Sonata No 29 in B Flat Major, Op. l06  Adagio, for Hammerklavier (A piano like instrument) composed by LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN. It was  danced by ALEXSANDRA MEIJER, NATHAN CHANEY, SHANNON BYRUM, DAMIR EMRIC, OMMI PIPIT-SUKSUN, ALEX DRAMER CINDY HAUANG and JOSHUA SEIBEL. The work may be described as a synchronized series of  pas de deux and ensembles in which the four men and four women danced some music in solos, as couples or  together; the bare-chested men wearing pant tights of different colors and the women leotards, matching the color of their partners's pants.

         Company premier of  INFINITY     Photo By Alejandrro Gomez                   

The style of the  dance was gymnastic.  It included jumps. walkings, bending, standings, f legs' lifting straight up and many dances for couples in which their interlocking bodies created angular shapes.  

                                    A   syncronized Pas de Quatre in INFINITY          Photo by: Alejandro Gomez

Some of the different couples Pas de deux were better than the others and on Saturday night, the most artistic ones were executed by the couple wearing a purple leotard, and in the solos of  its female dancer who moved with a mixture of  elasticity and expression, when dancing alone, and blended, her body with the body of her dancing partner creating marvelous-looking shapes, when dancing together.

The company’s premiere of  EVERMORE choreographed by DWIGHT RHODEN with selections from the Nat King Cole Song book, was danced to a series of popular songs. The dancers were: AMY MARIE BRIONES, JAMES KOPECKY, JUNNA IGE, RAMON MORENO, GRACE-ANNE POWERS, JOSHUA SEIBEL, SARAH STEIN, THOMAS BAKER, ALISON STROMING  and KENDALL TEAGUE. 

This number could have been a hit because it convined excellent dancers dancing the songs that most people in the audience knows, and love. But, perhaps the reason it did not receive the desire response from the public on that night was because  with a few exceptions, one of them the couple of JUNNA IGE and RAMON MORENO. most of the couples danced the music without rhythm. The fact that most people is familiar with the music, which included songs like “Smile,” “It was one of those things” which are known by everybody, make the lack of rhythm in the dancing, even more obvious

Choreographed by VICENTE NEBRADA, with music by  RAMON DELGADO PALACIOS and TERESA CARREÑO with musical arrangement by MARK RICHARDS, the dance  NUESTROS VALSES
Was a series of waltzes that were interpreted on piano, at different tempos. Some of the Valses were danced like the "old Vienese waltzes" with both partners spinning together, while others were danced in different styles.

The dancers were: AMY MARIE BRIONES, JOSHUA SEIBEL, JUNNA IGE, MAYKEL SOLAS, ALEXSANDRA MEIJER, JEREMY KOVITCH, OMMI PIPIT-SUKSUN, NATHAN CHANEY JING ZHANG & DAMIR EMRIC.

The Valses music was and elaborate piano piece that was masterfully performed  by PHEBE WUSAN.

The dance included different choreographies of valtzes which include some danced as “rondas” with the dancers forming circles, others as ensembles, some danced as classical ballets, or as pas de deux  with pointe dancing The most artistic dances on that night, were interpreted by SEIBEL and BRIONES. IGE and SOLAS and MEIJER and KOVITCH.

 JOSHUA SEIBEL & AMY MARIE BRIONES  Photo by: Chris Hardy

The winner dance of the evening, however, was the company’s premiere of  Piazzolla Caldera   choreographed by PAUL TAYLOR, with music by ASTOR PIAZZOLLA and JERZY PETERBURSHSKY. The dance had everything: atmosphere, costumes, smoke and the music of “The Tango Nuevo”  (New Tango) as PIAZZOLLA called his music, whose rhythm sounds similar to the rhyth of the original Tango.

The dance takes place inside a cabaret bathed in red light and filled with smoke, (designed by SANTO LOQUASTO) who also designed the every day  Costumes: men in shirts and pants, women in dresses and high heels. 

The dance, is really four different dances: El Sol Sueño which was danced  by the full cast, Concierto para Quinteto, danced by five dancers, Celos, danced by a woman and three men and Escualo once again danced by the full cast. The dance was done wearing every day clothes: The men wearing shirts and pants, and the women wearing party dresses and high heels. .

                 Pictured: Ihosvany Rodriguez and Walter Garcia
                 simulating a fight.              Photo by Chris Hardy

The dancers on that night were: CINDY HUANG, OMMI PIPIT- SUKSUN, KENDALL TEAGUE, AMY MARIE BRIONES, JAMES KOPECKY, WALTER GARCIA, IHOSVANY RODRIGUEZ, GRACE-ANNE POWERS, LUCIUS Krst, SHANNON BYNUM, THOMAS BAKER & ALEX KRAMER.

As mentioned before, the music has the rhythm of the Tango, but this time it was a Tango danced in different styles of dances using some tango steps, dome steps of modern dance, and steps of other dances. Two of the dances told a story.  Celos, the story of a lonely woman go goes to the cabaret that night apparently looking for a man, but is unable unable to find a dancing partner. At the end, however, she attracts not one, but three of them, and after dancing, the four make a pile on top of each other on the floor.

Worth mentioning, for its realism was the short dance performed on that night by WALTER GARCIA and IHOSVANY RODRIGUEZ. The dancers, simulating to be drunk, get into a physical fight in which every one of their movements look artistic and was perfectly coordinated.

The variety of dancing styles in a single night and the perfection in the performance of each style, demonstrated to the audience, one more time, the mastery of  the Ballet San José dancers.

For more information about BSJ season or to order tickets visit www.balletsj.org