Missed our recent Carmen performance at the Ford Amphitheatre? We'll be performing it again to open our 2007-2008 Santa Barbara season on October 19 and 21 at the Lobero Theatre. In the meantime, check out this trailer of the ballet:
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Review: Carmen at the Ford Amphitheatre
Lewis Segal reviews Carmen for the Los Angeles Times:
Read more of the review.
'Carmen' moves in new directionsFord Amphitheatre, August 17
Reviewed by Lewis Segal
[Carmen] offers roles that display and develop artistry and enough choreographic originality to interest dancers and audiences alike. Plus, of course, a classic story that gets deeper with every retelling.
Read more of the review.
Wednesday, August 1, 2007
Company: 2007-2008 Prelude
It's 7 PM in Santa Barbara. The humidity must be well over 80 percent, and the warm temperature and sweating bodies are constant reminders of summer in full swing. At Gustafson Dance's studios, Ravel's Bolero starts pounding out its relentless rhythm as dancers scramble to the front of the dance floor for the second week of rehearsals preparing to kick off State Street Ballet's 2007-2008 season.
Gary McKenzie rehearses Dana Young in Rodney Gustafson's Bolero
In two days, on August 3rd, SSB performs its Snow White and the Seven Dwarves at its annual fall Redlands Bowl performance. On Sunday, August 5, SSB helps celebrate Santa Barbara's Fiesta week by performing Rodney Gustafson's Bolero at the Sunken Garden of the Santa Barbara Courthouse in the Fiesta finale, starting at 8 PM.
Two more weeks of rehearsal, and the dancers will be performing William Soleau's full-length Carmen at the Ford Amphitheatre in Hollywood on August 17 at 8 PM. This new full-length Carmen will later make its Santa Barbara debut on October 19, opening SSB's home season.
Many dancers will be rehearsing two or three different parts set to completely different music, sometimes all in one night. The heat's sweltering. Rehearsals run late into the night, but everyone's glad to be back: friends are reunited, new dancers are welcomed, and the dances are coming together.
Gary McKenzie rehearses Leila Drake, Terez Dean, new apprentice Angela Rebelo, Alyson Mattoon, and Dana Young in Bolero
Be sure to join us for an exciting new season of State Street Ballet by subscribing to our performances. We have several exciting things in store for you this season, and this blog will be the first to let you know about them.
Gary McKenzie rehearses Dana Young in Rodney Gustafson's BoleroTwo more weeks of rehearsal, and the dancers will be performing William Soleau's full-length Carmen at the Ford Amphitheatre in Hollywood on August 17 at 8 PM. This new full-length Carmen will later make its Santa Barbara debut on October 19, opening SSB's home season.
Many dancers will be rehearsing two or three different parts set to completely different music, sometimes all in one night. The heat's sweltering. Rehearsals run late into the night, but everyone's glad to be back: friends are reunited, new dancers are welcomed, and the dances are coming together.
Gary McKenzie rehearses Leila Drake, Terez Dean, new apprentice Angela Rebelo, Alyson Mattoon, and Dana Young in BoleroWednesday, July 18, 2007
News: State Street Ballet Summer Intensive Performance July 22
As this year's State Street Ballet Summer Intensive wraps up, the students are busy preparing for their performance this coming Sunday, July 22, at the Lobero Theatre at 2PM. Tickets are $20 for adults and $16 for children 12 and under. Drop by the Lobero box office or call (805) 963-0761 for tickets. Be sure to check our theater guide for seating recommendations, too.
The performance is the culmination of their summer intensive experience, as 4 weeks of work is displayed on stage in both classical and contemporary pieces. In addition to a hefty excerpt from the classical ballet, Paquita, the students will also be dancing contemporary ballet pieces by SSB Artistic Director Rodney Gustafson, and SSB dancer Dana Young, jazz pieces by Alyson Mattoon, and modern choreography by Nancy Colahan.
The eclectic make-up of the program not only shows off the versatility of these young dancers, but also reflects the realities of today's dance world, where dancers are expected to know many different dance forms from classical ballet to modern dance. It's not unusual today to see a classical ballet company perform all in one night an avant-garde work that pushes the boundaries of theatricality and a classical ballet with strict classical lines dressed in tutus and white tights. Juxtaposing such far-flung opposites can better show what's great about each dance form, and helps the audience appreciate the unique qualities each dance form brings to the stage.
So be sure to join us on July 22 to see what these up-and-coming dancers have been doing for the last four weeks, as well as the choreography of SSB's own dancers as they show a little-seen side of themselves.
The performance is the culmination of their summer intensive experience, as 4 weeks of work is displayed on stage in both classical and contemporary pieces. In addition to a hefty excerpt from the classical ballet, Paquita, the students will also be dancing contemporary ballet pieces by SSB Artistic Director Rodney Gustafson, and SSB dancer Dana Young, jazz pieces by Alyson Mattoon, and modern choreography by Nancy Colahan.
The eclectic make-up of the program not only shows off the versatility of these young dancers, but also reflects the realities of today's dance world, where dancers are expected to know many different dance forms from classical ballet to modern dance. It's not unusual today to see a classical ballet company perform all in one night an avant-garde work that pushes the boundaries of theatricality and a classical ballet with strict classical lines dressed in tutus and white tights. Juxtaposing such far-flung opposites can better show what's great about each dance form, and helps the audience appreciate the unique qualities each dance form brings to the stage.
So be sure to join us on July 22 to see what these up-and-coming dancers have been doing for the last four weeks, as well as the choreography of SSB's own dancers as they show a little-seen side of themselves.
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Steps: Good feet
Hang around balletomanes long enough, and you might wonder if they all have a foot fetish problem. It seems no ballet dancer can escape having their feet judged and commented upon by knowledgeable fans.
And can how we blame them? Great ballet dancers have feet that are as expressive as their hands, and fans have been known to rhapsodize at considerable length about their favorite dancers' feet. So what makes a good ballet foot, and how can we recognize it?
According to this post on Ballet Alert's very interesting and worthwhile Details blog, there are three important factors for a good foot:
In the first picture, the red curve under the foot shows the arch, and the arrow shows the height of the arch from the bottom of the foot if the foot was standing flat against the floor:
The foot's arch
In the dance world, the instep of the foot refers to the top of the foot. The curve following the top of the foot shows the instep, and the arrow shows the height of the instep from the foot's unpointed, flat position:
The foot's instep
And can how we blame them? Great ballet dancers have feet that are as expressive as their hands, and fans have been known to rhapsodize at considerable length about their favorite dancers' feet. So what makes a good ballet foot, and how can we recognize it?
According to this post on Ballet Alert's very interesting and worthwhile Details blog, there are three important factors for a good foot:
- A high arch
- A high instep
- A flexible ankle
In the first picture, the red curve under the foot shows the arch, and the arrow shows the height of the arch from the bottom of the foot if the foot was standing flat against the floor:
The foot's arch
The foot's instepAnkle flexibility is the angular range of the foot from the ankle. In the following picture, the angle the foot makes with the leg is compared with the bottom of the heel:
The ankle's flexibility
The ankle's flexibilityHowever, as we hinted earlier, and as the Details post we linked very carefully points out, having a good foot isn't enough. Dancers must also possess the experience, coaching, good taste, physical strength, and about a million other things in order to use their feet to best serve their performance. A good-looking foot is a useful, desirable tool, but it is only a tool.
Dancers on stage are trying to express and project something in their mind to the audience, and it's the dancers' job to figure out how to do that with the tools (ie. the various parts of their body) they have, whether the tools are good, just adequate, or even sometimes unavailable, like when they're dancing with an injury. The best dancers always find a way to do this despite their body, because, with perhaps one exception, no one has a perfect body for ballet.
Dancers on stage are trying to express and project something in their mind to the audience, and it's the dancers' job to figure out how to do that with the tools (ie. the various parts of their body) they have, whether the tools are good, just adequate, or even sometimes unavailable, like when they're dancing with an injury. The best dancers always find a way to do this despite their body, because, with perhaps one exception, no one has a perfect body for ballet.
So now you know what makes a good-looking foot, and you may find yourself watching your next ballet performance from a new perspective as you try to spot the nice feet on-stage and how they're used. And there are still plenty of summer performances left if you're impatient to apply this new knowledge!
Monday, June 25, 2007
News: State Street Ballet Summer Intensive begins
The State Street Ballet Summer Intensive kicked off today, and will culminate some 4 weeks later with a performance on July 22 at the Lobero Theatre. A summer intensive is a 4- to 5-week simulation of a professional dancer's life for up-and-coming dance students between 12 and 21 years old. It's a great way to not only see what a professional dancer's life is like (and decide whether it's right for you), but also a good way to improve your technique significantly since you're taking a large number of classes.
For 5 to 6 days per week, students start each morning with a normal ballet technique class followed by one or two more classes concentrating on specific aspects of ballet or other forms of dance. These extra classes include partnering, modern technique, and, for the men, male-specific deportment and technique. After classes, students then have several hours of rehearsal as they start to learn the various pieces they'll be performing at the end of the intensive session.
Ending some time around 5 PM, intensive students have been dancing since 9 in the morning. They have a chance to relax in the evenings, though some of the more energetic students may take another technique class then as well.
Another important aspect of summer intensives are the friends and contacts students make that can help them later on in their career. Whether it's fellow students that they may work with again in the future, because the dance world is very small, or the teacher who remembers how hard a particular student worked in class or rehearsal, and may want to work with that student when their paths cross again in the future, an intensive can have a significant effect on a dancer's career.
Intensives are a vital part of a ballet dancer's training, and each summer brings us new students full of promise as we wonder where we will see them practicing their art in the future.
For 5 to 6 days per week, students start each morning with a normal ballet technique class followed by one or two more classes concentrating on specific aspects of ballet or other forms of dance. These extra classes include partnering, modern technique, and, for the men, male-specific deportment and technique. After classes, students then have several hours of rehearsal as they start to learn the various pieces they'll be performing at the end of the intensive session.
Ending some time around 5 PM, intensive students have been dancing since 9 in the morning. They have a chance to relax in the evenings, though some of the more energetic students may take another technique class then as well.
Another important aspect of summer intensives are the friends and contacts students make that can help them later on in their career. Whether it's fellow students that they may work with again in the future, because the dance world is very small, or the teacher who remembers how hard a particular student worked in class or rehearsal, and may want to work with that student when their paths cross again in the future, an intensive can have a significant effect on a dancer's career.
Intensives are a vital part of a ballet dancer's training, and each summer brings us new students full of promise as we wonder where we will see them practicing their art in the future.
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Features: Where can I see great dance in Santa Barbara?
Maybe you're new in town, or your curiousity about dance's been piqued, or maybe you're just hoping to see something like this. Whatever reason you want to see dance, we have a great new resource for you: the all-new, all-singing, all-dancing map of Santa Barbara's dance venues.
Opinionated, and spilling the dirt where there's any, we tell about you the good, bad, and smelly bits of each venue. Go in better informed, and hopefully better seated.
Opinionated, and spilling the dirt where there's any, we tell about you the good, bad, and smelly bits of each venue. Go in better informed, and hopefully better seated.
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