The Lab Theater
700 North First Street Minneapolis MN 55401
612.333.7977
PRESS
ARENA Dances Short Fall
November 12 - 15, 2009 Thursday 8 PM (Q & A to follow performance)
Friday - 8PM
Saturday - 5 PM (pay-as-able at door; $10 suggested)
Saturday - 8PM Sunday - 7 PM Tickets $20.00 Student Rush $15.00
ARENA Dances creates and performs original choreography by Mathew Janczewski to promote an understanding and appreciation of modern dance in the Twin Cities.
ARENA’s works, while abstract, bring audiences into a world of emotions presented on stage. Janczewski has said, “I am interested in creating worlds that audiences are brought into…[ones where] they can feel the movement, feel the excitement of the movement, feel the pain of the movement, and that leads them to feel the piece.” The November concert, entitled Short Fall, will continue Janczewski’s mission, creating dances that speak to the human condition in all its glorious, wrenching, and magical ways; transporting audiences through the beauty and breathtaking physicality of his movement.
Back by Popular Demand!
A sensuous and gritty romp, with stirring powerful music of composer Carl Orff, based on poems written by 13th century vagabond poets...those rascals!
Featuring the dynamic mix of MDT dancers, acclaimed vocalists Bradley Greenwald, Jennifer Baldwin Peden, the Minnesota Chorale and musicians Tom Linker, Barbara Brooks, Heather Barringer and Bob Adney.
Original choreography by MDT founder Loyce Houlton under the direction of Lise Houlton and Dominique Serrand.
"a breathtaking amalgam of music, movement, and imagery." - Dominic Papatola, Pioneer Press
"Thrills and trills spill from spicy Carmina."
- Rohan Preston, Star Tribune
"A towering ambition and multidisciplinary triumph."
- Dominic Papatola, Pioneer Press
Kiana Mayes, R&B singer/songwriter, is first young artist of Spotlight Series.
Ruby's @ The Lab and Pharaoh Productions present:
Spotlight Young Artists: Kiana Mayes Monday, October 26, 2009 - 8 PM
Adults $10, Students $5
(available at door)
Ruby’s @ the Lab has joined forces with Pharaoh Productions to create a new program to showcase the work of some of the Twin Cities’ promising young musicians/performers. The Spotlight Series places local professionals in the music industry in mentoring positions with young artists to help them develop, produce, record and, ultimately, to perform their music in a professional theater setting.
The series opens at the Lab Theater with Kiana Mayes, an aspiring R&B singer/songwriter. Kiana, who began singing at the age of three, started by showcasing her talent in the church choir, school choir and talent shows. In January 2007, she won the Christian Amateur Vocal Soloist Talent Contest at Jesus is Lord Church. June 2009 Kiana began taking vocal lessons at MacPhail School of Music with jazz artist/teacher, Vicky Mountain. She has also taken voice lessons with Bruce Henry and is now working on her demo with Shaun Labelle.
Ruby’s will host this concert series on the third Monday of each month.
That was then...
In 1986, Moore By Four was launched at Ruby's Cabaret, and they took the Twin Cities by storm. The Cotton Club Revue - an instant hit - has not been performed in its entirety since then.
Special rates for groups of 8 or more.
For information, call the box office: 612-333-7977
Moore by Four Returns to Ruby's October 8-11, 15-18, 2009
Since their debut in 1986, Moore By Four has played clubs, concert halls and theaters all over the world. Now Moore By Four is happy to return to where it all began: Ruby’s. The Cotton Club Revue features songs by Ellington, Calloway, Gershwin, Fitzgerald and more, all brought to life in what has become known as the signature style of Moore By Four
Don't miss the magic of Moore By Four at their best! This is now...
Elsworth Menswear presents
INVIGORATE
Saturday, September 26th, 2009
8:00PM
$20
Elsworth will be making it’s first ever appearance in MN Fall Fashion Week on Saturday, September 26th 2009.We are going to be bringing in special items that will be part of our Fall/Winter collection. This is the stuff you will want to wear to be the talk of the town, and we are going to show you how it’s done.
September 18, 19, 20, 2009 Friday, Saturday - 8 PM Sunday - 2 PM Tickets $29.00
Students $22, Seniors $24 See dance from an intriguingly new point of view, as Minnesota Dance Theatre offers an eclectic, international repertoire of "Dance that Dares”. Featuring the world premiere of two MDT commissions Under the Sun (Caroline Beach/John Adams) and Duets...with Love, Elvis! (Mariusz Olszewski/Elvis Presley), along with MDT favorite A Stair Dance (Eliot Feld/Steve Reich).
Also joining the company are MDT alumni and current New York City Ballet dancers Charles Askegard and Kaitlyn Gilliland performing Wingborne (Loyce Houlton/Antonin Dvorák) and Tchaikovsky Pas De Deux (George Balanchine/Pyotr Tchaikovsky)
Pecha Kucha August 12 , 2009 7:00 - 11:00 PM
Pecha Kucha Night was conceived in 2003 as a place for young designers to meet, network, and show their work in public.
But as we all know, give a mike to a designer (especially an architect) and you’ll be trapped for hours. The key to Pecha Kucha Night is its patented system for avoiding this fate. Each presenter is allowed 20 images, each shown for 20 seconds each – giving 6 minutes 40 seconds of fame before the next presenter is up. This keeps presentations concise, the interest level up, and gives more people the chance to show.
Pecha Kucha (which is Japanese for the sound of conversation) has tapped into a demand for a forum in which creative work can be easily and informally shown, without having to rent a gallery or chat up a magazine editor. This is a demand that seems to be global – as Pecha Kucha Night, without any pushing, has spread virally to over 100 cities across the world.
Pecha Kucha Night, Barcelona
When A Man Loves A Diva
l-r: Dane Stauffer, Sanford Moore, Julius Collins, Nathan Shrake "You'll laugh, you'll cheer, you'll scratch your head at improper pronoun usage. This classical of ballads and power anthems from the likes of Diana Ross, Aretha Franklin, and Barbra Streisand is sung with style and substance...." - City Pages, A-LIST
July 23 - August 16, 2009 Thursday, Friday, Saturday - 8 PM Sunday - 7 PM
Our Boyfriends are Back
(and there's gonna be trouble)
Men sing songs that made Divas of the women who recorded them. From Diana to Madonna to Duffy, it takes chutzpah* for these men to unleash their inner divas.
Their often shameless renditions remind us that there ain't no mountain high enough, ain't no river wide enough to keep us from having a dangerously good time.
"...a musical revue that has humor, honesty and heart." - Star Tribune
"When these men sing like divas, it's...as entertaining as it is eclectic. Energy never flags during this 90-minute show." - Pioneer Press
"'When a Man Loves a Diva' is typical Ruby's material, fun and loud." - Minneapolis Downtown Journal
Power Balladz May 28 - June 28, 2009
Power Balladzis a rock and roll extravaganza featuring some of the greatest songs ever written by man, woman and/or beast.
The formula is simple - take two great rock singers (and one hot backup singer), give them a full band, lots of lights, a fog machine, video projection screen and more knowledge about Power Ballads than is necessary (or recommended). Throw in some comedy, big hair, animal-print spandex and a t-shirt cannon and you will leave the theater entertained – and cultured.
We hope you will all come to see the show, have some beer and lift your lighters in the air to the glorious strains of such timeless hits as… “Sister Christian,” “Faithfully,” “November Rain,” “Every Rose Has Its Thorn,” and many more.
'Power Balladz' a guilty pleasure for Bic-flicking arena concert fans By Dominic P. Papatola
Michael Todaro describes his new show, "Power Balladz," as a show for "people who remember dancing in the gym to 'Faithfully.' "
If the mention of Journey's 1983 Top 20 hit sends you skittering to the attic to retrieve your high school yearbook, then you probably sit smack in the middle of the demographic Todaro and his producing partners hope will come to see the show opening this weekend at The Lab Theater.
"Our idea was to imagine the show as being an arena rock concert shoved into a cabaret format," said Todaro, the co-author, co-producer and co-curator of a show he and fellow conspirator Dan Nycklemoe first performed at the Bryant-Lake Bowl in 2002.
Seven years later, the duo have expanded the show somewhat, kicked themselves out of the cast in favor of three new singers and cobbled together about $100,000 from a group of investors who probably flicked their share of Bics during warm summer evenings at Metropolitan Stadium.
"This ain't 'Caroline, or Change,' " admitted Todaro, referring to the high-minded Tony Kushner musical now on stage at the Guthrie Theater.
Indeed. In addition to more traditional theater marketing, "Power Balladz" is working with sports radio station KFAN and has performed at a St. Paul Saints game. Outside the theater, the show has an official beer sponsor (Schell's); inside the theater, each performance will allow one lucky audience member the opportunity to fire off a T-shirt cannon.
Which is not to say the show
lacks legitimate theater bona-fides: Performers Dieter Bierbrauer, Katy Hays and Randy Schmeling are established names in the area's musical theater firmament. The show's helmsman — Theatre Latte Da artistic director Peter Rothstein — has a more-than-respectable resume and plenty of experience bringing new work to the fore.
"Peter has put some really nice, honest moments into the show that were never there when Dan and I did it," said Todaro.
And yet, one gets the feeling that it's difficult for Todaro to talk about the show without at least the hint of a guilty grin. The show, for instance, clearly invites comparisons to "Rock of Ages," the new Broadway musical that features music by the likes of Poison, Whitesnake and Twisted Sister. Todaro cops to the similarities, but says his show lacks the New York production's ... um ... literary pretensions.
" 'Rock of Ages' is much more to '80s music what 'Mamma Mia' is to ABBA music. They interweave the music into the plot. There's nothing like that in our show. Nobody's got a sister named Christian."
The show is booked at the Lab for five weeks, with the possibility of extending for a couple of weeks if ticket sales are strong. Based on fairly conservative attendance projections, Todaro and his backers figure they can break even during the initial run. But the hope is that "Power Balladz" only begins its life in the Warehouse District.
"We were very realistic with investors," he said. "We didn't give them any pie-in-the sky expectations. But we have talked about taking the show to different places. So we hope opening night is just the first step."
Hair we go again: 'Power Balladz' gets an unlikely restaging
May 28, 2009
While his high school classmates in Grand Rapids, Minn., were teasing their hair and cranking "Sister Christian," Peter Rothstein was reading Broadway scores with his piano teacher.
So why in the name of Axl Rose is the artistic director of Theatre Latté Da -- whose latest production was a triptych of precious musicals -- at the helm for "Power Balladz," a new revue built on the works of the Crüe, Poison and Aerosmith?
"I know, I need a dramaturg so badly," Rothstein said, laughing. "The creators of the show are my age, and they ask me, 'Where were you all of high school?'"
Regardless, Rothstein was the first choice for Dan Nycklemoe and Michael Todaro when they sought a director for the cabaret-style show that opens this week at the Lab Theater (formerly Guthrie Lab) in Minneapolis.
"We intended the show to have a theatrical light to it, and we respected Peter's eye and efficiency as a director," said Nycklemoe, who, with Todaro, originated the show at Bryant-Lake Bowl in 2001.
And what about Herr (Big Hair?) Director's knowledge gap?
"We spent a lot of time watching YouTube," Nycklemoe said. "The first week was me sitting in our office broadcasting clips. Peter benefited from seeing how these were staged and from analyzing [Queen's] Freddie Mercury, who is the greatest example of high theater and high rock in one package."
Nycklemoe picked ballads for their technical style, while Todaro's choices were "more autobiographical." Asked for a favorite, Nycklemoe named "Dream On" by Aerosmith.
"It has the gravitas," he said. "It's very significant, very dramatic, and has a lot of passion."
Nycklemoe then expounded with the confident air of a Doctor of Rockology. "We Are the Champions" by Queen is maybe the quintessential power ballad -- a singalong closer. Mötley Crüe's "Home Sweet Home" is considered the first power ballad, "scholastically," and led to all the metal bands -- heavy, hair, glam, thrash -- pitching in their three chords' worth.
And what makes a power ballad?
"Tempo. It has to be slow to midtempo," he said. "There are certain stylistic elements that you can hear in all the songs -- drum fills, tom rolls, long guitar solos."
This was all news to Rothstein, the newly christened metalhead. His contribution has been to shape the script -- the patter between songs, the character for each of the singers (Randy Schmeling, Dieter Bierbrauer and Katy Hays).
"It's a tricky thing to navigate because there has to be a tongue-in-cheek quality to it," Rothstein said. "It's all so overblown, and the theatricality of it is kind of crazy. At the same time, a lot of it is really great music, and you have to know that it's hard to sustain parody for a full night."
ARENA Dances - POP May 14-17, 2009
Thursday May 14, 8PM (Q&A reception to follow)
Friday May 15, 8PM
Saturday May 16, 5PM (pay-as-able, available at door only)
Saturday May 16, 8PM (Dancers, Drinks & DJ to follow)
Sunday May 17, 7PM
$20 General Seating
POP up your Spring with an evening of dance that includes: -resonance
An audience favorite, performed to the musical landscapes of Bjork. -POP
A dance party vibe: 14 dancers move to the beat of renowned local DJ ALexander East. Pure fun.
Dance review: Arena Dances goes 'Pop' in enticing show
CAROLINE PALMER, Star Tribune
Mathew Janczewski seems to be feeling as light as lilac-scented spring air these days, and so it's a natural time to premiere "Pop," his latest effort for Arena Dances, performing this weekend at the Lab in Minneapolis. It's a work focused on the joy of movement -- specifically the sassy, sexy, funky kind -- and his 14 dancers show they are in the groove.
"Pop" takes its musical cues from DJ Alexander East, who mixes beats live using LCD Sound System as his creative touchstone. He bops along behind his laptop while the performers go through their highly energetic paces. Janczewski's choreography references such old-school dance moves as the Robot, but his overall perspective is much more current, representing a fusion of modern technique and contemporary club dance.
Although it is compelling to see so many people in perpetual motion, "Pop" is most effective when it showcases different members in solos, duets and quartets. Janczewski is skilled at fostering dynamic interplay between dancers through complex partnering and physically demanding movement, but he can also uncover the same kinetic tension and excitement for single performers such as Sarah Steichen and Heather Klopchin, as each muscularly carves her way through space.
Eventually the piece evolves from a party into something more substantive, enhanced by lighting designer Jeff Bartlett's subtle shift into a more saturated color palette. A voice on the soundtrack wonders, "Is this all there is?" It's easy to dismiss having fun as a trivial pursuit, especially in the realm of serious dancemaking, but it is cathartic to experience collective joy firsthand. The choreographer taps into this desire with "Pop," a welcome respite for the world-weary.
The evening also includes Janczewski's 2003 work "resonance," set to music by Bjork. Although the performance is slow to build, it eventually finds its raw emotional center in an unrestrained duet for Stephen Schroeder and Klopchin as they grapple with each other on and around a chair. There's also a nod to Bjork's quirkiness when Gabriel Anderson and Stephanie Laager navigate a rocky relationship within an area marked off by yellow police tape. This may be a moodier work, but it's still a fine match for "Pop." We journey from darkness into light -- and fully appreciate the contrast.
Minnesota Dance Theatre Odyssey April 17-19 & 24-26, 2009
Minnesota Dance Theatre is one of Minnesota's cultural treasures.
The company's classically-trained dancers move between ballet classics and contemporary works that feel "very here and now."
Ambitious. Classical. Contemporary. Extreme.
The Lab Theater's artistically-inspiring space affords artists the ability to perform as one with the audience. The contrast between the elegance of Minnesota Dance Theatre and the rough-hewn magic of the Lab makes this a show not to be missed.
'Rite of Spring' at Minnesota Dance Theater
SHEILA REGAN, Star Tribune
When Russian composer Igor Stravinsky and choreographer Vaslav Nijinsky presented "Le Sacre du Printemps" ("The Rite of Spring") in 1913, the crowd at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées broke out in a riot. The audience was shocked by Stravinsky's dissonant score and Nijinsky's dionysian choreography. The work has since become known as one of the great avant-garde pieces of all time.
Living up to such a succès de scandale is no easy task. Loyce Houlton's choreography of Stravinsky's music, which premiered in 1985 and is currently being revived by the Minnesota Dance Theater at the Lab as part of their "Odyssey" program, uses classical ballet with elements of modern dance. Houlton's choreography balances angular poses with sweeping gestures across the stage. Melanie Verna portrays the sacrificial virgin with a frenzied spirit that boils beneath her superb technique.
While the MDT dancers perform "Rite" with daring falls and energetic lifts, it is hard to imagine that this piece once inspired such uproar.
The program's cutting edge comes not from the repertory piece but from the accompanying "Eat Drink and Be Nary A...", two duets choreographed by Christine Maginnis. The dancer-turned-choreographer bursts forth with an energy that does indeed break new ground, particularly in the second duet.
The first duet, "E Finito?", performed by Maginnis and Sam Feipel, showcases Maginnis's fearless acrobatic skills and incredible trust of her dance partner as they catapult across the stage and tumble over tables.
The second duet, "The Fermentation of Suzie and the Sailor," a premiere, establishes Maginnis as a choreographer to be reckoned with in the Twin Cities. The intriguing piece incorporates video and object exploration. Dancers Melanie Verna and Justin Leaf, using an air mattress and a treasure chest, become two tormented lovers drowning in wine, alternately saving and destroying each other in the tempest. Twin Cities composer Mathew Smith creates an eerie sound composition that distorts the likes of Joan Baez and Leonard Cohen.
While Maginnis's choreography isn't likely to cause a riot, her work has a sense of innovation that MDT's "Rite of Spring" lacks. Perhaps Houlton's choreography was inventive in 1985 by marrying Stravinsky's harsh music with classical ballet, but now, more than 20 years later, it has become a classic far removed from anything avant-garde.
The rave reviews are in:
"You'll laugh, you'll cheer, you'll scratch your head at improper pronoun usage. Dane Stauffer is at his playful best, Ben Bakken busts some 'mazin moves and Julius C. Collins III, best known as the lead singer fro Greazy Meal and Dr. Mambo's Combo, booms with the best of them."
- City Pages, A-LIST
"...a musical revue that has humor, honesty and heart."
- Star Tribune
"When these men sing like divas...it's...as entertaining as it is eclectic. Energy never flags during this 90-minute show."
- Pioneer Press
"...top of the peak, the best part of spring. Like the return of chirping birds in the morning and a warm evening breeze, enjoy!" - Minneapolis Downtown Journal
When A Man Loves A Diva
now - April 12, 2009 Thursday, Friday, Saturday - 8 PM
Sunday - 7 PM
All Tickets $20 Songs about love sung by women sung by men who love them. From the Supremes to the Dixie Chicks, from Aretha to Dolly to Duffy, it takes chutzpah* for a man to deliver the songs that make Divas of mere mortals. Ahh....men!
The extraordinary Sanford Moore (Moore by Four) leads Dane Stauffer (back from CA), Julius Collins (lead singer of Greazy Meal), and Ben Bakken ("teen idol" from CTC's High School Musical; Altar Boyz) to the Lab Theater in a new musical revue.
*In Yiddish, chutzpah is used indignantly, to describe someone who has over-stepped the boundaries of accepted behavior with no shame.
Be a part of the live audience for MPR's:
In The Loop "Story Slam"
December 17, 2008
Maybe it's anticipation..maybe it's dread....maybe it's that egg-nog you downed on top of fig pudding and ham! Whatever churns your stomach this time of year, come celebrate our theme of "Festive Indigestion" at the next Story Slam, from Minnesota Public Radio's "In The Loop."
The Slam is hosted by MPR's Jeff Horwich, with live music from The Smarts. But the big attraction is the succession of amazing storytellers: From the regulars to the first-timers, we bring as many folks up on stage as time allows to give us their best stories on our holiday theme. Come with a story of your own (sign-up begins at 6:30 pm) or just come for a night of spontaneous holiday entertainment like no other.
The Cooking Show con Karimi y Comrades (a holiday show?)
December 4 - December 13, 2008
Happy holidays: time for good food, family, friends and laughter. Season your holidays with political satire, flour power and culinary/cultural consciousness. Fresh from stops in Philadelphia, Berkeley, Houston and NYC, this live cooking performance will fill your mind, heart and stomach (plus tickle your funny bone).
"A globally flavored recipe that packs some punch lines." -- Associated Press
THE COOKING SHOW CON KARIMI Y COMRADES HOLIDAY PARTY FOR THE PEOPLE
Opening Thursday: "My mother and I were watching a cooking show once and we noticed that the host told all these stories while she cooked," said San Francisco-bred performer Robert Karimi. "So I decided to do a cooking show myself, with a revolutionary twist. We are trying to change the world through cooking" Karimi's show is a smorgasbord with a changeable menu of guests. He might have tap dancers one night or a scorching chanteuse the next. "But it's mostly about the stories," he said. He does have a permanent cast that includes Ivey Award winner Christiana Clark. (8 p.m. Thu.-Sat.,
7 p.m. next Sun., The Lab Theater, 700 N. 1st St., Mpls. $26.50-$29.50. 612-333-7977.)
ROHAN PRESTON
Around the World in a Bad Mood
November 5 - November 16, 2008
Live from NYC (LGA/JFK/EWR) it’s Rene Foss…in her hilarious, one-woman show. Originally seen locally as a Fringe Festival hit, this show has gone around the country and come back again. THis time the big question is: "How much do Pringles cost?"
“Wickedly playful; by all means book a seat….”
--Rob Kendt, LA Times
“A first class ticket to laughs.”
--Tom Brokaw, NBC News
MN Dance Theatre - Extreme
Fall Season: October 17 - 19, 2008
MDT, the Twin Cities' ballet company, offers up an eclectic, international repertoire of "Dance that Dares”. The fall season ranges from a world premiere by Lise Houlton, to a work by local choreographer Matthew Janczewski (set to music by DJ Alexander East), to classical Pas de Deuxs "Agon"(Balanchine) and "Swan Lake" (Martins-Petipa).
Review: An eclectic mix of star power and homegrown talent
Two guests from the New York City Ballet add luster to Minnesota Dance Theatre's fall show, but the troupe has its own fine dancers.
A packed house Friday evening at the Lab Theater in downtown Minneapolis ushered in a new Minnesota Dance Theatre season. The program is labeled "Extreme," but in terms of music and motion, a more appropriate title might be "Eclectic."
Artistic director Lise Houlton set the bar high with her "Point of Departure or Haydn Seek," a tightly packed romp for seven dancers set to Haydn's courtly Symphony No. 45. After a frenetic opening movement, Houlton catches her breath and rolls out an acrobatic duet and a series of playful solos that flow like water from company veterans Melanie Verna and Sam Feipel. It's a happy marriage of choreographer and dancers and a pleasure to watch. Newcomer Maxamillian Neubauer nearly steals the spotlight with a propulsive performance that's a little bit Donald O'Connor (including a back flip off a wall straight out of "Singin' in the Rain") and a whole lot of natural charisma. His will be a career to watch.
Aside from its streetwise score by Pat Metheny and Lyle Mays, Lynne Taylor-Corbett's dated "Appearances" gives off a whiff of an all-1980s edition of "Dancing With the Stars." But the program's other premiere, Mathew Janczewski's "Trébuchet," feels very here and now. With a driving techno score by DJ Alexander East, this moody and angular exploration of opposites -- shadow/light, slow/fast, tender/tough -- comes into focus when Feipel and Verna (it really was their night) grab Janczewski's considerable attention and run with it.
For the fall performances of the Minnesota Dance Theatre, Artistic Director Lise Houlton assembled a group of dances that mirrors much of Minnesota's dance community, reflecting a diversity of choreographic impulses, a strong level of technical competence and artistic expression, and an earnest desire to impress. While the articulation of a clear and compelling purpose and vision has not been the troupe's strong suit, the present program was more cohesive and satisfying than many of its recent stagings.
The program, presented this weekend at The Lab Theater in Minneapolis's Warehouse District, offered two world premieres. Mathew Janczewski's Trébuchet was the more successful. Working with a variety of pulsing music tempos by Alexander East, Janczewski created a tight ensemble work that featured dynamic duets for Sam Feipel and Eve Schulte, and Justin Leaf and Melanie Verna, along with brief solos for each. The dance contains the large, athletic movement that characterizes Janczewski's signature style, but injected a welcome level of textured subtlety and nuance that has been absent in his modern choreography. His own company, Arena Dances, will perform next weekend at the Southern Theater.
Choreography comes less easily to Houlton. Her strong concepts benefit from decent ensemble patterns whose flow often is interrupted by awkward movement and phrasing for duets and trios. Point of Departure, her new ballet set to Haydn's Symphony No. 45, introduced a sharp and angular vocabulary that repeated and became more rounded and fluid over the course of the four movements as she connected more fully with the music's whimsy and humor. The company's three women, particularly Verna, smiled and moved gracefully in this showcase for the company's seven dancers. The men, however, were pressed to keep pace and to own the sometimes inorganic movement. An exception was Maxamillian Neubauer's solo turn in the last section when moments of personality emerged. Overall, a pleasant 30 minutes of dancing.
The choreography of Lynne Taylor-Corbett is a frequent choice for many artistic directors who came of age as dancers during the 1970s and 1980s. Her Appearances, created for the Atlanta Ballet in 1984, juxtaposed gestures and imagery that loomed large against the cool jazz music of Pat Metheny with a smooth movement texture, not unlike good yogurt! It was danced cleanly by Verna, Schulte, Leaf, Feipel, Justin Marie Miller, and Abdo Sayegh.
Excerpts from two other ballets were performed expertly by guest artists Kaitlyn Gilliland and Ask la Cour. If one must see the Act 2 pas de deux from Swan Lake yet again, it should be performed with the high level of precision and effortless partnering displayed by these members of the New York City Ballet. While technically masterful, I found their performance cold and passionless, a view my companion did not share. On the other hand, there was no dispute about the passionate commitment that coursed through the duet from Agon, George Balanchine's neoclassic classic from 1957. Gilliland and la Cour danced it exquisitely, providing the evening's artistic highpoint.
Unlike their counterparts in theater and music who enjoy larger and more consistently loyal audiences for their work, many dancemakers and dance organizations eschew the use of program notes to explain what they are about. Not so with Minnesota Dance Theatre for these performances; let us hope their inclusion continues and inspires others.
Like a good many dance organizations, Minnesota Dance Theatre's persona could benefit from a scouring of its marketing materials to remove misnomers such as "groundbreaking," "extreme," and "daring." Along with quotations from long-dead critics who have not seen the current company and its work, these should be replaced with straightforward descriptors and more contemporary commentary.
The performances this weekend were the first for dance presented at The Lab Theater which opened last month under the direction of Mary Kelley Leer. As the former empress of Ruby's Cabaret from 1985 to 1992, Leer helped birth Moore by Four, Ballet of the Dolls, and many others. The Lab's limestone brick walls and cavernous space lend the enterprise a stronger air of flexibility and solidity than did Ruby's various venues. Going forward, however, more than one ticket seller will be needed to accomodate the 350 guests who will flock to the new venue's more popular attractions; it is not acceptable for a program to begin 11 minutes past the posted curtain time.
Minnesota Dance Theatre's fall performances continue, Oct. 18 at 7pm and Oct. 19 at 2pm, at The Lab Theater, 700 North 1st Street, Minneapolis. 612.338.0627 or www.mndance.org.
Sisters: Jearlyn & Jevetta Steele with Isabell Monk O’Connor
September 11 - October 5, 2008
"Sisters" is all about the richness and impact of sisterhood, but not without including the brothers. Jearlyn and Jevetta (of the celebrated Steele Family) have selected songs and tales from their dog-eared journal of favorites. Isabell Monk O’Connor (a longtime member of the Guthrie Theater’s rep company) provides the spoken word segments of this rich and hilarious evening. Sanford Moore performs his magic on the piano, and Kenyari Jackson provides the percussion.
So don't leave the men at home...this is a must-see show for everyone. It might even make the meekest of Minnesotans want to stand up and holler, “You go, girls!”
