{"id":11174,"date":"2014-04-13T12:03:47","date_gmt":"2014-04-13T19:03:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forallevents.com\/reviews\/?p=11174"},"modified":"2014-04-13T12:03:47","modified_gmt":"2014-04-13T19:03:47","slug":"shostakovich-trilogy-san-francisco-ballet-performance-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forallevents.com\/reviews\/shostakovich-trilogy-san-francisco-ballet-performance-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Shostakovich Trilogy — San Francisco Ballet Performance Review"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Shostakovich Trilogy<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

San Francisco Ballet Performance<\/p>\n

April 8, 2014<\/p>\n

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The Shostakovich Trilogy<\/em> is a well conceived, expertly performed dance by the San Francisco Ballet.\u00a0 It is divided into three segments all set against music by Shostakovich and separated by two intermissions.\u00a0 The dancers’ movements are smooth, fluid, and graceful throughout this ballet.\u00a0 Both men and women participate in all three ballets.\u00a0 The men and women interact.\u00a0 They touch each other, pick each other up, carry each other.\u00a0 There is good interaction between the sexes throughout the three ballets.\u00a0 The sets and costumes are simple, if not minimal.\u00a0 In the first segment there is a plain gray floor against a gray backdrop.\u00a0 In the second segment there is a backdrop with some painted imagery, and in the third there are bright red geometric objects suspended above the stage.\u00a0 This show is not about visual imagery and special effects.\u00a0 It is all about movement and the dance, and the dancers really show us what they can do.\u00a0\u00a0 When you’ve got dancers like these, you don’t need too much else.<\/p>\n

The first segment, Symphony #9, is lighthearted and energetic.\u00a0 As it goes along it turns darker, but generally remains upbeat.\u00a0 The program notes allude to an atmosphere of dread or angst that is supposed to underlie this superficial gaiety, but I didn’t get it.\u00a0 Maybe you have to have lived in Stalinist Russia for that to come across.\u00a0 I noticed the change in mood, but it felt to me more like a sense of tragedy rather than foreboding or fear.\u00a0 I need to see it again.\u00a0 One time is not enough to really absorb this ballet.\u00a0 There is a lot of substance here and the relationship between the dance and the music is rather sophisticated.\u00a0 A lot of thought went into this, and I think two or three viewings might yield a better sense of it.<\/p>\n

The second segment, Chamber Symphony, features three women against one man with small troops of women and men as backups.\u00a0 The music is profoundly tragic and pervaded by an atmosphere of abysmal despair.\u00a0\u00a0 The nature of the relationships between the women and the man is not clear, but you get the feeling that this is not a happy campsite.\u00a0 The women dance in triplicate much of the time with the lead male, but they do not seem to interact among themselves.\u00a0 There are interludes where each woman dances in a pair with the man, and these seem problematic.\u00a0 These dances are emotionally inconclusive, but the whole thing takes place in a pervasive atmosphere of abysmal despair provided by the underlying music.\u00a0 There is one section where the music is almost funereal, but the couple is still dancing with animation and energy that seems out of sync with the music.\u00a0 Normally I would think there was something wrong with this.\u00a0 I like the dancing and the music to complement one another and not create an emotional clash.\u00a0 But in this case, as explained in the program, part of the import of Shostakovich’s music, and this ballet in particular, reflects a superficial presentation of upbeat optimism and well being in Russian society under Stalin, but the underlying reality is dark, sinister and pervaded with fear.\u00a0 Therefore the music carries the “real” message while the dancers reflect the pretense of well being.\u00a0 I would not get this without having it explained to me.\u00a0 The Russian audiences who lived out their lives in that kind of duality probably did get it.\u00a0 I think in America, although we do have a lot of hypocrisy and sinister undercurrents in our society, it is not so pervasive and dark and unrelenting as it was under Stalin.\u00a0 So I don’t think Americans will grasp this spontaneously unless it is explained to them.\u00a0 The ballet ends enigmatically, but the overarching mood of the piece is one of unmitigated tragedy and despair.<\/p>\n

The third ballet, Piano Concerto #1, is a more positive, forceful, high energy display of dance virtuosity. \u00a0\u00a0The principal ballerinas are sexy in their bright red satin bodices that show off their perfect legs to excellent effect.\u00a0 It is rather abstract in content.\u00a0 There are no discernible relationships or story line being depicted.\u00a0 This is a dancers’ ballet and you could feel the dancers’ thrill and pleasure to be performing it, and it was a visual treat to watch.<\/p>\n

I wouldn’t mind seeing this Trilogy<\/em> again.\u00a0 It was a bit of a challenge, but an enjoyable spectacle that drew upon the capabilities of the high quality dancers and tasteful, imaginative choreography set against interesting, powerful music.\u00a0 It coursed through a variety of moods and presented an interesting counterpoint between the music and the dance.\u00a0 I wish I could say more about it, but I don’t think I absorbed everything that was important about this ballet on the first viewing.\u00a0 I feel like I need another look to really get it, but I give this one a very favorable recommendation.<\/p>\n

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