The company returns to the Festival in a headlining performance with a special program featuring George Balanchine’s thrilling Allegro Brillante, DTH Artistic Director Robert Garland’s recent work Nyman String Quartet #2 which was hailed by the Associated Press as “highly athletic and infectiously joyous,” and William Forsythe’s acclaimed Blake Works IV (The Barre Project).
Allegro Brillante is characterized by what Maria Tallchief (the ballerina on whom the bravura leading role was created) calls “an expansive Russian romanticism.” The music’s vigorous pace makes the steps appear even more difficult, but the ballet relies on strong dancing, precise timing, and breadth of gesture. Balanchine said: “It contains everything I know about the classical ballet in 13.” (Source: The George Balanchine Trust) “I will never, ever let go of our Balanchine roots,” Garland said. “That is something to me that’s a nonnegotiable in terms of our artistic legacy and cultural background.”—The New York Times Blake Works IV (The Barre Project), a commission for the Dance Theatre of Harlem, is the latest installment in William Forsythe’s continuously evolving work The Barre Project. The work derives its inspiration from the propulsive and rigorously structured songs of composer James Blake, whose work appears primarily in the popular music idiom. The Barre series began in 2021 at the height of the pandemic as a filmed dance that was streamed to a global audience facing the restrictions on live performance at the time. The live stage version for Dance Theatre of Harlem features newly choreographed sections that highlight the diverse and formidable talents of the ensemble and is a version of the ballet that is unique to this company alone. Originating from The Barre Project (Blake Works II), created and filmed in 2020 for its first broadcast on March 25, 2021, on the CLI Studio Digital Platform - www.clistudios.com Nyman String Quartet No. 2 “This work is dedicated to the memory of two men whom I admire: John Wesley Carlos, former track and field medal winner at the 1968 Summer Olympics, well known for his triumphant salute upon the winners podium that year, and Dance Theatre of Harlem’s Founder and Artistic Director Emeritus, Mr. Arthur Mitchell (1924–2018), whose similar stand for his people, his community, and the arts “has brought us thus far on our way”—Robert Garland “Shadowed beneath Thy hand, May we forever stand, True to our God, True to our native land.” (Lift Every Voice and Sing) Generously Underwritten by Susan & Jeff Campbell. MORE ABOUT DANCE THEATRE OF HARLEM PRINTED PROGRAM ALLEGRO BRILLANTE Music by Peter Ilyitch Tschaikovsky Choreography by George Balanchine @The George Balanchine Trust Costumes by Katy A Freeman Lighting recreated by Andrea Sala Performed by Alexandra Hutchinson, Kouadio Davis, Ariana Dickerson, Carly Greene, Alexandra Rene Jones, Delaney Washington Derek Brockington, Elias Re, Luis Fernando Rego, David Wright NYMAN STRING QUARTET NO. 2 Music by Michael Nyman Choreography by Robert Garland Costume Design & Execution by Pamela Allen-Cummings Lighting Design by Roma Flowers Performed by I DEREK BROCKINGTON, MICAH BULLARD, KEENAN ENGLISH, ELIAS RE, LUIS FERNANDO REGO II ARIANA DICKERSON, LINDSEY DONNELL, INGRID SILVA, DELANEY WASHINGTON, STEPHANIE RAE WILLIAMS III KEENAN ENGLISH IV LUIS FERNANDO REGO, INGRID SILVA Micah Bullard, Delaney Washington, Stephanie Rae Williams V KEENAN ENGLISH Ariana Dickerson, Elias Re, Lindsey Donnell, Derek Brockington VI THE COMPANY BLAKE WORKS IV (THE BARRE PROJECT) Music by James Blake Choreography by William Forsythe Costume Design and Execution by William Forsythe, Katy A Freeman Lighting Design by Brandon Stirling Baker Original sound by Benjamin Young Staging & Choreographic Assistance by Jodie Gates, Noah Gelber, Benjamin Peralta DEREK BROCKINGTON, MICAH BULLARD, KOUADIO DAVIS, ARIANA DICKERSON, LINDSEY DONNELL, KEENAN ENGLISH, ALEXANDRA HUTCHINSON, INGRID SILVA, DELANEY WASHINGTON, STEPHANIE RAE WILLIAMS, DAVID WRIGHT Casting and repertory are subject to change.