© Paul Kolnik 'Dancing with Monet' reviews 'Mis en Vie' reviews Pennsylvania reviews about Pennsylvania Ballet David Mead reviews

For Dancing with Monet, Peterson, a ballet-master at American Ballet Theatre, has choreographed what appears to be a series of garden party scenes that could be happening ‘behind’ some of Monet’s paintings, each scene telling us about a different relationship. Indeed, the work is subtitled ‘A Gathering at Argenteuil’. While the choreography, performed to a selection of solo piano pieces by Claude Debussy played live by Martha Koeneman, is pleasant enough, for me it was no more. The women, in summer, pastel-coloured dresses move sweetly across the stage, their male partners, in grey and white, being there the support and watch over them, but little more. For someone seeing the company for the first time, I was left feeling that the dancers hadn’t really been stretched and that I hadn’t seen them at their best.

Pennsylvania Ballet's Valerie Amiss and Jonathan Stiles in the world premiere of Kirk Peterson's Dancing With Monet (A Gathering at Argenteuil).
Photograph by Paul Kolnik

Given that Pennsylvania is home to a major collection of August Rodin’s sculptures, Rodin, Mis en Vie was always likely to be a winner. Just to make sure, the company arranged a special deal with the city’s Rodin Museum, whereby you could take your ticket stub along and get free entry and an audio tour. What made more sense though was to do as I did and see the sculptures first.

The ballet itself brought the house down and quite rightly too. Rodin, Mis en Vie may be translated as ‘Rodin come to life’ and that’s exactly what you get as the dancers express Saddington’s ideas as to what would happen if only twelve of Rodin’s most famous works could move. Danced barefoot, to a score by well-known US film composer Michael Kamin, each of the twelve gave the audience something different but three in particular certainly stick in my mind.

The Athlete, also called The American, was danced by Christopher Rudd, guesting from Carolina Ballet. Rudd, with the build of a stevedore, giving a powerful athletic, jazzy performance that the audience simply lapped up. On the whole, I found the duets much stronger and in particular Eternal Idol, Eternal Springtime, and most of all, The Kiss, danced by Tara Keating and James Ihde, which simply oozed passion and could have gone on and on.

Pennsylvania Ballet dancers depict "The Gates of Hell" in the finale of Margo Sappington's Rodin, Mis En Vie
Photograph by Paul Kolnik

The finale though was worth waiting for, twenty-two dancers gathering for The Gates of Hell, a scene that had more than a passing resemblance to an orgy. For this the black backcloth drops to reveal Willa Kim’s fifty-foot high A-frame scaffold. I had seen this backstage during the interval was still amazed by how it appeared under the lights, and with its mirror-like Mylar backing, covered in a mass of bodies which slowly fall from it, wrestling and dancing beneath it in small and large groups. Finally they slowly climb it again, returning to their precarious perches as the final curtain falls.

No review of this work could be complete without reference to John Hoey’s excellent lighting, and Willa Kim’s costumes. The latter comprised what could best be described as one-piece body stockings, hand painted and such a marvellous fit that it looked as if the dancers had nothing on at all.

In 2003, the Pennsylvania Ballet are continuing this art related theme with a Degas-inspired work by Matthew Neenan, complementing an exhibition at the Philadelphia Museum of Art in February. If you get the chance, take a look at this relatively unknown company. I think you will be pleasantly surprised.