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Stephen Petronio’s deCapulet pays tribute to Shakespeare’s most famous heroine. The dance’s narrators, Luis Torres and Kara Cooper, read excerpts from the recently published “Letters to Juliet” — a collection of letters addressed “c/o Juliet, Verona, Italy” from all over the world. To the music of Prokofiev’s “Dance of the Knights” and electronic melodies by the group M83, two couples literally fly across the stage in a dynamic sequence of lifts, spins, and pirouettes. They passionately embrace and kiss each other. With movements that are equally intimate and spontaneous, deCapulet is refreshing and immediately appealing, at times exhilarating. The performances of Jade Payette and Jared Nelson were especially impressive.

As the title suggests, The Sorrow of Lady C unravels the emotional drama of Juliet’s mother. Choreographed by Brian Reeder, this is the most original and inventive account of Shakespeare in the program. Introducing Lady Capulet as a main character of his dance, the choreographer goes well beyond just re-telling the plot and presents the drama afresh through the eyes of the grieving mother.

Lady C (Laura Urgellés) sits at a table slowly brushing her hair. She is haunted by a vision of the past: A swirling couple of young lovers suddenly appears before her eyes... She sees Juliet (Diana Albrecht), beautiful and contented, tenderly embraced by Romeo (Tyler Savoie). Enter Tybalt (Marcelo Martinez). He slowly approaches and kisses her hand. They dance. A gentle touch of his hand and feel of his skin. Suddenly this all disappears, replaced by a new vision: Tybalt is crouched on the floor in agony from a fatal wound... followed by the tomb scene with the double suicide of the star-crossed lovers. The urgent pulse of the second movement of Pierre Petit’s “Concerto for Organ, Strings, and Percussion” enhances the dramatic effect of this work. The entire cast acted and danced to remarkable effect.

Choreographer Matjash Mrozewski conceived the duet Lovers Speak as an evocation of the final conversation between Romeo and Juliet. Passionately danced by Brianne Bland and Zachary Hackstock, this piece would also be a good fit for the Washington Ballet’s next season program “7x7: Love Duets.”

Choreographed as a trio, Trey McIntyre’s Queen of the Goths was an intriguing and somewhat humorous take on the bloody Shakespearean play, “Titus Andronicus.” Queen Tamora, grieving over the death of her oldest son, Alarbus, plans a vendetta against Titus. The lyrics of Nancy Sinatra’s song “Bang bang, he shot me down/Bang bang, I hit the ground/ Bang bang, that awful sound/Bang bang, I used to shoot you down” set the audience in the right mood from the start. The second scene successfully makes a long purple scarf an integral part of the choreography. Despite being clothed only in white undergarments, Sona Kharatian embodies chilling poise and dark glamour as the domineering, revenge-seeking Tamora. She was adroitly supported by Jonathan Jordan and Jason Hartley as her two vindictive sons.
 

Jonathan Jordan as poster image for 7x7 program
© Steve Vaccariello

Both works created by women choreographers — Whispers (Cathy Marston) and Gathering His Thoughts (Karole Armitage) — are Hamlet-inspired dances; and each focuses on the qualms and torments of the protagonist, accentuating his thorny personality.

Mysterious and somber, Whispers was a standout of the evening. This imaginative blend of dance and theater is a re-creation of the so-called ´Closet Scene´ in which Hamlet (Jonathan Jordan) confronts his mother Gertrude (Elizabeth Gaither) in betraying the memory of her husband, who as a ghost (Jason Hartley) also appears in Gertrude’s chamber. The dramatic duet of Hamlet and Gertrude, with its expansive and languid movements, is especially effective. Under the watchful eye of the ghost, mother and son, all clad in black, move intricately as if demonstrating the uneasy nature of their relationship. There is a moment when Gertrude wraps herself around Hamlet as if showing how much she loves him. In another episode she is a reminiscent of a trapped bird trying to free herself.

Gathering His Thoughts uses as an accompaniment Hamlet’s famous monologue “To be or not to be” performed by Richard Burton with modulations by composer Daniel Iglesia. The choreographer, through the language of movement, depicts Hamlet’s restless soul full of doubt and contradiction. The hero is portrayed in his attempt to untangle a complicated web of his thoughts as he struggles with forces that affect his decision-making — the forces he controls, and those that control him. Performed by a powerful quartet of dancers led by Jared Nelson as Hamlet, the performance left a particularly memorable impression.

The final dance of the program, Matthew Neenan’s quick bright things, offers a switch from drama to comedy. Choreographed for three couples, this piece presents an impressionistic reflection on the theme of “Midsummer Night’s Dream,” engaging love and chaos. Graceful and charming, quick bright things vibrantly culminated an enchanting evening of Shakespearean dances.

With a modern take on Shakespeare’s themes of love, death, and revenge, “7x7: Shakespeare” program offers many delightful and memorable moments. The result is an exciting collage of contemporary choreographic styles, techniques, and approaches to dance, united by a common theme and accompanied by an eclectic variety of soundtracks. The greatest strength of the program was the exceptional quality of dancing demonstrated by the young and talented cast of the Washington Ballet and its Studio Company.