Performed at The Concourse, Chatswood and streamed by the Australian Digital Concert Hall, this performance was breathlessly fast paced and shone with burnished, refined technique, and impressive epaulement. It was a blend of ballet and contemporary, a great showcase for the Australian Ballet School students as directed by Lisa Pavane.
First up was the Raymonda Grand Pas from Act 111. The dancers were in pastel coloured costumes. This was a very demanding classical work, that showed off the long stretched lines of the women in supported pirouettes and arabesque penchee as well as their nifty, very precise steely pointework, the men displayed their soft high jumps and turns. There were also some demanding high lifts, This piece also featured the famous ballerina solo with handclaps and a spectacular male solo.
Next was Tim Harbour’s Chairman Dances which opened dramatically with arms up and hands flicking, and was fast and furious.The background was a wash of green on the cyclorama, the costumes green and white. There were some unusual, difficult lifts and slithery floorwork. It is a blend of classical and Balanchine. There is a very fast, almost dangerously so, pas de deux, and a duet for two men. The piece concludes with the cast kneeling, supporting one woman on top leaning back.
Then we saw Techno Requiem in Burgundy, choreographed by Lucas Jervies very contemporary in style with the cast all in burgundy unitards The score by Adam Ster was relentless, It began with a trio of men with rolling arms then developed into swooping slithery enfolding challenging choreography and floorwork for the larger cast. Challenging explosive lifts almost like fireworks were included as was a flowing, very fast pas de deux. It concluded with a possible allusion to Giselle – all the other dancers are in line, facing the other way. The cast runs off. Blackout.
The fourth work was Paul Knobloch’s The Jewellery Box – an extremely demanding, very precise classical piece, the women in white tutus, the men in white with black jackets. There were lots of pirouettes for the women, and a showy, leaping trio for the men. The lines of the dancers entwined, flowed, rippled, and at one point the dancers went under the arms of the others in a sinuous line.
Finally we saw In Memory of the Moment also choreographed by Paul Knobloch .In shiny blue unitards this was very dramatic, relentless and driven, with spectacular lifts , drops and catches in the rippling, entwining choreographic lines. There is a menacing diagonal line of the women that expands to include the whole ensemble and the work and performance conclude with a slithery, stretched pas de deux.
RUNNING TIME just over an hour no interval
https://www.theconcourse.com.au/event/australian-ballet-school-showcase/
Program
Raymonda Grand Pas, Act III by Marius Petipa
Staged by Lisa Pavane, Joanne Michel and Andrew Murphy
Music by Alexander Glazunov – excerpts from ‘Raymonda’ Op. 57
Cast – Level 8 students of The Australian Ballet School
Chairman Dances
Choreography – Tim Harbour
Rehearsal Assistants – Lynette Wills and Kevin Jackson
Music by John Adams – The Chairman Dances, Foxtrot for Orchestra
Cast – Level 7 students of The Australian Ballet School
Techno Requiem in Burgundy
Choreography – Lucas Jervies
Rehearsal Assistants – Joanne Michel and Andrew Murphy
Music by Adam Ster
Cast – Level 8 students of The Australian Ballet School
The Jewellery Box
Choreography Paul Knobloch
Staged by Sabrina Lenzi and Sergey Konstantinov
Music by Max Bruch – excerpts from ‘Scottish Fantasy’ Op. 46
Cast – Level 6 students of The Australian Ballet School
In Memory of the Moment
Choreography – Paul Knobloch
Staged by Lynette Wills, Joanne Michel and Andrew Murphy
Music by Ludivico Einaudi – ‘Orbits’, ‘Newton’s Cradle’
Cast – Level 8 students of The Australian Ballet School
Director Lisa Pavane Executive Director Kirsty Ritchie Director of Development Amanda Bailey Lighting Designer Francis Croese Stage Manager Michele Forbes Head of Music Diane Palmer Operations & Costume Coordinator Maree Strachan Wardrobe Manager Justine Haselton