Kris Eitland

San Diego Arts

City Ballet's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' at the Kroc Theatre

Season opener overflows with fairies, classics and pop
By Kris Eitland
Posted on Wed, Nov 12th, 2008
Last updated Sat, Nov 15th, 2008

City Ballet offered a condensed version of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" Friday at the Joan B. Kroc Theatre, and while Shakespeare's comedy of love and magic should have been enough for one night, City asked us to take in two classic duets and a collection of jazzy contemporary dances as well.

The program showcased some splendid dancing and the company's versatility, but "Midsummer" suffered from a poor sound score, and the full program left one pondering the word "edit."

City Ballet (of San Diego) has modeled itself on work by the legendary choreographer George Balanchine and New York City Ballet. Over the years, the company has garnered well-deserved respect in the dance community for its high standards and artistic vision. It has impressed audiences with its interpretation of Balanchine's abstract masterpiece "Agon." In March, the company will present a full Balanchine program. So it is a mystery why the company didn't consider Mr. B's sage observation - that dance on its own is the ultimate communicator - when staging "A Midsummer Night's Dream."

Balanchine once said "I think it is possible to see and enjoy the ballet without knowing the play," yet instead of trusting expressive dance and pantomime to tell the tale, City's rendition by Elizabeth Wistrich ((1980) inserted a poor recording of haughty actors reading sections from the play.

"My gentle Puck, come hither. Thou rememberest

Since once I sat upon a promontory,

And heard a mermaid on a dolphin's back

Uttering such dulcet and harmonious breath

That the rude sea grew civil at her song

And certain stars shot madly from their spheres,

To hear the sea-maid's music. "

The Bard's language is fascinating, but the recorded lines were garbled. Having live actors recite the lines may have helped. Still, the words were intrusive and unnecessary. Recorded sections from Felix Mendelssohn's enchanting musical score also sounded gritty. In spite of those interruptions, City's professional cast offered memorable pure dance spiked with humor.

Taurean Green was a commanding Oberon, King of the Fairies, who swirled his cape and leaped with authority. Emily Kirn as his queen Titania was regal and precise, but she swooned like a love-struck schoolgirl when dancing with David Levy as the bumbling craftsman Bottom, whose head had been transformed into a donkey head. The mismatched pair drew plenty of laughs and ahs when Titania climbed on Bottom's back and decorated his big ass ears with garlands. Levy portrayed Bottom as a sympathetic character and swayed in equine fashion, unaware of the oddity of it all.

As Puck, the delinquent fairy who gives unsuspecting lovers the sleeping flower, Daniel Salvador was muscular and naughty, but his body lacked flexibility in a role that demands serpent-like sneaking, fast darts and footwork. The mortal lovers (Janica Smith as Hermia, Gerardo Gil as Lysander, Ariana Samuelsson as Helena and Geoff Gonzalez as Demetrius) were skillful partners and merged romance and comedy, but it was Gonzalez who stole the show as the cad Demetrius who hoisted his stalker Helena as if to embrace her, only to reject her, tossing her down on the stage with a thud like a worn out pair of shoes, grinning and relishing the cruel stunt each time.

A corps of fairies in flowing gossamer, court ladies and sprites, all added a muted swirl of color and sensual magic. The additional role of Rose (Megan Nichols) as Puck's impish assistant was redundant, but special mention goes to the entire cast of fairies that moved with long limbs and lovely fluttering hands.

This version didn't include Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons, and Theseus, Duke of Athens, so instead of a triple wedding, the ballet ended with a double wedding celebration for the four lovers, a series of divertissements that hinted at court dances, all set to Mendelssohn's familiar Wedding March.

The second half of the program included two duets, both thrilling Russian classics that have become popular in the repertories of many ballet companies, as well as ballet competitions.

In Agrippina Vagonova's "Diana and Acteon Pas Deux" (ca.1940), Smith was the steely virgin goddess of the hunt who pulled her bow past her cheek and stretched into strong arabesques. Gonzalez was the spellbound Acteon whose scissored leaps nearly spun out of control, which seemed to suit the carnival energy of music by Cesare Pugni.

In Victor Gsovsky's "Grand Pas Classique" (1949), Samuelsson and Gil appeared in brilliant white to perform endless fish dives and dramatic balances. Gil was confident even in grand jetes and beats, which suggested he's fully recovered from an injury suffered in this theatre a year ago. A beaming Samuelsson showed strength and crisp technique in fouettes and pique turns, and she was deceptively graceful in releves ballones, slowly rising from flat to pointe with ease.

The program finale "Leave the Light On" by Wistrich (2004) revealed the company's frisky side with five dances set to bluesy music by Beth Hart. While it was fun to see these powerful performers let their hair down and kick off their shoes, they struggled to lose their ballet port de bras, and there was too much youthful angst. The piece felt out of balance with the first half of the program, still, it was energizing, and one could imagine the enthusiastic dancers with a rough city backdrop in a music video on MTV.

Download program

Download program

City Ballet continues its season with "The Nutcracker" at the Spreckels Theatre on Dec. 5, 6, 7, 12, 13, 14, 2008.

About the author: Kris Eitland's critiques and features have appeared in Dance Magazine, Dance San Diego Magazine, San Diego CityBeat, sandiegotheaterscene.com, and sandiego.com since 2006. Her writing career includes stints in both commercial and public radio news. She studied dance extensively at the University of Minnesota-Duluth and SDSU and holds a journalism degree
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