May 21, 2004
Classical Music and Dance Listings
selective listing by critics of The Times: New or noteworthy opera, classical music and dance events this weekend in the Northeast.
Opera
"LUCIA DI LAMMERMOOR." In Sir Walter Scott's novel, "The Bride of Lammermoor," the heroine is found quivering inside a cold fireplace after stabbing her bridegroom. While the heroine of Donizetti's opera based on that book has a decidedly more glamorous denouement, appearing in a bloody nightgown before the assembled company to sing one of the great mad scenes in the repertory, the scale of the fireplace is evoked by the tiny stage of the Amato Opera. The stalwart little company, a beloved downtown fixture, is offering the opera as its final production of the season, through June 6. Tonight and tomorrow night at 7:30, Sunday afternoon at 2:30, Amato Opera, 319 Bowery, at Second Street, East Village, (212) 228-8200. Tickets: $30; $25 for 65+ and children under 12 (Anne Midgette).
NEW CENTURY CHINESE OPERA CENTER. For a time there was a spurt of activity hereabout in Chinese opera, spurred by the Lincoln Center Festival's magnificent production of "The Peony Pavilion" in 1999. Now, as that production heads for the Spoleto Festival in Charleston, S.C., interest seems to have waned in New York. All the more reason to take note of this production, "Visiting Mother." I last saw the company several years ago, under the name New York Beijing Opera, and the performances were delightful. The stars there, Yen Lan-ching and Yan Xing-peng, are back. Sunday at 2:30 p.m., Fashion Institute of Technology, 227 West 27th Street, Chelsea, (718) 445-2661. Tickets: $20 to $100 (James R. Oestreich).
Classical Music
AMERICAN COMPOSERS ORCHESTRA. For 13 years, this pioneering orchestra has set aside concerts to be devoted to readings of works by composers in the early stages of their careers. These Whitaker New Music Readings — so called because they were established with a grant from the Helen F. Whitaker Fund — have turned up some interesting scores over the years. This year's program includes works by eight composers, selected from several hundred entrants. The works are Daniel Bradshaw's "Jubilus," the first movement from Anthony Cheung's Symphony No. 1, Ralf Gawlick's "De las Mas Sabrosa y Agradable Vida," Kristin Kuster's "Narrows," Jonathan Newman's "Hip + Now," Thomas Osborne's "Burning Music," Robert Paterson's "Electric Lines" and Christopher Trapani's "North." The concert will be conducted by Jeffrey Milarsky and Carl St. Clair. Today at 10 a.m., Miller Theater, Broadway at 116th Street, Morningside Heights, (212) 977-8495, Ext. 260. Admission is free, but reservations are suggested (Allan Kozinn).
BARGEMUSIC. With its view of the Manhattan skyline and its live, intimate acoustics, this barge floating gently on the East River is one of the finest places in the city to hear chamber music. Tonight, Andy Simionescu, a violinist, Matt Haimovitz, a cellist, and Micah Yui, a pianist, play Dvorak's "Dumky" Trio and works by Liszt, Kodaly and Stravinsky. Tomorrow and Sunday, Gloria Schmidt, a violinist, Sophie Shao, a cellist, and Benjamin Hochman, a pianist, play Beethoven's "Ghost" Trio and works by Mozart, Schumann and Debussy. Tonight and tomorrow night at 7:30; Sunday afternoon at 4. Fulton Ferry Landing, under the Brooklyn Bridge, Brooklyn, (718) 624-2083. Tickets: $35; students, $20 (Oestreich).
BROOKLYN PHILHARMONIC. Unlikely as it sounds, the composer John Corigliano has said that he had never heard the music of Bob Dylan when, flipping through a book of Mr. Dylan's lyrics a few years ago, he had the idea of using them in a song cycle. The work he produced, "Mr. Tambourine Man," offers an interesting and at times musically complex take on a handful of Mr. Dylan's lyrics. The original version was for voice and piano, but Mr. Corigliano often reworks his material, and he produced an orchestral version that will have its New York premiere as part of a concert that also includes Beethoven's "Leonore" Overture No. 3 and Strauss's "Bourgeois Gentilhomme" Suite. JoAnn Faletta is to conduct, and Hila Plitmann is the soprano soloist. Tomorrow night at 8, Brooklyn Academy of Music, 30 Lafayette Avenue, at Ashland Place, Fort Greene, (718) 636-4100. Tickets: $20 to $55 (Kozinn).
KITCHEN HOUSE BLEND. The alternative downtown performance space the Kitchen has its own band, which commissions (of course) new music. The three composers featured this weekend represent a cross section of styles: Susie Ibarra, an avant-garde jazz percussionist; Min Xiao-Fen, a soloist on an instrument that seems increasingly popular in Western concert halls, the Chinese pipa; and Lee Hyla, a composer whose music blends performance genres from punk jazz to Japanese Noh drama. Tonight and tomorrow night at 8; a "lunch-break" performance today at noon, the Kitchen, 512 West 19th Street, Chelsea, (212) 255-5793. Tickets: $15; $10 for lunch-break concert (Midgette).
MET ORCHESTRA AND DMITRI HVOROSTOVSKY. Those concerned about the health of James Levine must have been reassured by the vibrant performances he gave of works by Schoenberg, Wolf and Brahms with the Met Orchestra at Carnegie Hall last Sunday. Tonight Mr. Levine will conduct the Met Orchestra in a daunting and interesting program. The superb baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky is the soloist in performances of Mahler's "Songs of a Wayfarer" and Ravel's "Don Quichotte à Dulcinée," on a program that includes Beethoven's Seventh Symphony and Strauss's Oboe Concerto, with Elaine Douvas as soloist. Tonight at 8, Carnegie Hall, (212) 247-7800; Tickets: $42 to $170 (Anthony Tommasini).
NEW YORK PHILHARMONIC. Tonight and tomorrow night the composer John Adams conducts what looks to be a fascinating program as part of the Philharmonic's continuing Ives festival. Besides various orchestral works by Ives, the concerts will include songs by Ives, Gershwin, Berlin and others sung by the elegant vocalist Audra McDonald, who is best known for her work in musical theater. Mr. Adams will also conduct his shimmering "Harmonium" and the premiere of "Easter Eve 1945," which the orchestra describes as a foretaste of the score that Mr. Adams is writing for his next opera, titled (as of now) "Doctor Atomic," to have its premiere at the San Francisco Opera in 2005. Tonight and tomorrow night at 8, Avery Fisher Hall, (212) 721-6500. Tickets: $32 to $104 (Tommasini).
NEW YORK PHILHARMONIC ENSEMBLES. After weeks and months of following a conductor's lead, many orchestral players long for the autonomy and the intimacy of chamber music. This series of ensemble concerts provides just that as members of the New York Philharmonic form smaller chamber groups and listeners have a chance to appreciate the individual talent that is often subsumed in the collective. The program features Dohnanyi's Serenade in C and Schubert's well-loved Octet. Sunday at 3 p.m., Merkin Concert Hall, 129 West 67th Street, Manhattan, (212) 501-3330. Tickets: $22 (Jeremy Eichler).
PETER SERKIN. No matter what music he is playing, the pianist Peter Serkin can be counted on to deliver intellectually probing and technically incisive performances, but he is most uniquely persuasive when performing contemporary repertory. For this recital he has devised a fascinating program that will contrast Beethoven's "Diabelli" Variations with Oliver Knussen's Variations (Op. 24). It will also include works by Takemitsu and Berio as well as two pieces from Messiaen's 1974 masterpiece "From the Canyons to the Stars." Tonight at 8, Grace Rainey Rogers Auditorium, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Fifth Avenue at 82nd Street, (212) 570-3949. Tickets: $35 (Eichler).
Dance
AMERICAN BALLET THEATER. The company will present Anna-Marie Holmes's new production of "Raymonda" tonight in its American premiere. The lead roles in this thundering 1898 tale of attempted hanky-panky during the Crusades, set to glorious music by Glazunov, will be performed tonight by Irina Dvorovenko as the chaste and faithful Raymonda, Maxim Belotserkovsky as her lover, the Crusader Jean de Brienne, and Marcelo Gomes as a wicked Saracen knight who tries to seduce Raymonda while Jean is away. The roles will also be danced by Xiomara Reyes, Ethan Stiefel and Herman Cornejo (tomorrow afternoon) and by Nina Ananiashvili, José Manuel Carreño and Gennadi Saveliev (tomorrow night). Tonight at 8; tomorrow at 2 and 8 p.m. Metropolitan Opera House, (212) 362-6000. Tickets: $20 to $155 (Jennifer Dunning).
AMERICAN REPERTORY BALLET. The troupe celebrates its 20th anniversary with a program of dances by Elaine Kudo, Dominique Dumais and its director, Graham Lustig. Tonight at 8; tomorrow at 2 and 8 p.m.; Sunday at 2 p.m., George Street Playhouse, 9 Livingston Avenue, New Brunswick, N.J., (732) 249-1254, Ext. 23. Tickets: $25 (Dunning).
BERGEN DANCE MAKERS. Choreographers who live in Bergen County in New Jersey have joined to present their work in this program, which includes dances by Irving Burton, Nai-Ni Chen, Susan Cherniak, Renee Redding Jones and Claire Porter. Tomorrow night at 7:30, Ciccone Theater, Bergen Community College, 400 Paramus Road, Paramus, N.J., (201) 447-7428. Tickets: $18; $15 for students and 65+ (Dunning).
DANCE AT THE 92ND STREET Y. Dances by public school children, created at the Y, will be shown today as part of the Y's free series Fridays @ Noon. And the Y will be celebrated in "130 Years on Stage at the 92nd Street Y," a gala benefit that will include commentary by the choreographer Susan Stroman and performing by the Martha Graham Dance Company and the Fresh Y Crew of hip-hoppers, as well as performances by musicians and Broadway stars. Monday night at 8. 92nd Street Y, at Lexington Avenue, (212) 415-5488. Tickets: $500 for show and reception afterward; $1,000 for cocktails, dinner, show and reception (Dunning).
"DANCES BY ISADORA." Isadora Duncan, the legendary pioneer of modern dance, often took her inspiration from nature. So it is only fitting for many dancers from the New York area who are trained in her style to perform some of her works outdoors. Today at 4:30, Bethesda Fountain, Central Park, midpark at 72nd Street. Free. Information: (917) 673-3132 (Jack Anderson).
DOUGLAS DUNN. Under the aegis of the Danspace Project at St. Mark's Church, Mr. Dunn will present "The Higgs Field," a free, site-specific outdoor dance that examines the ideas of a character known as Mr. Higgs about matter, rest, symmetry, invisibility, weight, temperature and force. Tomorrow and Sunday (and Saturdays and Sundays through June 13) at noon, the Pinetum, Central Park at 85th Street. The Danspace Project will pay tribute to the choreographer William Forsythe in a gala benefit on Tuesday night at 6:30. Performers include the companies of John Jasperse and Donna Uchizono. Danspace Project, St. Mark's Church, 131 East 10th Street, East Village, (212) 674-8194. Tickets: $75 for performance and dessert; $150 to $300 for performance and dinner (Dunning).
"MARGOT FONTEYN IN AMERICA: A CELEBRATION." Fonteyn was ballet to many Americans, from her first performance in the United States, in 1949 in the first New York performances of the Sadler's Wells Ballet (now the Royal Ballet). She was muse to many, most notably Frederick Ashton and Rudolf Nureyev, whose partnership revitalized her career. Both international star and tough trouper, Fonteyn personified the English ballet style. This free exhibition includes costumes, rehearsal and performance photographs, film and television footage and artifacts of a career that spanned a half-century. Today and tomorrow (and Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays through Sept. 3) from noon to 6 p.m. (Thursdays to 8 p.m.), Vincent Astor Gallery, New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center, (212) 870-1630 (Dunning).
ANDREW JANNETTI AND DANCERS. Mr. Janetti and the guest choreographer Kriota Willberg will present new work that includes a piece that Mr. Jannetti created with Jessica Lewis, a 13-year-old protégée. Tonight at 9; tomorrow and Sunday at 8 p.m., Cunningham Studio, 55 Bethune Street, West Village, (212) 431-7313. Tickets: $20; $15 for students and 65+; $10 for children under 12 (Dunning).
VALENTINA KOZLOVA AND HER DANCE CONSERVATORY PERFORMANCE PROJECT. Ms. Kozlova, Andrei Kisselev and student dancers will perform with guest stars including Irina Dvorovenko and Maxim Belotserkovsky in new works and excerpts from ballet classics. Tomorrow night at 7:30, Florence Gould Hall, 55 East 59th Street, Manhattan, (212) 355-6160. Tickets: 35; $20 for students and 65+ (Dunning).
NOEMIE LAFRANCE. Ms. Lafrance began with a high winding stairway in her exploration of evocatively strange places for dance in New York City. Now she has moved on to a parking garage for her latest site-specific piece, "Noir," which takes it tone from the noir film genre and which the audience watches from inside parked cars. Tonight and tomorrow night at 7:30 and 9:30,the Delancey and Essex Municipal Parking Garage, 105 Essex Street, Lower East Side, (212) 868-4444. Tickets: $20 (back seat); $30 (front seat); $15 for students and 65+ (Dunning).
LIZ LERMAN DANCE EXCHANGE. Ms. Lerman has been mining anecdotal and social history for powerful dance theater for many years now. "Scores for Salt and Snow: Dances Since 2002" continues that involvement with dances set to music by Alan Hovhaness, Spike Jones and Andy Teirstein, paying special attention to the age-old question of the effect of nature and nurturing on the formation of character. Tomorrow night at 8; Sunday at 2 p.m., Greenberg Theater, American University, Washington, (202) 885-2587. Tickets: $20; $10 for students, children under 17 and 65+ (Dunning).
LAR LUBOVITCH DANCE COMPANY. Mr. Lubovitch celebrates the founding of his company 35 years ago with a new work that looks back, through scrims, on a rich choreographic past. Tonight and tomorrow night at 8 and 10, Washington Square Church, 135 West Fourth Street, Greenwich Village, (212) 868-4444. Tickets: $40 (Dunning).
NEW YORK CITY BALLET. The story of George Balanchine's "Sonnambula" is that of the Bellini opera of the same name whose themes served as a departure point for the ballet's Rieti score. The story is told a little lumberingly, but the ballet is nonetheless magical. At its heart is a haunting pas de deux in which the mysterious somnambulist travels about the stage on point, always eluding the poet who adores her. The lead roles will be danced this weekend by Yvonne Borree, Nikolaj Hubbe, Sofiane Sylve and James Fayette (tonight) and by Wendy Whelan, Peter Boal, Ms. Sylve and Mr. Fayette (Sunday afternoon). Another weekend highlight is Christopher Wheeldon's new "Shambards" (tonight) and Balanchine's "Episodes," which has looked terrific this season. Tonight at 8; tomorrow at 2 and 8 p.m.; Sunday at 3 p.m., New York State Theater, (212) 870-5570. Tickets: $32 to $80 (Dunning).
JOHN OLLOM: "THE JOURNEY." Mr. Ollom, a ballet-trained dancer and teacher who has performed with Michael Mao, tells the story of a bisexual man caught between the heterosexual and homosexual worlds. Tomorrow at 3 and 8 p.m.; Sunday at 3 p.m., Clark Studio Theater, the Rose Building, 165 West 65th Street, Lincoln Center, (212) 592-0103. Tickets: $40 (Dunning).
PHILADANCO. This august Philadelphia-based company, 34 years old but still dancing with stylish exuberance, will celebrate men in modern dance with a program of dances by male choreographers, including Eleo Pomare, Leni Wylliams, Gene Hill Sagan, Alonzo King and Christopher Huggins. Tonight at 8; tomorrow at 2 and 8 p.m.; Sunday at 2 and 7:30 p.m., Joyce Theater, 175 Eighth Avenue, at 19th Street, Chelsea, (212) 242-0800. Tickets: $34 (Dunning).
RED HOOK WATERFRONT ARTS FESTIVAL. A performance by Urban Bush Women, featured at this free festival, now in its 10th year, is worth a trip anywhere. And the atmospheric old Red Hook waterfront, still relatively ungentrified, is a destination in itself. The dance performers include the Dance Wave's Kids Company and the Pee Wee Hoofers. Also featured is Heritage O.P., which stands for Organic Percussion. Tomorrow from 1 to 5 p.m., Beard Street Pier at Van Brunt Street, Red Hook, Brooklyn, (718) 287-2224 (Dunning).
"RISING UP." This program showcases the best work, chosen by Skip Costa and Kim LaRue, presented during the year at the uptown performance space known as the Bridge. Tonight at 7 and 9, the Bridge for Dance, 2726 Broadway, at 104th Street, third floor, Manhattan, (212) 749-1165. Tickets: $15 (Dunning).
HENNING RUBSAM'S SENSEDANCE. A versatile choreographer, Henning Rubsam has started to introduce dancing on point into his company's repertory. Two new works will be shown in "To the Pointe," a program described as an "open rehearsal." Sunday at 6 p.m., City Center Studios, 130 West 56th Street, fifth floor, Manhattan, (212) 717-6869. Suggested contribution: $10 (Anderson).
SILVER-BROWN DANCE. Eva Silverstein, who directs this modern-dance company with Guillermo E. Brown, a composer, will spread out with her dancers across the docks, pebble beach, granite boulders and grass of a reclaimed waterfront area in "Oasis," a free site-specific piece. Tonight and tomorrow night at 7; Sunday at 3 p.m., Brooklyn Bridge Park, Main Street, Brooklyn, (917) 482-8404 (Dunning).
TROIKA RANCH. This multimedia interactive dance and video group will perform "Surfacing," a new piece by the company's directors, Dawn Stoppiello and Mark Coniglio, in which the video is not only cued by dancers but also spurs them on. Tonight and tomorrow night at 8:30; Sunday afternoon at 3, Danspace Project, St. Mark's Church, 131 East 10th Street, East Village, (212) 674-8194. Tickets: $15 (Dunning).
VANDANCE. Valerie Norman's VanDance troupe collaborates with Bruce Ornstein's Acting Workshop in "?," a full-length dance-theater piece that explores the realities of everyday life and performance. The choreography was drawn from improvisations in which the dancers moved with their eyes closed. You have been warned. Tonight and tomorrow night at 8; Sunday at 7 p.m., Williamsburg Art neXus, 205 North Seventh Streeet, Brooklyn, (718) 599-7997. Tickets: $15 (Dunning).
NINA WINTHROP AND DANCERS. In "Cumulus," a new work in progress, Nina Winthrop collaborates with the video artist Maria Antelman and the composer Jon Gibson to create a multimedia piece about time, aging and the accumulation of memories. In addition to the preview, the program includes "Prism" and "Three Lives and Something." Tonight and tomorrow night at 7, Sunday at 3 p.m., Flea Theater, 41 White Street, TriBeCa, (212) 696-7483. Tickets: $15 (Anderson).