Summer, 2004 Sofiane
Sylve
New York City Ballet
In the last few years, New York City Ballet
seems to be making a slight but steady transition.
The company used to recruit almost all its dancers
from its official school, the School of American
Ballet, young dancers who already knew the Balanchine
repertoire. But recently Peter Martins, the
company’s ballet master in chief, has been actively
inviting principals from European classical
ballet companies. As a result, those dancers’
pure classical qualities melt into Balanchine’s
neoclassical ballets, bring a new, refreshing
breeze to the company. French principal Sofiane
Sylve is one of this new breed of dancer at
NYCB.
◆Report
Heisei
Nakamura-za
Kankuro Nakamura
 The
life of a Japanese Kabuki actor is planned out
before he is born. Kabuki is a hereditary system:
If you are born the eldest son in a Kabuki family,
you are expected to take over the family business.
Kankuro Nakamura is one such son. His father
was Kanzaburo Nakamura, his grandfather was
Kikugoro Onoe VI, and his uncle was the original
Kichiuemon Nakamura; all three were popular
and favorite actors of early 20th Century. Inheriting
this illustrious descent, Kankuro was called
a genius child actor and a prince of Kabuki
while still young. Now, in the prime of life,
Kankuro is taking on a new challenge here in
New York.
◆Report
Political
Theater in New York
"…In its most archaic sense, theater is the
capacity possessed by human beings � to observe
themselves in action�. They can see themselves
here and imagine themselves there;  they
can see themselves today and imagine themselves
tomorrow." - Augusto Boal
Political theater of a topical stripe has become
increasingly visible in New York City of late,
mirroring the gathering clouds of current events.
In this diverse city, politically intended (or
interpreted) theatrical performance can range
from traditional proscenium plays costing $80
a ticket to street theater cooperatives creating
dialogue at protests. These days I find myself
especially interested by topical political theater.
The bastions of high culture tend to view the
overtly political as lowbrow; certainly it often
does not age well, calling into question its
"universality" and hence its quality. But what
if universality isn't the point? What about
art with a function in the here and now? In
other words-art with a political function? Questions
too large for the scope of this article, but
perhaps we can at least begin to consider them
while discussing a few recent examples of political
theater here in New York.
◆Review
Dance
New York City Ballet
Mizuto Abura
Ballet Builders
Peter Boal and Company
Martha Graham Dance Company
Maureen Fleming: Decay of the Angel
Brian Brooks Moving Company/Julie Atlas muz
|  
(Left) Martha Graham Dance Company, (Right) Mizuto Abura
|
 ◆Theater
Broadway Caroline, or Change
BroadwayBombay Dreams
RASA
◆Film
African Film Festival
◆Opera
Tales of Hoffman
Siroe
◆Wind
from the East
History of Japanese Contemporary Dance No.7
Tokyo Report
◆The
Chamber of Healing
Fun, Exercuse, and Healing Creative movement for elderly
◆The
Arts Cure News
◆New
York Dance Calendar
Bombay
Dreams (above)
+ Caroline,
or Change (down)
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