Macho, moody, and whimsical, PNB's All Robbins program is a stand-up triple, if not a home run (at McCaw Hall through June 8; tickets: $20-$150). Actually the Mariners could learn a lot from the raw athleticism, discipline, and teamwork on display. Opening night's Fancy Free sparked and fizzed erratically; conductor Stewart Kershaw, swinging the baton sans panache, kept Bernstein's charged score sounding off-kilter. But PNB rallied during In the Night, and by the time The Concert wrapped up, even the golf-clappers in the audience were on their feet cheering.
All Robbins Showcases PNB's Acting Chops
First Look @ PNB: Worth A Second Look
Ballet Imperial: it's tutus and tights and corps-de-ballet clockwork, but Balanchine's choreography is nothing to sneeze at. Maybe just that one scissor-kicky thing we secretly call "the Snoopy Dance," and therefore have trouble taking seriously. Otherwise, if the dancers were wearing skis, it'd be a black diamond run. This one shows up in the All Balanchine program that starts this weekend.
Weekend Dance: Ten Tiny Dances @ CHAC, First Look @ PNB
There are not enough hours in the day. Just. Not. Enough. If we weren't already going to the New Pornographers show tonight, we'd likely be found at the Ten Tiny Dances performance at CHAC (7:30pm, $15). If you haven't seen it before, the idea is there's a 4' x 4' platform that the dancers have to (more or less) stay on for their performance, like when we were kids and the floor was lava. Lava!
Get Out Thursday: Stravinsky 125 @ PNB
BALLET: The opening night of PNB's tribute to music man Igor Stravinsky, STRAVINSKY 125, brings the PNB premiere of Jerome Robbins’ Circus Polka, set to Stravinsky’s Circus Polka for Wind Symphony, and the return of two works by Balanchine -- Rubies, set to Capriccio for piano and orchestra, and his Symphony in Three Movements. Plus, there's the PNB premiere of Molissa Fenley’s solo work, State of Darkness, set to Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring. It's a week-and-a-half run, through June 10.
An Interview with Louis Hobson, Star of 5th Avenue Theater's Locally-Cast Production of West Side Story
Later this month, the 5th Avenue Theater opens what they're calling a 50th-anniversary production of West Side Story, recreating the original Jerome Robbins choreography. This isn't a touring show starring some washed-up 70s sitcom star--the 5th Avenue is using local talent. Hoorah!

