At first, we weren't ready to like Artistic Director Nacho Duato's work Castrati--out of the gate it felt strained, and we worried that the topic (castrated Italian boys who became famous singers) would be too easily over-dramatized. Set to a series of works by Vivaldi, it opens with a group of men wearing low cut gowns, half dress-half cape numbers in all black; we later deduce these are the veteran castrati, their mission to bring vulnerable new recruits into the fold. They waver between almost inquisition-styled menacers, with striking unison choreography that relies heavily on canons and repetition to lend a military feel, and older-brother, caring mentors who swoon and partner each other gently--in the latter roles they shed their black robes to reveal sparkly corsets and tights underneath. The contrast worked, illustrating the dual lives these men endured, the loss of that which defined then as men simultaneously bringing them great fame and adoration. more ›