Ballet Hispanico brought a Chicago audience to its feet

Posted on Tuesday, November 9

Ballet Hispanico presents an eclectic program drawn from its 40 proud years
By Debby Storms
Photo Karthik Sudhir

New York City’s Ballet Hispanico brought a Chicago audience to its feet Friday night at the Harris Theater.

It wasn’t just to express appreciation for the rousing and eclectic show the company delivered, though that certainly was the case. Undoubtedly, the audience was also giving a warm “Welcome back” to Ballet Hispanico’s new Artistic Director, Eduardo Vilaro, founder of Chicago’s own esteemed Luna Negra Dance Theater.

Vilaro developed a great little company and a growing fan base in his 10 years heading Luna Negra, and many were disappointed to see him – and the Luna Negra dancers who followed him – go. (No worries: Judging from the success of its Oct. 16 fall program, Luna Negra looks like it will continue to thrive under its promising new artistic director, Gustavo Ramírez Sansano.)

But for those curious to see what kind of influence Vilaro might be having on Ballet Hispanico, where, previous to Luna Negra, he served as principal dancer, Friday’s performance did not provide many clues. That may be due to the fact that 2010 is Ballet Hispanico’s 40^th Anniversary year, and Friday night’s program drew on the company’s rich repertory, offering a representational mix of something old, something new, and something tried and true.

The “old” was a revival of “Tres Cantos,” a 1975 work by Talley Beatty set to three songs by Latin American composers Carlos Chavez, Lorenzo Fernandez, and Silvestre Revueltas. Called “a reflection of the history of Mexico, from its Aztec roots through the Spanish conquest to the re-emergence of native people’s unconquered spirit,” “Tres Cantos” is very much a work in the style of the ’70s – think José Limon or Doris Humphrey – muscular, full of angular poses, grand jetés and turns repeated over and over and over again. The dancers, many costumed to resemble warriors decorated in tattoos and head dresses, others enveloped in a huge green cloth, enact scenes suggesting combat, conquest, ritual, liberation and triumph. Though the company was impressive for meeting the demands of the piece in terms of stamina, occasional hiccups in landings were evident, and the dancers didn’t seem to really have this choreography under their skins or in their hearts.

Of much greater interest was “Mad’moiselle,” a playful and provocative new work by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa. The music, dance and costumes work marvelously together to convey the central theme; basically, “What makes a woman a woman?” The piece is set to a clever, rather crazed remix of songs invoking the iconic name Maria, (for example, Bernstein’s famous song from “West Side Story” and Schubert’s “Ave Maria”). In the opening section, the female dancers, looking very “Cabaret” with lurid red bobs, black negligees and high red boots, strut their stuff. In another section, the girls dance with two white fans, making them doubly flirtatious. In sections using both women and men, various questions are raised regarding relationship and gender identity. For example, one section climaxes with a happy exchange of neck scarves between the sexes. In another, the men dance bare-chested, and later, when the women enter, we only see their backs, and they appear to be bare-chested as well. It’s a bit of a shock, until they turn around and we can see that they are actually wearing flesh-colored tops, and it raises a nice question about what’s permitted for men and women.

The evening concluded with “Club Havana” by Pedro Ruiz, which showcases the lively rhythms of Cuba – Son, Mambo, Cha Cha, Bolero, Rumba and Conga. It was not so much a literal depiction of these dance styles as it was an evocation, but the various couples were lovely to behold, and it was easy and pleasing to watch. No wonder it’s one of the company’s most popular works.