Smuin Contemporary Ballet
Dance Series 2
Blue Shield of California Theater at YBCA, San Francisco
April 25th, 2025
Four conceptual ballets danced by one extraordinary company-what a night for Smuin Contemporary Ballet! For the final offering of their current season, Artistic Director Amy Seiwert programmed a delightful collection of tonal works that journeyed through the decades. I use the words tonal and conceptual because, while none of the pieces told a linear story, they were not entirely abstract either. Instead, each wove distinct ideas, emotions and qualities into beautiful physical works of art. And it was a gallery of gems, with the standout being the oldest work on the bill, The Eternal Idol, a sublime pas de deux choreographed in 1969 by company founder Michael Smuin.
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| Brennan Wall and João Sampaio in Smuin's The Eternal Idol Photo Chris Hardy |
I’ve seen Idol several times and adored every casting; opening night of Dance Series 2 was no exception. A celebration of affection, desire and passion, the charged duet is all romance, all the time. Set to a score by the most beloved Romantic era composer (Frédéric Chopin), the pas de deux begins with two dancers intertwined on a rock upstage left, inspired by Rodin’s 1893 sculpture of the same name. Costumed by Marcos Paredes in unadorned beige-toned unitards, the pair begins to share their love story through epic classical and contemporary partnering. While the movement is undeniably beautiful, the costuming plays a key role - its blank slate transforming the onstage couple into anyone and everyone. Idol told the great fictional love stories of film, television, literature and stage. Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet and Ophelia, Ross and Rachel, Luke and Laura. And it spoke of every real love story too. Brennan Wall and João Sampaio were superb from start to finish, avoiding the sometimes sticky and awkward moments that can arise in Idol’s complex partnering.
Costuming and choreography were also inherently linked in Seiwert’s world premiere I Remember Now, the dress evolving and adjusting along with the mood and quality onstage. A seven-part ensemble suite, Sandra Woodall costumed everyone in the same beige leotard, jeans and flowing red shirts for I Remember Now’s first chapter. An anxious opening sequence, quick circuits, sharp directional pushes and whirling concentric circles filled the stage. But that frenetic tone would soon dissipate as Sampaio entered the scene with calm and hope, and he was without the red shirt. The layer had been removed and with it, the earlier frenzy. Wall and Ricardo Dyer brought support and care to the ballet’s fourth episode, now donning denim-colored bike shorts. Their duet had such a vast openness, particularly the seated lift in second position. A section for the women was full of fierce protection. And Maggie Carey and Jacopo Calvo wore sheer black chiffon in the ballet’s finale, where a sense of deep yearning became part of the picture.
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| Smuin Ballet in Seiwert's I Remember Now Photo Chris Hardy |
Rounding out Dance Series 2 were Rex Wheeler’s Sinfonietta (2016 & 2018) and Trey McIntyre’s Wild Sweet Love (2007). A lovely welcome into the performance space, Sinfonietta kicked off the evening. Danced by ten artists, spritely joy imbued every instant as did an elegant, understated quality. With a subtle white and lime green balayage, Susan Roemer’s costumes were equally unassuming. Defined as a musical form and structure that is short and simple, Wheeler’s Sinfonietta may have been short, though it was anything but simple. Subsequent sections brought choreographic breadth and range, and there was a true feeling of anticipation. Everything seemed to be leading somewhere new – floorwork ascending to partnered jumps, spins and leaps.
In her opening remarks, Seiwert told the audience that McIntyre’s Wild Sweet Love was going to be “a wild ride,” and she was not exaggerating. Led by soloist Cassidy Isaacson, the suite was set to songs and music associated with love. But if you were expecting all sentiment and schmaltz, you were in for a surprise. And in a good way. Wild Sweet Love’s first moments were deliciously creepy. The lights came up on Isaacson in a full white tulle dress and tea-length gloves. With a stoic, menacing expression, she cycled through textbook ballet positions and steps. The unsettled-ness would continue as Mendelssohn’s wedding recessional sang through the air, the pasted-on smiles seemingly commenting on marriage itself. Similar to the other pieces in Dance Series 2, Wild Sweet Love’s tonal scope would expand and deepen. Youthful exuberance and unabashed whimsy would unfold to The Patridge Family’s 1970 hit ‘I Think I Love You.’ Barrel rolls and sparkling hands evoking explosive joy alongside Queen’s ‘Somebody to Love.’
