The opening of Ballet X's Rite to Spring, choreographed by co-artistic director Matthew Neenan, is perfectly timed. The piece is constructed around the range of emotions that the coming of spring evokes, and Philadelphia is precisely in that transitional period.
The creativity and the execution of Rite, which is very removed from Stravinsky's work, are stunning. As the audience enters the theater, the dancers are on stage, underneath a carpet of gauze. One lone female figure lies atop the gauze, motionless, while the others move slowly beneath the surface. Then, like the awaking of the earth, they emerge.
The ballet is performed with members of band Lake Trout (www.laketrout.com) onstage accompanying. Matthew Pierce composed the music for Rite, which is by turns wistful and playful. Some aspects of the composition reminded me of Badly Drawn Boy's The Hour of Bewilderbeast.
Neenan's choreography experiments with the gradual awakening of spring, then transitions into its joyful excitment. A theme of fertility runs throughout the piece - not raw sexuality, but the playful flirtation of youth. It is this element that makes Neenan's work fresh. This playfulness especially emerges in the latter part of the performance, when the dancers emerge in the floral dresses and bright button-ups of an outdoor wedding. A few dancers play spin the bottle to the side of the stage.
One thing I can't figure out is if they planned Christine Cox's pregnancy to coincide with the performances. She romps around the stage with all all the benevolence of a fertility goddess. She even gives a flower to one of the audience members, starting a chain reaction among the other dancers.
Among the dancers, I am always impressed with Meredith Rainey, whose power is only outdone by his grace. Emily Wagner, too, commands attention on the stage. You can't take your eyes off of her, and her sinewy extension is amazing. All of these dancers are pure athletes - more rippling muscles than frail delicacy. It's so refreshing.
Next up for Ballet X (www.balletx.org) is an all-female performance this summer choreographed by Cox. We wonder if she'll maintain her fertility goddess role for this role.
