BWW Interviews: Daniel Mantei - None But the Lonely Heart

Daniel Mantei joined American Ballet Theatre's Studio Company in 2002 and became a member of American Ballet Theatre in 2003. Through his work, Mantei aims to explore themes of humanism by infusing classically inspired movement with an intention of anatomical and kinetic awareness. In his latest work, he collaborates with the Ensemble of the Romantic Century (ERC) representing some of the Tchaikovsky's balletic works through dance both choreographed and performed by Mantei.

In Tchaikovsky: None But the Lonely Heart, striking music, powerful language and biography tell the story of the unconventional 16-year long relationship between one of the great composers of the 19th century and his patroness, Madame von Meck. Celebrating its 13th season, ERC presents Tchaikovsky: None But the Lonely Heart at The Fishman Space in the new BAM Fisher this week March 5 - 9. Tickets are still available at BAM.org.

Broadwayworld Dance recently sat down and interviewed Daniel mantei

Q. When did you first become interested in dance?

A. My family lived in a small copper mining town called Tembagapura in Papua, Indonesia. It was in the mountain rainforests on the island of New Guinea. There was no dance school there, but one of the moms had some experience with ballet. The wives of the expats weren't allowed to work there, and they were always looking for things to do. One year they decided to do Nutcracker, not the proper ballet, but more of a play to music. And I was chosen to play Fritz.

Later, when my family moved to Texas, my big sister and I would make up dances to pop music; I specifically remember Cher and Harry Belafonte songs. When I was 9 years old and ready to quit my soccer team, my mom suggested ballet lessons. I think I initially said no, but eventually agreed to try, as long as we kept it a secret. I fell in love with ballet quickly and soon "outed" myself as a dancer. I was always just into the movement, the focus it took. The meditative quality of ballet practice is very appealing to me.

Q. Any outstanding teachers that were a major influence on you?

A. My first and main ballet teacher, Ceyhun Ozsoy, He's Turkish and studied with Travis Kemp and Molly Lake-who studied with Enrico Cecchetti. Talk about ballet lineage! He taught me from ages 9 to 17, instilling in me a love of ballet, an attention to detail, and a determination to always continue to refine my dancing.

My other huge influence was Maggie Black. She helped me to practice ballet in a way that worked with my body, with an attention to alignment and coordination. She had an uncanny ability to help me strip away affectation and to find a way to move in one piece with a true awareness of myself as a dancer and a person. She's almost like a great therapist, which I feel the best ballet coaches have to be. Often in ballet teachers try to motivate through fear and by breaking down dancers-she always lifted me up!

Q. How did you come to perform in ABT?

A. After I graduated from high school in Dallas, I studied for a year at the Royal Ballet School in London. I flew to New York during that time to audition for Boston Ballet. I was devastated when I was cut from the audition after barre. ABT Studio Company wasn't in town, but I dropped off an audition video for John Meehan, the Studio Company director, and ABT director, Kevin Mckenzie, to see. A week or so later when I was back in London John Meehan called and offered me a job with the Studio Company.

Q. What roles do you currently perform in ABT?

A. I do most of the corps de ballet roles. I also get to dance a demi soloist role in Balanchine's Theme and Variations, Paris in Macmillan's Romeo and Juliet, soloist roles in Stanton Welch's Clear and Kirk Peterson's Amazed in Burning Dreams, and Sebastian in Ratmansky's Tempest, among other roles.

Q. What about choreographing Tchaikovsky: None But the Lonely Heart. Was it your reaction to Putin's ban on gay propaganda?

A. The show had already been performed before. The Ensemble for the Romantic Century approached me later to create dance to supplement the work. Because Tchaikovsky's work is so closely linked to ballet, I think it makes sense to use dance to help tell the story. The moments that I choreograph represent the emotional energy and dynamics between Tchaikovsky and his patroness, Nadezhda Von Meck.

Q. How did this hit a nerve? Was it something that immediately affected you and said "I want to go out there and say something pertinent?"

A. I feel that as an artist I have to keep up with what's going on in the world around me. Dance is the most human form of expression; I have to be a humanist. From Pussy Riot to drone strikes, Troy Davis to Lynne Stewart-there are so many violations of human rights and abominations against humanity. I feel an inextricable urge to speak out about all of this, to raise my voice. As a dancer, I have to be silent and do as I'm told, but I can put all of these feelings and energies into different roles in diverse ways: to express a choreographer's work through my identity or try to speak my own truth while remaining true to the intention of the works I dance. As a choreographer, I aim to be more direct and find ways to express solidarity and humanism more openly. I wouldn't say I came to Tchaikovsky: None But the Lonely Heart in reaction to Putin's ban on gay propaganda, but it is a consideration. This ban is wrong, as are the new law in Arizona and the hate crimes in New York City. We all have to raise our voices and speak out for our fellow humans, whether gay, straight, bisexual, transgender, queer, brown, white, aboriginal, disabled, poor, mentally challenged, and the list goes on. We are all the same!

Q. Have the authors chosen key events from Tchaikovsky's life, or is this just an overview of everything that happened to him, which is quite a lot?

A. Pretty much all of the actors' words come from the letters between Tchaikovsky and von Meck and between Tchaikovsky and his brother. It's great that it's their actual words. The play focuses on the 13 years when von Meck supported Tchaikovsky. People think they never met, although they did encounter each other on two occasions by chance and did not speak. This work focuses on the letters they wrote to each other, sometimes every day.

Q. Have you ever choreographed before?

A. I used to choreograph in my living room starting at about 9 years old. I created my first piece when I was 13; it was a pas de deux that I performed with my friend in high school. I created a piece on ABT dancers in ABT's Innovation Initiative, a choreograph workshop, another piece for ABT for a kid's show at the Metropolitan Opera House, and a piece on Columbia Ballet Collaborative. I'm always looking for opportunities to create-sometimes I just grab some of my friends in ABT to play around in the studio.

Q. What can we expect from you in the future?

A. I hope to continue to create dance. Specifically, I want to use the refinement and ideals of ballet to communicate themes that are relevant today. Dance is universal. I believe its potential to bring people together, remind us of our common humanity, and connect us to a sense of greater conscience has been underestimated. An art form that grew from the old ways: aristocratic propaganda, caste systems, sexism, and racism needs to be claimed for the people. Ballet should be for everyone. I believe a great dancer can come from anywhere and any walk of life and that great dance must communicate clearly and effectively, with purpose, humility, and honesty.

Photographs: Enrico Spada

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