Review: BALLET HISPÁNICO CELEBRATES 2024 SEASON at New York City Center

Ballet Hispánico kicks off the company’s 2024 New York City Center season with a Gala Program and evening gala celebration, performing staple works and excerpts by celebrated choreographers including Talley Beatty, Michelle Manzanales, Anabelle Lopez Ochoa, Pedro Ruiz, and company Artistic Director Eduardo Vilaro. The reordered program opened with an excerpt of Manzanales’s Con Brazos Abiertos performed by students from Ballet Hispánico School of Dance. The students, tenacious and excited, add a joyful and refreshing dimension to the program, allowing the audience to see the artistic growth which occurs between students and professionals.

 

Antonio Cangiano and Amanda Ostuni command the stage in a balletic marathon during the first company work of the evening, Pas de O’Farrill, choreographed by Pedro Ruiz. Articulate and furiously fast paced, Ruiz sets a new standard for technical demand and stamina. After an initial pas de deux, Cangiano and Ostuni exchange turns exiting off stage only for a small breather to re-appear again. Ostuni’s smile is infectious throughout, dressed in a bright yellow dress in contrast with the dark, royal blue scrim. Ostuni and Cangiano visually dance under the evening sky, like a picture out of Damien Chazelle’s La La Land. The juxtaposition of both dancer’s pleasant, calm expression in comparison to their highly tensed pointed legs and kicks is magnetizing. Pas de O’Farrill is a demonstration of true partnership filled with trust, ease, flare, and sensuality. Ostuni and Cangiano’s connection is striking; nailing every lift and promenade.

 

As a personal welcome and memento of gratitude, Vilaro welcomes the gala audience, reflecting on his own journey as a dancer to becoming Artistic Director of the company. Talley Beatty’s Recuerdo de Campo Amor is the first work Vilaro learned while in Ballet Hispánico, and performed third in the gala program. “I’m so honored to have worked with [Talley Beatty], he’s quite a perfectionist,” says Vilaro. Recuerdo de Campo Amor is an instant mood booster, replicating the dynamic of New York’s Latin dance nightclubs of the 1960s and 1970s. Stepping into a warm color palette filled with red, purple, and blue dresses and blouses crisply glimmering in golden light, rhythm ensues. Synchronous choreography filled with walks, waltzes, and developpés are danced in couples, gracefully switching formations from staggered lines to large circles. Romance is in the air during Recuerdo de Campo Amor. The room fills with smiles.

 

Present in the gala audience is acclaimed choreographer Anabelle Lopez-Ochoa, responsible for choreographing the company’s first full evening length work based off the story Evita, which follows the life story of Argentina’s former First Lady, Eva Perón. The excerpt of Doña Peron includes guest artist American Ballet Theater principal dancer Herman Cornejo, playing Eva’s love interest, the sergeant. Ochoa’s infamous storytelling talent is truly showcased in Doña Peron, as dancer Amanda del Valle portrays Evita at an adult party, only to see her younger self, played by Ostuni, onstage, battling with hiding her past to adjust to the world she now seeks. It is quite easy to quickly become invested in Ochoa’s work, as her intertwining, liquid movement and drastic music choices add a dramatic effect leaving the audience to question what will happen to Eva Perón after meeting her new love interest.

Concluding the company’s gala program is a world premiere of Buscando a Juan by Eduardo Vilaro. Instantly intriguing, Vilaro’s inspiration runs from the journey of Afro-Hispanic Painter Juan de Paraja, played by Leonardo Brito. The curtain rises to reveal hanging light bulbs and ropes, set by designer Christopher Ash, to reveal Brito and Cangiano. The dynamic between the two dancers is hard to identify: is Cangiano controlling Brito? Several moments throughout the work are eerie and intriguing: leaving the audience to put puzzle pieces of his story together. Moments of the entire company facing upstage on the floor and in a circle surrounding Brito are dynamic and dramatic, as Brito carries an essence of raw vulnerability in his movement throughout.

 

"Performing at New York City Center for Ballet Hispanico’s 54th season and Eduardo's 15th year as Artistic Director was a riveting experience," says company member Omar Rivéra. "It felt amazing to share all of the diverse works...with the New York audience. It made me proud to be a part of a company that is so diverse and constantly pushing boundaries." Bold, vivacious, and technically sound, Ballet Hispánico's New York City Center Season is a moment in time to celebrate Latinx/e culture and joy.

Artistic Director & CEO: Eduardo Vilaro

Founder: Tina Ramirez

Artistic Associate & Rehearsal Director: Johan Rivera

Ballet Mistress: Anitra Keegan

The Company: Fatima Andere, Amir J. Baldwin, Leonardo Brito, Antonio Cangiano, Amanda del Valle, Daryn Diaz, Ana Estrada, Paulo Hernandez-Farella, Cori Lewis, Dylan Dias McIntyre, Adam Dario Morales, Amanda Ostuni, Omar Rivéra, Isabel Robles, Isabella Vergara

 

Photo Credit: Rosalie O'Connor

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