Review: BALLETS WITH A TWIST: COCKTAIL HOUR at UA-Pulaski Tech: The Center For Humanities And Arts

To close out the ACANSA Festival Saturday, Sept. 23, Ballets with a Twist brought the glamour to the UA-PTC CHARTS stage in North Little Rock with an inventive production called COCKTAIL HOUR THE SHOW. Made up of New York City ballet performers, these classically trained dancers mixed it up with different themed vignettes that brought a new meaning to happy hour.   

Before the show, I was able to ask choreographer Marilyn Klaus about the origin of COCKTAIL HOUR THE SHOW. 

“Well, I started putting different choreographic pieces together in 1996, then we did our first show, Big Cocktail Hour show about 10 or 12 years ago,” Klaus said. “Since that time, we added a tremendous amount of repertory with different cocktails. Then we added other drinks, like Beer, which is a quintet for five gentlemen. We are continually adding new work. We now have about 40 pieces, so when we return to places like Augusta, we have enough cocktails where we can do a completely new show.” 

To open the show, the troupe opened with a big group number entitled Brandy Alexander: The Great One, where the dancers were ready to conquer the CHARTS stage. Inspired by the era around Alexander the Great, the dancers marched and twirled in golden hued outfits letting the audience know they were ready for us. Featured dancers were Dorothea Garland, Jennifer Buonamia, Tori Hey, Margaret Hoshor, Sara Jumper, Minnie Lane, and Elizabeth Andrews Szendrody. 

Donned in pink, Shirley Temple (MacKenzie Fey) hip hops her way across the stage complete with sassy star quality attitude and playing with her frilly pink tutu.  

Claire Mazza takes her dog on a walk in Manhattan: On the Avenue. Gliding across the stage, she floats from one end to the other with ease.  

Andres Neira handles the tablecloth like a pro in Cin Cin: A Toast to Love. 

Margaret Hoshor tears at your heart as she pines for her long-lost love in Gimlet: Nightcap.   

Dorothea Garland commands the stage and the men around her (Nickemil Concepcion, Andres Neira, Alejandro Ulloa) during Martini: James Bond’s Choice.  

Super cute Tori Hey was spunky in Sputnik: Sour Grapes. This was one of my plus one’s favorites of the solo numbers. He liked the quirkiness of the piece. 

My favorite of the small group numbers was Roy Rogers: Rope-a-Dope where Jennifer Buonamia masters the whip while Nickemil Concepcion stood his ground. I don’t know what it was about that one, but I was smiling so big while my plus one was a little squirmy. It was great!  

Probably the most beautiful of the group numbers was Champagne: Blanc de Blanc, which featured Claire Mazza and Alejandro Ulloa. The dresses were flowy, and the partnering was elegant. Even we knew they were representing bubbles. It was beautiful.  

After intermission, their Mirage section started with a western flair with La Paloma: Dove Tales and Ranchwater: Crack Shot. Double Vision: Checkmate had Claire Mazza and Alejandro Ulloa paired against each other, and Andres Neira was stealing the world in Smooth Criminal: Crime Pays With Interest. 

I was really excited for Bloody Mary: Royal Pain (Margaret Hoshor), because I do love a good bad guy—or girl in this case. She was regal with a big attitude. It was everything you would expect from an evil Queen. 

To finish out the program, the whole cast came together for Hot Toddy: Flappers and Swells. Dressed in their 1920s costumes, they quickly told the story of the good times gone crazy with a little stealing and swindling and fighting with the law. It was a great finale and left you wanting more.  

Music master Stephen Gaboury created so many fascinating miniature soundtracks to go with each scene. Though there were jazzy undertones with most of the segments, the snippets ranged from classical to blues to quirky melodies and so many other lyrical movements to complement the dances.    

The costumes occasionally stole the scene at times. Created by Catherine Zehr, the various outfits were visually stunning and enhanced the show to even greater heights. I love the colors and how each attire seemed perfect for each scene.  

To accentuate the stage and performers, Dan Hansell’s lighting design set the mood and highlighted the perfect display of artistry on the stage. It was all so beautiful and mesmerizing. 

On Friday, Jennifer Buonamia visited North Little Rock High School Theatre Dance III-IV students to teach a masterclass. 

"Jennifer was an incredible teacher and was kind and encouraging with the dancers,” NLRHS Dance Teacher Christen Pitts said. “She led barre exercises, center floor, combinations, and across the floor combinations. The dancers had a wonderful time and were challenged and nurtured in the master class.” 

Up next, BALLETS WITH A TWIST will be at The Imperial Theatre in Augusta, Georgia, Saturday, Oct. 28. For more information, visit their website at the link below. 

Dancers for BALLETS WITH A TWIST: Jennifer Buonamia, MacKenzie Fey, Dorothea Garland, Tori Hey, Margaret Hoshor, Sara Jumper, Minnie Lane, Claire Mazza, Cassandra Punzo, Elizabeth Andrews Szendrody, Nickemil Concepcion, Jeremy Gruner, Andres Neira, Morgan Stinnett, Alejandro Ulloa.  

Broadway World would like to thank Nico Malvaldi for the use of these beautiful photos. For more from this artist, check out the website at http://nicomalvaldi.com.   

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