Review: DON QUIXOTE at San Francisco Ballet Celebrates the Joy of Dancing

San Francisco Ballet is putting on a big ol' party in the guise of high culture with its latest program, that enduring chestnut Don Quixote. Sure, there are ballerinas dancing on pointe supported by their dashing cavaliers, the occasional tutu and a stunner of a grand pas de deux, but the whole enterprise really wants nothing more than to entertain the pants off you, and in that it thrillingly succeeds. While my own preferences tend toward ballets with more psychological nuance and emotional complexity, this might be just the ballet we need right now when we're finally, possibly, hopefully(?) emerging from our collective COVID cocoon. This Don Q feels like a massive celebration - for the dancers, for the orchestra and for the audience.

Anyone familiar with the Cervantes novel or its various derivatives may be surprised that the ballet version of Don Quixote focuses mainly on the innkeeper's daughter Kitri and her attempts to escape an arranged marriage to the wealthy uber-fop Gamache and pursue her true love, Basilio, the town's brash young barber. After the title character and his trusty sidekick Sancho Panza embark on their quest in the brief prolog, from that point on they are mainly bit players in the story as they wander through various locations that exist mainly to provide ample opportunities for dance. So we travel from a seaside town square in Barcelona to the Spanish countryside to a dreamworld conjured up in Don Quixote's mind to a rustic tavern before returning to Barcelona for Kitri and Basilio's inevitable wedding celebration.

SFB's Don Quixote is based on the famed Gorsky and Petipa versions from the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with updated staging and additional choreography by SFB Artistic Director Helgi Tomasson and SFB choreographer in residence Yuri Possokhov. Tomasson and Possokhov stick largely to the template laid down by their artistic forbears, while providing some nice enhancements, such as a tenderly enchanting 2nd act pas de deux for the central couple. The vibrant scenery and costumes by the late, great Martin Pakledinaz make for some gorgeous stage pictures. This is one of the last shows Pakledinaz designed, and he seems to have had a riot dreaming up the colorful costumes (perhaps too much so in case of the Day-Glo tones he chose for the team of Toreadors which draw too much focus to these relatively minor characters).

What Don Quixote is really about, though, is simply the sheer joy of dancing, and on that score SFB delivered bigtime. The company has been waiting two years now to do that thing they love the most, which is put on a big, juicy, three-act ballet that pushes them to their limits. On opening night, everyone on that stage, and I do mean everyone, seemed to be having a blast. The huge corps de ballet danced with an extra measure of pizzazz and sparkle, the soloists with a little more polish and panache, and the principals with an additional dose of fun and daring.

Sarah Van Patten was a terrific Mercedes, romantic partner of the leader of the forementioned Toreadors, dancing the role with an enthralling mixture of mystery and volatility. She was fiery and inscrutable and playful and sexy and always completely in the moment. And she did not stint on the jaw-dropping series of four backbends, each deeper and more luxuriant than the last. It was a hoot to see Ellen Rose Hummel, a soloist known for her crisp technique and understated musicality, really step up to the plate and own the stage as the tempestuous Gitana Woman. She was beautifully matched by the perpetually airborne Esteban Hernandez as the Gitano Leader.

The second act dream sequence featured a beguiling and spritely Norika Matsuyama as Cupid, delightful in her lightning-fast turns and sudden stops on pointe. In the same scene, Sasha Mukhamedov had an appropriately stately presence as Queen of the Driads, although she seemed a tad insecure in her balances. Some of the best dancing of the evening was provided by the smashing duo of Isabella Devivo and Julia Rowe as Kitri's Friends. These are not major characters in terms of the ballet's narrative, but they do have quite a lot of dancing throughout the course of the ballet, always as a matched set, which provides a sort of filigree that holds the evening together. Both women were absolutely on it, thrilling in their quickness and airiness, and sometimes heart-stopping in their almost-eerie synchronicity. They were a shining example of how it is possible for a dancer to let their individuality shine while still dancing in perfect unison. I have seen Don Q dozens of times, and I have never seen these roles danced better.

Of course, the success of any performance of Don Quixote ultimately comes down to its Kitri and Basilio. Given the extreme pyrotechnics required, these are not roles that can be fudged a bit if the dancers are having an off night. Misa Kuranaga got off to a somewhat underwhelming start at the beginning of Act I. She danced well enough, but was lacking some of the fire and brashness that can make Kitri so delicious. However, once Angelo Greco bounded onstage as her paramour Basilio, she perked up considerably and seemed to get more into the spirit of things. She danced gloriously in the Act 2 dream sequence, seeming to glide on the surface of the music as she played with tempos. She kept things on the same high level in the rambunctious wedding pas de deux, all high spirits and coquettish snapping of her fan, triumphantly whipping out fouettés for days.

I can't say enough about Angelo Greco as Basilio. With his irrepressible stage persona and propensity for effortlessly dashing off high-flying leaps and dazzling spins, he was born to dance this role. He innately seems to understand who this character is - a lovestruck young man full of good-humored bravado as he finagles to win Kitri's hand in marriage. Greco appeared almost reckless in the way he launched himself into a series of horizonal, stage-devouring leaps, yet he never actually lost control. His pirouettes in the climactic pas de deux were pristine and perfectly centered, and he partnered Kuranaga beautifully throughout. The final image of her aloft on his shoulder as they spun in the center of a kaleidoscope of leaping dancers ended the ballet in a moment of pure, unadulterated joy. Yeah, I think we could all use a party these days.

[All photos by Erik Tomasson]

Live performances of San Francisco Ballet's Don Quixote continue through Sunday, March 6th at the War Memorial Opera House, 301 Van Ness Avenue, San Francisco, CA. Running time is approximately 2:45, including two intermissions. Proof of full COVID vaccination and the wearing of masks while in the building are required. For tickets and additional information, visit www.sfballet.org or call (415) 865-2000, M-F 10am-4pm.

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