The Aspen Sante Fe Ballet is making just their second appearance in Philadelphia in their 21-year history.
Wrapping up the 2016-2017 NextMove Dance season May 3-7 at the Prince Theater, the contemporary ballet company’s 11 dancers will perform the Philadelphia premieres of “Eudaemonia” (Greek for happiness), “Silent Ghost” by Alejandro Cerrudo and “Huma Rojo” (red smoke) by Barcelona-born choreographer Cayetano Soto.
The first brings the star power of its choreographer, Cherice Barton, who choreographed Katy Perry’s appearance at the 57th Grammy Awards and the Broadway show “Spider-Man, Turn off the Dark,” and worked on the creative team of TV’s “America’s Got Talent.”
“It’s not black and white, nor is this piece I’m creating,” she said in a YouTube video about “Eudaemonia,” which explores the theme of the universal search for happiness and features an eclectic music selection – Nick Cave, Jimmy Durante, Chronomad, Diana Kazakova and David Darling. Barton’s husband, Jeremy Jurin, designed the soundtrack, which also incorporates ambient elements like their children talking.
The work was created specifically for the Aspen Santa Fe Ballet, said the company’s artistic director, Tom Mossbrucker, who added that it’s more uplifting than a lot of new dance compositions. “It’s just so great. I just love it. When we work with these contemporary choreographers, many of them produce a very dark and serious ballet … with very little color and dark, dark lighting,” he stated.
In the playful “Huma Rojo,” the dancers are dressed all in eye-popping red. Based in part on Latin American social dances, with undercurrents of classical technique, it’s named for the central character in the Spanish film “All about My Mother,” and set to a medley of Latin retro beat songs by Ray Barretto, Nat King Cole, Xavier Cugat and His Orchestra, Abbe Lane, and Perez Prado and His Orchestra.
As for the somber, fluid, meditative “Silent Ghost,” which has an electric guitar-oriented soundtrack, Mossbrucker said: “Alejandro Cerrudo, he’s a real enigma. I don’t know where his inspiration comes from. It’s like looking at an abstract painting. He manages to create such an atmosphere. It really does leave something with you.”
In addition to the six performances, the company will conduct outreach activities: a Student Discovery Matinee at 10:30 a.m. May 5, a master class at 1 p.m. May 5 and post-performance chats after the Thursday 7:30 p.m. and Saturday 2 p.m. performances. “We do that (type of thing) quite often,” Mossbrucker commented.
Founded in Aspen, Colo. in 1996, the company forged a dual relationship with Santa Fe, NM in 2000, diversifying and broadening its scope.
“We felt an affinity with the audience (in Santa Fe) and something felt right about it,” said Mossbrucker.
Besides dancing nationwide, they’ve toured Brazil, Canada, France, Greece, Guatemala, Israel, Italy and Russia.
