Colorado Ballet’s third ‘Attitude on Santa Fe’

Fernanda Oliveira and Domenico Luciano rehearse choreography by Yosvani RamosColorado Ballet’s Attitude on Santa Fe production will feature four ballets choreographed and performed by Colorado Ballet dancers on September 8 and 9 in the Black Box Theater at the Armstrong Center for Dance, located at 1075 Santa Fe Drive in Denver. 

 

The September 8th Attitude will feature the premier performance and the September 9th Attitude will include a catered three-course meal and wine prior to the performance. Principal Dancers Domenico Luciano and Yosvani Ramos and Corps de Ballet Dancers Arianna Ciccarelli and Kevin Hale are creating the works for Attitude on Santa Fe.

 

“We are now in our third season of Attitude on Santa Fe productions in our Black Box Theater,” said Colorado Ballet Artistic Director Gil Boggs. “Every single Attitude performance has sold out and our audiences have enjoyed new or restaged works created and performed by our extremely talented dancers.”

 

“We are thrilled to give our dancers the opportunity to present their own works because it encourages creativity and showcases emerging choreographers,” he continued. “Plus, it gives our dancers additional opportunities to perform in an intimate setting with patrons who want to see new and innovative works.”

 

Domenico Luciano’s new ballet will feature a soundtrack by Michael Jones, who is rearranging the classical piece Andante by Dmitri Shostakovich. He’s added sound effects and a five-minute soundscape tailored to Luciano’s choreography. The 10-minute work will feature five dancers exploring the equality of gender. Luciano said that this ballet will be very different from the previous two pieces he has choreographed for Attitude on Santa Fe.

 

Luciano said, “Male and female dancers will be dressed the same, dance the same phrase, have the same movement vocabulary, and most likely partner same gender in a duet. This will be very contemporary movement, low to the ground, abstract, not really focusing on lines and aesthetic but enhancing the physicality of the dancers.”

 

Yosvani Ramos first created his ballet Steps in the Night in 2000 for the English National Ballet’s Choreographic Workshop. The ballet will feature five female dancers and two male dancers to the first two movements of Beethoven’s 7th Symphony.

 

“I have always wanted to do the whole 7th Symphony, which is in four movements, so the year after in 2001, I choreographed the second moment,” said Ramos. “It’s neoclassical with strong classical language and a lot of off-the-leg partnering and lifts. It has a sexy feeling to it.”

 

Arianna Ciccarelli’s new ballet is a contemporary piece called What Could Have Been; An Unfinished Symphony. Ciccarelli said that she wanted to step out of her comfort zone and explore a different side of dance by choreographing a contemporary work first time. The ballet features two pieces of music: one is a four-minute piano piece composed by Wesley Harper, a friend of Ciccarelli’s; the second and last piece of music is Knee Play 4 composed by Philip Glass.

 

“Even though there is no formal story line, I think that we all find/use a part of our lives to relate to the movement,” said Ciccarelli. “I am very excited to share my experience of choreographing with my co-workers and of course with the audience!”

 

Kevin Hale’s new untitled work will feature eight dancers and is set to the music of Radiohead from their album “A Moon Shaped Pool.” According to Hale, “the ballet centers around a robot that is turned on for the first time and is learning everything quickly.” The robot quickly realizes more about life than it should.

 

“When dropped with all the other robots, they start to have feelings and subsequently their glitches start to appear,” said Hale.

 

The doors will open at 7 p.m. on September 8 and the performance begins at 7:30 p.m. On September 9, cocktails begin at 5 p.m., dinner begins at 6 p.m. and the performance starts at 7:30 p.m. The cost for the September 8th performance is $30 and the cost for the September 9th dinner and performance is $85. Seating is limited. To register, visit www.coloradoballet.org/events

 

Colorado Ballet plans to host another Attitude on Santa Fe with different works in February 2018.

 

Photo: Colorado Ballet dancers Fernanda Oliveira and Domenico Luciano rehearse choreography by Yosvani Ramos. Photo by Kendra Harris.