When I think about the ballet, I think about the tutus, the
pointe shoes, and lots of leaps and pirouettes. My mind immediately pictures
The Nutcracker or Swan Lake. How about you?
When the Boston Ballet invited me to attend their spring
show, Shades of Sound, I said yes immediately because I knew it was going to be
something very different from what I pictured ballet to be in my head. I’m
highly intrigued with ballet programs that are more modern or are different
from the classic ballets we know like The Nutcracker and Swan Lake.
Shades of Sound will put you in awe of the sheer
athleticism, power, control, and raw beauty of ballet with an unexpected final
work that will leave you cheering in laughter. Shades of Sound is made up of
three different works – Chroma, Episodes, and Black Cake.
Shades of Sound opens up with Chroma, which has music arrangements
by Jack White from the White Stripes! Unexpected, right? Don’t forget to look
up in the balconies near the stage as well. Chroma has some amazing
choreography that will keep you on your toes.
Episodes and Black Cake were definitely my favorites from
Shades of Sound. Both Chroma and Episodes amazed me as each dancer showed the strength,
control, and power that our bodies could possess. These were some amazing shots
that my friend and fellow blogger, Leah Klein from www.leahslife.com took during the dress
rehearsal of Shades of Sound:
I was utterly mesmerized by each of the dancers and I loved
the look of the clean ballet uniforms.
The evening ended with Black Cake, which was humorous and
unexpected for what you might think a ballet work would be like. It was
thoroughly enjoyable and I definitely did not want it to end.
Whether you are a consummate ballet attendee or not, Shades
of Sound is not to be missed. I definitely left with such a greater
appreciation for the art and athleticism that is ballet.
Boston Ballet’s Shades of Sound runs until Sunday, March 29th
and tickets begin at just $29. There is a special post-performance chat with
Mikko Nissinen on Thursday, March 26th after the 7:30 performance. For more
information and tickets, visit www.bostonballet.org.
Also, my friend Leah wrote a beautiful post about Chroma
and about Episodes
– they both capture the two works with her amazing personal experiences and knowledge
of ballet. Please go read them, and then go get your tickets to watch Shades of
Sound for yourself!
Many thanks to Leah Klein for her beautiful photos and also to the Boston Ballet for giving me a pair of tickets to Shades of Sound. All opinions expressed here are my own.