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Winnipeg Free Press

Thrilling tribute to 50-year ballet legacy

The Royal Winnipeg Ballet closed its 85th season with the poetry of angels Thursday night, as it celebrated the 50-year legacy of outgoing artistic director André Lewis. The internationally renowned leader and former principal dancer — who was accepted into the RWB School's professional division in 1975 — steps down from his 30-year tenure at the helm this month, with the opening night crowd witnessing the poignant end of an era as Lewis passes the baton to incoming director Christopher Stowell. The mixed repertoire production, which runs through Sunday, features a trio of contemporary ballets reflecting different facets of Lewis's career as well as the resilience of the company, able to bend and flex with changing tastes and times — not to mention surviving the global pandemic of 2020. Principal dancer Stephan Azulay with soloist Jaimi Deleau and RWB company dancers in Angels in the Architecture Stephan Azulay's Bolero is the first of those, originally staged during the RWB's annual choreographic showcase Fast Forward in March 2022, with the principal dancer reworking it for its mainstage debut. One of the roughly 16-minute work's most significant changes is now the incorporation of live music, with guest conductor David Briskin masterfully leading the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra through Ravel's enthralling Bolero. Inspired by farruca, a style of Spanish flamenco dance, and paying homage to Azulay's familial roots, the slow-burn ballet unfolds as 24 nattily clad dancers deliver a series of full and smaller ensemble sections in turn, punctuated by effective solos, duos and trios. The piece is at its best during its more visceral moments, including the dancers's loud grunts and shouts of 'Ha!' and 'Whee!' as they punch the air while performing the choreographer's grounded movement lexicon, contrasted by more playful sections. However, as the hypnotic music builds, propelled by its iconic, repeated rat-a-tat-tat snare drum, so too should the choreography, which paradoxically lost its own momentum towards the end. A few more enthralling lifts might have mitigated this overall sense of anticlimax, though the piece nonetheless garnered a roaring standing ovation from the crowd. It's been far too long since the RWB last performed the blazing Hikarizatto by Itzik Galili (who was in attendance); the highly intricate work was given its local première in May 2007. The dancers, wearing soft ballet slippers, morph into a living, breathing kaleidoscope under razor sharp shafts of light. The high-octane, 18-minute work accompanied by a recording of Netherlands-based percussion ensemble Percossa's driving, same-titled score, particularly showcases the fierce artistry of these committed dancers with its core couples (with alternating leads): Julianna Generoux/Azulay; and Maggie Weatherdon/Logan Savard highlighted throughout. A special mention goes to Savard — who wowed audiences as Dr. Henry Jekyll in Jekyll and Hyde in March — for his equally dazzling solo, in which he first shoots onstage like an arrow, as well as a later solo by departing soloist Michel Lavoie, soon to be packing his ballet slippers for Houston Ballet. Corps de ballet dancer Maggie Weatherdon in Hikarizatto A significant part of Lewis's legacy has been commissioning/performing a treasure trove of internationally acclaimed, Montreal-based choreographer and former RWB soloist Mark Godden's mesmerizing ballets, including: Going Home Star — Truth and Reconciliation; Dracula; Svengali; and The Magic Flute, now part of the company's very DNA ('Miroirs' will forever remain a favourite of this writer). Angels in the Architecture — inspired by American Christian sect the Shakers and based on Aaron Copland's Appalachian Spring — is part of that lineage. It's the program's oldest work, given its RWB world première just three years shy of 1995, when Lewis first assumed the reins as interim artistic director, thus adding a further grace note to the evening. The compelling ballet features an effective set design by Godden and his longtime collaborator Paul Daigle, the latter also creating flowing white skirts for the women and simple trousers and suspenders for the men. It teems with Godden's signature, highly theatrical choreographic style, juxtaposing classical ballet with more pedestrian influences, including angular, gestural movement, cocked wrists and fluttering, often flexed feet. Striking images and 'trompe-l'oeil' effects abound, including rustic corn brooms hung on upstage pegs being pushed by dancers to swing in the dark. One particularly magical moment sees the male dancers hoist wooden chairs onto their backs to become rocking chairs for the women. The moment when 1848 Shaker song Simple Gifts, more colloquially known as 'Tis a Gift to be Simple, begins to waft from the orchestra pit elicits chills. Weekly A weekly look at what's happening in Winnipeg's arts and entertainment scene. However, when the women billow their skirts like wings during the ballet's final moments as lights dim, one can't help but feel the presence of angels, creating a simple benediction for Lewis's inestimable service to this company he's given his heart and soul to for the last half-century. Corps de ballet dancer Maggie Weatherdon in Hikarizatto As expected, the full company of dancers — joined by an emotional Lewis, now taking the stage for his final curtain call — received another thunderous ovation by the appreciative crowd. Thank you, André, for 50 glorious years. You shall be missed.