Concert Review: Alice in Wonderland Ballet / February 29, 2020
This review appeared in the February 2020 Albuquerque Journal. Reprinted with kind permission.
by D.S. Crafts
Lewis Carrol’s Alice in Wonderland contains a treasure trove of mathematical puzzles, logical conundrums, even scientific experiments. But leaving all that aside, it’s still a ripping good story full of surrealistic adventures.
This year’s ballet from the New Mexico Philharmonic in collaboration with the New Mexico Ballet Company was a sensational production of the Alice story. I, for one, always look forward particularly to these events.
Both in conception and design this performance may have been the best of this series so far. Russian and Czech music was employed, excellent choices to illuminate the story. The choreography by Anna Sofia Bridge, with Amanda Rohr and Robbie Rodriguez, based on the 2016 choreography by Natalie Harris told the story in a manner both clear and imaginative and full of comic devices. David Felberg conducted the Philharmonic with his usual visceral enthusiasm.
But the star of the evening was clearly Amanda Rohr dancing the role of Alice. In virtually every scene of the ballet she appeared showing alternately a child’s naivete and an adult’s mature sensibilities, both graceful as well as characteristic in all her movement. A tour de force performance surely.
The performance began with Glazunov’s The Seasons “Autumn” used as an overture, the main theme returning several times throughout the evening.
The running theme from Prokofiev’s Classical symphony acted as a veritable motif for the White Rabbit who appears again and again leading the narrative, comically acted by Natalia Harrison.
Lyadov’s symphonic poem The Enchanted Lake (a work sadly under-programmed in orchestra concerts) perfectly expressed the mysterious mood of Alice washed into the sea after falling down the rabbit hole.
Beginning Act 2 Smetana’s “Polka” from The Bartered Bride provided an aggressively driving backdrop to the Madhatter (Kelly Ruggiero)/March Hare (Jaclyn Younger) scene.
Antonín Dvorák’s Carnival Overture brilliantly set the scene for the playing card episode replete with painter cards, courtiers and roses. Kira Petersen and Jason Olona danced the Queen and King of Hearts respectively. And who could ever forget the delightful hedgehogs used as croquet balls from youngsters Cici Benson and Syria Saxton.
Tracy Ritter-Golson danced the role of the Cheshire Cat with a mysterious sensuality to the slow movement of Prokofiev’s “Classical” Symphony.
In a spirit of inclusiveness, the production used both young performers in comic choruses up the scale to seasoned professionals such as Rohr and Rodriguez in the leading roles.
Costumes were nothing short of exquisite both in design and expressive color in front of highly inventive back projections serving as sets.
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