Boston Ballet’s ‘Grand Slam’ not grand or diverse enough

Erin Washington

Boston Ballet is not known for its diversity and never seems to have more than a couple token performers of color. One would think including an African dance-influenced piece in their “Grand Slam,” complete with two African dance consultants, would up their status. Not a chance. There were moments of brilliance in Val Caniparoli’s “Lambarena,” with a mix of African, ballet and modern dance. But there was still something not quite right.

When one thinks of African dance, one generally thinks of dark, robust, healthy bodies. It was a little disjointing then to see thin white men and women perform. In fact it was a mostly white cast. Of the thirteen dancers for this piece, those of color included Lia Cirio of Springfield, PA, John Lam of Sacramento, CA, Jaime Diaz of Bogotá, Colombia and some light-skinned dancers from Cuba. Cross-cultural awareness is a great thing, but it didn’t get expressed correctly in this way. Authentic movements are more appreciated than adopting and re-choreographing native moves.

Nevertheless, the first number of “Lambarena” was a nice combination of African and European dance styles. It opened with three women on pointe, wearing bright-patterned long dresses. Immediately after, an exciting array of ballet turns alternated with African movements made the choreography seem promising. It soon became a bit repetitive, but with slight changes and traveling steps it was never boring. The music was a mix of African drums, choral singing and violins, complimented well by the choreography. At one point some of the male dancers jumped so high they seemed to float, while the women shook their hips and their long skirts while accentuating arms bent forming a basket shape.

Aside from the initial shock of a lack of dark-skinned dancers, the only negative aspects of this number were the men’s costumes. Their tops looked like mesh basketball jerseys, nothing one could imagine seeing as native garb in Africa. Some even wore bows to tie their long hair back, which was merely reminiscent of 18th century colonists.

Although the dancing was partially balletic, the scenery was fully African. Set with a minimalist backdrop and lighting of reds, yellows and black, parts of the piece invoked similarities to “The Lion King.” Projected on the backdrop was a silhouette of ragged fences. Principal dancer Carlos Molina of Cali, Colombia danced under a low sun, suggesting a walk through the jungle. Later there was a setting of dusk, and a tall, diagonally protruding mountain shape, reminiscent of the stampede scene in the Disney film.

The highlights of the piece weren’t the choreographic elements but in fact the beautiful dancing. After Molina’s solo, he was joined by Lam, Melissa Hough of Severn, MD and second soloist Kathleen Breen Combes of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. Molina still was featured, but the expressive Lam was more deserving of the role. In a duet with second soloist Joel Prouty of Phoenix, Ariz., Combes danced beautifully and captured attention. Prouty flew through the air with his lovely barrel turns and curved jumps, ending the number with a sensuous shimmy.

Perhaps the best dancer of the entire evening was Lorna Feijóo of Havana, Cuba. She always seemed happy and expressed the music wonderfully, her smile matching her sparkling earrings. In the earlier Mark Morris piece, the world premiere of “Up and Down,” she wore a purple cocktail dress (the rest were in black or brown) and danced a cute allegro summarizing the dance up to that point. Another dancer worth mentioning is principal Tai Jimenez of Jamaica, NY, who will perform in “Lambarena” for some shows. She only performed in the Morris piece on this night, but a memorable bit of choreography involved a male dancer who lifted her up, together forming a capital letter “y.” Two other men stood beside them, each forming their own “y” to create a diagonal tableau.

“Lambarena” originally premiered in 1995 and was performed by the San Francisco Ballet. It soon became an international sensation. Choreographer Caniparoli requested the assistance of West African dance teachers Zakariya Sao Diouf of Senegal and Naomi Washington Diouf of Liberia. The couple founded the Diamano Coura West African Dance Company in 1975. In order to ensure that the original choreography still showed through eleven years later, they taught African dance classes to Boston Ballet dancers for a week before rehearsals began.

“Only ballet dancers can perform the choreography because it’s solidly rooted in classical dance,” mentioned Caniparoli in “Playbill”. Perhaps that is the problem. The Boston Ballet performance was very balletic, and had strong African steps included in the choreography, but it didn’t really become a seamless fusion. If you can get past this, and simply appreciate the effort of a mesh of two cultures’ expression of movement, and the excellent execution of choreography, it is well worth it. On the other hand, the Afro Celt Sound System music has also been around for ten years. Perhaps then it is a better idea to wait for the Alvin Ailey Dance Company’s annual visit to see ballet and modern with African American flavor.

The performance reviewed took place March 16, and the cast changes from show to show. “Grand Slam” is running through March 26 at the Wang Theatre. Tickets are available from Telecharge by calling 800-447-7400 or by visiting www.telecharge.com.

(Above) Lorna Feijóo performs a stylized arabesque in “Lambarena.” (Below) Dancing in the first number of Boston Ballet’s “Lambarena,” Kathleen Breen Combes, poses in an elegant position showcasing her agility and grace. (Erik Tomasson photos)