On the rare occasions when I attend the ballet, the experience has been lovely - lovely the way a bouquet of flowers is. The experience however has never been memorable, and I never really relate to and chat about the ballet the way I do for plays, musicals and other art forms.
Last spring as I walked passed Lincoln Center on my way to the UWS to shop or engage in some other task, I noticed the New York City Ballet posters for The Seven Deadly Sins. In particular, I noticed that Broadway actress and singer Patti LuPone's was listed as a guest artist. Distracted however, I never got around to researching the piece, the performances ended and life went on.
Luckily, this weekend, The Seven Deadly Sins returns and is playing at the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center along with Vienna Waltzes and another piece which varies depending on the performance. Broadway and waltzes - the ballet really could not get any more accessible for me. So, I purchased tickets and headed to Lincoln Center earlier tonight to watch the following program:
Allegro Brillante
The Seven Deadly Sins (Music by Kurt Weill; Text by Bertolt)
Vienna Waltzes
The Seven Deadly Sins is "an ironic morality play" about a woman Anna who is split into two individuals - one is a singer (Ms. LuPone) and one is a dancer (Wendy Whelan); Anna goes on a journey to make money and encounters sloth, pride, anger, gluttony, lust, greed and envy along the way. Overall, the cabaret style piece written in 1933 in Germany did not resonate with me and while it was set in America, it seemed loss in translation.
Lucky for me, the best part of the program was yet to come. I found Vienna Waltzes to be exquisite. It reminded me of the few short days I spent in Vienna several years ago. No less than 20 coupled dancers - women in satin white gowns, men in tuxedos - gliding...no floating on the stage of the David H. Koch Theater against a mirrored backdrop. What a thing of beauty. Absolutely wonderful!!
So, am I ballet convert ready to purchase a subscription to the New York City Ballet?
Not quite. But I will be keeping my eyes open, and I know that I will be back soon.
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