Tag Archives: Ballet 5:8

Minority-led ballet company Ballet 5:8 to present BareFace dance production in Grand Rapids Oct. 7

September 18, 20233-bottom, Citizen Journalism, Entertainment, Upcoming Events, West MichiganBallet 5:8, BareFace, dance, Grand RapidsDeborah Reed

Ballet 5:8 will present the dance production *BareFace* at the DeVos Center for Arts and Worship during Hispanic Heritage Month (Courtesy, Ballet 5:8)

By WKTV Staff

deborah@wktv.org

BareFace is a fresh and enthralling dance production that delves deep into thought-provoking themes and evocative storytelling.

Ballet 5:8, a female and minority-led Chicago ballet company, will present BareFace at the DeVos Center for Arts and Worship during Hispanic Heritage Month on Oct. 7 at 7:00 p.m.

The complexities of human existence

Inspired by the ancient myth of Cupid and Psyche, choreographer Julianna Rubio Slager tells a female-driven, utterly compelling story of love, jealousy, and a case against the gods.

Rubio Slager’s choreography portrays the power of human connection and relationships (Courtesy, Ballet 5:8)

The dancers embody the complexities of human existence, peeling away societal expectations to confront their true selves. Through Rubio Slager’s innovative choreography, the journey of self-discovery unfolds on stage, inviting audiences to reflect on their own identities and the masks they wear.

The power of human connection and relationships takes center stage in BareFace. Just as Cupid and Psyche longed for each other, the dancers’ movements intertwine and interact, portraying the intricacies of love, longing, and the universal desire for connection.

“With technical precision and graceful beauty,” writes Kathy D. Hey from Third Coast Review, “the talented artists of Ballet 5:8’s dance company convey a range of emotions, from moments of grief and longing to lighter moments of comedy.”

A captivating story that embraces the transformative power of vulnerability and authenticity, BareFace challenges us to confront our own masks and delve into the rawness of our emotions. Set in the Grecian fairytale world of Glome, the production captivates with its cinematic storytelling, sweeping stage pictures, and gliding sets.

A lasting impact

BareFace showcases Rubio Slager’s choreography that, as described by D’onminique Boyd-Riley from See Chicago Dance, “Flows like chimes, leaving an enduring impact long after the wind has passed. The performance is nothing short of phenomenal.”

Dancers rehearse a previous Ballet 5:8 production. (Courtesy, Ballet 5:8)

The athletic prowess of Ballet 5:8’s dance artists, along with the work of costume designer Lorianne Robertson, scenic designers Sarah L. Freeman and Graham Louthan, and projections by Sarah L. Freeman and Julianna Rubio Slager, bring this full-length story ballet to life.

Artistic Director, Co-Founder and Chicano Resident Choreographer Julianna Rubio Slager co-founded Ballet 5:8 in 2012. She is known for engaging audiences in discussions of life and faith through exquisite choreography, and for empowering minority women to command space in the professional ballet scene.

Since its founding in 2012, Ballet 5:8 has presented more than 45 critically acclaimed ballets, engaging and captivating communities in Chicago, the Midwest and across the nation.

For more information about Ballet 5:8, visit Ballet58.org and connect on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and YouTube.

Ticket pricing and links

Tiered single tickets are available ranging from $15 to $45 based on seating and available online at: https://www.ballet58.org/calendar/bareface-gr. Specific children, student and senior ticket prices are available. For groups of 10 or more adults, patrons can use the code: B58GROUP to redeem $5 off each ticket.

Snapshots: Wyoming, Kentwood news you ought to know — weekend edition

October 4, 20193-bottom, Citizen Journalism, City of WyomingBallet 5:8, Grand Rapids Symphony, Olga Kern, Snapshots, Victoria Mullen, Willard WigandJoanne

By WKTV Staff

victoria@wktv.org

Quote of the Day

“Creativity takes courage.”

Henri Matisse

Tickling those ivories

Russian-born pianist Olga Kern was the first woman in 30 years to win the Gold Medal at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition. She performs with the Grand Rapids Symphony Oct. 4-5. Story here.

Right en pointe

A scene from rehearsals of Ballet 5:8’s “Butterfly”. (Supplied/Ballet 5:8)

Ballet 5:8, the Chicago-based dance company known for providing audiences with “a unique opportunity to engage in conversation on relevant life and faith topics addressed in the company’s repertoire”, will return to Grand Rapids Oct. 5 with a program both emotionally heavy and delightfully spiritual. At the DeVos Center for Arts and Worship on Saturday, Oct. 5, starting at 7pm. Go here for more info.

Got leaves? Go here.

Beginning Oct. 5, the City of Kentwood will again offer its brush and leaf drop-off sites at the Kentwood Department of Public Works, located at 5068 Breton Ave. SE. The sites will run concurrently from Saturday, Oct. 5, through Saturday, Dec. 7, with open hours from noon to 8pm, Mondays through Saturdays, and noon to 6pm on Sundays. Here’s the info.

Fun fact:

A new trip for Alice

Mad Hatters Tea Party in the eye of a needle by Willard Wigand

Willard Wigand makes these teeny-tiny sculptures — so itty-bitty, in fact, that he uses a microscope to create them. Wigand enters a meditative state, slows his heartbeat and sculpts between pulses. And holds his breath, apparently — one time he inhaled Alice from an Alice in Woodland tableau he was working on inside the eye of a needle.

Ballet 5:8 returns to Grand Rapids with powerful new work focused on Holocaust

September 26, 2019Entertainment, Local Entertainment, Reviews, Upcoming EventsBallet 5:8, WKTVJoanne

By K.D. Norris
ken@wktv.org

The three works including the world premieres of “Butterfly”, which evokes the emotional scenes of the World War 2 Terezin ghetto, but also “Brothers and Sisters”, which explores the “Creator’s handiwork — the simple beauty of male and female.”

The show, held at the Devos Center for Arts and Worship on Saturday, Oct. 5, starting at 7 p.m., will include both artistic director Julianna Rubio Slager’s newest works as well an older work, Slager’s “Meditations”, inspired by C.S. Lewis’ essay “Meditation in a Toolshed”.

(Last season Ballet 5:8 also held a world premiere last year in Grand Rapids; read the review here).

“Butterfly”, according to supplied material, explores the Holocaust tragedy of Terezin, “where residents created masterful works of art in defiance of their oppressors … where, from the ashes of this hellscape, glimmers of hope emerge.”

Terezin, according to the website terezin.org, was a concentration camp 30 miles north of Prague in the Czech Republic during the World War II. It was originally a holiday resort reserved for Czech nobility.

“By 1940 Nazi Germany had assigned the Gestapo to turn Terezín into a Jewish ghetto and concentration camp,” the website’s history page states. “It held primarily Jews from Czechoslovakia, as well as tens of thousands of Jews deported chiefly from Germany and Austria, as well as hundreds from the Netherlands and Denmark. More than 150,000 Jews were sent there, including 15,000 children, and held there for months or years, before being sent by rail transports to their deaths at Treblinka and Auschwitz extermination camps in occupied Poland, as well as to smaller camps elsewhere. Less than 150 children survived.”

The Ballet 5:8 work tells the story of a Jewish art teacher refused to let the children die without hope. “She challenged her students to create art that spoke of their misery but also of the hope that lies within,” according to supplied material. “Every human, male or female, desirable or marginalized, born of privilege or born of poverty, each one is precious and created with purpose.”

“The remnants of art from the nearly forgotten children of Terezin challenge us to look with clear eyes upon our potential for both evil and beauty,” Slager said in supplied material.

A scene from a previous performance of Ballet 5:8’s “Meditations”. (Supplied/Ballet 5:8)

“Brothers & Sisters” is described in supplied material this way: “We are living in an age of culture war over gender identity and ethics. In ‘Brothers & Sisters’, choreographer Julianna Rubio Slager takes a moment to step aside from the chaos and strife to revel in the Creator’s handiwork — the simple beauty of male and female. Contrast and subtlety. Difference and similarity. Overlap and distinction. The Creator must have moved with delight as he drew his children with contrasting and complementary strokes.”

The Devos Center for Arts and Worship, at Grand Rapids Christian High School, is located at 2300 Plymouth Ave SE, Grand Rapids. The performance includes a post-performance Q&A with Slager and artists from the cast. Tickets are $25 for adults, $22 for students and seniors, and $15 for children ages 12 and under. Tickets can be purchased at ballet58.org or by calling 312-725-4752. Performance information is available at ballet58.org/Grand-Rapids.

Review: Ballet 5:8’s latest Grand Rapids dance premiere does not disappoint

October 11, 2018Entertainment, ReviewsBallet 5:8, The Space in BetweenJoanne

“The Space in Between” by Ballet 5:8. (Supplied)

By K.D. Norris

ken@wktv.org

60-second Review

Ballet 5:8 premiere of “The Space in Between”, with “Four Seasons of the Soul”, Oct. 6, at Richard and Helen Devos Center for Arts & Worship, Grand Rapids, Mi.

The return of the Chicago-based Ballet 5:8 to Grand Rapids Christian High School’s DeVos Center for the Arts and Worship not only reinforced the modern ballet troupe’s technical prowess but also artistic director/choreographer Julianna Rubio Slager and dancer/costumer designer Lorianne Barclay’s bold ability to create emotional stage production’s that also carry moral and religious meaning.

With the world premiere of “The Space in Between” on Oct. 6, Slager successfully uses the full strength of her dancers — especially soloists Stephanie Joe, Brette Benedict, Lorianne Barclay and Antonio Rosario — as well as the thematic power of C.S. Lewis’ story “The Great Divorce” and the mesmerizing music of Phillip Glass.

The simplified storyline has lead dancers/story characters Frank and Sarah (Barclay and Sam Opsal), along with the narrator (Joe), traveling by bus and more otherworldly means to a place between heaven and hell. The section titles explain the journey as well as is possible: “Grey Town”, “Valley of the Shadow of Life” and “Heaven”.

While the program text went into great detail of the original and adapted storyline, and some in the audience may have needed it, the inner and worldly battles between good and evil were clear from the stage, via the solo and ensemble dances, even without additional explanation.

The journey on which the lead and supporting dancers take the audience on via “The Space in Between” also make clear that Slager and Barclay are not afraid to give lead dancers extensive starring rolls and not afraid to bring classic ballet dance into the modern world with very modish costume and music.

As far as Slager’s use of stage effects with her dancers, the moodiness of lighting and produced fog significantly adds to the overall affect, while a couple appearance of props representing the bus in question are less so.

But I quibble.

“The Space in Between” not only was a thing of thoughtful beauty but a powerful addition to Slager and Ballet 5:8’s catalogue. And we look forward to their continued annual visit to West Michigan.

May I have more, please?

The opening work of Ballet 5:8’s program was an older work by Slager, “Four Seasons of the Soul”, a work which should not be under-appreciated or under-performed.

The work, originally from 2014, takes inspiration from Biblical passage Ecclesiastes 3:1-11 — “… He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the who scope of God’s work from beginning to end.”

The Four Seasons of the Soul, by Ballet 5:8. (Supplied)

Slager’s choreography though the seasons is admirable, as was the unique costume design of Barclay — especially almost hypnotic sun-yellow attire in Summer — and the reworked music of Vivaldi’s “The Four Seasons” by Max Richter, with the high-point being the on-stage dance union of Benedict and Rosario in Summer and Joe’s solo in Fall.

For more information visit ballet58.org .

Chicago’s Ballet 5:8 returns to Grand Rapids with re-imaging of C.S. Lewis’ work

September 25, 2018Entertainment, Local Entertainment, Upcoming EventsBallet 5:8, Emily Ratkos, Grand Rapids Christian High, Julianna Rubio SlagerJoanne

By K.D. Norris

ken@wktv.org

Those who attended the Chicago-based Ballet 5:8 in performance last year at Grand Rapids Christian High School’s DeVos Center for the Arts and Worship probably wished the group visited more often.

Those who didn’t attend will get a chance to see what they missed and what they can now look forward to in the future as on Saturday, Oct. 6, the group returns to the venue with the world premier of “The Space in Between”.

Ballet 5:8 artistic director Julianna Rubio Slager’s newest work draws inspiration from “The Great Divorce” by C.S. Lewis, using Ballet 5:8’s subtle blend of religious storytelling and cutting-edge dance to “explore the nature of eternity and the joy found on its shores,” according to supplied material.

Among the Ballet 5:8 dancers set to perform in Grand Rapids is company artist Emily Ratkos, an alumna of the Grand Rapids Ballet School. Ratkos moved to Grand Rapids at the age of 16 to train under Attila Mosolygo before joining Ballet 5:8 as a trainee in 2016. She joined Ballet 5:8 as an apprentice in 2017 and was promoted to company artist this year.

Now in its 7th season of performance, the dance group also premiered a new work last season: “Compass: Navigating Cultural Tension with Compassion”. Ballet 5:8 tours nationally each season to provide audiences with “a unique opportunity to engage in conversation on relevant life and faith topics addressed in the company’s repertoire.”

In their home of Chicago, Kristi Licera of Dancermusic.com called Ballet 5:8’s “Compass” work as “an evening of inspired choreography and thought-provoking performance,” and Kristian Jamie of San Antonio’s March Magazine called Ballet 5:8’s Scarlet an “effortless” adaptation of classic literature through a combination of film, spoken word and ballet.

In New York City, Pilar Garcia, mime coach at Gelsey Kirkland Ballet and Academy, said that, in “Compass”, Slager “deftly weaves the emotional questions that live on after such hard choices are made no matter the reasons.”

WKTV reviewed the local performance of ‘Compass’ as well

Ballet 5:8’s two-act program at Grand Rapids pairs the world premiere of “The Space in Between” and a re-creation of a Ballet 5:8’s signature work, “Four Seasons of the Soul”.

Slager, talking in supplied information about “The Great Divorce” by C.S. Lewis, calls it “a timeless and timely work of literature that deserves a fresh, 21st century revisiting.” The work “invites audiences into a riveting story that begins in a grey town where the rain falls continuously, where a man stands at a bus stop on the brink of heaven and hell.” In Lewis’ work, hell is not a place where a vengeful God tortures his victims, but a place where, according to Lewis, “the gates are locked from the inside.”

Also featured in the program, “Four Seasons of the Soul”, explores how the turning of the seasons in nature parallels the recurring themes of human life — the innocence of youth, the zeal of adolescence, the celebrations and tragedies of adulthood, and the coming winter of life — all using Vivaldi’s “The Four Seasons”.

A single Grand Rapids performance will be held on Saturday, Oct. 6, at 7 p.m., at the Devos Center for Arts and Worship, 2300 Plymouth Avenue Southeast. There will be a post-performance discussion with Slager and troupe members on the performance. Tickets are $25 for adults, $20 for students and seniors, and $12 for children. Tickets can be purchased at ballet58.org or by calling 312-725-4752.

Additional performance information is available at ballet58.org/space-in-between and a video of the company at work is available here.

Review: Ballet 5:8’s emotion-filled ‘Compass’ opens season of modern dance options

October 30, 2017Entertainment, Local Entertainment, ReviewsAntonio Rosario, Ballet 5:8Joanne

Ballet 5:8’s Antonio Rosario, front, was a focal point whenever he was on stage for the group’s “Compass” program. (Supplied/Lana Kozol)

By K.D. Norris

ken@wktv.org

Ballet 5:8’s “Compass”, Oct. 28, at The Devos Center for Arts and Worship, Grand Rapids Christian High School, Grand Rapids, Mi.

60-second Review

This weekend’s visit of the Chicago-based Ballet 5:8 dance company, and its original modern ballet/dance program “Compass”, choreographed by Julianna Rubio Slager, offered a welcome addition to what is a quality if not-so-plentiful spectrum of modern dance opportunities in the Grand Rapids area.

The program of four one-act ballets, inspired by the challenges of personal navigation in a world of cultural tension and personal quandary, was consistent in its imaginative choreography by Slager — the troupe’s artistic director — as well as being accompanied by mostly well matched music and well danced by Ballet 5:8’s dancers.

Special note should be given to the on-stage presence and prowess of solo dancers Stephanie Joe and especially Antonio Rosario — the pair were perfect together in the second movement/Culture 4 segment of “All God’s Children”, the opening of the four one-act ballets. But Rosario’s stage power and personality was a focal point whenever he was on stage.

The most memorable — and emotional — of the one-acts, however, was the sparse, incredibly emotional “The Mother”, and the dancing perfection of lead dancer Lorianne Barclay. Based on an interpretation of a poem by Pulitzer Prize author (and Chicagoian) Gwendolyn Brooks, the dance — where in Barclay’s channelling of Brooks’s lament of “the abortion of decades past” is both raw and sadly tender but also hints (to me) at the ultimate acceptance of one’s life decisions and the consequences of those decisions.

The dance company’s mission, according to the program, is to engage in a “conversation of life and faith” through dance. And “Compass” did that very well, and with out being too preachy.

For more information about Ballet 5:8 visit ballet58.org.

May I have more, please?

As I said, the visit by Ballet 5:8 was a beginning and a welcome addition to the area’s fall/winter modern dance offerings.

Next up is Grand Valley State University’s modern dance offering, part of its Fall Arts Celebration, as Aerial Dance Chicago presents a free program, “Celebrating Originality: Defying Gravity with Aerial Dance Chicago”, on Monday, Nov. 6, at 7:30 p.m., in Louis Armstrong Theatre on the Allendale Campus.

The annual visit by a professional dance company is always worth the time and the short drive west.

And also worth the effort is the GVSU Fall Senior Dance Concert, scheduled for Dec. 9, at 7 p.m., and Dec. 10, at 2 p.m., at the Dance Studio Theatre, also on the Allendale Campus. The dance program, all choreographed and danced by students, is free.

For more information GVSU’s entertainment programs visit gvsu.edu/mtd.

The high-point of the modern dance season, of course, the annual presentation of the Grand Rapid’s Ballet’s Movemedia program, this season offering a series titled “Movemedia: Diversity” and presented on Feb. 9-11, 2018 (Movemedia I) and on March 23-25, 2018 (Movemedia II), both at the ballet’s Peter Martin Wege Theatre.

The program, according to the Grand Rapid Ballet’s website, includes “world-premiere works by some of today’s most important and influential choreographers.”

If past performance(s) is any indication of future expectations, I can’t wait to see what hits the stage early next year.

For more information on the Grand Rapids Ballet visit grballet.org.

Chicago dance company presents timely program focused on cultural diversity

October 23, 2017EntertainmentBallet 5:8, DeVos Center for Arts and WorshipJoanne

By K.D. Norris

ken@wktv.org

In a time of national need to navigate the sometimes-turbulent currents of cultural diversity issues, and the tension such debate and differences can lead to, a local dance program will attempt to provide a compass over the troubled waters.

The Chicago-based Ballet 5:8 dance company will make its Grand Rapids area debut this week with a program titled “Compass”, four one-act ballets inspired by the challenges of navigating cultural tension, Saturday, Oct. 28, at the Devos Center for Arts and Worship.

Ballet 5:8, now in its sixth performance season, has performed in Jackson for the past four seasons. Ballet 5:8’s mission, according to supplied material, is “shaped by a desire to engage audiences in meaningful discussion through innovative storytelling and the beauty and power of professional dance.”

The four “Compass” dances, according to supplied material, will approach the issue in different ways — “From an alien society to 1970’s Chicago, Compass stretches across time and space to explore some of our country’s most pressing topics. At times witty and satirical, and at times deeply emotional, Compass is full of athleticism, power and poetry.”

The four original ballets in the Compass program include works inspired by poems authored by African-American abolitionist and women’s rights activist, Sojourner Truth, and Pulitzer Prize author and Chicagoan, Gwendolyn Brooks.

Among the Ballet 5:8 dancers performing in Grand Rapids is company apprentice Emily Ratkos, a Michigan native who in her first season with the company. A recent graduate of Ballet 5:8’s Trainee Program, Emily moved to Grand Rapids at the age of 16 to train with the Grand Rapids Ballet School under Attila Mosolygo before joining Ballet 5:8 as a trainee in 2016.

A single performance of “Compass” will hit the stage at 7 p.m. The Devos Center for Arts and Worship is located at 2300 Plymouth Ave. SE. Tickets are $25 for adults, $20 for students and seniors, and $15 for children. Tickets can be purchased at ballet58.org or by calling 312-725-4752.

After the performance, audience members are invited to stay for a Ballet 5:8 tradition, the Talk Back. During this panel discussion, Ballet 5:8 Artistic Director Julianna Slager and artists of the company discuss questions, comments and feedback on the performance with audience members.