Page 6-Wednesday, June 3, 1981-The Michigan Daily Charms of A2 Ballet Theatre 4 By ELLEN RIESER Saturday night at the Michigan Theatre, Ann Arbor Ballet Theatre preaented a program compoaed ofa story ballet and five miniaturea. The performance, which was the second in the life of Ann Arbor's newest ballet troupe, showed how far the company has improved since its premiere per formance last December. Some rough edges still show, but in general the company is performing up to fully professional standards. "Nightingale," set to the music of Igor Stravinsky and choreographed by Carol Scharp, was the first ballet of the evening. Based on the famous fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen, the ballet tells the story of a simple fores nightingale that saves the life of the emperor of China. The Ann Arbor Ballet Theatre gave a completely charming performance of this ballet. The backdrops were splen did, the costumes were richly exotic - glistening with jewels and shiny silks Most importantly, the dancing was fully up to the calibre of the rest of the production. ALIDA SCHAT brought a sense of vyonder to 'the part of the bewildered nightingale who is captured and brought to sing for the emperor of al] China. Schat danced the difficult choreography for the nightingale well, smoothly sailing through numerous quick turns in attitude. Kristine Konz was delightful in the role of the mechanical jeweled bird. From her first appearance, in which she was carried across the stage by a courtier only to be plunked down un- ceremoniously, she made the produc- tion truly magical. Turned on, she wob- bled and jerked across the stage in well- oiled mechanical splendor. However, it was in the third and final scene of the ballet that the company really shone. As the emperor (Lindsay Henderson) lay deathly ill in his bed, a mist drifted, into his bed chamber followed by death and the spirits of avarice, vanity, gluttony, cruelty, and their companions. With their white makeup, frizzed hair, and dark costumes, the spirits made the most ghoulish collection of monstrosities ever seen in a ballet. Eventually, as ii any proper fairy tale, good in the form of t the nightingale triumphs over the evil represented by the spirits. The emperor is healed and the nightingale returns to the forest from whence she came. e"GYMNOPEDIE," which followed "Nightingale," proved to be the only weak point of the evening's program. f Set to the music of Eric Satie, with choreography by Carol Scharp, "Gym- nopedie" was a small ensemble piece for six female dancers. The ballet t began with the dancers lying on the stage using slow and flowing movements to emphasize the wave-like quality of the music itself. The choreography for "Gymnopedie" was f excellent, but the dancing, unfor- tunately, wasn't up to its challenge. The six members of the ensemble were frequently off in their timing and one ' member was conspicuously unsteady throughout. Set to the music of Scott Joplin (with choreography by Kathryn Scharp, Kristine Konz, and Carol Scharp) " Magnetic Rag" was a 1920s barroom vignette complete with flappers and a vamp. Lisa Wolf (as the vamp) bumped and grinded her way into the hearts and pockets of the men at the bar, much to the dismay of the other women present. The choreography was extremely in- ventive, including several souped-up ballroom dances and a pas de quatre for the-vamp and three admirers with wandering hands. After the campiness of "Magnetic Rag," the mood abruptly changed to "Opulence," a pas de deux set .to the music of David Munrow with choreography by Carol Scharp. James Przeslawski and Kathryn Scharp dan- ced this difficult ballet number which required that they hardly ever be apart as they danced. The lifts were especially daring. At one point, Scharp cartwheeled over Przeslawski's shoulders and into his arms. THE FIFTH'PIECE on the program was "Dying Swan," with music by Saint-Saens and choreography by Michael Fokine. One usually dreads seeing this old chestnut of the ballet world dragged out on stage for a per- formance by a small local ballet com- MICHIGAN REPERTORY Misalliance JUNE 3, 4, 5, 6, By George Bernard Shaw OPENS TONIGHT! POWER CENTER PTP Ticket Office, MI League M-F, Noon-4:30 p.m.-764-0450 Power Center Ticket Office opens at 6:00 p.m.-763-3333 0 Alida Schat delivered a stunning performance Saturday night as the title character of Ann Arbor Ballet Theatre's production of "Nightingale," featured along with five shorter works at the Michigan Theatre. 1:30-3:15-5:15- 7:30-9:151 THE BLUES BROTHERS Cheech & Chong glues Bro 1 1;155309:45 3007:15 L J'~' oil A UNIVERSAL PICTURE SHOWTIMS 1: 30,3:30 5:20, 7:30,9:30 pany. Nevertheless, Kristine Konz per- formed admirably in the role of the ill - fated swan. Konz's head and arm movements were good, her back was suitably supple. However, one would have liked to have seen slightly more clarity in her positions and more for- cefulness in her movements. - "Four Plus Two," with choreography by Carol Scharp, was the last work on the program. Set to four short pieces by Chopin, the ballet featured four couples, a different pair in each of its four movements. Amy Copperman and Thomas Ward danced their roles as the first couple extremely lyrically. The second movement of "Four Plus Two" was equally as romantic as the first, except that the boy (danced by James Przeslawski) spent half the variation futilely waiting for the girl (Kristine Konz) to take his proffered hand and make the variation a true pas de deux. Konz danced by him and around him, but - despite Mr. Pr- zeslawski's despairing looks - rarely danced with him. The last two movements of "Four Plus Two" continued in the romantic vein of the first pas de deux. The ballet was a bit of fluff that the dancers seemed to enjoy as much as the audien- ce. A final word should be said about one thing that really sets the performances by the Ann Arbor Ballet Theatre apart from those by other local dance com- panies: The music was live for four of the six works presented by the com- pany. This is unique in Ann Arbor where other dance companies regularly perform to taped music. Live music, however, makes a huge difference in the quality and enjoyability of a per- formance. Moreover, a ballet as delicate as "Dying Swan" seems tawdry when performed to a taped ac- companiment. While I am not sure that the company had to go as far as to place their harpist and violinist on stage for "Dying Swan" (this makes the musicians part of the ballet and thus detracts from the pathos of the dying swan), Ann Arbor Ballet Theatre is to be commended for their attempt to make their performance as professional as possible in every sense of the word. I I 0