James Sewell Ballet At The College Of Saint Benedict

James Sewell Ballet will perform, Sat., Feb. 10, at the Petters Auditorium, Benedicta Arts Center of the College of Saint Benedict, in St. Joseph, Minnesota. The performance will feature the area premieres of "Proprio" and "Turf," choreographed by James Sewell, and "Chair Bones," choreographed by Arturo Fernandez. A pre-performance talk by James Sewell Ballet staff will begin at 7:05pm, followed by a 7:30pm curtain.

"Proprio" is a rhythmic and structurally dense, abstract ballet. It draws its inspiration from Sewell's recent work on a project called PRIO that uses the physical process of multiple coordination to develop brain power to enhance learning and athletic performance. The costumes feature fiber lighting to create digital renderings of dancers in motion.

The creation of "Proprio" was supported by a 2006 Choo-San Goh Award for Choreography from the Choo-San Goh & H. Robert Magee Foundation.

The Minnesota Orchestra commissioned "Turf" for presentation at Orchestra Hall, Minneapolis, Sept. 20-23, 2006. Critics and audience members reacted strongly, pro and con, to the ballet's mature themes and images of violence, combat, and torture. Saint Paul Pioneer Press reviewer Rob Hubbard said the work "held tremendous power and had far more grace and beauty than you might imagine" and "was most rewarding when at its most discomfiting."

"Chair Bones" is a solo created originally for JSB Artistic Associate Sally Rousse by Fernandez, ballet master for LINES Contemporary Ballet in San Francisco. It will be danced by either Penelope Freeh or Brittany Fridenstine. -- www.jsballet.org

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Posted January 29th, 2007 by ruzik_tuzik