Joffrey Ballet
On opening night the audience was silently awestruck by the company’s profound beauty. Light Rain, the final dance (choreographed by cofounder Gerald Arpino in 1981), slowly mesmerized us with a pas de deux by Valerie Madonia and Daniel Baudendistel. It left me wondering how a group of dancers can lie on the stage, contract their torsos, and look like a puddle reflecting the streetlights as the rain bounces off. And it left me amazed at the strength, flexibility, and expressiveness of Madonia and Baudendistel, who seduce us without ever being overtly sexual.
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The Joffrey has always taken artistic risks. Even Billboards was a risk: though it’s bringing in audiences that don’t normally go to ballet, it’s a flop artistically. But the company can most likely handle the fact that the choreography flops. Like most dance troupes, they desperately need the money.
