BM 2.0 was a blast!
Celebrating their 20 years in the entertainment and education industry, Ballet Manila (BM) has truly made it an event of dance wonder and delight. Performing at the Aliw Theater last February 28 (8:00PM) and on March 1 (3:00PM), dance lovers will truly enjoy the dance pieces prepared by the company. What started as a dream of 12 dancers is now a company that is geared to bring ballet to the people and the people to the ballet.
Artistic director Lisa Macuja-Elizalde and Co-Artistic Director Osias Barroso, along with the original 10 founding members of BM, are truly proud of where the company is right now. From simple humble beginnings, with no space to call their own studio, Ballet Manila is now known for their ballet style and constant creation of dance pieces using local tunes (original Filipino music).
February 28, for me was a day of first'. It was my first time to see a full Ballet Manila production and step inside the Aliw Theater! And I was not disappointed!
All the dance pieces were a spectacle to behold!
The dancers were so in-synch with one another that they are all moving as one unit. They all have space sensitivity that they know their spot and the spot of their co-dancer. Their extensions were so rightly made that even if they are a group of four on stage, they all look as one in terms of form and silhouette. The sensitivity that I mentioned was also displayed when the male dancers created a wave of a sort and the jumps that they executed. Despite the height difference of the dancers, the wave action was so fluid that they know how to adjust and be part of the said movement. There was no competition shown when dancing because when they jump, the height was of all the same level showing their oneness as a dance unit.
Despite being a company that has a big number of male dancers, the pieces that was shown was a balance of both female and male dancers strength and techniques. From Paquita till After the Rain, the dances were truly a wonder to watch due to the sharpness and smartness of their execution. Tara Let's is a dance piece of pure fun! It is Filipino music set in contemporary ballet moves guided by a strong Vaganova ballet style. With the beat of the song and the sure fun seen on the face of the dancers, you will truly enjoy it and if given the chance, you will truly dance on your seats too. Bloom, is a dance piece created for an Asian dance company by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa - an international choreographer based out of Amsterdam, Netherlands, is a spectacle to say the least! For me, this dance piece is a story within a story - a wonderful story of love and dreams.
As a former dancer and now a blogger, I truly enjoyed watching this company perform. The precision that they show is truly a sign of the discipline that BM gives to all their dancers. Not that other companies doesn't instill discipline, but the oneness of form is a sure sign of one dance style mastery or roots for that matter. When dancing as a group, I believe that you have to be one single unit in terms of moves, looks and beat (or in the local tongue, what we call "pitik"). And Ballet Manila has that and has shown it!
Too bad I wasn't able to get any performance pictures since I was just a guest of a guest. Despite that fact, it was an experience worth having. Thank you #BalletManila! Thank you fellow bloggers for extending the invite (Orly Agawin, Axl Guinto and Erickson Dela Cruz)!
Ang saya-sayang manuod ng mga sayaw na gawa ng Ballet Manila! (It sure is a joy to watch dance pieces made by Ballet Manila!)
Let me just share some of the pics that I was able to shoot during the curtain call.
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