Dancing with verve
Verve'08 St, Agatha's Auditorium The Dance Workshop presented its ninth annual dance production in Rabat on March 18 and 19. Entitled Verve '08, this was in part a children's ballet and in part a presentation of professional choreographies by the...
Verve'08 St, Agatha's Auditorium
The Dance Workshop presented its ninth annual dance production in Rabat on March 18 and 19. Entitled Verve '08, this was in part a children's ballet and in part a presentation of professional choreographies by the schools' established dancers.
The children's ballet was adapted from the Maltese legend L-Għarusa tal-Mosta. The costumes in this part of the show were very apt and together with the scenery and lighting an ideal atmosphere was created. The dance was such that the story was divided into four scenes which made the whole thing easier to follow for the audience. I found this part of the show very creative and what the younger girls lack in technique - solely due to their tender age - they made up in the fact that they recited a long choreography which must have been very hard work to discipline, especially for the tiny tots taking part.
The first scene showed the attack of the Turks on the villagers and the capture of the għarusa, played elegantly by Amy Smith. The għarus was played by Karl Cini who perhaps did not get much chance in this role to portray all he is capable of as a dancer. On the other hand, Keith Micallef, as the vizier, was impressive because his part allowed for his control of sharp movements and strength in dance technique to emerge. At only 14 years, he is a very promising candidate for the professional dance scene of years to come. One must say that Pamela Kerr stood out with her interpretation. Her points were perfect and her lines very natural and clean.
One of the scenes I enjoyed most was the ransom scene. Young girls dressed up in black dresses with gold coins imprinted on them interpreted the money and were actually lifted and passed on from the għarus to the vizier simulating the exchange of money. Besides the children rendering the scene adorable, the idea was very artistic indeed.
The second part of the performance, A night at the Opera, was a presentation of choreographies by teachers and senior students. Forests of Echoes was choreographed by Theresa Lungaro-Mifsud and was set against a backdrop of photos of the students dancing in fields. This idea for the backdrop persisted in each sequential choreography and came about after collaboration with photographer John Grech who, according to Ms Lungaro-Mifsud in her final speech, "probably attended more of the rehearsals than the student themselves in order to achieve such a result".
The choreography was set to a slow music by Richard Wagner and was a very demanding one. The fact that the music was not so upbeat reflected a technical choreography where the dancer was requested to use his or her sense of balance very precisely. This made it very easy for slight weaknesses to show in students but it also outlined their strength in most points of the dance.
The next piece was a Flamenco Spanish dance choreographed by Ms Kerr. It was a dance to the music of Manuel Falla, La Vida e Breve and was the combination of two groups of girls dancing with mantons and fans. The footwork was very basic but the manipulation of the manton (or shawl) made up for this. Pictures in Sepia was a very classical dance, also choreographed by Ms Lungaro-Mifsud. It was totally pure ballet with lots of point work, pliés, frappés and the works. Once again Keith Micallef was outstanding.
Inside the Voice, the contemporary dance choreographed by Francesca Abela Tranter, was also a highlight in the show. There was much team work because of the chaining steps and partnered work. The dancers combined flexibility with sharp lines, synchrony and miming. Rachel Grech and Ms Kerr complemented each other nicely in their partnering work. Ms Grech's contemporary choreography also had a strong element of creativity and was a perfect interpretation of the transmission of voice through movement. It was performed by Ms Kerr, Lisa Aquilina and Erika Bonnici. The finale was a medley of Queen hits choreographed by Claire Cassola and Jes Sciberras. It was mostly modern dance and robotic dancing where the costumes were an explosion of fun and the dancers the epitome of energy. The dance to Another One Bites the Dust was interpreted by a dancing troupe dressed in red PVC costumes complete with bathing cap and goggles. It's a Kind of Magic saw Diane Portelli as the star of the show. It all ended with Bohemian Rhapsody which was not only danced to by girls in pink and black punky gear but was accompanied by live singing courtesy of Karl Cini and Krista Paris.
The evening came to an end with an energetic curtain call and the dissemination of the school awards to the students. The Go Award was given to Lara Muscat. The Junior Associate Scholarships for ballet went to Emma Zammit, Stefanie Weenink and Suzannah Warrington, those for jazz and modern dance awards were won by Corinna Abela and Maria Petrocochino. Arianna Cutajar was awarded in Spanish dance.
The senior scholarships were awarded as follows: The Martha Graham Award for Modern and Contemporary Dance went to Kirsten Brincat; The Margot Fonteyn Award for Classical Ballet went to Christina Aquilina and The Principal's Award went to Keith Micallef.
The Dance Workshop presented its ninth annual dance production in Rabat on March 18 and 19. Entitled Verve '08, this was in part a children's ballet and in part a presentation of professional choreographies by the schools' established dancers.
The children's ballet was adapted from the Maltese legend L-Għarusa tal-Mosta. The costumes in this part of the show were very apt and together with the scenery and lighting an ideal atmosphere was created. The dance was such that the story was divided into four scenes which made the whole thing easier to follow for the audience. I found this part of the show very creative and what the younger girls lack in technique - solely due to their tender age - they made up in the fact that they recited a long choreography which must have been very hard work to discipline, especially for the tiny tots taking part.
The first scene showed the attack of the Turks on the villagers and the capture of the għarusa, played elegantly by Amy Smith. The għarus was played by Karl Cini who perhaps did not get much chance in this role to portray all he is capable of as a dancer. On the other hand, Keith Micallef, as the vizier, was impressive because his part allowed for his control of sharp movements and strength in dance technique to emerge. At only 14 years, he is a very promising candidate for the professional dance scene of years to come. One must say that Pamela Kerr stood out with her interpretation. Her points were perfect and her lines very natural and clean.
One of the scenes I enjoyed most was the ransom scene. Young girls dressed up in black dresses with gold coins imprinted on them interpreted the money and were actually lifted and passed on from the għarus to the vizier simulating the exchange of money. Besides the children rendering the scene adorable, the idea was very artistic indeed.
The second part of the performance, A night at the Opera, was a presentation of choreographies by teachers and senior students. Forests of Echoes was choreographed by Theresa Lungaro-Mifsud and was set against a backdrop of photos of the students dancing in fields. This idea for the backdrop persisted in each sequential choreography and came about after collaboration with photographer John Grech who, according to Ms Lungaro-Mifsud in her final speech, "probably attended more of the rehearsals than the student themselves in order to achieve such a result".
The choreography was set to a slow music by Richard Wagner and was a very demanding one. The fact that the music was not so upbeat reflected a technical choreography where the dancer was requested to use his or her sense of balance very precisely. This made it very easy for slight weaknesses to show in students but it also outlined their strength in most points of the dance.
The next piece was a Flamenco Spanish dance choreographed by Ms Kerr. It was a dance to the music of Manuel Falla, La Vida e Breve and was the combination of two groups of girls dancing with mantons and fans. The footwork was very basic but the manipulation of the manton (or shawl) made up for this. Pictures in Sepia was a very classical dance, also choreographed by Ms Lungaro-Mifsud. It was totally pure ballet with lots of point work, pliés, frappés and the works. Once again Keith Micallef was outstanding.
Inside the Voice, the contemporary dance choreographed by Francesca Abela Tranter, was also a highlight in the show. There was much team work because of the chaining steps and partnered work. The dancers combined flexibility with sharp lines, synchrony and miming. Rachel Grech and Ms Kerr complemented each other nicely in their partnering work. Ms Grech's contemporary choreography also had a strong element of creativity and was a perfect interpretation of the transmission of voice through movement. It was performed by Ms Kerr, Lisa Aquilina and Erika Bonnici. The finale was a medley of Queen hits choreographed by Claire Cassola and Jes Sciberras. It was mostly modern dance and robotic dancing where the costumes were an explosion of fun and the dancers the epitome of energy. The dance to Another One Bites the Dust was interpreted by a dancing troupe dressed in red PVC costumes complete with bathing cap and goggles. It's a Kind of Magic saw Diane Portelli as the star of the show. It all ended with Bohemian Rhapsody which was not only danced to by girls in pink and black punky gear but was accompanied by live singing courtesy of Karl Cini and Krista Paris.
The evening came to an end with an energetic curtain call and the dissemination of the school awards to the students. The Go Award was given to Lara Muscat. The Junior Associate Scholarships for ballet went to Emma Zammit, Stefanie Weenink and Suzannah Warrington, those for jazz and modern dance awards were won by Corinna Abela and Maria Petrocochino. Arianna Cutajar was awarded in Spanish dance.
The senior scholarships were awarded as follows: The Martha Graham Award for Modern and Contemporary Dance went to Kirsten Brincat; The Margot Fonteyn Award for Classical Ballet went to Christina Aquilina and The Principal's Award went to Keith Micallef.