A new set of Jaws chewed its way into the House of Balanchine last night. Debuting in the role of the all-powerful, seductively sinister Door in Variations Pour Une Porte et Un Soupir, Sara Mearns may have initially looked like she bit off a little more than she could chew, but she ended up gulping down this role whole.
For those who don’t get Haglund’s Jaws reference, it comes from the enormous black fabric attached to the Door that billows and morphs into various shapes until in the end it looks like the enormous dorsal fin of you-know-who. After 20 minutes of torturing, testing and bumping the Sigh to the sound of threatening creaks, screeching hinges and – dare we say – jack-hammering teeth, the Door’s billowing blackness washes over the Sigh like a big wave, and she swallows him whole, finally closing her arms over head more like a Venus flytrap clapping shut. The end. Period. Try going to sleep after that.
The Sigh, one of Daniel Ulbricht’s most masterful takes on a character (the other being Prodigal Son which we will see this week also), whines, pines and pleads for the Door’s attention. “I want IN!” he cries while pounding his fists in the air. He whimpers. He slides about the stage in frustration. He becomes exhausted only to rise again to try another tactic to get the Door to open. He’s got OCD like a mouse on a treadmill or a dog chasing its tail. He wants IN – or as Alfred Hitchcock might have suggested, perhaps he really wants OUT. Perhaps he wants the Door to open to let out a Sigh. This unique theater piece by Balanchine really needs to be performed more frequently than it has been. It teases the imagination like nothing else that he created.
The H.H. Pump Bump Award is bestowed upon Sara Mearns and Daniel Ulbricht for masterfully turning the stage into a Hitchcockian organism where we could delight in the horror instead of being repelled by it. We should remind everyone that Mearns’ I Married An Angel will be at NY City Center as part of the Encores Series. Seven performances will run from March 20 through March 24. Tickets here. And Ulbricht’s annual Dance Against Cancer Benefit is slated for April 22nd at Alice Tully Hall. Tickets here.
10 responses to “Hitchcock by Balanchine
Variations Pour Une Porte et Un Soupir 2/26”
Glad to hear Sara’s debut in this ballet went well. I hope NYCB puts this piece back on more frequently.
Glad to hear Sara’s debut in this ballet went well. I hope NYCB puts this piece back on more frequently.
Yes, it was an impressive debut.
It’s interesting for the audience member to discover his own perspective. The viewer tendency is to feel as though he is on the outside looking in while watching most ballets. This would be the case if Ulbricht’s character, the Sigh, were banging his fists trying to get the Door to open and let him IN.
However, if one entertains the idea that Ulbricht is banging on the Door for it to open so that he can go OUT (as in, to let out a Sigh), that means that the audience is watching from the INSIDE with him somewhere — which makes it a little more suspenseful.
Yes, it was an impressive debut.
It’s interesting for the audience member to discover his own perspective. The viewer tendency is to feel as though he is on the outside looking in while watching most ballets. This would be the case if Ulbricht’s character, the Sigh, were banging his fists trying to get the Door to open and let him IN.
However, if one entertains the idea that Ulbricht is banging on the Door for it to open so that he can go OUT (as in, to let out a Sigh), that means that the audience is watching from the INSIDE with him somewhere — which makes it a little more suspenseful.
Hi Haglund,
I saw it a couple of years ago with Kowroski and Ulbricht. Unforgettable ballet, I loved it! I agree with you about the Sigh wanting out. It’s a fascinating premise and indeed the ballet is anxiety provoking. Thanks for the great review.
Hi Haglund,
I saw it a couple of years ago with Kowroski and Ulbricht. Unforgettable ballet, I loved it! I agree with you about the Sigh wanting out. It’s a fascinating premise and indeed the ballet is anxiety provoking. Thanks for the great review.
Thanks, Marta.
Thanks, Marta.
Big news at NYCB. Stafford AD of NYCB and SAB and Wendy as AAD.
Big news at NYCB. Stafford AD of NYCB and SAB and Wendy as AAD.