Frankenstein Slays

Joffrey Company Artist José Pablo Castro Cuevas as Victor Frankenstein. Photo by Cheryl Mann.

The Joffrey Ballet’s two-week run of Frankenstein performances at the Lyric Opera just ended. It was a success on all levels: seasonally, critically, financially, and artistically. It was one of their biggest productions to date and it was simply awesome. I was lucky enough to see it twice. Once as press, and the second time as a subscriber. I just can’t quit them.

My unofficial title, since I didn’t review it, is “Joffrey’s Young Artists Slay Frankenstein!” On opening night, José Pablo Castro Cuevas and Jonathan Dole danced Victor Frankenstein and the Creature (respectively) in breakout performances of their young careers. Joined by the phenom Amanda Assucena – all three came up through the Joffrey Academy – they formed the main trio of the ballet and brought down the house. The second cast I saw had Hyuma Kiyosawa (another youngin’) as the Creature, paired with Alberto Velazquez and Victoria Jaiani (who was celebrated as she starts her 20th season with the company – or is it 21?) as Victor and Elizabeth. Each cast had a different take on their roles which I always find interesting to watch. The supporting roles, corps, children, sets, costumes, projections, pyrotechnics, score, orchestra, and not the very least, the production crew were all performing at the top of their games. Bravo!

Liam and I playing hooky from Nutcracker at the Palmer House. The photo is blurry…the wine made us blurry too!

But, much like the Arpino Centennial Celebration last month, this was, for me, more about the choreographer and their legacy. Liam Scarlett was a supremely talented artist, highly creative person, beautiful human, and a friend. Their presence could be felt in every step, loving embrace, anguished look, and musical note of the ballet. And, if they were still with us, they would’ve been up dancing and demonstrating every single part in every rehearsal with more passion than the dancers. They were one-of-a-kind.

Liam Scarlett.

There are similarities with Frankenstein and Scarlett’s life. In the book by Mary Shelley, Victor is horrified by what he has created and that it has taken on a destructive life of its own, which could apply to Scarlett’s career. They became successful at a young age and got caught in a whirlwind of fame and continuous work. In the ballet, Victor can’t handle that what he has created has destroyed everything he loves and kills himself from the pain, much like Scarlett’s career ultimately ended their life. And, as a non-binary person, Scarlett also knew what it felt like to be “other,” not initially accepted for who they were by the masses. The creator and the creation. The god and the monster. As troubled as their life sometimes was, they were a kind soul. Cancel culture took away their career, their livelihood, and in the end, their life.

Thank you to Ashley Wheater for bringing their Frankenstein to Chicago and letting audiences experience their genius. Their memory and talent live on in the dancers and stagers who breath new life into their work.

Arpino Centennial Celebration

Over the weekend, the Gerald Arpino Foundation hosted an event-packed celebration in honor of Arpino’s 100th birthday year. The Arpino Centennial Celebration, years in the works, was a spectacular, loved-filled, three-day extravaganza with performances, a panel discussion, and classes. Congrats to Kim Sagami, Michael Anderson, and all at the Foundation for pulling it off!

Joffrey Company Artist Victoria Jaiani. Photo by Cheryl Mann.

Note: this is NOT a review! I just wanted to get some thoughts out of my head. These are my takeaways from being at the Saturday night performance and my time working at the Joffrey/Arpino Foundation, and just being a big ‘ole ballet geek and fan.

First, I want to thank Kim and Michael for giving me a lifeline when my job at the Joffrey was eliminated during the pandemic. “Budget cuts.” They brought me onboard as a social media consultant and filled my need to be near dance and harbored my love for the Company. I have been a fan of the Joffrey since the 80s, when I would pore over my Dance Magazine when it came in the mail. I distinctly remember Tina LeBlanc being on the cover. I watched Billboards on PBS and memorized some of the choreography, eventually seeing it on tour when they came to Central Illinois. Later, after moving to Chicago, I worked as a receptionist for Joffrey during the 2001-2002 season (I think?), right when they started filming the movie The Company. It’s still one of my favorite dance films, likely because I knew everyone in it. I still gasp when Suzanna Lopez fake tears her achilles tendon, but then her real-life wedding was included in the movie so it all worked out. Ha.

I later worked in the marketing department at Joffrey for seven years. There was a giant framed poster of Arpino’s Reflections from the cover of Dance Magazine in the lunchroom. That was one of the works presented on Saturday. Oklahoma City Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, San Francisco Ballet, Ballet West, and of course, Joffrey all performed some the Arpino’s greatest hits for the opening of the Centennial Celebration. Eugene Ballet and Complexions Contemporary Ballet with guest artist and former Joffrey dance Fabrice Calmels also joined in for the second performance on Sunday afternoon. The only thing I will say about the dancing is that it was electric, just as Mr. A intended. Zah, baby! For me, the shows were more about him as a person, artist, and director than it was about the dancers. His spirit filled the entirety of the Auditorium Theatre.

There were so many Joffrey Alumni attending that it was a little overwhelming…in a good way. Faces I haven’t seen in years were smiling and radiant. It had the feeling of Dance For Life, but for just Joffrey. Cool. For anyone I missed saying hello to or getting to give a long-awaited hug, I love you! The audience was THE perfect audience for the dancers, so generous with applause, yelling, standing ovations. They had been there and done that, the all-knowing and encouraging predecessors.

Mr. A’s box seats were left open and unseated, notable for everyone who knew him. While I never danced for him, I did work with him for a year. I first met him at a Nutcracker Children’s Luncheon on my first day. Cameron Basden introduced me to him (WHAT?) and he said I looked like a young Susan Jaffe. (Be still, my heart. I don’t think Cami agreed.) He would always say a friendly “Hi, Jackie!” when he passed the reception desk. Even though everyone reminded him my name was not Jackie, I didn’t care. Mr. A was acknowledging me.

At the end of the Saturday evening performance, Joffrey dancer Victoria Jaiani (who along with Christine Rocas are the only two current Joffrey dancers who were under his direction) carried one light/candle to the front of the stage and everyone turned and bowed at Mr. A’s empty seat, which was lit with a follow spotlight. Cheesy, maybe, but I teared up along with everyone else there who knew him. Calmels had the honor at the Sunday matinee. The candle was left center stage front – a nod to Arpino’s 1970 work Trinity – as the dancers left the stage, Jaiani trailing behind as the lights dimmed (pictured above). Tears.

I’m thankful for my years (8 total) with Joffrey and the Arpino Foundation (2+), as well as my decades of being a loyal fan. I even wrote a review for my journalism class in college! Even though I no longer work with them, I’m always part of the family, which was felt immensely in the ATRU lobby on Saturday.

Podcast Episode 14: Taryn Kaschock Russell

My guest for Episode 14 is Taryn Kaschock Russell, a dancer, teacher, director, mentor, wife, mother, sister, friend, and all-around wonderful human.

In September of 2019, Taryn embarked on a new journey as the Director of the Harkness Dance Center at the 92nd Street Y. Before making her way to the Upper East Side, she served on the Artistic leadership team of the Juilliard Dance Division as Associate Director in the 2016-17 and the 2018-19 academic years, and as the Acting Artistic Director in 2017-18. Education is one of her passions, and since relocating to New York in 2013, she has taught both as part of the faculty of the Juilliard School and as a lecturer for the Conservatory of Dance, SUNY Purchase. She has also worked as a guest teacher with Abraham in Motion, Aspen Santa Fe Ballet, Lar Lubovitch Dance Company, Ballet Hispanico, Ballet BC, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago (HSDC), and as a regular company teacher for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater when they are in NYC.

Photo by Guiliano Correia

From 2008-2013, she directed Hubbard Street 2 programming and staffing the HSDC summer intensives and curating HSDC’s National Choreographic Competition. During that time, she also oversaw the production of its first full-length children’s program, Harold and the Purple Crayon: A Dance Adventure, which had its premiere at the Kennedy Center to a sold-out house in October of 2010.

Taryn also performed for 12 years in Chicago with both HSDC and The Joffrey Ballet, performing works by George Balanchine, John Cranko, Agnes de Mille, Martha Graham, Lar Lubovitch, Jiří Kylián, Nacho Duato, Ohad Naharin, and William Forsythe. You can read her full bio here.

92Y’s Harkness Mainstage Series at the Kaufman Concert Hall opens tonight with FLOCK (Alice Klock & Florian Lochner). In-person or digital ticket information is here.

Photos by Cheryl Mann, Todd Rosenberg, Guiliano Correia, and gingerb3ardmen.

Podcast Episode 12: Cheryl Mann

On episode 12 of the Rogue Ballerina podcast, I chat with dancer-turned-photographer (and one of my favorite people) Cheryl Mann. We hear about her career with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, transition to photography, and the importance of never giving up on your dreams. 

Photo by Selena Moshell

Cheryl Mann began her professional career at the age of 17, dancing at Walt Disney World in Orlando, FL, and received her dance degree from Point Park College in Pittsburgh, PA. She performed with the Civic Light Opera in South Pacific as “Liat” under the direction of Robby Marshall in Pittsburgh. Upon moving to Chicago, she danced with River North Dance Chicago before joining Hubbard Street Dance Chicago. Fulfilling her childhood dream of becoming a Hubbard Street dancer in May of 1997, where she remained for over a decade, she has been fortunate in her career to travel to and perform in 17 countries, as well as countless cities in the U.S.

She served as the Artistic Associate of Visceral Dance Chicago until she moved to LA to with Ate9 under the directorship of Danielle Agami. LA credits include NBCUniversal’s Little Big Shots featuring Steve Harvey, Associate Choreographer of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory Live at the Hollywood Bowl, and Axis Connect led by the Barton Sisters. She also had the pleasure of casting and choreographing Moby’s latest music video Motherless Child.

She is the owner of Cheryl Mann Productions, where she travels the world setting dance works for world-renowned choreographers, as well as photographing companies such as Ate9, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, The Joffrey Ballet, Ballet Hispanico, Thodos Dance Chicago, among many more.

Podcast Episode 7: Erica Lynette Edwards

Photo by Cheryl Mann.

Erica Lynette Edwards is an accomplished consultant and public speaker who champions change to advance social justice. With diversity, equity, and inclusion as the core foundation of her work, she transforms visions into reality. After a rewarding 15-year career as a ballerina at The Joffrey Ballet and five years as the Director of Community Engagement, she founded Cultivating Better Tomorrows. Through this consulting company, Erica reshapes the dynamics of performing arts communities to produce environments where all can thrive. Highly skilled in delivering consistent success and effective change, she is passionate about facilitating results-driven conversations and workshops focused on reflection and knowledge-building. Her visionary leadership has earned her many honors and opportunities, including speaking on national panels, giving a TEDx talk, and being selected as a member of Crain’s Chicago Business “40 Under 40.” By developing shared understandings, Erica inspires communities to make the world a more just place.

Topics discussed:

Podcast Episode 4: Jeraldine Mendoza & Dylan Gutierrez

On episode 4 of the Rogue Ballerina podcast, we welcome Joffrey Ballet Company Artists Jeraldine Mendoza and Dylan Gutierrez. It’s also the Valentine’s episode, and this real-life couple is THE cutest!

Jeraldine Mendoza joined The Joffrey Ballet in 2011. She was born in San Francisco, CA, and trained at City Ballet School of San Francisco since the age of five. At 17, she was invited to graduate in the Russian course at the prestigious Bolshoi Ballet Academy in Moscow. She later won 1st place at the YAGP San Francisco Regional Semi-Finals in 2011. In 202, she won the young artists’ scholarship from the Leonore Annenberg Fellowship Fund and later graced the cover of Dance Magazine in May 2015, the magazine’s first international issue. You can follow her on Instagram @jeraldm

Dylan Gutierrez joined the Joffrey in 2009. He grew up in Van Nuys, CA, and received his training at the Los Angeles Ballet Academy under the direction of his mother Andrea-Paris Gutierrez. In 2006, he was awarded a full scholarship to train the The Royal Ballet School in London and later was offered a job as an apprentice with the San Francisco Ballet. You can follow him on Instagram @dylanrgutierrez

You can read their full bios and learn more about the roles they’ve danced by visiting joffrey.org. All photos by Cheryl Mann.

Links to topics discussed:

Jeraldine wins the Annenberg Grant

Jeraldine and Dylan dance together in Gerald Arpino’s Sea Shadow

WTTW’s Emmy-Award winning Nutcracker documentary (with a cameo by Kahlua)

Action Lines: Interim Avoidance showings will take place Feb. 1 – April 30 at 150 N. Riverside Plaza, Monday – Friday: 8:00 – 9:30 AM, and 4:30 – 8:00 PM, and Saturdays: 1:00-7:00 PM. All attendees are required to wear a face covering.

It Was All A Dream video

Interview on the making of It Was All A Dream

Black Star Project

Excerpt from Joffrey’s 60th anniversary book.

Restaurants mentioned:

Formento’s

The Bristol

Pacific Standard Time (now closed)

Wasabi

Mirai Sushi

Quartino

Cafe Tola

ABA

SKY

A Dreamy Dance Video Collaboration

Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, the Columbian-Belgian choreographer of international acclaim, brings her talents back to Chicago – virtually, of course. It Was All A Dream is the fifth in a series of video collaborations meant to give artists around the world a way to express themselves during the pandemic when most are confined close to or within their homes. “I wanted to make a diary…what are the artists doing?” said Lopez Ochoa. “These short videos give a stage to the dancers who have been ripped off their stages.”

For the most recent video (released today), Lopez Ochoa teamed up with some of our hometown favorites from The Joffrey Ballet. Jeraldine Mendoza and Dylan Gutierrez, along with their pup Kahlua, are featured in the video. Gutierrez also composed the music, and Xavier Núñez (another Joffrey dancer) edited the video. “The movie is about two dancers dreaming that they go outside,” Lopez Ochoa said. “Hopefully when we all look back at 2020, it will be like a distant, bad dream.”

“Even though it’s about the pandemic, it’s not sad,” said Mendoza. “It’s still light and hopeful.” Gutierrez agrees, “It’s meant to uplift and be fun. It’s a three-minute break.” While all are proud of the final product, the process of creating a short work via Zoom was a bit of a challenge, but one everybody was ready to overcome. Lopez Ochoa had some practice having worked with other artists on videos previously. Her first foray into filmmaking was a learning experience. She obtained a mentor – a Dutch cameraman – who was not impressed by her first effort. He told her to broaden her vision and think 360 degrees around the dancers.

Lopez Ochoa met Mendoza and Gutierrez in 2015 while in Chicago creating the world premiere Mammatus for the Joffrey. They suggested bringing Núñez on board and the process began in May. “At the point when she asked us, we hadn’t been doing anything,” Mendoza said. “We were obviously excited to work with Annabelle, but also excited to have a schedule and something to work towards.” Described by the choreographer as “contemporary classical with a pedestrian touch,” it really creates the feel of a day in the life of the couple. And aside from the cameos of Kahlua, the real star of the video is the city of Chicago.

The connecting of choreography, music, and video editing make it a true collaboration. One facet does not overtake the others. Gutierrez had worked with Lopez Ochoa previously on music for her piece Delicious Pesticides and their process was refined for this project. With Núñez coming on to edit, it was more of a journey. “I knew from editing the other films that you always have to translate,” Lopez Ochoa said. “He was very respectful of the choreography, but I told him that once you put it on video, it becomes something else. You have to remake the choreography. This is just material for you to play with.” Núñez accepted the challenge and the team worked together on the final product (which was changing up to the last minute). “It was evolving the whole time,” Gutierrez said. “We weren’t sure if the order should stay the same as how it was choreographed. It really speaks to Xavi’s creativity to take something he’d already finished and completely mix it up. It’s so cool and so hard to deconstruct something and make it better.”

Technical artistry aside, the real upside to the project was dancing…actually dancing. Like most companies, the Joffrey has been “off” since mid-March. There are daily classes offered, but that can get redundant and how many battements can you do holding on to your kitchen counter before you go crazy? (Can someone do this experiment? I’d really like to know.) “It was really nice,” said Mendoza. “The motivating factor was Annabelle watching us. To have someone watch us, direct us, tell us what to do, what intention we should have behind the steps…it keeps you going. You get lost in the moment. It was really reminiscent of going back to work.” Lopez Ochoa adds,”The most interesting part as a choreographer in the studio or on Zoom, is not making steps, but talking about intentions and seeing dancers transform and commit to the character or the situation they are playing. That’s when they can lose themselves. It’s beautiful to watch.” Well, watch for yourself.