PERFORMANCE DATES
Feb 14 at 1:30pm
Feb 14 at 6:00pm
Feb 15 at 2:30pm
THEATER
TOUHILL PERFORMING ARTS CENTER
TICKETS
ST. LOUIS BLUES
FEBRUARY 14–15 AT THE TOUHILL
Choreography by Gen Horiuchi
Music by TOYA after W. C Handy
32 minutes
Choreographed by Gen Horiuchi, this dynamic ballet set to W.C. Handy’s soulful rhythms returns by popular demand. Fresh from a successful Tokyo run, it features live jazz by New York-based composer Toya and stunning vocals by celebrated jazz singer Denise Thimes
"The audience constantly cheered the dancers’ engaging performances and the exciting choreography, which led to the climax of this piece when Ms. Denise Thimes took the stage to sing W.C. Handy’s “St. Louis Blues.” Her rich alto voice gave life to the lyrics of the song and added another depth to the jazz club scene portrayed onstage."
-Sarah Crawford, St. Louis Dance HQ
FEATURED BALLETS BY PETER MARTINS
HALLELUJAH JUNCTION
FEBRUARY 14–15 AT THE TOUHILL
Choreography by Peter Martins
Music by John Adams
17minutes
Martins’ Hallelujah Junction is a living locomotive of propulsive vitality, set to a pulsing John Adams score. The work centers on delayed repetition between the two pianos, creating an effect of echoing sonorities. There is a constant shift of pulse and meter, but the main rhythms are based on the rhythms of the word “Hal-le-LU-jah.”
THE CHAIRMAN
DANCES
Choreography by Peter Martins
Music by John Adams
12 minutes
Combining the vocabulary of classical dance with a suggestion of traditional Chinese lyric gestures and pageantry, The Chairman Dances builds on the repetitiveness of its minimalist score and boldly colorful staging.
Choreography by Christopher Wheeldon
Music by Arvo Pärt
11 minutes
*Performed only during matinee shows
This contemplative pas de deux has a hushed, mystical quality as two dancers separate and return to one another with ever increasing intensity before disappearing into the darkness together.
LITURGY*
FEBRUARY 14–15 AT THE TOUHILL
Choreographer Christopher Wheeldon has frequently been drawn to the music of contemporary composers. He used Pärt’s music for another piece, After the Rain, and created a trio of ballets set to music by György Ligeti, a Hungarian composer who died in 2006. Like these composers, Wheeldon uses a classical foundation to create works that are firmly modern in their feel and resonance.