The Pacific Northwest Ballet has found ways to dance around the challenges of COVID.
Starting this month, the ballet will offer virtual performances of new and re-imagined works.
The Pacific Northwest Ballet is a dance company located on Mercer Street in Seattle. The company provides all kinds of different showcases and has a very diverse cast.
Their 2020-21 online season started back up on March 8 with the Intermission Project and will continue until June 14. The season will include approximately nine performances which will be streamed for a few days each.
The shows are separated in sections called Reps. From March to June, there will be three Reps where you’ll need to purchase tickets to watch. These are $29 each or $39 for an exclusive pass to bonus content.
Gary Tucker, the communications director for PNB, said that with the COVID restrictions and guidelines, procedures for performances and rehearsals have changed.
“We had to shut down our performance facility (McCaw Hall) at the start of the pandemic, and cancelled the remainder of our 2019-20 season,” he said.
Because of the restrictions prohibiting the gathering of large groups, rehearsals have changed so that only dancers who live together can practice together. Access to certain parts of the facility have also been restrained to follow guidelines.
“Some new works are having to be choreographed remotely, with the dancers in one studio and the choreographer Zooming from another,” Tucker said.
The performances of the 2020-21 season will be a mix of new pieces and old footage. “These performances have been supplemented with select archival recordings that feature large casts which would be impossible to stage under current conditions,” he said.
Tucker explained that some of the old pieces they did are more difficult to redo for the digital season.
“The majority of works we’re presenting in the 2020-21 line-up are new works,” Tucker said.
The company is trying many different ways to cope with the COVID difficulties.
“We also presented a short excerpt from a Twyla Tharp ballet for which we filmed different dancers with a fixed camera, then edited them together to make it look like they were all sharing the stage,” Tucker said.
“We’re still exploring the possibilities of this new digital ‘normal’.”
You can find information about the Pacific Northwest Ballet at https://www.pnb.org/
The new season begins with The Intermission Project, a new work conceived and
created by Price Suddarth and featuring 20 company dancers. This world premiere work will be shown March 8-21 and is free.
Beginning April 1, the ballet will unveil its Rep 4 package, which will include a new work by Alejandro Cerrudo; And the sky is not cloudy all day, a world premier with choreography by Donald Byrd and music by John Adams; and an archival recording
Pictures at an Exhibition, with choreography by Alexei Ratmansky of Modest Mussorgsky’s classic composition.
All shows will be available until April 5.
Following that, PNB presents an archival recording of Fanfare on April 13-17, with music by Benjamin Britten, performed by Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestra, and
choreography by Jerome Robbins. The performance also features students of the Pacific Northwest Ballet School. This work is being offered free of charge to PNB supporters.
More details about the ballet’s spring season can be found at
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ExczUQTF-a95EBj_5Kg1A9VOUkiQeqix/view