‘Carmina Burana’ and other dance treats of 2024
The dance scene in 2024 was a plethora of revivals and a few new works. Near year-end, Alice Reyes Dance Philippines had “Puso ng Pasko” at the Met and Malacañang grounds; Ballet Manila had “Snow White”; Ballet Philippines had “Peter Pan” at Solaire; Philippine Ballet Theater (PBT) had “The Nutcracker” at the Samsung Theater for Performing Arts; and the Shirley Halili-Cruz School of Dance had “A Dance Offering,” also at Samsung Theater.
Of the year’s dance treats, my favorite was Reyes’ “Carmina Burana,” to the music of Carl Orff, staged at Samsung Theater in June. It was the ninth staging since 1974. It received a euphoric audience reaction Friday night and had more ecstatic receptions at its matinee and evening performances on Saturday.
The big bonus was, all three shows featured the live performances of the Philippine Philharmonic Orchestra under Herminigildo Ranera and of excellent soloists Lara Maigue (soprano) and Park Byeong-in (baritone). The choral support (the Philippine Madrigal Singers and the Kilyawan Boys choir) was astounding, and the PPO under Ranera was in top form. It was an iconic work worthy of the choreographer’s title as National Artist for Dance.
Quite special during the year was PBT’s staging of “The Nutcracker.” It easily was one was one of the year’s magical Christmas treats staged at the Samsung Theater.
The Prince of Matthew Davo was admirable and the Clara of Sophia Martina Tiangco was all sweetness and light. The Sugar Plum Princess of Jessa Tangalin and the Prince of Davo provided excitement in their well-executed grand pas in the exciting finale. The little kids in various ensembles provided extra magic. Artistic director Ronilo Jaynario and ballet master Anatoly Panasyukov certainly did a good job.
PBT artistic director Jaynario told the Inquirer it was their 11th restaging of this version of “The Nutcracker” by Gelsey Kirkland and Michael Chernov in 1995.
Jaynario pointed out, “The ballet’s manner and style of storytelling have been preserved. As for the divertissement, it has been updated to suit the dancer’s capability.”
A fun ballet
The usual challenge is directing 100 people in the dance ensemble. “With that number, it is always difficult to coordinate. But ‘Nutcracker’ is such a fun ballet to produce that there is no moment of hardship felt in its mounting. The youth inspire us and energize us to make the show better each year. We believe in diversity, and it has been a pleasure to mount this ballet with a new set of lead dancers. The pair needs to have a magical look and the grand pas de deux is a technical ballet as well, so we need storytellers with strong technique and good stamina. ‘Nutcracker’ is a tradition that brings people together. The children dancing makes it feel like a real holiday, and the colorful dances are simply spectacular. I enjoy seeing the company grow with the pieces that I choreograph.”
The Halili School of Dance under artistic director Shirley Halili-Cruz and her two associate directors, Grace Garalde Perez and Anna Kathrina Halili-Cruz Bueno, mounted “A Dance Offering” at the Samsung Theater to a full house and with a repeat performance at the Manila Metropolitan Theater.
More than 200 students performed assorted genres: classical ballet, lyrical jazz, hip-hop, acrobatic, tap, and contemporary dance.
During the year, the mentors and students of Halili-Cruz School of Dance toured New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and San Francisco as well as Australia, Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore, Korea, China, Russia, and England.
Halili-Cruz sums up the year thus: “Continuous learning is integral to our dance education system. Sharing knowledge with dance centers worldwide is essential in our pursuit of artistic excellence.”
