The company of Saint Paul City Ballet is a collection of professional dancers and choreographers. The technical foundation of the Company is firmly rooted in classical ballet; paying homage by staging and performing excerpts from well-known and beloved ballets. But ballet is a living tradition and all of the classics were once ground-breaking artistic experiences. In that spirit the Company actively collaborates to produce new innovative works and explores new directions for this exquisite art form.
In September of 2007, SPCB formed The Chamber Ballet of Saint Paul under the artistic direction of Phillip Carman. The Chamber Ballet debuted on February 14, 2008, at the Fitzgerald Theater in Saint Paul.
In 2009 The Chamber Ballet became Saint Paul City Ballet Company under the direction of artistic partners, who are choreographers, ballet masters and coaches who stage and create new works for the company.
Repertory
2010
THE SLEEPING BEAUTY
Staging and choreography by Ross Edwards, Georgia Finnegan Amdahl, Anna Goodrich, Jennifer Murry, Jennifer Rockwell, Ted Sothern after Marius Petipa’s original production of The Sleeping Beauty premiered at the Maryinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg, 1890
Music by Peter I. Tchaikovsky
2009
THE ENCHANTED TOY SHOP, A HOLIDAY BALLET
Choreography by SPCB Faculty after Massine and Petipa Music by Rossini and Tchiakovsky
Costumes by Ann Marie Ethen, Ted Sothern and SPCB
AIR AND SIMPLE GIFTS
Choreography by Jennifer Rockwell
GENTLE BREATH, SUSPENDED
Choreography by Ross Edwards
Music by Bach
Costumes by Ann Marie Ethen
MD2
Choreography by Ross Edwards and Andrew Lester
Music by Miles Davis
Costumes by SPCB
DANSE MACABRE
Choreography by Ross Edwards
Music by Saint-Saëns
Costumes by Ann Marie Ethen
No matter one's station in life, the dance of death unites all. The Halloween Eve rendezvous of two lovers is interupted by personified death leading a row of dancing figures from all walks of life to the grave, an empress, beautiful lady, young girl, and "the unknown" who represents all who have died. The couples' love triumphs over death as morning breaks.
PROTECTED BY ANGELS
Choreography by Jennifer Rockwell Edwards
Music by Babe in the City
Costumes by SPCB
LA BOUTIQUE FANTASQUE
Choreography by SPCB Faculty after Massine
Music by Rossini
Costumes by Ann Marie Ethen
ENTICED
Choreography by Christa Anderson-Hill
Music by George Maurer
Costumes by Ann Marie Ethen
Notes from the choreographer: Enticed "danced" into a season of grief, hope, and transition for me. I had nothing left to say and no ears to listen, but I had the dance. And so, at the forefront of this project, I just moved and let the movement find its way to the music and the meaning. When I first heard, George Maurer play his piece Enticed, I began dancing and the movement found the music. A month later, as I added dancers, emotion and intention began to emerge from the work. When I could not speak, the dancers spoke for me. Each one of them brought their own shading and hue to the work. The colors they painted with movement allowed me to "hear" their own stories of grief, hope, and transition. Those stories and mine have melded together in dance.
Notes from the composer: Commissioned to create 30 minutes of original music set to dance seemed like a good challenge, but in reality writing Enticed turned out to be pretty complicated. Not one for repeating myself, it took many "tries" before I settled on each movement's style. It took even longer to orchestrate! Ultimately, I wanted to give dancers a variety of textures, tempos, time signatures, and challenges. You will hear influences from Scott Joplin to Charlie Mingus, Dave Brubeck to David Sanborn, Tin Pan Alley to Be-bop, and blues to fusion. There's even a bit of hip-hop thrown in. Christa Hill took these stories and added her own spin, if you will pardon the pun, to come up with the final collaboration you will see tonight.
STATIONS OF THE HEART:
All the time
Too cold to snow
Near me
You don't see me
Good for the goose
Choreography by Phillip Carman
Music by George Maurer
Costumes by Ann Marie Ethen
Notes from the choreographer: These songs tell a story — lost love, new beginnings, moving on. The choreography does not relate the stories told in the songs, rather it indicates the feelings presented. Choreography is limited in that regard, suggesting — not stating, reflecting — not literal translating. Lyrics are heard, and the poetry is clear; while dance is more of a visceral reaction to what was heard. The vocalist is the protagonist, occasionally interwoven into the ballet, while the dancers give the audience images to stimulate their imagination. Choreographers can relate the basics: love, fear, joy, hate, desire, but to quote Sir Fredrick Ashton, "There are no mothers-in law in the ballet," and George Balanchine when asked about his plotless ballets..."What more story do you need? When you have a man and woman on stage together there is already a story."
Notes from the composer: Two years before I had heard of Saint Paul City Ballet, I was developing music for Jim Payne's Stations of the Heart. It was a commission by Ben Krywosz of Nautilus Music-Theatre for their monthly Rough Cuts series, under the music direction of Jerry Rubino, to be sung by singer/actor Anne Michels. To work with lyrics I had to take a different compositional approach than with instrumental music. The process, while long, did much to prepare me for creating Enticed. Jim had a lyrical sensibility that immediately gave me the imagery and inspiration I needed to come up with the right melodies, tones, and textures for each number. Carrie Mineck, another fine Nautilus performer, brings her own sensitive interpretations to these songs, and, combined with the elegant choreography of Phillip Carman, these excerpts from Stations of the Heart come to life in a special way.
EXCERPTS FROM RAYMONDA
Choreography by Petipa
Music by Glazunov
Costumes by Ann Marie Ethen
2008 Debut Year
AUTUMN REVERIES
Choreography by Phillip Carman
Music by Loef Janacek
Costumes by Phillip Carman
NUTCRACKER MAGIQUE
Choreography by Phillip Carman
Music by Tchaikovsky
Costumes by Ann Marie Ethen and Kari Ditty
Our Claire loves the story of the Nutcracker and her dream takes her to enchanted realms of her own imagination. The familiar music of Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker and his Sleeping Beauty ballet weaves in and out of Clara's memory creating the inspiration for a flowing mysterious dream that is wholly her own. Clara's candies, flowers, snows, princes and princesses are strange and beautiful and move between shadow and light in harmony.
NIGHT MUSIC
Choreography by Phillip Carman
Music by W. A. Mozart
Costumes by Ann Marie Ethen
A choreographic exploration of one of the most beautiful of Mozart's scores in four movements. The incredible melodies and rich orchestration challenge the dancers' musicality, elevating their artistry and presenting music for your eyes.
L'APRES - MIDI D'UN FAUNE
Staged with new choreography by Phillip Carman
Music by Claude Debussy
Costumes by Ann Marie Ethen
Ninety-five years ago, this beautiful Debussy music was choreographed by Vaslav Nijinsky, ushering in new era in dance, and establishing Nijinsky as the Father of Modern Dance. In 1912, the "Choreographic Poem" shocked the Paris audiences of Diaghilev's Ballet Russe. The unusual movements, the use of slow-motion, and finally the overt sensuality made Faune a scandal.
In this contemporary ballet treatment of the wonderful score, only the occasional pose, and a general reference to the "story" remain. The dancers are free, the Faune is mysterious, and the sensuality is exaggerated. We only know that a group of young women encounter a creature in a forest, are enchanted by his beauty for a while, then move on, leaving the Faune as they found him -- does he remember?
COEUR D 'AMOUR
Choreography by Phillip Carman
Music by Carl Orff
Costumes by Ann Marie Ethen
If we take the essence of joy from our past relationships and leave the sorrows behind, then we are able to perceive and embrace joy in our future. Passions, longings, and ultimate acceptance of the past will move your heart as the choreography fills this stage.
IN THE MOMENT
Choreography by Phillip Carman
Music by Peter Gabriel
Costumes by Ann Marie Ethen
We live our lives from one moment to the next...like still points connected. Dance is a visible expression of the continuum of these still points and, by its hypnotic nature, can suspend time. Each fleeting moment is a thing of beauty. And in the words of John Keats, "Beauty is truth, truth beauty—that is all ye know on earth, and all ye need to know."