Ballet X continues to expand its choreographic streams and its pool of multi-cultural dancers and choreographers.  Here are my notes from their fall program of all premieres at the Wilma Theatre.

Meredith Rainey’s They Break shows subtle invention with new classical. All is not fluid, despite the ethereal lighting.  The duets and especially the trio express turmoil with dancers flinging themselves at each other and trio tangles.  Intriguing pointe work for the women and rushing balletic resolves actually, as always, do dazzle.  Rainey knows how to give his to his dancers lyrically and physically. Martha Chamberlain’s flowey steelblue and clay dance skirts (I want one)on both the men and women make most dramatic the finale of Aileyesque group clusters pulse. 

Alex Ketley choreographing for the first time with the company created Silt, and explored is working with gestural language. It moves to a frenzied tempo and becomes frenzied dance. The eerie soundtrack has a movement of disco overlay of Arvo Part, and the two couples move from loopy partnering to classical phrasing. Ketley taps into Bxs strong versatility in modern idioms and classical. 

 Neenan’s ‘Last of the year’ has a dodgy feel, like he wants to defy his style. Group slinky lines look rote, and dancer sniffing around each other look vulgar, but they are fragments and erasures. The medley of songs he uses hits Schubert, and this piece shows flashes of something bigger, the tautness of the strings and the dancer connective Neenan gets to is his most exciting signature.