A Classic, Reimagined: The Joffrey Ballet’s Anna Karenina
I’ve been in the mood for classics in all forms recently. Last week, I started reading Don Quijote, the Spanish epic by Miguel de Cervantes. I’ve been listening to compositions from Camille Saint-Saëns, Maurice Ravel, and Gabriel Fauré as background music during marathon study sessions for my next graduate school admissions test; and I’m watching movies from AFI’s list of the 100 Greatest Films of All Time.
I had been hoping my Delta flight to Amsterdam en route to Geneva last weekend would include film from the AFI list for me to watch, but the closest I came to a classic was the 2012 remake of Anna Karenina, starring Keira Knightley, Jude Law, and Matthew MacFadden. I immediately loved it! (Side note here: incidentally, my favorite movie, Pride & Prejudice, also stars Keira Knightley and Matthew McFadden!)
It was a fortunate coincidence to have rediscovered this story, because a ballet performance of Anna Karenina is on stage at The Kennedy Center this week. The production has been developed by The Joffrey Ballet, an ever-imaginative, forward thinking, Chicago-based ballet company. Given their reputation for re-imagining classic ballet in the modern ways – the company once performed choreography set to music by Prince – it seems very fitting that they would set about producing an ambitious dance interpretation of Anna Karenina.
I would never attempt to pass myself off as some sort of expert in the domain of dance, but I feel it’s appropriate to describe this as an ambitious production because what The Joffrey Ballet hopes to accomplish is, essentially, the marriage of a classic performance art with a canonical piece of literature. It helps that Anna Karenina is ripe with material to pull from: the novel is full of scandal, sexual passion, political commentary, religious fervor, and violence. It’s certainly one of my favorite classic books; I remember being impressed by the way it simultaneously condemns and encourages individualistic behavior in society. I would probably say it nudged me from religious nihilism towards existentialism. However, I was a high school senior when I read it…. so take from that context whatever you will (LOL!).
I’m long overdue for a re-read, so I’m glad I was able to see this performance – courtesy of a wonderful person’s thoughtful generosity! It reminded me of why canon literature is exalted: it’s engaging on a multitude of levels, thought provoking and challenging and affirming. It resonates. And also, it’s so, so, so beautiful. Leo Tolstoy was a master at world-building in his novels and his character building is unparalleled. Fortunately, the same could be said of The Joffrey Ballet’s production.
Tom Pye’s set and costume design skills bring this ballet to life in the most incredible way. The gowns move as gracefully as the performers: pomp skirts billow about as Kitty Shcherbatsky (Jeraldine Mendoza) and Anna Karenina (Christine Rocas) parade about in the ballroom scene; a lustrous, white satin drapes along every elegant line that Christine Rocas makes. Alexey Karenin (Valentino Mongelia Zamora) and Count Alexey Vronsky (Dylan Gutierrez) both make many of their appearances on stage in decorated military uniforms, but in contrasting styles and colors. This subtlety emphasizes differences in demeanor and social station. Chandeliers, damask wallpaper patterns, and ornate furnishings provide the necessary textures for evoking the feel of Imperial Russia’s taste in luxury.
With such expertly crafted set and costume design, there is little need for technical production assistance. When utilized, though, it is done well. For example, the Act II, Scene 6 scene at Obiralovka Train Station is created with a video projection overlaid upon the set. A dramatic score plays as we watch Rocas’ choreography in shadow form: Anna, fully and fatally unraveled.
Tolstoy called Anna Karenina his first true novel. The text is emotionally rich and, accordingly, voluminous – this certainly must have created significant challenges for crafting a dance adaptation. Nonetheless, the music and choreography are so narrative driven that the story unfolds with incredible accuracy.
Before seeing the performance, I had been wondering what musical compositions would pair well with a retelling of the novel. Well, the entire production is set to an original score – which proved to have been a very appropriate decision. Ashley Wheater, artistic director at The Joffrey, found that a previous ballet version of Anna Karenina set to Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky failed to capture the essence of the book. To ensure they could do the novel justice, Wheather and Yuri Possokhov, Anna Karenina‘s choreographer, partnered their production with The Australian Ballet. This allowed them to enlist composer Ilya Demutsky for an original score.
Yuri Possokhov has brilliantly distilled the nuance, dramatic tension, and commentary of Anna’s story into just two hours of choreography. Anna’s dancing in the initial scenes, while she still enjoys the social privilege of being a woman married to senior statesman Karenin, is willowy but restrained. As she breaks out into her affair with Vronksy, though, she becomes much more charming. My favorite scene is at the end of Act I, Scene 3, when Vronksy wraps his hand around Anna’s sylphlike waist, consummating their love affair. This is followed by an exceptionally well choreographed dance interpretation of the prophetic and indispensable racetrack scene (Act I, Scene 4).
To date, this may have been one of my favorite ballet performances. I absolutely and always love the New York City Ballet’s performances – George Balanchine left many master works in their repertoire – but this was such a dazzling, spellbinding production! I look forward to learning more about the art of ballet and enjoying great performances – especially “story ballet” based on great novels…
Here are some that I now have on my wishlist:
- May 2 – May 18 – 21st Century Choreography I & II by New York City Ballet (New York City, NY)
- August 2 – August 5, 2023 – Jewels by The Royal Opera House (London, UK)
- October 5-15, 2023 – Carmen by Philadelphia Ballet (Philadelphia, PA)
- October 19 – October 21, 2023 – Giselle by The English National Ballet (Manchester, UK)
- February 2024 – Coco Chanel: The Life of a Fashion Icon by Atlanta Ballet (Atlanta, GA)
- March and April 2024 – Don Quixote by the Opera de Paris (Paris, FR)
(tsk… tsk… perfect for our next date!!)
