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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 6, 2017)
Ballet meets Broadway in ‘American Christmas Carol’ B allet Fantastique’s sparkling holiday tradition, “An American Christmas Carol,” returns to the Florence Events Cen- ter for the fi rst time since 2014. Donna and Hannah Bontrager have re-imagined Charles Dickens’ beloved story in iconic post-WWII America with their original choreography set to original arrangements of holiday standards by Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald and Nat King Cole. Actor Adam Goldthwaite joins the company as “Smokey Joe” Marley. Ballet Fantastique’s fl agship “Ameri- can Christmas Carol” is for the young and young at heart, and it promises to charm even the stoniest of humbug hearts. It plays in Florence on Saturday, Dec. 9, at 7 p.m. at the Florence Events Center, 715 Quince St. Tickets — $24 adults and $16 for 18 and under — are available from www. balletfantastique.org and eventcenter.org. “If you imagine what a ballet-Broadway version of Christmas Carol is, that’s sort of how I would describe this project,” says Ballet Fantastique Co-Choreographer-Pro- ducer Hannah. “We look at how to best tell the story and make it fun for modern au- diences. We immerse ourselves in the aes- thetic and music of the era, we choose songs that tell the story — even tweaking lyrics if needed. We also re-imagine the perspective from which we tell the story.” In this case, Ballet Fantastique’s unique new narrative perspective is a 1940s Brook- lyn gangster, “Smokey Joe” Marley, a peri- od-inspired re-imagining of the character of Jacob Marley, Scrooge’s long-dead slimy business partner in Dickens’s original. Th e Bontragers and their creative team (including Ballet Fantastique staff Librettist/Historian Genevieve Speer) birthed Joe out of the 1939 Cab Cal- loway song “Th e Ghost of Smokey Joe.” “When Gen- evieve brought us the Cab Calloway song, we knew it was perfect,” says Ballet Fantastique Artistic Direc- tor and Choreog- rapher-Producer Donna Marisa Bontrager. “Th is gravelly song about a really bad guy became our in- spiration for a comedic character that drives the drama. And artistically, Smokey Joe’s voice also lends our ballet a bit of grit and humor.” Guest actor-singer and regular Ballet Fantastique guest artist Adam Goldthwaite plays Smokey Joe, and audiences will hear him sing a modifi ed version of “Ghost of Smokey Joe,” accompanied by his Ghost Brides. But, Smokey Joe and the Ghost Brides aren’t the only playful twists the Bontragers have in store in American Christmas Car- C OAST C ENTRAL ol. In fact, Donna Marisa’s favorite ar- tistic liberty was her choice to re-imag- ine the Christmas Spirits as female forces to be reck- oned with. “I wanted the spirits to be wom- en,” she said of her choice to re-cast Dickens’ ghosts as female dancers. “Th ese are an op- portunity to really embody Ebenezer’s relationship with his past, present and future. Th ey dance with him, manipulate him, run at him, challenge him.” Th e Spirits are danced by Ballet Fantas- tique dancers Tracy Fuller (Christmas Past, to retro jazz hit “Why Don’t You Do Right”), Ashley Bontrager (Christmas Present, to Frank Sinatra’s “Th at’s Life”) and Hannah Bontrager (Christmas Future, to Alfred Hibbler’s “Aft er the Lights Go Down Low”). “Our score is 17 iconic standards songs that explore two related musical traditions — big band jazz and the popular tunes of Tin Pan Alley,” says Donna. Traditional songs, including “Winter Wonderland,” “Baby It’s Cold Outside,” “Let it Snow” and “I’ll Be Home for Christmas,” also set the stage for the ballet’s choreogra- phy. “An American Christmas Carol” opens with an introduction to Ebenezer Scrooge (Gustavo Ramirez), nephew and new daughter-in-law Fred and Judy (Natanael Leal and Carolin Koepplin), and employee Bob Crachit (Jim Ballard). As Scrooge’s pessimistic personality emerges, he has a strange vision in the old clock — not of the clock face, but of Marley, his long-dead busi- ness partner. Th e vision fades and Scrooge drift s to sleep until Marley re-appears, sing- ing “Th e Ghost of Smokey Joe.” Marley and his Ghost Brides warn Scrooge that he will be haunted by three spirits. As promised, on the stroke of one, Christmas Past arrives in “Why Don’t You Do Right,” reminding Ebenezer of love gained and lost when he met Marilyn (Ash- ley Bontrager) at Fezziwig’s party way back in the Roaring ’20s. Aft er returning to bed — and aft er the audience returns from in- termission — Scrooge is visited by Christ- mas Present, who shows Scrooge the joys of Christmas through visions of Fred and Judy, and the Crachit family. Here, we will meet Tiny Tim (London Pendleton), who fi nds joy and delight in the world in spite of adversity in Nat King Cole’s “Nature Boy.” Scrooge then meets Christmas Future in an eerie tango to Alfred Hibbler’s “Aft er the Lights Go Down Low.” Scrooge emerg- es from his encounters with the Spirits a changed man, “glowing with his good in- tentions, as light as a feather, happy as an angel and as merry as a schoolboy.” I NSIDE F REE M ONTHLY G UIDE TO A RTS AND E NTERTAINMENT ON THE O REGON C OAST M ARKETING : S USAN G UTIERREZ , M ARKETING D IRECTOR 541-902-3530, SGUTIERREZ @T HE S IUSLAW N EWS . COM E DITORIAL : C HANTELLE M EYER , F EATURES E DITOR PRESSRELEASES @T HE S IUSLAW N EWS . 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COVER STORY: Ballet Fantastique reimagined — Dec. 9 in Florence ............................................. 3 Events Calendar ...................................................... 4 Coastal Culture: Gallery Listings ............................ 6 Holly Jolly Follies gets tinsel in twist ..................... 11 2nd Saturday Gallery Tour ..................................... 12 Coos Art Museum opens new exhibits ................... 17 Class Act Holds December Shows ........................... 23 Nativity Festival features crèche tradition ............. 24 DECEMBER 2017 • Arts & Entertainment • COAST CENTRAL • 3
