Italy’s storied architecture and social politics in the updated romantic tragedy staged this weekend at the Lakewood Cultural Center.
David Taylor Dance Theatre’s “Romeo and Juliet Rocks!” borrows more from the stylized 1996 Baz Luhrmann film starring Claire Danes and Leonardo DiCaprio than it does from William Shakespeare’s classic. The show’s cool, modern score – two words not often pegged to ballet – sets the tone for an athletic, theatrical adaptation.
During a recent rehearsal at the company’s Littleton studios, David Taylor’s dancers seemed electrified by the pairing of visceral, contemporary ballet movement with Gen-X rock and electronica by the likes of Garbage, Butthole Surfers and the Dust Brothers.
“We’ve got to get more action, more dramatics,” Taylor said to the cast after practicing a vicious fight scene in which rival Montagues and Capulets brandish lead pipes instead of swords. “You’ve got to keep those faces.”
The ethnic diversity reflected in Taylor’s dancers, many of them new to the company, helps underscore this production’s urban edge. There are no parents or arranged marriages in this world. Instead of an elegant, high-society ball, Romeo and Juliet rendezvous at a late-night rave. Instead of lamenting to her nurse about a love she cannot have, Juliet is rebuked by her best friend, a streetwise tough girl who brawls alongside the men in their crew.
And instead of seeking out Friar Lawrence for his toxic cocktail, Romeo buys drugs from the local dealer, then dies from a lethal fix.
“The production is not designed to shock but rather seeks to represent the darker side of contemporary teenage life,” Taylor said in a statement about the show. That approach is one the choreographer has grown accustomed to after past productions have found ways to surprise ballet classicists with unconventional costuming, characters and storytelling techniques.
This tale opens with a series of violent confrontations between adversarial cliques as the score rolls through drum and bass electronica, fast-paced symphonic sequences and rock ‘n’ roll.
Star-crossed lovers discover each other amid dangerous, largely illegal, circumstances, and while the relationships between Romeo and his Montagues and Juliet and her Capulets are spelled out in sexy, sometimes spooky choreography, love scenes remain sweet by drawing on classical ballet.
Props and costuming, designed by Armando Guerra and George Peters, will be characterized by retro-futurist, black-and-white street fashions, a twist on an idea Taylor found success with after transforming the ballroom scene in his “Nutcracker” into a two-tone, art deco panorama. Jonathan Scott Mc-
Kean’s lighting design also will underscore this show’s gruff vibe.
“It’s all about this punked-out look,” Taylor said.
The choreography and design should engage young people – one reason the company plans to develop an accompanying Internet study guide for “Romeo and Juliet Rocks!”
Even better for anyone, regardless of age, who wiggles in their seat during traditional ballet or Shakespearean plays: This show’s running time is roughly 40 minutes. That presented Taylor with the opportunity to enhance the show by including five short repertoire works:
“Cheek to Cheek” is a take on the 1932 Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers film “Top Hat”; “The Storm” is described as a passionate duet based on “Dracula”; “Take a Seat” by Peter Davison of the Boulder Ballet is set to music by Dave Brubeck; “Wingborne” is the signature work of the late Loyce Houlton of the Minnesota Dance Theatre; and “Icon” is an ensemble piece set to music by Arvo Part.
Staff writer Elana Ashanti Jefferson can be reached at 303-820-1957 or ejefferson@denverpost.com.
“Romeo & Juliet Rocks!”
CONTEMPORARY BALLET |David Taylor Dance Theatre |Lakewood Cultural Center, 470 S. Allison Parkway, Lakewood; 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday|$14-$22|303-987-7845 or www.lakewood.org.
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3rd Law Dance/Theater “Iconoclashtic” is the latest production from this Boulder performance group known for its robust, gesture-based movement. The show’s title refers to the clash of symbols and icons that surface throughout the production, which includes the new work, “There’s a Party Under My Bed and I Think I’m the Hostess,” and the repertoire dances “End-Game-Begin,” “BluePhobia,” “Barometric Pressure” and “Bread & Salt.” 8 tonight, Saturday, May 6 and May 7 at the Dairy Center for the Arts, 2590 Walnut St., Boulder. Tickets, $13-$17, 303-938- 8656, www.thirdlaw.org.
Skeleton Dance Project This Boulder-based Afro- modern dance company presents “Metamorphosis” at the Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Theatre, 119 Park Ave. West. Artistic Director Onye Ozuzu collaborated with local composer Jesse Manno for past company works, along with this show’s premiere, “Sweet Water River, Rise,” a sextet that explores the artists’ interest in polyrhythmic meter combinations. Hip-hop choreography Larry Southall also contributed to the concert. 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Tickets, $12-$15, 303-735-3086.
– Elana Ashanti Jefferson
