“Nightspot” Hits the Spot

(Originally published on MOLI 3/29/8)

A new ballet with music by Elvis Costello, choreography by Twyla Tharp, and costumes by Isaac Mizrahi would be big news in any town. For Miami, the world premiere of Nightspot on March 28 was an historic event. The breathless, vivid, Romantic (with a capital R) dance is the first major commission by the Miami City Ballet, a 22-year-old company that has been increasingly catching the dance community’s eye. Opening night, drawing a mass of tuxedoed swells and South Florida glitterati, was also a momentous occasion for the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, now in its second year and under new management with a new name. Nightspot was a world-class performance – was there any more important dance event on the globe that night? – that, with its infusion of multiple Latin and club beats, moves, and styles, was also very Miami. It was a blast even for the ballet skeptics who were there just to see what Elvis was up to.

Following three couples as they dance and flirt their way through the nightlife, Nightspot is sort of a modern-day West Side Story (with no words). There’s forbidden romance, betrayal, good girls and bad girls, and a climactic fight – though in Nightspot, it’s between two men, not gangs. The fight scene draws heavily on Brazilian capoeira (as well as American break-dancing). It seems like the creators spent some time in Miami clubs, where salsa, bboying, and house music frequently rub elbows, as well as studying up on Latin styles: There’s mambo, tango, and boogaloo. The snaking bass lines Costello has loved so well since “Watching the Detectives” fit in well here. His moody jazz studies and experiences with classical music also came in handy. There were nine players on stage and 35 in the pit, from congos to clarinet to strings.

Perhaps most exciting for Miami was how spectacularly its dancers performed. Setting Nightspot in club land was a stroke of genius, allowing Tharp to accentuate the narcissism and abandonment of young dancers. At one point, Jennifer Carlynn Kronenberg duets with a long piece of scarlet fabric – a red carpet? – and a (literally) supportive entourage. This is only the second time I’ve seen MCB, but Miami Herald dance critic Jordan Levin writes that many of the moves seemed created for these precise bodies. Jeremy Cox grounds his kicks in a friendly smile. Isanusi Garcia-Rodriguez shook his body with Afro-Cuban exuberance rather than ballet’s usual restraint. Mizrahi’s purple and red costumes, mixing flamenco, club, and street styles, echoed the giant hibiscus flowers in the stage curtain, which is part of the Arsht Center’s collection of original art.

Costello, Tharp, and Mizrahi were all there opening night, as were photographer Bruce Weber, producer Sebastian Krys, and conductor Michael Tilson-Thomas. Outside, the subtropical air throbbed to the electronic sounds of the Ultra Music Festival, just blocks away. Across Biscayne Boulevard, at the PAC’s other theater, the Cleveland Orchestra was premiering an evening of Russian works. Parking and traffic were the infrastructural headache caused by this throbbing success. But what city doesn’t have those issues?

This entry was posted on September 11, 2008 at 9:55 am and is filed under Populism. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site.