DANCE REVIEW : Ragged Edges Mar Ambitious Ballet Program

The American Ballet Ensemble whipped up two separate programs of “Light Classics” for its weekend stint at the Lyceum Theatre.

Featured in Friday’s potpourri was the premiere of “Masquerade,” choreographed by founding director Lynda Yourth, a Balanchine-inspired “Swan Lake Act II,” and the most exciting staging of the evening, the revival of Mieczyslaw Morawski’s “Ariadne and Theseus.” Tucked in the middle of it all was “Other Rooms,” a dreamy dance Yourth created in 1983 along the phantasmagoric lines of Maurice Ravel’s “Le Combeau de Couperin.”

Yourth cast the entire program from the company ranks instead of importing artists to perform principal roles, even though most of the dancers are no more than 16 or 17 years old.

The home-grown girls in leading roles held their own well enough. However, the boys in this youthful troupe were in over their heads at times during Friday’s concert. Fortunately, at least three of the young men showed promise, which bodes well for the future of the company--unless they take off for greener pastures as many of their predecessors did.

There were more ragged edges than usual among the corps dancers in Friday night’s performance. This was particularly obvious amid the pristine symmetry of “Swan Lake” and when the neoclassic moves of “Masquerade” accelerated to keep pace with Aram Khatchaturian’s buoyant score.

The shallow stage of the Lyceum was too confining for three of the four dances on the program. But Morawski’s evocation of the Greek legend--a trio set to the dissonant strains of a score by Hans Werner Henze--fit the space like a glove.

“Ariadne and Theseus” is thoroughly modern in its movement style and vividly striking in its imagery. It began with a stunning stage picture that captured Aura Dixon and Jonathan Chait in one of many fascinating couplings that pervade the piece.

Their duet was interrupted by well-danced, aerial flights by Bruno Bosardi as the Minotaur. Dixon’s predatory legs and supple arms folded neatly into the pretzel-shaped contortions of the choreography with apparent ease.

Chait was an attentive partner. He lacked the steely control and polished classicism needed for the difficult balances, but gave a fine account of himself in the combative duet with Bosardi.

“Masquerade,” a lightweight study of romantic encounters at a masked ball, ebbed and flowed briskly along the fluid lines of the music. Yourth created lovely, shifting patterns that disappeared into one another and reappeared in other parts of the stage.

This ensemble dance gave several of the principals a chance to snare the limelight, but the callow boys were awkward with lifts that should have been lofty and weightless. And the dramatic nuances of the dance put even more strain on the young dancers.

For the corps, “Masquerade’s” mercurial moves were a constant challenge, and they struggled to keep up with the kinetic onslaught on the cramped stage. Hopefully, Yourth will restage “Masquerade’s” sweeping phrases and curvilinear designs when the company is nimble and mature enough to express them--and when there is ample space to accommodate them.

Like most contemporary ballet companies, the American Ballet Ensemble has appropriated the second act of “Swan Lake” and adapted the Russian masterpiece to the strengths of the developing dancers. Friday night’s staging featured Claire Taber as the Swan Queen, Hugo Jelinek Carreon as her Prince and Wade Abel as the evil Von Rothbart.

Taber, a fragile, bird-like creature, has the dramatic presence the role requires. She executed Yourth’s choreography well, although there were fewer episodes of dazzling solo work in the ballerina role than usual.

Carreon’s classic technique needs honing, but he made an able partner for Taber. There was little for Abel to do as Von Rothbart but flap his wings and posture, but he made for a menacing presence throughout.

Yourth dipped into her own early repertory for “Other Rooms,” a neoclassic ballet. It offered Maile Okamura an opportunity to show off her athletic dancing, and gave the other principals a chance to shine as a group.

Most of the taped music for Friday’s concert was of poor quality, and the lighting designs left much to be desired, especially in “Swan Lake”--which requires a moonlit ambience.

Saturday night, the troupe unveiled another classic when it returned to the Lyceum with live music by the Jewish Community Center Orchestra. That slate featured excerpts from “Sleeping Beauty” (a company premiere) and another round of “Masquerade.” An orchestral selection, Tchaikovsky’s Fourth Symphony, was the prelude to the dance portion.

American Ballet moves on to the Educational Cultural Complex in East San Diego on May 26 for two performances of Friday night’s program. The troupe will repeat its Saturday program in Centro Cultural de Tijuana on June 2.