All who watched the colorful fanfare were reminded that despite distances in miles, differences in culture, and varying, if not dueling, perspectives on anything from politics to religion, there are so many more things that we have in common with each other. Somewhere deep in our psyche we understand that as Russian as a Tchaikovsky score undoubtedly is, it belongs to the rest of us as well.
When the Russian prima of the Bolshoi, the lithe Svetlana Zakharova, depicts Rostova, the beautiful debutante from Tolstoy’s War & Peace, one cannot help but marvel at how compelling the art of dance is at storytelling. When the Russian born Ivan Vasiliev, now a principal with American Ballet Theater, defies gravity and crosses the threshold of what is merely mortal into a realm of something almost magical, the crowd cannot refrain from gasping in sheer wonder. This classic style with its graceful steps and surreal leaps seems to reside in these dancer’s souls, an innate gift inherited from a long line of predecessors.
What we may not remember, however, is that this historically informed and theatrically captivating art form is thriving in our very own backyard. In the very heart of Torrington’s arts corridor on Main Street, The Nutmeg Ballet Conservatory carries on Agrippina Vaganova’s tradition of training students in the fundamentals of a methodology steeped in a tradition that goes back to the czars of Russia and the extravagant courts of Louis XIV.
Since 1969, this organization founded by Torrington’s Sharon E. Dante has been providing professional-level training to aspiring dance-artists. And as highlighted by the Opening Ceremonies in Sochi, ballet is not a dying art nor is it in any way stagnant. Embracing the new and melding it with tradition, the audience was witness to “Swan Lake” as they had never before imagined it.
With the masterful guidance of MOMIX’s Moses Pendleton and Cynthia Quinn, long-time friends, mentors, and patrons of The Nutmeg Ballet, the Mariinsky’s prima, Diana Vishneva, was at the center of a reinvention of Tchaikovsky’s classic masterpiece. Who could forget the strikingly illuminated costumes swirling and twirling about in the spectacular “Doves of Peace”? To take a masterwork at the very core of classical ballet repertoire and reimagine it with such contemporary sensibilities is nothing, if not daring.
As the Nutmeg Ballet’s Victoria Mazzarelli knows so well, ballet builds upon tradition, but is never limited by its rich history. On the contrary, it is only enhanced by it. “Having a strong ballet technique makes for versatile dancers and opens up so many artistic possibilities for young artists,” said the well-traveled Artistic Director. Her own solid foundation in classical ballet gave her the ability to adapt to requirements of diverse choreography, a trait much in demand with choreographers who tend to push the boundaries of ballet into new and unexplored directions.
“Perhaps one of the greatest treasures of life is to have danced on the stages of so many amazing countries. Whether it was working with such gifted choreographers as Hans van Manen, Jiri Kylian, Heinz Spoerli or William Forsythe, each choreographer so unique and so gifted in his own way, there was always something familiar, that sense of tradition, that grounding in the great ballet classics that was nurtured by Sharon Dante on Migeon Avenue. It made all these new experiences feel somehow familiar to me—this young girl from Torrington who was so far from home,” said Mazzarelli.
The story of ballet is one with a beginning, but no end. It is a part of a culture that is both international and yet intimately our own. It is an art form that we can appreciate from afar or as easily as a drive to 58 Main Street where the dance and the dancers conspire to create the sublime through the daily promise of sweat and boundless effort.
Ballet is timeless, ethereal, and seemingly endless in possibilities. Most importantly, it is ours. It is right here within our grasp. It is thriving each day in that beautiful glass box with its state of the art studios juxtaposed with charming historical architecture. Whether serendipitous or intentionally so, The Nutmeg Ballet is part of Torrington’s evolving identity as a community transforming itself through the arts.
On the famed stages of the Bolshoi, Mariinsky, or our very own beautifully restored Warner Theatre in Torrington, ballet is everywhere. Ballet is universal. It weaves a delicate tapestry of beauty, history, culture, and inspiration in whatever corner of the world we find ourselves.
Come see The Nutmeg Ballet in IMPACT as they perform classical and contemporary repertoire including choreography courtesy of MOMIX on March 22-23 at Warner’s Nancy Marine Studio Theater. For tickets call 860.489.7180.