The first ballet showcases the faces and hands of the dancers as they are illuminated by a thin ray of light in the back of the stage, while a soloist expresses herself through dancing center-stage.
Falling Angels, the first piece of the Oklahoma Festival Ballet performed by the University of Oklahoma’s School of Dance, is a “masterpiece” by the world-renowned choreographer Jiří Kylián, Assistant Professor and choreographer Boyko Dossev said.
Dossev said the second piece, Strand, is a beautiful and emotional work by choreographer Robyn Mineko Williams. Strand is modern, contemporary, and smaller in scale than Dossev’s Sleeping Beauty.
Williams said her piece had an “abstract theme” and a creation process that allowed the dancers to inspire her with their connections and chemistry. She described Strand as “a stew of a lot of ingredients that bubble up, then you throw in experiential filters on it, and that’s what comes out.”
Junior ballet pedagogy major Alayna Wong said Williams was an “interactive” choreographer who personalized the choreography to match the dancers’ capabilities. Wong said Strand presents a good contrast to the other two pieces.
Sophomore modern dance performance major Hunter Sheehan said Williams encourages the dancers to be motivated for each movement to make it feel authentic, while Dossev’s choreography is more “placed.”
“With Sleeping Beauty, it’s very clean-cut, black and white,” Sheehan said about Dossev’s style. “While Robyn has the shades of gray.”
Act III of Sleeping Beauty, the third and final piece, features a different kind of storytelling by Dossev, he said. Sleeping Beauty is a classical work which involves most of the dance company.
“As I set, restaged, and choreographed Sleeping Beauty, I was reminded of classical ballet’s colossal demands and expectations,” Dossev said. “The dancers need to be in top technical condition; the set and scenery cannot be simple, and our costumes are over 30 beautiful handmade exquisite pieces.”
Dossev said Sleeping Beauty and Strand were different in their styles of choreography. The two pieces complement each other in that they are different in the number of performers, length, and story, he said.
Sheehan said Strand is about the freedom of movement while Sleeping Beauty is technical. “Falling Angels is the perfect combination of the two because the drums’ harsh rhythms allow the dancers to be free and lost in the movement.”
According to Sheehan, Kylián sent a message to the dancers saying Falling Angels is a symbol of strife between belonging and independence.
Dossev said the casting process is different every year. “We try to give equal opportunity to all dancers to experience a diverse repertory.”
Williams said they started the casting process with about 40 dancers. Needing to narrow her search down to ten dancers, she said she factored in who was already performing in one of the other two pieces, as well as the dancers’ openness to collaborate and try new things.
Wong said there were three rounds of callbacks and cuts before final decisions were made for casting Falling Angels. There were 24 students selected to perform between the three pieces, she said.
“I’ve been pushed in my technique and pushed in what I thought I could do,” Wong said. Having performed in the previous two years of the Oklahoma Festival Ballet, Wong said this year had a special impact on her.
Dossev said this year’s experience reminded him of how classical ballet can make dancers stronger and fully rounded artists.
“Classical ballet brings excitement and joy to audiences of all ages and backgrounds,” Dossev said.
Dossev said the Oklahoma Festival Ballet is an opportunity for the audience to experience the world’s best dance pieces performed by talented dancers.
