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| Alexandra Cunningham and Stefan Calka in a car provided by the California Automobile Museum, photo by Keith Sutter |
After a well deserved holiday break from The Nutcracker, we returned to the studio yesterday for our first
rehearsals of 2013. Refreshed and full
of energy, we launched into Jared Nelson’s new work for Modern Masters and I
continued to work on The Great
Gatsby.
Returning to the music of the ‘Roaring 20’s’ is exhilarating and I
can’t think of when I’ve had more fun working on a new ballet. The delightful ‘Jazz Age’ score is
inspirational and the dancers are totally immersed in the mad cap spirit of
this wacky era.
F. Scott Fitzgerald perfectly captures the hedonistic atmosphere
created by the Volstead Act, where booze was the national drink and sex the
national obsession.
The music plays an insistent tattoo on my brain and I awake many
times during the night imagining the twists and turns of bringing Gatsby to the stage. Time is of the essence and the distance
between now and opening night seems to shrink from yards to inches by the
minute. So far, I’ve created a patchwork
of prohibition style dances waiting to be sewn together into a cohesive whole. In a way, the making of dances is the easy
part, telling the story is the challenge.
Stefan as Gatsby, Alexandra as Daisy, Isha as Jordan, Oliver as Nick,
Amanda as Myrtle, Richie as George, and Chris & Rick alternating Tom
complete an idyllic cast. I’m lucky to
have such gifted artists interpreting these complex and multi layered
characters. Lots to do, much to
accomplish, but we'll be ready.
Ron Cunningham
Artistic Director
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