The New York Baroque Dance Co.

The New York Baroque Dance Company Review Excerpts for Armide by Gluck Performed at the Kennedy Center and Lincoln Center, February 1 and 3, 2010 with Opera Lafayette Orchestra and Chorus conducted by Ryan Brown

”Much of the credit for the success of this performance should go to its choreographer, Catherine Turocy. Whether the dancing was in any way similar to how it was originally performed is unknown. Ms. Turocy in her notes states that no surviving period dance notation scores are extant for the dances in Armide. She based her choreography on treatises written in Gluck’s time, and the dancers performed eloquent movements, hands raised delicately in the air, their expressive faces reflecting the emotions of the moment. Commendations are particularly in order for Caroline Copeland (who also soloed brilliantly in Opera Lafayette’s production last year of Monsigny’s Le Déserteur) whose mime-like, happy-to-sad facial alterations in the Act V Chaconne were worth the price of admission, and then some.” Stan Metzger, Seen and Heard International Opera Review, 2/3/10

“Along with the outstanding Opera Lafayette Chorus and Orchestra and beautiful artistry of The New York Baroque Dance Company, the story of Armide was conveyed at the highest level of artistic excellence…The New York Baroque Dance Company, in soldier’s costumes elegantly danced the possibility of vengeance, as the Opera Chorus resounded the theme in splendid harmony… Each dance and costume conceived by the extraordinary choreographer, Catherine Turocy captured the essence of each movement. Complimenting Burden’s solo were the dancers moving with such grace, beautifully adorned with the flowers of spring. In the brief appearance of La Haine, soprano Houtzeel made her sole appearance on stage to warn Armide,but to no avail. Houtzeel’s clarion voice sounded forth in urgency and her delivery was very convincing. Many wanted to hear more of this singer. The dancers again added to the mood of the story, dancing in all black with splashes of color

Opera Lafayette is indeed one of our nation’s most esteemed performing ensembles. The performance was outstanding from start to finish. This performance was stellar on all levels: soloists, orchestra and dancers all prepared beyond measure to render the best performance possible. Patrick McCoy, The Examiner2/2/10

“Opera Lafayette presented “Armide” in 2007 in conjunction with the University of Maryland in a production directed by Leon Major. Not having seen the 2007 staging, I can’t compare, but this semi-concert presentation, studded with dance interlays from the New York Baroque Dance Company (a frequent Opera Lafayette collaborator, resplendent in period costume) was excellent at conveying the spirit of the opera and showing the work’s dramatic continuity. And it revealed the way that the dance was conceived as a part of the action, or the way that some moments (the Act I finale, a rapid-paced ensemble) might have influenced Mozart.” Anne Midgette, Washington Post2/3/10

“The dancers in costumes and choreography devised by Catherine Turocy were a rare treat. Not since Mary Skeaping devised an 18th Century dance for Baryshnikov in ABT’s Sleeping Beauty, as well as a ballet solo “Vestris,” have we seen Baroque dancing that was so convincing and enjoyably non-academic. The dances tonight were very well executed — at times it was almost as if the ghosts of Vestris, Gardel, Guimard and Heinel were actually on stage. The rather eerie spectral quality was emphasized by the semi-interactions between the fully, and elaborately costumed dancers and the singers in modern concert attire standing behind music stands. James Camner ,OPERA-L internet blog 2/4/10

“Like all 18th-century French operas “Armide” abounds with dance. This performance, conducted by Ryan Brown, Opera Lafayette’s founding director, featured elaborately costumed ballet segments performed by the New York Baroque Dance Company, choreographed by Catherine Turocy. Anthony Tommasini,New York Times2/4/10

“The voices filled the small theater, the string section of the small orchestra was full enough to thrill, the dances were delicious, the French diction superb…Dance always played a large part in French grand opera, and reconstructing French court dance has long been Catherine Turocy’s specialty. Her dancers here enacted battling warriors, masked temptations, courting shepherds and rag-headed demons with steps that hovered between mime and formal dance. They were always entertaining and generally relevant to the story, and when masked evincing an impersonality appropriate to spirits summoned and embodied by a great and enigmatic witch.” John Yohalem, Opera Today, 2/11/10