Word: arpino
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...Gerald Arpino, co-founder and artistic director of The Joffrey Ballet, conceived and directed this ferocious full-length rock ballet. Prince gave permission for the company to use the highly respected troupe perform for the first time. Actively involved in the collaboration, Prince composed a specially extended version of "Thunder" of The Joffrey...
...have been hit hard by the recession, and this company has been especially pressed since the death of founder Robert Joffrey in 1988. Temporary salvation came when new fan Prince (or Prince Rogers Nelson, as he is called in the program) donated several of his songs. Artistic director Gerald Arpino invited four choreographers to contribute: Laura Dean, Charles Moulton, Margo Sappington and Peter Pucci. None is known primarily for classical pieces, but all clearly responded well with the highly polished Joffrey dancers. The results vary in quality, but the whole evening reflects an enthusiastic effort to marry the discipline...
...Arpino was wise to put this little fancy first. Because the costumes are glistening white and the women wear chignons, the classical echoes are clear when the scene shifts to the street. Moulton, on the other hand, establishes himself on the corner right away. Thunder/Purple Rain is a variant on the familiar sex-and-salvation theme. Elizabeth Parkinson plays a sort of fairy who transforms bystanders into lovers with a wand crowned, rather like a car's hood ornament, by a heart. Unfortunately, Moulton makes the song Purple Rain into a dismal solo that looks arduous to dance and provides...