Segerstrom Center for the Arts dance patrons are familiar with seeing the classic story ballet “Romeo and Juliet” danced live on the Costa Mesa stage.
But they’ve never before seen the piece danced live backstage.
A unique and engrossing transformation happens this weekend as LA Dance Project makes its Segerstrom debut with Artistic Director Benjamin Millepied’s radically restaged “Romeo & Juliet Suite.”
In addition to the onstage performance, this “R&J” will follow the action behind the scenes via a live video camera operated by company Associate Artistic Director Sébastien Marcovici, who will track the dancers, with images livestreamed to the audience on a screen on the stage.
LA Dance Project was co-founded a decade ago by Millepied, a former dancer with New York City Ballet. Millepied, who has choreographed pieces for New York City Ballet, Paris Opera Ballet, American Ballet Theatre and other companies, recently described this technique and his goal in making this piece.
“I love the idea of using dance, live performance and cinematographic images to express a timeless story that really speaks to the audience,” he said. “This production creates a comprehensive artistic experience while echoing current social issues, all with a cast that changes night by night.”
Casting over the three performances reflects modern trends. Friday night’s performance finds two male dancers as the leads. Saturday’s matinee is the traditional pairing of male and female, while the evening dance has two women in the title roles.
These performances mark the American premiere of an expanded version of Millepied’s previous, smaller construction of this…
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