A show of six tales, Madison Ballet introduces its winter repertory “Love” — a performance brought together by four artists, each showcasing their own experience of love under the organization of Madison Ballet Artistic and Executive Director Ja’ Malik.
“Love” explores themes of love as experienced by individual artists and their experiences, including grief, the act of saying goodbye and same-sex love.
“Love is love,” Malik said in an interview with The Badger Herald.
Malik’s pieces “Guitar Concerto,” “Farewell” and “Dance Odyssey” express such themes through pas de deux and soloist acts, including classical tunes such as “Clair De Lune” and classical guitar.
“Guitar Concerto,” composed by Oliver Davis, is Malik’s first piece in the show and consists of three parts.
“I love the music of Oliver Davis,” Malik said. “When I heard his music, it made me think of Madrid and my time there.”
“Farewell” is a solo tribute to Malik’s childhood friend who died from AIDS-related complications — “a way to say goodbye” according to the Madison Ballet website.
“Dance Odyssey” is Malik’s third piece. Originally created in collaboration with the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra for Concerts on the Square, “Dance Odyssey” is an expression of friendship and community.
Another work that expresses grief is guest choreographer Stephanie Martinez’s piece “Something To Remember You By,” showing the chaotic worlds that split the human condition through times of grief — the excitement and novelty of life and the pain and suffering of death.
Her presence in the show is also a symbol of breaking boundaries.
“It’s been a majority of white men — women are the ones that are most associated with ballet, but women have always just been accepted on stage and not behind the scenes in a creative role,” Malik said.
Martinez is the recipient of multiple awards including the Chicago 3Arts Award, Joffrey Ballet’s “Winning Works: Choreographers of Color” commission and more recently the National Endowment for the Arts grant for her premiere of “Bliss!” in collaboration with Ballet.
Malik wishes to continue his work to make ballet more inclusive with the help of choreographers like Martinez whose works provide a shift from traditional boundaries.
Other works in “Love” include “Paquita Suite” staged by Andrea Long and “Armistice” by choreographer Richard Walters.
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“Paquita Suite” is a classical piece on a wedding enacted through corps de ballet, solos and pas de deux. Wedding being the highest representation of reverence and love, “Paquita Suite” embodies the ideals of the show unlike any other, according to Malik.
Richard Walters’ “Armistice” is the full representation of “Love is Love,” according to the Madison Ballet website. A duet with two female dancers, “Armistice,” represents love within a same-sex couple.
“I wanted to make sure that when love is represented on stage from us, there is no discrimination,” Malik said. “There’s no bias. There’s no difference … that’s what the entire program is representing.”
Malik encourages younger people and students from the University of Wisconsin to attend the show.
“I was around 14, I saw a performance of the Joffrey Ballet,” Malik said. “I will never forget. I mean, the audience was rocking and jamming into the music and loving the dancing on stage and it was energetic and it was vibrant.”
It was a performance of ballet with modern music, a style Malik would later incorporate into his own work and the coming show. Malik hopes the introduction of energetic modern music into traditional ballet will interest younger individuals to experience his art form.
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“We’re creating this [uniqueness] for [younger] people,” Malik said. “You may walk away and not like it, but at least you gave it a try … but if you never try it, then you never really know. So I really encourage everyone just to give it a try, especially at such an affordable price.”
The tickets can be purchased on the Overture Center website for $40–45. Students can purchase rush tickets for $10 with a student ID at the door.
Malik hopes to continue changing ballet and shaping it into a modern art form that holds all the values of its origins and carries with it the mark of the 21st century as it continues to evolve.
“Through ballet, I traveled the world as a choreographer and a teacher,” Malik said. “Ballet has taken me places that I never imagined that it could take me when I started … so I feel it’s my obligation to not only keep this art form alive, but to keep it moving forward in a more diverse and inclusive way.”
“Love” premieres Feb. 15 and runs through Feb. 25 at the Overture Center for the Arts.
