Ballet extravaganza

About a month and a half ago I saw Sacramento Ballet perform Carmina Burana. It wasn't super good, largely because they completely removed it from its context. The music is interesting because of, and indeed, was motivated by the discovery of bawdy poems written by medieval monks. So I expected the dancers to be costumed as monks, as they were when I saw an Atlanta Ballet production of Carmina Burana many years ago. But Sacramento ballet clad the women in unitards and the men in booty shorts, giving the piece the feel of just any contemporary ballet, but definitely not of a Carmina Burana.

Now I understand why Carmina Burana was so low budget. Saturday night I saw them perform Scheherazade, which was really good. They must have been saving up as much of this year's budget for it as possible. It was far and away the best I have ever seen Sacramento Ballet. The costumes alone were really great. They seemed to be straight out of a story book, which is so very appropriate for this ballet. They also performed two short ballets before Scheherazade, and both of these were super as well. It was really a pleasant surprise. This entire season, Sacramento Ballet's performances have started with one really great piece, only to dwindle off with two more that are only so-so. An evening of three high-quality ballets seemed almost too much to dream of, but they did it! They also announced a few of the highlights planned for next season. Thank God they aren't doing Dracula again! It's one of my least favorites, and they've done it for the past two years!

Then, yesterday, I made the trek to see San Francisco Ballet. Like always, they were amazing. They're one of the best companies in the country, and I always love seeing them perform. I just wish San Francisco were a little bit closer! Going to a matinee show turns into an all day affair. But it's still oh-so-worth it. They danced four different pieces. All of which just make you say "wow".

Yay for my ballet extravaganza weekend!