S pecial thanks to our Momentum collaborator: Travels with Brian Floca Each season Ballet Nebraska collaborates with Joslyn Art Museum as a part of our Momentum program. The company performs a piece of choreography that coincides with an exhibition or work of art. This year our Artistic Director created an original work, Appalachian Song, in connection with the exhibition Travels with Brian Floca, which features the artwork of Caldecott Medalwinning artist Brian Floca. Mr. Floca has illustrated numerous children s books, including Ballet for Martha. Several illustrations from the book are on display in the exhibition. Ballet for Martha takes the reader on a behind the scenes journey through the creation of renowned choreographer Martha Graham s 1944 ballet Appalachian Spring. It shows the reader all of the elements that go into creating a new ballet from the first spark of an idea to the finished product the audience sees on stage. Let s take a look at some of those elements together. Elements of a Production A Concept: Every new ballet has to start with an idea. Choreographers can be inspired by a genre of music, novel, piece of artwork or a region of a country, as in the case with our ballet. Music: Once you have your concept you ll want to decide what music fits your vision best. It should be noted that some choreographers concepts come from finding a beautiful piece of music. Or sometimes a new piece of music is created especially for a new ballet. A choreographer should also start to decide how long they want their ballet at this stage. Dancers: Now that you have music and a concept, let s figure out how many dancers you want on stage. Do you want men or women? Do you want a large group, small group, solos or duets? Maybe you want a mixture! Costumes: Let s dress your dancers. Are they from a specific time period? Do you want their fabric to shine or appear dull? Do you want a specific color family? Do you want movement in their costumes or do you want to see the lines of their bodies? All of these are questions you must ask yourself when designing costumes. Lighting: Lighting should never be underestimated as it helps set the mood of the piece. Do you want to highlight a certain section of the stage? Do you want lights to shine from the side or from the front? Or both? Does your ballet require bright or dim lights? Do you want your lights to be warm or cool toned? Now that you know some of the elements that go into a production, let s try creating your own ballet using what you ve learned! Study guide to Momentum Text Ballet Nebraska All Rights Reserved 1
Appalachian Song and the Appalachian Region In connection with Brian Floca s illustrations in Ballet for Martha, our Artistic Director created a new ballet for us called Appalachian Song. It is inspired by both the history of the Appalachian region and the people who live there. Where is the Appalachian Region? The Appalachian Region, or Apalachia, follows the spine of the Appalachian Mountains from southern New York to northern Mississippi. It includes all of West Virginia and parts of 12 other states. It extends more than 1,000 miles and is home to 25 million people. What are the other 12 states that make up the Appalachian Region? Mountain Life & Music A majority of the people who settled in this region were Scots-Irish. They brought an affinity for the fiddle and fiddle tunes with them when they immigrated to the United States. You will hear the fiddle along with other string instruments such as the banjo and mandolin in traditional Appalachian music. Since the mountains of this region tended to be very isolating, people passed the time with music. It soon formed a sense of community for the Appalachian people and was used for celebrations, as an escape from the realities of life, and most importantly for storytelling. If you listen, elements of the history of the Appalachian people can be found within the music used in Appalachian Song. Let s explore the music of Appalachian Song together \ Study guide to Momentum Text Ballet Nebraska All Rights Reserved 2
Black Lung & Coal Mining Much of the history of Appalachia revolves around the history of coal and coal mining. After the civil war, the country experienced an Industrial Revolution which included both the expansion of railroads and the building of new factories and infrastructure in major cities. This skyrocketed the demand for coal in the U.S. which propelled mining corporations into the region. These larger corporations soon absorbed the smaller independent companies and took over coal mining in Appalachia. Experiencing a further coal boom during World War I & II, coal companies began to set up company towns to accommodate the influx of employees. These towns consisted of simple poorly constructed clapboard homes or shanties with companies issuing their own currency called script. This script could be used at the company store to purchase food and supplies with any larger purchases taken directly out of the workers wages. This set up a system where many of the miners and their families were never able to get out from under the rule of the coal corporations. In addition to the poor living conditions, the miners had dismal working conditions. Coal mining is still considered one of the most dangerous occupations and it was even more so in the early days. Mines were prone to cave-ins which often injured and killed employees. If the employees were injured the companies provided little benefits to the employees or their families. In addition, coal miners were exposed to coal dust in tight working quarters for hours every day which led to coal workers pneumoconiosis (CWP), or black lung, for which there is no cure. This deadly disease decreases lung function and was responsible for the deaths of many coal miners. Eventually, in 1969 with the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act, US Congress set up standards to reduce dust and created the Black Lung Disability Trust to help protect miners. You will see a solo called Black Lung in this ballet about a miner affected by this disease. Poverty & Religion Poverty had plagued the region for many years, but it was not until 1963 when John F. Kennedy established the President s Appalachian Regional Commission that it was brought any national attention. At this time, it was found that many of the people in this region had a standard of living comparable to Third World countries. In these poor living conditions, many people in the region turned to religion as a way to deal with the struggles in their life. Religion provided both a sense of community and purpose for many Appalachian people. Due to new schools, roads and health care facilities the region has seen great progress since the 1960s. Study guide to Momentum Text Ballet Nebraska All Rights Reserved 3
Broadway s Ann Reinking visits Ballet Nebraska to set Fosse medley This season Ballet Nebraska was joined by Broadway legend Ann Reinking to stage a Bob Fosse medley just for the company. Who is Bob Fosse? Born Robert Louis Fosse in 1927 he was an American dancer, choreographer and director. Fosse, a nine-time Tony Award winner, created iconic choreography that set new standards. His style and choreography was known for using turning in knees, sideways shuffling, rolled shoulders and jazz hands. In addition, he often used props such as bowler hats, canes, and chairs. Ann Reinking and Bob Fosse Fosse s work is broad and widespread throughout both film and musical theater. In 1954 he choreographed his first musical, The Pajama Game, which put him on the map in the industry with the popular dance scene Steam Heat. Some of his other most notable musicals that he choreographed include Sweet Charity, Chicago, and Pippin. In film, he won an Academy award for his direction of Cabaret. Bob Fosse passed away in 1987 and left a lasting legacy in the dance world. Ann Reinking, also a Tony winner, is a principal authority on his style and work. She served as Fosse s long-time muse throughout her career staring in many musicals, as well as his autobiographical film All that Jazz in 1979. She is well known for her role as Roxie Hart in both the 1977 run and 1996 revival of Chicago. Keep an eye out for these signature Fosse moves! Turned in knees: different from ballet, where knees are generally turned out. Shoulders and hips: stylized movements including shoulder rolls and hip isolations. Use of bowler hats: used as part of the choreography. Jazz hands: fingers stretched out wide. Small gestures: small gestures focus your attention. Power of nothing: stillness on stage can be powerful. Ann Reinking and Gary Chryst Study guide to Momentum Text Ballet Nebraska All Rights Reserved 4
What You ll See in the Theater A ballet performance is similar to other live performances such as a symphony concert or a Meet Dana E. Cowen stage play. But it also has its own customs and traditions that help make your visit to the Dana E. Cowen, Ph.D. is the Associate Curator of European Art at Joslyn Art Museum who theater special. Although each production may handle things slightly differently, here s a will be sharing more information about Degas Little Dancer during your visit. Currently, general guide to what you can expect: she is preparing for the reinstallation of the European galleries that will focus on new Before the show, people come in, find their seats, and get settled. The signal that the interpretive strategies. ballet is about to start will be the dimming of the lights. The curtain will not go up right away; instead, you ll hear music called the overture. It s a preview of the music that will be heard during the performance. It helps viewers forget about their outside distractions and get into the mood to enjoy the ballet. Once the overture ends, the curtain will rise and the dancers will begin the performance. One thing you ll notice right away that makes ballet different from a movie or a stage play: Dancers almost never talk onstage! Instead of using speech, a ballet tells its story through movements, gestures, and facial expressions. This may seem like an odd way of telling a story but if you think about it, it s perfectly natural. After all, you often watch your friends movements, gestures and facial expressions to help you understand what they are saying and how they feel (can you think of a few examples?) So if you watch the performers carefully, you ll find you have no trouble knowing exactly what s going on in the ballet. Changes in the music and the lighting also help you follow along in the story. You ll notice how the music changes to match what s going on in each scene, and how the lighting changes from one scene to the next, helping to create a mood that matches the action. Most story ballets are divided into acts, which are like chapters in a book: After one chapter ends, the story continues in the next chapter. When the first act ends, the lights on the stage may fade out and the main curtain may come down but that doesn t mean the ballet is over! This is just a short pause while the performers get ready for the second act. The pause will last only a couple of minutes, so just relax in your seat until the next act begins. (Longer ballet performances often have one or more intermissions. These are longer breaks usually 15 or 20 minutes in which the lights come up in the theater and the viewers can walk out into the lobby to stretch their legs and talk about the performance with their friends. The program booklet will tell you which breaks are pauses and which are intermissions.) You ll know the ballet is over when the music finishes and the lights fade out on the stage. But there s still one more important moment to come. The lights on the stage will come up again and the dancers will face the audience, step forward, and bow to thank the audience for attending. Often the dancers who had the most prominent roles will bow separately, and finally the whole company will bow together. After the final bow, the curtain falls and the lights come up in the theater, signaling that the performance is over. At the end of the show, the audience thanks the performers with applause, and the performers thank the audience by taking a final bow. Be in the Know Ballet was invented to entertain kings and queens, princes and princesses. Today, of course, everyone is welcome! But it s fun to be in the know about its customs and etiquette: Do make sure you are ready to sit and enjoy the show in plenty of time before it starts. Try to take care of getting a drink, a tissue, bathroom breaks, etc., before you come to the theater. Don t chew gum, or bring food or drinks of any kind to the theater. Also, texting, taking pictures, or using cell phones isn t allowed during the show. Don t leave your seat during the show. The theater will be dark, and it s hard to get around. If it s an emergency and you absolutely have to get up, check with your teacher or chaperone. Do laugh if the dancers do something funny. They like to know they re entertaining you! Don t talk during the show not to your neighbor or to the dancers. There s a lot happening onstage, and you don t want to miss something important! There will be lots of time after the show to talk. Do applaud (clap) if you want to show the dancers you liked what you saw. If you ve been to a stage play or to the symphony, you may have been told that you should applaud only at the end. But ballet is different: it s perfectly okay to applaud any time you see something you think is really, really good! Visit balletnebraska.org to learn more about ballet, about our performers, and about our future productions. Study guide to Momentum Text Ballet Nebraska All Rights Reserved 5