PNB's "Laugh Out Loud" festival shows that ballet dancers can be funny

Dance review |

Ballerinas aren't really supposed to be funny; all those dying-swan and sleeping-princess roles require seriousness of purpose, or at least an unbreakable serenity. And yet I've long suspected that Louise Nadeau, longtime principal dancer at Pacific Northwest Ballet, could be a crackerjack comedienne if given the chance. In Christopher Wheeldon's "Variations Sérieuses" on opening night of the company's delightful "Laugh Out Loud!" festival this weekend, she got it.

The ballet is a lighthearted look backstage during a rehearsal and subsequent performance, marvelously designed by Ian Falconer (creator of the "Olivia" children's books) as if we're peering sideways through the wings. Nadeau, as its prima ballerina, conveys a wonderfully silly hauteur through a dismissive flick of the hand, a stomping fury at an underling who dares to bump into her and a dainty yet she-means-business hissy fit at a pianist unfortunate enough to play the wrong tempo. Also showing strong comic chops were company ballet master Otto Neubert, making a guest appearance as a profoundly sensitive conductor (he wields his baton with hand on heart, overcome by the emotion), Chalnessa Eames as a stage manager with dreams of the spotlight and Jonathan Porretta as a much-put-upon ballet master.

Though beautifully choreographed, "Variations Sérieuses" is as much a theater piece as a dance work; its crowded stage was filled with intricate personalities. By contrast, Susan Stroman's world premiere jazz ballet "Take Five ... More or Less" was pure dance, and pure joy. Set to the familiar strains of Dave Brubeck (played with flair by members of the PNB orchestra, under Stewart Kershaw's baton), it was an inventive romp that ended almost too soon.

Shades of Broadway flavored this dance, from Lesley Rausch's shimmying little march on pointe to Jeffrey Stanton's marvelously loose, slouchy soft-shoe solo. Olivier Wevers soared like the notes from the saxophone; Kari Brunson (rarely seen in solo roles) reveled in the spotlight, stretching out her long legs with catlike grace. Though not laugh-out-loud funny, "Take Five" bubbled with gentle wit; in particular, a sequence in which six pairs of legs (belonging to dancers lying on the floor) created a disembodied dance of their own. William Ivey Long's bright costumes contributed to the piece's happy spell.

The evening also included Brian Reeder's witty (if perhaps a tad overlong) "The Lost Language of the Flight Attendant," featuring Laura Gilbreath's graceful hand gestures as a "uniformed crew member," and Trisha Brown's brief "Spanish Dance." This program will repeat Friday night and Saturday afternoon, and two other collections of comic dances will be performed Saturday night and Sunday (see accompanying story).

Moira Macdonald: 206-464-2725 or mmacdonald@seattletimes.com