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    The Arthropologist

    Jacob's Pillow talk: H-Town invades historic East Coast dance fest, lurescelebrities

    Nancy Wozny
    Sep 1, 2012 | 10:27 am
    • Houstonian Allysen Hooks with B.J. Randolph, Evan Teitelbaum and Michael J.Clark in John Heginbotham's Closing Bell
      Photo by Amber Star Merkens
    • Victoria Jaiani and Miguel Angel Blanco of The Joffrey Ballet in Son of ChamberSymphony
      Photo by Christopher Duggan
    • Victoria Jaiani and Miguel Angel Blanco of The Joffrey Ballet in Son of ChamberSymphony
      Photo by Christopher Duggan
    • Lauren Edson and Travis Walker of Trey McIntyre Project in Bad Winter
    • Artists of the Houston MET Dance Company
      Photo by Christopher Duggan
    • Artists of the Houston MET Dance Company
      Photo by Christopher Duggan
    • Performing at The Pillow, Houston MET Dance Company artists
      Photo by Christopher Duggan

    "Nancy!" screamed Marlana Walsh Doyle. The dancer charged across the great lawn at Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, and after a quick hello hug, she was off to join her fellow dancers of The Houston Metropolitan Dance Company to rehearse for their Pillow debut.

    August means, for me, a trip to the Pillow to talk, breathe, sleep and live dance during my stint as a scholar in residence.

    Doyle and I weren't the only Texans to make the historic dance trek: This summer, there was a Lone Star invasion of the historic Berkshire, Mass.-based festival, starting with Trey McInyre Project and Houston native Allysen Hooks performing with Dance Heginbotham from Aug. 8 through 12, followed by Stanton Welch's world premiere on The Joffrey Ballet in the Ted Shawn Theater from Aug. 22 to 27 and The Houston Met on the Inside/Out stage on Aug. 25.

     Joffrey Ballet tackles Stanton Welch's sleek new ballet

    Let's start with Welch's new world premiere, Son of Chamber Symphony, set to John Adams' dynamic work of the same name. One of Welch's most musical and witty pieces, the ballet made nods to several classical ballets and felt like a love child borne from his buzzy Divergence and the exotic climate of Tutu.

    Full of Welch's signature gestural flourishes, Son of Chamber Symphony also showcased the mighty talents of the Joffrey dancers. Travis Halsey's diagonal designs on the tutus mirrored the architectural lines of the Ted Shawn's rustic barn doors, adding to the polished geometry of Welch's choreography.

    This was Welch's second trip to the famous dance rock. Last season, Welch set a new work on the ballet students for the Pillow gala, when he crossed passed paths with his old friend and Joffrey's artistic director Ashley Wheater. I liked to imagine that these two dreamed up the new ballet over some yummy French toast at the Stone Dining Room, but they didn't — a ballet takes years to plan.

     

      One of Welch's most musical and witty pieces, the ballet made nods to several classical ballets and felt like a love child borne from his buzzy Divergence and the exotic climate of Tutu.

      "But we did discuss where the ballet might premiere," says Welch, who was in attendance for the Joffrey premiere, along with executive director Jim Nelson and Houston Ballet patron Frank Hood. "The Pillow has such historical significance."

    Wheater and Welch go way back. "I knew him when he was a principal at The Australian Ballet. I was about 10," recalls Welch. "He knew Mom and Dad, too."

    Their paths crossed again at San Francisco Ballet when Welch choreographed several ballets for the company and Wheater served as an assistant to the artistic director. When Wheater took the Joffrey post in 2007, they kept in touch, and talk of a Welch ballet became a possibility.

    "I like the company; they have made a huge jump under Ashley," says Welch. The choreographer has set ballets all over the world, but selects his outside work carefully since taking the helm of the Houston Ballet in 2003. "It's like an adventure, and a time for new discovery. These are dynamic and driven dancers."

     Houston dancer on the rise

    What a great joy to run into Hooks performing in Dance Heginbotham, founded by 14-year Mark Morris Dance Group veteran John Heginbotham. An HSPVA alum and a Juilliard grad, Hooks' career is on an upward trajectory — and in New York of all places, the most competitive of dance communities.

    Hooks' crisp and exact dancing are a perfect match for Heginbotham's novel phrasing and unpredictable theatricality. She was a stand out as the female lead in Closing Bell and in Heginbotham's darkly whimsical Twin, which was developed at the Baryshnikov Arts Center. In addition to Dance Heginbotham, Hooks also dances with Michelle Mola + Zack Winokur / The Troupe and Esme Boyce Dance. I expect to be seeing more of Hooks on New York and, perhaps, Pillow stages.

     Bringing out the celebs

    Earlier in August, Trey McInyre Project performed a trio of heartfelt works including Leatherwing Bat, the very work that launched the company as a full-time troupe in 2008. (That I got to be his Pillow scholar was yet another treat.) The company resides in Boise, Idaho, but that doesn't stop dance lovers from calling Trey McIntyre our "Houston dance son," nor does it keep McIntyre from referring to the Bayou City as his "artistic hometown."

    McIntyre, who marked his fifth performance at the Pillow, cut his choreographic teeth at Houston Ballet under Ben Stevenson, where he served as a choreographic associate from 1998 to 2008. He choreographed Skeleton Clock, his first ballet for the company while still a member of the Corps de Ballet, at the age of 20.

     

    There's no other way to say this: The Houston Met rocked the Inside/Out stage.

      That Girl — as in Marlo Thomas — and hubby Phil Donahue showed up to see McIntyre's world premiere, Ladies and Gentle Men, based on the Emmy and Peabody-award winning show Free to Be...You and Me. That show was headed up by Thomas and a cast of entertainers including Diana Ross, Harry Belafonte, Michael Jackson and Alan Alda, who was also in attendance at McIntyre's premiere.

    Houston Ballet's rep is chock full of McIntyre classics including the fantastical Peter Pan, which closes the ballet's upcoming season. McIntrye looks forward to next June, when he'll return to Houston to freshen up Peter Pan on a mostly new set of dancers.

     Houston looks good

    There's no other way to say this: The Houston Met rocked the Inside/Out stage. The audience leapt to its feet after the show featuring Larry Keigwin's "Air" section of The Elements, Kiki Lucas' Rebound and Kate Skarpetowka's Stand Back. With a powerhouse program, luscious dancing and a magnetic stage presence, this small company made its mark on the storied mountain stage. It was a smart choice to include Keigwin — a Pillow favorite — whose joyous moves looked scrumptious in the great outdoors.

    Sure, it was a proud Houston moment, but the crowd also roared when Doyle told them she was a Massachusetts native. The wonderful Met dancers included Doyle, Christopher Cardenas, Kerry Jackson, Allie Kronick, Terrill Mitchell, Katie Heintz, Noa Tumpkin and Lisa Wolf. Lucas, whose piece added to the evening's drama, did a terrific job introducing the company and each piece.

    "I could feel you beaming from the audience," Doyle told me after the show.

    What a great way to end my dancecation, watching hometown dancers perform with stunning grace, framed by mountains and the dramatic late summer Berkshire sunset.

     Even Peter Yarrow of Peter, Paul & Mary showed up to see Trey McInyre Project dance to Puff the Magic Dragon in Leatherwing Bat

     

     Leatherwing Bat - excerpts from Trey McIntyre Project on Vimeo.

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    Movie Review

    New Superman movie forges into the future while honoring the past

    Alex Bentley
    Jul 11, 2025 | 3:30 pm
    David Corenswet in Superman
    Photo by Jessica Miglio
    David Corenswet in Superman.

    When the character of Superman was invented in 1938, it was perhaps easier to see the world in good and bad terms. Fascism was already on the rise in Germany under Adolf Hitler, and the idea of an all-powerful superhero who stood up for people in need was a welcome one. In the nearly 90 years since, though, the world and the character have undergone multiple evolutions, and the thought of someone who is purely good is often met with cynicism or worse.

    The new Superman, written and directed by James Gunn, puts the superhero (or metahuman, as the film calls him and similar creatures) squarely in the midst of the modern world, with geopolitical conflicts, mega-corporations, and social media all combining to make the altruism of Superman/Clark Kent (David Corenswet) questionable. That skepticism even extends to his coworker/girlfriend Lois Lane (Rachel Brosnahan), whose knowledge of his exploits puts her in a tricky position personally and professionally.

    Lex Luthor (Nicholas Hoult) is out to dominate the world and take down Superman, with his eponymous corporation and vast group of underlings dedicated to doing both. Superman is generally a one-man fighting crew, but he’s occasionally aided by a group calling themselves the Justice Gang, comprised of heroes many have never heard of like Guy Gardner (Nathan Fillion), a version of Green Lantern; Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced), a flying metahuman; and Mr. Terrific (Edi Gathegi), who knows all kinds of technology.

    One of the best things about this new version of Superman is that it mostly dispenses with introductions, putting the audience in a world where Superman is already a well-known quantity who’s adored by many and hated by some. Gunn has used his new position as co-CEO of DC Studios to honor the past of the hero and take him into the future. With the 1978 John Williams theme song echoing throughout and Corenswet giving off Christopher Reeve vibes, it’s clear Gunn wants audiences to feel nostalgia while still getting something new.

    He also appears to want viewers to fight against the negativity that the modern world can bring. The plot involves manipulation of the public, usually at the hands of Luthor, through bombastic talk shows, political theater, and social media, the latter of which — in a great joke — comes to involve hundreds of typing monkeys. The film could be read as a rebuttal of many real-world ills as, despite Luthor’s machinations, many choose to continue to believe in the goodness of Superman.

    There is a lot going on in the film, but somehow it never comes off as overly complicated. Superman’s relationship with Lois Lane and Luthor’s attempts at taking him down are given the most prominence, with everything else supporting those two main things. The Justice Gang is a fun addition, with Mr. Terrific becoming the breakout hero of the group. The addition of the (CGI) dog Krypto provides levity, poignant moments, and unexpectedly great action scenes. The only part that gets somewhat short shrift is the crew of The Daily Planet, with everyone besides Lois and Jimmy Olsen (Skyler Gisondo) getting little more than face time.

    Being the new Superman is a lot to live up to, but Corenswet is completely up to the job. He, like Reeve, plays the character as someone who is earnest but not naive, a quality that comes through even when he’s in the middle of fight scenes. Brosnahan is also fantastic, providing a nice balance to the relationship while also proving the character’s own worth. Hoult makes for a great new version of Luthor, and Gathegi nearly makes the case that Mr. Terrific should get a starring film of his own.

    Just as he did with the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy, Gunn has shown that success can be found through making characters people want to see. Not everyone in this Superman will be familiar to viewers, but in the end a group of people working together toward a goal that serves the common good is one worth watching and cheering for.

    ---

    Superman is now playing in theaters.

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