Pointe of view: Sacramento Ballet launches 65th season with new artistic director, vision
When Amy Seiwert returned to the Sacramento Ballet this summer, she did not come across a toothy red imp, a trustworthy pack of wolves nor a ferryman with a riddle.
But like the adventurer of Neil Gaiman’s poem “Instructions” — an adaptation of which is featured in the ballet’s 65th season premiere — Seiwert’s journey truly was a homecoming. She spent most of her 20s as a company dancer in the 1990s.
After nearly 20 years as a performer and a decade as choreographer in residence at Smuin Ballet in San Francisco, Seiwert is now the Sacramento Ballet’s artistic director, motivated by a deep affection for the organization and a vision of innovation, vitality and exploration for its future.
With Telling Stories, which runs through Sunday, the company of 23 dancers will share a collection of tales with the themes of wonder, betrayal and heartbreak. It’ll include “Cigarettes,” Adam Hougland’s piece inspired by Patsy Cline’s “Three Cigarettes in an Ashtray,” as well as the world premiere of “Black Eyed Dog,” choreographer Penny Saunders’ tribute to Nick Drake. The 26-year-old British singer-songwriter died of an antidepressant overdose in the ‘70s.
Seiwert has unbridled excitement for her premiere season, and said she will be focused on continuing her lifelong mission of “exploding the preconceptions of ballet,” which she has always viewed as a limitless artform.
“Sometimes I think people have hesitations about new work. … I’ve always been very interested in exploring, and I think that’s where innovation in the field comes from,” she said. “We need to do that, otherwise were going to stagnate. We’re not a museum. These are living, breathing, brilliant dancers.”
Since its foundation in 1954, the Sacramento Ballet has evolved from a small professional company to a nationally acclaimed arts organization with more than 20 dancers and over 80,000 attendees each season, largely due to the 30-year artistic vision of husband-wife duo Ron Cunningham and Carinne Binda. The 2017-18 season was their last: the ballet’s board of directors let them go, seeking a different creative direction.
Seiwert knew she was returning at a chaotic time of transition and uncertainty for the organization, but has found the company and its community supporters to be welcoming.
“I think when I was offered the job, a lot of people were scared they were never going to recognize the ballet again,” she said. “To me, we’re turning a page. We’re not throwing away the book.”
Seiwert has worked closely with Executive Director Anthony Krutzkamp to create Roots and Wings, a 2018/19 season that focuses on celebrating the ballet’s rich history during a time in which it is also redefining itself.
For Telling Stories, it was important to Seiwert that the company recognize Cunningham, who returned to choreograph one of his early works staged at the Sacramento Ballet, “Incident at Blackbriar,” based on a love triangle at the center of D.H. Lawrence’s novella “The Fox.”
Along with Telling Stories, this season will include Stephen Mills’ adaptation of “Hamlet;” “Fast Forward,” a collection of three pieces highlighting the contemporary evolution of ballet; and Seiwert’s presentation of “The Nutcracker” — she is only the third female at a professional company in the U.S. to choreograph and present a full-length adaptation of the classic holiday tale.
Seiwert’s piece, “Instructions,” explores multiple formats of storytelling, with Gaiman’s poem recited aloud on stage by dancer Isaac Bates-Vinueza, and a performance accompanied by Benjamin Britten’s Cello Suite No. 1, Op. 72, played by Evan Kahn, principal cellist for Symphony Silicon Valley.
Bates-Vinueza, 22, said there is a lot of excitement surrounding Seiwert and the vision she has for the company. He described this season’s program as “a dream come true.”
“The work she’s doing feels creative, vital and exciting in a way I feel Sacramento hasn’t seen before. It feels fresh,” he said. “It’s just totally out of the box compared to what people have seen us dance before … it’s something definitely to look forward to.”
Seiwert left a rehearsal the other night walking on air – it was her second week working with the dancers and they had planned a rough work through of “Instructions.” It went so well, they only needed to stop once. It may seem like a small thing, she said, but she was so proud, and felt so good, like this is “what I’ve been training my whole life to do.”
“These artists are phenomenal. They’re so generous. They work so hard,” she added. “That is something that was very much instilled by my predecessors. They really have built something phenomenal here, and I’m so honored to carry it to the next place.”
If you go
“Telling Stories”
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday
Where: Sofia Tsakopoulos Center for the Arts, 2700 Capitol Ave.
Tickets: $65
Information: 443-5300, ext. 1 or bit.ly/tellingstoriestickets