On Wednesday (6/15) at Boston radio station WBUR, Lawrence Elizabeth Knox previews the Cambridge Symphony Orchestra’s June 18 performance of Stravinsky’s complete Firebird ballet, led by CSO Music Director Cynthia Woods with choreography by Gianni Di Marco. “The production is a first for the orchestra, as the more than 80-piece ensemble will share the stage with a small cast of dancers from Festival Ballet Providence…. The idea to perform a ballet originated last year when members of the orchestra were discussing … repertoire…. Among the group was tuba player Bill Whitney, who recently established NorthEast ArtSpace, a nonprofit intended to foster artistic collaborations…. ‘They are bringing the dancers to us. We are bringing the music to them,’ Woods said…. Di Marco is very familiar with the impact live music can have on a performance…. To have the musicians onstage is even more powerful, he explained. ‘They are dancing with us. They are not somewhere in a pit,’ he said. ‘This is us with them, side-by-side.’ The result he describes as magical…. The orchestra will also play Antonín Dvořák’s ‘The Water Goblin’ [to] open the performance…. Although both works are based on fairy tales, dancing will only be incorporated into ‘The Firebird.’ ” Included is a brief video interview with Cynthia Woods.
Posted June 15, 2016
