Julliard Dances Repetory-Spanish Choreographer Nacho Duato's "Por Vos Muero" Stood Out

Julliard Dances Repetory performed 3 works on Saturday afternoon by choreographers Richard Alston, Mark Morris & Nacho Duato.  The orchestration was provided by fellow Julliard students who were exemplary in all 3 compositions.  British choreographer Alston's piece "Sheer Bravado" (2006) to Shostakovich's Concerto #1 was disappointing.  The dancers were out of sync in a work that demanded  precision of the ensemble.  Mason Manning give a strong solo performamce.  American choreographer Mark Morris' "V" (2001) was banal and uninspiring.  The best to be said for the piece was the androgenous costumes in flowing cobalt blue and form fitting pale green against a vibrant emerald screen.  It was a welcomed technicolor color change.  The dance by Spanish choreographer, Nacho Duato, "Por Vos Muero" (1996) was the dynamic piece on the program with exceptional dancing & clever staging.  The  dimly lit, smoky set with draped velvet curtains enhanced the proficient dancers & captured the various styles & spirit of the 15th/16th C Renaissance era.  The music was by Spanish composer Jordi Savall with the stirring reading of a poem by Italian poet Garcilaso de la Vega (1501-1536.)   The piece was bookended with pale colored, monochromatic bodysuits.  These dancers moved rigidly & turgidly, reminding us an ancient antiquities.  In between the movements, the dancers  portrayed ritualistic, formal court dancing, the buffoonery of court jesters & the unrestrained, joyous dancing of peasants.   The period costumes were evocative of the 16th C with a modern edge.  The dancers, which included 4 robed monks swinging incense (in unison) transported me back in time with solemnity, grace and ebullience.