BALLET WEST: SLEEPING BEAUTY EDITOR’S NOTE: This Ballet West review is written by Chris Myers of Argyle Arts. In ballet, opera, theater, and even the classical concert world, there are a number of challenges that arise when presenting what might be considered an “historically accurate” or “original practice” version of a work. But perhaps the … Read more
This year’s selection in The Utah Review of the top ten moments of the Utah Enlightenment in 2022 was easily the quickest to lock in, considering the possibilities. There were no close calls. The ten selections were a slam dunk. This year, however, presented the opportunity for a twist. While nine of the ten selections … Read more
SALT LAKE ACTING COMPANY: SLEEPING GIANT, BY STEVE YOCKEY For connoisseurs of macabre stories with a generous twist of humor, like classics such as Supernatural, Tales from the Crypt, Creepshow, Shirley Jackson short stories or the geekdom culture of the Cthulhu folklore, Steve Yockey’s Sleeping Giant is a devilish delight. The play’s world premiere production … Read more
Along with a world premiere by the locally based choreographer duo LajaMartin, Precipice, the 59th season opener for the Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company, will feature the reconstruction of To Have and to Hold, one of the most widely known dance compositions by Danial Shapiro and Joanie Smith also known as the “bench piece,” and the return … Read more
UTAH MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART: JOHN SPROUL, BERNARD MEYERS, TOBIAS FIKE Three Intermountain West artists are among the latest to have exhibitions to round out the summer season at the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art (UMOCA). The connecting thread for this trio involves asking viewers to consider abstractions that reveal multiple layers going beyond typical … Read more
World premieres of works by two of Salt Lake City’s preeminent dance institutions (Repertory Dance Theatre and Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company), along with a splendid, innovative solo piano concert by Hsiang Tu, as presented by the Gina Bachauer International Piano Foundation, continue an impressive spring of performances in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. Incidentally, all … Read more
The Utah Review offers reviews of two dance concerts: the live performance of Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company’s Fill in the Blank and Repertory Dance Theatre’s Emerge concert film. RIRIE-WOODBURY DANCE COMPANY: FILL IN THE BLANK In a word. Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company’s Fill in the Blank concert was superb. Tremendous emotional intensity propelled the enthralling pace of … Read more
INTRODUCTION It has been an enormous project to regain the spirited momentum that many arts and cultural organizations in Utah’s creative industries had amassed before the pandemic brought everything to a ground stop in the early spring of 2020. With resilience and durability exercised to their intrinsic advantages for respective organizations, many creative producers also … Read more
With live performances resuming on several fronts, the arts calendar for the fall season in Salt Lake City has returned to levels not seen since the fall of 2019. The Utah Review offers reviews of three shows, seen within the span of four days. RIRIE-WOODBURY DANCE COMPANY: TOTAL ELLIPSE Season openers for Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company … Read more
It’s been nearly 20 months since Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company had a live concert — Allegory — in its regular season. This week, the company opens its 58th season in the Rose Wagner Center for Performing Arts’ Jeanne Wagner Theatre with Total Ellipse, a program featuring two world premieres and a work that premiered in 2017. … Read more