Pictures at an Exhibition

Pacific Northwest Ballet is wrapping up the current season with a trio of new pieces and with a fond farewell to two of its principals, Carrie Imler and Batkhurel Bold. "Pictures at an Exhibition" covers a wide range of emotion and technique and is a great way to wrap up the year.

Carrie Imler shines in the first piece on the program, "La Source." George Balanchine combined a mix of earlier works for this piece with music by L�o Delibes and presented it for the first time in 1968. The piece has an airy feeling throughout, and we get the sense that the dancers are having fun with it, none more so than Imler, who seems determined to enjoy her last hurrah fully. The piece reflects her buoyancy, and it also gives her some opportunities to show off her tremendous balance en pointe.

Jerome Tisserand partners her beautifully, allowing her to have the stage for this performance.

Elizabeth Murphy also has a solo set against an ensemble of eight other dancers. She is tiny, but her extension and reach are enormous and make an interesting change in dynamic from the dancing of Imler and Tisserand.

Second on the program is "Opus 19/The Dreamer," choreographed for Mikhail Baryshnikov in 1979 by Jerome Robbins and set to "Violin Concerto No. 1 in D Major, Op. 19" by Sergei Prokofiev. "Opus 19" is a beautiful piece of both music and dance, just as visually appealing as "La Source" but with a very different, more complex feel.

James Moore is the solo man in white set against an ensemble all in shades of blues and grays. The ensemble acts as his shadow and his chorus as he dances, at one point scattering out from behind him as if dissipating in the light.

He partners Noelani Pantastico who is bracing, brisk and delightful, lifting the piece with her breath of fresh air. Throughout the piece, while there are times that the pace almost feels frenzied, there's a strong current or pulse that brings us back to earth.

"Pictures at an Exhibition" rounds out the night with choreography by Alexei Ratmansky set to the familiar music by Modest Mussorgsky. Pianist Allan Dameron takes on the original solo piano format of this grand piece of music.

The backdrop of art, Wassily Kandinsky's "Color Study: Squares with Concentric Circles," is worth mentioning because it becomes one of the performers, with colors sliding in and out, appearing and disappearing depending on what's happening with the music and the dance. Wendall K. Harrington is the production designer for the piece, and Mark Stanley designs the light. Costumes by Adeline Andr� echo the colors in the art.

The piece is set up with the painting in the backdrop and the dancers arranged to echo the grid of squares. The tone is playful as they come in and out of position and establish their connection to the music and the art.

Mussorgsky's piece is intended to reflect a walk he took along an art gallery observing an exhibit of art by Victor Harmann whose death at a young age had recently had a profound impact on the composer. Ratmansky's piece also gives us that stroll between emotionally diverse pieces, from the fluidity and even lines of Elizabeth Murphy and Karel Cruz in "The Old Castle" to the slightly martial foursome of "Bydio" that reflects on itself with humor, the space between pieces marked with Promenade sections that set each piece apart.

Those Promenades allow the audience to reset as well and create in us that willing space to receive the next offering. We enjoy the stroll, the artistry, the little glimpses of humor, and the depth of connection along with the dancers, and it's a beautiful way of ending an evening.

Batkhurel Bold did not perform the night I attended but if you do attend and miss one of the retiring principals, remember you can see them both perform at PNB's Encore performance on Sunday, June 11th.

"Pictures at an Exhibition" runs through June 11 at McCaw Hall, 321 Mercer St. at Seattle Center. For information or tickets, call 206-441-2424 or visit pnb.org.