‘We need joy and happiness’: At last, Kansas City Ballet leaps into a new season

All lovers of dance owe the Kansas City Ballet and its artistic director, Devon Carney, an immense debt of gratitude for supplying us with a steady stream of high quality dance videos during the pandemic. But as Carney says, ballet is a live performance art form, and no video will ever convey the electricity one feels while watching the Kansas City Ballet in person.

Finally, after 20 months, the Kansas City Ballet will make a triumphant return to the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts with “Celts.” The program features three works: George Balanchine’s “Serenade,” Edwaard Liang’s “Wunderland” and the title work, Lila York’s “Celts,” for six performances beginning Oct. 16 in the Muriel Kauffman Theatre.

“To have that energy coming from the audience just means the world to us,” Carney said.

“Celts” was to originally have been the program to end the 2019-2020 season. As Carney contemplated which works the ballet should perform for its first in-person performance in months, he realized that “Celts” fit the bill perfectly.

“These three works complement each other, and there’s a wonderful sense that it builds as you go through the evening of watching these three works,” Carney said.

The first is “Serenade,” a work that in many ways epitomizes classical dance. It was the first ballet Balanchine choreographed after immigrating to the United States. Set to the lush music of Tchaikovsky, it is full of the romanticism of his years with the Russian Imperial Ballet.

“It’s like going back to home base, it’s going back to a beginning point and saying, ‘We’re back, and here’s how we’re going to start,’” Carney said.

Carney calls the work a celebration of women and dance. The flowing blue tutus worn by the women inspired the naming of the Balanchine crater on the planet Mercury because of the crater’s bluish rays.

“We’re building brand new costumes from the original designs from 1935,” Carney said. “It’s a very ethereal work. The whole stage is full of dancers with costumes flowing all over the place, and we go from that to ‘Wonderland’ which is very intimate.”

While “Serenade” hearkens back to 19th century ballet with a stage full of dancers and a full string ensemble, Liang’s “Wunderland,” created in 2014, features only five couples and the minimalist music of Philip Glass, which will be performed live by the Opus 76 Quartet. The Kansas City Ballet’s music director, Ramona Pansegrau, will also perform a solo piano work by Glass.

“We take a breath and get intimate with the dancers,” Carney said. “The work is very mesmerizing and sensual at times. It’s very much like you’re getting close in. There are whispers in this work. Let’s take a breath and slow down our heart rate a little bit and get a little quiet.”

“Celts,” the final work on the program, is all about raising your heart rate. Created by Lila York, who is half-Scottish and half-Irish, “Celts” is a celebration of her family’s roots.

“I was in the original cast when it was choreographed for Boston Ballet in 1996,” Carney said. “Lila York was one of Paul Taylor’s muses, one of the greatest dancers he ever had. So it’s really exciting to have this work in our repertoire.”

York began working on “Celts” a year before “Riverdance” came to America and became a phenomenon. But those who are fans of Riverdance are certain to enjoy York’s balletic take on authentic Irish dance.

“You’ll definitely recognize Irish dance with the fast footwork, with the dancers’ hands at their sides,” Carney said. “And there are moments of line dancing when all of them are holding arms. There’s a scene where there’s shirtless men wearing kilts, fighting on the moors. There’s a sense of timelessness. You get a sense of being part of the earth and being one with nature.”

The pre-recorded music will feature The Chieftains, as well as other, lesser-known Irish ensembles.

“I cannot tell you how happy I am that ‘Celts’ finishes our first production back at the Kauffman,” Carney said. “Because it’s so positive, it’s so upbeat. It’s what we need right now. We need joy and happiness, and ‘Celts’ delivers it.”

7:30 p.m. Oct. 15, 16, 22 and 23 and 2 p.m. Oct. 17 and 24. Muriel Kauffman Theatre, Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. $34-$114. 816-931-8993 or kcballet.org.

Andrea Boccelli

Another artist who has a knack for lifting spirits is Andrea Bocelli. The Italian tenor broke YouTube viewership records when he gave a solo recital in the Duomo of Milan on Easter Sunday in 2020. His heartfelt performance, accompanied only by the cathedrals’s organ, was an incredibly moving experience at a time when the pandemic was in full force.

Kansas City will have an opportunity to hear the Bocelli live when he brings his Believe tour to the T-Mobile Center on Oct. 16.

The show features selections from Bocelli’s latest album, and will include arias, love songs and crossover hits. With his warm and engaging personality, Bocelli transcends the classical divide. This would be a good concert to introduce someone to the world of classical music and opera.

8 p.m. Oct. 16. T-Mobile Center, 1407 Grand Blvd. $80-$265. gelbproductions.com/tour.

William Baker Festival Singers

The William Baker Festival Singers have been named the second place winner of the 2021 American Prize in Choral Performance, honoring excellence in various genres of classical music. There is no live competition, but professional, college/university, community and high school groups submit applications, which are then judged by distinguished classical performers. Previous winners include composer Judith Lang Zaimont and Metropolitan Opera soprano Sharon Sweet.

You can reach Patrick Neas at patrickneas@kcartsbeat.com and follow his Facebook page, KC Arts Beat, at www.facebook.com/kcartsbeat.