Charleston Living Magazine May-June 2023

Back from last year’s world premiere production of Omar, don’t
miss tenor Jamez McCorkle present Schumann’s “Dichterliebe,” when
he sings and accompanies himself on the piano.
McCorkle’s performance features gorgeous, family-friendly animations
that seem to come to life. Young and experienced theater-goers
will enjoy the brand-new performance.
Check out Alisa Amador, winner of 2022 NPR’s Tiny Desk Contest.
Performing is in her blood. She grew up touring with her parents’
bilingual Latin folk band and spent childhood loading in and out of
venues.
For a show that might have you saying, “Wait, did I just see what
I thought I saw?” check out Australian-based Gravity & Other Myths:
Out of Chaos.
Feel the local love with the Quentin Baxter Quintet, the Grammy
Award-winning producer and performer is a must-see for jazz lovers.
Chasing Magic with Ayodele Casel features the fanciest footwork,
from six tap dancers and jazz virtuoso Arturo O’Farrill and other live
musicians. Upbeat and exciting, tapping out sans smile is impossible.
New Orleans-based, Grammy-nominated Tank and the Bangas
will end the 2023 season at the Wells Fargo Festival Finale on June
11. Held at Firefly Distillery in North Charleston for the second year,
the evening event invites guests to pack picnic baskets, blankets, and
chairs for this blend of funk, jazz, and hip-hop—followed by a stunning
display of fireworks to culminate the Festival.
Each show has been carefully curated to be thought-provoking
and stunning in its sets, performances and messages. Keller-Tripp is
already workshopping performances for the 2024 and 2025 seasons
with a revived focus on new work. •
For tickets and more information, visit www.spoletousa.org or call
843-579-3100.
DADA MASILO PHOTO JOHN HOGG; AYODELE CASEL PHOTO TONY TURNER; SCOTTISH BALLET PHOTO NICOLA SELBY
Helen Pickett on Choreographing
The Crucible
By Spoleto Festival USA
The Scottish Ballet will present The Crucible, an award-winning reimagining
of Arthur Miller’s seminal play at Spoleto Festival for three
performances. This chilling account of the 1692 Salem witch trials
recalls a community destroyed by hostility and hysteria. As a ballet,
Miller’s play is brought to life by choreographer Helen Pickett, one of
today’s leading choreographers who works internationally.
For her full-length version of The Crucible, Pickett collaborated
with director James Bonas, designers David Finn and Emma Kingsbury
and composer Peter Salem, who created a haunting new score—which
will be performed by members of the Spoleto Festival USA Orchestra.
Spoleto caught up with Pickett about the performance.
How do you turn a play into a ballet? What is that process?
It begins with research, which I love when creating a new ballet. I
create my own version, figuring out the beats that can be turned into
dance and which characters to focus on. I heard a fascinating talk
about what historians think really might have happened to Abigail to
shape her character…which made me think deeply about her humanity.
Abigail wanted to belong to a family. In that moment, I knew I
didn’t want to vilify her.
Can you share a bit about the other main characters in your version?
The center of my ballet is Abigail, Elizabeth Proctor and John Proctor.
Scottish Ballet
The Crucible
Elizabeth is the most courageous character in the play. She doesn’t
show all her cards. John is a complex character—but his cards are visible.
We know about his choices and actions. Abigail is at once overt
and covert, but she is a child and so she is transparent to the thinking
adults—to the superstitious adults she is gospel. A problem.
In developing the treatment, James Bonas, my artistic partner, and I
were interested in the stories that aren’t overt. The moments that aren’t
really shown, but whispered about, are what I wanted to highlight with
dance. For example, the dance in the forest and the prologue.
Your choreography is so sweeping, so full bodied, so intricate. How
does that translate to Puritan characters? How did you think about
their movement—or rather, their non-movement—style?
I focused the freedom of sweeping movement and freedom in the
prologue, the dance in the forest, the affair between John Proctor and
Abigail, the love duet between Elizabeth and John, and the solos of
the townspeople.
Otherwise, the congregation, led by Reverend Parris, uses a very
sharp, square, gestural vocab. Their movements are very musical, with
one count for each arm movement. And as often as I could, I instructed
the dancers’ eyes upwards, looking up in wonder.
The second act opens with a rhythmic, almost ritualistic sequence
when they’re filled with spirits. And there’s a moment when Abigail
is really starting to lose her marbles and her movement gets very disjointed.
The narrative provides a lot of direction.
— An excerpt from the Spoleto Festival USA’s online blog at spoletousa.org/
events/scottish-ballet-the-crucible/. For more Spoleto Festival USA behindthe-scenes
interviews and information, visit spoletousa.org/blog.
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