State Street Ballet’s ‘Evenings’ is An Evening to Remember!

Company Members Showcased Their Original Choreographies

Barn-Raising Dance, Choreographer: Noam Tsivkin; Dancers: Amber Hirschfield, Gabriel Ramirez, Brenna Chumacero, Harold Mendez, and Felipe Covarrubias. | Photo: Andre Yew

Evenings is an annual event in which the dancers of Santa Barbara’s premier dance company, State Street Ballet (SSB), have a chance to try their hands at choreographing original works. The March 28-29 show, at the Gail Towbes Center for Dance, had all the excitement of a full theatrical performance, but with the intimacy of a studio environment. The wonderful variety of music and dance styles presented by the eight choreographers really brought out the different personalities of the dancers. Beyond their stellar artistry, the up close and personal setting gave the audience an opportunity to see the real love and compassion that the company members have for each other. SSB is truly a special company!

The first piece, ELO, choreographed by Ethan Ahuero to “Shine a Little Love” by the Electric Light Orchestra was a delightful mix of ballet, jazz, and disco. Danced by Amara Galloway, Ryan Lenkey, Gabriel Ramirez, Noam Tsivkin, and Saori Yamashita, ELO was a very sweet and playful introduction to Evenings.

ELO was followed by Rasa, choreographed by Amber Hirschfield. “Rasa” means emotion or flavor, in Sanskrit, a term that is used in classical Indian dance, but rarely heard in western settings. Hirschfield used the last three minutes of the piece, “Meetings Along the Edge,” by American composer Phillip Glass and North Indian musician Ravi Shankar. Wow, what a fascinating piece of music, full of asymmetric rhythms (my favorites!) of 11/8, 14/8, and 7/8! These meters are common to the music and dance of Bulgaria and Macedonia, as well as India, but rarely make an appearance in western classical music. Rasa was danced in all-red (color of passion) costumes by Kaia Abraham, Brenna Chumacero, Arianna Hartanov, Akari Kato, Harold Mendez, Brianna Patrick, Maria Rita Rapisarda, Nathaniel Tyson, and the choreographer herself. The intricacy of the rhythms was reflected in the intricacy of the footwork, as danced in the Balkans and India, but using the ballet idiom. I found this connection to be brilliant and fascinating, and I asked Hirschfield how she came to use such unusual music. She explained, “Over a decade ago as a student, I danced in a piece by an amazing choreographer, Brian Simerson, to this same music. The richness and complexities of ‘Meetings along the Edge’ have stuck with me, and I have continued to listen to it throughout the years. Each section of the music has a different rhythm, and it did require lots of thinking and counting for me as the choreographer, and the dancers. I came to the rehearsal process prepared with steps for the dancers to execute that fit into each different type of phrasing, so it wouldn’t be as complicated for them to grasp.”

Noam Tsivkin and Arianna Hartanov as two playful tourists in ‘A Night Under Sicilian Stars,’ choreographed by Maria Rita Rapisarda. | Photo: Andre Yew

Fest, choreographed by Saori Yamashita to Daiki Tsuneta’s “Festi,” was next. Yamashita choreographed this piece for four male dancers — Ethan Ahuero, Felipe Covarrubias, Ryan Lenkey, and Gabriel Ramirez — beautifully showcasing the virtuosity of each. She explained, “When I listened to this music, I knew I had to choreograph on it this year.” She said that her biggest challenge was choreographing for men. She had a vision of what she wanted, but, since she does not dance the men’s style, she did not have the vocabulary to express what she wanted them to do. So, she came up with her own terms to describe moves, such as “shrimp roll,” and they figured out what she wanted. This piece was very powerful, and the guys were outstanding.

Closing the first half of the show was A Night Under Sicilian Stars, choreographed by Maria Rita Rapisarda, who is from Sicily. She explained that she wanted the dancers to have fun and be themselves, portraying some of the behavior of tourists — wearing hats, sharing cigarettes, and being playful. The music, “In Alto Mare,” Rapisarda explained, literally means “above the sea,” but also conveys the meaning of “something being a mess.” This absolutely charming, delightful, and clever choreography was superbly danced by Kaia Abraham, Arianna Hartanov, Akari Kato, Harold Mendez, Brianna Patrick, and Noam Tsivkin.

The second half of the program began with a delicious, purely classical piece: Still Life, choreographed by Arianna Hartanov, and set to “Addio, Amore Mio” by Piero Piccioni. Hartanov explained that she normally performs lyrical style — readers may remember her as the underwater goddess Sorcha the Siren in The Little Mermaid — so she wanted to do something classical, since she is also trained in ballet. One can totally visualize moonrise over the canals of Venice in this music. Hartanov’s choreography for a cast of five women (Kaia Abraham, Brenna Chumacero, Brianna Patrick, Maria Rita Rapisarda, and Amber Hirschfield) was luscious and luxurious, fully expressing the emotion of longing that the music conveys.

Full Sail, choreographed by Ryan Lenkey to “Full Sail” by Monster Rally, provided an uplifting and playful sequel to Hartanov’s dreamy Still Life. The piece started out in silence, with one dancer (Nathaniel Tyson) wearing headphones and dancing in silence. One presumed he was hearing the music, a presumption which was born out when a second dancer (Felipe Covarrubias) entered. The first dancer gave his headphones to the newcomer, and then we, the audience, heard the music! Lenkey explained that his inspiration for this piece came from the time when he first moved to Santa Barbara, and would listen to music in his room on headphones, dancing alone. When the ladies arrived — Amara Galloway, Akari Kato, and Saori Yamashita — clapping along with the music, it was clear that the party had begun! The costumes — party dresses with fluffy petticoats for the ladies and casual pants and shirts for the men — emphasized the festive atmosphere.

The penultimate piece, Natural Woman, set to Carole King’s original version, was choreographed by Aimee Le and exquisitely danced by Amara Galloway and Ethan Ahuero. Readers may recall their moving performances in The Little Mermaid. Galloway is so technically amazing and so expressive, and Ahuero provides such lovely and kind support as a partner, that they were perfect for this piece. I asked Le how she chose these two for her piece. She explained, “The most important aspect of my piece was storytelling. Especially for the girl, I knew that I wanted someone that was a storyteller and could convey the emotion that Carole King was producing with her singing. I also needed someone that was strong in contemporary movement, and Amara was absolutely the obvious choice to me. For the man in my piece, I wanted someone that could convey that almost perfect, prince-charming type guy because he is supposed to be imaginary. When Amara dances with him, she is imagining the perfect man for her. He isn’t real. Ethan has that prince-charming look and is also really great at bringing a romantic expression in roles like this, which is exactly what I wanted.” Their performance certainly brought this audience member to tears!

Amara Galloway and Ethan Ahuero in ‘Natural Woman,’ choerographed by Aimee Le. | Photo: Andre Yew

The final piece, Barn-Raising Dance, choreographed by Noam Tsivkin, was inspired by the barn dance in the movie Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. Tsivkin explained that this was his first time choreographing for Evenings, and his piece was a tribute to his grandfather, with whom he used to watch the movie. Barn-Raising Dance was delightfully danced by Brenna Chumacero, Amber Hirschfield, Felipe Covarrubias, Harold Mendez, Nathaniel Tyson, and Gabriel Ramirez. After the initial competition for the ladies, the men competed with each other by performing a series of increasingly difficult tricks, which were absolutely amazing, and so much fun to watch. The most difficult were performed by Ramirez, which is why, during the question and answer period after the show, one of the choreographers remarked, “Everyone wanted Gabe!” It was a perfect finale to a delightful evening. I could not stop smiling. I so wanted to jump in and dance with them, and I imagine most of the audience felt the same way!

After the show, I had a few questions for State Street Ballet Executive Director Cecily MacDougall.

How did you choose the choreographers for Evenings?

We allow any dancer that wants to choreograph to do so; however there is a preliminary step of filling out an interest form, outlining their music choice, concept, and ideal cast.

How do you assign dancers to the various pieces?

Evenings Composite. Left to Right: Amara Galloway, Felipe Aravena Covarrubias, Saori Yamashita, Akari Kato, and Nathaniel Tyson | Photo: Andre Yew

After receiving the interest form, Megan (Philipp, Artistic Director) creates a draft of the cast list to see what overlap or issues there may be. Dancers can perform in a maximum of three pieces and choreographers can perform in a maximum of two pieces. … If there is a dancer who is more requested than others, the choreographers get together and find a compromise that will work for everyone, switching up their cast until it makes sense for the show as a whole. It is a bit like Tetris!

How much does it cost to put on a new ballet, and how much does it cost for a studio show such as Evenings?

Producing a ballet with an orchestra can easily exceed $300,000, depending on the scope and scale of the production. Smaller, more intimate projects like our in-studio Evenings program, cost around $60,000.

As readers can imagine, box office sales cover only a small portion of the total costs of a production. And, to attract world-class dancers, as SSB does, to live in Santa Barbara with a living wage, must be expensive. I know that most of the dancers have teaching jobs outside the company. Thus SSB relies heavily on the generosity of donors to keep the company alive, continue to grow and produce new works, train new dancers, and do the education and community outreach that makes them extra special.

What is coming next for SSB?

We are very much looking forward to closing our 30th anniversary season with Brilliance in early May. This special program marks the first time in more than 20 years that we’ll perform the work of the legendary George Balanchine, alongside a piece by the esteemed Gerald Arpino, co-founder of the Joffrey Ballet. I’m thrilled to announce that we’ll be collaborating with the Santa Barbara Symphony to perform alongside some of the most beautiful and heart-wrenching music ever composed.

Stay tuned for the full announcement of SSB’s 2025/26 season, coming in early May!

A Personal Note From the Writer

As a long-time dancer, having danced in companies in New York and Chicago as well as overseas, I understand that the flavor of a company comes from the top. The way in which the directors Cecily MacDougall and Megan Philipp, and retired founding director Rodney Gustafson, have nourished and nurtured SSB, not only with impeccably high standards, but with love and respect, shines through in every performance. How much of a family they truly are, and how much they really love each other, comes through in every piece, in every interaction, and in the way the dancers, choreographers, and directors speak about each other.

From the top down, they are all some of the loveliest people on the planet, who maintain the highest artistic standards while maintaining a level of caring for each other that I have not seen in other companies I have danced in, or studied with.

State Street Ballet is our crown jewel of the Central Coast. It is worth supporting these wonderful artists, especially now, in the face of the terrible restrictions that our current government is placing on the arts. To read about the company and make any size donation, go to their website statestreetballet.com.