Seattle Theater+Dance

Pacific Northwest Ballet reserved the program cover for a classic tutu shot, principal dancer Carrie Imler exquisitely posed with a glittering tiara on top. For those who think ballet is all about the tutu, then they will want to catch “Symphony in C” (1947/48) in the last half of tonight's program at McCaw Hall. The third color in “Tricolore,” a collection of ballets first performed at the Paris Opera Ballet,  it emphasizes technique, toe shoes, and tutus. It’s also the only George Balachine piece of the evening. That too draws those who believe modern choreography begins with Balanchine. "Symphony in C" at Pacific Northwest Ballet. Photo: copyright Angela Sterling 2016 Imler, who joined PNB as an apprentice in 1995, moved steadily through the ranks, achieving her position as principal in 2002. Watching her with Steven Loch, who entered the corps in 2012, is an interesting contrast of veteran and relative newbie. As always with Balanchine, the emphasis was on ...

“A Tale for Time Being” connects a Japanese teenager and a Japanese-American novelist in Book-It’s adaptation of Ruth Ozeki’s novel about a mysterious diary that washes onto a Pacific Northwest beach. “I have several personal connections to the book, being Japanese, with the sense of the experience of a young person being in Japan and in the United States,” said Mariko Kita, who plays Ruth, the writer who finds the diary in a "Hello Kitty" lunchbox and puzzles through the story of Nao within. “I also have teenage daughters and it’s interesting how those experiences are shown.” In Book-It fashion, the actors play both the dialogue and the prose of a book. “I love the Book-It style. I feel comfortable in it. I sort of wonder how you do it in another way. I don’t have any discomfort in flipping from an internal to external dialogue,” said Kita. “I think what is challenging for adaptations in general is staying true to the story. The way that these stories are intermingling...