CriticalDance Forum

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Patricia Barker Farewell Performance
Pacific Northwest Ballet
6:30 p.m. Sunday, 10 June 2007
by Dean Speer

Headlines are usually fun for me to do. I enjoy the challenge of coming up with something that encapsulates the event or which tries to capture the imagination. After drafting about a page of potential ones such as: “Assoluta? Absolutely!” and “Cheers, Tears” or even “The Roar of the Crowd, the Scent of Roses,” you’ll see that the above headline is a blank with brackets around it. I thought that somehow this is a better symbol to mark the retirement from the stage of Pacific Northwest Ballet’s incomparable Patricia Barker.

Blank because so many phrases could describe the event and no one in particular is perfect without the others and blank because of the void her retirement leaves on the ballet stage.

Several things impressed me at this event. One was seeing her pat the back of her “Agon” pas de deux partner, Olivier Wever, upon conclusion of this still amazing duet. This signaled for me a measure of her character. Another was the sheer joy with which she tackled each of her self-assigned parts. She never let up on the concentration, hard work, technique, artistry or any of that for a moment, yet it was clear that she was riding a wave of satisfaction throughout the evening, allowing herself to enjoy and savor every moment. She was enjoying dancing.

It was also thrilling to experience the genuine roar of the crowd as we each rose in tribute and thanks. I was additionally impressed by her smart programming – putting in four ballets that represent a crosscut of her career. “Le Corsaire” pas de trois; as the queenly Titania in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream;” the earlier-mentioned pas de deux from “Agon;” and finally, Act IV of Kent Stowell’s setting of “Swan Lake.” I was even more impressed that she had the artistic sense to give us as her encore and true finale, the famous iconic pas de deux from Act II of the same ballet. She knew we needed more and somehow bouréeing off in Act IV was not quite “it.” But this one was.

The film montage put together by “her prince” husband Michael Auer was a delight. We got to see some pictures of her taking class early in her training; see her out enjoying watercraft; jumping off of a cliff into a pool of water; ephemera such as program covers and posters from where PNB has toured; and making dance art in the studio with her longtime mentors, Kent Stowell and Francia Russell. Barker narrated portions and embedded the important message of continuing ballet’s legacy, one way being providing scholarships to future generations of aspiring artists. [A scholarship endowment has been set up under her name.] It’s clear Auer and Barker adore each other and this medium brought us closer to knowing both of them.

We enjoyed the remarks given by Peter Boal and Francia Russell, including Russell’s observation that when Barker came to the PNB School, she was a young colt and a bundle of contradictions.

Okay, let’s get to what you really want to know: in Corsaire she did 26 fouettés with a total of 28 revolutions. And, yes, every ounce of her formidable talent was deployed – extension, jump, elevation, attack, phrasing, allegro.

I adored the complete hush of the audience during “Swan Lake” – were we all aware we were so attentive?! One of those magical, marvelous moments that’s important to note. It was great having a partner change from Jeffrey Stanton (Act IV) to Stanko Milov (Act II, encore)– very dramatic and a neat way for them to pay tribute to her.

I was pleased she included as much of the full company as these excerpts could include – corps for “Swan Lake,” dance partners Wevers, Stanton, Milov, Casey Herd. Other notables on stage included Jonathan Porretta in “Agon” Pas de Trois and as Oberon in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream;” Mara Vinson in the Second Pas de Trois in “Agon” with Batkhurel Bold and Karel Cruz. Porretta was picture perfect in the First Pas de Trois from this ballet, as were his female counterparts Maria Chapman (who is Barker’s high-arched foot successor) and Lesley Rausch.

Representing young PNB School students were those used as Butterflies, Fairies, and Oberon’s Pages, giving us a glimpse of the full range of PNB ballets – those that use and have roles for full corps de ballet, soloists, and children.

With a deafening roar of loving approval and recognition, all too soon the curtain came down as we – from both sides of the footlights – said thank you and farewell to one of our own ballerinas.

[One fun trivia statistic: I recall reading recently that she used over 4,000 pairs of pointe shoes. It takes about three yards of ribbon per pair, so that’s 12,000 yards of fabric – or 6.818 MILES of ribbon!]

Dean, well said. I'll share something she said on Sunday after her last performance with PNB, which nearly put me in shock. Azlan and Lucy were sitting next to me. I had never seen Patricia Barker dance before (except for the movie) ... we were discussing it and she candidly said to me "Oh, I was young then"... Imagine. She looked ageless. Beautiful. Happy. At peace. What an awesome curtain call for a world-class ballerina!

Her dancing was absolutely flawless, and I think it speaks volumes that this was the first PNB performance I can recall where I don't know of any employees who didn't claim their full allotment of comp tickets and use them themselves.

HI Dave! Glad to see you here!

How did the PNB staff feel about the performance? Did they think she was sent off well?

Good luck with Summer Session. I know your kids arrive soon....

I saw the tribute as well, and it was like a greatest hits show --- everything you'd hope to see her dance one last time actually on stage! For me, surprisingly, the most pleasurable piece was Le Corsaire because of the way it showed off her classical lines in the simplest terms.

The Act II Swan Lake pas was the perfect encore as well --- the ending of Act IV is an emotional downer, but the promise of Act II was the best salve for a bittersweet goodbye.

--Andre