Wendy Whelan’s Restless Creature at TPAC tonight

(Tulsa) Ballerina Wendy Whelan joined the New York City Ballet just after the legendary choreographer George Balanchine’s death in 1983. “I joined the company soon after Mr. B. died and was raised by his dancers. Like brothers and sisters, the corps members taught me the rules of the roost. They laughed at my naïveté and my disastrous stage makeup, and occasionally one of them would take me aside to quietly commend me on a job well done,” she commented in an article on her years at the NYCB.

The New York Times calls her America’s greatest contemporary ballerina. Her captivating dancing with the New York City Ballet has thrilled audiences for 29 years. Wendy Whelan’s elegant movement and intelligent approach to performing is legendary and this has never been more vivid than in her new project, Restless Creature. The performance comes to the Tulsa Performing Arts Center May 2.

Whelan collaborates with four young and prodigious choreographers - Kyle Abraham, Joshua Beamish, Bryan Brooks, and Alejandro Cerrudo - each of whom created a duet for himself and Wendy. All four are presented in turn on a single program that shows Wendy’s incredible range and uncanny ability to absorb and communicate challenging choreographic languages. The choreographers’ unique styles stretch Whelan’s artistry in unexpected ways as she adapts to each distinct vision while maintaining her own glowing individuality.

Whelan moved to New York City in 1982 when she was 15 years old to study ballet at the School of American Ballet. She joined the New York City Ballet in 1984, advancing to principal dancer in 1991. She announced her departure from NYCB in 2014. She shared her thoughts about the demands on a ballet performer, saying, “we often share twelve-hour workdays, six days a week. We learn to perfect up to fifty different ballets within a season. Each dancer does his or her part to learn the ballets and understand the nuances within every work; but most importantly, we have to be able to bring the ballet to life on demand. No one’s work is taken for granted, and everyone’s contribution is considered of equal value.”

After leaving the NYCB in 2014, she was far from considering herself retired. She put together Restless Creature with the four much younger male choreographers, and has toured Europe and the US relentlessly, interrupted only by an injury that delayed her US tour for much of a year.

TPAC presents Wendy Whelan Restless Creature for one performance only, Saturday, March 2, at 8pm in the Chapman Music Hall. Tickets are $45, and are available online at www.tulsapac.com, by phone at (918) 596-7111, or in person at the TPAC ticket office.

The Gayly – May 2, 2015 @ 9:45am.