Ballet Hispánico

The latest release in the Lincoln Center at the Movies series showcasing American dance focuses on New York's Ballet Hispánico, founded in 1970 by Tina Ramirez to present works reflecting Latino and Hispanic culture in the United States. The longer of the two signature pieces that are presented here, Gustavo Ramírez Sansano's Carmen.maquia draws on orchestral selections from Bizet's opera (slightly altered and embellished) to offer an abbreviated take on the romantic conflict involving gypsy seductress Carmen, smitten soldier Don José, bullfighter Escamillo, and José's hometown girlfriend Micaela. Set against plain white boxes and walls, and featuring simple white costumes—only Carmen's black gown and a bit of color on Escamillo's outfit stand out—Sansano's ballet (the first full-length narrative piece in the company's history) is far too abstract to coherently reflect the opera's plot (newcomers would be lost without the occasional written summaries here), but it does offer the opportunity to create sequences that effectively express character emotion, and the company responds exuberantly to the changing moods. The shorter Club Havana, choreographed by Pedro Ruiz to songs by various composers, recreates the elegant, vivacious atmosphere of a nightclub in the titular Cuban capital before the Castro revolution. The series of dances allows the principals and corps to show off their moves without the confines of narrative. Presented in DTS 5.1 and PCM stereo on DVD, and DTS-HD 5.0 and PCM stereo on Blu-ray, extras include a behind-the-scenes featurette. Recommended. (F. Swietek)