"Hallelujah" - Allison Crowe performs Leonard Cohen

Tonight, at the Banff Centre, a cultural beacon alight in the majestic Rocky Mountains since 1933, Canada’s amazing Royal Winnipeg Ballet presents an exciting and inspiring mixed program of dance from three exceptional choreographers: “Quantz by Quanz” (Peter Quanz); “The Doorway” (Jorden Morris); “Pas D’Action” (Brian Macdonald).

“The Doorway: Scenes from Leonard Cohen”, choreographed by Jorden Morris, lattices interviews/spoken word recordings, along with: "The Letters" performed by Leonard Cohen and Jennifer Warnes for the CD "Dear Heather"; "Bird on a Wire" as recorded by Adam Cohen for the compilation “A Song for My Father”; "Hallelujah" – the “Tidings” album recording by Allison Crowe; "Since You Asked", a poem composed by Judy Collins and recited by Leonard Cohen from the CD "Born to the Breed”; and "Sisters of Mercy" recorded live by iconic US singer-songwriter Cris Williamson on the CD "Circle of Friends".

The RWB was the first company anywhere in the world to stage a production melding works of the Montreal-born singer-songwriter, musician, poet, and novelist – presenting "The Shining People of Leonard Cohen", with choreography by Brian Macdonald, in 1970. Choreographer Jorden Morris’ “The Doorway” opened in 2012 and, again, represents a company uniquely in tune with the zeitgeist.

Cohen, at age 79, is today enjoying universal appreciation of his works. “Hallelujah” is a much-loved modern standard. His recordings, from “Suzanne” to “The Darkness”+, remain as popular now as the day of their release. A key to such timeless appeal was revealed some years back - when asked by an interviewer about the impact of commercialization, the songwriter explained:

“Well, each person here at this table is a victim of the commercialization of life. I’m sure I haven’t escaped. But I can say one thing - I have been tempted by the money. I have been tempted by the glory... I don’t think there is any man that can escape those temptations. But I feel that I have not put out any songs that were designed to exploit the commercial market.”

Hallelujah - Allison Crowe performs Leonard Cohen from Allison Crowe on Vimeo.

Allison Crowe’s first release of “Hallelujah” was over ten years ago – http://music.allisoncrowe.com/track/hallelujah - and, it, too, has continued to increase in resonance since the “Tidings” EP of 2003. Here, in video form, Allison performs Cohen’s song - captured in real-time by film director Alex Postowoi and crew and audio engineer Larry Anschell at Turtle Recording by-the-sea in White Rock, BC, Canada. (As with recent Beatles’ interpretations from this same live-in-the-studio session, this is in higher-fidelity than has been previously available.)

Canada's Royal Winnipeg Ballet Opens "Doorway" Anew

Canada's Royal Winnipeg Ballet will perform its brilliant and beautiful dance, choreographed by Jorden Morris - "The Doorway: Scenes from Leonard Cohen" in a mixed repertoire program - January 25, 2014 at the Eric Harvie Theatre, The Banff Centre - Alberta, Canada:

http://www.banffcentre.ca/event/6346/royal-winnipeg-ballet?d=2014-01-25+19%3A30

"Royal Winnipeg Ballet returns to The Banff Centre with a unique mixed program that will not appear anywhere else on their Canadian tour. The complex and beautiful songs of Leonard Cohen come to life in Jorden Morris’s new ballet, The Doorway. Plus works by Banff Centre alumnus Peter Quanz, William Forsyth, and Canadian dance legend, Brian Macdonald.

Repertoire includes:

Quantz by Quanz – Peter Quanz

The Doorway – Jorden Morris

Pas D’Action – Brian Macdonald"

Amazing choreography, dancers and spirit combine for one of the most exciting and enervating collaborative opportunities ever enjoyed by Allison Crowe – whose interpretation of Cohen’s “Hallelujah”, she’s thrilled, is part of this ballet: http://music.allisoncrowe.com/track/hallelujah

Banff, already a wonderful place to be, will be even moreso when the RWB comes to town!

Sophia Lee dances to Allison Crowe's performance of "Hallelujah" in "The Doorway: Scenes from Leonard Cohen" - during the Royal Winnipeg Ballet's debut run in May 2012

"Absolutely fabulous" Royal Winnipeg Ballet

Musician Allison Crowe in the dressing room at the lovely Imperial Theatre, Saint John, New Brunswick, on the final night of touring with Canada's Royal Winnipeg Ballet - performing in "The Doorway: Scenes from Leonard Cohen".

Allison says her friend, photographer, and fellow-musician Billie Woods took a photo like this a few years back, when Alley, Billie and band were on tour. So, she's trying it out here :)

The view from backstage - Allison's piano and bench is bathed in blue light so you don't see it out front...



"Absolutely fabulous" - this description by writer and educator Lori Mayne neatly sums up the Royal Winnipeg Ballet's Maritime Tour. "Had chills during the selection set to Leonard Cohen's words and music."

Here's a family portrait of the RWB on the road! (photo by Ingrid Kottke)

NB The people in this picture are having the time of their lives. You can, too :)

Dancing Days Are Here Again

Canada's Royal Winnipeg Ballet, the first organization to present a theatrical or dance production of the works of Leonard Cohen, (1970s "The Shining People of Leonard Cohen"), in May, 2012, presents the World Premiere of "The Doorway - Scenes from Leonard Cohen", contemporary dance wedded to the words and music of Cohen, choreographed by Jorden Morris. Musician Allison Crowe performs "Hallelujah" live on-stage (voice, piano) in this new ballet's first run.

In November 2012, "The Doorway" opens in Canada's Maritime provinces - touring as part of the RWB's virtuosic quadruple bill... and the legend grows!

Allison Crowe reprises "Hallelujah" in this newest dance incarnation - and also brings to the stage new versions of "Bird on a Wire" and "Sisters of Mercy".

A sensation in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada's Royal Winnipeg Ballet nextt takes to the stage in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island and Saint John, NB.

Allison Crowe is loving the opportunity to again collaborate with the amazing RWB - performing songs of Leonard Cohen :)

"Here comes Allison Crowe's piano for tonight's RWB ballet performance at the Confederation Centre (of the Arts, Charlottetown, PEI) tweets Darcy Campbell about this photo


Andrea Nemetz, Dance Critic for the Halifax Chronicle-Herald, attended opening night of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet's Maritime Tour - and has this to say about the Leonard Cohen-rooted ballet in the program:

"RWB technique, emotion dazzle in Halifax return

'The Doorway: Scenes from Leonard Cohen' was the evening’s only departure from classical ballet. Choreographed by Jorden Morris, the emotionally charged piece was the story of lovers in different stages of relationships told through Cohen’s music and words.

The Letters (sung on tape by Cohen and Jennifer Warnes) showcased a man and a woman desperate for communication, eagerly anticipating missives from lovers, dismayed or elated at their receipt, leaping over chairs or tables or draping themselves miserably over the objects.

Bird on a Wire, sung by Allison Crowe, was a duet in which the couple were achingly and joyously in love, while Sisters of Mercy, also sung by Crowe, showcased the supportive friendship between a group of women.

Since you Asked, a poem from a CD, was a duet for two men, powerful and full of loneliness.

And while the glorious sounds of Crowe’s signature rendition of Hallelujah filled the room, Sophia Lee transfixed the audience with the poignancy of her performance."

Full ballet review @ http://thechronicleherald.ca/artslife/166277-rwb-technique-emotion-dazzle-in-halifax-return

The Royal Winnipeg Ballet paid homage to a Canadian legend in The Doorway: Scenes from Leonard Cohen during its performance in Halifax. (Bruce Monk photo)

Allison Crowe Returns to the Dance as "The Doorway" Opens Wider with RWB Maritime Tour

“Working with the RWB is going to be such an awesome experience - even to just watch these amazing people dance is gift enough,” musician Allison Crowe told CBC TV “SCENE” Producer Andrea Ratuski this May - just before the World Premiere opening of “The Doorway” (http://www.cbc.ca/manitoba/scene/theatre/2012/05/09/pure-ballet). “I am humbled to be able to be a part of such a beautiful project, in tribute to such a wonderfully talented and brilliant man, Leonard Cohen.”

Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet is the first company anywhere in the world to stage a production melding works of the Montreal-born singer-songwriter, musician, poet, and novelist. In 1970, during the tenure of Artistic Director Arnold Spohr, “The Shining People of Leonard Cohen”, choreographed by Brian Macdonald, opened in Paris and at Ottawa’s National Arts Centre.

Again, in tune with the zeitgeist, RWB Artistic Director André Lewis today oversees an evolution of his company’s dance works wedded to the words and music of Cohen. For the 2011 Genie Awards, Jorden Morris, choreographer of tremendous successes “Peter Pan” (2006 premiere) and “Moulin Rouge – The Ballet” (2009 - and touring currently to record audiences), created a sensuous pas de deux embracing Cohen’s song “Dance Me to the End of Love”.

In “The Doorway: Scenes from Leonard Cohen”, Morris choreographs five songs/poems – “Bird on a Wire”, “Hallelujah”, “The Letters”, “Since You Asked” (written by Judy Collins, recited by Leonard Cohen), “Sisters of Mercy” - and lattices these with spoken word/interview segments.

“Leonard Cohen's music comes to life at the Royal Winnipeg Ballet” declared the CBC, Canada’s national public broadcaster, earlier this year. Pierre Meunier, writing in La Liberté, set it this way: "Chacune des cinq scènes est un petit bijou." En Anglais: "Each of the five scenes is a small jewel."

CHVN Radio’s Adrienne Daniels reported on opening night: “the triumph of this performance was Mr. Cohen himself. He wasn’t there, but the RWB used audio from interviews he did regarding the songs being danced to and it gave such an incredible insight into the performance that it took it to that magical level. Where spirit and art connect and you FEEL the music. You feel it in your soul, it’s tangible with your hands and you can literally taste it.” And the audience loved it. Longtime RWB subscriber Dan Aysan posted: “‘The Doorway’ was a wild mix of dance, live music and spoken word that surprised me with its depth and simplicity (how often do you get dancers' movements , Leonard Cohen's words & music with a smattering of Peter Gzowski's voice mashed up on stage ?!?)".

During the first run of “The Doorway”, Canada’s bi-coastal singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, Allison Crowe, joined the RWB on-stage to perform “Hallelujah” – with the dance role alternating between Sophia Lee and Jo-Ann Gudilin (nee Sundermeier). “Spine-tingling” says Holly Harris, dance reviewer for the Winnipeg Free Press.

Allison Crowe, pictured here in Verona, Italy - returns to Canada and the ballet - Billie Woods foto

Crowe’s “Hallelujah”, first released in 2003, has secured a place as one of the most-loved interpretations of this Cohen masterwork – in her live performances, nationally and internationally, and on YouTube, where her single, first, take performance, captured for less than $100, has more than eight million views. In a rave review of a concert on her most recent European tour, Peter Baier, culture writer for "Süddeutsche Zeitung", Germany's largest national subscription daily newspaper, observes: “Allison Crowe performs the song without any trace of kitsch” and says it is “gooseflesh (bump) music”.

“Crowe's version is a living thing, a meditation and a celebration and a benediction," explains Canada’s anacronym blog. "Leonard Cohen's 'Hallelujah'... as performed by Allison Crowe, may be one of the most amazing things ever recorded onto magnetic tape," adds America’s Semper Ubi Sub Ubi blog. Blogger Stephen Thomas, a founder of the UK’s Folkroom Records, and a judge of Glastonbury Festival’s Emerging Talent says, “Simply, a song so beautiful has never been sung so beautifully."

Emotional honesty is the hallmark of Allison Crowe’s repertoire. Now, with “The Doorway” heading on tour to Canada’s Maritime provinces, she’s delighted to accept an invitation from the RWB to reprise this vocal/piano collaboration with the company’s marvellous dancers, and, also, to duet on a new arrangement of “Bird on a Wire” alongside legendary U.S.-based singer-songwriter Cris Williamson – whose acapella, live, recording of “Sisters of Mercy” featured incandescently in the debut, and returns – this time live-on-stage - for the next, steps of “The Doorway”.

Williamson is, in her own right, a cultural and social icon - an artist who's played Carnegie Hall, created an album, "The Changer and the Changed", that is to the independent music world what Michael Jackson's "Thriller" is to mainstream pop ie. a "game-changer" (released in 1975, the album’s sold over 500,000 copies), and one who’s thrived outside the establishment record industry for decades – and long before the internet opened new avenues for musicians. She's hero to countless women and men who've fought for sexual and social freedoms across America. Additionally, like Leonard Cohen, Cris Williamson is in the finest voice of her musical career and can bridge the wild spirit of youth and the wisdom of experience.

All this, and plenty more, is coming to the Maritimes – as the RWB includes “The Doorway” in its upcoming mixed repertoire program: “a virtuosic quadruple-bill which features Peter Quanz’s In Tandem, Brian Macdonald’s Pas D’action… and William Forsythe’s The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude,” notes the Fredericton Playhouse, one of the venues on this tour, in its neat summation of the action. “Experience the thrill of live dance performance with a stunning contrast in classical and contemporary styles courtesy of the foremost ballet company in Canada.”

For full details on the tour and the four exceptional dance works on the bill, visit the Royal Winnipeg Ballet @ http://www.rwb.org , the Fredericton Playhouse blog post "RWB MAKES TRIUMPHANT RETURN TO ATLANTIC CANADA" @ http://fredplayhouse.wordpress.com/2012/10/24/rwb-makes-triumphant-return-to-atlantic-canada ,  Halifax's Live Art Dance Productions @ http://www.liveartproductions.ca/shows/mixed-program - and sites of each venue listed below:

Royal Winnipeg Ballet - MARITIME TOUR:

Halifax, NS - November 7-8, 2012 - In Tandem, The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude, The Doorway, and Pas D’Action - Rebecca Cohn Theatre - 8:00pm

Fredericton, NB - November 9, 2012 - In Tandem, The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude, The Doorway, and Pas D’Action - The Playhouse 7:30pm

Charlottetown, PEI - November 10, 2012 - In Tandem, The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude, The Doorway, and Pas D’Action - Confederation Centre of the Arts - 7:30pm

Saint John, NB - November 12, 2012 - In Tandem, The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude, The Doorway, and Pas D’Action - Imperial Theatre - 7:30pm

Allison Crowe Concert Tour Launch: National Holiday in Germany

It’s "Tag der Deutschen Einheit" - Day of German Unity – today and Allison Crowe, one of the great performing artists of our time, or any time, launches her newest concert tour in Frankfurt amidst a wave of national celebration. As well as being present to mark the fall of the Berlin Wall and the re-union of West and East Germany in 1990 – Axel Dollheiser, Crowe’s European Road Manager, reports this visit to the continent will include a few pints at Oktoberfest in Munich.

Concert performances this month by the Canadian singer-songwriter, vocalist-pianist, Allison Crowe and special guest musician, and photographer, Billie Woods, include:

03.10.2012 – Frankfurt, Germany @ Jazzlokal Mampf
05.10.2012 – Berlin, Germany @ Evangelische Osterkirche
10.10.2012 – Mons, Belgium @ SHAPE Club
13.10.2012 - Inning Am Ammersee, Germany @ Inninger Spectacel
17.10.2012 – Florence, Italy @ Teatro del Sale
19.10.2012 – Quedlinburg, Germany @ Palais Salfeldt

We're ready!!" says Christine Geyer, who posts this foto from Mampf, Frankfurt

Before embarking on this tour, for the past year Crowe’s been extremely active in North America where she’s served as Music Director of Theatre Newfoundland and Labrador’s “Newfoundland Vinyl,” a rollicking hit at this Summer’s Gros Morne Theatre Festival. As well, she’s super-busy off-stage with movie projects, including a “Tidings Live” documentary, directed by film-maker Peter Buckle, set to premiere in December 2012.

On-stage, Crowe’s performed “Hallelujah” for the World Premiere run of “The Doorway: Scenes from Leonard Cohen” – the Royal Winnipeg Ballet's thrilling, new, Cohen-inspired ballet. This November, she rejoins the RWB as the dance, choreographed by Jorden Morris (“Moulin Rouge”), delights audiences again - and she'll perform "Hallelujah" solo as well as duet on "Bird on a Wire" with Cris Williamson, the legendary American singer-songwriter, activist, and independent music trail-blazer.

Fuller details upcoming @ allisoncrowe.com

RWB Steps Out - "The Doorway" to Tour Canada's Maritimes

In this part of the Northern Hemisphere, there's no wish for those lazy, hazy days of Summer to pass... still, in a sign of great things to come, Canada's Royal Winnipeg Ballet posts the next dates for "The Doorway" - the resonantly rewarding ballet choreographed by Jorden Morris and set to the words and music of Leonard Cohen. (These Maritime Canada tour dates are presented in several of those same venues which launched Cohen's triumphant return to the concert arena in 2008.)

For these Autumnal dates, Allison Crowe reprises her role performing "Hallelujah". Cris Williamson, whose live recording of "Sisters of Mercy" capped the premiere runs, joins the RWB company to perform the song live on-stage.

Full details tba

Maritime Tour:

Halifax, NS - November 7-8, 2012 - In Tandem, The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude, The Doorway, and Pas D’Action - Rebecca Cohn Theatre

Fredericton, NB - November 9, 2012 - In Tandem, The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude, The Doorway, and Pas D’Action - The Playhouse

Charlottetown, PE - November 10, 2012 - In Tandem, The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude, The Doorway, and Pas D’Action - Confederation Centre of the Arts

Saint John, NB - November 12, 2012 - In Tandem, The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude, The Doorway, and Pas D’Action - Imperial Theatre

http://www.rwb.org/tours

Naked Honesty: Crimson Coast’s Holly Bright Revealing and Revelling

This year, 2012, has seen much excitement and beauty emerge from choreographer Jorden Morris’ creation of Leonard Cohen-inspired ballet for Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet (the first company anywhere to present Cohen’s works as dance/theatre – with 1970s Brian Macdonald choreographed “The Shining People of Leonard Cohen”). Following the success of his “Dance Me to the End of Love” - pas de deux, a sensational highlight of the 2011 Genie Awards telecast – featuring dancers Sophia Lee and Jaime Vargas – Morris’ contemporary dance, “The Doorway - Scenes from Leonard Cohen", enjoyed its world premiere this Spring. Pierre Meunier, reviewer for La Liberté, says of this newest RWB Cohen ballet: "Chacune des cinq scènes est un petit bijou." (English translation: "Each of the five scenes is a small jewel.")

Among those most delighted with news of these works by Morris and company is Holly Bright, Artistic and General Director of Crimson Coast Dance Society, based in Allison Crowe’s birthplace of Nanaimo, BC, Canada. “How wonderful that this collaboration has arisen! RWB are amazing and well-loved across the country as is Allison! I hope I get the opportunity to see it!,” Bright exclaimed upon Allison Crowe teaming up with the RWB to perform “Hallelujah” in “The Doorway”.



Since settling in Nanaimo in 1992, Holly Bright, choreographer and dancer, has dynamically pursued her mission to advance modern dance and dance literacy in the Harbour City and communities throughout the region. She and Allison’s creative paths crossed when the musician, (now nesting in Corner Brook, NL), was living year-round on BC’s rock – with one particularly brilliant spark emanating from a multi-disciplinary show at Nanaimo’s Port Theatre – presented by the non-profit mental health organization “Open Minds Open Windows”.

“I heard Allison sing Hallelujah at Open Minds Open Windows event we both performed in,” Holly Bright recounts. “I knew I had to dance to her version of this song and my deepest desire was to do it live. It was the perfect ending to a mixed concert around themes of life and death in a cancer society fundraising dance concert produced by Crimson Coast Dance Society.”

In my experience most interpretations of this song give it a down-and-out quality. Don't get me wrong, these are exquisite and captivating renditions, absolutely hitting one important point of view for this song. What compelled me about Allison's version was how I related viscerally to the hope contained within her phrasing. It is a shout that comes from deep within her. It seems to me a cry born out of the experience of being broken, of the effect of pride, of loss, of the experience of deep love, spiritual and relational and of life's call, promise, to heal and grow.”

She composed her interpretation like an anthem, with swelling voice, in such a way as to express the pure passion of the experience of learning about love the hard way. Every sentence in that song slays me, anyway, with an impact for which there are no words. Every line breaks my heart, then proceeds to heal it. Then the ending pauses and builds are like love-making, making everything alright somehow.”

The text is sheer poetry, we all know that, and Leonard Cohen is brilliant. "Love is not a victory march, it is a cold and it's a broken hallelujah." My God, I cannot even say those words without my heart sinking while growing at the same time. And isn't that what we long for out of the experience of brokenness… the possibility of hope… of learning and growing... of feeling the weight of what went wrong and the healing promise that life brings.”

The challenge of creating movement for that dance that was not predictable yet that would weave metaphor into a song that was already dripping with it was delicious. Allison's YES to my request for the privilege of performing to her singing Hallelujah was a highlight of my career. And the experience itself, on stage, her voice rising to shake the rafters where the angels hang, had me feeling naked "before the lord of song with nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah".

Holly”

Holly Bright in ‘Costing Not Less Than Everything’, photo by Willow Friday (nee Chandler)

Coda: The dancer’s elemental expression pulses outward in the public pool. That reflection of this performance, one dance piece in Bright’s “This Body of Knowledge” program, is recorded by a trio of reviews published in March and April 2004:

“Holly Bright's piece introduced the fifth artist of the evening. Allison Crowe sang a soaring rendition of Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah. She caressed and scraped the lyrics turning Cohen's song into an anthem. Bright matched this knockout performance with a solo that was sinuous, lush and beautifully phrased. The extension of her expressive arms embraced space and the emotional content of the song majestically.” ~ Russell Kilde (choreographer, theatre director, critic)

“Nanaimo's own Holly Bright and Allison Crowe provided a stunning finale to the evening. Crowe sang Leonard Cohen¹s "Hallelujah" with a depth and power that made the song soar. Bright¹s duet with the music was filled with strength, vulnerability and intense beauty. Alternating between moments of expansion and quiet intensity, the music and the movement were woven together expertly. The result was a clear revelation of the pathos and the brilliance of human experience.” ~ Keri Wehlander (author, lyricist+)

“In the final number, Allison Crowe at the piano joined Crimson Coast's Holly Bright for a radiant, rousing, celebratory rendition of Leonard Cohen's lovely "Hallelujah," with Holly's graceful, expansive movements providing the visual corollary for Allison's full, vibrant voice, completing the circle, merging body and spirit, body and mind.” ~ Shirley Goldberg (Film Studies instructor, writer, cinephile/critic)

In the dance, life - to quote Leonard Cohen anew – “God is alive, magic is afoot”.

Double Dip of Leonard Cohen Ballet News

Marvellous and mysterious blogger DrHGuy, miner of many Leonard Cohen-faceted diamonds, today presents a post de deux on Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet and the recent engagement of musician Allison Crowe - performing Cohen's "Hallelujah" with the RWB:

http://1heckofaguy.com/2012/06/16/allison-crowe-gets-the-pointe  +

http://drhguy.posterous.com/ballet-with-allison-crowe

RWB's Leonard Cohen Ballet Success Rolls North in New Program

"Leonard Cohen's music comes to life at the Royal Winnipeg Ballet", CBC News reports earlier this month. After profoundly moving audiences during its world premiere run at Manitoba's Centennial Concert Hall, this weekend "The Doorway - Scenes from Leonard Cohen" rolls into Northern Manitoba for performances in: The Pas, May 25; Flin Flon, May 26; and Thompson, MB, May 27. In these communities, the Jorden Morris-choreographed "Doorway" is on a program with Peter Quanz's "In Tandem" and Brian Macdonald's "Pas D'Action".

In 1959, it was Brian Macdonald's "Les Whoops-De-Doo" that the RWB premiered in Flin Flon. And, it's another Macdonald creation, 1970's "The Shining People of Leonard Cohen", which premiered in Paris, France, that marked the first time a professional theatre or dance company produced the works of Canada's iconic songsmith on stage.

Of the "Shining People" production, cultural commentator Max Wyman notes: "That was absolutely in tune with the zeitgeist. But it was intriguing stuff as well. People loved it." (More from Wyman, and many more people on the inspiring story of the "constant phoenix" that is the RWB can be enjoyed in the award-winning documentary "40 Years of One Night Stands: The Story of Canada's Royal Winnipeg Ballet".)

Of the newest ballet to the words and music of Cohen, Alison Mayes of The Winnipeg Free Press recounts: "Last year, Winnipeg's Jorden Morris was asked to choreograph a pas de deux to Leonard Cohen's soulful 'Dance Me to the End of Love' for the nationally televised Genie Awards. It was so well received that the Royal Winnipeg Ballet commissioned Morris to create a longer work to songs by the legendary Cohen. The 44-year-old dancemaker, who teaches at the RWB School and created the company's hits Peter Pan and Moulin Rouge" now is opening "The Doorway".

In it, Corps de Ballet member Sophia Lee, (paired with Jaime Vargas for the Genies sensation), dances "Hallelujah" - to the voice and piano of Allison Crowe. On opening, Crowe spoke with CBC Manitoba Scene Producer Andrea Ratuski: "I feel so humbled and so grateful to be a part of this. This is such an amazing company to be able to work with and I'm just so excited. It's so beautiful to be able to watch Sophia dance -- and all the other dancers, too -- all the songs. They translate so beautifully. You can kind of see the lyrics within the dance. It's gorgeous."

RWB's Sophia Lee dances to Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" w. Allison Crowe onstage (CBC News - screen-cap)

Feelings shared by the audience. "Spine-tingling" That's how Holly Harris, dance reviewer for the Winnipeg Free Press, describes the ballet performance of "Hallelujah". Dan Aysan, owner of Winnipeg's renowned Selim's Antiques, and RWB season ticket-holder for much of 26 years posts: "Well... the Royal Winnipeg Ballet surprised me last night. Everything I had ever wanted them to do was done! They focused on the dance and not overwhelming production... and it captivated. The lighting and sound production were fantastic... but rarely did they overshadow the dancers themselves. 'Luminous' was astonishing and EXACTLY the type of work I hope the RWB considers doing more of. 'The Doorway' was a wild mix of dance, live music and spoken word that surprised me with it's depth and simplicity (how often do you get dancers' movements, Leonard Cohen's words & music with a smattering of Peter Gzowski's voice mashed up on stage ?!?)"

CHVN Radio's Adrienne Daniels attended the opening, and comments: "the triumph of this performance was Mr. Cohen himself. He wasn't there, but the RWB used audio from interviews he did regarding the songs being danced to and it gave such an incredible insight into the performance that it took it to that magical level. Where spirit and art connect and you FEEL the music. You feel it in your soul, its tangible with your hands and you can literally taste it.

"I was witness to one of the most moving spectacles of human expression that I've ever had the pleasure of seeing. My soul took flight for over 2 hours as I watched the poetic nature of the human form in motion; dancing, swaying, fighting, loving, understanding and confusing all at once."

Details of "The Doorway", "In Tandem" and "Pas D'Action" performances this weekend, (to recorded music), can be found on the RWB's site @ http://www.rwb.org/

Hallelujah ballet

"Spine-tingling."

That's how Holly Harris, dance reviewer for the Winnipeg Free Press, describes this performance of "Hallelujah".

Corps de Ballet member Sophia Lee, fresh from a lead role as "First" in the Royal Winnipeg Ballet's production of Mark Godden's "Svengali", here dances Leonard Cohen's modern song classic. Allison Crowe sings and plays piano on-stage with Lee in the world premiere of "The Doorway", choreographed by Jorden Morris. RWB Soloist Jo-Ann Gudilin (nee Sundermeier), "Mother" in "Svengali", dons the blue dress to perform "Hallelujah" with Crowe on alternate dates.

(CBC News - screen-caps)

Get with the program

Canada's Royal Winnipeg Ballet published a lovely "Playbill" size program for its "Pure Ballet" production. Here's the page therein containing the bio of Allison Crowe, and, the person who made the music that made the dance, "The Doorway" - Leonard Cohen!

click on the image to read full-size

Allison Crowe Alights with Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet - World Premiere of “The Doorway” - May 9 - 13, 2012

Musician Allison Crowe is thrilled to perform with Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet for the World Premiere of “The Doorway” – a contemporary ballet from choreographer Jorden Morris opening the words and music of legendary poet, singer-songwriter, and survivor Leonard Cohen.

“Graceful, moving, achingly honest, the series of dance vignettes are set to Cohen’s songs and poems, exploring the emotional journey across the threshold to love and longing,” says the RWB of this new piece from Morris, creator of the tremendously successful and celebrated “Peter Pan” (2006 premiere) and “Moulin Rouge – The Ballet” (2009 premiere) for the company. For the live national broadcast of the 2011 Genie Awards, Morris created a sensuous pas de deux – embracing Cohen’s song “Dance Me to the End of Love” – performed by Corps de Ballet member Sophia Lee and former RWB Principal Dancer, and current Ballet Master, Jaime Vargas with music from Montréal rock band Karkwa.

“Working with the RWB is going to be such an awesome experience - even to just watch these amazing people dance is gift enough,” Allison Crowe says. “I am humbled to be able to be a part of such a beautiful project, in tribute to such a wonderfully talented and brilliant man, Leonard Cohen.”

Growing up in Westmount, on the Island of Montreal, Cohen entered the fringes of a life in music as a Buckskin Boy. Though “born with the gift of a golden voice”, and building a sterling reputation as a writer – author, poet and songsmith - in the ‘60s , ’70s and on, he’s endured stranger times to test his mettle. This century has witnessed a renaissance in appreciation of his work and Leonard Cohen reach his most cherished state as an artist. Emblematic of this status, in May 2012, as the RWB presents this new creation based on his art, Leonard Cohen will be feted for a lifetime of achievement in music and poetry – receiving the Glenn Gould Prize at Toronto's Massey Hall.One of the world’s top concert draws, Cohen’s newest album, “Old Ideas”, charted #1 in countries ’round the globe.

The Royal Winnipeg Ballet, based in the culturally-vibrant city of Winnipeg, Manitoba, is Canada’s oldest, and North America’s longest continually operating, ballet company. Founded in 1939, it’s the first ballet company in the world to be granted the Royal title – bestowed by Queen Elizabeth II in 1953. And, it’s the first organization anywhere to present a theatrical or dance production of Leonard Cohen’s work. During the RWB tenure of Artistic Director Arnold Spohr (1958 – 1988), in Summer 1970, Brian Macdonald choreographed “The Shining People of Leonard Cohen” which debuted in Paris. Later, that July, it’s staged at Canada’s National Arts Centre in Ottawa – with eclectic band Lighthouse, and a pair of bats from the belfry, opening the show.

Today, André Lewis, named RWB Artistic Director in 1996, (he began his association as a dancer with Royal Winnipeg Ballet School in 1975), oversees the launch of this newest creation, “The Doorway – Scenes from Leonard Cohen”. Jeff Herd, native Winnipegger, after a decade as company manager for Cirque du Soleil’s “O” at the Bellagio, in Las Vegas, and some years overseas, is back home helping further the RWB’s legacy in motion as Executive Director. Bob Stewart serves as Production Director. Tad Biernacki, is RWB Music Director and Conductor and, in this circumstance, kindly, match-maker. With costume design by Anne Armit and lighting design from Hugh Conacher, Jorden Morris’ piece is partnered with RWB alumnus Peter Quanz’s “Luminous”, and audience favourite Mauricio Wainrot’s “Carmina Burana” for an evening, (and one Sunday matinee), of classical and contemporary ballet that runs May 9 – 13, 2012 at Winnipeg’s Centennial Concert Hall. It’s a mixed program united as “Pure Ballet”.

A pure talent and communicator in song, Allison Crowe, is invited to perform her piano and vocal version of “Hallelujah”, a modern classic. First recorded by Crowe in 2003 for her CD “Tidings”, this Leonard Cohen song has been covered more than 200 times - in a wide range of styles. Iconoclastically, free of mainstream ties and marketing, Crowe’s version has steadily emerged among the most-enjoyed worldwide. A YouTube video of Allison Crowe performing “Hallelujah” live-in-the-studio has an audience of more than eight million people. Acclaimed Hollywood director Zack Snyder tags it “beautiful”, “sexy” and “romantic”. The bi-coastal singer-songwriter, born in Nanaimo, BC, and now home in Corner Brook, NL, is honoured to deliver her passion for the song live to the RWB’s lovers of “visible music”.


Crowe enters fine musical company with those whose performances will also illuminate “The Doorway”. Whether criss-crossing the country to visit hundreds of schools and inspire children, or expressing their humanitarian nature performing in Kenya and Dubai, dynamic Winnipeg duo “Keith and Reneé” (http://www.keithandrenee.com/) shine. The veteran pair make music of many genres, folk and country among them, that reach people via radio, tv, film and commercials. They penned “Good Year”, theme of Manitoba’s Homecoming 2010 and, fresh off a dream tour with entertainer Jann Arden, “KnR” bring to the Centennial’s live stage their heartland take on “Bird on a Wire”.

Alongside these performers, and recorded words and music of Leonard Cohen, the program includes an incandescent "Sisters of Mercy" as captured live on “Circle of Friends”, a 1991 album by South Dakota-born, US prairie-raised musician, activist and pioneer Cris Williamson (http://criswilliamson.com/). This was the 15th anniversary concert recording of Willamson’s “The Changer and the Changed”, an epochal album which went gold, (sales over 500,000), and is to indie and women’s music what Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” was to general pop in its day.

Info on “Pure Ballet: Fluid Motion Virtuosic Dance”, location, ticket details and more is found @ http://www.rwb.org/pureballet

Allison Crowe follows up this exciting RWB engagement with a rare off-stage role – serving as Music Director for “Newfoundland Vinyl” – a rollicking spin through popular music's coming of age on "the rock" - presented in this Summer’s Gros Morne Theatre Festival by Theatre Newfoundland and Labrador. A “Tidings Live” album and video documentary is in the works with film-maker Peter Buckle. These North American activities precede Allison Crowe’s next European tour – featuring a concert return to Germany, Italy, England, Scotland+

Fuller details will be posted @ http://www.allisoncrowe.com/