Close to Chuck at Boston Ballet

The Metamorphosis

by Talman Fortune

When many people think of ballet, they imagine extremely thin, flexible beings flying around a stage and exhibiting a story with the movements of their bodies. Ballet has evolved from this form and Close to Chuck is a fantastic example of this metamorphosis, whether this change is a good or bad thing, is to be decided.

Close to Chuck is a three-part ballet with each section being completely different from the last, everything including costume and set being changed. Each section of the ballet had a different standout factor that they used and reused throughout the dance. These included the face of Chuck Close (person for which the piece is named after) used in the first part as the background for the dance and as a texture on each dancers costume, movable wall that seems to absorb the dancers in the second, and curtains moving to strategically cut off sections of the stage in the third. These unusual and creative decisions by the costume and set designers are used in interesting ways, but at other times these set and costume choices appear to be clunky and sometimes seem to be out-of-the-box just for the sake of being out-of-the-box.

The main part of the ballet that seemed to impose this out-of-the-box idea was the middle section. This was the section that included the walls that moved around the stage at different times, created barriers and obstacles for the dancers. This was probably supposed to represent some sort of story or conflict but the walls just seemed clunky and to not move smoothly enough for it to have a successful effect. When the piece started, the walls were still and the dancers emerged, throwing beautiful shadows onto the stationary walls. After this fascinating effect however, the beauty of the piece went downhill. The movement of the walls seemed unnatural and didn’t have any purpose; the only purpose I could understand for these walls was to be modern and different. The first section of Close to Chuck didn’t have a set story but you could interpret it how you wanted and the third part had a story that you could follow, the middle section however had neither of these and didn’t seem to have any greater meaning.

The score of the ballet, composed by Philip Glass, is a completely different creature from the movements of the dancers. The music in the first two sections of the ballet is played by a pianist who is onstage and included in the movements and feelings of the dance. Like the rest of the ballet, the placement of the pianos is unusual and interesting. An example of this is in the second act where there are two pianos on the stage playing at the same time but since the theme of this part is the walls on the stage, the second piano is hidden from sight and can only be heard. At times in the ballet, the sounds of the music don’t match the movements of the dancers at all.

Each section of Close to Chuck consisted of interesting aspects of dance and successfully portrayed the massive talent of the dancers themselves. Overall this beautifully choreographed, if not sometimes boring, ballet is a wonderful example of modern dance and how ballet has evolved.