Theater/Review: Eifman Ballet of St. Petersburg - Up and Down (West Coast Premiere) #SCFTA

This is written by Carolina Gonzalez. We attended as media. All opinions are our own.
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The West Coast Premiere of Boris Eifman’s Up and Down (performed by The Eifman Ballet of St. Petersburg) was just here in Orange County, and it was the perfect date night. I grew up dancing to ballet, and it was a great way to introduce my favorite dance to my boyfriend as it was his first time. When Friday night arrived, we were so excited and could hardly wait to spend our evening at the Segerstrom Center of the Arts.

Dmitry Fisher as Buddy and Lyubov Andreyeva as Patient - Eifman Ballet's Up and Down
Photo by Michael Khoury

As with all performances at Segerstrom, we really try to make it to the Preview Talk one hour before the performance. This time we learned about Eifman’s creative mind and how it leads him to conceive pieces like the one we saw that night. We also learned about the dance company and how incredibly talented they are.

Up and Down was a journey into Sigmund Freud’s view of the unconscious mind through a rocky love story. This ballet took place in the roaring and sparkling 1920’s and developed a story of young love that is destroyed by the deep psychological complications between a woman and man.

Lyubov Andreyeva as Patient in Center - Eifman Ballet's Up and Down 
Photo by Michael Khoury

It was very interesting how every dancer displayed a different interpretation for their character’s mental illness and how the psychologist administered his treatment. Eifman did an excellent job in translating the deep and sometimes dark world of psychoanalysis and the battling of our demons. Colorful scenes of the roaring twenties were also woven into the performance giving a bright and upbeat contrast to the more serious tones of the ballet. Sequins, jazz, flapper girls, and the Charleston were a welcomed surprise and a fantastic aspect of the night.

Overall, we had a fantastic night of dance! Ballet is my passion, and it was great to share this experience together. The ballet was a transformative amalgam of elegance and grace, emotion and obscurity, angst and unbridled enthusiasm.

- Carolina 
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A review by Carolina Gonzalez. Carolina is a newbie in LA ready to discover all the hidden jewels this city offers. Carolina loves life, travel, volunteering, ballet, theatre, fashion and desserts - oh yeah! You can follow Carolina on Instagram and Twitter @CaroinLAcity.