According to Calvin Royal III, the African American principal of the American Ballet Theatre (ABT), anyone attending the ABT’s production of Alonzo King’s “Single Eye” (October 27–29), is in for a magnificent treat. “Single Eye” is featured on a program dubbed “21st Century Works: King, Ratmansky, and Bond,”
What critics have described as King’s visually stunning ballet is set to music by jazz artist and composer Jason Moran, with sets and costumes by Robert Rosenwasser and lighting by Jim French. “Single Eye” had its world premiere on March 16, 2022, at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa, California, danced by Isabella Boylston, Thomas Forster, Calvin Royal III, Skylar Brandt, and Cory Stearns. Now, with the cloud of COVID virtually lifted, New York audiences have the opportunity to view the work by the critically acclaimed African American choreographer danced by, among others, the only African American principal the ABT has promoted since ballerina Misty Copeland became the first Black woman to break a major ballet glass ceiling in 2015.
True, a small number of Black males have previously performed principal roles with the ABT (namely Desmond Richardson, Keith Lee, and Ronald Perry), yet these milestones have been so few and far between that they are always worth noting (and supporting). While Royal has held that position for a few years now, the excitement of his presence on stage at the Metropolitan Opera House never grows old for the audiences or the critics who shower his performances with superlatives in response to his impressive technical facility and electrifying stage presence. A tremendous thoughtfulness also comes across, whether he’s dancing or speaking about his roles.
The upcoming production of King’s “Single Eye” promises not to disappoint if the excitement evident during recent interviews with both dancer and choreographer are any indication.
Royal sang King’s praises, saying, “Working with Alonzo King on ‘Single Eye’ is kind of a dream come true.” Describing King’s work as being as much about the mastery of classical ballet’s demanding technique as about infusing each movement with poignant and powerful moments and messages, Royal said, “Working with Alonzo allowed me to stretch myself physically, artistically, and mentally.”
Royal added, “You know, sometimes, when you’re doing the classics, it’s tombé, pas de bourré, pirouette, but with Alonzo, it’s about turning that into something that’s more interesting to watch and to do.”
The movement even has an air of unpredictability, because King encourages the dancers to exercise a touch of innovation: “Sometimes a lift will happen, sometimes it will happen with a different timing, or different intention. That’s what keeps his work alive.”
As King talked about his work, it was clear that there is a connection between the art and its impact on the world. How could it be otherwise for a man whose father was president of the Albany Movement, the 1960s Civil Rights Coalition in Georgia, and who welcomed Malcolm X and Martin Luther King, Jr. into his home?
For Alonzo King, dance is also about a life of service: “When you go to see someone on stage, you want the artist to inspire you into living a richer, fuller, more committed life,” he said. “Dance training cannot be separate from life training. Everything that comes into our lives is training. The qualities we admire in great dancing are the same qualities we admire in human beings: honesty, courage, fearlessness, generosity, wisdom, depth, compassion, and humanity.”
Clearly, King sees those qualities in Royal’s dancing: “In Calvin, there is a vulnerability and an openness [that] is one of the most beautiful examples of real power. Humility is a very powerful thing.”
In fact, that spirit makes Royal so perfect for “Single Eye,” which King said highlights the “quiet union of mind, body and spirit.” Dismissing those who dismiss the heightened consciousness of being “woke,” King insisted that is not a pejorative term but a goal that all strive should to achieve. After all, “We all have to reach enlightenment…and we want a joy that never goes stale. In this world, we can help by working on ourselves. If you want love, you have to cultivate love within yourself.”
“Single Eye,” King said, “urges us to concentrate on an evolutionary process that leads to oneness, as oneness is a single eye.”
Asked if he thought the audience would get the message of this new work, King quoted a phrase from the Talmud, the sacred compilations of ancient rabbinic debates on the teaching of the Torah: “We don’t see things as they are. We see things as we are.”
Everyone will have a different take on “Single Eye.” “Some people will see beautiful bodies. Some will be drunk on the music. Some will see the message.” Either way, the man who has referred to his dances as “thought structures or treatises” said, “It’s all good.”