Audience Reviews

Scroll down to read comments by category:
    * NOT YOUR NORMAL BALLET COMPANY...
    * ATTENDING WITH FAMILY, FRIENDS, LOVERS...
    * BEAUTY AND MEANING...
    * CONTEMPORARY VS. CLASSICAL...
    * UPBEAT, DOWNBEAT, AND ABOUT THE MUSIC...
    * 'TALKS' AND PROGRAM NOTES...
    * THE COST OF TICKETS...
    * VENUES AND COMMUNITIES...
    * LIKES AND DISLIKES...
    * WE WILL GET BACK TO YOU...
    * RESPONSES TO "TURF" WITH THE MINNESOTA ORCHESTRA, SEPT. 20-23, 2006
    * JAMES SEWELL BALLET AT NEW YORK'S JOYCE THEATER, APR. 4-9, 2006


NOT YOUR NORMAL BALLET COMPANY...

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"Your performance with the Mozart Festival in San Luis Obispo was thrilling. Sitting in the front row I was able not only to experience your dancing, but the facial expressions as well. Your dance passion is contagious. Thank you for a delightful experience."
- San Luis Obispo CA

"It is such a rare pleasure to be able to laugh in a dance performance."
- Minneapolis MN

"Your dance company is like 'Prairie Home Companion.' You make us feel good to live in Minnesota!"
- Rochester MN

"What gives them the right to mess with my head without provocation? I went to a ballet, for god's sake. Someone should.....have arrested this James Sewell radical. That was the best money I've spent in a long time."
- St. Paul MN

"I went somewhat reluctantly -- dance has never been my favorite entertainment. But I am thrilled to admit that I was amazed, fascinated and, yes, really entertained. It was a great show!"
- Edina MN

"An outstanding 'cultural treasure' -- I have never had a poor experience attending the James Sewell Ballet!"
- Mankato MN

"Your program was the highest art ever seen at the St. Mary's Performance Center. We all marveled at the excellence."
-Winona MN

"Outstanding and varied choreography, excellent dancers. Sewell Ballet is a treasure."
- Minnetonka MN

"I've never seen anything like it. It was a good experience and I enjoyed it."
- Mankato MN

"Delightful, creative. We laughed and we cried."
-Shoreview MN

"I had an asthma attack from holding back extreme laughter."
- Minneapolis MN


ATTENDING WITH FAMILY, FRIENDS, LOVERS...

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"James Sewell Ballet was the first date I went on with my husband today! Their performances will always be watched!"
- Shakopee MN

"Brilliant! I always love the ride home from a JSB performance because whomever I go with (and it seems that I have accompanied countless dates over the years) we always have a lively discussion about the performance and the dancers."
- Minneapolis MN

"This was the first dance performance I thought even my husband would enjoy."
- Cave Springs AR

"Thank you for having the First Chance Dance. It was wonderful to be able to take our toddler to an art experience without the pressure of going outside to the lobby with every noise he makes. He enjoyed watching you dance and liked the lights from the Kinetic Head piece. I enjoyed the show, but moreover enjoyed sharing an artistic experience with my son. Thank you!"
– Roseville MN

"My eight-year-old son went to a matinee with his school and came home raving about it. He called his grandparents and organized us to go to the evening show. We loved it! At intermission, my son turned to grandma and said, I think I just saw something very sad, if I understood it right, but wasn't it beautiful?"
-Minneapolis MN

"Keep performances family oriented. Classical music is most welcome."
- Rochester MN

"First Chance Dance....was fantastic! My son is almost two years old and extremely active. As soon as the performance started he was mesmerized."
- Minneapolis MN

"Should not allow people to bring babies to performance - not fair to those who paid for tickets."
- Rochester MN

"Thank you for making my children's first exposure to professional dance such a great experience."
- Fergus Falls MN

"Thanks for doing the family shows. I think kids really like seeing something besides 'kid' shows, and you’ve made a great show accessible for them!"
- St. Paul MN

"Thrilled to be able to expose my 3 year old to live performance. Most other arts organizations in town are for older children only."
- Minneapolis MN

"As a grandmother taking a 2-3 year-old now to four performances, it has been thrilling for the child and grandparents. The 3-year-old now just made up a 'lincoln log ballet.' She re-creates her own ballet...with 'the man' coming out, announcing the ballet, her wild rendition of the ballet, the bowing, etc. The parents enrolled her in a community ed ballet class. The child was impressed with the art as something she could do. She anticipates each performance. It expands her world. The music is wonderful. The price is right for the grandparents. The grandfather thinks he would be a ballet dancer in his next life!"
- Bloomington MN

"I don't think there's a much higher compliment than to say that when a baby sitter materializes, the JSB is at the top of our list for spending an evening out!"
- St. Paul MN


BEAUTY AND MEANING...

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"Your show in Austurbaejarbio...was awesome! If I could afford it I would go again tomorrow. This was amazing and made me really regret that I quit Ballet. Thanks for coming to Iceland."
- Reykjavik, Iceland

"My 8-year-old son (just beginning ballet himself) and I loved the performance. The humor and humanity you bring to your art were a gift to treasure."
- Bentonville AR

"'Opus 131' was as beautiful as the music it was set to...'Improvisations' is a groundbreaking concept and your company performed with the mastery one would expect from set choreography. ...'Lover' was a true delight in both form and content."
- Winona MN

"The Klezmer dance was the most intensely engaging dance I've ever experienced. Your scene with the candles on the floor is extremely similar to a memorial at Yad VeShem in Jerusalem where small eternal flames memorialize each German death camp whose name is engraved into a black floor in a black room. I clutched the arms of my chair and almost didn't move or breathe for most of the piece."
- St. Louis Park MN

"Appalachia Waltz is so beautiful and moving, the first movement always brings me to tears. The Klezmer Dances were striking."
- St. Paul MN

"Appalachia Waltz always brings me to tears, it's so beautiful!"
- Minnetonka MN

"I cannot tell you how excited I am about performing 'Metamorphosis' again with you in Montreal.  ...'Doing' the work with you has been an incredible experience for me!...I got emotional every time we performed the work together -- watching you all brought back so many memories of growing up gay and not being accepted by my family or 'friends.' Thank you for what you did with the music. You claimed it and made it your own....Thank you from the bottom of my heart for putting your soul on the line with 'Metamorphosis!'"
- Minneapolis MN

"We only have attended the kid performances -- but I am transported every time....The music, the cool moves and the costumes combine to form magic."
- Minneapolis MN


CONTEMPORARY VS. CLASSICAL...

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"I enjoy all of the ballets. I'd like to see more classical ballet."
- Minneapolis MN

"The more classical ballet in a performance, the more I like it, although this performance was a good mix of classical, improv, and modern."
- Rochester MN

"We were there in time to hear James Sewell's before show talk, and we were really inspired by his forward thinking and the whole concept of improvisation he's adopted that is really pushing the boundaries of what is traditionally thought of as 'ballet.' I think the improv was actually our favorite part of the evening. ...The surprise was part of the Twins game piped into a section of African drums. It was really quite fantastic."
- Minneapolis MN

"I'd like to see more classical ballet, classic costumes and music."
- St. Louis Park MN

"No more tutu ballets."
- Minneapolis MN

"I wish they would have done some more classical ballet."
-Rochester MN

"We appreciate that you honor your classical ballet tradition as you experiment with extending the vocabulary. "
- St. Paul, MN

"Great to see contemporary ballet choreography that is not 'anti-ballet.'"
- St. Paul, MN

"Do more Balanchine. "
- Minneapolis MN

"I didn't like the Balanchine work."
- St. Paul MN

"Few new ballets are built from wonderful stories. Only one could vault JSB into the international spotlight. It is 'Frankenstein,' the story misknown by most of the world. It is an artistic horror that the story has not been developed as written."
- Minneapolis MN

"How about a sci-fi ballet pas de deux: ET and Chewbacca?"
- Minneapolis MN

"I am strictly a classical ballet lover. Your program was excellent. Loved 'Passions.'"
- St. Louis Park MN

"I liked the simpler costumes and more abstract choreography of the first act."
- St. Paul MN

"Your improvisation is always one of my favorites."
- Minneapolis MN

"Keep improvisation in the studio!"
- Minneapolis MN


UPBEAT, DOWNBEAT, AND ABOUT THE MUSIC...

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"The variety of music is always enjoyable, and watching how the choreographers have interpreted it is fascinating."
- Rochester MN

"Music not enjoyable. Too much fantasy, off the wall, too 'sophisticated,' not understandable. We did not enjoy your concert-sorry to tell you."
- St. Paul MN

"Keep choosing incredible music."
- St. Paul MN

"During first half movement, music and facial expressions were mostly serious.....would have preferred more happy, uplifting pieces."
- Mound MN

"The dissonate/dark/discordant music left me feeling down and very disappointed. I will attend the Spring performance but will not attend again if the music doesn't change."
- Golden Valley MN

"Loved the dances and selection of music!"
- Woodbury MN

"Would have enjoyed it twice as much if the music had been half as loud."
- St. Paul MN

"Sound and lights were very well done!"
- Minneapolis MN

"Use live music."
- Minneapolis MN

"I prefer 'upbeat' performances. One performance was all 'heavy' and depressing -- if that becomes more frequent, I will stop attending."
- Golden Valley MN

"The best show in two years. The last ones all had something that was a real 'downer' about them. That's not why I come here."
- St. Paul MN

"About six weeks ago there was a conversation on public radio about how to make dance more visible in the Twin Cities. My thought was to include other artists (live music)....You did it with great artistry and complexity in 'Metamorphosis.' It was very moving."
- St. Louis Park MN


'TALKS' AND PROGRAM NOTES...

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"I enjoy hearing program notes from the stage. I always learn a lot. "
- Minneapolis MN

"The 'talk' was miked too loud and was distracting overall -- should be quiet and brief."
- Afton MN

"I loved taking my 8 yr old daughter to 'Amahl' and to the fall performance where the company members spoke to the audience."
- Minneapolis MN

"'Amahl' was fantastic. The children were all so quiet and attentive. James Sewell's speaking with the audience was helpful and interesting. I've taught hearing impaired children and I appreciated the performance immensely."
- St. Paul MN

"My mother was very impressed with the un-stuffiness. She's never been to a performance and was expecting stuffiness. "
- Hastings MN

"Pre-performance discussion should have been more interactive -- i.e., question/answer."
- Rochester MN

"He should not talk so much. It gets very boring."
- Minneapolis MN

"I enjoy the verbal commentaries as well as the program notes."
- Woodbury MN

"More program notes. "
- Excelsior MN

"My experience is enhanced when James speaks before the performance. It's much more personal than reading a program. "
- Onalaska WI


THE COST OF TICKETS...

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"For phone sales via credit card, don't add $5 for the service -- I don't buy tickets that way."
- Minneapolis MN

"[I don't like] having to pay extra for credit card orders."
- Mankato MN

"Tickets are reasonably priced to introduce a family to contemporary ballet."
- Rochester MN

"Ticket prices are too high to bring the whole family."
- Maple Plain MN

"Offer a low-income discount for those unemployed. Much as I like you, I can no longer afford your full price ticket."
- Plymouth MN

"I'm a season subscriber and purchased an additional single ticket on-site tonight. They would not exchange the two I had so all three of us could sit together. This is not a good way to build your season ticket base!"
- Minneapolis MN

"Lower ticket prices."
- Plymouth MN

"Don't be afraid to charge more for tickets."
- River Falls WI

"Continue to offer original ballet at a reasonable cost."
- St. Paul, MN

"Good price, good variety of dance selections."
- Richfield MN

"Ticket staff was strange: told me there was nothing available on main floor closer than Row P, but then there were many empty seats in the front."
- Minneapolis MN

"Front 8-10 rows of theatre are flat – cannot see over people in front. About 50% of audience moved back at pause and intermission."
- Minneapolis MN


VENUES AND COMMUNITIES...

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"We drove 3-1/2 hours from Greater MN to enjoy the show. I wish you guys would come out to rural Minnesota to perform. I invite you!"
- Watson MN

"I was a season ticket holder until you moved the operation to Minneapolis (I just can't hack the parking situation there)."
- St. Paul MN

"You have helped us make dance more accessible to our community and you have given our dancers (and the rest of us) a lift out of the mid-winter doldrums."
- Fergus Falls MN

"Come to New York."
- New York NY

"Come to Duluth and advertise at the University."
- St. Paul MN

"It would be wonderful if your group could visit Indonesia. If you plan to do so, please contact me."
- Jakarta, Indonesia

"I really enjoy the company. It's O'Shaughnessy I don't like, but if it works for you...!"
- Minneapolis MN

"O'Shaughnessy is a very nice space to watch dance."
- Minneapolis MN

"The State Theatre is not as intimate as O’Shaughnessy."
- Minneapolis MN

"It's fun to have you at the State Theater."
- New Hope MN

"At the new venue [State Theatre], I don't feel the personal connection that I used to. The space is too large and cold. I feel like I am merely watching rather than a part of. Sadly, an annual family tradition may not be worth continuing."
- St. Paul MN

"The State Theatre is a fine place for you."
- Edina MN

"We are big dance fans. You were easily the best we have seen this year. You danced with great energy and creativity."
- East Lansing MI

"Superb performance. Our annual highlight."
- Rochester MN

"James Sewell Ballet has such a powerful and positive effect on this community. Everyone raves about you, so please keep on comin'!!!"
- Rochester MN

"Fabulous. Just come to St. Cloud more often."
- St. Cloud MN

"We saw you in Crookston MN and jumped at the chance to see another performance while in the Twin Cities."
- Grand Forks ND

"Your group coming to perform in Rochester is one of the highlights of my year...especially after a long cold winter. I brought seven people this year."
- Rochester MN

"Thanks for Sunday matinees!"
- Minneapolis MN

"I've written all my friends in NYC and implored them to see your shows there, which unfortunately will lack the periodic roars from the basketball game next door."
- Rochester MN


LIKES AND DISLIKES...

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" Proprio was great!"
- Minneapolis MN

"I appreciated the courage of Turf."
- St. Louis Park MN

"The lighting was fantastic. It has been a long time since I've seen simple but effective light design. It was also nice to see a company that takes artistic chances."
- St. Cloud MN

"Drop Turf. An artist's ability to make political comment or accurately render the human condition during war is limited by his (mis)understanding of reality. The choreography isn't so good either. We saw the premiere and my wife wouldn't bother to come a second time."
- Minneapolis MN

"I enjoyed Turf the best."
- Lakeville MN

"You outdid yourselves with Opera Moves - phenomenal!"
- St. Paul MN

"Seating latecomers during the performance is damn annoying."
- Minneapolis MN

"Someone was seated (and interrupted our sight line) one minute from climax of Late! Boo!
- Excelsior MN

"Re: Guy Noir. In one word: AWESOME! In two words: GREAT WORK! In three words: IT WAS BRILLIANT! In four words: I COULD GO ON....and on and on...."
- Forest Lake MN

"Innovative and brilliant 'Involution.' Loved the oppositional pulls of the choreography and the progression of humanness and connection between the dancers, culminating with the acknowledgement of the audience to end it. Brilliant!"
- Rochester MN

"'Involution' was the least favorite of any piece I've seen the troop do."
- Rochester MN

"Really loved 'Involution.' I got choked up right away – saw too much of myself in all that frenzy. To show that the answer is really inside of us made for a very powerful and hopeful statement."
- Rochester MN

"Choreographically confusing/possibly irritating ['Involution']."
- Afton MN

"'Involution' was incredible!"
- Northfield MN

"I enjoyed 'Involution' much more than I anticipated. Very moving! Amazing!"
- St. Paul MN

"I liked 'Involution' very much – the lines of the choreography, the costumes, the lighting, and the emotions it evoked."
- St. Paul MN

"'Involution' lacked meaning for me."
- Minneapolis MN

"I didn't like the length of 'Involution.'"
- Minneapolis MN

"I saw the performance Saturday. It was stunning. My life is certainly better for having experienced it ['Barrage']."
- White Bear Lake MN

"Did not like the knife scene in 'Lover' -- too much exposure to violence on the news and TV, and I seek entertainment and personal enrichment without personal violence."
- Rochester MN

"The use of the switchblade as a prop was very cool."
- Hudson WI

"Tell...Sewell that his picture...doesn’t do him justice; it makes him look much older than he appears in person."
- Middlebury VT

"I enjoyed 'Amahl' yesterday at Orchestra Hall. ...I'm looking forward to more performances, both revivals of JSB classics and presentations of new works."
- St. Paul MN

"I tend to be a picky audience member but I can't say enough good things about this show!"
- Minneapolis MN

"The revival of 'Opus 131' prompted me to attend this performance. How about dancing to live music?”
- Roseville MN

"I believe this was the best dance I have ever seen."
- Edina MN

"Remove my name from your mailing list. We attended 'Amahl' and were extremely disappointed with the performance. It was the first time we had seen your company. We will not attend any future performances."
- Eden Prairie MN

"Did not like Goldbergs. Please stick with dance and quit the corny acting."
- Minneapolis MN

"'The Goldbergs' was an intriguing interpretation of family dynamics."
- Wayzata MN

"I loved ‘The Goldbergs'. I felt like I was on a roller coaster of emotion, laughing here, tearing up there...this is what art is all about!"
- Minneapolis MN

"I missed the Goldbergs when ‘Made in America' started" It was like ending a good book ... you don't want the story to stop."
- Minneapolis MN

"Please do not seat latecomers during a number!" Even if the usher had not fallen in my lap as she was exiting I found this to be very disruptive!"
- St. Paul MN

"Ditch ‘Amahl and the Night Visitors' ...totally bored and disappointed when I saw it a couple of years ago."
- Stillwater MN

"'Amahl' was magnificent! A treat for eyes, ears, soul and spirit."
- Apple Valley MN

"I'm 16 years old. I'm deaf. I went to watch 'Amahl.' It was wonderful. I really enjoyed it. I was shocked that you used ASL sign language. When I was watching them dance and sign, I thought all of you were deaf."
- St. Cloud MN

"I laughed and cried. A zillion times better than 'Cats!"
- Minneapolis MN

"Loved 'Good Mourning.' Very emotional."
- Zimmerman MN

"'Good Mourning' - did not like at all."
- St. Paul MN

"Eradicate violence and sexism in your performances."
- Minneapolis MN

"'Yin In Yang' was trite and overdone. 'Passions' was contrived and obvious. From an unsophisticated, uneducated ballet fan, return to your visual, physical style and skip the pseudo intellectual."
- Minneapolis MN

"Look into the spiritual Hoop Dances of the Ojibwe - interesting parallel with 'Passions.' "
- Bemidji MN

"Thoroughly enjoyed 'Yin In Yang.' Have you thought about a white hood and face makeup with black eyebrows, eyeliner, and lipstick?"
- West St. Paul MN

"James Sewell should learn about yin/yang. "
- Excelsior MN

"Have never seen 'Yin In Yang' and 'High Rock' before. Absolutely splendid!"
- St. Paul MN

"Employ people of color!"
- St. Paul MN

"My daughter...asked, 'Where are the dancers that look like me (meaning dark skinned)?'"
- Minneapolis MN

"A great performance. I particularly enjoyed 'Metamorphosis' -- it evoked such emotion I had tears in my eyes by the time it was over! I liked 'Awedville' for its originality, sense of humor, and innovation -- all things that come to mind when I think of James Sewell Ballet. I...am continually amazed and inspired by the creative energy of the company.”
- St. Louis Park MN


WE WILL GET BACK TO YOU...

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"Please remind the audience that this is not a baseball game and request that they refrain from whistling and yelling. It is very hard on those seated in front of them."
- Minneapolis MN

"Can you pump aroma into the theater that relates to the dance set? The theater had an unpleasant smell from the moment I walked in door."
- Wayzata MN

"I invariably sit behind a tall, big-headed person and cannot see. Otherwise, it was fabulous!"
- Minneapolis MN


RESPONSES TO "TURF" WITH MINNESOTA ORCHESTRA,
SEPT. 20-23, 2006

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"I loved the...presentation today...especially the ballet's strong stance against torture. It was very moving and powerful, and relevant. The whole performance was fantastic."


"James Sewell was interviewed beforehand and said he could not get away from the visions of torture that came to him, that the torture of our nation was not different from that of others. First, I object to him coming in and expressing his personal, very strong opinions about this -- equating our torture with that of other nations. When have we beheaded? When have we put out eyes? When have we cut out tongues? I would like to know why he equates the United States with other nations? Then, there was the ballet itself -- scene after scene of hideous torture."

"Brilliant! The piece fits the score so well and the dancers' interpretation is awesome. It is so cohesive from the opening to the finale; intense, dramatic, ugly, tender, violent. I had goosebumps! It is definitely one of your best efforts. It did create some conversation at intermission. I overheard one woman say, 'I would like to see them do something a little lighter.' Someone else commented that art should reflect what is going on in the world. Only one woman left from Tier I. My heartiest congratulations to all of you!"

"I have never come away from a performance feeling so disturbed by the statement equating our country's actions with beheading and other actions taken in the name of religion. Do NOT equate anything our country might do with these other things. That's that. Then, I don't really need to see it presented to me in graphic terms when we are  a captive audience. We certainly know that certain things go on in the world and do not need to see it in front of us in the ballet. I will never attend anything by this ballet, ever!"

"While enjoyable would not be exactly the right word, powerful, memorable, riveting and absolutely true to the Bartok piece would all be accurate descriptions. We are still talking about it. What an interesting program in that it was juxtaposed with the Stravinsky which caused a little controversy itself in its day, now didn't it."

"What a treat -- to see a beautiful ballet by your company while listening to wonderful music."

"I am trying to think of the last time I saw a performance that matched your...performance with the Minnesota Orchestra. The power, boldness, beauty, and horror left me gasping for air. Job incredibly well done. You have a new subscriber."


"I appreciated the courage of [JSB] and the orchestra to present this piece. I came to Saturday's performance feeling a bit depressed about things happening in the world. I left feeling that something can be done about all that's going wrong in the world."


"My wife and I...were delighted by the performance of James Sewell Ballet. We enjoyed it very much and the dancers are to be highly congratulated on a wonderful, stirring performance."


"I was absolutely enthralled and thrilled by your performance.... This was stunning, bold, and provocative work. I would love to see a video of this piece made available in classrooms in history, political science, current affairs, and other classrooms across the country (and world).... Thank you for the 'shocking and scary' performance (as Osmo called it after the show, while also going on to appreciate its value) that also was mesmerizing and beautiful. I will long remember it."


"By trying to remain neutral you in fact condone the violence you are depicting. If you are neutral, you are telling your audience to be numb, that it's okay, it's 'only art.' I was outraged by this. I longed for some sense that what you were doing up there mattered, to us, to the world. Even if those who had been tortured, upon being released, came to the edge of the stage and yelled at the audience, 'Why didn't you do something!' To remain neutral on torture is impossible. As Martin Luther King once said, 'the opposite of good is not evil, it is indifference.' The fault lies not in the dancers -- you did a very good job, but in the choreographer. Instead of taking a stand with his material, James Sewell chose to show us violence simply because it 'showed up in his choreographic process.' That is gratuitous violence. We can get plenty of that on Fox News. It isn't enough to remain 'fair and balanced' and let the audience decide. That's a cop out. If in the preconcert talk he had taken a position on his own work, it would have meant something, as it was, the work dishonors, cheapens, condones. Is this really our role as artists in America today?"


"I saw a very, very beautifully historic and brave ballet, and was honored to witness it.... This is one of the best things that has happened in my life. It transcended commentary.... Thank you, very, very much!"


"An extraordinary presentation.... It was soul searching to say the least and the dancing itself was fascinating."


"A stunning performance.... One of the best things the Sewell Ballet has done -- that I have seen, anyway."


"Bravissimo, Bravissimi! Thank you."


"My heartiest congratulations for your wonderful ballet! I was spellbound and deeply moved by the story that it tells and the way it was choreographed and danced. I had the feeling I was not the only one, because I noticed how the audience was holding their breath and were absolutely still in their concentration."


"My husband and I....were very impressed. The importance of recognizing the realities that are going on in the world today are crucial. We also enjoyed the pre-performance meets and Q&A. We felt very welcomed and informed. Thank you for that."


JAMES SEWELL BALLET AT NEW YORK'S JOYCE THEATER,
APR. 4-9, 2006

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"I was in the second row center on Saturday at the Joyce and was blown away, especially by the entire first half ["Anagram" and "Involution"]. Thank you. Involution nearly brought me and my date to tears at the end."
- New York NY

"I had the privilege of seeing your company...at the Joyce. You were all astonishing....I particularly loved the first two dances, as different as they were from each other."
- New York NY

"Fabulous show at the Joyce....Particularly enjoyed the first two pieces."
- New York NY

"We were truly delighted with the program -- which showed off James' facility and range of choreography and truly showcased your talented dancers....I have never before seen a ballet featuring power tools...it was very memorable."
- New York NY