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Sarasota News Leader November 23, 2012 men. All of the dancers are carefully placed in groups of three as the curtain lifts: the women in front; the men along the back wall. Cesar Franck's melancholic, mournful score is a powerful element from the first moments of the ballet as the three girls set the theme of pure classicism in a dialogue with the legato music — take small steps, pose, extend a leg slowly to the side, pose — one arm stretched rigidly across each body as if sculpted on an ancient Grecian urn — pose. In a combination of solos, interchangeable duets, trios and ensemble groupings, the six dancers explore every nuance and every step in the classical lexicon, and they manage both the balances and quick movements of the cho- reography with clarity and precision. Danielle Brown and Ellen Overstreet were suitably restrained in the cool slowness of their movements. Shi Fan, new to the compa- ny, showed promise, while Ricardo Graziano and Ricardo Rhodes did their best. There were some awkward moments with lifts and, to be honest, pure classicism is not their strength. Victoria Hulland's elegance, softness and mu- sicality brought magic to her role and to the ballet, which can be compared to a beautiful game of statues that exists out of time. While Sir Frederick casts a cool eye on re- lationships, Christopher Wheeldon's There Where She Loves, tears apart the emotions of love. The varied seven sections, each with a Chopin or a Kurt Weill song (sung in Pol- ish and German), reflect the tangled edges of needy love. That is what Wheeldon explores in a series of inventively choreographed nar- ratives that blend classical ballet with a 21st Page 70 century contemporary, natural use of the body. Christine Peixoto, lovely in the opening quar- tet, Tzcenie (The Wish), may be coming into her own as a performer this season. In Nan- na Lied, she was like a gummy doll pulled and pushed with one limb here, another there, lifted and slung around by four men until she finally slid to the floor. Ricardo Rhodes, her partner in both sections, may be the compa- ny's go-to partner for the unique lifts that toss dancers around like rag dolls and are the fo- cus of each duet. It is as though Wheeldon is trying to experiment with every conceivable twist and turn of the human body in devising these lifts, but it is his mastery of these cho- reographed acrobatics that define his style. In Surabaya Johnny, Rhodes slid easily into his role as a womanizer indifferent to the ago- ny of a vulnerable and fragile Danielle Brown, a perky Rita Duclos and a sweet Emily Dixon. Sara Sardelli, always a cheery sprite of a danc- er, and Logan Learned, who shares her boun- cy appeal, swept through Wiosna (Spring), a joyous duet that challenged Learned's skill in partnering. At one moment, Sardelli was up- side down, hanging from her partner's shoul- der like a bionic attachment as he spun and twirled around the stage. The long-limbed Danielle Brown showed a glint of humor and a sprightly style in her solo, Gdzie Lubi (There Where She Loves). Rita Duclos cast an enchanting spell in the Hulank (Merrymaking) quartet with three other women. And Amy Wood and Ricardo Graziano brought the ballet to a close in their touching duet — Je ne t'aime pas.