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The dreamer: opus 1: supreme classicist Peter Boal belies his image with an edgy new chamber group.

Article Excerpt
In the adagio solo at the center of George Balanchine's Square Dance, Peter Boal exudes a beautiful meditative melancholy from each perfectly articulated phrase. Never overtly virtuosic, never overly dramatic, Boal is an exemplar of an impeccable classicism that is always at the intelligent service of both music and choreography, while quietly filled with emotional resonance.

Boal as embodiment of all dancerly virtues is a familiar experience for New York City Ballet audiences, who have seen him perform almost every important male role in the repertoire since he joined the company in 1983. "He is a noble character," says Robert Gottlieb, dance critic of the New, York Observer and long-time watcher of NYCB. "He givers that impression on stage, and offstage too. He goes as tar as he can within the dance text, and he doesn't decorate or embellish it. He is always measured, open; nothing is covered up."

There is, however, another side to Boal that belies his steadfast image, and strongly suggests a man who is constantly--if discretely--impelled to keep exploring the limits of his own possibilities. Since early in his career, Boal has kept his artistic destiny in his own hands; an approach that is far from common for ballet dancers, who are usually schooled to see themselves as passive instruments of a company or a choreographer. In addition to...

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