Peter Martins Profile Light on Complexity

An acclaimed international ballet star who evolved into a controversial choreographer and then the powerful artistic/administrative head of New York City Ballet, 54-year-old Peter Martins has a revealing story to tell--only part of which is shared tonight in the lightweight, hourlong biography of him on the “Bravo Profiles” series.

What’s missing is the complexity and depth of the major issues. New York City Ballet is portrayed here as a company that belonged to George Balanchine until his death in 1983, and after that, to Martins--marginalizing the crucial role of Jerome Robbins as both an invaluable company choreographer and Martins’ NYCB co-director through 1989.

Similarly, the widespread debate over Martins’ stewardship of the Balanchine repertory is quickly kissed off: Critic Clive Barnes assures us that nobody could do a better job “maintaining the Balanchine spirit” and that’s that.

We keep seeing photos of Martins in his fabled partnership with Suzanne Farrell--but hearing voice-overs by others less central to his dancing career. Farrell has long been excluded from Martins’ fiefdom, but these old stills of her remind us of her crucial link to the Balanchine tradition--and the very controversy that Barnes attempts to nullify.

Whenever the view of Martins strays too close to controversy, playwright and Martins fan Wendy Wasserstein appears to laugh it off, glorifying his regime with everything from a silly men-in-tights joke to adoring gush galore.

The most valuable portions of the profile involve the creative process: Martins choosing costumes, working with dancers (including his wife and son) and giving tips on classical partnering, at which he was peerless. But when the footage moves from rehearsals of Martins’ choreography to on-stage performances, suddenly (without explanation) we’re watching the Royal Danish Ballet. And much of the choreography on view in this sequence isn’t by Martins but was adapted by Balanchine from the 1895 Ivanov “Swan Lake” and only restaged by Martins for the Copenhagen company and later NYCB. A curious choice.

Bravo lists no writer or director for the telecast, but NYCB sources credit Sydney Trattner (named as producer) for these roles.

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* “Bravo Profiles: Peter Martins” airs tonight at 7 p.m. on Bravo cable.