The Fortunate Ones

Carl Orff made his career when he composed Carmina Burana. Using the songs of the Goliards (a sect of Catholic churchmen in thirteenth-century Germany who satirized both society and the Church in their songs) as his springboard, Orff used the medieval concept of the Wheel of Fortune as a framework for his cantata. The wheel is forever spinning, so you may be king of the world today and a pauper tomorrow, according to the medieval thinkers. The Goliards took that to mean enjoy life while you have it, so their songs focus on the tavern, physical and courtly love, and other worldly delights. Paul Vasterling, artistic director of the Nashville Ballet, has conceived a Carmina Burana that takes the idea of worldly delights to heart. Combining his 40-member-strong ballet company's forces with the University of Missouri-St. Louis Orchestra & Singers, the Bach Society of Saint Louis and the Saint Louis Children's Choir, Vasterling has created a spectacle of movement and sound worthy of the Goliards. Dance St. Louis brings this kaleidoscopic wonder to the Touhill Performing Arts Center on the University of Missouri-St. Louis Campus (1 University Drive at Natural Bridge Road; 314-516-4949 or www.touhill.org) at 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and at 2 p.m. Sunday (February 21 through 24). Tickets are $35 to $55. [EDITOR'S NOTE: THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, PERFORMANCE CANCELLED DUE TO WEATHER. REFUNDS AVAILABLE AT THE TOUHILL BOX OFFICE.]
Feb. 21-24, 2013