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griffie

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  • Connection to/interest in ballet** (Please describe. Examples: fan, teacher, dancer, writer, avid balletgoer)
    balletgoer, former dancer
  • City**
    New York
  • State (US only)**, Country (Outside US only)**
    NY

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  1. Excellent points, and when googling how many seats it has I came across an interesting article on those issues. Kings Theatre was one of the five Loew's Wonder Theaters, and as you say, the original cinema had poor sightlines to the stage from some of the seats. The original capacity of the theater was 3600 and in modernizing the theater nearly 600 seats were lost. The orchestra seating area is vast and the balcony comparatively small, so not ideal, but a seat towards the rear for me worked well enough for the Nutcracker I saw. Here's a link to an article on the renovation if anyone's interested. http://www.lightingandsoundamerica.com/reprint/KingsTheatre_original.pdf
  2. I loved the Ratmansky version of Nutcracker when I saw it at BAM, especially the first act reimagining and the blizzard of snowflakes with bad intentions. (Though I did miss SPF and didn't care for the bee costumes in Flowers.) I felt the BAM stage was just a little too small to do the production justice; I felt some the dancing looked cramped. I wish they'd come back to NYC. I think there's no doubt the city can support two world-class Nutcrackers. I recently saw Brooklyn Ballet's Nut at Kings Theater. Kings Theater is a recently restored (2015) movie palace in the heart of Brooklyn which is stunning venue with a good-sized stage and seats over 3,000. ABT could sell really well there for many young families since, as onxmyxtoes and others have pointed out, NYCB's ticket prices are stratospheric.
  3. It was indeed Roxander's night tonight, making the most of his first lead role! His turns and jumps are dazzling and he's got tons of charisma and stage presence already. It's been a while since ABT had a new male virtuoso, and perhaps even longer since a truly home-grown American one. I can't wait to see him in the major roles - and Tarantella too. I was thrilled and impressed. Welcome to the big leagues, Mr. Roxander.
  4. Yes, Mejia and Fairchild elevated what had a been a lovely evening into a thrilling one! Sara Adams did very well tonight: spectral and pliant in Unanswered Question with an emotive Harrison Coll, then transitioning moods into the hoopla of the opening movement of Stars and Stripes. Western Symphony, I realized when the curtain went up and I saw the costumes, was a ballet I'd already seen years ago and forgotten about. It's a trifle that I will probably forget about again. Notably, Jovani Furlan (in for Sanz) really captured the sexy cowpoke amble as the Rhinestone Cowboy. Tarantella was Pereira and Ulbricht. He's still got it, jumps still high, and the crowd loved him. Stars and Stripes is honestly a better ballet than I think it ought to be. Corny, but hugely entertaining with some splendid choreography. Fairchild and Mejia absolutely dazzled. They have it all: superb technique, playfulness, joy and a wonderful partner rapport. It was Mejia's debut and you'd never have guessed it! Star power squared.
  5. Papagena, I'm glad that Bouder's weight was not an issue for you, even a positive; unfortunately it really wasn't that way for me. I can see that for a more Romantic-style piece like Emeralds, the plump arms and ample bosom would be pleasantly reminiscent of the 19th-century ballerinas. I might enjoy seeing ballets performed in the style of the day, with the body types popular then, as valid alternatives to today's aesthetics. From a distance, the effect of Bouder's arms may have been very different even pleasing. But as close as I was the jiggling and contrast between Bouder and the extra-long willowy arms of Laracey, not to mention the slenderness of all the other dancers on the stage, was jarring. Many famous dancers have faced criticism for having put on a few pounds but (to me) we're not talking a Martine van Hamel kind of situation. I'm not someone who wants emaciated dancers, but I do think weight matters visually; I think Bouder's weight gain is enough that I doubt we'll see her full legs this fall season because it would so affect her line. We did see different performances, and I didn't notice Bouder lagging or struggling technically - it was more that her dancing seemed to be unremarkable (which for Bouder may be criticism enough!). Her arabesque height, for example, seemed to match others' at the Friday night show. Others who are more familiar with her and the role than I am may have registered some issues but I thought her dancing was fine.
  6. Janzen looked wonderful, dancing at a very high level: clean, polished, courtly. I respect when older dancers retire when they sense the decline but the audience doesn't see it yet. Going out on a high note means your audience will always remember you in your prime. I thought Mearns was at her best; more classical, less mannered than I have seen her be in other roles. Technically she's dancing well and her star presence shines in Diamonds. Rubies was a delight. Mira Nadon is a treasure. She's a stage actress as well as divinely musical. There's something loose about her Tall Girl that seems so very American, very Balanchine - I just loved it. Huxley was excellent (he always is!) although he was more jazzily elegant and doesn't have the impishness I've enjoyed in some other dancers' interpretations. Megan Fairchild is superlative. She's so familiar with the choreography now, she can be playful and still keep control. She posted on her IG that she had tried some new things from her coaching with Patricia McBride and felt some worked onstage and some didn't. (I certainly didn't spot anything that didn't work.) I love that even after years as principal, Megan is constantly challenging herself to be the best dancer she can possibly be. Emeralds: I was sitting very close to the stage, perhaps too close. The costumes for Emeralds are forgiving and show only the arms, shoulders and feet. Although her dancing was acceptable, if underpowered, Bouder's arms are so plump that she has hanging underarm flesh that jiggles especially on her bourees. Once I registered the jiggling I couldn't unsee it and kept noticing it throughout Emeralds. She is easily 15 pounds heavier than any other female dancer onstage and looked thick around the waist. I would guess at this point after so much time since her injury that she is having health issues, either mental or physical, and I wish her well, but think she should resolve them offstage. I'd be thrilled to see her back in top form but for now I will avoid her. I know there are many opinions on the ballet aesthetic and weight. But for me, ballet is a visual art and when any one performer is too distracting it breaks the spell. IMO Management has responsibility to ticket-goers to provide a certain standard of visual excellence as well as technical excellence and I think they are not stepping up with Bouder. Laracey was as lovely in Emeralds as everyone else has already mentioned. She has a gift of realizing all the positions fully while never disrupting flow. (I stand with all those who've written they wished she'd been made a principal.) Baily Jones and Alexa Maxwell were both terrific and beautifully matched. So much talent in that company! Chan, as mentioned upthread, keeps getting better every time I see him. Jewels highlights port de bras so a special mention to Olivia Boisson for her upper-body grace, I'd not really noticed her before but she's lovely.
  7. I'm agreeing with ABT Fan. Lovely and talented dancers all, but from what I've seen so far they don't put me in mind of Myrtha. Fangqi Li has already impressed several of us as a dancer of exceptional promise. It looks like management has faith that Li already has the stage quality to be a successful Myrtha (and at the minimum, her jetes are remarkable). It's possible she is getting the chance because of Williams being out but still it's an enormous vote of confidence to give her two Myrthas at the Met. I also think it's a wise publicity move to feature Misseldine and Li to generate more excitement for Giselle performances with Giselles we've seen before. And it's Zhong-Jing Fang's first Myrtha, isn't it? At least at the Met, I think. I'm happy to see her getting this role after so many years battling back from devastating injury. I'd love to see all three of them! I also wanted to see Hurlin's Giselle, but the all-star cast on Saturday that Gillian Murphy is leading (Murphy, Forster, and Teuscher all best-fits for those roles) - surely Gillian can't go on forever? Maybe I shouldn't miss it, just in case there doesn't end up being another opportunity. Hard choices!
  8. Chiming in to say that I also was at Friday's Concerto Barocco/ Kammermusik/ Raymonda Variations and I fully agree with the commenters above - Laracey was just outstanding in Concerto Barocco, not that Gerrity wasn't fine (she was great) but my eye went to Laracey. They both had clean and fleet footwork, but there's something about Laracey's carriage and expressiveness that just makes her the more watchable. She's developed from being someone I looked forward to in more lyrical roles to being someone I look forward to in everything. I had that same "WHY isn't she principal yet?" reaction to Kikta in Kammermusik. Such energy and precision! She dances big. I love it when a dancer seems to be thrilled to be onstage dancing for us. Though nearly everyone onstage dancing Kammermusik seemed to be having a grand time! It must be great fun to dance that one. And of course Tiler Peck and Joe Gordon. Everyone's said it all already... I'll just add that in his cabrioles, Joe had that smoothness to direction changes that make it all look so easy. There's never any abruptness to his transition to the other side, just flow. Tiler is the queen for this quality for ballerinas. The two of them together are just sublime - they can go so very, very fast and you don't see the effort. I'm sure you need to develop it into full glory but my theory is that some are just born with truly special fast-twitch muscle capability. It was a fantastic evening at the ballet and again I was struck by the extraordinary level of execution at City Ballet . The dedication to timing and precision pays off. At one point Peter Walker and Aaron Sanz, who are dark-haired and similar in height and build, were dancing in symmetry and their timing was so synchronized it looked like I was seeing double. Not a fraction of a second's difference in timing, not a moment where their limbs and angles weren't identically placed. I do dearly love my story ballets but for me nothing across the plaza even comes close to the consistent high quality of City Ballet, and on a good night like Friday, it's touching the divine. What riches we have in New York!
  9. Last night's Sleeping Beauty was a joyous delight. (The last SB I saw was ABT's rather garish Kirkland production; this was far better. So many lovely court costumes!) Echoing that Fairchild and Gordon were wonderful - expansive and assured. They made it all look easy, even the fishes. Dancing of all roles was of the highest level. Loved the Garland Dance as seeing so many dancers moving in intricate patterns is just deeply satisfying to me. I thought the fairies' choreography often looked a bit frenetic. I admire speed and dazzling footwork as much as anyone, but feel a steady diet of it for five variations in a row isn't the best presentation. All fairies did really well although I did see some tiny weight adjustments here and there due to the extreme difficulty and speed of the steps. Baily Jones in the final (red tutu) variation was notable for her quickness, precision and secure footing. Mira Nadon was a beautiful regal Lilac with her long limbs. She danced and acted very well in her debut, with lovely musical back-bendy attitude turns, but I did feel she came across as a bit solemn compared to the smiling, warm and gracious Stella Abrera I last saw as Lilac. Perhaps that's an artistic choice for Nadon; every dancer has their own personality onstage. The cattiness of the White Cat and Puss (E. Von Enck and Harrison Cole) got many laughs from the audience around me. So did the tiny Little Red Riding Hood with her small forest tree friends and her (very avuncular) Wolf. She looked like she couldn't have been more than five or six years old and not only was she adorable in her big number, but later during the reprise, she kept up with all the adults covering a great deal of ground in the mazurka. She was practically running and still did all the steps and right timing. I know that small children with that talent, level of discipline and commitment exist, but I have never met one! Certainly not mine. Although I liked the dancers and the music, I didn't think the choreography for the Jewels brought enough extra to the fairytale section to be worth the added time. If someone were to tell me that it was more Martins than Petipa, I would not be surprised; even when Martins was at his best, I rarely seemed to "click" with his work. (Except for his early piece Calcium Light Night, which I do appreciate and don't think he ever topped.) Question for those who know this kind of thing. In her Rose Adagio, Fairchild didn't make a show of holding the attitude balances for a long time. They were secure but fairly brief. I've no doubt she could sustain them for an extended time if she tried. Is that her personal choice (maybe to not slow down the music tempo), or is that Balanchine discouraged that kind of grandstanding?
  10. Completely agree. For health reasons I haven't been able to attend much in the last few years and had never seen him dance until this past fall, when I saw him as the Poet in La Sonambula. He was beautiful: magnificent technique, wonderful acting, musical sensitivity, and what a physique! To me, the "total package," and I resolved to see more of him. Gone too soon for sure.
  11. I did and it was divine. It was nearly a full house and a very appreciative one. "JuliaJ" upthread said that Devon Teuscher was becoming a dancer to really seek out this season and I agree wholeheartedly. She's always been a wonderful and reliable dancer but her artistry seems to have gone to next-level lately. Her Juliet was beautifully acted. Her every movement was either liquid or clear as the choreography called for. Her arms were willowy and tender with longing. Teuscher's technique is so secure she's at the point now where she makes it all look effortless. Bell's Romeo was fantastic. His boyishness, and the obvious youth of his friends (Garegin Pogossian as Mercutio and Sung Woo Han as Benvolio) made it so believable that these were all just teens full of pent-up energy. The men danced well in their pas de trois, the part that sounds a bit like Peter and the Wolf). Bell handled all the choreography and partnering with ease, including the three press lifts from the knees. He and Teucher have beautifully matched lines and physiques. The balcony pas de de deux ended with the the swooniest kiss I've seen yet - it certainly looked like Aran Bell really knows how to kiss a woman. The audience sighed out loud. Utterly romantic. Pogossian knocked all our socks off - not just blazing through the jumps with splendid height and technique, but great dramatic presence onstage. Where has he been, able to develop such assurance and command of the enormous Met stage with so little exposure? A wonderful new talent. His smaller stature means he might not have the danseur noble career, but I'm hoping he's given a Puck in the fall season's The Dream. If he does, mark your calendar. Thomas Forster was a fine and menacing Tybalt, with a splendid-looking sword fight with Romeo and died magnificently. Forster is every inch a world-class principal dancer in every respect. He's been superb in everything I've seen him in the last few years. Andrii Ischuk, as Paris, again makes the most of a small role. He too has personality to burn. The way he walks has such grace and power (reminds me of Cornejo and Gomes who would just walk into position for their variation and I'm already entranced). Sung Woo Han as Benvolio danced crisply, beautiful feet; but in an evening where the magic happens from the storytelling, his was the only performance that I felt had room for character development. Roman Zhurbin was his usual impressive work as Lord Capulet, and (if I have it right) Alexandra Basmagy as Lady Capulet was heartrending in her grief for Tybalt. Wonderful acting. R&J is never my favorite ballet as I'm not much a fan of the Prokofiev music. The score is often dissonant, frenetic, or both. But when the Macmillan choreography is performed not only skillfully but with so much heart and emotion, it's a magnificent night of theater.
  12. Just back from the Boylston/Simkin matinee. Simkin superb in every way: pure flowing line, astonishing technique, comic flair and tons of charm. And of course the crazy jumps and spins he is known for drew gasps and applause. But it's his playful musical timing that makes him one of my very favorite dancers. (Cornejo has always had this in spades, too.) Simkin's still in his prime years and his dancing is glorious. This is one of Boylston's best roles, I think. She handled the technical aspects of the role very well: leaps were high, stretched and dramatic, fouettes were fast and secure (though I think all singles), plenty of energy and personality. Her legs and feet are just beautiful. But I'd have liked more Spanish style in her carriage; and the too-straight elbows, bent wrists and splayed fingers that I find mar the lines of her port de bras in pure classical roles were still very much in evidence. Devon Teuscher's Mercedes/Dryad Queen was outstanding. Her Mercedes really had great Spanish style in her hands and posture. As Queen, her hops on point were very secure and covered lots of ground; her jetés had remarkable height. I don't know if Teuscher has danced Kitri yet but I do hope she will soon - she'll be splendid. Her partner Calvin Royal, subbing for Forster, handled his cape well and had good bravado, but sitting in orchestra I was surprised to see that his feet weren't always fully pointed in jumps. Jonathan Klein impressed as the Gypsy leader. I had not seen him in a featured role before and he has great presence. Katherine Williams and Paulina Waski were both excellent and delightful flower girls. Strong work from everyone in supporting roles. Cast looked well-rehearsed. I'm fairly certain that Luigi Crispino was the dark-haired toreador who caught my eye for his over-the-top Spanish machismo and panache. He was having so much fun that I began watching him specifically in the toreador ensemble numbers. Overall a wonderful afternoon performance and when this same cast gets to do it again, and pulls out all the stops on Saturday night, it'll take the roof off!
  13. Allegra Kent was at Tuesday night's performance of Swan Lake - I heard her giving her name for her tickets as I was picking up my own ticket. I hope she was happy with the current production. She is still beautiful, and as often happens when I see dancers who give the impressions of being long and elegantly tall onstage, she is quite petite in real life! Such a lovely dancer; I was fortunate enough to see her perform, although I was too young at the time to fully appreciate her gifts.
  14. Mille-feuille, I'm in full agreement on every item you wrote above. 4T's was absolutely beautiful last night - the style, precision and timing were so good I was surprised to check the program afterwards and see how many newer names were cast. Everyone was prepared and fully committed and my goodness it looked wonderful. The dancers' body types in cast were exceeding similar in height and legginess so that the symmetries really shone. Emily Kikta, as others have mentioned, was spectacular, but all the featured dancers were superb. Sonatine was pretty but not especially memorable. Taylors Stanley danced with his usual liquid grace and Ashley Laracey had nice lines - very fluid through her upper back all the way to the fingertips. Mira Nadon's Black Swan was dramatic, and I loved her stage presence. (As Fernie suggested she'll make a splendid Siren.) Clearly she has the technical ability to meet the demands and I was happy to attribute her difficulties on the fouettes to nothing more than too much adrenaline making it harder to manage those long limbs. I like how she is already finding the "space between the steps". A huge talent and I will definitely seek out shows where she is featured. Chun Wai Chan impressed as well, lots of drama and presence plus solid technique. And his double tour plie landings reminded me of the best ice dancing teams - the huge soft deep knee bends create a lovely strength and smoothness. Joe Gordon looked just terrific as the Prince. He danced "big" in his variation, especially in his travelling jumps, and earned much applause. I understand now why he has so many ardent fans. Tiler's Odette was fine, it's not like it's ever a bad night when she dances - I adore her - but I was so often dazzled in the past, I felt she didn't reach the bar she has set for expectations. I'd been hoping that my less-familiar eyes wouldn't see the comparative stiffness that other regulars have been reporting. But it was really noticeable last night. Perhaps her neck has been giving her extra trouble recently? I couldn't help but wonder if she's in peak form right now. It's not just that extensions are low, I can be okay with that and often I even prefer those gentler lines to the extreme extensions. But the clean fifths and clear shapes just didn't seem to be there the way I had remembered them. I hope she comes back in full glory soon.
  15. Volcanohunter, thank you for taking the time to write all this up and for the wealth of knowledge, observation and thoughtful opinion. Much appreciated. And interesting that you note the bulging insteps. In the Bolshoi's Jewels broadcast I mentioned earlier, it looked to me as though both Evgenia Obrazstova and Svetlana Zakharova were wearing padded arch enhancers. They look lovely when the foot is pointing, but create a knobby hump on the top of the foot when it is flat on the ground. The closeups on the large movie screen make the wearing of these gimmicks more noticeable than it is in the theater. Both of these dancers - like Osipova who also wears them in films I have seen - already have beautifully arched feet! I'm guessing they are trying to achieve the aesthetic you described. And although her physique is not her fault, I always found Misty Copeland's appearance less than ideal in classical roles for the very thing you describe: her hyperextended legs and overarched feet create wavy lines rather than straight ones. In Misty's case the disrupted line is accented by her knotty calf muscles. The visuals do matter to me. I tend not to like any stylistic look taken to extremes anyway- for example although I enjoy the lines created by a long lean leg, I'm still happy with the look of Margot Fonteyn too. Skeletally thin dancers distract me - I worry for them!
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