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Alexandra Ansanelli departs...


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We've lost a Principal, who can replace her?

From her bio on the NYCB website which is no longer there:

"Alexandra Ansanelli was born in Laurel Hollow, New York. At the age of 10 she began her ballet training with Danny Holstein in Roslyn, New York. In the fall of 1991, after joining the School of American Ballet at the age of 11, Ms. Ansanelli danced various children's roles with New York City Ballet. Ms. Ansanelli also received scholarships to study with Chautauqua School of Dance, Houston Ballet Academy, Pacific Northwest Ballet School, The Rock School of Pennsylvania Ballet, and San Francisco Ballet School. While attending SAB, she danced the role of one of the children in the film version of GEORGE BALANCHINE'S THE NUTCRACKER™, which was released in the fall of 1993. Ms. Ansanelli was invited to become an apprentice with New York City Ballet in the fall of 1996, and one month later was made a member of the corps de ballet after dancing the role of Dewdrop in GEORGE BALANCHINE'S THE NUTCRACKER™. In November 1998, Ms. Ansanelli was promoted to the rank of Soloist, and in 2003, she was promoted to Principal Dancer."

(I wanted to quote from the BIO here to preserve it because once it disappears from the Google cache it's gone forever...)

There was a touching story in the NY Times about Alexandra Ansanelli on 14 March 2004 which I remembered so I went to look it up:

"Ms. Ansanelli has struck a human-interest chord with the public because of the daunting obstacles she has faced. There is her scoliosis, which she hid from her fellow dancers during her final growing years and which even now makes her height vary as much as an inch from day to day (she stands 5-feet-5 1/2 at her tallest). And then there was the nearly career-wrecking foot injury that sidelined her for two years, in 1999 and 2000 (she had to stay off her feet for a solid year). ''When you experience pain at that level, I don't think it's helpful,'' she said. ''It's not a growing experience.''"

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I am well aware of BA's hesitancy in publishing gossip and the stated policy.

Ansanelli's departure from NYCB is well past the realm of gossip at this point.

As her name is no longer on the current company website, it is published information.

Her performance at SPAC last Friday night in Harlequinade in front of several thousand people was obviously something different. All around me in the audience and the intervals people were talking about it being her last performance with the company. (I don't mean isolated comments, I mean LOTS of people. It was a very well-attended performance.)

She blew kisses to the audience and Moredock (the conductor) in her final variation. She was crying at the curtain calls. The bouquets were special. The entire company applauded her afterward onstage.

Her departure may be temporary, and it ill behooves us to speculate on the reasons. They are her own and no one else's business.

I very much hope that she will return to NYCB at some point. The press office, when contacted on Saturday, had no comment and there was no acknowledgement by Mr. Martins at the performance.

I look forward to seeing her name on the company roster in future.

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Such a great loss for NYCB. Of course I am speaking from my own selfish point of view because I have truly loved watching Ms. Ansanelli perform. There are so many highlights, but one that I will always remember was her performance in Wheeldon's Carousel - she was perfect.

I don't know why this has not been publicized as it's been a well known fact for quite some time. I look forward to learning more and wish Ms. Ansanelli the best in her future ventures - I only hope that she'll be in New York City for many of them! :blink:

Thank you Petipafan for those quotes.

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What a shock-- it seemed the world was all before her!

I saw her live only once, as the novice in the Cage, in which she was electrifying.

but from what I've read, and videos I've seen, she had such a huge range -- and could connect with the core of so many different roles....

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This is an interesting dilemma, I agree. But I think this board has always had a healthy approach to this type of thing. I am sure we will hear where she will be going soon. She is a star and she will certainly land at a new wonderful ballet company! So I would assume we are awaiting to hear from a press release from someone else other than NYCB!

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I'd be pretty shocked if she were going to another ballet company! She was a star at NYCB.

I'm really saddened to hear this as Ansanelli is a very special dancer. I'm really curious to know her reasons for leaving but whatever they are, I hope she returns to us at some point. She will be very much missed.

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[Moderator's beanie on]

Justafan, I would caution you and everyone else that your post seems to invite speculation. Any speculative replies will be removed from this board.

Please be assured that as soon as we have any official word on Alexandra's future endeavors, we will proudly post it. Until then, rumors -- no matter how credible -- are to be kept off the board.

Thank you.

[Mod's beanie off]

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Farrell Fan, I'm sure one of the Moderators can easily split off and merge Juliet's wonderful post - or it can always been quoted in full, too.

Here is an article about Alexandra Ansanelli in January 1st's issue called The Comeback Kid by Pia Catton wherein she has expressed my feelings exactly when she writes

When New York City Ballet principal dancer Alexandra Ansanelli dances--and even when she speaks about dance--she expresses an irrepressible sort of joy.

I look forward to hearing from Ms. Ansanelli in print in the not too distant future, I hope.

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Sigh, this is very sad -- I really enjoyed (finally!) getting to see what all the fuss over her was about when NYCB came to Kennedy Center this year. She was just delightful -- "irrepressible joy" is it exactly.

And it makes me crazy not to know what's going on! :blush: (Which is why I went into journalism, come to think of it.) Anyway, I called the New York Times to play tipster if case they were unaware, and got voicemail rather than a human at the arts and dance desk. I left a message asking if any of the dance writers was going to do something on this, so hopefully they'll take the hint or maybe already have something in the works...

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There are three issues here:

1. The NYCB website no longer has a listing for Ansanelli on its roster. This is a published statement by the Company, and when it became a statement, it became allowable on this site. The NYCB press office is not the only source of published information. At least up until now, no other publications or critics that we know of have spoken about the issue on record.

2. When reliable sources' statement are published, then they are allowable on the site. Until then, they are, for the purposes of this board, gossip.

3. Gossip is not an issue of true or false. Veracity, in whole or part, doesn't stop information from being potentially damaging or embarrassing to the people involved, and the scope of what they want published -- and a sense of privacy -- should be up to them until it's published and on record.

The mission of Ballet Talk is to discuss classical ballet performances and issues. It is not Ballet Talk's mission or responsibility to disclose information about careers on a "right to know" basis. We are not a fan board. It is up to dancers, companies, and journalists to decide whether and when to speak, what to speak about, and whether this should be published.

As Leigh Witchel stated on the original thread, we're not trying to stop people from speaking about how much they're going to miss Ansanelli as a dancer or to express hope that she'll dance again.

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My God!!! In just the last two months we are seeing some very significent and important departures of key dancers! First Boal, then Soto and Fayette and now Ansanelli!!! Not to mention Korbes, Flynn & Jerome Johnson. NYCB is truly losing their very best. If they lose anymore they may find themselves very soon on life support!!! WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON THERE!!!! :blush: :(

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My God!!! In just the last two months we are seeing some very significent and important departures of key dancers! First Boal, then Soto and Fayette and now Ansanelli!!! Not to mention Korbes, Flynn & Jerome Johnson. NYCB is truly losing their very best. If they lose anymore they may find themselves very soon on life support!!! WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON THERE!!!! :blush:  :(

NYCB has seen the retirements of key dancers this year. I remember the same feelings when McBride and Farrell retired with a few years of one another, and another Sunday night in which Luders and Horiuchi retired together. And then Andersen and Cook, my two all-time favorites of the men I've seen live, and I thought, that's it, it'll never be the same. And it was never the same, but different.

These dancers can't be replaced, but the Company has a wonderful roster of dancers to cherish, and a School that keeps producing so many, that many other companies are lucky to have the graduates on their rosters.

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[These dancers can't be replaced, but the Company has a wonderful roster of dancers to cherish, and a School that keeps producing so many, that many other companies are lucky to have the graduates on their rosters.

Exactly. NYCB is a strong company and can adapt itself around all kinds of challenges.

And as Helene writes, there is a roster to cherish, and there will be new favorites, not to erase, but to stand beside, memories of past dancers.

Richard

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Am I allowed to say

NOOOOOOOOooooooooo! I'm so sad.

I LOVE her dancing. One of the reasons I consider NYCB to be my favorite company is that the greatest principals are usually extremely unique, idiosynchratic, dancers. I've always been a dancer who doesn't neatly fit into a corps de ballet, and watching dancers like Alexandra has been really educational and inspirational to me as I try and forge some artistry out of the (albeit lesser) technique that I have.

She's still very young, but I'd put Alexandra Ansanelli right up there with Whelan and Farrell. She's fearless on stage. I remember one performance where she exited right into one of those black structures in the wings. She needed to grab onto it and all you saw was this little hand pushing herself around the thing to get off stage. The audience LOVED it.

Oh, I hope to see her dance again. But I truly wish her happiness in whatever road in life she chooses to follow.

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This one's an absolute heartbreaker for me; Ansanelli's dancing is what drew me to NYCB. I wish her great success wherever she goes.

I do know of one ballet engagement on her roster: she's scheduled to perform with Sean Suozzi, also of NYCB, in the Dansereye performances on August 13th in Torrington, CT at the Warner Theater. I have SO been looking forward to seeing her there and now it will be such a bittersweet experience!

Dansereye Info

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I wish they'd hurry up and make an announcement. The thought as to what company she may end up with dawned on me the other night and I'd love to start placing bets.

Her heart would be so warmed to hear about how much she'd be missed around here. I've bought tickets just to see her. Her Stravinsky Violin Concerto was particularly good. She's someone who's very suited to Balanchine. I couldn't imagine her in a more "classical" company doing story ballets. But she'd probably own that as well.

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There's nothing I can say about Alexandra than that she has been one of the best BALANCHINE dancers I've ever seen, making me feel that it is a mistake to leave the company. I saw her do Le Corsaire pas de deux during the Ballet Stars Spectacular last Valentines Day and she looked horrible doing it. Classical is nowhere to describing her dancing.

[gossip; snip]

Edited by Alexandra
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