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ABT 2006 Spring Season at the Met


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Giselle05/Nysusan,

On reviewing the brochure this morning,i was horrified for making a mistake in my report.A Ferri is not in the schedule for Giselle.Julio is dancing Giselle with Xiomara on June 18.Alessandra is scheduled to dance Manon and Juliet.Julio is also doing Petrouchka. Sorry for the mistake.

Marcelo is back in the schedule.

Joe

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Why is it, do you think, that so many great ballerinas---Vishneva, Guillem, Cojocaru, Ferri....---are crazy about Manon? (I mean this as a literal question, not in any way as a comment on above posts re MacMillan.) I've seen one prima ballerina so intensely into it that when she flew herself onto the bed her momentum carried her head-first into the head board(no injury). You heard the boom and seemed to even feel the vibration in the cavernous Met!

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I think dancers love MacMillan because they can run around, throw themselves about and "act." Lots emotion and sexy lifts -- not a lot of Petipa-styled (or Balanchine, Ashton) technical passages. I'm not a dancer, so I'm sure one would argue that technique is needed for MacMillan.

Lots of people love his work. I've seen friends cry during the end of Manon. His work is just not for me. I like the balcony pas de deux or the Manon bedroom pas de deux and bits of other things, but not enough to pay to watch the complete ballet with urinating harlots (there are always harlots). The exception for me is the Prince of the Pagodas, and that was only to watch Bussell. To each his own. R&J and Manon always seem to do well at the box office, so I guess its me.

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Official word:

COMPANY PREMIERES OF JAMES KUDELKA’S CINDERELLA and

JOHN CRANKO’S JEU DE CARTES T0 HIGHLIGHT

AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE’S 2006 SPRING SEASON AT

METROPOLITAN OPERA HOUSE, MAY 22-JULY 15

REVIVAL OF SIR KENNETH MACMILLAN’S MAN0N ALSO PLANNED

American Ballet Theatre’s 2006 Spring Season at the Metropolitan Opera House, May 22-July 15, was announced today by Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie. Highlighting the engagement will be the Company Premieres of James Kudelka’s Cinderella and John Cranko’s Jeu de Cartes, as well as a Revival of Sir Kenneth MacMillan’s Manon.

Principal Dancers for the engagement will include Carlos Acosta, Maxim Beloserkovsky, Julio Bocca, Jose Manuel Carreño, Angel Corella, Herman Cornejo, Irina Dvorovenko, Alessandra Ferri, Marcelo Gomes, Paloma Herrera, Julie Kent, Vladimir Malakhov, Gillian Murphy, Xiomara Reyes, Ethan Stiefel, Diana Vishneva and Michele Wiles.

Countrywide Financial is the National Sponsor of American Ballet Theatre and Cole Haan is a Leading Benefactor. ABT’s 2006 Spring season is also made possible with public funds from the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.

The 2006 Spring Season will commence with an Opening Night Gala performance featuring all of ABT’s Principal Dancers on Monday, May 22 at 6:30pm. For information about the Opening Night Spring Gala, please call the Special Events Office at 212-477-3030, ext. 3239.

Company Premieres

James Kudelka’s Cinderella will be given its American Ballet Theatre premiere on Friday evening, June 2 at 8 P.M. Kudelka’s three act-ballet, set to the music of Sergei Prokofiev, features scenery and costumes by David Boechler and lighting by Christopher Dennis. Kudelka’s Cinderella was given its World Premiere by The National Ballet of Canada in Toronto, Canada on May 8, 2004. Following the Company Premiere, Cinderella will be given 10 performances through June 10. This production is made possible with public funds from the National Endowment for the Arts and the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency.

John Cranko’s Jeu de Cartes, ‘A Poker Game in Three Deals,’ will be given its Company Premiere as part of ABT’s All-Stravinsky evening on Friday evening, May 26. Set to the music of Igor Stravinsky, Jeu de Cartes features scenery and costumes by Dorothee Zippel. The ballet was given its World Premiere by the Stuttgart Ballet in Stuttgart, Germany on June 22, 1965. American Ballet Theatre’s All-Stravinsky evening, which includes George Balanchine’s Apollo and Michel Fokine’s Petrouchka, will be given eight performances through June 1.

Revival

American Ballet Theatre’s Revival Premiere of Sir Kenneth MacMillan’s Manon is scheduled for Monday, June 19 with Alessandra Ferri and Julio Bocca in the leading roles. Set to a score by Jules Massenet and inspired by the novel Manon Lescaut, Manon was last performed by the Company in 1996. The full-length ballet, staged for ABT by Monica Parker, features scenery and costumes by Nicholas Georgiadis and lighting by Thomas Skelton.

Manon was given its World Premiere by The Royal Ballet at the Royal Opera House in London on March 7, 1974 danced by Antoinette Sibley and Anthony Dowell. The ballet received its ABT Company Premiere at the Metropolitan Opera House on May 28, 1993 danced by Alessandra Ferri (Manon) and Julio Bocca (Des Grieux). Following the Revival Premiere, Manon will be given seven performances through June 24.

Returning Classics

American Ballet Theatre’s 2006 Spring Season will feature seven full-length ballets beginning with Le Corsaire which opens the season on Tuesday evening, May 23 at 8 P.M. Le Corsaire was choreographed by Konstatin Sergeyev, after Marius Petipa, with staging by Anna-Marie Holmes, after Petipa and Sergeyev. The ballet is set to a score by Adolphe Adam, Cesare Pugni, Léo Delibes, Riccardo Drigo and Prince Oldenbourg. Based on the Lord Byron poem, “The Corsaire” (1814), the ballet has sets and costumes by Irina Tibilova, with additional costume designs by Robert Perdziola. Le Corsaire will be given seven performances during the Spring Season, May 23-25 and July 7 and 8.

Xiomara Reyes and Ethan Stiefel will lead the season’s first performance of Giselle on Monday evening, June 12 at 8 P.M. Set to music by Adolphe Adam orchestrated by John Lanchbery, Giselle was staged by Kevin McKenzie with choreography after Jean Coralli, Jules Perrot and Marius Petipa. The two-act ballet features scenery by Gianni Quaranta and costumes by Anna Anni. This production, featuring scenery by Quaranta and costumes by Anni with staging by Mikhail Baryshnikov, was created for the film Dancers in 1987. Giselle, which will be given eight performances through June 17, is generously supported through an endowed gift from Anka Palitz in memory of Clarence Y. Palitz, Jr.

Eight performances of Swan Lake, choreographed by Kevin McKenzie after Marius Petipa, will be given beginning Monday evening, June 26 at 8 P.M. with Irina Dvorovenko and Maxim Beloserkovsky leading the opening night cast. Swan Lake is set to the score by Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky and features scenery and costumes by Zack Brown and lighting by Duane Schuler. This production of Swan Lake premiered on March 24, 2000 at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. Swan Lake is generously underwritten by The Rosh Foundation.

Sir Frederick Ashton’s Sylvia, premiered by American Ballet Theatre during the 2005 Spring Season, will return to the Metropolitan Opera House for four performances beginning Monday evening, July 3. The two-act Sylvia, staged by Christopher Newton, is set to a score by Léo Delibes and features scenery and costumes by Christopher and Robin Ironside, with additional designs by Peter Farmer. This production of Sylvia was given its revival premiere in three acts in London by The Royal Ballet on November 4, 2004. Gillian Murphy, Maxim Beloserkovsky, Carlos Lopez and Marcelo Gomes will lead the cast of the July 3 performance.

The 2006 Spring Season at the Metropolitan Opera House will conclude with eight performances of Sir Kenneth MacMillan’s Romeo and Juliet. Diana Vishneva and Angel Corella will dance the title roles in the season’s first performance of the ballet on Monday evening, July 10. Set to the music of Sergei Prokofiev, Romeo and Juliet features scenery and costumes by Nicholas Georgiadis and lighting by Thomas Skelton. The ballet received its World Premiere by The Royal Ballet in London on February 9, 1965 and was given its ABT Company Premiere at the Metropolitan Opera House on April 22, 1985. ABT’s production of Romeo and Juliet is generously underwritten through an endowed gift from Ali and Monica Wambold.

ABTKids

ABTKids, a one-hour introduction to ballet geared toward children ages 4-12, is scheduled for Saturday, June 3 at 11:30 A.M. All tickets for ABTKids are $18. Reckson Associates is the Official Corporate Sponsor of ABTKids.

Pre-Performance Workshops

Pre-performance workshops, an activity based program led by ABT Teaching Artists, are available to matinee ticket holders on Saturday, June 3 (9:00-10:30 A.M.), Saturday, June 10 (10:30 A.M.-12:00 Noon) and Saturday, July 1 (10:30 A.M.-12:00 Noon). Workshops are held in the rehearsal studios of the Metropolitan Opera House. Tickets to the workshops are $20 per person and are only available to ticket holders for the matinee performance following the workshop.

American Ballet Theatre’s education programs are supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.

Subscriptions for American Ballet Theatre’s 2006 Metropolitan Opera House season are on sale now by phone at 212-362-6000 and by mail. For more information, visit ABT’s website at www.abt.org <http://www.abt.org/> .

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Specific casting for dancers who appear to be Ballet Talk (and/or my) favorites. One should note that lead ballerina roles are not yet given for 2 Corsaires, 2 Cindys, 2 Giselles, 3 Manons, 1 Lake, 2 R&Js.

Veronika Part:

May 27 Sat mat Apollo (Terpsichore): Hallberg, Abrera, Wiles

June 1 Thursday repeat

June 13 Tues Giselle (Myrtha): Irina, Max

June 15 Thurs Giselle (Myrtha): Kent, Carreno

June 28 Weds mat (!) Swan Lake: Gomes

Diana Vishneva:

June 14 Weds Giselle:Malakhov, Wiles

June 24 Sat Manon (TBA)

June 28 Weds Swan Lake: Carreno

July 10 Mon R&J: Corella

Alessandra Ferri:

June 19 Mon Manon: Bocca

June 22 Thurs repeat

July 11 Tues R&J: Carreno

July 14 Fri repeat

David Hallberg:

In addition to the two Apollos with Part:

July 1 Sat mat Swan lake: Wiles

July 5 Weds mat Sylvia: Wiles

July 12 Weds R&J: Herrera

Marcello Gomes (leading roles):

In addition to the Part Swan Lake:

June 14 Weds mat Giselle: Herrera

July 7 Fri Corsaire: Herrera, Corella

July 15 Sat R&J: Kent

NO FANG, NO LANE

Acosta: no dates given

H. Cornejo: just two non-major roles listed:

May 23 and July 7 Corsaire

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ABT Spring Casting

WEEK 1:

May 23 T Corsaire: Herrera, ?, Corella, Reyes, H. Cornejo, Lopez

24 W mat Cor: Irina, Max, Corella, E. Cornejo, Radetsky

24 W eve Cor: Murphy, ?, Carrreno, Abrera, Saveliev, Pastor

25 Th Cor: TBA

26 F Stravinsky: Apollo (Carreno, Kent, Riccetto, Murphy), Petrouchka (Bocca, Abrera, Gomes), Jeu de Cartes (TBA)

27 S mat: A (Hallberg, Part, Abrera, Wiles), P (Corella, Reyes, Stappas), J

27 S eve: A (TBA), P (Stiefel, E. Cornejo, Zhurbin), J

WEEK 2:

29 M: A (Max, ?, Hamrick, Thomas), P (Corella, Abrera, Gomes), J

30 T: A (Carreno, Kent, Riccetto, Murphy), P (Bocca, Reyes, Stappas), J

31 W mat: A (Max, ?, Hamrick, Thomas), P (Stiefel, E. Cornejo, Zhurbin), J

31 W eve: A (TBA), P (?, Abrera, Gomes), J

June 1 Th: A (Hallberg, Part, Abrera, Wiles), P (?, Reyes, Stappas), J

2 F Cinderella: Kent

3 S mat Cindy: Murphy

3 eve Cindy: Kent

WEEK 3:

5 M Cindy: Murphy

6 T Cindy: Wiles

7 W mat Cindy: TBA

7 W eve Cindy: Murphy

8 Th Cindy: Wiles

9 F Cindy: TBA

10 S mat Cindy: Kent

10 S eve Cindy: Wiles

WEEK 4:

12 M Giselle: Reyes, Stiefel, Murphy

13 T Giselle:Irina, Max, Part

14 W mat Giselle: Herrera, Gomes, Abrera

14 W eve Giselle: Vishneva, Malakhov, Wiles

15 Th Giselle: Kent, Carreno, Part

16 F Giselle: Reyes, Bocca, Murphy

17 S mat Giselle: TBA

17 S eve Giselle: TBA

WEEK 5:

19 M Manon: Ferri, Bocca

20 T Manon: Kent, ?

21 W mat Manon: TBA

21 W eve Manon: TBA

22 Th Manon: Ferri, Bocca

23 F Manon: Kent. ?

24 S mat Manon: TBA

24 S eve Manon: Vishneva, ?

WEEK 6:

26 M Swan Lake: Irina, Max

27 T Swan Lake: TBA

28 W mat Swan Lake: Part, Gomes

28 W eve Swan Lake: Vishneva, Carreno

29 Th Swan Lake: Herrera, ?

30 F Swan Lake: Kent, Bocca

July 1 S mat Swan Lake: Wiles, Hallberg

1 S eve Swan Lake: Murphy, Corella

WEEK 7:

3 M Sylvia: Murphy, Max, Lopez, Gomes

4 nil

5 W mat Sylvia: Wiles, Hallberg, Salstein, Saveliev

5 W eve Sylvia: Herrera, Corella, Salstein, Pastor

6 Th Sylvia: Kent, Stiefel, Lopez, Radetsky

7 F Corsaire: Herrera, Gomes, Corella, Reyes, Carreno, H. Cornejo

8 S mat Cor: Irina, Max, Stiefel, Riccetto, Radetsky, ?

8 S eve Cor: ?, ?, Carreno, Abrera, Saveliev, Pastor

WEEK 8:

10 M Romeo & Juliet: Vishneva, Corella

11 T R&J: Ferri, Carreno

12 W mat R&J: TBA

12 W eve R&J: Herrera, Hallberg

13 Th R& J: Irina, Max

14 F R&J: Ferri, Carreno

15 S mat R&J: TBA

15 S eve R&J: Kent, Gomes

N.B. Irina=Dvorovenko, Max=Beloserkovsky

The success of the season rests on TBA

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Indeed since one of the TBA's is Carlos Acosta who is on the press release as appearing in the Spring Met season but who so far has no assigned roles. Now I missed him last season in the complete "Swan Lake", so a repeat in either Siggy or Bad Rothbart would be in order for me to catch up. Does Acosta do Des Grieux in "Manon" with the Royal Ballet? How about Romeo? Why not Malakhov as Des Grieux as well with Vishneva (his ABT commitments have been getting fewer and fewer...). Irina and Max could be interesting together in "Manon".

Irina and Paloma did the last "Cinderella" production - why not this one? Maybe Part could do the Kudelka Cinderella too?

How about a new "petite" cast for "Le Corsaire" with Xiomara as Medora, Sarah Lane as Gulnare, Angel as Conrad, Herman Cornejo as Ali, Lopez as Lankendem and Salstein as Birbanto?

I wish they had revived "Firebird" rather than "Petroushka" for the Stravinsky triple bill.

I too will be going less - Acosta is the key factor here.

Faux Pas

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I know the company wants to put the emphasis of the Met season on full-length ballets and on the City Center season on mixed bills, but I am displeased to see only one mixed bill for the spring season. I suppose there is some sort of market research that shows the mixed bills at the Met were less successful, but...

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Here I go again with the two minds.

Yes, I am sorry to have but one mixed bill this spring. One of the great satisfactions of the current season is the seeing so many younger dancers get opportunities to show their potential.

The other side of that coin is that I am very relieved not to have five or six performances of that tedious Tchaikovsky program. I guess after three (or is it four?) years, it was due for a rest.

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With so much excellent performances from the City Center season and with so many golden opportunities for dancers during the up coming Spring season at the Met, does anyone else believe that before or maybe during the Spring season we will be hearing announcement of promotions among the rank?

I think its long time a coming that David Hallberg and Veronika Part are given principal statue!

If this season at City Center is any evidence, Melanie Hamrick, Isaac Stappas, Zhong-Jing Fang should all be seriously consider being promoted to soloists with maybe Craig Salstein, Melissa Thomas and maybe Sarah Lame not far behind from their strength as dancers over time!!

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Sarah LaMe, George B fan??? :blink: I certainly hope not! :blush:

I agree re: Hallberg and Part. Most of the dancers you mention as likely soloists are still quite young. I think Kevin McKenzie's tendency (post-Paloma) not to promote too quickly is wise. I would be very surprised if Hamrick, Fang or Lane were to be elevated this year, even though at least two of them are potential ballerinas, IMO.

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I missed Cornejo when looking at the scheduling! He isn't down for any Petrouchkas or Eroses (in Sylvia), which he was wondeful in. I did see him for a Bribanto (a very useless part, in my opinion!), so he is still around, but I was surprised that he didn't get a Petrouchka.

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Those little changes of casts from one eve to another are killers for me: I dumped one subs, only to discover that two dogs were replaced by two winners, and bought another, only to find that they've moved Vishneva to another night! Thank goodness for their exchange policy, but there is a matter of truth in advertising: it isn't that some injuries were involved, instead it reeks of using "names" to sell a subs, then "adjusting" to help sell another subs... That was a fair complaint against ABT decades ago, but had not been the case in recent years.

And what is the point to developing young (Lane, Fang) and not so young (H. Cornejo) dancers, and then giving them nothing major to do? The last couple of Springs H. Cornejo actually had some leads. And one lead, a Weds matinee, for their Prima Ballerina V. Part???

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And what is the point to developing young (Lane, Fang) and not so young (H. Cornejo) dancers, and then giving them nothing major to do?

The big, international stars may sell tickets -- no small consideration considering the size of the Met and the expense of performing there -- but the other cost is retarding the development of the younger dancers who could very well have the potential to put tushies in seats in the not-so-distant future. A classic case of damned if you do, damned if you don't. :wink:

The date-shifting may be due to misunderstandings about dancers' commitments elsewhere. I'm willing to give ABT the benefit of the doubt.

:dry: At least for now.

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The date-shifting may be due to misunderstandings about dancers' commitments elsewhere.  I'm willing to give ABT the benefit of the doubt.

:wink: At least for now.

Most respectfully, I am not willing to give them benefit of the doubt. The subscription brochure named the lead ballerina in 42 full-length performances. There were 9 changes, over 20%:

1 same day (Mat to Eve)

6 one-day shifts

1 two-day shift

1 four-day shift

The ballet stayed the same each time. The same brochure was remailed less than one week ago. The Met is very expensive.

In the case of Cornejo, his prior two seasons have drawn strong reviews and met with great audience enthusiasm. By now he is surely a ticket seller.

In the case of Part, what is she to think? Two consecutive years of great performances, to exceptional reviews and wild audience reaction. To be 28, with one lead performance, and still not a principal.

Of course every principal ballerina is someone's favorite. A change which I don't like will surely make some other fans happy. I will NEVER write anything negative about any dancer. But there are some I won't pay to see.

Something is not right.

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ABT's website shows Acosta listed for Corsair (5/25) and Apollo (5/27 and 5/31,both evenings). Diana Vishneva's website says that she is tentatively scheduled to appear in Apollo on 5/27 & 31(in addition to the performances she is already listed for on the ABT schedule)

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