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Reviews Week 4, Winter '06 , Jan. 24-29


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I hope that someone who was also there tonight will post soon and explain what I missed. The ballet had an all-star cast: Wendy Whelan, Sebastien Marcovici, Miranda Weese, Albert Evans, Pauline Golbin, Tyler Angle, Craig Hall, Melissa Barak, Sean Suozzi , Andew Veyette. It was applauded long and vociferously at the final curtain. The music, the adagio from Beethoven's Hammerklavier Sonata in B-flat Major, Op. 106, was well-played by Cameron Grant. There seemed to be something significant going on. But I didn't get it. It just looked like a lot of dimly-lit lifting and hauling. Please help.

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Well, fairly near the end of Klavier there was a rather beautiful dance for Whelan/Marcovici, and a while after that what seemed to be another of those finales with the company slowly walking toward the backdrop. But this walk was transformed by seemingly random little turns by individual dancers, sort of 'perks' that might have represented the refreshing early droplets of a Spring rain, softly bringing us out of a deep reverie. But I didn't get the reverie. Just couldn't connect with the first 3/4's of the ballet.

Maybe Wheeldon will work some more on it, it would be a shame to waste the ending. And the $'s for that rather puzzling backdrop: what was that glittery "pile" backright?

But later we did get the reverie, from La Sylve in Symphony in C.

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If I remember correctly, the first section of the ballet had those same "random" turns - so that this was a sort of coda. The difference may have been the women's costumes, in that the skirts were longer before the real "dancing" started.

I too admit to some confusion. Among other things, it appeared to me that we were missing one whole section of the choreography: there was an extended pas for Whelan and Marcovici, but there was no parallel pas for Weese and Evans. Rather, we went right into a section that became the coda. And unfortunately, from my point of view, the music was choreographically uninteresting - no highs or lows, but rather a constant level of energy, so that there was little opportunity for variation in the movement.

Finally, some comments on the costumes & decor. I have never been a fan of see-through material for shirts, but these shirts were exceedingly odd on top of that. I haven't really figured out what the lei-like collars and shirt-fronts were supposed to be, other than unfortunate (though they DID match the leotard colors of the women). And what was that fallen chandelier? A remnant from Phantom of the Opera? A leftover from T&V? A ghost of Christmas Past?

Maybe this will all come clear when I see it again - though I suspect not.

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I was disappointed by the new Wheeldon, having expected soaring leaps, romantic swirls of movement, etc. However, the choreography seemed to be basic Wheeldon (pretzel-like couplings and floor work for the dancers). Most upsetting was the fact there seemed to be no connection whatsoever between the music and what the dancers were doing. Actually, I found it boring. Very disappointing. . .

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Wed Night

Beautiful first performance of Firebird last night, particularly by the orchestra (under a guest conductor -- I've never heard it played more perfectly at NYCB or elsewhere -- and at the best dancing tempi too), Ashley Bouder and Rachel Rutherford. Charles Askegaard really looks only half-there on the stage these days, he seems to go into and out of character by the second -- Last night, when surrounded by the rather curious and muppet like monsters in this production, he looked like he wanted (perhaps not inappropriately) to swat mosquitoes rather than seek magic salvation. There is, though, a hint of whimsy in the score at that point -- perhaps the monsters and Chuck are not totally wrong here.

The first of the season Episodes got a solid, workmanlike, scrupulous and particularly a well rehearsed performance. Except for Darci in the culminating section. The arabesque not only gone, but the feet now starting too, particularly demi point when she needs to rely on it. Other casting was Abi Stafford in first movement (she seems to look good in leotard ballets, despite the fact that she is basically unsuited by type -- she's not long legged and when she shows a flexed foot it looks a little strange on her, one can't really say why -- it's not the line one looks for -- but in all she's very good in this as were the girls with her) and Tess Reichlen and Jason Fowler in the second movement.

Jennie Somogyi in the third movement continues to struggle with her foot -- she favors it, it restricts some motion, particularly her turn-out to the right and her ability to cut loose in that direction -- but that doesn't matter -- the important thing is that she get through this season. This season for her is about the next dozen ones for all of us, so all in all one was very happy to see this performance.

A good Episodes. Well played, you could see the great choreography.

The other ballet was Export Jazz. I'm prepared to make an argument for its integrity, validity -- the pleasure of seeing it. But some other time. I liked it very much last night. Good performance by Becky Krohn in the thrown off the roof by the boys section. Great performances by Rachel Rutherford and Craig Hall in their pas de deux. Dance as whole very animated, very well received by the audience.

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The other ballet was Export Jazz.  I'm prepared to make an argument for its integrity, validity -- the pleasure of seeing it.  But some other time. 

Michael has kept his promise, and his thoughts on Op. Jazz are now in the Ballets forum. Click here to read it and add your own responses. I would be particularly interested in the reactions of people who were born after 1960.
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The New Wheeldon --

Well I'm posting too much but I've got to say I think the new Wheeldon is the best thing he’s done.

First there's the structure and progression, the integrity and the organic quality of the piece, its simplicity.

Polyphonia was more or less strung together in serial fasion. “Pas de deux, pas de deux, pas de deux, solo, then pas de deux, then everyone comes on stage and does their thing at the same time.” In After the Rain, the two sections had little to do with each other.

In tonight’s ballet, though, everything was unified, organic in development, part of the same idea, following a single impulse. The ballet consists of two principle couples and two threesomes, with each threesome being composed of a girl and two boys. Everyone is on stage at the outset for the statement of the musical theme, then the development proceeds first with a strikingly romantic pas de deux for Weese and Evans; after which the other principle couple enters briefly as a transitional device and exits, leaving the two threesomes to take the stage each for an ensemble dance on opposite sides of the stage: the dancers here are Pauline Golbin with Tyler Angle and Craig Hall; and Melissa Barak with Sean Suozzi and Andy Veyette. They finish and exit and the second principle couple -- Whelan and Marcovici – enter for a more modern and angular pas de deux. At the end of which, three other couples enter briefly (Weese and Evans, Golbin and Hall, Barak and Veyette), and divide the stage into four quadrants, then the other two boys join them so that you have the two couples and the two threesomes spread out, and the ballet ends with an ensemble piece, simple and complete.

The material for the dancers is beautiful and absolutely appropriate for each of them. The overall movement palate is unified. Wheeldon is working in his own idiom here: there is a great deal of movement which proceeds seemingly inside out, as it were, the women and the couples in their partnering gathering themselves into a center and then sweeping outwards, with simple rhythmic motion. Off balance sweeps of the women end in slight skids on the flattened feet. Everything is kept very simple and reduced in complexity -- the pas de deuxs are lovely and each is different, each having a kind of unexplained symbolic content, a situation you will supply. Of all Wheeldon’s ballets, the influence of Kenneth Macmillan is the most obvious in this one, particularly in the opening ensemble, and given the Elizabethan echoes in the costuming, with their whiff of Romeo and Juliet. But it is his own idiom after all. Here Chris has absorbed his influences. He’s made them his own. You would know this for Wheeldon’s work if you saw it anonymously.

It was particularly interesting to see Wendy Whelan in this ballet, in that she seems somehow to be channeling Jock Soto, to have absorbed him in his absence. There is no other way to say it, you could see Jock in Wendy tonight. It was like he was still there. And given Soto’s warm relationship with Wheeldon as well, I think that’s a trait of union between them too. Chris also has absorbed Jock Soto.

Finally a word about Pauline Golbin – the performance of a career. Pauline has always been a little strange to be a corps de ballet girl primarily. Because she’s very unique, very noticeable, she’s not uniform, you pick her out, she not one who vanishes in a crowd: what with her dark romantic features, the slightly blocky upper body, the displacement of space and particularly the eyes – You always felt she was more naturally a soloist in type. So it was wonderful to see her dance this role tonight that Wheeldon has made on her – She was lyrical and plastic, with lovely placement, one might say displacement of volume on the stage. Perfume and mystique, Chris had her picked her up and posed her in the air, turned her back to the audience with the arms a la seconde, displayed the lovely shoulders, the back, the mood and the poetry – a splendid, splendid performance by this girl.

I now promise to shut up for at least a week. But before I go, Abi Stafford fans will be pleased to hear that she was really wonderful in Episodes tonight. And Mother Goose also had a lovely performance.

Best night in the theater this Winter.

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Thursday 1/26

Excellent & varied programme, and very well-danced.

Ravel's MERE L'OYE becomes MOTHER GOOSE and is one of this luminous composer's most attractive scores. I saw this ballet years ago (Judith Fugate was Beauty) and liked it, and tonight's performance was excellent. The staging is very simple and modest, and the ballet affords opportunities for several corps dancers to step out. Tiler Peck was outstanding as Florine - she turns and jumps beautifully - and Seth Orza was back onstage after quite a long hiatus as Prince Charming. Gwyneth Muller was a gracious Good Fairy. Kristin Sloan was aptly cast as Beauty and danced very nicely with Andrew Veyette making a remarkable Beast..."music hath charms" and so Veyette is eventually soothed and turns on his smile. Savannah Lowery & Jason Fowler were large-scale and flexible as the Empress and the Snake. In the large cast of supporting dancers, Pazcoguin, Scheller, Hyltin, Paradiso, Severini & Villalobos stood out, as did William Lin-Yee dressed up as a very tall Bad Fairy.

KLAVIER to my mind is simply an abstract ballet; I'm not sure it is meant to "say" anything. There is a vaguely decadent air, and the Whelan/Marcovici couple seem somewhat angry with one another at first but that evaporates. The Hawaiian "lei" effect on the men's shirts seems to be remnants of jabots. A lyrical duet for Miranda Weese (superbly beautiful, as always) and Albert Evans is later contrasted with the more edgy Whelan/Marcovici pas de deux. I thought Sebastien handled the partnering quite well. Wendy was weightless, strong yet fragile, and wondrously supple and musical. Nice sextet of demis: Golbin, Barak, Hall, Veyette, Tyler Angle and Suozzi. Veyette was again outstanding and, in a brief moment of dancing with Wendy, made me think they could be a very intriguing partnership. Audience response was very favorable. {Edit: Michael was writing at the same time I was, and he has summed up Golbin perfectly. She's a dancer I have loved since picking her out in the back row when she first joined the Company. Anywhere else, she'd have been a soloist long ago. Thanks, Michael!}

Magnificent EPISODES to end the evening. Abi Stafford was strong, her articulation crisp & clear; she has become more womanly and has a better sense of making a statement with her dancing since returning from her layoff. Very impressive. Philip Neal was her expert partner & a vital presence. Reichlen's hypnotic legs made the second movement thrilling; Jason Fowler is one of the few men tall enough to partner this very striking ballerina. Somogyi was remarkable; I did not sense she was hampered in any way but rather that she danced with plenty of authority. Marcovici was charismatic and he & Somogyi look good together. I thought Darci was much better here than in MONUMENTUM/MOVEMENTS; she seemed far more at ease and her dancing flowed with beautifully refined arms and hands echoing the mysteriously "modern yet old" music; Askegard took good care of her. Among the many corps beauties, Lauren King seemed particularly fetching, as did Saskia Beskow in the first section demis. I'm enjoying Kaitlyn Gilliland as well.

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Balanchine smiled down upon his House tonight and it was full.

And it was Good.

His first ballet on the program was Mozart's Divertimento 15. It was led by NYCB's soft diamond, Miranda Weese in full-form, control and subtle musicality united in a performance of sustained beauty. As one who missed her Swan Lake, here is yet one more plea for someone here to tell us of it. Mentions, too, for partner Philip Neal, to Megan Fairchild for capturing that child-like delight heard in the music, and to Sterling Hyltin--yet another gem added to her fast-filling tiara of roles this season.

Next came Assoluta Bouder dancing her favorite role, in Marc Chagall's living painting of Stravinsky's Firebird. What a total package she is. Incredible speed and clarity, yet her virtuosity is fully in service of her character. And of Art, which Chagall surely supplies with a capital A here. Chagall could have made a fortune just designing Halloween costumes...

Finally yet another performance of Bizet. Sitting up in binocular-land tonight, and having seen Symphony in C a few times already, I decided to focus on favorites.

Movement 1: I think it all went well, but I know for sure that Tess Reichlen swam beautifully through the musical sea, very appropriate dancing considering who was watching from "way up there." Oh, the magic Mr. B. could create with her.

Movement 2: The Holy movement. It has been written that Christopher Wheeldon found Wendy Whelan's beauty for her. She is now complete. Her dance was a Grace. Time stopped. I can't remember breathing. This was not merely beautiful, it was the sublime.

Sadly, her forehead touched her knee, and some felt the need to applaud. Her spell was too great to be broken. But, please: Learn. This is not a trick. Nothing in movement 2 is a trick.

Movement 3: I'd planned to focus on Kaitlyn Gilliland in the corps, and what I saw was wonderful. But not as much as I'd wished to see, as Megan Fairchild and Joaquin De Luz were just too good to ignore. All in all, quite a fine evening for Ms. Fairchild.

Movement 4 roiled to its joyous conclusion, but binocs were mostly lured to Ms. Whelan, entrancing in her Balanchine trance.

The night's conductor was Clotilde Otranto. All seemed to go well, and the tiny artist was given a notable roar of approval at evening's end.

It was a good night.

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I tend to think of the forehead-to-knee dip as a deep bow to Balanchine's genius. Balanchine loved to see his dancers go beyond what might be thought humanly possible. The movement was his idea, and Wendy does it so beautifully and with such musicality.

However, I do not think applause is appropriate at that point, nor during the Dark Angel's big arabesque in SERENADE.

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Michael: Ditto. I found it hauntingly beautiful . S and w were lyrical and lovely. Again I ask: why is the lovely Pauline Goblin NOT a soloist/ Some Peterdecisions-or non-decisions-drive me nuts. I enjoyed a great Thursday, found Mother Goose which I had never sen before a lot of fun for the corps. Best to all,

JIM

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Saturday 1/28 matinee

Fantastic afternoon. DIVERTIMENTO #15 was beautifully led by Clothilde Otranto; she kept things light & swift and clear, but no sense of rushing. Fairchild, Borree, Jon Stafford & Jason Fowler all contributed strongly to the success of the piece; Sterling Hyltin was just strikingly polished and bright, and Abi Stafford continued her fine season with a very impressive performance. Philip Neal seems to be back on pre-injury form and danced superbly. Miranda Weese bowled me over with her magnificent dancing. This ballet has always been an ideal vehicle for her, but today she was just stunning. Being beautiful is a nice asset; being a beauty who can dance like this is pretty amazing. In one brilliant sequence, Weese embroidered the center line, coming forward in a dazzle of allegro steps while I swear sparks were flying off her toe shoes. Magnificent! I could write whole paragraphs about the bevy of corps girls who add so much to this piece, but I'll restrain myself and just note Megan LeCrone's high-drifting extension, Ashley Laracey's total charm, Glenn Keenan's sheer joy...OK, stop me!!

MORGEN was again impressive and gorgeously danced. There are so many details - in the steps, partnering and emotional content of the various duets. I'm guessing this is my tenth viewing of the piece and I keep seeing more in it each time. It is a perfect Darci role and she was just dreamy today, and Sterling Hyltin found that last touch of abandon that was missing in her first performance. Jenifer Ringer, the most complex "personality" in the piece, moved and thrilled me as a great dancer can. Luxurious dancing from all three ladies, and the men (Askegard, Nilas & Marcovici) were fine. The flying leap of Hyltin into Sebastien's arms at the end of their duet, when he whirls her up into a lift and carries her off as she swoons in ecstacy, is just thrilling. Andrea Quinn and Jessica Jones served up the Strauss songs with the rhapsodic quality that is mirrored in the dancing.

Bouder's super-Firebird - about as perfect a bit of dancing as you are likely to see - mesmerized the house and she was grandly cheered...3 calls. Askegard looked very youthful and Rachel Rutherford is a storybook Princess who danced

with gentle lyricism. The Chagall sets remain striking, and Otranto brought us all the mystery of the music, and a wealth of detail as well. However, I really think the production is weakened by not having the Firebird onstage at the end. From what I have read, I believe in the original libretto she is either onstage or sweeps thru during the final "hymn". It would just look so "right" if she were to make a final appearance. Much as SLEEPING BEAUTY must have the Lilac Fairy centerstage at the end, so should the Firebird be there when it is her magic that has made the happily-ever-after come to pass.

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However, I really think the production is weakened by not having the Firebird onstage at the end. From what I have read, I believe in the original libretto she is either onstage or sweeps thru during the final "hymn". It would just look so "right" if she were to make a final appearance. Much as SLEEPING BEAUTY must have the Lilac Fairy centerstage at the end, so should the Firebird be there when it is her magic that has made the happily-ever-after come to pass.

While I would also have liked more Bouder, probably it was best that she didn't come by for the wedding party. After saving Askegard, she really looked as if she regretted turning him over to the Princess (as pointed out by Mr. Rockwell... and isn't it time, speaking of birds, to eat a little crow in his regard?), but knew it couldn't really work. And she knew that if she came back, well, given the choice between a bird and a Princess, a man is always going to go for the bird. Poor Stravinsky would have hated composing another Act to resolve that mess.

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But is the Firebird in love with Prince Ivan? I don't think so. She gives him the magic feather in exchange for her freedom and later when he summons her, she brings him the sword to destroy the monsters and gain his beloved Princess. It makes sense for the F.B. to return in the end and I think in most productions, including (based on one of my Diaghilev books) the original, she does.

Firebird, unlike Odette, is not the kind of creature to settle down with some guy, Prince or no. She likes her freedom too much.

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Run, no, FLY to see Sofiane Sylve in this. Thursday and Saturday nights next week.

Very different than Bouder (whom I love.)

Every tiny gesture so well thought out, strong and fantastical and mysterious...words fail me....

go see her. I've never seen a Firebird like her.

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In the original libretto, and in the Fokine choreography (which I would love to see again!), and it seems in the original Tallchief, the Firebird is definitely not in love with the prince. She hates him, and only saves him because she has to. Fokine has her give him the feather before he lets her go (one of the many many things I find wrong about the Balanchine version is that she goes back after she is free to give him the feather), and she has to save him because of her promise, not because of any feeling. She is a bird of fire, and not human. Tallchief, in the Guggenheim demo, stressed that to Patricia Barker--she said she (Tallchief) had played piano for so many years that her hands were incredibly strong, and she could push forward from the palms, so that the fingers bent backwards, and amazingly expressive detail. I have seen the current dancers become sort of sappy, Odette in a red tutu, and the whole point is lost--but then I don't much like Balanchine's version compared with Fokine's anyway!

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Thanks for the illuminating info, cargill!

Hasn't NYCB's version changed alot over the years? I saw it around 1980 (with the spectacular Colleen Neary) and remembered it seemed very long and tedious, with a long scene of the girls tossing apples back & forth. I also think the monsters had more to do, and as I recall Ivan didn't stab Katschei but rather destroyed an egg that was the repository of the evil power. I cannot recall if Neary reappeared at the very end because, aside from her dancing (and the Chagall sets) I thought it was a big letdown. It wasn't until just a few years ago that the chance of seeing Wendy in the role drew me to try it again and it seemed very pared down - maybe TOO pared down - and I was really bummed when the Firebird failed to turn up at the wedding.

I think the Firebird hates being captured, but not Ivan as an individual. My impression was that she gave him the magic feather as a sort of ransom for her freedom, agreeing to come to his aid if he ever needs it. And she keeps her promise.

About a week before Neary, I saw it at ABT with Tcherkassky. What version might that have been?

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Switching back to Klavier for a moment, did anyone else who was there on Saturday night notice that the costumes had changed? No longer do the boys open their collars, so that the "lei-effect" is now gone. Rather, the shirts now look like shirts with ties or jabots. I found this to be a significant improvement, causing less distraction for my eye, and allowing me to concentrate more on the dancers and the dance.

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As Oberon mentioned above, NYCB's version of Firebird has been subject to frequent changes over the years. From its beginning it has been performed to Stravinsky's third version of a suite based on the original score, which he felt to be 'padded' by the requirements of Fokine's libretto. The current version is the production from 1985, the only revision not, of course, due to Mr. Balanchine.

According to a review by Anna Kisselgoff in the New York Times in 1985,

This version "restores the original choreography George Balanchine created in 1949....(but) also keeps Jerome Robbins's dances for the monsters, which Balanchine added in 1970..."

She calls this "a hybrid version - part serious, part joke." and suggests that one ought not relate this production to the Fokine version of 1910. She also says that based on revivals of the Fokine, including ABT's, "one understands why Balanchine chose the path he did." Balanchine opted to "extract the core of the original ballet, reduce it to a central pas de deux and a mini-pageant."

The full article:

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html...agewanted=print

NYCB's site gives a history of all the revisions:

http://www.nycballet.com/about/rep_firebird.html

Of course none of this answers the question of whether any of the Balanchine-era versions included a final scene visit of the Firebird.

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