Great Leaps Forward

[drb]

The party's over.

The season began with the gloom of an inauspicious opening night compounding concerns of great danseurs retired and ballerinas cast afar. But it turned out to be a season where many dancers flowered, new stars bursting forth among soloists and from the corps de ballet. And some stars going super nova! A memorable season.

1. Which dancers grew the most, and can you describe how they did?

2. Who, among the corps, made great strides but have yet to receive proper recognition in these pages?

3. With those super stars Boal and Soto gone, and Woetzel winding down (in frequency, not quality), where did you find hope and growth in the company's male contingent?

[oberon]

For me, this was a revelatory season for NYCB in terms of the dancers. When Boal & Soto departed and then, unexpectedly, James Fayette, the Company lost 3 great partners & personalities (I think everyone, including Soto & Fayette, would agree that Boal was the greatest DANCER of the three). Peter Martins seemed to prepare for the season by promoting Jared Angle (noble dancer, very fine partner) and Ask LaCour (tallest of all, assured partner & fine presence) as well as having Stephen Hanna on hand (very tall, All-American prince). And then, bang! They were all injured and missed almost the entire season. Hubbe also danced very little, and Damian only a few performances. Albert Evans & Sebastien Marcovici went above & beyond, dancing and partnering beautifully night after night while Philip Neal, Charles Askegard, Nilas Martins & Benjamin Millepied covered their own regular repertoire to fine effect. But six guys, however talented, cannot do everything, and Joaquin de luz, amazing dancer, is limited in roles & partners because he is short. So, delve into the corps and come up with a veritable treasure trove of young men who stepped up and showed a ton of talent, class & sex appeal. Jason Fowler, Craig Hall, Amar Ramasar, Jon Stafford, and Andrew Veyette all - in various capacities - proved themselves. Adrian Danchig-Waring, Sean Suozzi, Allen Peiffer, Austin Laurent each had opportunities to broaden their repertoire. Seth Orza and Antonio Carmena did not seem to be dancing much, perhaps they are injured. Even an absolute newbie like William Lin-Yee was ready to take full advantage of his big break, and Max van der Steere, who isn't even on the roster yet (!) was teriffic in FRIANDISES - tall, strong, lyrical, impeccable manners, great smile. Sign this guy up!

On the women's side, Tiler Peck wowed the audience in FRIANDISES and along with the remarkable Ana Sophia Scheller turned the Pas de Quatre in SWAN LAKE into a showstopper every single night (with Fairchild spinning away like a top). Sterling Hyltin and Rebecca Krohn were outstanding in MORGEN and CAGE respectively, and Melissa Barak turned in unusually impressive performances in NUTCRACKER (Arabian) and SWAN LAKE (Russian). Then there was the "star is born" thrill of Sara Mearns. I will resist the temptation to rave about another two dozen or more favorite corps dancers who just give so much every single time they set foot onstage.

I did miss Alexandra and Maria K, and Carla Korbes. It was great having Somogyi & Abi Stafford back. And I will hope to see Tinsley and van Kipnis returning in the Spring. Adam Hendrickson & Daniel Ulbricht contribute so much to the Company, Tom Gold is always a delight, and it was wonderful to see Rachel Rutherford find an ideal partner in Tyler Angle for IN THE NIGHT. Edwaard Liang's very rare appearances were highlights for me; and what can we say about Teresa Reichlen? Megastar!!

The principal women give us an enormous range of personalities and styles; each has her place in the firmament. It would take volumes to detail what these ballerinas accomplished this season. Night after night of magic. A very special and deep bow to the beautiful Kyra Nichols whose dancing of IN THE NIGHT embodied the lyricism and poetry of a great artist.

My deepest gratitude to all the dancers, to Peter & his staff, and Andrea Quinn and her musicians for providing so many joyous nights.