39 replies to this topic

[bart]

Jack, I hope I didn't give the impression that there was a conspiracy of silence.  It's just that the press focused its attentions elsewhere.  Wong is super-talented.  I wrote about him a lot on BT when he first arrived. But not recently. He should be moving into -- and/or being groomed for -- larger and more complex (even deeper) solo roles.

[cubanmiamiboy]

Yep...same here.  I've praised Wong in every single performance I've seen of him.  Well no...not true...I really didn't write a word on The  Fox Trot, in which he tossed some nice turns and jumps.

[Jack Reed]

Just saw the New York Post review, haven't even read it yet, but I'd like to point out that while Jennifer Carlynn Kronenberg is the girl in the photo, as far as I can tell, it was Deanna Seay who danced the role of The Girl in White in New York.  Tsk!

[Leigh Witchel]

The papers and web sites run the pictures they're provided, and they were not provided pictures of the actual casts that danced.

[Jack Reed]

Thanks for the peek behind the scenes in publishing, Leigh.

[cahill]

This is an interesting review in the Observer. I believe this picture is also from the archives.
Villella's Heroic Homecoming: Miami Burnishes Balanchine

[bart]

A glowing review, indeed.  Thanks, cahill.  I should add that it's by Nancy Dalva.

Quote

Robert Gottllieb, The Observer's dance critic, is closely involved with the Miami City Ballet, and has therefore recused himself in favor of Nancy Dalva, who has written about dance for The New Yorker, The New York Times and 2wice.

[carbro]

Apologies for posting so late, but better late than . . .

On Jan 21, Leonard Lopate interviewed Edward Villella on WNYC radio.  The 11+ minute interview is here as an audio stream/download.  You can also view about three minutes of it as video.

[Nanatchka]

cahill, on Jan 27 2009, 06:13 PM, said:

This is an interesting review in the Observer. I believe this picture is also from the archives.
Villella's Heroic Homecoming: Miami Burnishes Balanchine

Actually the photo is current, shot by a photographer shooting for The Miami Herald to accompany reviews of MCBallet's New York City Center season. The Observer went to some pains to acquire it, bless their hearts. While many papers do use only provided photos, others use a mix of their own and provided (New York Times), favoring their own whenever possible. If  companies do not hold photo shoots (frequently part of a final dress rehearsal), obviously there won't be current photos.

Oh. I wrote the review (for those who don't know my old nom de web.)

[Jack Reed]

Aha!  And is that the City Center stage then, Nanatchka?  If so, I think it might be the only picture of it published so far.  It strikes me as very apt that it shows MCB's magnificent ensemble; while Balanchine-trained ballet-watchers in New York expressed reservations about some principals in some roles, IIRC they've written (or spoken, in the case of personal contacts) only praise for the corps.  "Like City Ballet -- I mean, in the old days!" was typical.  "In the old days", a few corps members I met would complain, "Nobody knows who we are," and MCB's corps may feel the same way, but the reception these performances got from an audience who knows and appreciates the dancing it sees should buoy them up.  They deserve to be.