74 replies to this topic

[DeborahB]

MJ, on Feb 8 2010, 02:21 PM, said:

I went Friday night, perfromance seemed rushed. Only one intermission. Music felt a little too quick. Where was the variation where the Fairies hold hands and develope front and then develope back?

The bass in the State Theater is subdued, while the treble notes are sharp and brilliant.

Carabosse acted but did not dance, Why didn't the soldiers come forward to protect the Newborn Princess?

Act I courtiers and royal costumes looked awful. Bland colors.

Pastel drawings between acts were OK, Finale reminded me of St.Peter's Basilica in the Vatican.

Sets were good, easily understood. ABTs "spider web" did not make any sense, even now.

Nobody did a triple pirouette or really wow'ed me.

The discount booth across the street, behind the Hotel Empire is really nice.

I like the ABT version much better, better sets and costumes.

House was close to full, in these difficult times Classical pieces always do well.

Hi MJ,
There is always only one intermission in Beauty (NYCB's version). Also Carabosse never dances (in this version). I actually really liked the costumes and colors of the costume. I'm not a fan (at all) of ABT's (athough I do like ABT) version However, I loved the Kirov's (I saw it last year in London).
NYCB's is a streamline version of Beauty. I didn't see one child (and there were many! How great!)who was  antsy. Even I -- who is not a fan of story ballets -- went to 4 different Beaties (I love to see the cast changes). I think this run was an unqualified success. Still, I'm looking forward to the reg. rep tonight. But then it's Swan Lake -- I'm seeing 4 casts of that too (it's fun to compare).
I find it surprising that no one "wowed" you. There was so much great dancing in Beauty. Then again, a triple pirouette (did you see Danny Ulbricht? He can do that and more. Ditto Antonio Carmena and a couple of others) isn't "it" for me.

Thank you for your viewpoint! I love reading what other people think of various productions and ballets.

Deborah

[Jayne]

Additional NYT Review

This review is more about the overarching themes of The Sleeping Beauty.

I think Alistair McCawley might have the coolest job at the NYT, despite the recession.  Think about it - he flys around the country and the world to review dance.  2 weeks ago he was in San Francisco to review Swan Lake, then to NY and Seattle for The Sleeping Beauty.

[ViolinConcerto]

Jayne, on Feb 9 2010, 07:39 PM, said:

Additional NYT Review

This review is more about the overarching themes of The Sleeping Beauty.

I think Alistair McCawley might have the coolest job at the NYT, despite the recession.  Think about it - he flys around the country and the world to review dance.  2 weeks ago he was in San Francisco to review Swan Lake, then to NY and Seattle for The Sleeping Beauty.

Thanks so much for the link.  Wouldn't it have been nice to see some more photographs?

I agrree with you about the job, (it might even be one of the best in this country) but his name is spelled:   ALASTAIR MACAULAY.

[DeborahB]

SingerWhoMoves, on Feb 9 2010, 02:22 AM, said:

I'll add that I saw Ashley's first performance and Katie's debut- and loved them both. I got to see Sara Mearns both nights as well- sad that Rebecca Krohn was out- but LOVE Sara's Lilac Fairy. I think I enjoyed Tyler as the prince more, but I was also sitting closer, so it could be that I just saw more face?  Chase Findlay blew my mind as Gold!  I have to say that in all of both casts, my only real dissapointment was Savannah Lowrey. I just don't "get" her in this company- she really stands out and not in a good way. I really don't enjoy watching her in anything remotely classical, especially next to lovely dancers like Ashley Laracey and Lauren King as Ruby and Emerald. My friend who is totally new to NYCB also said to me- "who's that? she doesn't fit in". She's a very athletic and accomplished dancer, but I just don't enjoy her performances.
Wish I could have seen Hyltin- I'm a big fan of her dancing.

With all due respect, Singer... there are those of us who LOVE Savannah. She was fantastic in "Cortege" last night. Not only is she strong,
technically accomplished, fast, musical and enthusiastic -- but her love of dancing permeates each performance. She certainly does fit in. She also received a huge ovation last night too.
Balanchine always loved dancers like Savannah. The great thing about NYCB is that if you aren't crazy about a certain dancer, you can
check casting and plan accordingly.

[SingerWhoMoves]

And with all due respect Deborah- I do check the casting and try to plan accordingly,  but Savannah is cast very often with dancers I am very fond of. I'm simply expressing an opinon. Wonderful to hear that the audience loved her performance in Cortege so much.

[ViolinConcerto]

Well, as I mentioned, I'm not fond of her style either, but I enjoyed an interview with her in TIMEOUT NEW YORK.  (I tried to provide a link, but couldn't do it on either my iPod or laptop -- they're both having problems.)

I acknowledge all that Deborah says about Savannah's enthusiasm and technique, but her landings make me very uncomfortable, and I also feel that to me she didn't match the aesthetic of "Sleeping Beauty."  For example, she seemed (to me!) altogether too uncontrolled as "Diamond."  

There are other interviews in the DANCE section of the online version of TIMEOUT.  Hope you enjoy them!

[carbro]

Here's the direct link to Savannah's interview on TONY.

I agree with Singer and ViolinConcerto, but in the interview, Savannah discusses the problem that most bothers me -- the tightness in her shoulders.  This makes me hopeful that, with hard work, she may eventually improve.  I  have no way of knowing whether it is just an ingrained habit or the result of inadequate core strength, but at least she's aware of the problem.

[Helene]

Laura Gilbreath at PNB, who is very tall, spoke in a Q&A about her tendency to stoop over, and how she's worked very hard to open up her shoulders.  She's succeeded.

[SingerWhoMoves]

Cabro, thanks for that link- I look forward to reading the interview.  I also agree about her talent and joy for dancing- and I also agree about her Diamond. I would love to see her in in strictly athletic roles that do not involve tutus.
To each his own!

ETA: loved the interview and the one with Tiler Peck as well. Thanks!

[DeborahB]

carbro, on Feb 10 2010, 12:38 PM, said:

Here's the direct link to Savannah's interview on TONY.

I agree with Singer and ViolinConcerto, but in the interview, Savannah discusses the problem that most bothers me -- the tightness in her shoulders.  This makes me hopeful that, with hard work, she may eventually improve.  I  have no way of knowing whether it is just an ingrained habit or the result of inadequate core strength, but at least she's aware of the problem.

I so enjoyed this interview when I read it. Savannah has a great sense of humor! I loved her comments about her "big" feet (I have size 9's myself). Wouldn't the NYCB ballerinas benefit from watching Sara Means (gorgeous upper body).? However, I do adore Savannah and look forward to all of her roles (although I understand why some BT-ers aren't as smitten as your truly).

Thanks for your opinions everyone! I love reading them!

On another note -- and as a longtime publicist -- I'm so happy that NYCB is getting press (and not just reviews). For a few years we never saw stories.

[canbelto]

Quote

I saw three casts: the first ballerina Assylmuratova (whom at least one critic and two audience members compared to Fonteyn in my hearing) barely made a stab at balancing at all just taking her hand from one partner and immediately handing it over to another with nary a pause.

That's weird because there are some videos (both commercial and one uploaded by ketinoa of youtube) of Asylmuratova doing the Rose Adagio and she holds the balances for fairly long.
Anyway I love the reviews by everyone of this two-week run. I only saw Bouder but it seems as if this might be Peter Martins' best full-length work.

[Jayne]

Wall Street Journal review
http://online.wsj.co...1076973510.html

[Helene]

Robert Greskovic's piece is far more than a review of The Sleeping Beauty.   It addresses the season itself, from programming to performance.

[MJ]

I'm glad to hear Beauty was a success for NYCB. The stories of folding Ballet companies and other arts organizations has been disturbing.

[Drew]

canbelto, on Feb 10 2010, 10:31 PM, said:

Quote

I saw three casts: the first ballerina Assylmuratova (whom at least one critic and two audience members compared to Fonteyn in my hearing) barely made a stab at balancing at all just taking her hand from one partner and immediately handing it over to another with nary a pause.

That's weird because there are some videos (both commercial and one uploaded by ketinoa of youtube) of Asylmuratova doing the Rose Adagio and she holds the balances for fairly long.

I will have to check out those videos--thanks for telling me about them.  I think it is, perhaps, not so weird that what I saw in the theater was different because live performances vary so much and performances also vary over the course of a dancer's career.  (Kirkland's video Clara is charming but not close to her best in the theater.)  

Still, knowing that Asylmuratova also or even often did the balances in a more extended fashion really would not particularly change my view that their significance can get overblown.  The rose adagio is a whole and the whole matters--bobbling all over the place in the balances can ruin it, but (in my opinion) downplaying the balancing in the context of a beautifully controlled and danced whole, need not.  And the latter is what characterized the Asylmuratova and Terekhova performances I had the chance to see.  I have also seen performances where the ballerina had dreamy balances and they were, indeed, dreamy--I'm not against them for sure!