36 replies to this topic

[Mel Johnson]

There's certainly nothing that says Apollo must be fair-haired or -skinned.  Those things are controlled by an artistic director's preferences for appearance.

While the company was still back at City Center, the main Apollo settled on Jacques d'Amboise.  When they got to Lincoln Center, a "short cast" headed by Edward Villella was added.There's footage around of André Eglevsky, dressed in gold lamé and a gold laurel wreath, dancing a rather intense reading of the choreography.  He definitely wasn't street, but could have been hanging around backstage at the theater, which is a pretty tough neigborhood!

[cinnamonswirl]

When NYCB did Apollo in Paris in 2008 the cast was Sebastien Marcovici, Tess Reichlen as Calliope and Sara Mearns as Polyhymnia. Agnes Letestu from POB was Terpsichore.

Also, according to his Twitter, Marcovici just danced Apollo in Athens.

[melange]

cinnamonswirl, on 23 July 2010 - 05:16 AM, said:

When NYCB did Apollo in Paris in 2008 the cast was Sebastien Marcovici, Tess Reichlen as Calliope and Sara Mearns as Polyhymnia. Agnes Letestu from POB was Terpsichore.

I think the above lineup, with the addition of Kowroski as Terpsichore, would be just fine.   Among the corps members, I think Chase Finlay (in my mind, the most talented of the male newcomers) would be superb and I wonder how Justin Peck might handle Apollo?

Not to belabor the tattoo issue, but as someone who regards ink as appropriate only for sailors and motorcycle gang members, I am inclined to disqualify those with tattoos from any role in which the blemish can be seen or cannot be masked.   To be fair, however, if the tattoo is sufficiently unobtrusive not to be a distraction (Marcovici's sophomoric teardrops) then I suppose the dancer could perform a role in which it is visible.  But I don't want Apollo prancing around with "Momma didn't love me" splashed across his chest.

[abatt]

I never would have thought as Marcovici as a candidate for Apollo.  Interesting.  We have had the privilege of seeing two remarkable Apollo's during the past decade (Boal and Hubbe).  Whoever is cast will have a tough act to follow.

[E Johnson]

Either Andrew Veyette has a tattoo on his ribcage or the costuming for "the lady with the little dog" is more idiotic than I realized.  I still think he'd make an arresting Apollo; he'd be on my list along with LaCour, Marcovici, Hall, and yes yes yes Justin Peck.

[cinnamonswirl]

Kathryn Morgan tweeted a link to photos from the trip to Greece: http://www.facebook....85&l=d225d88f27

From this picture http://www.facebook....85&l=d225d88f27 it looks like the muses were Maria Kowroski, Janie Taylor and ??

[abatt]

cinnamonswirl, on 28 July 2010 - 05:29 AM, said:

Kathryn Morgan tweeted a link to photos from the trip to Greece: http://www.facebook....85&l=d225d88f27

From this picture http://www.facebook....85&l=d225d88f27 it looks like the muses were Maria Kowroski, Janie Taylor and ??

I don't think the blonde is Janie Taylor.  That looks like T. Reichlin next to Maria.

[kfw]

abatt, on 28 July 2010 - 05:35 AM, said:

cinnamonswirl, on 28 July 2010 - 05:29 AM, said:

From this picture http://www.facebook....85&l=d225d88f27 it looks like the muses were Maria Kowroski, Janie Taylor and ??

I don't think the blonde is Janie Taylor.  That looks like T. Reichlin next to Maria.

Here is the casting according to xpatathens.com: Sébastien Marcovici, Maria Kowroski, Jennie Somogyi, Janie Taylor.

I'm not so sure about Marcovici, but I'd love to see that cast of muses at NYCB.

[erpollock]

Adrian Danchig-Waring for Apollo. Ashley Bouder as Terpsichore.

[Juliane]

I second Adrian Danchig- Waring!

[Quiggin]

I was going to list Adrian Danchig-Waring too -- but I've only seen him in videos. However I'd like to see a less blond and less solemn Apollo, more in character with the original, which may have had more turns of mood. The Eglevsky clip suggests something different, and Eglevsky seems to have been able to modulate character quickly. Gonzalo Garcia's counterpoint solos were very unusual. A little more interiority to the part, at least here and there, would be an interesting change.

Another problem with Apollo is that it always seems to get lost on a big stage (the Koch/State as opposed to the City Center or the Joyce or Yuerba Buena Center here in San Francisco). The same with Petroushka, both of them originally designed for smaller spaces and more intimate scale.

[ViolinConcerto]

Adrian is a beautiful dancer, but I feel that most of the "Apollos" I have seen were more broad shouldered and chested than he is.  I know that I have watched City Ballet's male dancers develop their upper bodies -- Damian Woetzel [forgive my spelling if it's wrong] for example, so it could happen.   I can't think of who I would like to see in this role right now, but I have a question:  what, where and how offensive is Crag Hall's tattoo?  I have never noticed it.

[carbro]

ViolinConcerto, on 12 August 2010 - 02:57 PM, said:

... what, where and how offensive is Crag Hall's tattoo?  I have never noticed it.

It's a sunburst around one of his nipples.  Offensive?  That's a pretty harsh word, and in any context except ballet I would reject its application to Craig's tattoo.  I just think any visible tattoo is inappropriate for many roles in ballet, Apollo being a prime example.

I'm not sure, but if it's on the nipple that's hidden under the sash, then I retract my objection.  

[Kathleen O'Connell]

carbro, on 12 August 2010 - 04:47 PM, said:

ViolinConcerto, on 12 August 2010 - 02:57 PM, said:

... what, where and how offensive is Crag Hall's tattoo?  I have never noticed it.

It's a sunburst around one of his nipples.  Offensive?  That's a pretty harsh word, and in any context except ballet I would reject its application to Craig's tattoo.  I just think any visible tattoo is inappropriate for many roles in ballet, Apollo being a prime example.

I'm not sure, but if it's on the nipple that's hidden under the sash, then I retract my objection.  

It's on his right nipple. Scroll down in this post on Evan Namerow's blog Dancing Perfectly Free  to see what it looks like. I think it looks fine, but your mileage may vary. (I live where the East Village meets Union Square. In my neighborhood, Hall's tattoo would be considered a nice start.)

A quick scan of the images that come up if you google "Apollo" and "Balanchine" show sashes covering either the right or the left side -- and a few barely covering anything at all. If the tattoo's the only thing that disqualifies Hall from being cast as Apollo, just flip the sash.

[FauxPas]

carbro, on 12 August 2010 - 04:47 PM, said:

ViolinConcerto, on 12 August 2010 - 02:57 PM, said:

... what, where and how offensive is Crag Hall's tattoo?  I have never noticed it.

It's a sunburst around one of his nipples.  Offensive?  That's a pretty harsh word, and in any context except ballet I would reject its application to Craig's tattoo.  I just think any visible tattoo is inappropriate for many roles in ballet, Apollo being a prime example.

I'm not sure, but if it's on the nipple that's hidden under the sash, then I retract my objection.  

Well, though I agree about visible tattoos being inadvisable - especially in classical ballets - this one may work in "Apollo".  Apollo was not only the god of the arts but also the sun god.  So a sunburst on the nipple may work very well.  I think that Craig Hall's classical handsome features would work well too.  Bring it on!