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Benjamin Millepied Has Retired


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Per the linked article, one of Millepied's current projects is the choreography for a new musical entitled "Hands on a Hardbody." I confess that several thoughts inappropriate to a wholesome board like this one flashed through my mind when I first read that title. But, per Playbill, here's what the musical is really about:

According to a La Jolla casting/audition notice, "Hands On a Hardbody is a musical based on the documentary film of the same name, about a truck competition in rural East Texas. In the contest, hardscrabble contestants are invited to a local car dealership, to place their hands on a new Nissan truck. The contestant who can stand the longest without removing his or her hand from the vehicle gets to drive it off the lot. What initially seems like a frivolous, even kitschy stunt becomes a true test of wills."

I'm having a hard time imagining how one might choreograph a story in which the key plot driver is who can stand in one place longest without moving, but that's presumably why they pay Millepied the big bucks.

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drive it off the lot. What initially seems like a frivolous, even kitschy stunt becomes a true test of wills."

I'm having a hard time imagining how one might choreograph a story in which the key plot driver is who can stand in one place longest without moving,

Is Millepied especially adept at choreographing adagio? :wink:
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Is Millepied especially adept at choreographing adagio? :wink:

Very droll, Bart!

It was irritating to see Philip Neal and Chuck Askegard leave, while Millepied stayed. He was the last of the deadwood in the principal ranks, in my view. I wonder who, if anyone, will be elevated in the near future?

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I wonder who, if anyone, will be elevated in the near future?

Chase Finlay seems to be the golden boy right now among the soloists. I used to think Scheller might be promoted at some point, but it's looking increasingly unlikely that a promotion is in her future.

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Everyone sounds pretty irritated with Millepied and dismissive of the recent turns his career has taken. I agree that it was long past time for pretending he was a principal dancer at NYCB, but since he is retiring as a dancer, I'm up for some nice memories, too -- including the first time I saw him dance which was at an SAB workshop performance. He was dancing in a new Robbins work and made an excellent impression: one instantly saw that he was very talented and I felt nothing but giggling delight at the appropriateness of his name for a ballet dancer--a point that I vaguely remember Clive Barnes was not too high-minded to make.

It seemed to me at the "height" of his dance career, he had the potential to become a go-to leading man for NYCB--especially as Woetzel's career was winding down. That is, he showed himself to be someone with presence who could impress technically and pair effectively with ballerinas. In recent years, I had given up thinking he would realize that potential or even return to his career as a dancer, but when he was dancing with NYCB I was pretty happy to see his name on a program. I certainly have never held his good looks against him.

His choreography? I have not had the chance to see any of his ballets--and read mixed reports about them to say the least--but if he can find creative things to do with a musical about competitive standing-in-place that will be a triumph of sorts.

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See NY Times Link

http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/26/millepied-retires-from-city-ballet/?ref=arts

He has been "de facto" retired for years. It seemed unfair that for so many years he remained on the NYCB payroll as a principal but never danced there, while at the same time he was out earning fees as a choreographer at other companies and on other projects.

I wrote those exact words to a friend earlier today! (Great minds think alike!)

That concept of the hands on the truck is possibly the worst concept for a dance I have ever heard. What was he thinking when he said "yes?" Or rather what was he drinking?

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Everyone sounds pretty irritated with Millepied and dismissive of the recent turns his career has taken. I agree that it was long past time for pretending he was a principal dancer at NYCB, but since he is retiring as a dancer, I'm up for some nice memories, too -- including the first time I saw him dance which was at an SAB workshop performance. He was dancing in a new Robbins work and made an excellent impression: one instantly saw that he was very talented and I felt nothing but giggling delight at the appropriateness of his name for a ballet dancer--a point that I vaguely remember Clive Barnes was not too high-minded to make.

It seemed to me at the "height" of his dance career, he had the potential to become a go-to leading man for NYCB--especially as Woetzel's career was winding down. That is, he showed himself to be someone with presence who could impress technically and pair effectively with ballerinas. In recent years, I had given up thinking he would realize that potential or even return to his career as a dancer, but when he was dancing with NYCB I was pretty happy to see his name on a program. I certainly have never held his good looks against him.

His choreography? I have not had the chance to see any of his ballets--and read mixed reports about them to say the least--but if he can find creative things to do with a musical about competitive standing-in-place that will be a triumph of sorts.

Drew, I too have good memories of Millepied as a dancer. I still remember one of his performances of "La Baiser de la Fée" -- he wasn't as pyrotechnically thrilling as De Luz in the work's long, taxing male solo, but he better captured its poetry. He was always good in Robbins. At 34 he still had some years of good dancing in him, and I'm sorry he decided to take another path.

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Now he can devote all of his time to his career as a male model:

Other dancers have done some modeling, yes? Nothing wrong with it, surely. Nice money if you have the looks and many dancers are naturally good camera subjects.

That wasn't what I was getting at.

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Millepied used to be a very good dancer. However, his abilities declined quickly after he got into the full time choreography/alternate ventures biz because he didn't keep up his stamina or technique.

I think Natalie Portman showed him a new glamorous world where you don't have to tax yourself physically but can make a career of being beautiful and posing prettily. He must have been thrilled at meeting famous actors and being the consort of the actress-of-the-moment. He had gone beyond NYCB he thought. I'm glad he is making room for someone who is still serious about dancing, like (eventually) Chase Finlay and Anthony Huxley. I think stardust and Portman have drawn Millepied to "opportunities" to be part of the celebrity scene.

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He was more and more focused on choreography and less on dancing before he even met Portman.

Peter Martins has been his boss; Millipied's working relationship with NYCB has been Martins' responsibility.

Retiring from dancing after over a decade is hardly unheard of: not every man is Jacques d'Amboise. If he had gone to law school, would there be nearly as much snark about it?

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Now he can devote all of his time to his career as a male model:

Other dancers have done some modeling, yes? Nothing wrong with it, surely. Nice money if you have the looks and many dancers are naturally good camera subjects.

That wasn't what I was getting at.

I know. :)

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Millepied made a lot of important connections early on in his career, including connections to donors to the ballet. I remember reading an article about how Jerome Robbins took Millepied under his wing, not just in terms of dancing, but in terms of introducing Millepied to important people. Also, I think a lot of dancers take advantage of all modeling opportunities available, whether it be Capezio or YSL. Roberto Bolle has modeled for many major fashion houses in Italy. If you've got it, flaunt it!

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