ABT 2015 Met season

[Mirseng1]

Hello! I have two tickets (Dress Circle, Row D, full view) for Saturday May 23rd evening Giselle (Abrera-Shklyarov-Part). If anyone is interested, please contact me.

if selling tickets is not a possibility, I am hoping to exchange them at the box office. Will I be able to do that? What is your experience?

Thanks!

[Amour]

I've had no problem exchanging tickets as long as it's 24 hours before the show. But you have to do it at the box office, not by phone.

[Mirseng1]

This is perfect, thank you Amour!

[abatt]

Well I hope anyone who is coming into NYC along the Northeast Corridor to see ABT in the near future has already arranged transportation. In view of the Amtrak disaster and the closure of that rail route, the airlines have signficantly jacked up the fares. Wonder if the bus has lines have also done that.

http://nypost.com/2015/05/15/airlines-jack-up-fares-along-closed-amtrak-corridor/

[angelica]

I bought a ticket for Stella's Giselle the moment I heard. And with Shklyarov and Part no less! I hope that between the Semionova fans who keep their tickets and the Stella fans who buy theirs, that the house will be really full. I'm going to scream my brains out at the curtain calls.

[Natalia]

Megabus has added runs between major cities on the NE corridor.

[Amour]

Wow, attendance must be sparse among BAers, no discussion of what was performed tonight. I was really curious about Gillian's T&V, so if anyone saw it, a report would be much appreciated.

[Barbara]

OMG I'm so glad I checked in with Ballet Alert before leaving to see NYCB La Sylphide today! I just booked my Stella Giselle!! Granted it's Balcony, but row A, quite off to the side but I don't care. Now the only thing that would make it heaven is if Hallberg were healthy and dancing with her as was the plan a few years ago.

[mimsyb]

Wow, attendance must be sparse among BAers, no discussion of what was performed tonight. I was really curious about Gillian's T&V, so if anyone saw it, a report would be much appreciated.

Audience was a bit small. However, "T&V" was simply grand! Big difference from what I saw on Wednesday. Gillian was radiant and spot on. Glistening foot work and creamy adage. Whiteside a gallant partner. I also felt the four demis were of as piece last night. No ragged edges. Especially a standout was Shevchenko. I just love to watch her dancing. Really improving. Corps look sharp and more together. But it was Gillian that held the center of attention. She just gets better and better. "Lilac Garden", for me, also suffers from being danced on a large stage. I felt this too for "Pillar of Fire" on Wednesday. The bigness of the Met overwhelms the characters and makes them less real, more a card board cutout. Dancing fine, but many nuances lost. Reyes seemed so small next to both Hammoudi and Forster. And Forster seemed way too young for her! I remember seeing a performance of this by the Studio Company a few years back at the Joyce theater. It seemed to carry more resonance than last night's performance. Yet, here again last night, Shevchenko stood out as the Woman from his Past. I love this ballet, with all it's richness of textures and style. But it seemed a bit shallow last evening. On to "Fancy Free" which was pure delight. Craig replaced an injured Cornejo and was stellar! Just wonderful. But of course the evening belongs to Gomes. He dances and acts at such a high level that he seems impossible to catch. Still, Cory was also superb last night. His acting has improved so much recently. The three guys were a joy to watch. Isabella showed lots of vulnerability in her pas with Cory and Luciana Paris had great snap and sass as the Girl with the Red Handbag. All in all a wonderful way to end the evening. When ABT casts correctly, they are at the top of their game. Tonight was one of those nights. And of course much of the talk at intermissions was all about STELLA and Giselle! I wouldn't be surprised if the Met BO crashed yesterday!

[Drew]

Craig replaced an injured Cornejo [...]

I enjoyed reading about the performance, but these words filled me with dismay, especially as I am looking forward to seeing Cornejo later in season...any official word on this injury?

[atm711]

Mimsyb said that "Lilac Garden" and "Pillar" ...."suffers from b eing on a large stage.....the bigness of the stage overwhelms...." I originally saw both these ballets on the stage of

the old Metropolitan Opera House on 39th St---I don't know the dimensions of the old Met and new Met, but I assume they are pretty close in size. Unfortunately, I do not think it

is the theater, but the performers. Back at the old opera house the performers were trained by Tudor, and they projected. I have no idea who the present dancers work with since

we no longer have Sallie Wilson.

PS---yes, Murphy was great in T&V---what a change from Tuesday's perfformance.......

[Kaysta]

Excited for the start of the Met season for me. ABT matinee then across the plaza for NYCB tonight!

[mimsyb]

I enjoyed reading about the performance, but these words filled me with dismay, especially as I am looking forward to seeing Cornejo later in season...any official word on this injury?

I wish I knew more. Only what the board said outside the main staircase, and of course the program insert. Hopefully, nothing serious. MAybe others know more.

[mimsyb]

Mimsyb said that "Lilac Garden" and "Pillar" ...."suffers from b eing on a large stage.....the bigness of the stage overwhelms...." I originally saw both these ballets on the stage of

the old Metropolitan Opera House on 39th St---I don't know the dimensions of the old Met and new Met, but I assume they are pretty close in size. Unfortunately, I do not think it

is the theater, but the performers. Back at the old opera house the performers were trained by Tudor, and they projected. I have no idea who the present dancers work with since

we no longer have Sallie Wilson.

PS---yes, Murphy was great in T&V---what a change from Tuesday's perfformance.......

"Lilac Garden" was staged this time around by Amanda McKerrow and John Gardner, both renowned for their Tudor portrayals and subsequent re-constructions. They've been doing this for ABT for awhile and seem to know the dancers well. Last time I saw ABT do "Lilac" and "Pillar" were at City Center which does have a much smaller stage and worked better for both ballets. And yes, I would agree that perhaps other dancers would do more with the piece at hand. Still, in this production this Garden seemed rather large and the dancers had so much more room to cover in some of their movements. The intimacy and repression just got lost in having to move across the stage at times. Some of Tudor's lifts always remind me of closeted emotions, but here they more resembled an attempt at the abandonment of some of the more Russian style of lift. I could see many of the small details of course. (I sat front row, Grand Tier). Still, I would have preferred if there wasn't all that extra space surrounding the dancers on either side and upstage. I wonder if it's at all possible at the Met to move the proscenium drapes in a bit on the sides and simply dance in a smaller space. That too might prove distracting. I simply don't know (without benefit of comparison).

[abatt]

The updated casting sheet still lists Cornejo for the gala on Monday, for Fancy Free and Push Comes to Shove. His Solor solo from Bayadere, however, is no longer listed.

Also, the casting sheets in the lobby now have the secondary casting info for SB in June

June 8 Vishneva Gomes Part Raffa Boylston, Simkin Trenary

June 9 Murphy, Whiteside, Abrera, Salstein, Trenary, Zhang, Lane

June 10 Matinee Boylston, Gorak Teuscher Salstein Brandt Shayer Copeland

June 10 evening Osipova Sarafanov Part Gomes Shevchenko Hoven Abrera

June 11 Lane Cornejo Teuscher Raffa Brandt Shayer Copeland

June 12 Seo Stearns Shevchenko Gomes Trenary Gorak Boylston

June 13 matinee - Murphy Whiteside Abrera Salstein Boylston Zhang Lane

June 13 evening Vishneva Gomes Part Raffa Shevchenko Simkin Trenary

Semionova's name is still listed for Bayaderes, SL and Juliet

[sandik]

Caroline a waif?? not likely---the best interpreter of the role in the US was Nora Kaye---hardly a waif,,,

True, not a waif, but excellent at a sense of repression and sensitivity, especially when it comes to an emotional connection to a man.

(it was great to see clips of her in the Ric Burns documentary)

[Amour]

Thank you mimsyb for your wonderful and detailed accounting of Friday night.

[Amour]

Comment deleted.

[Drew]

(Edited)...but adding something on another topic: Kirkland was a slightly waif-like Caroline, as I remember the performance; don't know what Tudor specialists thought of it, but I found it very moving and beautiful.

[Batsuchan]

It seems Vishneva won't be dancing in the gala tomorrow...? It's no longer listed on her personal calendar:

http://www.vishneva.ru/en/playbill

And it looks like Julie Kent will be dancing Manon with Marcelo instead:

https://instagram.com/p/2yo6ruo350/?taken-by=juliekentofficial

Hmm...don't tell me there's another injury!

[lafemme]

Is anyone else going tomorrow eve? I decided to at the last minute, and purchased one of the worst seats in the house (all that was left!), and was wondering if any of the lovely and knowledgeable balletomanes from this forum were going? When I first purchased my tickets for the season a few months ago, I chose Vishneva's Giselle (I love Giselle and as a ballet neophyte who was traveling last summer, I have never seen Diana Vishneva perform!), her Sleeping Beauty, and Obratzova's Romeo and Juliet, as I imagined those performances would sell out quickly. I am also considering a La Bayadere, as I have never seen it, and a Swan Lake, as it is the ballet that first sparked my interest in the art, and I enjoy seeing the various interpretations and dancers (I still become emotional when I recall Lopatkina's Odile/ Odette). Anyways, I am looking forwards to reading the expert commentary here over the upcoming season, and am so grateful for this forum!

[Natalia]

So Vishneva AND Semionova now out of the gala (and at least some of their performances)? While sad, I hope this means more opportunities for the non-Ardani-sponsored home team.

[lafemme]

First post in quite some time....I wasn't at ABT, but this is a suggestion for all of the companies: Allow season ticket holders to purchase tickets to additional performances at 50% off. I know there is the worry that this would encourage scalpers, but if this was allowed with some time-limitations (maybe 48 hours), then more seats would be full, more season ticket holders would be pleased, and more could bring friends and family to second performances. PNB gives season ticket holders 20% off, but for the programs that only fill 50% of the house, wouldn't they like to have the house filled up with stark raving fans?

Just my lightbulb moment of the year.

I think that is a wonderful idea for the reasons you mentioned. If we are season ticket holders, we are clearly passionate about ballet and are willing to invest in the experience. As a single woman living in an expensive city who works in the arts (not the corporate world) and has a passion for travel, the only reason I don't see more ballet is the expense! It means I am more likely to see the classic, full length ballet with the big star over the more contemporary repertoire with the company dancers, which seems to be a increasingly worrisome issue. I would love to see *both* (unlike the decent percentage of audience members who only want to see well known ballets with very big names and don't have an overall passion for ballet in general), and will eventually, but have to take my time and it makes sense to me to see the classics first. The allure of the Russian guest artists (Vishneva, Obratzova, Zakharaova, Lopatkina) is that I am not likely to visit Russia, but have more of an opportunity to see dancers with The Royal Ballet and French Opera Ballet whether here or in their home theatres.

It's odd to me to hear that sales are lagging, as NYC is filled with so many with lots of disposable income to spend on entertainment and art. Not to mention the throngs of tourists who populate the city during the summer months. Many of my older, and/ or corporate and/ or well funded friends and colleagues could afford prime orchestra seats every night. I do notice many of the men, in particular, of my generation don't seem interested, bewilderingly. However, I also know a lot of young dancers and artists/ bohemian creative types who love to go, but are deterred by the cost, so chose to see several cheaper performances from lesser known companies (or if they do invest in seeing a major company, will chose a more modern one like Alvin Ailey or Mark Morris, but that is a different issue besides financial). I imagine However, my friends skew young and artsy and are not the norm, there are so many New Yorkers with money to burn, I'm quite surprised ticket sales aren't stronger.

[lafemme]

So Vishneva AND Semionova now out of the gala (and at least some of their performances)? While sad, I hope this means more opportunities for the non-Ardani-sponsored home team.

What else is Vishneva out of? Oh dear! I missed last season as I was abroad and didn't get to see her in Cinderella this winter as planned- since I first took interest in the ballet about a year ago, she has eluded me. This season was going to be my Vishneva season!

[abatt]

It's official. ABT website updated re tonight's gala. Vishneva is out, Kent is dancing Manon pdd with Gomes. Cornejo no longer listed for Bayadere solo, but is listed for Fancy Free and Push.

Vishneva still listed for her Giselle next week. Fingers crossed.