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NYCB at Saratoga 2015


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I'm thinking about making the trip up to Saratoga for a weekend. How is the seating at SPAC? Is there any seating areas to avoid?

The theater is enormous and there are definitely sections to avoid. Pleasexadvisexabout whether you prefer orchestra or balcony (there are only the two levels) and approximately how much you'd like to spend and I can advise you better. I know that place really well.

Please come! We will welcome you!

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The theater is enormous and there are definitely sections to avoid. Pleasexadvisexabout whether you prefer orchestra or balcony (there are only the two levels) and approximately how much you'd like to spend and I can advise you better. I know that place really well.

Please come! We will welcome you!

I'd prefer orchestra, cost would be no more than 90 dollars per ticket. Thanks for your help!

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You can get great seats for $70 for evening perfs. I like section 8, 9 or 10 boxes because you don't have to worry about someone with big hair in front of you. That's the first row in the back section of the orchestra, so about halfway back. If you like to be closer I like front row of 6 or 7, but as close to center as possible. I have a friend who always sits in first row of section 1. I like a wider perspective.

Matinees are cheaper. The top ticket is $45.

Keep in mind that the Gala is on sat night July 11 and ticket prices are double.

In general stay as center as possible, the extreme sides are very partial view.

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If you're going to see at least two perfs consider seeing one from the balcony. It's much steeper than the orchestra so not as much worry about someone in front of you. Sections 15, 16 and 17 are very nice, but avoid the first row because there are huge lights that obstruct the view. I like row c in those sections.

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If you're going to see at least two perfs consider seeing one from the balcony. It's much steeper than the orchestra so not as much worry about someone in front of you. Sections 15, 16 and 17 are very nice, but avoid the first row because there are huge lights that obstruct the view. I like row c in those sections.

Thanks! This is very helpful! I'm going to order tickets for the day and night performance on the 11th. I know it's the gala but it's the only time I can get up there Going to spend Saturday night in Saratoga and come back home sometime Sunday.

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be aware that hte balcony is VERY high. some people I have taken there have complained of vertigo. (Not a problem if you're not prone to vertigo).

You will love Saratoga. The experience of seeing ballet there is unique.

Kbarber is absolutely right. The balcony is high but provides a different perspective on the patterns in the ballets and a great view into the orchestra pit too.

Katherine thank you so much for your support of spac and the legions of people you've brought! I hope to meet you this summer.

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Katherine thank you so much for your support of spac and the legions of people you've brought! I hope to meet you this summer.

Trust me, the pleasure is literally all ours! However, alas no Saratoga for me this summer. Too much competition from the PanAm Games here in Toronto, I think, to get a big enough group together.

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Trust me, the pleasure is literally all ours! However, alas no Saratoga for me this summer. Too much competition from the PanAm Games here in Toronto, I think, to get a big enough group together.

Oh, Katherine, I'm sorry you won't be here! I was going to email you to see if we could hook up :(

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Thanks! This is very helpful! I'm going to order tickets for the day and night performance on the 11th. I know it's the gala but it's the only time I can get up there Going to spend Saturday night in Saratoga and come back home sometime Sunday.

So happy you are making the journey up here, Kaysta, and participating in one of our premiere (imo THE premiere) summer event - NYCB at SPAC! As Katherine said, you will love it.. SPAC is just lovely. If you have the time, in the woods in front of the parking lot at the Route 50 box office is a detailed pathway that takes you to the creek. From there you can enjoy a quiet walk along the water. This is just one of the many simple pleasures our beautiful state park has to offer. You will also hear the gentle sound of the creek as you watch the performances. And for me, I cannot separate my over 35-year experience going to SPAC to see the ballet with my equally profound pleasure walking our beloved Golden Retriever, Fergus, now a golden angel, on those paths, as he enjoyed darting about in and out of the water. Enjoy, enjoy, enjoy!

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Just tweeted by NYCBallet: SPAC season dedicated to Albert Evans. https://twitter.com/nycballet/status/618572630203977730

Thanks, susanger. Yes, Peter Martins came out to welcome the opening season and the audience and expressed the same. Peter was composed, of course, but there was great sadness in his voice as he praised Mr Evans as a great dancer, company ballet-master and gentle friend and soul. He asked the audience to join in applause for Albert and they did so with heartfelt enthusiasm. This is a company in mourning. However, our company danced brilliantly and the audience was most enthusiastic. Each year NYCB comes back 'home' to SPAC, there is palpable excitement and happiness that exudes throughout the place! There was a pre-performance diluvian downpour, too (quite spectacular if you were under cover cool.png) between about 6:45 and 7:30 pm, and then a rainbow came out to welcome the dancers! Attendance seemed average or better for a stormy night and I must keep in mind that SPAC is huge. What the audience lacked in it not being a bigger house was made up by a most vocal and appreciative welcome for the start of another NYCB at SPAC season.

It is difficult for me to review the actual steps as some posters are able to do because I am not a dancer, but I can tell you, the company was in fine form last night!! They were gorgeous! It was an all-Balanchine program (Square Dance, La Valse, Tarantella, Symphony in Three Movements) and they danced clean and tight with beautifully articulated legs and feet and just lovely port de bras. The orchestra sounded great, and I do love the way an orchestra sounds at SPAC. I was pretty much blown away by the quality of the dancing in each work, so I guess I don't have too many standouts - they were all standouts: principals, soloists, and corps alike. La Valse was revelatory on that great SPAC stage; I saw it at the State Theater in 2014 with Janie and Sebastian (her penultimate performance with NYCB) and it was lovely, but last night was perfection. Claire Von Enck deserves special mention here, replacing Tiler Peck in Tarantella and was so charming. I thought perhaps she started out a bit cautious, but by the middle,she was assured and dancing in her element. I don't know why Tiler was replaced but I hope she's fine.

Equally special was meeting our fellow member, rkoretzky!

Well, bye for now. I may add to this post later, but if not, tomorrow the matinee!

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Just came back from Friday night's NYCB performance at SPAC. The program was Square Dance, RŌDĒ,Ō, and Symphony in C.

First off, I would like to say (and thank NYCB) for the full page in the program devoted to Albert Evans. It has that iconic picture of him in the 4Ts and says, "New York City Ballet's 2015 Season at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center is dedicated to the memory of Albert Evans.

Dancer, ballet master, teacher, and dear friend, he is greatly missed by all of us." Very nice touch, Peter. Thank you.

Ok, first off, Ashley Bouder came out to introduce the program. Wearing white jeans, she looked very nice and relaxed. She speaks well and got the crowd revved up.

Square Dance was first. The leads were Erica Pereira and Taylor Stanley. I must admit I've always avoided seeing Erica in this role in NYC. What can I say? No mishaps but this role is a bit of a stretch for her. Also, someone in the corps slipped while dancing near her. I thought they were both going to fall but both were ok:) I really just watched Taylor Stanley. He is wonderful in the lead. Maybe not quite as eloquent as Anthony Huxley, but very, very good. Beautiful backbends, perfect feet. His solo was wonderful. We were sitting so close (row D) we could see how hard Taylor was breathing and how much he was sweating, Just in case we didn't know how tough this ballet is. I also always enjoy Devin Alberda in the corps. His upper body is always elegant, his legs fast and quick. They now gave him senior corps roles. But after the photo access brouhaha this week, it's clear he'll never be promoted, which, IMO, is a shame.

After that Justin Peck's RŌDĒ,Ō. When I first saw this piece I LOVED it. It's very accessible and has lots of great dancing for the men. However, completely opposite to Ratmansky's Puctures At An Exhibition, I find I like this piece less and less each time I see it. I just don't think it has much depth. The crowd loved it, though, and it got a standing ovation. It was very well performed. Sean Suozzi was out (he filled in for Andie V when he was injured in for the premiere and throughout the winter). Andie took his place and he, Gonzalo and Danny Ulbricht were terrific. Danny, in particular, is such a virtuoso and doesn't get to dance enough. Great jumps, turns, pirouettes! I especially love the section where Danny does the turns in a la seconde, goes into pirouettes which get progressively slower. So hard to do! But it's funny, somehow, and he always gets laughs. Amar was, as usual, the male lead but Tiler, not Sara was the female lead. I adore Tiler but think I like Sara just a bit more in this role. She hold her own with the guys just Slightly more effectively.

Finally, Symphony in C. Ashley Bouder and Andie did 1st movement, Sara and Jared 2nd, Ashley Isaacs and Anthony Huxley (both newly promoted) 3rd, and Lauren King and Adrian D-W (subbing for Sean Suozzi) 4th. I've seen the first 2 movements with the same casts several times before. Ashley is always marvelous. Her ability to hold balances and play with the music is just astonishing. I felt I've seen Sara do her movement better before. It's possible at those times her partner was Tyler Angle (who is a much better partner than his brother). I've never seen Anthony do the 3rd movement and he was just terrific; great jumps and pirouettes, speedy. Bravo to NYCB!'s newest male principal! Ashley Isaacs was also very good. However, I just watched Ballet 422 about 3 times this week and Isaacs has the dubious distinction of not being able to grasp a pretty simple correction of her arms (For the piece Paz de La Jolla). Justin demonstrates it about 3 times and she still doesn't get it:( But despite the embarrassment, she was still able to dance a terrific 3rd movement, the leads in the 4th were Lauren King and Adrian D-W (subbing for Seab Suozzi). It was a little odd to see Adrian in such a traditional role but he was fantastic. It was very nice to see this piece outside. It became just a little less formal and a little more real.

Anyway, Bravi to everyone tonight. Now on to tomorrow's matinee and the ballet gala!

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I attended Friday nights show i left after Square Dance. The performance started out with Ashley Bouder talking about the ballets we would be seeing . She also told us she had danced 2 Square dances since Spac started . She said tonight we will be seeing the lovely Erica Pereira who has wonderful Balanchine technique. Erica and Taylor were GREAT together. The core was equally Great. Except for 1 hick-up one of the core members got her feet tangled up causing her to slip and almost take Erica off her steps. Erica being the professional she is just kept count and stayed on point. The audience seemed to love the performance 2 curtian calls for Erica and Taylor and many SCREAMS from the audience of BRAVO AND BRAVA!!!!!. After the performance was over Erica was mobbed at the rear stage doors by many young FANS who were waiting for autographs and pictures. I was glad to see these future dancers can appreacate and enjoy Erica's talent.

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Oh, Katherine, I'm sorry you won't be here! I was going to email you to see if we could hook up sad.png

I want to post some more thoughts and impressions about NYCB's summer season at SPAC. Overall, the company danced so beautifully throughout the two week season and they seemed very happy to be there. I took in 5 performances, some of them repeats. Week one I went to opening night (I posted on this above), and July 9 and 11 matinees. I saw Square Dance twice with the same cast - Bouder, Huxley and same corps cast, which allowed me to enjoy the talents of the individual dancers more deeply. I do have a question for my fellow balletophiles and ballet academics. Seeing NYCB's Square Dance twice this season and also watching Miami City Ballet's version that aired on PBS, do I detect some nuances and perhaps even small differences in the choreography? Did Edward Vilella stage his Square Dance based on an earlier version? I thought I read something somewhere about that. I welcome members' feedback on this and thank you.

I would have enjoyed seeing Erica Pereira and Taylor Stanley in Square Dance, too, as Erica was quite lovely in three distinctly different ballets - Symphony in Three Movements as one of the lead 'pink' girls and as the lead in Ballabile movement of Bournonville Divertissements, and most beautifully, in 3rd movement of Symphony in C. Taylor Stanley Is such a pleasure to watch, too, and he was great in Si3Ms. I also saw Western Symphony, Symphony in Three Movements and Tarantella twice, some with different casts. I was so happy to see Craig Hall three times - yay!! - he's a gorgeous dancer and I've always admired him. Why he has not been promoted to principal dancer, I am not sure sad.png.

Rounding out week one was Rodeo and Interplay. I enjoyed both these ballets, especially Interplay. Rodeo was witty and fun and it was interesting seeing a ballet devoted to all male dancers except the one ballerina lead it but I don't know if I'd rush out to see it anytime soon, but I can say the same for Interplay. I did not like the ballerina's 'costume' (if you can call it that) in Rodeo (or the knee socks on the men, for that matter). Sara Mearns danced that role and she is, as always, compelling and beautiful. She and Tess Reichlen alternated the role of the 'Chief Flirt', as I call her, in Western Symphony, Tanaquil LeClerq's role, and they were both adorable in it, with Sara having a bit more sass and sexiness. Neither can replicate, however (and this is not a criticism), Tanny's audacious strutting around in those needle-thin legs and pointes! Both dancers will grow in that role, I'm sure, and make it their own. I never saw Maria Kowroski dance the role full-out, only a demonstration at one of those 'Saturday at the Ballet with George' events and she admitted she wasn't about to dance that show-stopping backward step on pointe at that moment. Equally delightful was Sterling and Craig in WS. I do enjoy that ballet so much for the beautiful Kay arrangements and the charming spectacle that it is.

Both casts in Si3Ms were wonderful. I haven't seen Tiler Peck dance a lot lately and I'm happy to report that she was in fine form and the most dramatically compelling of the three 'pink' girls, whose leotards remind me of shades of lipstick. Although I said in my first post that everyone was a standout on opening night, which was true, over 5 performances there truly were some wonderful standouts. Chief among these is Ashley Bouder who was in Square Dance and Tarantella, Four Temperaments and the Sylph (more about the Bournonville later). I happy to have seen so much of Ashley during this season. She is an incredible dancer.

Amar Ramasar was phenomenal in Rodeo and Si3Ms and I can't wait to see him dance again. Daniel Ulbricht, too, in the same ballets. It was great to see Andrew Scordato dance so much - he seemed to be in almost everything, replacing Sean Suozzi. Andrew is most beloved here, as he has taught master classes and adult movement at a couple of studios in Albany and Saratoga. I also had a chance to see Brittany Pollack dance a few roles, too, interplay and The Four Temperaments and I liked her very much. She's quite pretty and has a lot of personality in her dancing. Likewise, Olivia Boisson in the corps who is beautiful and elegant and demonstrated her range by dancing a number of stylistically diverse roles - Si3Ms, La Sylphide, SiC, and I look forward to seeing both Ms Pollack and Ms. Boisson again soon.

Week two: Symphonic Dances, The Four Temperaments, and my beloved Symphony in C on July 16 and then July 18 the Bournonville double header.

I'm sorry to say I did not like Symphonic Dances. It's wooden and fraught with very conventional choreography. Tess Reichlen and Zachary Catazaro were the leads. The Four Temperaments was great to see again, and I was happy to see Faye Arthurs here and also in Symphony in C - I think she is an underrated dancer. 4Ts is one of my favorite Balanchine black and white ballets. Symphony in C was, as always, spectacular. It received a standing ovation. The cast was wonderful, especially Tiler and Andrew in 1st movement and Sara and Jared in 2nd. I'm warming up to Lauren King, who danced 4th and also was in Si3Ms. As I said earlier, Erica handled 3rd movement well and she's so pretty. I never tire of seeing that ballet, EVER!

I'm running out of time, so I'll be brief about the Bournonville. Divertissements was interesting and I enjoyed it very much. I didn't care for the first movement except for the leads, Erica Pereira and Allen Peiffer; but the Pas de Deux , Pas de Six and the Tarantella were really wonderful. Theresa Reichlen and Ask LaCour were stunning in the Pas de Deux and the Pas de Six was very charming. I enjoyed La Sylphide even more. I thought Ashley was convincing as a sylph, very charming and danced her Bournonville steps quite beautifully. I still don't have a great sense of Gonzalo Garcia, so I'll leave it at that. On the whole, I was impressed with the NYCB dancing the Bournonville style and technique so well, beautiful feet ands steps, with the ballets feeling antique and fresh and modern, all at the same time. Seeing how successfully NYCB dances the romantic and most old-fashioned tradition makes me want to see the company stage Giselle (that may be heresy to many members here :0!

To Mr. Pereira who posted up thread, I am sure Erica was greeted like royalty by those adoring teens and teens! After the July 11 Saturday matinee, I went to the stage door to see the dancers come out to sign programs and take pictures. Sara, Tiler, Sterling, Ashley, Andrew Veyette and Craig Hall were greeted like rock stars, the kids screaming and running up to the door to get a good look. All the dancers were gracious and accommodating. I'm sure many of those adolescents are dance students, so these dancers are their role models and heroes. I decided I wanted to meet a couple of the dancers myself and let them know how much they are loved up here and what NYCB means to me, so once the crowd thinned I introduced myself to Ashley, Tiler, Craig and Sara. They were friendly and it was a lovely experience.

I probably will read this and want to tweak it, because this is a tablet I am writing on and it's really no substitute for a PC!!!

Have a great day.

Karen

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