Helene Posted December 7, 2016 Share Posted December 7, 2016 I just received an email from PNB: Quote Peter Boal, with principal dancers Carrie Imler and Batkhurel Bold, announced today that Ms. Imler and Mr. Bold will retire at the end of this season. "Both Carrie and Bold have been such central parts of PNB, it's hard to imagine the Company after their retirements," said Mr. Boal in his announcement. "Tens of thousands of us have applauded their work and a smaller number has treasured every moment working alongside these two over the past two decades. Their contributions to the Company are beyond measure and they will be missed." Read more about their careers and view photos of each performer on our blog. There is death in my soul. Link to comment
seattle_dancer Posted December 7, 2016 Share Posted December 7, 2016 I'm not totally surprised, but my heart is saddened today. Sunday when Carrie made her entrance as SPF I was so glad when a lot of the audience applauded, and I didn't even need to initiate it! I noticed she had some musical accents different than other SPFs, it was neat to see her make it her own. I hope Bold can teach some other guys to land big jumps without any sound. And he's a pretty big guy! Link to comment
Helene Posted December 7, 2016 Author Share Posted December 7, 2016 This is the press release: Pacific Northwest Ballet Principal Dancers Carrie Imler and Batkhurel Bold Announce Retirements Their two decades of dance will be honored at Season Encore Performance, June 11, 2017. SEATTLE, WA — Pacific Northwest Ballet Artistic Director Peter Boal, with principal dancers Carrie Imler and Batkhurel Bold, has announced that Ms. Imler and Mr. Bold will retire at the end of the 2016/2017 season. Their acclaimed careers will be celebrated at PNB’s Season Encore Performance on Sunday, June 11, 2017. (Tickets go on sale to the public in March 2017.) “Both Carrie and Bold have been such central parts of PNB, it’s hard to imagine the Company after their retirements,” said Mr. Boal in his announcement. “Tens of thousands of us have applauded their work and a smaller number has treasured every moment working alongside these two over the past two decades. Their contributions to the Company are beyond measure and they will be missed.” Carrie Imler is from Carlisle, Pennsylvania. She trained on scholarship at Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet and Pacific Northwest Ballet School and attended summer courses at the School of American Ballet. She joined Pacific Northwest Ballet as an apprentice in 1995 and was promoted to corps de ballet in 1996, soloist in 2000, and principal in 2002. In announcing her retirement, Ms. Imler said, “As a little girl I remember turning to my mother, after watching PNB at the Kennedy Center, and telling her that I was going to dance in Seattle when I grew up. For the past 22 years, I have had the distinct pleasure and honor of dancing for Seattle audiences. From Balanchine to Forsythe and Quijada to Gaines, I have had a career beyond anything that little girl could have ever imagined. [PNB Founding Artistic Directors] Kent Stowell and Francia Russell hired an eager ballerina, nurturing and refining me. Peter has opened my eyes to several new choreographers and ballets. Without each of them, I would not have had such an incredible and unbelievably satisfying career.” “To describe Carrie Imler’s dancing requires a long list of superlatives,” said Mr. Boal. “Carrie is an absolute master of technique and musicality. She is a dancer’s dancer, understanding choreography and musicality innately. Add to this an impeccable work ethic and you have a remarkable ballerina. There is no challenge Carrie can’t meet and for this reason, she has fascinated choreographers like William Forsythe, Alexei Ratmansky, and Twyla Tharp. Equally at home in the contemporary and classical, Carrie has danced in over 100 leading roles with PNB over the past 22 years. That’s a lot of fouettes! As Carrie steps gracefully from the stage at the conclusion of this season, we thank her for leaving us with so many treasured memories and a profound legacy.” Batkhurel Bold is from Ulan Bator, Mongolia. He trained at the Perm Choreographic Academy in Russia. He joined Pacific Northwest Ballet as a member of the corps de ballet in 1996 and was promoted to soloist in 1999 and principal in 2004. “Early on, Bold earned the nickname ‘Air Bold’ because of his gravity defying leaps, and the name still fits,” said Mr. Boal. “A technical powerhouse, a consummate partner, a dramatic stage presence, Bold has been a true mainstay of this Company. Though he’s played every leading male role in the book and excelled in each, I won’t forget his dramatic performances in Nacho Duato’s Rassemblement. Here we saw the tenderness that is such an integral part of this man. Offstage and on, Bold cares deeply for those around him; from his current partner to the newest member of the Company, he’s a prince to all.” In a statement, Mr. Bold added, “Dreams do come true. Thanks to the amazing generosity of Kent Stowell, Francia Russell, Peter Boal and every single person both past and present at Pacific Northwest Ballet. I am truly blessed, humbled and forever grateful.” TICKET INFORMATION Ms. Imler and Mr. Bold are scheduled to dance in several more performances, including George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker®, before the end of PNB’s 2016/2017 season. Ms. Imler is currently cast as Sugar Plum Fairy on December 11 (5:30) and 20 (7:30), and Dewdrop on December 21 (7:30), and Mr. Bold is scheduled to dance as Cavalier on December 22 (7:30). The Nutcracker runs now through December 28. For up-to-date casting information, check performance details on PNB.org/Nutcracker. PNB’s Season Encore Performance will be presented one night only, Sunday, June 11 at 6:30 pm. The performance will include a special tribute to Carrie Imler and Batkhurel Bold. Tickets to the Season Encore Performance will go on sale to subscribers in early 2017, and the general public in March 2017. Tickets may be purchased by calling the PNB Box Office at 206.441.2424, in person at 301 Mercer Street, or online at PNB.org. Programming and casting are subject to change. For further information, please visit PNB.org. ADDITIONAL ARTIST BIO INFORMATION Carrie Imler has danced leading roles in George Balanchine’s Apollo, Ballet Imperial, Brahms-Schoenberg Quartet, Chaconne, Concerto Barocco, Coppélia, Diamonds, Divertimento No. 15, The Four Temperaments, A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Titania, Hippolyta), The Nutcracker®, Rubies, Serenade, Square Dance, Stars and Stripes, Symphony in C, Symphony in Three Movements, Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux, Theme and Variations, Stravinsky Violin Concerto, La Valse, Western Symphony, and Who Cares?; Peter Boal’s Giselle (Myrtha); Val Caniparoli’s The Bridge, Lambarena, The Seasons, and Torque; Alejandro Cerrudo’s Memory Glow; David Dawson’s A Million Kisses to My Skin; Ulysses Dove’s Red Angels and Vespers; Nacho Duato’s Jardí Tancat and Rassemblement; William Forsythe’s In the middle, somewhat elevated, New Suite, One Flat Thing, reproduced and The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude; Ronald Hynd’s The Merry Widow (Hanna) and The Sleeping Beauty (Aurora, Lilac Fairy, Gold and Silver pas de trois); Jiri Kylian’s Forgotten Land, Petite Mort, and Sechs Tänze (Six Dances); Jean-Christophe Maillot’s Roméo et Juliette (Lady Capulet, Nurse); Peter Martins’ Fearful Symmetries; Mark Morris’ A Garden and Pacific; Kevin O’Day’s Aract; Kirk Peterson’s Amazed in Burning Dreams; Marius Petipa’s Le Corsaire Pas de Trois, Don Quixote (Kitri), and Paquita; Crystal Pite’s Emergence; Victor Quijada’s Suspension of Disbelief; Alexei Ratmanksy’s Concerto DSCH and Don Quixote (Kitri, Mercedes); Jerome Robbins’ The Concert, Dances at a Gathering, and In the Night; Kent Stowell’s Carmen, Carmina Burana, Cinderella (Cinderella, Fairy Godmother), Coppélia (Dance of the Hours, Dawn, Discord and War), Delicate Balance, Dumbarton Oaks, Firebird, Hail to the Conquering Hero, Kammergarten Tänze, Nutcracker (Clara, Flora), Poème St. Saëns, Quaternary, Silver Lining, Swan Lake(Odette/Odile, Queen Mother), and The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet (Juliet, Lady Capulet); Richard Tanner’s Ancient Airs and Dances; Lynne Taylor-Corbett’s Mercury; Paul Taylor’s Roses; Glen Tetley’s Voluntaries; Twyla Tharp’s In the Upper Room, Nine Sinatra Songs, and Waterbaby Bagatelles; Rudi van Dantzig’s Ginastera; and Christopher Wheeldon’s Variations Sérieuses (Ballerina). Ms. Imler has originated leading roles in Andrew Bartee’s arms that work, Kiyon Gaines’ M-Pulse and Sum Stravinsky, Nicolo Fonte’s Almost Tango, Morris’ Kammermusik No. 3, Quijada’s Mating Theory, Christopher Stowell’s Zaïs, Susan Stroman’s TAKE FIVE…More or Less, Tharp’s Opus 111 and Waiting at the Station, and Olivier Wevers’ Shindig. Ms. Imler danced in the BBC’s 1999 film version of PNB’s production of George Balanchine’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, filmed at Sadler’s Wells Theatre, London. She was also featured in Children with a Dream, a PBS documentary about Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet. Batkhurel Bold has danced leading roles in George Balanchine’s Agon, Apollo, Ballet Imperial, Brahms-Schoenberg Quartet, Concerto Barocco, Coppélia (Discord and War), Diamonds, The Four Temperaments, A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Titania’s Cavalier, Theseus, Divertissement pas de deux), The Nutcracker®, Serenade, Stars and Stripes, Symphony in C, Symphony in Three Movements, Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux, Theme and Variations, and La Valse; Peter Boal’s Giselle (Albrecht, Hilarion); Val Caniparoli’s Lambarena and The Seasons; Donald Byrd’s Subtext Rage; Ulysses Dove’s Dancing on the Front Porch of Heaven, Red Angels, and Serious Pleasures; David Dawson’s A Million Kisses to my Skin; Nacho Duato’s Jardí Tancat and Rassemblement; Nicolo Fonte’s Almost Tango; William Forsythe’s Artifact II, In the middle, somewhat elevated, and One Flat Thing, reproduced; Ronald Hynd’s The Merry Widow and The Sleeping Beauty (Prince Florimund); Jiri Kylian’s Forgotten Land and Petite Mort; Edwaard Liang’s Für Alina; José Limón’s The Moor’s Pavane; Jean-Christophe Maillot’s Roméo et Juliette (Tybalt); Peter Martins’ Fearful Symmetries; Mark Morris’ Pacific; David Parsons’ Caught; Toni Pimble’s Two’s Company; Marius Petipa’s Don Quixote and Paquita; Crystal Pite’s Emergence; Alexei Ratmansky’s Concerto DSCH and Don Quixote(Basilio, Espada); Jerome Robbins’ Dances at a Gathering, Glass Pieces, In the Night, and West Side Story Suite (Bernardo); Kent Stowell’s Carmen, Carmina Burana, Cinderella (Prince), Dumbarton Oaks, Duo Fantasy, Firebird, Kammergarten Tänze, Nutcracker (Prince), Orpheus Portrait, Quaternary, The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet (Tybalt), Silver Lining, Swan Lake (Prince Siegfried), and Zirkus Weill; Price Suddarth’s Signature; Glen Tetley’s The Rite of Spring and Voluntaries; Twyla Tharp’s In the Upper Room, Nine Sinatra Songs, and Waterbaby Bagatelles; and Christopher Wheeldon’s After the Rain pas de deux and Polyphonia. Mr. Bold has originated leading roles in Kiyon Gaines’ Interrupted Pri’si’zhen and Sum Stravinsky; Benjamin Millepied’s 3 Movements; Twyla Tharp’s Opus 111; Olivier Wevers’ Shindig; Christopher Wheeldon’s Tide Harmonic. Mr. Bold performed the role of Theseus in the BBC’s 1999 film version of PNB’s production of George Balanchine’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, filmed at Sadler’s Wells Theatre, London. In 2007, Mr. Bold performed in the worldwide company debut performance of Morphoses/The Wheeldon Company. He also has performed as a guest artist on the Vail International Dance Festival’s “International Evenings of Dance” galas. # # # Programming subject to change. For further information, please visit: PNB.org. Link to comment
sandik Posted December 7, 2016 Share Posted December 7, 2016 I am just sad. I've loved watching the both of them develop, and it's hard to realize this will be their last season with the company. Link to comment
pherank Posted December 7, 2016 Share Posted December 7, 2016 (edited) Following fast on the heels of Carla Korbes, Maria Chapman, Kaori Nakamura, etc. it has to be kind of depressing. Don't you just hate these "end-of-an-era" times? Some people are never really replaceable. Edited December 7, 2016 by pherank Link to comment
volcanohunter Posted December 7, 2016 Share Posted December 7, 2016 21 minutes ago, pherank said: Don't you just hate these "end-of-an-era" times? Some people are never really replaceable. Yes! I know just what you mean. A couple of years ago I began to panic when I realized that nearly all of my favorite dancers had been born within five years of each other and were in their mid-to-late thirties. I dreaded the thought that soon, like Imler and Bold, they would begin retiring. To be sure, there are a few I admire who are a bit younger, and few who are older and, thank heavens, still performing. But for me this has led to an uptick in ballet tourism, as I race around trying to see them dance while I still can. What truly fills me with dread is the thought that in ten years I may not be going to the ballet anymore, because what I see among the under-30 set (Tiler Peck excepted, of course) doesn't fill me with much hope: the dragonfly limbs, the marionette-like lack of centeredness, the really skewy skeletal alignment, the banana-foot fetish, which seems to override even a basic inability to move with coordination. Ech... I'm going to go cry in my eggnog now. Link to comment
sandik Posted December 8, 2016 Share Posted December 8, 2016 2 hours ago, volcanohunter said: What truly fills me with dread is the thought that in ten years I may not be going to the ballet anymore, because what I see among the under-30 set (Tiler Peck excepted, of course) doesn't fill me with much hope: the dragonfly limbs, the marionette-like lack of centeredness, the really skewy skeletal alignment, the banana-foot fetish, which seems to override even a basic inability to move with coordination. Ech... Don't write them all off too soon -- I often see fairly wobbly performers find their center and start to really dance after they spend a couple years on stage. Quote I'm going to go cry in my eggnog now. Careful -- you don't want to make it salty. Link to comment
choriamb Posted December 8, 2016 Share Posted December 8, 2016 7 hours ago, Helene said: There is death in my soul. NOOOOOO!!!!!!!! Imler is the first dancer who I've really followed all the way from corps through principal...and the second full-career dancer I'll see retire this year. Sigh...I am now officially old. [This would hurt less if she were losing steam...but she was the best Kitri(!) that they fielded two years ago...] Link to comment
vipa Posted December 8, 2016 Share Posted December 8, 2016 Miler is one of the few dancers that, here in NYC I'd hoped to see live. I didn't go to see R&J when she was the nurse. I wish there was more or her available on youtube. The little I've seen is fab. Link to comment
sandik Posted December 8, 2016 Share Posted December 8, 2016 People sometimes ask me if I'd rather be living/working in NYC, "where all the dancers are." But I've had great pleasures watching the dance community here, and Imler and Bold's careers have been a part of that. Link to comment
jsmu Posted January 9, 2017 Share Posted January 9, 2017 (edited) On 12/7/2016 at 1:09 PM, Helene said: There is death in my soul. I knew it was a matter of time, and that does not soften the blow one damn bit. I've never seen Imler dance without bringing something brilliantly individual, special, and irreplaceable to the role, whatever it is. Her Square Dance was my favorite after Patricia Wilde's, and that includes Ashley's and Nichols' which were both scintillating. The *wit* in her inflections (not to mention the ludicrously flawless petit allegro.......) Her Polyhymnia. Her Black Swan. I'll stop now. It's unutterably depressing. Edited January 9, 2017 by jsmu Link to comment
jsmu Posted January 9, 2017 Share Posted January 9, 2017 On 12/7/2016 at 9:06 PM, vipa said: Miler is one of the few dancers that, here in NYC I'd hoped to see live. I didn't go to see R&J when she was the nurse. I wish there was more or her available on youtube. The little I've seen is fab. If you can, go to Seattle this winter/spring and see her. The videos do not begin to convey her brilliance. Link to comment
jsmu Posted January 9, 2017 Share Posted January 9, 2017 (edited) On 12/7/2016 at 4:15 PM, volcanohunter said: Yes! I know just what you mean. A couple of years ago I began to panic when I realized that nearly all of my favorite dancers had been born within five years of each other and were in their mid-to-late thirties. I dreaded the thought that soon, like Imler and Bold, they would begin retiring. To be sure, there are a few I admire who are a bit younger, and few who are older and, thank heavens, still performing. But for me this has led to an uptick in ballet tourism, as I race around trying to see them dance while I still can. What truly fills me with dread is the thought that in ten years I may not be going to the ballet anymore, because what I see among the under-30 set (Tiler Peck excepted, of course) doesn't fill me with much hope: the dragonfly limbs, the marionette-like lack of centeredness, the really skewy skeletal alignment, the banana-foot fetish, which seems to override even a basic inability to move with coordination. Ech... I'm going to go cry in my eggnog now. Could not agree with you more. Peck is an anomaly, sadly (well, there's Ashley Laracey, if Martins ever sees fit to promote her to the principal status AND ROLES she deserved seven or eight years ago) and the ballerinas even remotely like Imler (Margaret Severin-Hansen at Carolina Ballet and Frances Chung at SF Ballet) are going to be retiring soon as well, uggggggh. I call the dreadful phenomenon you have mentioned 'the asparagus ballerina.' it's enough to make one stop attending the ballet. Edited January 9, 2017 by jsmu Link to comment
seattle_dancer Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 I just noticed a (new to me) photo of Carrie Imler on the PNB website. It's the main photo for Rep 6. It's the same photo of her in a long black dress that's posted outside McCaw Hall. But on the website she balancing in a gold frame, which implies she'll be dancing in Pictures at an Exhibition. It was such a treat to see Carrie and Jonathon Poretta close out New Suite tonight! They really looked like they were enjoying themselves and having fun. Link to comment
seattle_dancer Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 9 hours ago, seattle_dancer said: I just noticed a (new to me) photo of Carrie Imler on the PNB website. It's the main photo for Rep 6. It's the same photo of her in a long black dress that's posted outside McCaw Hall. But on the website she balancing in a gold frame, which implies she'll be dancing in Pictures at an Exhibition. Now that I think about it, just because a dancer is in a photo doesn't mean she's in that ballet. I remembered that Lindi Dec was featured in the Vertiginous costume and I don't believe she ever actually danced it. Sorry for the possible false alarm - late night wishful thinking on my part. We'll see what happens... Link to comment
SandyMcKean Posted March 28, 2017 Share Posted March 28, 2017 Quote I remembered that Lindi Dec was featured in the Vertiginous costume and I don't believe she ever actually danced it. I'm pretty sure I saw her dance it Link to comment
sandik Posted March 28, 2017 Share Posted March 28, 2017 2 hours ago, SandyMcKean said: I'm pretty sure I saw her dance it Well, she didn't dance it in the first week of the run. She did perform In the Middle and New Suite. Link to comment
seattle_dancer Posted March 28, 2017 Share Posted March 28, 2017 The second week-end of All Forsythe Jahna, Carli and Liz had their debuts. Chelsea was the only taller gal who danced it and I was really impressed since it is so fast. Lindsi did not dance at all at last year's NYC tour as she had just had her baby, which was kind of funny because she was the poster girl in a Kisses leotard. Angelica had her Vertiginous debut on this tour. At Celebrate Forsythe it was Leta, Carrie, and Maggie for one cast and the other was Rachel, Liz, and Angelica. Dang! The Encore program is still not announced. I thought it might be today since tickets went on sale to the public but no dice. Sigh... Link to comment
SandyMcKean Posted March 28, 2017 Share Posted March 28, 2017 18 hours ago, SandyMcKean said: I'm pretty sure I saw her dance it You're right, and I was wrong. I just looked at my old programs. In the 4 times I saw Vertiginous, Lindsi was not in the cast. Link to comment
sandik Posted March 29, 2017 Share Posted March 29, 2017 22 hours ago, seattle_dancer said: Dang! The Encore program is still not announced. I thought it might be today since tickets went on sale to the public but no dice. Sigh... I asked, and was told "soon." Which is rather like jam tomorrow and jam yesterday, but never jam today. Link to comment
Helene Posted June 1, 2017 Author Share Posted June 1, 2017 Seattle's last chance to see Carrie Imler and Batkhurel Bold is everyone's chance: PNB will live stream the Encores program on June 11, 6:30pm Pacific Time/9:30pm Eastern Time. Program: Theme and Variations (excerpt) -- Carrie Imler and Batkhurel BoldMusic: Peter Ilyich TchaikovskyChoreography: George Balanchine © The George Balanchine Trust 3 MovementsMusic: Steve ReichChoreography: Benjamin Millepied Nine Sinatra Songs (excerpt: “Something Stupid”) -- Carrie Imler and Jonathan PorrettaMusic: Sung by Frank SinatraChoreography: Twyla Tharp Cinderella (Act III pas de deux) -- Batkhurel Bold and Lesley RauschMusic: Sergei ProkofievChoreography: Kent Stowell “Folly” à deuxPièce d’occasion featuring Carrie Imler and Jonathan PorrettaMusic: Philip GlassChoreography: Kiyon Gaines Carousel (A Dance)Music: Richard RodgersChoreography: Christopher Wheeldon Swan Lake (Black Swan pas de deux) -- Carrie Imler and Batkhurel BoldMusic: Peter Ilyich TchaikovskyChoreography: Kent Stowell (after Marius Petipa) Link to comment
seattle_dancer Posted June 1, 2017 Share Posted June 1, 2017 vipa, here's your chance to see Carrie Imler! Link to comment
vipa Posted June 2, 2017 Share Posted June 2, 2017 3 hours ago, seattle_dancer said: vipa, here's your chance to see Carrie Imler! YES - and I am really excited! Can't wait!!! Thank you. Link to comment
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