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Belka

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  • Connection to/interest in ballet** (Please describe. Examples: fan, teacher, dancer, writer, avid balletgoer)
    former dancer, avid fan
  • City**
    Washington
  • State (US only)**, Country (Outside US only)**
    DC

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  1. Megan Fairchild posted some rehearsal footage of Ballo della Regina with Anthony Huxley today on Instagram. It's not the disappearing stories either, so you can watch it at your leisure!
  2. I saw Devon Teuscher in what I believe was her O/O debut (with Marcelo Gomes) years ago at the Kennedy Center. What do you all recommend, is Misseldine the show to see for this KC run? I have never seen Catherine Hurlin or Christine Shevchenko perform either.
  3. Hooray! He caught my eye immediately on the onstage class in late September, and again as a policeman in the Sep 30 evening performance of Slaughter on Tenth Ave. Also on that night, India Bradley did triple overtime as a featured dancer in Bouree Fantasque AND Agon, and then returned to stage as one of the Ladies of the Ballet in Slaughter. (She, Sara Adams and Taylor Stanley were great in Agon pas de trois). Is it unusual for a dancer to dance all of the pieces in a mixed bill? She looked to be having the time of her life in Slaughter, at the end of a long evening (or so I imagine).
  4. I remember seeing the entire Tchaikovsky Suite No. 3 at Kennedy Center in 2013 and was absolutely blown away by Ashley Bouder stunning performance of the Theme and Variations portion. I remember it well, because sometime soon-ish before (or possibly after, need to check my records) Michele Wiles performed it for ABT. I think that was my first "Theme" experience, and from what I recall she looked very labored and not comfortable. In Feb of this year, The Washington Ballet performed a week of all-Balanchine programming, including T&V. I saw the cast with Maki Onuki, one of my favorite TWB dancers, and she did well (much better than Wiles)!
  5. I'm a former ballet dancer, and I brought my non-dancer friend (who is a newer fan of ballet) to the class and we both thought it was incredibly interesting to watch. My friend noted she enjoyed it as much as the performance we saw a day prior.
  6. One week ago my friend and I took the train from DC to see the Sep 28 and Sep 30 evening performances, and we took in the onstage company class and the 5pm onstage presentation. What an absolute treat and honor to experience all of the different parts of the ballet in one long weekend--and a major rainstorm to boot! I'm pretty late with these thoughts, so I'll try to keep it short. Sep 28 (Thursday evening) Western Symphony - all of the soloists were really on top of their game. Kudos to Olivia MacKinnon for staying focused during the costume malfunction - someone upthread mentioned the long ribbon (?) that came undone from her costume and fortunately didn't get in the way of either her dancing or Gilbert Bolden's partnering (as many others have already stated, please promote him). Indiana pulled off the complex series of attitude turns in place of the italian fouettes without a care. But the show stealer for me was Emily Kikta! WOW! What explosive, fun dancing with abandon! Andrew Veyette matched her energy and flair, and it was fantastic to watch this ballet, which ended up being my favorite of the evening--not a single weak point in the dancing. Tarantella - I had two friends with me who were not previously dancers who both remarked that Daniel Ulbricht really tore up the stage and that Erica P. wasn't able to match his energy. Sad I missed Emma Von Enck in this one. Watching Roman and Megan bring down the house in Stars and Stripes was just icing on the cake after Western Symphony. I don't think there's anything either of them can't do. What a pleasure. Sep 30 - Onstage class - this was actually my favorite activity of the weekend. I loved seeing the dancers just being themselves. I too noticed Gilbert front and center at the barre with Roman and Tiler, and mostly watched them in the warm up, and Alexa Maxwell, who was pretty much right in front of me. Across the floor I was extremely impressed by Alexa Maxwell, Miriam Miller, and a corps member I had to look up: Cainan Weber - his movements seemed extremely sharp and put together. Megan F, Tiler, Roman (who was also keeping everyone entertained with pirouettes a la seconde upstage) were a joy to watch as well. Sep 30 - Onstage presentation - What a treat to see all of these pieces I didn't anticipate seeing this weekend! Highlights were Baily Jones in Symphony in C 3rd movement (I did not think Villarini-Velez was up to par with her, technically); Emma and Jovani Furlan in Rubies (wow! please have them dance this in DC next year); the bonus viewing of Megan F and Roman in Stars and Stripes, this time from a closer seat, was pure joy; and it it always a pleasure to see the exquisite Taylor Stanley. His remarks about what Agon meant to him were heartfelt and sincere and his dancing matches those sentiments. Unity danced the Rondo in Western Symphony with Veyette--it was interesting to compare that performance to the Kikta/Veyette show on the 28th. Though this was not a "real" performance, Unity's dancing was much more reserved and "proper" compared with Kikta's. I imagine that surprises no one on this board, but it was fascinating for me to be able to compare the two. I'm squarely in camp Kikta for this role at least (and, I suspect for many other roles. You can't take your eyes off her). 30 Sep performance thoughts to follow.
  7. Thank you for clarifying your point, I was reading too quickly and misinterpreted. My apologies! I have listened to presumably the Ravel orchestrated version many times over the years, I understand what you mean about the dark and melancholic mood not necessarily matching the choreography. On another topic - Sara Mearns seems to have had quite a triumphant experience as Juliet in Canada. Was anyone able to attend? It's a bit too far from DC for me to manage the trip. I haven't seen her perform since the 2022 Kennedy Center run, but I am so pleased to hear about her looking like her old self again.
  8. I returned to KC to catch the other program on Friday night. It was, of course, much less of a slam dunk than the Balanchine/Robbins program, but I went in with an open mind. I saw Pictures at an Exhibition the last time City Ballet brought it to KC and liked it fairly well then and now. I agree with YouOverThere that the choreography would seem to fit better with an orchestra version of the music, rather than just the piano. Indiana and Roman were the biggest standouts for me, as was Ashley Laracey. I wish I had gotten to see more of her in this KC run, she is stunning. After the first intermission, the elderly lady next to me opened a container of...peanuts? Some kind of food item which she continued to eat/suck on for the entire second act. I’m usually not one to tolerate this, but she was so elderly that I couldn’t bring myself to say anything. I think this put in me in irritated mood just in time for Standard Deviation, and wow I did NOT like it at all. I thought the music was cacophonous and the choreography uninteresting and not fitted at all to the (awful) music. Emma von Enck tore it up with the frenetic, meaningless choreography she was given, and she was impressive. The Miriam Miller/Gilbert Bolden pas de deux parts also featured beautiful dancers with boring choreography. Not the dancers’ fault. The dark costumes made it difficult to see what the corps was doing, but I found that I didn’t much care at that point. I had hopes that the eating of the nuts would be finished by the time Naomi Corti took the stage for Solo, but I was to be disappointed again. She was breathtaking, however, and made gorgeous geometrical shapes and drew invisible lines with her body. She deserved a standing ovation. After the second intermission, and my neighbor thankfully done eating, I settled in for Love Letter (on Shuffle). Despite the truly awful costumes, which also obscured the audience from seeing the dancers’ movements, and despite the at times dissonant music, I really enjoyed this piece. The choreography was intriguing and I actually liked much (but not all) of the music. Is there a more exquisite dancer than Taylor Stanley? I don’t think I have ever gotten to see him dance before, and I was spellbound. I did not take my eyes off him the entire time he was on stage. No one else could come close. I loved the ending. I will be on a train to NYC to see more of Taylor S.
  9. I saw the opening night (Tues 6 Jun) Balanchine/Robbins show at Kennedy Center and returned on Friday (9 June) new works mixed bill. There are my Balanchine/Robbins comments, if it’s too long, basically everything was brilliant. I'll post comments on the 9 June performance a bit later. I went to opening night to see Megan and the surprise Joseph Gordon debut in Square Dance, Mira Nadon and Isabella LaFreniere in Concerto Barocco, and Tiler and Roman in Donizetti Variations. I was also pleased to get to see Unity Phelan for the first time, in Afternoon of a Faun. It was a wonderful mix of my long time favorites (Megan and Tiler) plus the fantastic new talent. This was my first time getting a look at some of the newly-promoted principal dancers and they did not disappoint! I was disappointed that Anthony Huxley was not dancing, as I so loved seeing him in Sleeping Beauty earlier this year and was especially looking forward to him in Solo. First time seeing Square Fast as well – what a tremendous ballet, I would love to see it many more times to pick apart its intricacies and wickedly fast footwork! Megan and Joe Gordon—who apparently learned the ballet only four days prior, according to his Instagram story—did a fantastic job, as I expected from watching Megan for years at KC now. What a pleasure to watch! I am much less familiar with the corps members, but they performed marvelously as well. I do wish there were photos on the City Ballet website so I could attempt to put some names to faces. The corps choreography was so interesting and fast—my friend who attended with me remarked that it must be more interesting to be a corps dancer at City Ballet than a soloist in other companies. I was happy to finally see Afternoon of a Faun, I have been curious to see it since watching the Tanaquil Le Clerq documentary. I feel it is a ballet that needs more than one viewing to appreciate, more time to digest its components. Joseph and Unity are exceedingly beautiful people and lovely dancers, and it was a pleasure to watch something contemplative after the speed of Square Dance. Concerto Barocco offered my first glimpse at both Mira and Isabelle and WOW what an exciting performance that was! The corps was ON POINT and really had it together. As a reader of this message board, I expected to be blown away by Mira, and her effortless, grand, fast dancing did indeed blow me away, but I was perhaps even taken more aback by Isabelle’s attack in all of her moves and her extremely precise, yet somehow silent footwork. I will seek out her performances in the future! Mira had the more challenging role, dancing the pas de deux in the second movement, and it was sublime. Having seen Maria Kowroski perform this role, I don’t think Mira was quite to that level of…gooeyness (is that a word I can use to describe balletic movement?) in the pas de deux—I felt she could have luxuriated in some of the steps even more, as I remember Maria doing—but she is so new to this piece that I am certain it will come, and sooner rather than later. Absolutely fantastic! Finally, what more can be said about Tiler in Donizetti? I assumed when I saw her Instagram stories about being injured that we would not be seeing her in DC, at least not on opening night, but she surprised us all by not only being healed enough to dance, but also to come rip-roaring onto the stage like nothing had even happened. Classic Tiler performance – subtle, nuanced musicality and technique paired with larger than life dancing. She was superbly paired by Roman Mejia, who said on Instagram “loved making my debut in this ballet” – but it was not noted in the playbill as a debut. Debut or no, I (and the audience) couldn’t get enough of him. Audience members were besides themselves with his bravura pirouettes and sautes. I think I almost laughed because I couldn’t believe what I was witnessing. He is just overflowing with Angel Corella-esque abilities. We couldn’t have asked for a more thrilling finish to the evening. I did notice Dominika Afanasenkov as a stand out corps member in Donizetti variations, and the three male dancers—David Gabriel, Charlie Kiesa and Davida Riccardo—danced with incredible precision and were totally in sync. It was also thrilling!
  10. Seeing his bluebird on Sunday--Mejia literally did not seem earth-bound. He soared! His dancing was somehow precise and sharp yet so graceful and fluid. His energy did not seem to run out and along with the sparkling Emma von Enck, I daresay they rivaled Aurora and the Prince in their effortless dancing and charming rapport onstage!
  11. Despite ABT being in town with Romeo and Juliet, my friend and I decided instead to drive up to NYC from Washington to see Sunday night’s Sleeping Beauty, featuring Woodward, Huxley, and Gerrity. I am usually only able to see City Ballet when they tour DC, so usually two shows once a year. I’m a long time reader but infrequent contributor on this board—after reading so much about the different casts, decided it was worth my time and money to make the journey! I wish I had been able to see Fairchild, but the timing didn’t work out. But we were both so incredibly pleased with the cast we did see—it was all just enchanting! I envy the posters who have the privilege of seeing NYCB routinely. For us out-of-towners, seeing NYCB at Lincoln Center was a truly incredible experience! I thought Indiana was a perfect Aurora, just so full of energy and joy in her dancing. It is always a treat to watch a dancer and just know that there is no need to worry about execution or mistakes, she was just fantastic! Sure, there was a tiny bit of uncertainty in the Rose Pas promenades, but she did not come off pointe and had some admirable balances, even if not every single partner change allowed for a perfect balance. Burned into my memory is the incredible control she exhibited after going for broke in the sets of coupe jetes en manege followed by pique turns ending with a suspended-in-time, perfectly held final passe before finishing with total control. It was breathtaking and it happened twice! (once in the Spell and again in a different manege section in the Wedding variation) I enjoyed watching Emilie Gerrity as Lilac Fairy, she was very regal and commanding, and her dancing expansive. Anthony Huxley looked handsome and his dancing was so crisp and clean that I mostly did not notice the little bobble in the chaine turns in his own variation in the 2nd act. I think the entire audience held their breath as he struggled and struggled to get his cloak off before the Vision scene—extricating himself from it *just* in the nick of time! We breathed a HUGE collective sigh of relief when it finally came off right before the dancing started! I thought Huxley and Woordward danced spectacularly together in Act II. The fish dives seemed so secure and precise that we were barely breathing. Megan LeCrone was great as Carabosse, beautiful yet deliciously evil! My friend asked: “are those cicadas?” when her creatures first appeared. Not sure if NY had the cicada invasion a few years ago, but they briefly were the only thing people could talk about in DC a few years ago. Their giant red bug eyes did look cicada-like! I thought Emma von Enck and Roman Mejia were flawless and completely nailed the Bluebird pas de deux. They brought down the house with the applause, demonstrating that they are absolutely ready for bigger roles. The entire third act was a joy. I had no idea NYCB used a tiny child for Little Red Riding Hood, and was astounded by her ability to keep up with the adult dancers. Wow! KJ Takahashi subbed for Villarini-Velez as the lead (center) jester and killed it as well—all three of them delighted, in fact, but I couldn’t stop watching Takahashi. I don’t think I saw any weak performances, honestly. Standing out for me among the First Act fairies was Baily Jones (so precise and speedy in Courage) and Mary Thomas MacKinnon (beautiful a la second jumps in Vivacity), as well as Ashley Hod (Diamond) in Act II. Now that I know how relatively easy it is to go to NYC on the train, I am hoping to make this journey more often. I’m also hoping to catch Washington Ballet in its All Balanchine program this week.
  12. I really wanted to attend NYCB mixed bill, but work didn't allow me to leave early enough to catch those two evenings. I was looking forward to seeing new works, confident in the knowledge that if they weren't my favorite, Midsummer wouldn't be too far away. I received the "Reframing the Narrative" mailer, and as a counterpoint, I think it is an exciting program that I definitely plan on seeing. I can't see how any of it would seem offensive or anti-ballet. I am a classical ballet fan whose passion is Balanchine works and NYCB, but always welcome new works being presented in DC. I can't imagine all of my ballet options being a never-ending cycle of the classics. I remember Wendy Whelan said once (paraphrasing) that dancers need new choreography as sustenance--you can't eat the same thing every day and be satisfied.
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