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ABT in Chicago


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Take if for what it's worth but casting is up for ABT's upcoming performances of Giselle in Chicago:

03/22-7:30PM -- Kent/Gomes/Part

03/23-7:30PM -- Reyes/Cornejo/Messmer

03/24-2:00PM -- Herrera/Stearns/Abrera

03/24-8:00PM -- Osipova/Hallberg/Murphy

03/25-2:00PM -- TBA

I think I'm going to shoot for Herrera/Stearns/Abrera and Osipova/Hallberg/Murphy on the 24th . . .

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Miliosr: There is a possibility I may be able to make it to Chicago for some performances...Can you tell me anything about the theater--especially how good/strong the banking of the seats is downstairs (I am short), sight-lines and the best seats upstairs. Thank you...

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Miliosr: There is a possibility I may be able to make it to Chicago for some performances...Can you tell me anything about the theater--especially how good/strong the banking of the seats is downstairs (I am short), sight-lines and the best seats upstairs. Thank you...

Hi Drew. I saw the Mariinsky at the Aud several years ago and was surprised at a few things about the seating. The orchestra section is very, very deep and about halfway up the raking becomes very steep. I'm also short so I didn't sit in the orchestra, I usually opt for the 1st row of the balcony or the balcony sides. The balcony is set very far back so even the 1st row feels like Siberia...If I was going again I'd opt for the orchestra row P or higher. Here's a photo from their website:

http://auditoriumtheatre.org/wb/

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Good stuff, Susan.

The main floor of the Auditorium is 38 rows deep, but it is well raked. Here http://auditoriumthe...0Auditorium.jpg is a representation of the place in its early years. It seems huge. (For comparison, their website claims they have 3,877 seats, and the Civic Opera House, where ABT usually dances in Chicago, seats 3,563; the Metropoitan Opera House in New York seats 3,800, and the new Harris Theater, where POB is giving Giselle in late June incidentally, seats about 1,500, a better size for dance, IMO.)

A little secret about the main floor in the Auditorium is that at row P and going back, the seats are raised a step higher than they would be if they were only set on the same rising curve as the rows in front of them, so although it seems a bit far, it does have that advantage. (I should probably disclose at this point that I'm taller than Susan.) And I have been avoiding the front ten rows or so over the years, having found them to be nearly level and too low.

Yes, the front of the balcony is pretty far, but at least it's well elevated, which always helps me overcome distance.

On the other hand, I've rarely found a location in the Civic I was satisfied with, and assuming ABT were in there again, I hadn't thought to try to see them. Okay, the Auditorium this time? My favorite opera house. Which cast should I shoot for, now that they're known?

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I concur about the raking. The seats in Row P and back are my favorite ones. Our season seats for the Joffrey are in the back of the orchestra, Row DD. The sightlines here are excellent due to the raking, but it's hard to see individual dancers really well.

Note that if you visit the office prior to the show, they will give you a booster cushion. The office is just inside the main entrance, to the right.

Allow some time just to absorb the splendid ambience of the Auditorium, including the wonderful mosaics in the stairwells. The ornamentation is one of Louis Sullivan's masterpieces.

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Which cast should I shoot for, now that they're known?

Well if you are a fan of Julie Kent, I think we can all assume she's winding down her career and the chance to see her Giselle in the future--especially on tour in Chicago--will be limited, so you may want to see her. Plus the obvious benefits of Marcelo Gomes and the divine Veronika Part.

The Sunday matinee is an all-debut cast, and I would see it for that reason and especially because of Matthews.

Those would be my two choices, for what it's worth. I am not the Osipova fan that many on here are, though, so I'm sure many would suggest you see her cast!

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Which cast should I shoot for, now that they're known?

Ok, my opinions on the casts:

03/22-7:30PM -- Kent/Gomes/Part

At this point I'm not really a fan of Kent in this, she is a bit stylized for my taste. But she does have some nice qualities and she really is nearing the end of her career. Gomes is a complete win in this (well in anything) and Part is a magnificent and terrifying Myrthe. So while there is (in my view) a weakness in the Giselle, there are some compensating virtues in her as well, and the rest of the cast is stellar.

03/23-7:30PM -- Reyes/Cornejo/Messmer

I am not a Reyes fan, though she has won me over considerably in the last few years. This was one of the roles that helped. It must be said that she simply does not have the neck for a proper romantic line (and I am NOT an emploi nut in the least, but she has a short neck and it makes it impossible for her to get those lovely looks in the second act). That said she is really (or was when I last saw her in this a few years ago with Cornejo for his debut) completely charming in this. Not oversmiley and was very touching in the second act. Cornejo is wonderful. And this is a very good role for Messmer unless I am misremembering. It was quite new for her when I saw her and I was really impressed at how she nailed it. I would be surprised if it wasn't even better now.

03/24-2:00PM -- Herrera/Stearns/Abrera

For me this is a miss. I do like Herrera sometimes, but I don't see this as her role. I'm still not won over by Stearns who is improving but is shouldering a massive burden at the company and was pushed very hard and while handsome, and tall, is not the kind of talent we see in say Hallberg, and I'm one of the few who doesn't adore Abrera. Maybe she can be icy enough for this but I don't see her as having the authority for Myrtha. It is one of the problems for me with her in a very different part, that of Lilac Fairy (if she is cast against a strong figure like Part, especially). I think her much more suited for Giselle actually.

03/24-8:00PM -- Osipova/Hallberg/Murphy

A complete win of a cast. Osipova is perhaps a bit unorthodox but both wonderfully committed to the character and an amazing dancer. Her act 2 is unworldly. Hallberg is amazing in this though no one would ever believe he was a peasant, no matter how well he may act. Murphy is a fantastic Myrtha. The best overall cast of this.

As for the debut cast--I don't have any opinion really. I don't even know the myrtha. It could be very interesting, it could be a disaster. I'd kind of like to see it and find out!

Can't wait for reviews!!!!

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i'm going to try to visit friends that weekend and hopefully catch the Sat evening cast.

I like the Auditorium theatre, with my financial constraints i think you get better seats in the balcony than you do at the Lyric Opera House. I've seen the Joffrey from the middle right side of the balcony. It wasn't the furthest right but it was pretty far over, and there were no sightline issues.

The past two times I've been to the the ABT tours in Chicago, the weekday nights (minus opening night) is not "crowded"

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