balletomane Posted March 15, 2016 Share Posted March 15, 2016 According to PA ballet website: Choreographer in resident Matthew Neenan's Keep, Trey McIntyre's The Accidental and Nicolo Fonte's Grace Action March 29th and 30th at 7:30 March 31st, April 1st, April 2nd at 8:00pm matinees April 2nd and 3rd at 2:00 Has anyone seen any of these? Can you tell us about them? Is anyone going? Link to comment
Kaysta Posted March 15, 2016 Share Posted March 15, 2016 I've never seen any of these works. Not sure if I'm going to make it, depends on what is going on with NYCB that weekend. If anyone goes, I'd love to hear reports! Link to comment
zobeide Posted March 15, 2016 Share Posted March 15, 2016 According to PA ballet website: Choreographer in resident Matthew Neenan's Keep, Trey McIntyre's The Accidental and Nicolo Fonte's Grace Action March 29th and 30th at 7:30 March 31st, April 1st, April 2nd at 8:00pm matinees April 2nd and 3rd at 2:00 Has anyone seen any of these? Can you tell us about them? Is anyone going? NYCB's season doesn't start until April 19. Link to comment
mimsyb Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 I've never seen any of these works. Not sure if I'm going to make it, depends on what is going on with NYCB that weekend. If anyone goes, I'd love to hear reports! I just came home from tonight's performance. I don't know. Every ballet looked just like the other one, pretty much. Even within each work, the movement was so repetitive with one move looking just like the last. Energetic, for sure. Still trying to decide if the dancers were any good or not. So much athletic slinging of the legs around and fussy, non sensical moves made for it all looking like "grease on a hot griddle" after a time. Relentless. Non stop. Response to the music was pretty much "step for note" with no contrasting moments. Costumes were either overly fussy, plain silly, or well, leotards with slashes in them. Girls' legs were bare in every piece. Guess the company doesn't have a fund for tights! I was expecting a lot, but when the quality of the choreography is sub par, it's difficult to get a good read on the company. I don't need to see "Don Q", or even Balanchine every time out, but this was disappointing. MO Link to comment
sz Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 KEEP: Lillian DiPiazza, Arian Molina Soca - a stunningly beautiful pairLauren Fadeley - strong, gorgeous dancerAmy Aldridge, Francis Veyette, Ian Hussey, Jermel Johnson, Evelyn Kocak, Alexandra Hughes, Andrew Daly THE ACCIDENTAL: Evelyn Kocak, Craig Wasserman, Oksana Maslova, James Ihde, Alexandra Hughes, Ian Hussey and Craig Wasserman - a very strong, interesting dancer GRACE ACTION: Lillian, Arian, Lauren, Ian, Craig, Alexandra, Marjorie Feiring, Russell Ducker, Holly Fusco, Andrew Daly, and my first live viewing of the new DonQ couple Mayara Pineiro with Etienne Diaz - she's truly lovely,with a strong technique, and he is also very strong technically and a fine partner - a natural, youthful chemistry between them I was there for opening night, along with many present and former NYCB dancers. That was one fun meet and greet party with Angel hosting, talking with everyone who said hello. While I was very impressed with most of the dancers, I too wish Angel had added something classical at least once in the program. I understand he is showing NYC that PA can dance contemporary, but it was too, too much of the same thing. Also the stage at the Joyce is much too small for any Balanchine-type or DonQ or Corsaire-type pas de deux, so I really don't know what else he could have brought besides contemporary pieces. In summary, the dancers, not this program, most definitely did encourage me to visit PA Ballet again to see their rep in PA. Link to comment
sandik Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 What music were these choreographers using? Link to comment
sz Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 KEEP: choreography by Matthew Neenan, music by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and Borodin -- heavily repeated THE ACCIDENTAL: Trey McIntyre's choreography:, Patrick Watson's music -- overall a fun piece but too long GRACE ACTION: choreography by Nicolo Fonte, music by Phillip Glass -- too long a piece but was imo the most sophisticated in style Link to comment
its the mom Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 From Macauley's review: "The changes in Pennsylvania Ballet are far more apparent when you see its home repertory in Philadelphia, especially in more traditional works. Both its manner of training and performance are undergoing revision. Pennsylvania Ballet was for decades among the oldest of the Balanchine diaspora companies that have spread across the United States, but — as performances of “Concerto Barocco” showed last autumn — it now dances Balanchine ballets without a secure underpinning of Balanchine style, and is sometimes showing un-Balanchinean behavior (bright smiles in “Barocco”). Though this need not concern audiences at the Joyce, even here you can see how much the troupe is altering itself. Just now, it doesn’t even look like a company: There are plenty of talented dancers, but with obviously different manners and styles. Will it become more cohesive in a few seasons’ time? Is a company style part of Mr. Corella’s vision?" He says what I have been thinking since I watched Nutcracker this season. The company is certainly moving away from its roots. And while some of the new dancers are very bravura in the tricks they do, I am not sure that their technique is necessarily better. Link to comment
balletomane Posted March 31, 2016 Author Share Posted March 31, 2016 This season in Philadelphia the PA Ballet had only two full length ballets (Nut and Don Q) and four mixed rep. Next season they will have three full lengths (Cinderella, Nut and Le Corsaire) and three mixed rep. This is the first season I have seen. I am wondering if this is a sign of change? Which is more typical for them? I am pretty sure that Angel answered a question during one of the prelude talks stating that he was going to keep the Balanchine influence, present new works, and add an extra full length. Any thoughts on this. Had they done many full lengths in the past? Link to comment
its the mom Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 In the past, they have done two full-lengths per year. Wheeldon's Swan Lake, McIntyre's Peter Pan, Balanchine's Midsummer, Bournonville's La Sylphide, Stevenson's Cinderella and Dracula, Ashton's La Fille, Sleeping Beauty (after Petipa), and Cranko's Romeo & Juliet, to name what I remember. There was not much hardcore "after Petipa" work. I realize that Corella is coming from a different background, but the roots of this company were Balanchine with Barbara Weisberger. It saddens me to see it all change. Link to comment
Jayne Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 well he hired 2 Balanchine era dancers as dance masters. So I don't think all the Balanchine will go away. Change is hard, sometimes it is good, sometimes it doesn't work. But staying the same-old same-old doesn't work either. Link to comment
sz Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 Agreeing with Jayne, I think PA Ballet will not be a sister/brother type company to NYCB in the future. I think, I hope, that PA Ballet will be a very good ABT-type company. I'm remembering the days when ABT had principals from other countries and companies with different dance training. They added color and style to ABT. There was not a strict uniform style. Also ABT used to dance Balanchine ballets as well as a bit more Jerry Robbins than it does today.... Not sure what the politics of that situation are... but I miss much of what ABT once was. Angel with all of his connections and experience I think, I hope, will create a very interesting company in PA. A large part will depend on not only what choreography Angel presents but what dancers are attracted to working for him. So far so good, imo. Link to comment
mira Posted March 31, 2016 Share Posted March 31, 2016 Alastair Macaulay pointed out "it now dances Balanchine ballets without a secure underpinning of Balanchine style" which, to an untrained eye, might not be obvious, but is noticed and remarked upon in this review. The SAB training focuses on musicality, speed and may appear "simple" but is highly detailed. Few companies ever rise to the level of Balanchine (or Robbins) performed by NYCB. Yes, the hiring of Charles Askegarde and Kyra Nichols should help bring the new hires along although Kyra is not there full time. The shift in artistic focus is clear - Balanchine ballets will be danced by dancers not trained at SAB and Mr. Corella will continue to move his company in the direction of the ABT model. Link to comment
canbelto Posted April 3, 2016 Share Posted April 3, 2016 I went tonight. I actually really enjoyed the show, and was completely entranced by Lillian diPiazza and Arian Molina Soca. What a beautiful couple, and they really smoldered despite the less than great choreography in Keep. More thoughts here: http://poisonivywalloftext.blogspot.com/2016/04/pennsylvania-ballet-contemporary-ballet.html Link to comment
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