jsmu

Absolutely, Neryssa, to all those, especially Patty McBride and the indispensable Verdy In addition to that, Diana Adams, as many people have said; Melissa Hayden Patricia Wilde LeClercq of course though there are some books about her Kyra Nichols! Nadia Nerina, as said earlier Svetlana Beriosova Irina Kolpakova ...

KarenAG--If you saw Farrell in the *early* Eighties, you saw her almost at the level she had been at since returning to NYCB in the Seventies. Although the hip was beginning to bother her then, Balanchine made 'Walpurgisnacht' and 'Mozartiana' for her in 80 and 81, and those are two highly demanding ballerina roles. I wouldn't agree at all about pre-Bejart being more interesting to ballet enthusiasts, though; Arlene Croce, probably the best American dance critic, said in welcoming Farrell back in 75 that Farrell had a new 'sensitivity' and that before Farrell left in 69 she was a 'superdiva who distorted every role she danced except those with distortions already written in.' I was too young to see that Farrell but I saw the New and Improved 70s/80s version many, many times, and I certainly don't imagine she was a better dancer when she was younger. She did dance a bit after the hip replacement, including en pointe in one ballet, but not often before her farewell in 89, which was mostly the Rosenkavalier sequence from Vienna Waltzes (this is all in the book but not necessarily immediate knowledge.)

Merci beaucoup, Mme. Hermine.

Yes. I admire Lane for having acquired a beautiful, fluent technique and correctness. There will always be people who complain about highly accomplished technique. Abrera is a lovely dancer and deserved promotion years ago, but Kochetkova is an embarassment and a complete creation of her social-media promo hype. You should have seen her disgrace herself in "Theme and Variations" a couple of years ago at SFB.

I'm glad to hear that. he is a hugely promising dancer. Re my other post, thank you.

Amour, I was particularly taken by what you said about Lyrica Blankfein. Having just seen the video of the 2014 Workshop, I was stunned that not only Blankfein but the lovely Addie Tapp, and Christopher Grant, AND Taylor Carrasco (dazzling in 'Discord and War') were all left off the NYCB apprentice list. I have never been a Martins fan but this was particularly disgraceful and clueless, even for him....and you are right. Serenade bore no resemblance to what NYCB currently does--it was light years better.

Verdy is an irreplaceable treasure: "Je faisais des ondes..."! Hope she starts her memoir soon--that is something which *must* be published.

Shirabyoshi, if you notice earlier in the thread, I posted about Nunez' Myrtha. I believe it may simply have been the particular performance you saw which may not have been quite evil enough for you (lol)...she is one of the best Myrthas I've ever seen, on a level with , say, Martine van Hamel, who was peerless in the role in her day. I also think Nunez walks regularly on water (there is not another woman in Royal to touch her right now, sadly) and wanted to mention this.

Amen to that. Kochetkova has never been anything near Lane technically or artistically (neither has Copeland, but that's a separate contretemps) Any ballerina who has acquitted herself honorably in multiple performances of "Theme and Variations" is light years beyond being 'ready to be a principal'...

Very sad. Somogyi was a highly unusual combination of brilliant technical prowess (at one time she did most of the gut-cruncher roles, before her first injury) and a pensive, expressive, somewhat dark quality. In some ways, particularly when young, she strikingly resembled Kyra Nichols and had some of the same virtuosity. The company has not had anyone like her since.

abatt, I did see Bouder do Ballo (sadly, she does not seem to be doing it of late--another acquisition for Megan Fairchild which does not suit her) and thought she was excellent. The dash and sparkle imperative here are Bouder specialties. Of course, in the present NYCB, I'd cast Bouder nearly exclusively in every technical role Balanchine ever made, alternating only with Tiler Peck and perhaps Ana Sophia Scheller on occasion--Ballo, Square Dance, Rubies (she's good in Verdy's role but the company HAS no other Rubies ballerina but Peck, who almost never dances it), Raymonda V., Donizetti V, Tschaik Pas, Valse-Fantaisie, Tarantella, the allegro ballerina in Divert, Theme and Variations, etc. ad infinitum. It's a shame, for example, they do not do the third movement of Western now--Bouder's jump was made for that. and of course, imagine her in Minkus PdT, GLINKA PdT (both of which Martins has not bothered to put on since the Balanchine Celebration over twenty years ago, though they are among Balanchine's most dazzling and perfect showpieces.)! I realize Bouder has at one time or another performed all of the aforementioned roles but she usually alternates in them (most glaringly in Square Dance) with dancers extremely unsuited to such demands, which forces invidious comparisons. It's like seeing (which I did) the lapidary Frances Chung in Theme one night and Maria Kochetkova the next--horrifying. Sorry for the excursion, lol, but it *was* in response to a question... bingham, not even the sublime Kyra Nichols compared to Ashley in Ballo, nor did any of the goddesses I mentioned, though every one of them was superb. Ashley had a technical faultlessness combined with not brio but FIRE which in person was slightly frightening and completely breathtaking.

Quiggin, what a marvelous quote from Verdy! thank you. classic. As usual, I agree completely with Josette--Messmer was fascinating and it's a shame she's gone; Andre always seems to exude energy and happiness; Nedvigin and Chung burned up the stage in the first section of 'Hummingbird'--and with PeggyR--Sylve deserves an entire ovation to herself, not just as the Girl in Green, but often. She was astoundingly witty in 'Dances' and although I was too young for Verdy in this role I could imagine similar charm and soignee dancing from her. I also agree about Kochetkova's nauseating overextensions (completely taste-free and inappropriate)--yet another thing I loathe about this dancer, and there were already thousands. The Karapetyan step was magnificent...

the spring mixed repertory program at Houston Ballet-- Merrill Ashley must have slightly mixed feelings about staging 'Ballo della Regina.' She knows of course that no one can ever be what she was in this ballet (and having seen lots of 'Ballos' including several with Ashley, I say this with some confidence.) and she, being intelligent, knows that one cannot ask that of anyone. However, the brilliance and joie de vivre required to give even a good performance of this ballerina role are rare enough that some of the dancers Ashley herself has coached in the part were utterly unequal to the task (most recently Natalia Arja at Miami City Ballet, who left out several steps and simplified others---which it is hard to believe Ashley countenanced or approved.) No company director, and certainly not Ashley, gives a killer Balanchine role to a complete weakling, but for every Elizabeth Loscavio and Marianela Nunez and Lorna Feijoo (all sublime) there have been just as many dancers whose inadequacy was extremely embarrassing. Fortunately, on this occasion, the dancer was more than equal to the task and seemed to have absorbed every iota of Ashley's wonderful coaching. Allison Miller, a soloist with HB, had such palpable delight in virtuosity--such lovely open carriage--such huge jumps--such marvelous Balanchinean angles and placement-- and such a scale to her dancing, that her wonderful performance was up there with all the aforementioned goddesses. Her opening pas de chat set this tone, and she continued it through her entire performance; the horrendously difficult hops (and turning hops) en pointe were scintillating, the double pirouettes into pique arabesque were great, and she conveyed happiness in every step. All the dancers were good in this 'Ballo'; Oliver Halkowich was elegant and poised in his beats and supportive but discreet as a partner (he and Miller gave the impression that she didn't REALLY need his support but it was such a pleasure for them to dance together that it needed to happen) and the four demis all had tremendous verve, particularly Soo Youn Cho and Katelyn May, another big jumper. I am pretty much of Alistair Macaulay's opinion on 'Jardi Tancat': why? As he says, the vein was mined out years ago, and I find this ballet tedious and derivative at best and soporific at worst. The hideously over-loud and distorted sound precluded sleep in this case (Catalan folk singing really does not take to over-amplification....) The cast here was excellent, particularly the sterling Christopher Coomer who shines in every part, large or small (and should have been a principal years ago) so instead of snoring I admired their strong dancing and commitment. "Etudes." well. This ballet is nothing if not schtick: the cutesy lighting scheme showing only the dancers' feet and then legs for some time before finally revealing their entire figures, the score which is entirely Czerny (and orchestrated, shall we say, peculiarly...), the black and white tutus, etc. I guess it's a great workout for a company (everyone has to DANCE, and jump, and turn--there is a passage where half the company does grands jetes on the diagonal, one at a time.....) and of course audiences love it because it's flashy. The principals (Katharine Precourt, Aaron Robison, and Chun Wai Chan) were never less than good, sometimes excellent, but did show the strain of the constant ludicrous technical demands (the passage where Robison's role has to do multiple double tours alternating with double sauts de basque with zero preparation or rest in between, for example) In ballet, the stuggle to appear effortless in difficult physical feats is titanic even when the choreography has other ends beside display; in something like 'Etudes', cruelly, any slight appearance of effort or strain is even more glaring because there sure ain't nothin' goin' on but technique. Precourt is a wonderful dancer who has been superb in everything from 'Faune' to 'Paquita' to 'The Concert' to the Tall Girl in "Rubies'; her carriage and aplomb are naturally regal and she will no doubt improve with successive performances (this was her first). She had a couple of huge jetes which looked like Bessmertnova or Kolpakova. Robison has a heroic jump and huge determination and tenacity in difficult passages, and Chan an ease and nonchalance which are very promising. The company acquitted itself more than honorably in a lot of hard dancing and it was a pleasure to see them all.

Hi, Pique Arabesque. I'm sorry I didn't see your question sooner. *the* cast to see was yesterday afternoon's matinee, for which I actually made a trip. Welch's Swan Lake suffers from all the problems of the ballets he makes himself, exacerbated by the fact that this is a great work of art which needs great choreography to make it work properly. That said, let me rave about the dancers, who almost make the imbecilic choreography work. Katharine Precourt, the Odette-Odile, is magnificent. She has been a ballerina for several years and if Welch doesn't hurry up and promote her to principal she will probably go to another company which WILL recognize her with that title. She is capable of both elegiac sadness as Odette (there were some moments on a par with Makarova, Lander, Gregory, Bessmertnova, etc.) and nearly salacious glee as Odile; she knows within approximately five seconds that Siegfried is her slave and she spends the rest of Black Swan enjoying herself. She has a ravishing arabesque, her lines and back sometimes bring to mind great Russians of the past. Although she travelled a good bit in her fouettes in the Black Swan coda, she threw in doubles in the first half and was strong until very near the end of the turns. Precourt's turns in her Black Swan variation (alas, to the 'Sound of Music' one, not the ravishing 'Russian' oboe solo in minor) were excellent. I do not know if this was her debut in the role, but her commitment to it was extraordinary. William Newton, the Rothbart, is tall and commanding (he was, interestingly, terrific in the Phlegmatic variation in The Four Temperaments) and completely dominated the stage as Rothbart. He appeared to relish his very baroque cape....and was stalwart in the lift in which he must carry Odette over his head on a complete tour of the stage. Another dancer years overdue for promotion. Aaron Robison, the Siegfried, is dashingly handsome, remarkably well built even for a classical dancer, and has a tremendous jump which he showed to great advantage. Robison was uncomfortable only with one multiple pirouette sequence in his Black Swan pdd variation, and that was only slight; his double tours at the end were great. He was gallant with his Odette and suitably hormonally idiotic with his Odile. One of the biggest problems with this production (yes, worse than Peter Martins' at NYCB--who would think it possible?) is that the great smaller solo opportunities are utterly vitiated by being rearranged (there is no Act One pas de trois and the lovely music is cannibalized, not even heard in order, for some princess introductions) or extraordinarily badly choreographed (How is it possible to ruin the great RUSSIAN DANCE--one of Tschaikovsky's most sublime moments in ballet or elsewhere? Denise Tarrant, the concertmistress, acquitted herself honorably in this extremely difficult showpiece and in the White Swan pas de deux as well....Swan Lake is, among, other things, a violin concerto....) There is virtually no geniune display (and very little national character) in any of the national dances of the ballroom scene; only the Hungarian princess has a few interesting things to do. Sara Webb was excellent in this--Raymonda 'Hungarian' hand-behind-head poses really suit her. Most of the princesses are interfered with (not partnered, lol) by their escorts ('ambassadors') for at least some of their variations, instead of being partnered by the 'guards' appearing for that ostensible purpose. (Christopher Gray and Zechang Liang as the Neapolitan guards were especially stellar; if only they had had more to do.) I suppose it goes without saying, given the tenor of this production, that there is also no pas de quatre of any kind, much less one like the miraculous Ashton version. Music again cannibalized. The worst miscaculation musically was the insertion of what is now world-famous as the girl's variation from Tschaikovsky Pas de Deux , as one of the princesses' 'variations' (These, again, were anything but equally favored or even equal in time onstage); I am sure I was hardly the only audience member wincing at every witless step and unable to efface thoughts of the *real* choreography to this music. Then there was the constant costume change for Precourt, from a long white nightie (representing the 'girl' Odette) to a white tutu, back and forth, ditto for the black act. Apart from the dismaying literalness of such costuming hijinks, the nightgown was nearly as bad as the thing perpetrated on the Clara in Baryshnikov's ABT Nutcracker--obscuring what are beautiful and commanding lines on the ballerina. The sets and lighting are pretty good (these *are* better than the lurid NYCB red bordello, etc) but the costumes are dreadful. Siegfried's attendants in several cases wear more princely and studly getups. This would be bad enough without a Prince who is extremely prepossessing and easy on the eye; with Robison it was criminal. Houston Ballet is a wonderful company and its dancers rarely fail to distinguish themselves greatly. The corps is extremely strong and it is always a pleasure to see corps dancers in this company dance solo parts. The dancing in this Swan Lake was not the problem.

Quiggin, I didn't see that Symphony in 3, but heard great reports. I agree with you about the paucity of Balanchine (which is an upsetting new trend at SFB) and you are absolutely right about the ideas in a ballet like Agon. That said, there was NO dancing in the Agon performance I saw which involved the dancers 'interpreting' in any way. Tan's, Chung's, and Nedvigin's dancing was well within the range of classic Balanchine style, and although personal and interesting was never mannered, contrived, or attempting to impose the dancers' own schticks. I see this sort of dancing constantly from Kochetkova, which is one reason I try to avoid her performances if humanly possible. I saw this sort of horrific infliction of personal schtick (in this case, accompanied by an embarrassingly inadequate technique) during the hellish years when Heather Watts was given every principal role in the NYCB rep to slaughter at her whim. Speaking of other Agons, I don't know how many you've seen recently, but other than Pacific Northwest Ballet's this is about as good as they get now. NYCB's current Agon, like most of the rest of their repertoire, bears no resemblance to the great ballet of which you spoke quite eloquently.

Josette, that's distressing about Messmer. She is unique and fascinating, and I was hoping for much more of her. I was very upset not only not to see her in the pas de cinq but not even to see the pas de cinq AT ALL...with no announcement, no nothing. SFB needs some help in proper etiquette towards its audience. Ugh. Did the pas de cinq--with Chung or Andre--happen at your performance??? About Suite--Yes, it's possible that de Sola was nervous (the pas de trois is difficult, and the fouettes very exposed) but I've seen that same hard face and demeanor in almost all the things I've seen her dance. We must hope that Froustey doesn't go back to POB, which obviously doesn't appreciate her (Albisson is a good dancer, but leapfrogging twice over Froustey in nine months, being made etoile on the heels of her promotion to premiere danseuse? NO!) Chung is a goddess and continues to do ever more ravishing and subtle things.

Well, volcanohunter, I wasn't either until I saw her dance in the POB performances you mention. I agree completely with abatt's earlier description of her in 'Rubies' (what an error to cast her in that for the DVD and Osta, who is perfect for 'Rubies,' in 'Emeralds')--the worst performance I've ever seen in the role, including Heather Watts!--but those perfomances in Chicago completely changed my mind. She was SUPERB (as were Le RIche and Gillot) in Bolero and that pas de deux in 'Suite en Blanc' was magisterial. I've rarely seen a smoother, more flawless performance of anything from any ballerina. Dupont is cold--there it is--but what a technician, and what a performer.

Actually, Helene, it wasn't. It's true that the ensemble was not tight and that the timing was less than impeccable, but there were two surprisingly good performances as well as one unsurprisingly marvelous one. Gennadi Nedvigin, whom I like but who is not a Balanchine dancer, acquitted himself more than honorably in the first pas de trois--his flexed feet were witty and quite extreme--and Yuan Yuan Tan, whom I wouldn't necessarily have thought would be ideal for Agon pas de deux, was excellent in it--with an erotic overtone both subtle and unmistakable. She did not *act*--she gave us that coloring through her dancing, and it was fascinating. Sofiane Sylve was also terrific in the pas de deux. Frances Chung, who is lapidary in everything, was brilliant in the second pas de trois--only ballerina I've ever seen equal it was Maria Calegari (Hayden was before my time)...Her arms in the variation were phenomenal, as was her balance in the first section. The woman I went with, an ex-dancer who is new to SFB, was floored to learn that Chung is quite petite and slight--'but she occupies so much space and dances so BIG!' Exactly. Sylve was good in Glass Pieces, too. Corps was exceptional in it. NYCB ends with this sometimes as well--I think Brahms would have been a far better ending. (At NYCB Brahms is always the last ballet.) Brahms was a mixed bag. Froustey, who actually dances the Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux very respectably, was very good in the first movement as was Carlos Quenedit; I like Dores Andre's dancing tremendously but think she is completely miscast in a part made on Gloria Govrin and designed to be of HUGE AMPLITUDE. Andre is a smallish, graceful, vivacious dancer good in adagio and allegro but this part is supposed to eat the stage and it was quite unremarkable. From an earlier post, I gather that perhaps Simone Messmer was scheduled for the solo part in the first movement and was unable to dance? Tiit Helimets' partnering was strong in the *lethal* Intermezzo (any danseur doing this role should get a Purple Heart) and Tan looked good but they seemed rushed, hectic, and lacking in repose. It seemed strenuous, which is the opposite of Patricia McBride. Chung was lovely in the Andante, and Sylve and van Patten both danced with enormous style and scale in the Rondo. van Patten nailed EVERY multiple supported pirouette the night I saw her and her last one, in which she appeared to do about two or three more than she had planned and finished smack on the beat, brought a wonderful slightly surprised grin from her.

Hummingbird is promising--some original choreographic ideas and partnering, particularly from a choreographer as young as Scarlett--but too long. The long middle pas de deux with Tan was good because of her dancing, not because it maintained interest or dramatic tension throughout. The ballet needed considerable cutting (I suppose it would be too much to ask to cut the entire dreckalicious Philip Glass score?) and it would have been nice had Dores Andre had more to do; her billing was equal but the role very small, rather like the Judith Fugate role in 'I'm Old Fashioned'...Chung's opening solo was, as usual for her, splendid, and her allegro dancing impeccable, also as usual. I think Scarlett understood her gifts more than he did Tan's and choregraphed more becomingly and idiomatically for her. Tan is highly obliging about making quotidian choreography look elegant and refined. I saw POB do three performances of Suite en Blanc when they were touring here a couple of years ago, and this was not on the same level. Chung was lapidary in the Flute variation--her foot placement and the lines of her leg in passe, developpe, etc were great. Froustey ate up the Cigarette variation--it was as chic and soignee as Marie-Agnes Gillot's and Agnes Letestu's--delicious, witty, Parisian. Tan was good in the pas de deux but sadly it was impossible to forget Aurelie Dupont's performance in this part, which was like the world's best ice cream--chilled, rich, silken, and perfect. Sasha de Sola, who is getting many solo roles this year, danced the opening pas de trois and although she is a skillful technician and dancer her stage face, as well as her presence, is unfortunately a bit hard. The Mazurka was not Vitor Luiz's part. Chung and Froustey made the mannered epaulement and eccentric ports de bras look organic; everyone else had trouble with them. This ballet has a LOT of fouettes and de Sola and particularly Chung distinguished themselves in the turns.The ballet made NO announcement of this but it completely bagged the pas de cinq, which, being for a female jumper and four men, is one of the sprightliest dances in the ballet. Simone Messmer is injured, and she was one of the dancers announced for the role, but surely they did not cut the entire thing just because she was injured? There was at least one other cast listed for it. Very bizarre.

That was a lovely production, wasn't it, Josette? And one of MacMillan's best ballets. Expensive, what with the set, the costumes, the onstage musicians playing exotic instruments, but still....

This was a good performance marred by some silly choreography and ballets. The Auditorium Theatre is of such beauty and opulence that it contributes to and gives distinction to any performer or company appearing in it. The Balanchine ballets ('Rubies' and 'Diamonds' pas de deux) shone most brilliantly. Elizabeth McGrath as the Tall Girl (the soloist) in 'Rubies' was superb: athletic (her first pirouette was an effortless triple), sexy, and FUNNY--one of the wittiest Rubies tall girls I have ever seen. Her inflections rippled with humor and delight in dancing. Beckanne SIsk, who is on the rather cheesy Ballet West reality show called 'Breaking Pointe' and is being heavily pushed by the director as The Next Ballerina, is a good dancer but she appeared preoccupied with correctness here; her smile is fixed and rigid and she does not show enough freedom, range of movement, angles, relish, or Broadway-baby sex appeal, not to mention pure charm (the 'Rubies' ballerinas are both showgirls of different sorts.) She is very young (about twenty-one) and will doubtless improve. Her partner Christopher Ruud, not quite up to the technical demands of a totemic Villella role (which puts him in the company of most men who have danced this since Villella) was charming and roguish. The corps was fun throughout the ballet. Christiana Bennett, another star on 'Breaking Pointe' and the current company prima, danced 'Diamonds' pas de deux with Beau Pearson (strong and a tactful partner.) She is clean, exact, precise, and honest in steps; she was in this performance also cold and rather uninvolved. Balanchine ballerinas should not emote nor should they work the room, but this icy delivery is too far in the opposite direction. Suzanne Farrell could be described by many diverse adjectives, but 'cold' would not be one of them; a regal presence such as the magnificent Deanna Seay, late of Miami City Ballet, can also be (as Seay was in this role) overwhemingly warm, gracious, and enveloping. The new pas de quatre (a premiere) by Nicolo Fonte, a current darling of the ballet world, had excellent dancers (Katherine Lawrence, the almost too handsome Tom Mattingly, Adrian Fry, and Jacqueline Straughan) dancing to u-g-l-y music by Ezio Bosso, for string quartet. Even with the atrocities of modern 'string playing' this is some of the ugliest grinding and mashing I've ever encountered, and to hear such 'sounds' in what is supposed to be string quartet playing is beyond jarring. The choreography was typical of some current trends in ballet--gymnastic, slightly outre, attempting to be showy and 'dramatic.' Lawrence appears to be a terrific and serious dancer, and I would love to see her in real choreography; Straughan has legs and line for days and seems a foot taller than her actual height on stage. All the dancers would be excellent in a better, more interesting ballet. The Lottery, which is, help me, to the famous and frightening Shirley Jackson short story, has a Big Schtick: seven couples all draw the lots to determine who the murder victim will be (the 'sacrifice' of the rite) and the dancers do not know who will dance the final (fairly taxing and difficult) solo until then, so they all must know it (there is a boys' and a girls' version) and be ready to dance it at every performance. The dancer who 'won' at my performance was the young, talented demisoloist Katie Critchlow, who is an excellent dancer and on whom the female solo version was originally made. Something which occurred during her solo epitomizes what's wrong with this story as a 'ballet'--she did a difficult multiple pirouette flawlessly and the audience burst into applause. She DESERVED her applause and then some, but not in something intended to be a DANCE OF DEATH! This ain't Odile's (or Medora's, or Kitri's, or any other ballerina's) fouettes, and such cognitive dissonance in the midst of what is intended to be 'high drama' vitiates the intention. The ballet, of course, just as do all 'problem plays' and 'issue plays' in theater, steals all its 'intensity' from the grim theme, and although the dancers again distinguish themselves the work itself is unsuccessful. Val Caniparoli, the choreographer, has done some excellent ballets (Lambarena in particular) but there is no plausible reason to make this great story into a 'ballet.' Also, having the chosen victim scream 'it isn't fair' three times before starting the final solo is a Grand Guignol gesture in the worst possible taste. What ballet dancers do not do is talk. Or scream. They do everything else.

Paul Taylor is a wonderful company, and its brilliant founder is still at the helm at age 83, which is remarkable. This was a program of two absolute classic Taylor ballets (Airs and Esplanade) and a fairly well-known and critically adored ballet (Sunset), so it was worth seeing just for the choreography. I had not seen Esplanade in ages, and the incredible jumps, slides, and falls of its last movement are even more mindboggling to me now. Sadly, Mercury Baroque orchestra, which provided the live accompaniment, is both cliche-ridden and technically lacking (many wrong notes, much out of tune and utterly toneless playing, and the usual 'Baroque' mechanical sewing-machine approach to each and every piece, in addition to some egregious attempts at ornaments in the Bach two-violin concerto. An ensemble this small is also at a disadvantage in the Elgar Serenade for strings and Elegy for strings (the score for Sunset) even had the tone been acceptable. The dancing however was an added bonus in most cases (the exception was Michelle Fleet, who did not need to be doing the large solos she was given if her dancing was going to be this much sloppier than the rest of the company's.) Eran Bugge is intrepid and superb both in fast footwork (her pas de deux in Airs) and in lifts and difficult aerial tricks (Sunset); she is also witty and funny, with great inflections of movement. Robert Kleinendorst, a company stalwart, was great in all three ballets, and Laura Halzack, who has a big, grand line and a velvety quality of movement, was especially magnificent in the final solo-with-company of Airs; I also liked the dancing of George Smallwood in Esplanade. The hero of the evening, as he so often is, was Michael Trusnovec, the senior member of the company. Trusnovec is of such chiselled blond perfection physically that one would be content to look at him by the hour if he were only an average dancer; instead, he is an artist who speaks through every movement, who lands jumps more lightly than most ballet premier danseurs, and who has a tensile strength and stretch like the two great dancers Chris Komar of Cunningham's sadly defunct company and Bart Cook of the New York City Ballet. This dancer conveys more in a lounging pose (at the beginning of Sunset) than many dancers do in an entire full-length starring role. Trusnovec made the evening magnificent all by himself; fortunately almost everyone in the company was nearly at his Olympian level too.

Sorry, no, I have to disagree with that statement. From a technical standpoint, there is no comparison of van Patten and Chung in terms of precision, footwork, placement, and speed. Chung's virtuosity is rare, and van Patten's technique has never been her strongest point.

reposting, as the discussion moved here: Well, Macualay as usual has his opinions. These are some of his dimmest in recent memory. Sarah van Patten is questionable (especially when omitting FRANCES CHUNG, a vastly superior and more brilliant dancer), but Patricia Delgado? There are corps and soloist dancers in every major US company better than Patricia Delgado. She's no sister Jeanette, that is for sure. Sterling Hyltin (?!?!??!!) and no Melissa Hough, Margaret Severin-Hansen, Victoria Jaiani, CARRIE IMLER, Carla Korbes, Julie DIana, or Wendy Whelan? Hough and Severin-Hansen are great ballerinas by any standard, but clearly only certain companies are worth Macaulay's royal attention--and only certain dancers in those companies (cf. Chung, Imler, Diana, Whelan--whom he has so often and stupidly trashed.....) Ludicrous.

Two performances of this mixed September rep. Allegro Brilliante, one of Balanchine's most engaging and wonderful ballets, was the curtain raiser here. There is an interesting interview on the NYCB website with Megan Fairchild and Andrew Veyette about AB, dancing it together, the perils of married couples dancing together--Veyette says that he thinks although the ballet may not be that famous among nondancers it is deeply respected and admired in the profession, and I agree. (Fairchild as always is extremely pleasant and well-spoken in interview--I wish I liked her dancing more, and particularly her dancing in AB more. ) The two ballerinas were April Daly, a company stalwart, and Jeraldine Mendoza, who is probably the Joffrey's current Young Dancer Most Likely To Succeed; Mendoza is about twenty-one and has already danced five or six leading roles, including name parts, for the company. Both were fine; Mendoza seems quite young in this role (first time I have seen her) and will doubtless be more finished and more daring with experience. She has excellent balance and potentially very good turns, although the notorious pirouettes in the cadenza had a wobble or two (I am not sure if Balanchine actually set double/triple for those sequences or if that has just become something NYCB ballerinas usually do--in any case, Mendoza didn't do triples and I missed them a bit. Have not seen the Tallchief video in years, so I don't know.) Daly was more assured, more mature, and a bit cleaner generally, but Mendoza is lovely on stage--almost a more gracious and lyrical young Paloma Herrera--and will only get better. They were both competently partnered by Dylan Gutierrez. The corps distinguished itself both nights, looking vibrant and smooth; the ballerinas could both have used more of that vibrancy. Technical correctness and efficiency a la Fairchild do not work in Balanchine parts requiring risk and bravura. Victoria Jaiani, the de facto prima of Joffrey, did a Possokhov pas de deux made on her with husband Temur Suluashvili, and I must say Possokhov could have given this dancer infinitely more to do than a rather trashy recycled Bolshoi acrobatic adagio from the fifties or sixties. Jaiani's entrance, in a sort of slouch, was notably uglifying, and her costume was actionable--something a hootch dancer might wear, not even covering her backside (This ballet is not convincing as soft porn...) The music--the Spartacus/Phrygia pas de deux from Spartacus--is certainly not great, but that's no excuse. The one brilliant step--a grand jete where he catches her in mid-leap--was so pleasant it made the rest look even less good. Jaiani is long, fluid, flexible, strong, ultra-stretched, and lyrical (a bit like Bessmertnova) and made the choreography look far better than it was (her husband is a superb and rock steady partner, especially in Bolshoi tricks like tosses where she does double barrel roll in the air and he catches on the way down), which probably accounts for the shrieking ovation this ballet received when Allegro Brilliante got no more than polite applause. Ugh. The Bells, which was next, is also Possokhov and was also done for Joffrey, to selected Rachmaninov piano ditties. The pieces are a bizarre mixture (including a two piano piece, I believe from the First Suite, at beginning and end), by no means all Rachmaninov's best compositions (the big pas de deux is the formless, weird, and very unsuccessful slow movement from the B flat minor Sonata). It is a sort of shorter Russian Dances at a Gathering, without any of the charming Robbins schticks. Five couples, various permutations, etc. Anastacia Holden was marvelous in the first pas de deux--funny, witty, crisp, bright. The angle of her elbow in her one-hand-on-head pose repeated twice was scintillating. Jaiani again made her choreography look good. I was under the impression that all the dancers worked very hard here to put the piece over. The gentleman next to me commented that he only enjoyed the pas de deux in this piece--said that the ensembles were very pointless... I agreed completely. The finale was the reconstructed Nijinsky Le Sacre du Printemps, which I had not seen and which is by far the best version I ever have seen--beautiful lighting, fascinating costumes (ugly sets, but one can't have everything), highly energized and rhythmic dancing from everyone, and what intriguing choreography! Almost no solos but for the old crone and the Chosen One (dancers interestingly alternated in these roles) and a lot of use of circular groups round the stage, as well as line formations. Erica Lynette Edwards, who had the difficult task of standing frozen in a Petrouchka-like pose (head on one side, drooping) for fifteen minutes and then being shot out of a cannon with a difficult jumping solo, was great as the Chosen One--she looked as if she'd been at the backstage barre seconds before, which was VERY impressive Her air positions in the jumps were superb and she falls extremely well. Sadly the end, as it usually seems to, took the audience by surprise and there again was not the applause there should have been: the entire company is in this ballet and more than distinguishes itself.