California

As I remember, NYCB last year announced the entire next season about May 1 and subscription renewals started right away, for a season that opens in September. Colorado Ballet announced the new season in February at their last big program at the Opera House (the final program is at the University of Denver in late March) and subscriptions were available for renewal at that point, with a deadline of July 1 to keep your seats. Singles will go on sale in mid-July for a season that starts in late September. RE: another issue on this thread: I read that telemarketers in the US do the solicitations for donations and also subscriptions and keep a big % of the revenue. I always deal directly with companies (via their web sites), so all the money goes to the company. I don't know if that's true in Canada.

I just got a "Google Alert" that Macaulay's review has been posted: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/12/arts/dance/a-new-winters-tale-for-royal-ballet.html?hpw&rref=arts This is not the right place to discuss published criticism, but let me note that the Bohemian scene he discusses first is Act II. Seems we both like that one best. It certainly has the most interesting dancing, both for the large ensemble and the lead couple. I wonder if the cinema broadcast was cancelled because the lighting and special effects are so complex that they might not translate to a cinema screen. And that might also make it very difficult to tour. I believe this is a co-production with National Ballet of Canada, so eventually it will be seen in North America.

I saw the premiere of Wheeldon's The Winter's Tale Thursday night. So much to discuss - I hope others see it. For now, just some highlights. This is an extremely ambitious production. The sets include all sorts of high-tech projections, silk drops and lighting effects to create a sense of boats at sea in a few places. I noticed a lighting tech and panel on the balcony-right level that wasn't there for Sleeping Beauty. I was reminded of the high-tech lighting and simulations used at the opening ceremony for the Sochi Olympics, although I don't know if that was the same technology used in the Opera House. The physical scenery is strangely simple, almost minimalist. Some very tall pillars, several classical statues on large bases, some flights of stairs, and ramps onto boats, e.g., were moved into different locations for different scenes to accomplish set changes. In several scenes, a large square painting would be lowered to center back - a very abstract way of adding a set, but the actual paintings reminded me of Thomas Kinkaide. Throughout, they seemed to want to avoid anything traditional or standard in the way of set design. I'm not familiar with the play, but the synopsis in the print cast list was sufficient to grasp the complicated story. For such an ambitious undertaking, a big question for me (after absorbing the physical details of the production) is whether I'd want to see it again for the choreography and performance. For this one, I'd say, yes. There are several extraordinary PdD for different couples in several acts worth seeing again -- original, complex, and interesting, apparently challenging to the dancers. I also loved the festival dances for the ensemble in Act II. The commissioned score by Joby Talbot was fine -- contemporary but not post-modern, it sometimes felt like a movie score, but it was appropriate for the movement. I only get to see this one more time, Saturday night, with the same cast. Now that I know what to expect, it's easier to grasp the structure and better understand some repetitive movement details. E.g., why do the lead women keep bending their feet at the ankles? It seems gimmicky in isolation, but perhaps that's some kind of theme or linkage between the mother and daughter. I don't know, but want to watch for that. It's now pretty clear why the open rehearsal for Thursday afternoon was cancelled. It's not just the very complicated sets and effects. That rehearsal was for the second cast, which was originally to perform Saturday night but has now been postponed to next week. No hint in the announcement as to why -- injury? struggles mastering the work? I have no idea. The audience was very enthusiastic and Wheeldon seemed to be on Cloud Nine during the bows. I have not yet seen any published reviews, but ROH invited comments on Twitter and they are (predictably) enthusiastic.

The very prestigious Guggenheim Fellowships for 2014-15 were announced today. Five choreographers received Fellowships: Ivy Baldwin, Andrea Miller, Rashaun Mitchell, Dean Moss, Kate Weare. I confess that I don't recognize those names. Are any considered classical choreographers? Here's the complete list of awards: http://www.gf.org/news-events/2014-Fellows-by-Field-in-the-United-States-and-Canada/

Marcelo Gomes studied dance in his native Brazil before entering the Harid Conservatory in Florida. I'm not sure how people are defining "home grown" - whether that refers only to native-born Americans or dancers who received all of their training in the U.S., even if born elsewhere or just anybody who received substantial training in the U.S. If what matters in this discussion is people who spent most or all of their career at ABT, then Marcelo counts, of course. He started in the corps and worked his way up. I'm always touched by his generosity during bows of looking back to the corps and saluting them with a grand gesture of his arms to thank them for their contribution to the performance. http://www.abt.org/dancers/detail.asp?Dancer_ID=26

Some brief comments on the final two Sleeping Beauty performances: I was disappointed by Roberta Marquez' Aurora on Tuesday, April 8. She certainly performed all the steps, but I didn't see anything special. It was disappointing that her balances were so uneven -- she faltered/shortened many in the Rose Adagio and would then show off an unusually long balance, as if to say: I can do this! Am I missing something others see in her? Ryoichi Hirano substituted for Nehemiah Kish as Marquez' Prince Florimund. I felt badly for him at his entrance in Act II, which seems designed to give the audience applause time to acknowledge his presence for the first time -- dead silence. Very awkward! I was impressed that in his many double turns and multiple entrechats, his landings seemed so secure -- none of the little baubles and shakiness that are so common, especially with soloists. (I noticed the same thing the next night when he was the Lilac Fairy's Cavalier in the Prologue.) I have no idea what experience he has in this role or partnering Marquez, but the partnering seemed solid. During the bows, she seemed especially gracious, giving him a flower with genuine warmth. In the final performance April 9, Yuhui Choe was quite special. She has an elegant, silken movement quality that is never rushed, never seems like she's just anxious to get something over with. I've been struggling with metaphors to describe it -- pulled taffy, perhaps? Everything is drawn out, appreciated to the fullest. The partnering was fine this time and she was more gracious to Golding during the bows -- giving him a flower, e.g., which she skipped Saturday night. I think it's odd at both Royal and ENB that the corps members are not named in the cast list distributed before the program, just "Artists of the Royal Ballet." I suppose that makes it easier when subs are necessary, but it's too bad they don't get even that named acknowledgement. I also appreciate the absence of crying babies and late seating, but was surprised at two flash pictures taken during the performance Wednesday from a side box in the balcony. I assumed an usher would scurry over after the first one; apparently not.

I saw the matinee Sunday afternoon, April 6 and would urge anybody in shouting distance of London to see the program before it closes next Saturday, April 12. As has been reported in reviews, this consists of four new ballets in honor of the centenary of World War I. I can't imagine a program like this being presented in the U.S., where most people know almost nothing about that war. That's a shame, because the ballets are magnificent and it would be wonderful to see an American company stage at least one of them. My favorite was "No Man's Land" by Liam Scarlett to Liszt piano music, orchestrated for this piece by Gavin Sutherland. It ended with a stunning pas de deux for Tamara Rojo (now company director) and Esteban Berlanga, but several earlier pas de deux for other couples were also impressive. I don't recall seeing Scarlett's choreography before, but I'd like to see more of it now! The partnering featured extraordinarily complicated lifts that were original, creative, stunning, but never once felt gimmicky or merely novelty-for-its-own-sake, one of my pet peeves in so much contemporary classical choreography. Alas, the piece wouldn't translate to the U.S. without some serious dramatic modifications. The men go off to war while the women work at a munitions plant, then welcome their battered men home. Those distinctive WWI hats, the munitions, the hint of trenches would make no sense outside of countries that don't remember let alone understand the significance of "The Great War." I'd be happy to be proven wrong! The Scarlett used women on pointe, while "Second Breath" (Russell Maliphant) and "Dust" (Akram Khan) had all the dancers in bare feet. Both used the dancers in groups to create amazing human sculptures in patterns, waves, and visual designs that evoked war, tragedy, death in the trenches, etc. Scores by Andy Cowton and Jocelyn Pook, respectively, wove in all sorts of War-specific sounds -- audio recordings from the Imperial War Museum Archive, narration recorded in 1916, poetry by Dylan Thomas, etc. All three ballets had eerie lighting, fog, sets evoking the notorious trenches, etc.With the intense presentation in so many dimensions, this native-born American (and history buff) was emotionallty exhausted from it all; I would imagine it was much more intense for those who grew up understanding and respecting this part of their history. The three hour program (with two intervals) also included George Williamson's recent take on "Firebird." The program notes tried to rationalize including it in this program, even though the music was written years before the War - essentially, foolish men go off and do stupid, foolish things -- but it was too much of a stretch. Still, it was nice to see a cleaned-up, more minimalist version after the Ratmansky version for ABT of a few years ago. The other three would have made for a very full program without this oddity stuck in the middle. I was struck at how many more younger people (20-40) were in this audience, compared with American audiences. The house seemed full to me, although I have no idea if they push tickets through student rush, subsidized tickets for seniors, etc. I also thought the orchestra placement in that theater is bizarre -- totally under the stage, almost invisible. The huge speakers at either side of the stage sounded so raspy that at first I thought they were using recorded music.

I just saw the second performance of Choe and Golding in Sleeping Beauty. I'm tired (and still jet-lagged), so let me just say briefly that it was a real treat. She has the gift of "long balances," and I wonder if that's part of why they selected her as a replacement for Osipova. We didn't see any extensions-to-the-ear, but that would have been so out-of-place in this production anyway. He has a calm elegance in his dancing that seems perfect for this company, with impressive height and presence in his turns and leaps. Their partnering seemed fine, except for one near-catastrophe on the third fish dive in the wedding PdD. It happened so fast, it's hard to know how it went awry, but he had to step forward a couple of steps to keep her in position. It reminded me that these two couldn't have had a lot of preparation time for such demanding partnering. He knew the role, of course, as he was scheduled to dance with Osipova. But where/when did she learn it? Had she been in line as the understudy all along? And Osipova's injury was just a week ago, so how much time did they have to work together? The audience was exceptionally appreciative of both, but they seemed genuinely to be applauding their performances, not just sympathy applause.

Osipova has now cancelled her third and final performance of Sleeping Beauty, to be replaced again by Choe: http://www.roh.org.uk/news/cast-change-yuhui-choe-to-dance-in-the-sleeping-beauty-on-27-march-2014 One thing odd in the official announcements: they said she suffered soft tissue injury, but no broken bones, but not a hint of how this happened. As it was in a rehearsal (unlike the concussion she sustained during a performance earlier in the season), no one really knows, except those in the room. If anyone sees published press reports, please share the link Another disappointment: the Friends' open rehearsal for the day of the Winter's Tale premiere has also been cancelled. The "scale and complexity" of the production is the stated reason in the e-mail they sent out today:

I thought the McGregor Woolf Works looked interesting, although I can't find any information about the Richter score they are using. Amy Seiwert used it for Travelling Alone, a 20-minute (or so) piece she did for Colorado Ballet in 2012, repeated last weekend. I love that music -- very postmodern, with some hints of Glass. But I'm not sure about a full-evening of that or whether it's a new/commissioned score or several existing pieces. When Robbins did Glass Pieces, he picked out some of the most danceable excerpts from existing Glass scores, so perhaps that's what McGregor is doing. It would be even better if the new McGregor overlapped another piece (like the La Fille) to make a trip from the US especially worthwhile. My mistake -- McGregor is using a commissioned score by Richter:

Matthew Bourne's Sleeping Beauty will be aired April 25 on PBS' Great Performances. http://www.broadwayworld.com/bwwdance/article/Matthew-Bournes-Re-Imagining-of-Ballet-Classic-SLEEPING-BEAUTY-to-Air-on-THIRTEENs-Great-Performances-425-20140328#.UzlnbmFOXIW

The 2014-15 season has just been announced: http://www.roh.org.uk/news/ballet-and-dance-201415

Yuhui Choi was the replacement. Here's the official announcement: http://www.roh.org.uk/news/cast-change-yuhui-choe-to-dance-in-the-sleeping-beauty-on-27-march-2014 According to the print "Magazine" (p. 31) published by the ROH, March 27 was Osipova's debut in the role (with Royal). Ouch! It will be interesting to hear what the injury was and whether she'll perform at her remaining performances April 5 & 9.

March 2014 grant awards were announced today by the National Endowment for the Humanities. One in particular promises to be of great interest to BA readers: an exhibit on "Art of American Dance" by the Detroit Institute of Arts. The Institute received $300,000 for "implementation of a traveling exhibition exploring the ways in which American visual art from 1820 to 1960 depicted and was inspired by dance." Project director is Jane Dini. The announcement does not provide dates when we can expect to see this or where it will be travelling, but it sounds like something to watch for. Here's the complete list of grants announced today: http://www.neh.gov/files/press-release/march2014grantsstatebystate.pdf

ABT dancers went out on strike three times in the late 70s and early 80s, mainly over pay that was significantly less than dancers of comparable rank at NYCB. (Several sources on this, including Tchernichova's book, Dancing on water, p. 214.) In 1973, NYCB dancers went on strike over the number of guaranteed work weeks. The NYCB musicians went on strike several times in that era. Still, in the recent past, we don't seem to have had much experience with dancer strikes in the U.S. The frequency of strikes in certain countries in Europe seems baffling to Americans. But the Europeans have a hard time understanding our love of guns and the death penalty, and our refusal to convert to the metric system (among other things).

I went to a performance of Opera Colorado last week, which performs in the same Caulkins Opera House as the Colorado Ballet, and was struck at the different look and feel of the audiences. The Ballet always attracts lots and lots of little girls with their parents and friends, even at the evening performances. I saw barely a handful of children at the Opera. Are there scads of kids who dream of being opera stars? I'm not seeing them. Only a few of those little girls will take classes with serious professional ambitions, but in the meantime their parents are being introduced to ballet and that should help future audiences. Both attract a substantial older audience, but the Opera audience seemed to be dressed much more formally (big night at a classy restaurant first, perhaps?). The Opera is only doing two programs a year (Rigoletto this month and Carmen in May), four performances each. The Ballet is doing four programs this year, typically for two weekends, although Nutcracker is solid programming for a month and they're adding a fifth program next year (a weekend of Dracula). The Opera performance did start with a before-the-curtain announcement that they will do two programs each of the next two years, including Don Giovanni, Magic Flute, Aida, and the Scarlet Letter. Opera has never cultivated anything comparable to the Nutcracker as a money machine, which is yet another difference. (Do we have Balanchine to thank for pushing that in the 50s?) I see plenty of efforts at both the ballet and opera to cultivate "young patrons" groups here and elsewhere. I have no idea if it's working, but it seems essential to long-term survival. Even art museums are nervous about the declining interest among younger patrons, as a NY Times article discussed recently: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/20/arts/artsspecial/wooing-a-new-generation-of-museum-patrons.html?src=me&_r=0

We have so few major strikes in the US any more that we forget about their impact. Many thousands of tourists, both domestic and international, did get a nasty introduction to government shutdowns here for 16 days in October 2013. I'm not pointing a (political) finger at anybody for any of this -- just saying that travel of any kind comes with risks. It never hurts to have a Plan B. I can remember having my heart set on seeing certain paintings at a museum I was visiting, only to learn that they were out on loan for another exhibit. And ballet lovers are used to favorite dancers cancelling at the last minute due to illness, injury, what have you.

I just got a mailing from ABT that announces the dates for the fall season: October 22-November 2, 2014 at the Koch Theater. No information about programming, but I believe the NY Times arts blog mentioned a revival of Push Comes to Shove, presumably this fall.

I don't know if these dates have been posted yet. I just got a mailing from ABT that announces that the last BAM performances will be December 12-21, 2014.

Well, they do have a commitment to regular year-in-year-out touring that no other major US ballet company has. If I'm not mistaken, they've performed in all 50 states. On their company history page, ABT does say it's performed in all 50 states. (It's toward the end.) http://www.abt.org/insideabt/history.asp

They are still scheduled to do R&J at La Scala on October 11 & 14. I wonder how long before that changes: http://www.teatroallascala.org/en/season/opera-ballet/2013-2014/romeo-giulietta.html They're also scheduled to do Nureyev's Don Q at La Scala Sept. 25, 27, 29: http://www.teatroallascala.org/en/season/opera-ballet/2013-2014/don-chisciotte.html

I'm particularly excited about seeing Leonid Sarafanov in the theater. The DVD of his Don Q with Mariinsky (and Olesya Novikova) in 2006 is worth a look. I was also impressed at what an attentive and effective partner he was with Osipova in the live stream of R&J a few weeks ago from Mikhailovsky. I'm guessing many will buy tickets to Osipova's Giselle and be pleasantly surprised to see him, too. I decided to see Vasiliev's Albrecht mainly out of curiosity to see what he does with it.

A brief but touching video remembrance of Nureyev by Baryshnikov was just posted by D&D Art Productions:

Yes, there was a Congressional declaration in 2006. I have no idea who pulled the strings behind the scenes to get this one (as opposed to NYCB). http://www.abt.org/insideabt/news_display.asp?News_ID=160

The Koch Theater site has a different phone number for the box office: 212-496-0600. I think Bolshoi tickets were handled by the Fisher box office for the summer Lincoln Center Festival.