California

I did not retire to Denver until 2011 so I missed what I understand was a very difficult time financially and artistically. I have seen several of the ballets Gil talks about bringing in and loved them -- the Derek Deane R&J (which is gorgeous), T&V, the Tetley Sacre, eg. I'm really looking forward to In the Upper Room next month, which I know Gil danced frequently and in the original cast, if I remember correctly. People who live in huge metropolitan areas don't always appreciate how much great ballet there is in regional companies like Colorado.

The Colorado Ballet presented four performances of a lovely mixed bill last weekend. As professional dance criticism has essentially disappeared here, I wanted to take a little time to say something about the works chosen and the performances. Cluedo: The world premiere of this ballet, based on the famous board game Clue, was Friday night, March 6. Choreographed by Julia Adam on this company, it was a dazzling hit. I confess I knew nothing about the choreographer, although she has been doing a lot of work for a lot of companies. As every company nowadays seems to be looking for female choreographers to highlight, I'd recommend her. Adam used a medley of music by a young composer, Cosmo Sheldrake, which I can only describe as funky, goofy, tongue-in-cheek, and great fun. The gorgeous costumes are by Christine Darch - formal wear for the men and beautiful flapper dresses for the women. Most importantly, the choreography was chock full of surprising, crystal-clear, fast-paced patterns, with distinctive motifs repeated throughout. Like the music, it is tongue-in-check, funky, and goofy, and the dancers seemed to be having great fun. Christopher Moulton and Tracy Jones, as Mr. and Mrs. Boddy, both soloists, were a perfect match and a promising pair. Leah McFadden, Fernanda Oliveira, Francesca Martoccio (as Scarlet, Peacock, White) are corps members who each got to shine, shine, shine and show their best, both as comics and dancers. Tyler Rhoads, Jeremy Studinski, Joshua Allenback (as Plum, Green, Mustard), also corps members, had well-deserved opportunities to show their stuff. Feast of the Gods was choreographed by Edwaard Liang in 2009 to Respighi, invoking a band of touring gypsys, with six pairs of dancers. It is notable for risky overhead lifts and complicated, unexpected partnering; although that occasionally crosses slightly into gimmickry, it's usually imaginative and interesting. First cast featured Chandra Kuykendall (retiring at the end of this season) with Chris Moulton, who performed in all three ballets this weekend. The other lead pair in that performance was Asuka Sasaki and Francisco Estevez; they were a great partnership in Don Quixote and Nutcracker, and I have high expectations for them in the coming years. Second cast brought the return of Yosvani Ramos (who seemed positively joyous to be back on stage after some long absences due to injury) with corps member Leah McFadden, a good match for this ballet. The other lead couple was Tracy Jones with Nicholas Pelletier; both are on the tall side and seemed a good pairing. Tracy always stands out with a riveting presence and full-out amplitude in everything she does. Celts was choreographed by Lila York in 1996 for the Boston Ballet, set to traditional Irish Music. Several high-energy movements for a large ensemble let the dancers cut lose and included some dancers from the Apprentices and Studio Company, a nice way for them to get serious stage experience. Sean Omandam alternated with Kevin Gael Thomas as Green Man; their solos integrated complicated beats and turns into an Irish-feeling display of virtuosity that the audience loved. Lead couples from Feast returned: Sasaki and Estevez alternating with McFadden and Ramos as Red Couple. Kuykendall and Moulton alternating with Jones and Pelletier as Brown Couple. What a work-out for all the dancers. One more show to go in April! A brief promo clip from Cluedo:

Interesting that Pacific Northwest is not cancelling anything, even though Seattle is in the midst of the US' worst "hot spot." https://www.pnb.org/aboutpnb/health-update/

The program was just announced to Friends via e-mail: Coppélia Excerpts from Act III Choreography by George Balanchine and Alexandra Danilova, after Petipa Music by Léo Delibes World Premiere Choreography by Gianna Reisen Music by Igor Stravinsky Brahms-Schoenberg Quartet 3rd & 4th Movements Choreography by George Balanchine Music by Johannes Brahms, Orchestrated by Arnold Schoenberg Workshop Performances will take place on Saturday, May 30 at 2:00pm and 8:00pm and Monday, June 1 at 7:00pm. Tickets will go on sale to the public at www.sab.org in mid-April.

Ratmansky has cast her in the past, which makes one wonder. ABT is probably assuming this will be a big hit they will do again in spring 2021. Very depressing to connect those dots...

A rather poignant comment from Sarah Lane watching from the audience -- her first time for a Ratmansky ballet, as she's not in it.

I agree. We are in a capitalist country after all. And we know some dancers receive various fellowships to buy more coaching. Trenary received a $50,000 Annenberg Fellowship a few years ago, so she had those resources: https://www.dancemagazine.com/what-cassandra-trenary-plans-to-do-with-her-50-000-annenberg-fellowshi-2365582302.html

We're also not like Russia with its comprehensive education and coaching, state subsidized, at the premiere schools in St. Petersburg, Moscow, and Perm. Even for the professionals, or at least the principals, don't they each have a personal coach to work with them?

Interesting that Cory Stearns now seems to be the go-to partner for Copeland and Lane when Cornejo is not available, for whatever reason! I don't recall Stearns-Copeland paired at ABT in anything important. What am I forgetting?

I give up - what was the "Syphyde affair"?

Here's a link to the season listing in English: https://www.semperoper.de/en/whats-on/ballet.html

Those performances were already priced higher than the rest of the season, so exchanging to them would require some additional payment along with the other ticket. I can see why that would be pretty complicated. I wouldn't be surprised if they go even higher, especially now with Hallberg's announcement that he's going to Australia.

The Segerstrom Onegins are on his personal web site as of today. Whew! I already have tickets. I was hoping this wasn't a bait-and-switch. http://www.robertobolle.com/agenda-2020/

Will this be the shortened 5-week season at the Met? I'm guessing he'd want Osipova there, but I'm still glad I already have a subscription ticket for their Giselle June 11. You never know! (I'm curious which things he "never got around to"!)

I did a create-your-own for the Kim-Smirnova La Bayadere, the Osipova-Hallberg Giselle, and the opening of Love and Rage, and am happy with the seats they sent. We do have exchange privileges starting March 15. Ticket prices were already slightly higher for those and I expect they'll go higher. For the newcomers on this site, the Kim-Smirnova is not to be missed. I won't be surprised if Makarova shows up for that one, if not others as well.

Ballet West announces the 2020-2021 season: https://balletwest.org/news/ballet-west-announces-2021-season BALLET WEST ANNOUNCES 20/21 SEASON Salt Lake City, UT— Today, Artistic Director Adam Sklute announced exciting and ambitious programming for Ballet West’s 56th season. For the first time in decades, the Company will add a sixth program to its 2020-2021 production schedule, which will run from October 23 to May 8 at the Janet Quinney Lawson Capitol Theatre and Rose Wagner Theater. Just in time for Halloween, Ben Stevenson’s family-friendly Dracula (October 23-31) opens the season in extravagant flair. Ballet West last performed this epic ballet nearly 10 years ago to standing ovations for the production’s stunning sets, exploding chandeliers, and sweeping choreography. The Los Angeles Times called Dracula, “a spectacle of an order ballet audiences seldom see today… exquisitely beautiful and atmospheric.” Stevenson is a master storyteller, and in this production, he turns Bram Stoker’s iconic tale into a sensory thrill ride. Twyla Tharp’s Nine Sinatra Songs (November 6-14), will headline a triple bill that showcases three modern masterworks. The program begins with Ballet West’s resident choreographer Nicolo Fonte’s Almost Tango, a ballet that highlights his unique take on the passionate style of the Argentinean dance of the same name. Like Fonte’s Carmina Burana, Rite of Spring, and Fox on the Doorstep, Almost Tango speaks to the soul with both joy and heartache. Almost Tango is followed by Return to a Strange Land, choreographed by Jiří Kylián in 1975 as an elegy to his mentor, the late John Cranko. The ballet, an exploration of Kylián’s own grief, features a stage strewn with Autumn leaves as dancers move seamlessly through powerful architectural movements, accompanied by a haunting solo piano composition by Leoš Janáček. Finally, Tharp’s 1982 Nine Sinatra Songs, is considered a classic of late 20th century choreography, featuring costumes designed by Oscar de la Renta, seven glamorous couples dance to the cashmere voice of Frank Sinatra, as Tharp finds sensuality, wry comedy, and ultimately profundity in “Old Blue Eye’s” music. The Nutcracker returns December 11-26. More than three quarters of a century after Ballet West’s founder Willam Christensen choreographed it, America’s first Nutcracker looks as fresh and relevant as it did the day it opened. Today, it is as emblematic of the holidays as Christmas trees or menorahs. Artistic Director Adam Sklute has been recognized recently in The New York Times and on NPR for his updates to the Chinese variation, by working with the Christensen family to interpolate Mr. C’s brother Lew’s divertissement and adjusting the make-up to create a greater celebration of Chinese culture. After a long hiatus, Michael Smuin’s Romeo and Juliet (February 12-20) returns to Ballet West. Smuin was an early student of Willam Christensen and became distinguished in his own right – first as a principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre and the San Francisco Ballet, later as co-artistic director of the San Francisco Ballet alongside Lew Christensen, and finally as founder of his eponymous ballet company. Smuin’s dynamic Romeo and Juliet is an energetic version of Shakespeare’s epic and beloved story. Intensely human, it is conveyed through emotive choreography and Sergei Prokofiev’s dramatic score. Three Utah premieres from American icons headline April’s triple bill. The program opens with Glass Pieces, Jerome Robbins’ pioneering masterpiece set to music by Philip Glass. The work first debuted in 1983 and was considered an instant classic that captures the pulsating heartbeat of metropolitan life. The program continues with Belles-Lettres, an ardent and romantic ballet from current worldwide phenomenon Justin Peck, who at just 32 years old, is New York City Ballet’s resident choreographer, a winner of the Tony Award, and tapped by Steven Spielberg to choreograph the film adaptation of West Side Story. Finally, the headliner of this program, Agnes de Mille’s Rodeo, is an upbeat celebration of the character of the American West underlined by Aaron Copland’s famous score, (audiences may especially recognize the Hoe-Down section). After de Mille received 22 curtain calls on the ballet’s opening night in 1942, Rodgers and Hammerstein approached her to choreograph their upcoming production of Oklahoma!. In the 78 years since its premiere, Rodeo has been established as one of the very first American ballets based on American themes and is considered one of the world’s great ballets. In addition to the mainstage season, Ballet West will celebrate 10 years of the Family Classics Series with the staging of The Little Mermaid. This one-hour family-friendly ballet will be performed by Ballet West II and students of the Ballet West Academy. The Family Classics Series includes guided narration to help viewers follow the action on stage. Conceived by Artistic Director Adam Sklute and choreographed by Principal Ballet Master Pamela Robinson Harris and Peggy Dolkas, former Associate Director of Ballet West II, audiences are welcomed into a watery world that follows Hans Christian Andersen’s story of a brave mermaid in search of true love. “Our dancers are great athletes, artists, and storytellers, and the 20/21 season will highlight and underline their talents,” said Artistic Director Adam Sklute. “This is a season of enormous productions, and small, earthly stories. Only a company with extreme versatility and boundless talent and energy could present these works in one season. Proving, as I often say, that Ballet West is as dynamic and expansive as the Rocky Mountain region we proudly represent.” Single tickets do not go on sale until September, so patrons are encouraged to subscribe now or renew their season subscriptions early to get bests seats available. Four-show Essential Package begin at just $84. Contact Ballet West at 801-869-6920 or visit www.balletwest.org. # # # CONTACT Joshua Jones | Director of Communications
jjones@balletwest.org | 801-414-4101

I love Glass Pieces and have planned trips around opportunities to see it. It has a place in history that is worth noting: George Balanchine died on April 30, 1983, and the gloom-and-doom at the time was the worry that ballet was "dead." Then, a mere two weeks later, on May 12, Glass Pieces premiered. Of course, Robbins had been working on it for a very long time, but the change in mood was palpable. Maybe ballet isn't dead after all! https://www.nycballet.com/ballets/g/glass-pieces.aspx

According to an email ABT just sent, single tickets go on sale Sunday, March 22: "Lock in the best seats at the best prices for all the season's celebrations before single tickets go on sale March 22!" Last year, friends above a certain level (can't remember what that was) could buy singles a week earlier with seat selection. I haven't seen an announcement about that.

On a short professional trip to the east coast, I squeezed in one performance of the NYCB Swan Lake, which I have managed to avoid since seeing it on TV decades ago. I don't think I'll bother again. I saw Fairchild-Garcia Thursday, 2/20. I have liked her in recent years in other roles, but I kept thinking: this looks like a Balanchine dancer trying on some strange new clothes. Nothing connected for me. I wasn't prepared for just how hideous the costumes were. Danish modern? Jackson Pollock fabric in the ballroom? And that strange ending with a beam of light killing off Rothbart? I did like the effect of Odette being swallowed up by the flock of swans.

On a short professional trip to the East Coast, I was able to see Marcelo Gomes at the Saturday evening performance of Allegro Brillante. He seemed radiant and happy - joyous to be performing at the Kennedy Center, perhaps? The entire company shines in that ballet, but he is special. I miss seeing him on stage, as I'm sure many of you do, too. The company was best, otherwise, I thought in Slaughter. They seemed so young and carefree, and the ballet's style works for them. I am not an Ashton expert, to be sure; I did appreciate the Birthday Offerings, although it seemed like a museum piece from another era.

Does he even have that option? Didn't the union-negotiated resolution guarantee him just one more year at NYCB? That might be gone.

Daniil has invited Kochetkova as a guest with Berlin State Opera and I wonder if he has the stature there to bring Lane over. Of course, her husband seems unlikely to be brought along, too. The free-lance approach seems brutal -- look at how much globe-hopping people like Kochetkova and Gomes are doing. Must be exhausting and also nerve-wracking to wonder if you've got enough gigs lined up. Brandt seems more likely to stick it out with ABT, given that her parents are there in the NYC area.

This reminds me of the response to Martine van Hamel doing Giselle long ago -- a perfect Myrtha, but too strong to be a convincing Giselle.

Royal also won a Lenore Annenberg Fellowship Fund grant in 2014 and models for GAP: https://www.abt.org/people/calvin-royal/

Anybody have an ABT program handy? I wonder if Skylar's parents are generous donors. Of course, they could also be under "anonymous." Still, I immediately thought of a line from Turning Point: "Sometimes...better not to talk..." This seems like one of those times!