California

The White Crow has now been released on DVD: https://www.amazon.com/White-Crow-Oleg-Ivenko/dp/B07TPYX1SX/ Dance Magazine has a contest to win a copy: https://www.dancemagazine.com/white-crow-2639446292.html

Looks like Sarah had been an apprentice since 2015: https://www.coloradoballet.org/company-dancers/sara-thomas I go to all their performances and a few dress rehearsals along the way, although I only go to one Nutcracker (I can only take so much Nutcracker...).

UPDATE: The print-at-home tickets are working as of Wednesday. Just got mine.

Please note that ABT is doing Tudor's Jardin aux Lilas at Vail on July 27. I wonder if they're planning on programming this in 2020 and wonder why it's not on the fall 2019 program. https://vaildance.org/event/american-ballet-theatre-2019/

Looking at my own e-mail receipt for documentation - I don't remember an "ABT Costume Restoration Fee" before. DHKT Facility Fee : @$4 DHKT Service Fee : @$8 ABT Costume Restoration Fee : @$2

If you have ordered tickets (which went on sale on-line Monday) and have not yet received your print-at-home tickets, it seems their system is broken. Write to customercare@davidkochtheater.com with your e-mail receipt and they'll either hold your tickets at the box office or mail them through US mail.

Many large opera houses now have their own "view from my seat" before you buy, and I'm surprised Segerstrom doesn't.

Casting for their Bayadere in Berkeley has been posted: https://calperformances.org/performances/2019-20/special-events/mariinsky-ballet-and-orchestra-la-bayadere.php

Tudor seems like a tough sell in many cities. I wish I could have seen his Echoing of Trumpets, because of the historic interest in Lidice destroyed by the Nazis. But the Denver Post critic in 2010 says it was "risky" to do that ballet. He's probably right. https://www.denverpost.com/2010/03/11/colorado-ballet-takes-a-risky-step-with-trumpets/

The Colorado Ballet performed Tudor's Pillar of Fire in March 2018, staged by McKerrow and Gardner, with help from an NEA grant. https://tickets.coloradoballet.org/single/eventDetail.aspx?p=3473 The real hit of that mixed bill, though, was Tharp's Brief Fling and, at least from comments of people I heard around me, they were not too enthusiastic about the Tudor.

Frustrating that nothing is posted yet on casting. Friends above a certain level can buy tickets starting this Thursday. General public sales start Monday, 7/22. Casting for new Tharp pieces always seems to be very last minute, but I was hoping that they'd at least decide on T&V and Apollo, to decide if it's worth a trip I can work in.

I haven't bothered with the ABT Swan Lake in years, since Marcelo departed. If they cast Sarah Lane in 2020, that would bring me back, especially if she does it with Cornejo! I suspect others share my views on this.

Thanks for the heads-up! I bought my tickets for the Bolle-Nunez Onegins in July 2020! I've never seem them together before and who knows how much longer he'll be dancing. It seems odd to be buying tickets with casting more than a year ahead. Lots of the best seats have been snatched up, by subscribers and friends, presumably. Here's the link. Go to the master calendar for July 2020. https://www.scfta.org/

Misty has posted on Instagram the crowd loudly cheering her entrance in Act II. Any word on how she did in Act III? The same substitutions for the fouettes that she reportedly used in her second NYC performance?

Few on this site know these dancers, but Colorado Ballet has updated their roster for the new season: https://www.coloradoballet.org/company/dancers Promotion to Principal: Francisco Estevez: He previously danced with Boston Ballet and Barcelona Ballet with Angel Corella. I was very glad to see this promotion. He has really "upped his game" in recent years and there's rehearsal tape on Facebook from last winter of mastering the Russian torchlift (with Asuka Sasaki), among other things. Retirement from Principal: Dominico Luciano is now Academy Principal and teaches men's classes. The Academy is doing a superb job of nurturing young boys and men in special classes taught by John Gardner (this summer in their Intensive), Estevez, and Luciano. The company now has only one other male principal, Yosvani Ramos, who just turned 40 but is still in great shape (source: very active on social media). Promotion from Apprentice to Corps: Francesca Martoccio, Leah McFadden, Sarah Vandervoort Thomas, Simon Zinabu Costello. (Thomas married Kevin Gael Thomas, a much-loved soloist, this summer. Kevin does a mean Revoltade 540.) Departures from Corps: Ariel Breitman, Alyssa Fazekas, Kevin Hale. I had high hopes for Breitman and Hale; they will be sorely missed. New Apprentices: Liam Hogan, Alexander Roy, Alexandra Wilson

I decided that my only opportunity to see Mayerling in the theater was to visit LA for a few days to see all three performances. (As far as I can tell, Houston Ballet is the only North American company that performs this ballet.) I have the DVDs (both by the Royal Ballet) so I sort of knew what to expect. And I've long been fascinated by the tales of the Hapsburg dynasty. Overall, I am glad I saw this ballet, but have mixed feelings about it: On the bright side: The pas de deux for Prince Rudolf and five different women (wife, mother, mistresses) are quite extraordinary, filled with imagination, daring, and originality. It's amazing Rudolf makes it through all three grueling hours. (And I believe the originator of the role, David Wall, said it took five years off his career). The pace of this complicated story is relentless. Despite numerous set changes for the various scenes, it never makes us pause and listen to filler music. Typically, a second curtain drops with action continuing in front while sets are being changed (very quietly). With so many women in his life, several principals can be seen in one performance. The ensemble work for the men is quite impressive, with lots of solo variations and opportunities to shine. You realize what a "deep bench" this company has. I enjoyed picking out motifs MacMillan seems to favor from other ballets, especially Manon. The opening solos for Rudolf were reportedly choreographed on Antony Dowell, but he had to withdraw due to injury. (Source: Elizabeth Kaye's pre-performance talk.) You can see the same elegance and beautiful lines in the opening solos that you see in Des Grieux' variations in Manon, which Dowell did dance. In Act III, when Rudolf is in despair, he bends forward at the waist, hands clasped behind him, not unlike Des Grieux' anguished variations in Manon. In the house of ill-repute, in Act II, Mitzi (Rudolf's high-class prostitute) is passed around by four men in an interesting evocation of the second act of Manon. But while Manon was learning her "craft" anew, Mitzi seemed like an experience pro, so to speak. The throw double-twists from the final PdD in Manon are now seen in the ensemble in the second act in the bar. Reservations: The story is so complicated, it can be hard to figure out what's going on much of the time. The program notes are three short paragraphs that don't much help. At the bar, someone passes out pieces of papers which people read and are shocked. What are they shocked about? Not a clue anywhere, in the performance or the program notes. The Royal Ballet web site has a lot more detail and I wonder why they didn't include it in the program: https://www.roh.org.uk/news/mayerling-fact-and-fiction At every performance, I heard people complain that they couldn't tell the characters apart, especially all those women in his life, often dressed in similar period dresses. I finally concluded: oh, here's another woman he had an affair with and treated badly and it doesn't matter which character it is. This ballet leaves you drained, because of the story. There is no uplifting sense of great tragedy or resolution, just a sordid tale of a suicide pact between a crazy, narcissistic aristocrat and his love-blinded young mistress. Not MacMillan's fault, of course, as he based this on fact, as much as possible, but he did choose the story to tell. Dorothy Chandler Pavilion: I am so tired of huge theaters with limited restrooms for women. Next time a male architect decides how much space there should be, how about we bring in a crew of women, who would surely triple or quadruple the available stalls. Why is this such a universal problem? And coffee but no espresso anywhere, except the Starbucks across the street...

Sun Valley's altitude is 5945 ft. Denver is 5280 ft. Vail is 8022 ft. Altitude is a real thing. If you're visiting any of these places, drink a lot of water and take it easy when you arrive. I get a splitting headache when I return to altitude, but aspirin for a couple of days makes all the difference until I readjust. Instagrams from dancers acclimating to Vail can be pretty eye-opening about the impact of altitude.

Vail Dance finally posted the dancers and repertoire for the two International Evenings of Dance: Friday, August 2: https://vaildance.org/event/ie-1-2019/ Featured artists to include: Alina Cojocaru, English National Ballet Calvin Royal III, American Ballet Theatre Catherine Hurlin, American Ballet Theatre Lil Buck, Memphis Jooker Cory Stearns, American Ballet Theatre Dario Natarelli, Tap Dancer Devon Teuscher, American Ballet Theatre Herman Cornejo, American Ballet Theatre India Bradley, New York City Ballet Isabella Boylston, American Ballet Theatre Jacqueline Green, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Jared Angle, New York City Ballet Joseph Gordon, New York City Ballet Julian MacKay, Mikhailovsky Ballet Company Kennard Henson, New York City Ballet Lauren Lovette, New York City Ballet Maria Kochetkova Melissa Toogood, Pam Tanowitz Dance Michelle Dorrance, Dorrance Dance Miriam Miller, New York City Ballet Preston Chamblee, New York City Ballet Roman Mejia, New York City Ballet Savannah Green Unity Phelan, New York City Ballet Live musical accompaniment with Brooklyn Rider. Saturday, August 3: https://vaildance.org/event/ie-2-2019/ Featured artists to include: Alina Cojocaru, English National Ballet Adji Cissoko, Alonzo King LINES Ballet Calvin Royal III, American Ballet Theatre Lil Buck, Memphis Jooker Cory Stearns, American Ballet Theatre Christopher Grant, New York City Ballet Dario Natarelli, Tap Dancer Devon Teuscher, American Ballet Theatre Herman Cornejo, American Ballet Theatre India Bradley, New York City Ballet Isabella Boylston, American Ballet Theatre Jacqueline Green, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Jared Angle, New York City Ballet Joseph Gordon, New York City Ballet Julian MacKay, Mikhailovsky Ballet Company Kennard Henson, New York City Ballet Lauren Lovette, New York City Ballet Madeline DeVries, Alonzo King LINES Ballet Maria Kochetkova Melissa Toogood, Pam Tanowitz Dance Michael Montgomery, Alonzo King LINES Ballet Michelle Dorrance, Dorrance Dance Miriam Miller, New York City Ballet Naomi Funaki, Tap Dancer Preston Chamblee, New York City Ballet Roman Mejia, New York City Ballet Shuaib Elhassan, Alonzo King LINES Ballet Unity Phelan, New York City Ballet Live musical accompaniment with Brooklyn Rider. To get good seats, you have to purchase months ahead of these announcements. Fortunately, they normally come up with good stuff.

Good grief - what a schedule! Is there no one else who could substitute? On Instagram, the morning after his Swan Lake, Hallberg said he felt like he had been hit by a truck.

Cornejo just posted rehearsal footage on his "stories" on Instagram -- it shows him rehearsing this move with Lane, but it's pretty disappointing. Interested in what others think. Unfortunately, I don't see a way to post those "stories" elsewhere. EDITED: It's Lane not Brandt. Sorry!

Thanks, @FauxPas This is sounding like a work in progress, continually. Ratmansky just posted another new thing on his public Facebook just now (not clear if ABT is already doing this): SLEEPING BEAUTY: another important Petipa moment which is usually omitted that we were able to bring back - is when Aurora balances in attitude in the shell, like Venus of Botticelli, during pas d'action of the Vision scene. the whole auditorium freezes and my heart beats faster. it's pure magic (when done well)

I saw three performances the year of the premiere (including Vishneva-Gomes) and have never returned. I agree with FauxPas' assessment. The dancers seemed so uncomfortable with all that demi-pointe and the heavy knee-length skirts. I missed the higher extensions that we are used to. (Balanchine and Robbins were known to alter choreography to show off a dancer's strengths, and I didn't know Petipa did the same thing. E.g., in Robbins' Four Seasons, he did two entirely different male variations for Martins and Baryshnikov in the premiere season.) For the sake of dance history, it was interesting to see, but it isn't something I yearn to see again as a balletomane. I've been trying to figure out why I liked Ratmansky's reconstruction of Swan Lake for Zurich and La Scala and am eager to see it again. Importantly for me, the original had much more complex and interesting ensemble work in Acts I and II that has disappeared in contemporary versions, perhaps to cut the length. The white swan PdD is transformed into a pas de trois with help on the partnering from Benno, which was really interesting. The virtuoso fouettes were there, along with most of the virtuoso moves we expect in the ballroom scene. The knee-length skirts did not seem so heavy and cumbersome as they do in Sleeping Beauty.

Baryshnikov and Makarova did the Kirov version in 1981 in the televised version, starting at 2:30:

This fish dive by Bolle-Vishneva is the one more likely to be seen in western productions. Note that he turns and then catches her with one arm, starting at 3:00

Mariinsky uses very similar choreography to the Bolshoi clip above. I don't know when this was taped. Fishdive music starts at 2:30