MRR

At least on Friday night, Cornejo did the sissonne rond de jambe for the first four sets, a step battement rond de jambe for #5, and walked around to center to start the sissonnes alternating side-to-side before the tours. Essentially the version Baryshnikov performed in 1978 but with the more difficult sissonne variation of the opening jumps, faithful to the Youskevitch original. The fast tempo for the tours is incredibly difficult for precision and very few men dare try it; obviously it helps that Cornejo is about Misha's size. Also confused at Brandt turning T&V into Swan Lake and showing endless balances, neither of which I saw. Only one balance in the pas was held for notable (not extraordinary) length; the partnered balances with switch of arms were not held longer than normal, and she didn't even sustain the arabesque following "scrambled eggs." There were a few instances of holding out a rond de jambe (start of the pas de deux, once in the finale) but this for me was part of her phrasing, not a circus act. Anyway, I found Cornejo terrific and Brandt very, very good, delivering to my eyes better than suggested here. T&V is great for Cornejo in that he can mostly eschew anything involving flexibility and instead focus on his strengths, and what strength he continues to show of technique, clarity, and bravado. The entrechats of the first solo floated up in the air, if tiring slightly in the repeat, and he did the treacherous consecutive pirouettes without a hitch. I described the second solo above and respect that he went for the sissonne rond de jambe, and the tour/pirouette repeats traveled just slightly to an emphatic finish. Losing somewhat of his stretch through the leg and the back in arabesque, his feet remain beautiful, caressing the ground in all his landings. Aesthetically Brandt is not my favorite ballerina: her head and neck appear disjointed from her torso; her legs extend high but not long. However, I was thrilled to see a ballerina even take a stab at Kirkland/Akira Endo tempi, and she mostly got there in the second variation while warming up to it in the first. Ormsby Wilkins gave her a run for her money, but the 5 count pas de chat-soutenu-double pirouette did not fall behind the music, blazing forward into faster chaînés and an emphatic double to finish. She had an easy, unforced demeanor that wouldn't have looked out of place in Sleeping Beauty, and while I share nycvillager's preference for tall dancers, this is 99% of the time not a tall ballerina role. The pas de deux was completed admirably, if not as thrilling as what preceded it. A relative weakness were the entrechats of the first solo: not sixes by any stretch, nor jumps that left the ground. Still, this is a monster of a role and to have most of the technical challenges met, with a spirited tempo and an elegant deportment, I consider a win. Single Eye was danced better than the choreography probably deserved. Boylston is effective in contemporary; the splayed fingers and wrists seem to relax in the intimate space of this work. Skylar DID hold some balances here, including a full circle of her leg (back to side to front) which garnered applause. Calvin Royal was elegant and earthy both in the pas with Skylar and his own solo; Thomas Forster practically disappeared but perhaps that wasn't a bad thing. Chloe Misseldine in the Star Trek tutu captivates without effort: her dark hair, long limbs, and sinuous movement draw up a prototype of the perfect ballerina created in a lab. Jacob Clerico and Michael de la Nuez were agile, gyroscopic, fervent in the two men's solos. Zigzag is not a substantial ballet nor an obvious one to show at the MET, particularly in ABT's lone mixed rep of the season. The initial entertainment shown gave way to kitsch, posing a question as to why any of it needed to be choreographed. The commitment, physicality, and glamour of Cassandra Trenary and Devon Teuscher saved this from being a wasted half hour, and Blaine Hoven's gregarious persona was well utilized here. Jacob Curley was leopard-like in his opening solo, carving the space in fascinating and unpredictable ways. Luciana Paris is pleasant if the perpetual soloist; Joo Won Ahn was unbearably flat-footed and awkward. The corps were heavily featured, though I never understood their role. This wasn't much different from the principals, with the ballet featuring solos, duets, and trios, disparate in how they related to one another. At one moment, Trenary (or maybe it was Teuscher?) is held aloft by two men while Paris reaches for her, then dances on her own, before Trenary and Paris partner and go off together. The ending ensemble brought the ballet to a dimmer light to where it started.

The Hurlin debut was one of the main reasons why I made a last minute trip to NY, my first in five years and seeing ABT at the MET in seven. Her clips on social media are always exciting---she has abundant personality and a vigorous technique---but I've seen very little of her live. Overall I share most of the plaudits written above. It's odd to say but I thought she made a terrific impression in the otherwise ridiculous prologue (the stuffed animal swan never fails to cringe). Her eyes were wondrous and big as she entered the stage with an abandon that forcefully resisted Rothbart. Hurlin is an aficionado of allegro which made for a big test of adagio and legato as Odette. Her entrance showed controlled, sustained pique arabesques which shifted on a dime to a wild, uncontained, agitated quality as she first encounters Siegfried. The mime was emotionally committed if not timed especially well (the lake of her mother's tears didn't get full value), and one could argue she didn't project the magisterial authority of past great Swan Queens. However, for me the latter point is unreasonable to expect of a debut and wouldn't have been the right approach anyway: Odette is a Princess, not a Queen, and Hurlin conveyed her innocence. There was a sense of assuming authority over the corps of Swans not by choice but responsibility; as the Chosen One she has to trust Siegfried to save not only herself but all of them. Her Act II adagio featured an open, unstrained attitude and arabesque with a relative lack of shape of her feet preventing a longer line. The port de bras were grandiose with fluttering, birdlike motions particularly as she plunged into those deep penchees following the supported pirouettes. Her gaze, frightened of Siegfried at first, slowly revealed a melancholy as she fully entrusted her weight into his arms in the swaying attitudes. Dancing of a high quality almost to the very end, Hurlin had a slight problem on the last supported pirouette veering far to the left, and the ending serre were thinly sketched, not even beating for 3/4 of the promenade. The développé of the solo were sustained if hit or miss as far as the double rond were concerned; otherwise she left a strong impression with a space devouring diagonal and good entrechats of the coda. She smiled vividly as Siegfried swore to love her, staying with him until the last second before forcibly boureeing upstage with big, flapping port de bras. Her Odile had a theatrical, almost vaudevillian aura which was not at all subtle. Her expression changed rapidly, sometimes making a bit too clear how she was manipulating Siegfried and upset to have him out of her grasp. The port de bras came across less disciplined than in the white act with lots of wristy arms not bending enough at the elbow and tension creeping into the shoulders and neck. These are obviously details which will refine with experience, but her technical and theatrical momentum were unfailing, only building as the pas de deux went on. The adagio was generally sound with only one supported pique turn going awry as Ahn partnered her for an unnecessary extra revolution. The solo opened with immediate double attitude from a rond de jambe with the second attempt better than the first, and closing with an emphatic, speedy manege. The fouettes were thrilling singles, keeping up entirely with the breakneck tempo for the first 16 and falling just a bit behind on the latter. Hurlin has further polish, authority, and depth in the dual role to explore, but her portrayal was spontaneous and alive, immersing herself in creating the story right in front of you. Ahn as Siegfried was a generally strong partner with an airy, controlled jump and unforced stage presence. He projected neither emotional weight nor charisma, and his partnership with Hurlin was one of rapport over chemistry. His pirouettes suffered relatively in comparison to his jumps, attempting less revolutions than Bell throughout the show and having some bobbles during the Ball solo (not so for his tours, which were impeccable). There's nothing inherently special about his dancing though he is capable and usable in a lot of areas. Despite a lukewarm reaction to him in the first two acts, I understood his casting far more in the latter part of the ballet. Much of the technical acumen of a great danseur is there: I enjoyed how stately and calm his deportment and landings were, and his acting, limited for now, never became hysterical. Shayer had some swagger and command as Purple Pimp; alas his technique prevented him from elevating beyond that. His lines were clipped, the multiple scissoring jumps barely left the ground, pirouettes lacked control, and the arabesque balance, held a fairly long time, seesawed with obvious tension in his hands. Patrick Frenette as Benno bordered dangerously close to mannerism, but technically had a good show with steady tours and pirouettes and an exciting final manege. Both pas de trois ladies impressed with Breanne Granlund executing fantastic high entrechat six (better than Frenette's!) and Zimmi Coker showing a natural epaulement and presence. April Giangeruso replaced Lauren Post in Two Swans and with Courtney Lavine appeared quite earthbound. The Cygnets (Nicole Graniero, Luciana Paris, Betsy McBride, Erica Lall) restored the high standard from Monday.

@stuben I appreciate your viewpoint and enjoy the variety of opinions on this forum. I remember there being high praise for Christine's O/O in the 2018 and 2019 run which perhaps made my expectations unrealistic. Dramatically she left me cold but I am glad you enjoyed her and hope she continues to grow in the ballet.

Saw yesterday evening. For all the divergent opinions about Hee Seo, she has generally had "good" nights when I've seen her, and last night extended that streak. She is not a performer with personality to burn nor a natural Swan Queen despite her lissome physique, but she brought a serenity to Act II and wry glamour to Act III. White Swan featured boneless, rippling port de bras with subtle details of her elbows and wrists: gone were the feral motions of arms and spine from Shevchenko the day before. Her Odette was scared but inquisitive regarding Siegfried; the mime poignant in showing the lake of her mother's tears. At 36 she has lost flexibility in her back but some of the shapes were still breathtaking, most of all an exquisite final développé a la seconde in the adagio with an elongated, tapered extension and beautifully arched foot. The solo showed some successful double rond de jambe on the first set, not so much the second; the sissonnes were somewhat anemic but the final diagonal of turns went without a hitch. Her entrechats in the coda were surprisingly good, jumping highly and traveling her passés clear to the back of the stage. Odile was altogether less effective but far more musical than Shevchenko at the start. She entered with a sinister beauty and danced with authority throughout the adagio which featured multiple whiplash supported pirouettes. One detail that read to me more than usual was stopping Siegfried from reaching for her hand so she could confer with Rothbart, not just to be mysterious or alluring. Her variation was less well performed with bobbles on both her double pirouette-single attitude and a more serious, stilted expression. The a la seconde and manège were fine. Fouettés started out singles with a couple doubles interspersed---the first more successful than the second---into maybe 10 or so singles in the B section, mostly filling out the music to Charles Barker's blistering tempo. They were effortful but not an embarrassment, traveling primarily downstage and not side. Overall Hee's O/O isn't a memorable, searing interpretation to see again and again but it was well modulated, nuanced, and sensitive in her chemistry with Bell. Despite being over a decade his senior, the age disparity didn't show. I was impressed if not necessarily thrilled with Bell. His presence is not as towering as I expected; at least on the cavernous MET stage he doesn't appear 6'3". Overall there's an extremely good command of technique with a floaty ballon, soft landing, and everlasting pirouette. His line doesn't evoke the poetry of a Hallberg or the strength and volume of a Gomes, but he dances with quality. Act I was tentative on his solos with a couple fudged turns and not a great impact, but he got more over his legs as the evening went. He was ebullient upon receiving the crossbow; later curious and protective meeting Odette and partnering well throughout the adagio. The Act III solo was extremely good: great double cabrioles especially for his height, clean tours to fifth, and consistent quad pirouettes with the last one a gorgeous a la seconde to the knee (unlike 2019 this was the only finish to the knee throughout the solo). The coda featured big, airy tours to arabesque, a quintuple pirouette raising arms to fifth, and a la seconde variations of triples to fifth and a somewhat muscled triple to pull in. Dramatically there is plenty of room to grow: he maintains a similar closed expression and gaze throughout the ballet, and the finishes of his variations aren't especially punctuated. Nonetheless his humility onstage is appealing and he never bit off more than he could chew, technically or theatrically. The final jump into the lake was spectacular, hanging in the air as if he were never coming down. Jose Sebastian had less charisma than Andrii Ishchuk as Purple Pimp and his partnering was occasionally awkward. Technically he was more successful: the balance in arabesque wasn't gasp-worthy but very well done, and the line and amplitude of his sissonnes shown. The pas de trois took a big leap from Monday. Sung Woo Han had an impressive gyroscopic sense and soaring leap as Benno, sailing through all the challenges of the solo and coda with ease. There were impressive beats, tours, turns, and a terrific manège; I also appreciated how engaged his interactions were with Siegfried and the two ballerinas. Sunmi Park in the first variation didn't attempt the sixes---or if she did they were hardly visible---but the diagonal of pique/step over turns was finely controlled and the saut de basques in the coda devoured the stage. Chloe Misseldine was luminous; her variation one of the best parts of the whole evening. Every step seemed to bring her joy, with fleeting footwork and extra revolutions in pirouettes that seemed to come out of nowhere. She has potential to go very far. The Cygnets were admirable if somewhat less pristine than Monday; there were some turned in pas de chats and not a totally precise finish (Lea Fleytoux, Zimmi Coker, Hannah Marshall, Kanon Kimura). Zhong-Jing Fang and Paulina Waski were fine as Two Swans with Zhong commanding your attention of the two. Waski had an awkward finish, balancing herself on her other knee to avoid falling. Other standouts: Luigi Crispino had marvelous articulation in the Neopolitan despite a minor struggle through the last set of turns into tour en l'air; Betsy McBride was compelling in the Czardas.

Agree with pretty much all the comments above: I couldn't get into Christine's O/O at all. Her Odette never came to trust much less fall in love with Siegfried, nor did it seem human, employing wild, over the top undulations of her spine despite having a rather stiff back in arabesque or attitude. Her Odile went for an icy Noir glamour, which could have been effective but for the extremely harsh port de bras, abrupt stops of position, and the lack of any star quality that projected to the back of the theatre. Her dancing was often indulgent, lagging behind the music, while somehow never grasping the authority of the dual role. While she has plenty of capabilities of a principal, the overall impact of the afternoon was that of a soloist. Technically the exposed White Swan adagio was navigated well; her lines don't really sing but the leg beats at the end were extremely well done. The solo and coda were fine although she tended to complete the double rond to the right leg and not the left. Black Swan featured multiple prolonged supported pirouettes, triple pirouette to single attitude in her solo, and an odd configuration of single-single-a la seconde-double-single-double to lead off the fouettes. She is a strong turner with a vigorous forward momentum which aided her during any long series of turns, particularly the diagonal in Act II or the manege in Act III. While an otherwise successful Odile as far as the big tricks, the balance in the adagio wasn't held. Calvin was an empathetic, handsome Prince with almost a beautiful line (his feet tend to not point/finish). Technically he seemed to fix whatever issues he had on Wednesday as it was a clean if conservative showing. He never showed more than three pirouettes the whole show, the double cabrioles were thinly sketched, and tour en l'air to fifth were often good but far less good to arabesque. That said, Siegfried has a major arc of character that gets overlooked with the emphasis on the dual ballerina role, and for a new interpreter of the role Calvin understood this. His first Act was appropriately full of naïveté which made his falling for Odette and subsequently Odile all the more sensical and heartbreaking. His partnering was sensitive if not always masterful, and he performed with a spirit which made the audience root for him. Andrii Ishchuk had a wonderfully campy, mischievous Rothbart with some strong moments: multiple everlasting pirouettes, a balance that a second or two longer would've made applause worthy, and an emphatic jump to the throne. There wasn't much phrasing or texture to his dancing but for a young corps member in his second show of the role, he fared extremely well. The swan corps was one of the better coached ensembles I've seen at ABT in a while, and the Cygnets were excellent (Kotomi Yamada, Nicole Graniero, Betsy McBride, Breanne Granlund). Katherine Williams and Ingrid Thoms were Two Swans: well-matched if a touch underpowered (more so Ingrid). Pas de trois was somewhat of a white knuckle ride. I'm never sure what to make of Zhong-Jing Fang: her showmanship is exciting, generous, and alive one moment; excessively mannered and saccharine the next. That said, she was the obvious leader of the PdT and carried what was a cautious partnering and technical effort by Kento Sumitami. Kento tried as much as he could to disappear behind Fang, and Fang has a big enough personality to accommodate that, but his solo variation was nervously marred by fudged finishes of tour en l'air and pirouette and not a strong center in his beats. He has wonderful elevation---there was a gorgeous double cabriole in the interlude with Siegfried---but theatrically there's nothing behind the eyes. Paulina Waski is pleasant to watch with a creditable enough entrechat six, but the diagonal of turns got worse and worse as it went, and she was out of gas by the coda.

I am extremely dismayed that Stix-Brunell is not cast as Swanhilda: she seems perfect for the role. O'Sullivan debuting Aurora and Swanhilda back-to-back makes her a lock for first soloist. I wonder if Corrales would have been given principal if he had danced the entire season uninjured including Basilio, but the promotion should come in a year or two.

And Sleeping Beauty.

He just danced two Romeo's in London, and that is arguably a more difficult role than Siegfried. I wouldn't expect Hallberg to replace any of Simkin's performances, but at least he should honor his own.

A recent video of her Diamonds (with Xander Parish)

Bolshoi uploaded the cinemacast on its website (you have to register an account): http://media.bolshoi.ru/play#/vod/play/435

Which principals did you see, @Mashinka?

I am a dancer in the company and words can't do justice to this beautiful artist. I stood next to her at barre every day and was honored to have partnered and choreographed on her. My tribute on Facebook:

I was so fortunate to have had Mr. Frame as an instructor for weight training during SAB's summers in 2008 and 2009. I can't say I worked with him a great deal, but more than enough where he made a big impact on my approach to conditioning my body, technique, and mind. His classes were challenging, not just physically but spiritually: he always wanted you to discover your essence and purpose as a dancer. He was invested in every student and knew everyone's name the first day. Regretfully he never taught technique at the school (at least in my time there), and even in those summers I remember wanting to take from him because his insights on dance were so remarkably keen. However, he watched our ballet classes religiously and was always willing to help with a step or something you were struggling with. Truly, he wanted everyone to succeed. Even when students were sitting the halls waiting for their next class, he would be the first person to say hello: Peter was warm, engaging, with no pretense whatsoever. When I arrived for my second summer he instantly remembered my name and wanted to know how I had been doing. I will never forget how generous, radiant, and physically perfect he was: he always looked a solid decade younger than his age. For anyone who is friends with Jock Soto on Facebook, he had the most beautiful tribute to Peter. RIP to an uncommon man and teacher.

Having not seen this, it sounds very tacky. I should've remembered: Stanton Welch's production for Houston Ballet used to end with a swan exiting while a maiden entered in her place, with the maidens slowly realizing their newfound freedom during the apotheosis. Beforehand, Siegfried intends to shoot Rothbart but misses and hits Odette instead (!), so the spell is broken. I don't even remember what Siegfried did after that point. Alas, in the most recent revival we now have the classic double suicide ending, but occurring later in the music. The swans stay in tutus and bourree in formation until the curtain falls.

Hmmmm, I thought Swan Odette during the apotheosis was not a spirit, but rather a figment of Siegfried's imagination, or memory. So when he is walking downstage, he is thinking of Odette and the promise he couldn't keep to break the spell, which explains the projection of Odette in the tutu. He carries maiden Odette because now that she is deceased, the spell is broken and she can never be transformed back into a swan. If we literally apply the story, the audience never sees the ballerinas as swans at any point in the ballet except for Odette's transformation at the end of Act II. However, Odette, Big Swans, Cygnets, and the corps are still in swan tutus, which represent the spell they are under even while they're in human form. So Odette in her maiden nightie in the apotheosis made sense to me because while she is dead, effectively so is the spell. It is an awkward juxtaposition, however, against the corps who are still in swan tutus even though they are freed. But there is no practical way to have all the corps women quick changing while Siegfried retrieves Odette's body to show all of them in maiden form, so I accepted the ending for what it was. Of course I prefer the double death ending, and for an alternative ending I enjoyed the RDB's which had Siegfried marrying Odile in the closing seconds. The political plot got out of hand though. It never made sense to me how, for all of Rothbart's presence in the court, nobody noticed he had a daughter! And his curse for Odette almost seemed independent of his plot to take over the kingdom. During the closing of Act I, Rothbart wants Siegfried to go back to the palace, while Siegfried refuses. It's as though Rothbart doesn't want Siegfried to go shooting for swans, or find Odette, much less fall in love with her. But then, if Siegfried doesn't meet Odette, how does Rothbart know he will fall in love with the "real" Odile at the ball? The whole point of him of his infatuation with Odile is that she is transformed to resemble Odette.

Very interesting to read this as I saw Valdes twice on the recent DC tour, and was surprised to see her at all (I thought she had already retired). I was rather disappointed in her Kitri and her dancing really showed her age. Arabesques penchees went barely above 90 degrees, she stumbled on her fabled fouettes, there were steps with the corps she marked to pace herself, and overall from the first act she looked tired, nervous, uninterested, or some combination of the three. Not to say it was completely a waste....she had some great instances of comedic timing and also attempted numerous balances--including one spectacular arabesque held at least 15 seconds where she was practically a statue--but those were isolated moments throughout a three-hour evening. However, much to my shock I loved her Giselle. It wasn't exceptionally acted, but it was like in the span of three days she became a decade younger. Her variations were so free and generous....the Spesivtseva was a master class in control, and her stage presence was unforgettable. Act I was quite a bit better than Act II, but even in Act II you believed the generosity of her spirit saving Albrecht. She didn't indulge in any balances or pyrotechnics and didn't need to. I was shocked that in such a lyrical role, she could be so captivating even if not in the traditional mold for a Giselle. The Kennedy Center roared for her in that performance in a way they didn't for the opening night (with Sadaise Arencibia in the title-role).

According to People Magazine (admittedly not the best source), Balanchine offered to take her into NYCB if Paris Opera didn't want her. Surely, given her talent he probably thought the chances of that happening were slim to none. Guillem is interesting because while she had a quintessential Balanchine body, she was not, to my eyes, a Balanchine dancer in the least. She did perform some (not a lot) of his work at POB and Royal, but I sense his choreography didn't appeal to her.

Fascinating....I had no idea Balanchine was even aware of Sylvie Guillem much less tried to invite her into his company. At the time of his death she would have been a coryphee. While he might have enjoyed her dancing, that is not to say he would have definitively enjoyed her in 2nd movement of Bizet.

I didn't see the cinemacast but saw it live in London four times when it premiered. Macfarlane's design for the Act III ballroom is one of my favorites: rich, opulent, and slightly macabre. Video does not do it justice. I was less enthused about Act I: the gates and backdrop are fine, but the trees are indeed distracting and even the benches looked cheap. There is a very sterile, cold feel to Act I which I thought both Scarlett and Macfarlane accomplished in their choreography/designs; it's just not how I envision a prince's birthday party. The lakeside scenes are VERY darkly lit. The return to the corps in swan tutus is welcome, but the long skirts were the least of the previous production's problems. It cannot be overstated how hideous the Sonnabend designs were....as a 7-year-old I hated them. Marianela Nunez I previously saw in the Dowell production in 2011, and she is still one of my favorite dancers. At 36 her extension and back flexibility is declining, so the exposed adagio in Act II was not her strong point. But her Odile was wonderfully glamorous--a true Belle of the Ball as she seduced her Prince--and Act IV poignant and tragic. Sarah Lamb did not have the strength or security technically of a Nunez, but she had incredible detail in the mime, with her entrance scene performed about as well as I've ever seen it. Her Odile wasn't sensuous but rather sinister, calculating, and manipulative, and Act IV, like Nunez, was her stronger of the two white acts. There was something truly grave about her predicament in those final moments before her suicide. Akane Takada received much praise on the balletcoforum, but her O/O left me stone cold. Perhaps as a result of her Bolshoi training, she had some unmistakable Russian qualities in the ballet: sinuous rippling port de bras, high extensions, and even the Russian "non-whip" technique to her fouettes. But she didn't have the pathos, grandeur, or distinction the dual role deserves, though I found much to appreciate in her technique. Her performance in the pas de trois was dynamic, but while she has nice feet her there is something awkward about her right shoe (I believe to accomodate an injury), and in spite of a great jump she didn't even attempt entrechat six. Anyway, the production is no masterpiece, but I did enjoy it more than most on this forum. Rarely (ever?) does Swan Lake get every aspect of the music/designs/choreography/dancers right, and in comparison to Houston Ballet's production which I saw recently that got just about every aspect wrong (despite some fine performances), with the Royal's I felt like I was seeing Swan Lake. Given the vast number of unwatchable Swan Lakes out there, I'm just glad I don't have to add this one to the list.

Drew, I believe it was Ramze's Act II variation with the four children that was restored from the notations, which Canbelto linked to above.

The hops en pointe are in Dulcinea's variation, not Queen of the Dryads. I remember her Italian fouettes being fine as Gamzatti a few years ago, but don't know if those have since diminished.

Leslie Browne once said that the Don Q fouettes are physically harder than those in SL, because Kitri has two whole acts before the Grand PDD where O/O only has one.

Khoreva is a jewel, with all the qualities to become a major ballerina.

Yes, that was the D.C. tour in 2006, with Kobborg as Prince, Nunez as Lilac, and Lamb as Florine. Tough cast to beat.

Just saw Osipova minutes ago outside the ROH (!), unless my jetlagged eyes were really fooling me.