nanushka

Not directly on topic, of course, but at this point in time, is ABT really more of a world-class company than NYCB? In roster, in repertoire, in general overall quality of performances, etc? (What other factors should be considered in making this determination?) Hmm. I'm a longtime ABT fan, but given the current state of the company I don't know that I'd include them on a list of world-class companies that NYCB isn't also on.

Ashley Bouder and Joseph Gordon getting coaching from perhaps the best possible source:

Hi all – I have two side orchestra tickets (row L) for tonight's Giselle (Abrera / Stearns / K Williams) but am unable to attend. I'd be happy to give them for free to someone who would enjoy using them. I realize this is very last-minute (curtain is at 7:30), but if interested PM me. I have a PDF that I could email to you.

Oh TG! I agree. Such an improvement, and yes, she looks great. (I really couldn't deal with the bun being a completely different color from the rest of her hair when she had it up, especially in classical ballets.)

Useful to know. Judgment is a thing that can be good, bad, or somewhere in between, of course, and is often justifiably subject to criticism.

Thanks for the additional information and explanation, Helene. I agree it would be a stretch. Indeed, I didn't even happen to think before that captions might be within the purview of anyone but the newspaper itself.

My source on the ground tells me that Catherine Hurlin (with Gabe Shayer) is dancing the peasant PDD this afternoon. So wish I could be there, for this and so many other reasons!

Indeed, a true statement. What do you make of that, dirac?

Helene, something you wrote earlier on this thread suggested to me that it might indeed be the case that some captions might originate elsewhere than in the heads of NYT staff (though, of course, not necessarily from ABT's and/or Copeland's PR team): I hadn't realized this was the case before you posted that. Is it common for there to be negotiations between a ballet company and a media outlet publishing images of that company regarding the content of captions?

I took your quotation marks ("reconstructing") to suggest that, in Ratmansky's case, the work of reconstruction was not actually being done — or perhaps could not, since it had been done already. Apologies if I misunderstood. The reason I phrased my initial response as a question was to determine if that's what you meant.

Because a reconstruction is a definitive act that cannot be redone, differently and perhaps better, by another? There are people who don't go around doing lots of things, but that doesn't necessarily mean that others shouldn't do those things. A reconstruction is based on research, which, even if exhaustive, still ultimately involves working with imperfect or incomplete sources. It is therefore an interpretive act and no one reconstruction of a ballet could be considered, in my opinion, final.

Yes, same here, exactly.

I have to say that one seems more excusable to me, at least somewhat. The other one was clearly an ensemble image, whereas here the Firebird herself is much more the focus of the image (in composition, color, etc. — not to mention being the title role). Still, it does certainly fit a broader pattern that seems to me to be problematic. Edited to add: That's not to say I disagree with the point abatt seems to be making — just that my first reaction to the more recent caption would not have been "Whaaa???" as it was to the earlier one.

That's exactly the right word, and I've never heard it used to describe an arabesque, but I love it. Thanks for your review, eduardo.

On the topic of Wilfred:

I wonder why Copeland danced with Whiteside, not Cornejo.

[posted before reading to the end of the thread]

He posted an IG story this morning apparently from an ABT rehearsal studio.

Hmm. The interviewer's comments at the very end suggest the interview was done before Hallberg's RB appearance/injury, so perhaps the car episode was in fact unrelated. But the interviewer also says Hallberg is looking forward to dancing at the Met this week. Unclear when the studio rehearsal footage was taken.

"it" = the caption and "the camel's back" = what? (Frustration at Copeland getting recognition while other dancers don't? Wouldn't that still be a criticism of the NYT, since they're the ones doing it?) Sorry, maybe I'm being obtuse. I'm still just not clear what broader question you're raising or what hypothesis you're suggesting (or even which of the two of those you're doing). I don't know of other examples of Copeland getting sole photo or text credit in images or descriptions of performances that also involve other dancers equal in company status (assuming they're not in contexts where the coverage focus is primarily or exclusively on her — and in this case she's not even mentioned in the article, I believe). And this was in the Arts section of the NYT, I believe, so I wouldn't really say they're unversed in dance coverage.

I think the purpose of using the tag @nytimes was quite likely to link his criticism directly to the paper. At least, that's the message that comes across pretty clearly to me. Again, it's a NYT caption that he says he's "unimpressed with." I'm not clear on how else that could be interpreted.

Whiteside's comment, you mean? It definitely doesn't seem critical of Misty. I'm not sure how "unimpressed with this @nytimes caption" could be read as not critical of the paper (given that someone at the paper presumably wrote the caption and the paper itself published it). I don't know what you mean by "or just the slight."

Yes, same. Dark blue. Collarless. (Gosh darn, you're good!) The second video, traveling south on Columbus Ave, appears to have been taken this evening around 7:30.

Yes, that was my understanding as well. (Though I do seem to recall reading that Acts I-II are even more orthodox than Act III.) I guess I should have clarified that I've only seen the more traditional Coppélia twice — unless you include the one time I saw it with Cleveland Ballet (now no longer in existence) at age approx. 11. So I didn't have a terribly good conception of Franz's part in any of its specific forms.

That's good to hear. I've never seen the Balanchine Coppélia, only seen video clips. I'm seeing Sterling and him as well.