nanushka

In what way does Robbie not come out looking very well here, given what we actually know? Was he supposed to remain celibate following the breakup of their marriage? Sure, based on the publicly known facts, there are narratives one could write that would make Robbie look bad. There are also narratives one could write, based on those very same facts, that would make Tiler look bad. And others one could write that would make both or neither look bad. In my opinion, we simply don't know enough to begin to judge the people who were involved in what was essentially (Martha Stewart Weddings aside — a wedding is not a marriage, after all) a private relationship.

Individual conclusions can certainly be drawn, but even couples who are completely open with one another about their sexualities (straight, gay, bi or otherwise) have been known at times to have acrimonious breakups for a whole variety of reasons. The fact of the matter is we have no way of knowing at this point what happened between them (as is pretty much true of all intimate relationships involving other people). Until such a time when one of them speaks openly and candidly about their relationship — and perhaps even then, unless the other also speaks out in complete agreement — it will remain a mystery.

David Hallberg social media update: Current Instagram story says, "Gearing up to head back to NY."

There are a number of programs in the 2018-19 seasons that mix the two, I believe. I remember noticing that as I looked through the recently published info.

Agreed, on all three counts!

I can tell you from personal experience (and from knowing many others with a similar experience) that, for some, it is. And my point was precisely that for her it may indeed have been a "calling or passion" (though before you posted, but apparently after you quoted me, I changed "passion" to "commitment," which was more precisely what I meant), but that she could still in fact hate it. And I believe that's along the lines of what the original poster was suggesting as well — though I may be wrong about that, of course. All that said, I have no particular thought as to whether Dupont does indeed hate ballet. I just think it's not at all impossible that she could.

Isn't it possibly quite similar? Grad school can feel like a calling and a commitment, even if one in fact hates it — especially if one has innate talent. The same, I imagine, could be true of being a dancer.

Any (official) word on why the switch was made?

Then there's this. Promising? (I often find myself wishing he were more forthcoming!)

Yes! Debuting Sun Apr 29 matinee with Tyler Angle, for whom it's the NYC debut. Casting list is here.

#lifelessons

I'm imagining a few different possible substitutions for the Giselle hops, but they're all just making me giggle.

Yes, this better fits my own memory of that moment. I believe she was downstage left (audience right), facing offstage in arabesque — and I think she held it pretty long, to fill out the music. (I think she may have done a jeté before the arabesque as well.) In any case, there wasn't time for a manege or anything like that. Whatever she did, it was quite probably improvised, as I don't think she would have foreseen needing to stop the fouettés that late in the sequence. (Probably like what happened to Misty in the video, if she planned to do 16 but only hit 12.)

Definitely. Though in the case of Sarah, in particular, it was also likely a result of her stepping into the role on fairly short notice and of the fouetté problem coming near the very end of the sequence, when it might have been too late to embark on any real Plan B. (That's not to excuse her from the responsibility of trying to save the situation, of course — though I do seem to recall that she did more than just stand there looking crestfallen. I think crestfallen was more just her general demeanor through the rest of the act.)

If Plan A is 32 fouettés, and if Plan A has never been achieved onstage in performance (and I've never read a report that it has — does anyone know of one? and does anyone have a tally of how many full-length SLs Misty has danced at this point?), then there needs to be a new Plan A, I think, unless serious additional training is happening in the studio. The new Plan A could perhaps be 16 (or the first half of the music) then something else; or it could be something else entirely. Let's say the new Plan A is 16 plus something else; then there should probably also be a new Plan B, in case even 16 doesn't end up being feasible. This is of course all written as I sit here wearing my 'If I were AD...' hat.

I think that story is an excellent example of a dancer and director working together to craft a solution that has maximum impact given the constraints of context, medium and physical ability. From Ashley's biography: I hope that Misty and Kevin McK can work together to come up with an equally effective solution to the problems she has apparently always had in performing the SL fouettés — even if it means substituting something else entirely. Ashley's en dedans fouettés can be seen here.

Another is her build, which is not particularly slender (in terms of bone structure, musculature, etc.). I think that's another reason she comes across as shorter than she is, whereas some other dancers in the 5'5 range can read as taller onstage.

Good point. To clarify, though, I'm not at all saying that Copeland should be listening directly to her audience/critics. I'm saying that she shouldn't be suggesting it's wrong for them to "come into the theatre as a critic armed with judgement" (as if doing so precluded aesthetic appreciation, emotional engagement, enjoyment, etc.), or that their doing so is out of keeping with the history and traditions of the art form. I also think she shouldn't be minimizing the crucial role of technique in classical ballet.

Two videos from Marcelo on IG:

Of course. The most one can hope is for a reasonable maintenance of the tradition. It sounds like that's at least arguably the case at SAB/NYCB, which bodes well. Thanks for the further info.

So it sounds like those mechanics of Balanchine's teaching have been preserved pretty well in SAB and NYCB classes? That's good to hear.

5'5 does indeed seem much more in line with my impressions of her. (My personal guess would have been 5'3.) Thanks for verifying!

Just looking at some pictures of Tiler and Sterling together online, I don't think there's a 4-inch difference in height there (i.e. it doesn't seem to me that Tiler could be under 5', if Sterling is 5'3-5'6). Plus, Tiler on pointe seemed to be about Huxley's height in Baiser, which would seem to make his partnering Sterling impossible, if she were 4+ inches taller yet.

In fact, in her responses to the fouetté video, she downplayed technique and its role in ballet. From both the YouTube comment and the second Instagram post: This is the part of her response that I really have a problem with. I don't believe it's correct to say that ballet's "origin" was in "pure freedom and expression," and I certainly don't think there's anything wrong with viewing ballet performance from a perspective of critical judgment. In ballet at its best, technique and artistry are not at odds. Her comments here seem to me to reflect a misunderstanding of the history and traditions of classical ballet, as does her subsequent Cosmo interview: That ballet would draw an audience of viewers many of whom are inclined to regard dance with a critical eye is hardly a new development, and hardly limited to the New York area.

Those both seem like very thoughtful responses. I'm interested to hear additional views.