cobweb

I'm not very familiar with Pulcinella Variations, but yes, I believe it was the Huxley role. And agree about Amaria (I was there Saturday night). I didn't see the point of either of the boring, sloppy looking costumes, and the piece itself consisted mostly of acrobatic, contorted type lifting, showing off how flexible the woman is, how strong the man is, and how the clever the choreographer is in coming up with ingenious new lifts. No thanks. If NYCB really wants to honor these two retiring principals, how about putting out the video of a few fabulous past performances, like the pas de deux from Stravinsky Violin Concerto dated (if I have my notes right) May 9, 2015?

You must see the new soloist and tell me what you think. (I already know we’re on the same page about the other imported soloist Jovani Furlan.) Agree about the obnoxious Pulcinella costumes. I kept looking at that half tutu and thinking, would it have been so awful just to put the other half of the tutu on there? The costume is fanciful enough already, why hit us over the head with zaniness, just put on a regular tutu so the eye can rest and move on to the actual dancing.

Tonight’s Pulcinella Variations served as a terrific showcase for the dancers. Young new corpsman KJ Takahashi got a burst of applause after his solos. Emma von Enck was a ferocious bolt of energy during hers. Unity Phelan carries herself like a principal, nothing less. I look forward to seeing her in many great ballerina roles. For me the highlight was seeing new soloist Chu Wai Chan. First impression: EXCELLENT!!! Super clean, good height in the air, partners Miriam Miller with aplomb, and an irresistible smile, confidence, poise, all of the above - charisma. Glad to see him here!

If you go to Youtube and type in "ballo della regina ballet," the first listing should be a marvelous performance where Debra Austin is one of the soloists and comes in at 6:01. I just love her in this.

Have to agree with this (from seeing the program Thursday night). The men were lacking in the weighted, angular, dynamic quality it should have. The second batch of men who come out were particularly un-impactful.

If Tyler Angle's been wearing fake hair up till now, I have been blissfully unaware of it.

Yes to Miriam Miller. Mira Nadon strikes me as not formed enough yet (granted last time I saw her in any featured role was 1.5y ago). No to beards, just no. And down with the unibrows too!

These are great suggestions for Symphony in C. I would love to see King or Woodward in the first movement. Woodward would also be a good choice for the Tchaikovsky gut-crunchers. I can also see Unity Phelan in the 2nd movement, along with of course Ashley Laracey. AFAIK the only ones who have done 2nd movement on the current roster are Mearns, Kowroski, Reichlen, and Hyltin.

In addition, Bouder and M. Fairchild must be heading towards the end of their careers. There is definitely plenty of room for promotion.

It certainly seems like Unity is up next, however painful that might be for other deserving hopefuls, like Woodward and Gerrity. I thought Serenade looked better last night than opening night, crisper and more energetic. There seems to be a new standard, or lack of standard, regarding the men's hair length. I saw a lot of floppy hair, particularly on Daniel Applebaum and one of the new-ish corps guys who has curly blond hair (can anyone identify him for me?), although there are others too. Anthony Huxley has a more full head of hair than he used to, but it is within more reasonable limits, and besides he has truly beautiful hair. After two performances this week, Davide Riccardo stands out as someone I'd like to see more of (he debuted in the first movement of Glass Pieces). I remember him from the SAB Workshop a few years ago. He has a strong presence and seems to have a ton of potential.

Yes, I also was able to get good seats for program 5, purchased Sunday night. I could never see Fall for Dance before because availability was so difficult. I was surprised they were still available Sunday night. Maybe not so good for City Center, but it's good for me!

Thank you for clarifying that goofy motion! I had no idea what Scordato was doing.

Clear and Excelsior pass were in one line, vaccine cards were another line. My partner and I were in separate lines (he hadn't signed up for the app yet) and at that point, about 20 minutes before curtain, the vaccine card line was moving a little slower, but the difference wasn't that bad.

It was great to be there. More than Serenade, the jolt that comes from a beautifully-executed Symphony in C was what I really needed. I wish they were doing more of that, and less of Serenade, this season. Joseph Gordon looked great, with more spring in his legs than ever. I was praying there would be no speeches, so my heart sank when Whelan and Stafford came out. Mercifully it was short and sweet. I totally didn't understand the "Waltz of the Flowers" interlude. Did they need extra time for the costume change? Or are they trying to drum up interest for Nutcracker? I could have done without that, especially since it was already getting long to sit with no intermission. The curtain went up 20 minutes late as it was, why add to the time before we can stand up?

Same question about Mejia! Where are you seeing Kikta in Glass Pieces? Unless I’m reading something wrong I don’t see it on the casting sheet, but if she’s in there I want to know when so I can get a ticket!

Okay, so if people can leave and then return (rather than the usual policy which is you can only return at an intermission), that sounds a little more do-able. However, presumably the "appropriate interval" to return would be at the next pause, meaning you would miss an entire piece.

Are we really sure it's no intermission? I'm not seeing it anywhere on the website. I see how on the casting sheet it's just listed as "Pause" between the pieces, but I'm really baffled they're not letting the audience know about this in advance. And speaking of programming Symphony in C only once, I'm wishing some of the season's, and the year's, programming could be changed. Maybe under the circumstances it would be more do-able. Let's add in a few more performances of Symphony in C, and how about bumping up Divertimento No. 15 too?

Totally agree. No intermission/no bathroom break is going to be very hard on a lot of the audience, especially older folk. They really ought to be making it crystal-clear upfront that there will be no intermissions. I suspect it would cut into ticket sales.

Week 1 casting is finally posted.

As we wait for the first week of casting to appear (the second week is now due soon as well), I have been studying the schedule to decide what to see. After this painful long break from live performance, I am more than eager to get back, but I find the season's programming disappointing. Sure, there are things I want to see, but it's limited and the programming seems repetitive. I wish there was more of interest. I don't know Chaconne all that well and wonder who will be cast. Otherwise, maybe I'll take in a few more performances of ABT's Giselle than I might normally see, and maybe the Twyla Tharp at City Center later in November.

Bring on the unitard roles! Jovani Furlan is someone I look forward to seeing, in a unitard or any other role. But where is the casting??

Per Fairchild, one cast consists of herself, Gerrity, and Mearns. That must mean there's a second cast, likely consisting of Bouder, LeCrone (or Reichlen), and ... ?

Does anyone have a a sense of how many of the child dancers are typically under age 12? In other words, how much of an adjustment will this be? Surely some costumes will have to be adjusted. For me so much of the charm comes from the children, right down to the littlest ones in Mother Ginger.

I don't have a subscription to the Times, can anyone summarize what the article says?

I like to see super close up, either with binos or by sitting in very front orchestra. On the other hand, I also love seeing the overall patterns as discerned from the rear orchestra or above. Which gives me good reasons to see multiple performances!