choriamb

I'd be curious to see this too, Natalia. (I know that Ballet West did "Les Biches" a few years ago.)

Back to Stella getting cast in Sleeping Beauty and La Fille mal Gardee, but not R&J and Swan Lake. I think that is in a way like casting Alessandra Ferri in Don Quixote and Le Corsaire and passing over her for Giselle and Romeo and Juliet. I think Stella will be great as Aurora and I will certainly go watch, but Romeo and Juliet seems like such a logical next step for her. Why push her so hard to take on roles that aren't as natural for her and ignore the roles that suit her best? I think dancers should find a balance between the roles that fit like a glove and the roles that are a bit of a challenge, but the audience also wants to see great interpretations in these ballets. Sometimes I question Kevin's casting decisions....

They aren't the ballets that I'd first associate with Abrera's temperament, perhaps. But in other ways, they're the kindest choices.

As far as La Fille is concerned, Abrera trained on the RAD syllabus, won the Genee Medal, was coached many years by Georgina Parkinson, and has danced in every other Ashton work I can recall seeing at ABT: she's one of the company's Ashtonians (by choice, I think). And Aurora is one of the few full-length principal roles with which Abrera has solid stage experience (in New Zealand, under Stiefel).

(In other news, I'm not weeping for Gorak yet. He just inherited Cornejo's gutcruncher role in Symphony #9 and is doubled with Whiteside in the Ratmansky premiere. Being developed by the resident choreographer is never a bad sign.)

Agreed...she looks natural in a way the others don't. (I also imagine that maintaining a pleasant expression in high heels is child's play after doing so in pointe shoes.)

Me three (in response to Lopez's quote).

Boylston/Bomes pairing sounds interesting...although it would've been great if they handed the role to Abrera or one of the soloists.

I agree that the Boylston/Gomes pairing sounds interesting: I suspect we'll begin seeing them paired more often in a year or so to help him extend his career.

It's interesting to see Teuscher add another "soft" role to her repertory: given the other roles she's danced recently, Ratmansky and McKenzie must believe she has a lot of range. (And all the talk about Simone Messmer on the MCB boards makes me wonder the extent to which Teuscher has inherited Messmer's rep.)

Congratulations to her...he's a total cutie!!!

Fact: Due to the combined absence of Imler and Ashley Bouder, American ballet as a whole has moved with 12 minutes 32 seconds less velocity per show for the past 9 months. (I personally suspect that they coordinated their absences just to ensure there wasn't some sort of lop-sided continental shift.)

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Agreed. Alberda's photos are free publicity. Moreover, as an art director, I'd say they're better than the stuff I've seen in any of NYCB's marketing campaigns. I'm just confused why a dance company that is otherwise so publicity-savvy never asked him to work for them in that capacity.

Cheers to Lincoln Center for playing a better game: they began using him as their resident Instagram photographer several weeks ago: https://www.instagram.com/lincolncenter/

I'm pleasantly surprised that Gomes is getting to do it, too. But can anyone guess why they decided to have only two casts (other than that learning the clogging takes time)?

It must have been absolutely miserable deciding which role Salstein would play...he would be so great in either role.

I agree with California: I'm glad the union was able to buy them at least a little time to take stock of their options.

To play devil's advocate, though, I seem to recall that Stiefel said one of the reasons he left NZ was that he didn't want to be bogged down with administration so that he could focus on choreography...and was enjoying mobility. If the Assistant AD job at ABT involves constant presence in NYC and/or a mess of paperwork, it may have been unappealing to most of the aforementioned.

Of course the great difficulty of this conversation is that none of us have a terribly clear idea of what this job entails...which never stopped me before!

I don't know what ABT could have offered to Baca in comparison to what Corella could (and did) offer him -- which is to be a principal RIGHT NOW. I do think Baca was on the principal track at ABT and he was getting opportunities but reaching principal status would have taken time given who is/was ahead of him.

The other inducement for Baca may have been that Corella was willing to take on his girlfriend, who is a dancer with the Dance Theatre of Harlem. Just on a personal level, their lives will be a lot easier working at the same company rather than trying to juggle the schedules of two different companies.

I'll chime in with miliosr on this one. Baca wasn't a tragically-ignored figure: he was clearly on a gradual track to principal. I suspect the opportunity to have a real life with his girlfriend Nayara Lopes was the main draw.

I think management is just giving Gorak time to adjust to the spotlight. Even Whiteside (an established principal in Boston), was given a while to acclimate.

Once full casting is up, we may find Gorak doing a LOT of bravura soloist roles this year to accustom him to performing under pressure.

I love that, sandik! (Seriously, could they install those in the nosebleed section at City Center?)

I have high hopes. Boylston, Trenary, and Brandt seem more comfortable with having a public persona, more willing to seek out opportunities to perform in non-ballet venues...and, if Boylston's Mariinsky appearances and pairings this Spring are any indication, the ABT brass are seeking more ways to associate them with other stars.

Yes, there in the USA it's the donors who decide. What is better????.

True, that.

I would have felt doubt about Abrera too, but I saw her give an unexpectedly zesty Mercedes in Don Q a few years ago. (So, she might not be playful enough this year, but she has the range to grow into it by next year.) Her mastery of the Ashton style isn't in question.

For the Widow, I'm guessing Salstein, Zhurbin, Easter, Stewart, and one of the male up-and-comers (primarily for the stage time). The time commitment would probably be too much for Gomes to indulge in it, even if he wanted it.

Speaking of La Fille, does anyone know which ballet master at ABT is now the in-house Ashton répétiteur? (Or have they divvied up his ballets between several people?)

Congratulations to her!

Reporting back from Detroit: Trenary's debut as Aurora was triumphant. Very pleased that management gave her the chance to perform this role. Her technique was pristine and her acting in each act was exceptional. Everything went smoothly and looked effortless - which we can't say for some of the seasoned principals! Would suggest New Yorkers get tickets to her June 29th (matinee) performance. You will be thankful to catch this young talent early!

Thanks, onxmyxtoes...I was about to post a plea for reports, as nothing has showed up on Instagram! I'm so pleased that her first lead in a full-length went well.

Sarasota Royal Ballet (SRB)!

In passing, I've been rather wondering if Kent might add more Balanchine to the programming mix at WB.

While she danced relatively few of his works, she's said in interviews that those were among her most treasured roles...and that the first major company she admired as a child was actually NYCB.

We've assumed that Kent's programming choices will precisely reflect her dance career...yet her interests may diverge in interesting ways. (Boal at PNB is a good example in some ways.)

Bouder has said in interviews that she plans to be back by summer (albeit babies honor no one's timelines).

It's never too soon to start working on a sequel -- Chartreuse takes the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway to Williamsburg (sort of like The Wiz in reverse.)

The hashtag for those instagram photos is #theBQE...which I'm guessing means that the music is the work that Stevens wrote a few years about the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway(!)

Noted without comment: last sentence, third paragraph at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_BQE_%28soundtrack%29 . (If only Peck will adhere faithfully to the libretto, miliosr and I may almost--but not quite--find consolation for the loss of Schlagobers.)