NinaFan

I loved Gorak in his first Cinderella (was that with Reyes?), and I had had high hopes for him. But then everything just fizzled out and he never seemed to grow out of being a light weight.

I agree with everything you said about Gorak and Lendorf. I find Lendorf a delight to watch, but like you, I thought he was a little bit off on the comedic panache in Don Q last year. I think Don Q was the first week of performances, which may have had something to do with it. When I saw him about a week or so later in Corsaire (which is total fun and is as silly as Don Q), I thought he was a perfect fit. He totally redeemed himself. Fingers crossed that we get to see him in everything he is cast in this year.

Sarah did dance O/O with ABT. I saw her last year when she was a last minute sub for Maria Kochetkova last Spring at the MET. She was breathtaking. What I don’t understand, is why she is not being cast again this year either on tour or at the MET.

Thanks nysusan. It looks like the minimum level is $750 for "Advanced Access" which is a way higher membership level than I've ever had at ABT. I'll just have to wait!

Thanks angelica and nanushka. I just called the MET, and they said no. I was told pre-sale tickets without seat assignments were available before March 25. But I'll be at the Koch (for Paul Taylor) twice during the exchange week, so I may walk over and try it anyway (assuming there aren't stupid lines).

I’ve never tried it before, but I think I’ve heard some of you say that subscribers are able to buy single tickets during exchange week. So far this year I have only bought a “create your own” series for ABT, but I still have a subscription card for exchanging tickets. Does anyone know if I can just buy additional tickets at the box office during the exchange week? As of now, I don’t want to trade in any of my subscription tickets so I can’t combine it with an exchange transaction. Like many of you, I don’t want to get stuck with too many cast changes. I’m not planning to buy all of my tickets at once but I wanted to get a jump on a few more tickets which may sell heavily or go up in price. Thanks!

Craig Salstein seems to have been removed from ABT's website, making it appear that this is not just a leave of absence. Perhaps they would not give him the leave? As we all know, NYCB has been very generous giving leave of absences to their dancers for Broadway (and KC) runs. I am very excited to see Craig, Brittany and Amar in Carousel! I have tickets for the show in early April.

I could watch Tchaikovsky PDD over and over as well. And Tarantella too! That recent image of Veyette in Valse Fantaisie was probably from 2011. Not sure if it has been done since then.

I agree that Forster and Hoven should be given a chance to develop. And as you point out, last year's injuries gave us a chance to see some pretty amazing debuts among the women.

I'm also confused as to why they didn't give Lane a Swan Lake. I agree, her debut was very good, except for the fouettes, which as you point out was probably due to lack of prep time. And if I recall correctly she was under the weather with a cold. I especially loved her Odette. If ABT decides to give her another Swan Lake I would go as well. Ditto on doubts about Forster for the principal roles. He is nice and tall, but I just can't visualize him dancing the "prince" roles. If Lendorf is still injured (which I hope he's not), I certainly hope that ABT brings in a guest or two, rather than subbing with dancers who are not up to the task. In fact, they should bring in at least one to replace Gomes anyway. Prices are just too high to be spending on mediocre performances.

I agree that the ballet is performed way too often. Yes, it's cute, but it needs to have longer breaks between seasons. I loved Fairchild and Hyltin as well. It was not the first time I enjoyed the ballet, however it was probably my favorite partnership. Watching Robbie for the last time at NYCB made it all the more special.

I agree, I can't imagine all the cast shuffling either. I really hope Lendorf doesn't miss the MET Season. I am so looking forward to seeing him in a number of ballets, and most especially with Shevchenko.

MadameP and FireDancer - Wow, I am so jealous! I'd love to see both of those casts in Ivan! I'm a huge Grigorovich fan, and love the lead dancers you are both seeing this week. I saw Ivan the Terrible years ago with Alexei Fadeyechev as Ivan, and would love to see it again with your exact casts!

Ditto on Behind the China Dogs. Actually the first time I saw it, I didn't care for it, but I began to appreciate it by the second time I saw it.

I saw Mejia in the Four Seasons a couple of weeks ago, and he stole the show there as well. Like others on here, I can't wait to see more of him!

Yes, I believe that's the one! I just found a review of The Unanswered Question, and it refers to Maria slithering down a trap door after partnering Damian Woetzel. Now that I think about it, she did slither in both directions, plus Woetzel was her partner at the performance. So that has to be the ballet. How many ballets could have a ballerina slithering in and out of a hole, but then again as Canbelto points out, Musagete had something similar.....

Speaking of boring or inferior choreography….I recall a really dreadful ballet at NYCB which I believe was choreographed by a guest choreographer. It was so terrible that I couldn’t wait for it to end. Then halfway through the ballet Maria Kowroski made a sort of slithering entrance through a hole in the floor which made the ballet just slightly more tolerable. Does this ring a bell with anyone, and do you have any idea which ballet this was?

And of course a ballet can be better or worse depending on the cast. To compare in a way to figure skating…. it's also about the moment. Still, how sad that the dancers didn’t get a respectable amount of applause. But I have to admit, I’m more tepid with applause after an uninspiring program.

I feel the same way.

Emma - That must be rough missing an entire year of ballet! Peck/Catazaro were the other lead cast and they danced beautifully. I think Catazaro is really coming into his own. He was also marvelous in The Four Seasons last week.

You have every right to offer criticism. One does not need be a choreographer or dancer to be a critic, and I did not mean to imply otherwise. What I was really commenting on was that you feel all of his work should be removed, and thus presumed just about everyone agrees with you. And since I am quite happy with Martins’ versions, I am just voicing that I am one of those people who does not want his ballets removed from the rep. Interestingly your recent response implies that you now don’t include Sleeping Beauty and La Sylphide for removal because he mostly stuck with traditional choreography? Thank you for the interesting link on La Sylphide. The article also says “Martins not only removes the intermission, thus shortening the performance time, he also accelerates the pace of the events. It feels as if the story rushes at you with a kind of animated vigor, acquiring a comic spirit in the process. In fact, in this production, a chain of misfortunes that occur to the young James feels less like a drama and more like a comedy, albeit with an unfortunate, tragic end. As such, the production, danced to perfection on both nights I attended, is stimulating and utterly entertaining but devoid of any sense of Romantic poetry, nuance and nostalgia.” While the above changes may not be everyone’s cup of tea, they are indeed changes to the production. And quite honestly, I prefer the original more Romantic version, but that’s not to say I don’t enjoy Martins’ as well. Ditto on Sleeping Beauty, which as you mentioned earlier, has similar cuts and fast pacing. I personally like the fast pacing, but not the cuts. But it still doesn’t stop me from enjoying it. I see other versions elsewhere. I can never get enough ballet, and I don’t have to settle for just the one version. I understand you wanting to see different versions of Swan Lake and R&J at NYCB, just as I’d like to see ABT replace their Swan Lake. But what you seem to forget is that NYCB had no full length Sleeping Beauty, Swan Lake, La Sylphide, or Romeo & Juliet until Martins added them. Give the man some credit.

I'd miss Martins' works. What a shame that you detest his choreography so much. While he is not Balanchine, I think he’s done especially well with his full length ballets. I find myself already missing his La Sylphide, which only ran for a short time. As far as his one act ballets, those are more hit and miss, but there are a number which I have thoroughly enjoyed over the years. Unless you can choreograph better yourself, best not to throw such hateful stones at an entire body of work. I’ve seen many performances of R&J over the past thirty years. Most were MacMillan’s version at ABT and Royal Ballet, which continues to be my favorite version. Having said that, I feel there’s always room for new versions of any ballet, just like there’s room for new flavors of ice cream. I found Saturdays’ matinee of R&J with Hyltin and Coll to be the better of the two casts I saw this week. Sterling and Harrison had wonderful chemistry, which seemed to grow even more by the second act. Both danced with technical precision and intense passion. Their death scene left me drained and in tears. As always, Ulbricht’s Mercutio was spectacular, as was the rest of the cast. Apparently the audience loved the performance as well, as they gave a much deserved standing ovation. The house appeared to be sold out or close to it, with people even sitting in the fifth ring.

I saw McRae dance in Don Q and Giselle and adored him in both.

I was hoping to report on this, but we wound up skipping the performance at the last minute due to the lousy weather. It didn’t help that we’re unfamiliar with the area, and weren’t sure how far we’d have to park from the venue and walk in the pouring rain. Of course, now we’re sorry that we missed it.

Thank you nanushka! I just ordered tickets!