ABT Fan

Back to Tharp Trio: Last night was a great night. I thought a lot of dancers, especially some corps men, did very well with the tricky and difficult partnering in all three pieces. Brahms-Haydn stand-outs were Lane and Pogossian (they looked very good together, and he is another one to watch), Brandt and Scott, and one of the soloist couples McBride and Lyle. This was my first time seeing Deuce Coupe. In general I liked it, but I wouldn’t fall over myself to see it again. I thought the graffiti backdrops looked a bit amateurish. Abrera was her usual glamorous and stylish self. Shevchenko was beautiful as the “ballerina “. Whiteside was terrific and funny in his too-short warp-speed solo. Bell, again, kept capturing my eye. I’m more and more impressed by him every time i see him. Hurlin looked really at ease with the choreography as did Ribagorda who filled in for Gonzalez. In the Upper Room was worth the whole ticket. What a genius ballet. There were some issues though. Brandt and Lyle missed a chair lift that should have been in sync with 2 other couples. They kind of stood there stunned for a second until Brandt high-fived Lyle to keep it going. Teuscher had several partnering misshaps with Bell and I believe Hoven. She tripped over Bell at one point. I think she was tired, though she didn’t look it, because they looked like the kind of flubs that can happen when your stamina is lagging. Even so, in this type of piece with this kind of choreography, I didn’t think the errors took away from the excellence that both Brandt and Teuscher displayed. It’s obviously a killer ballet and they both looked like they were having a blast. Bell, Forster, Hoven and Lyle were all terrific as well.

ABT’s school hasn’t been around that long (I can’t remember how many years and that info seems absent on their website). In recent years they’ve greatly expanded their curriculum, student body, outreach, and I’d argue, their reputation. Also, Cynthia Harvey, a former star who is known for her teaching ability is now in charge. It takes time to establish an international reputation and produce great dancers. But, if you check the bios of some of their current dancers including principals and soloists, many of them attended the school. There are a lot of (former) star dancers who never studied at SAB, Paris Opera or in Russia, like Bocca and Corella to name two. Maybe JKO will never produce an international star, but I think it is premature and short-sighted at this point to assume they never will. Added: as Aurora noted, they’ve already produced some standout soloists (and up and comers like Bell) who many of us predict will be well-deserved principals in the near future. I also have no problem with that.

There is a separate thread for the Tharp Trio, not specifically for In the Upper Room.

I totally agree. And, he HAS been given opportunities (Romeo, Nutcracker Prince, The Poet in Les Sylphides, Prince Desire - which he doing again this season - and others). Romeo he has never done again. And, last time they did Sleeping Beauty he wasn't cast as the Prince, but this year he is (out of necessity or has he improved since last time?). Last year his Bronze Idol was extraordinary, but that is a role that requires no partnering or acting and is very short. I always look forward to seeing him dance, but I agree that there appears to be a lack of growth.

I cannot wait to see this program. It’s been way too long since I’ve seen In the Upper Room.

He's medium height and usually partners the shortest females - Lane, Boylston, Copeland, etc. Copeland replaced Murphy in Manon, once Murphy's pregnancy was announced, and I think I remember a bunch of other roles (for others, as well) getting switched around at about the same time. So, I wonder if her debut as Manon essentially "replaced" her Gulnare.

I think the AD hiring Mack is a strong possibility. I disagree regarding Baca. Given what I saw of him in PA Ballet's Swan Lake, he wouldn't make it past soloist. Forster, Hoven, Royal have more all-around goods than he does.

I've been thinking about that too, and, I agree that there's a huge bottleneck. I'm sure they can't afford to swell the soloist ranks with many more. The only soloist who might have principal potential (maybe) is Royal. My personal opinion is that Forster does, but he's not being given the right opportunities that would demonstrate management thinks so too (no leads in the classics). So, how are they going to get around this bottleneck? Just wait for the current ones to retire, which will take years? Or, are they going to not renew a contract, or two, to get a few out of the way? Separately, I'd be shocked if Bell isn't promoted this year. I wonder what will happen to Shayer.

Swan Lake's Purple von Rothbart's have now been cast, and as a first, no principals. Long time corps dancer, Jose Sebastian, gets a debut (2 shows). The rest are split amongst Forster, Hammoudi, Royal.

Cornejo has been replaced in Brahms-Haydn Variations and In the Upper Room. Prayers to the ballet gods that he’ll recover for Corsaire and his subsequent performances.

I was there Thursday night and what a fabulous evening! First, Veronika Part was in the audience sitting close to me in the orchestra. I did a double-take. How fitting that I saw her right before On the Dnieper started. I’d have loved to known her thoughts. I didn’t like Songs of Bukovina when it first premiered, but this time I loved it. I saw Boylston/Shayer (a last minute replacement for an injured Lendorf) two years ago and thought they were mismatched, though Shayer did a commendable job given the circumstances. Also I thought the choreography was too folksy, but not this time. Interesting. Thursday, Shevchenko/Royal were sublime - perfectly matched in strength and command with wonderful chemistry. Outstanding dancing from both. Williams and Bell were the soloist stand-outs, both with an increased level of confidence and overall level of dancing. On the Dnieper didn’t have the same intensity and punch as Gomes and Part brought to it, but I think their performances would be nearly impossible to match. I do love this ballet, and am so glad they brought it back. Forster was incredible. I’m so glad I saw him. Gorgeous dancing (what flexibility and those feet!), wonderful partnering, and his acting was intense. Why, oh why, isn’t this man doing a Siegfried this year????? He and Shevchenko would be perfect. Teuscher surprised me as Natalia. I didn’t doubt she’d dance well, but she’s so cool and her acting is usually so muted or nonexistent. What she did here she should bring to her O/O which according to what i saw last year really needs to be taken up a notch. Hurlin was the “wow” of the evening. I wanted to specifically see her and Forster. I think Olga was an important debut for her. She’s shown for awhile that she has the technical/physical goods (beautiful, strong technique, lovely port de bras, comic ability, long arms/legs, beautiful feet), but here she demonstrated a dramatic intensity and instinct that combined with everything else should make her a no-brainer for O/O especially, plus Giselle, Juliet, and so on, in the next few years. Personally, I’m waiting impatiently for O/O (with Forster, Royal?). I am in agreement with what most everyone else has said about The Seasons. An incredibly, beautifully choreographed ballet. The lack of scenery is a problem, it’s obviously needed here. Some of the costumes are stunning and “work”, others make you scratch your head. Overall, it looks like they cleaned out the wardrobe inventory and just threw everything they found onstage. Er, no. However, it was a gift to see so much spectacular dancing from so many. Bell’s maturity and stage presence has significantly increased from last year; he dances like a soloist now. Williams was again a stand-out as was Hurlin, whirling around the stage at break-neck speed. Lane was perfect as Rose, and that “rose adagio” was wow! I thought Boylston was strong yet lovely as Corn (except those hands and port de bras, argh!) but she had some uncharacteristic fumbles at the end of multiple pirouettes. I was afraid she’d injured herself and that’s why she had difficulty, but thankfully that didn’t seem to be the case, because she continued on well afterwards. Trenary/Hoven as the Autumn leads didn’t seem to have enough to do. I think we can all be confident that this will return again in the Fall, and I will not miss it. Here’s hoping Ratmansky makes some adjustments (add some bloody scenery, please) that will make Mother Nature proud. (Couldn’t help it...!)

Is anyone going? I’d be curious to hear how Klein and Maloney are as The Boy.

Which begs the question, why wasn't she re-cast sooner? Or better yet, why was she cast at all? She's appearing in enough already for "ticket sales", however, with the exception of Swan Lake, none of her other shows sell out anyway (or are even close to as of right now), so that's why I doubt the purposeful bait and switch. It doesn't make sense.

A "schedule conflict" is face-saving to some people, but clearly not to her fans and others who know full well that a scheduling conflict, if it is indeed that, is completely avoidable. Her posting this on her Instagram only two days before her originally scheduled show is disrespectful to her legions of fans, and clearly many of her fans don't check, or know to check, ABT's website for casting changes. As mentioned upthread, this recasting happened by May 14 at the latest. Sure, they still couldn't have gotten their money back for their tickets, but a week and half's notice is MUCH better than two days, allowing for people to at least change their travel plans for a long, holiday weekend (and maybe get a refund/credit for that). I don't think I believe this was some marketing ploy by ABT, but they should have re-cast it sooner if it was decided the role was too much for her with everything else on her plate. As noted above, Princess Praline's choreography (like much of Ratmansky) is very difficult. Is it any wonder why she isn't appearing in any of his works this season, including his premiere?

Actually, Lane replaced Seo (if you're thinking of their fall season last year), and they kept Stearns in. Hopefully, Cornejo will recover, but, as abatt already pointed out he is frequently injured, so I hope they have been rehearsing understudies just in case. As much as I'd hate to NOT see Cornejo, if he's out it could be a great opportunity for someone else (provided they are already being rehearsed and won't be thrown in last minute.) Would Simkin get his debut as Prince Desire? Or, Hoven, Scott, or Gonzalez? Des Grieux is another story......Let's hope it doesn't come to a replacement or Stearns getting a third/fourth performance.

OK, good. Thanks. I guess I missed that.

Also, speaking of Cornejo, this season marks his 20th anniversary, yet I see no date marked as his celebratory performance. Kinda crappy, no?

They almost never replace the uninjured partner, so I wouldn't worry. We have 3 weeks till his next major assignment (Corsaire), so hopefully his injury is minor and he'll be back in full swing. (fingers crossed!)

Oh no! I hope Cornejo's injury isn't serious. I've really been looking forward to seeing him and with Lane in Manon and Sleeping Beauty.

Really looking forward to the return of On the Dnieper later this week. I didn't care for Songs of Bukovina when I first saw it, but perhaps with a second viewing (and a different cast - Shevchenko/Royal) I'll like it better. And, eager to see the new piece, The Seasons.

I was there last night and agree with the others regarding Gonzalez. Lots of promise, and for his first principal role (he hasn’t even done a soloist role yet) he did extremely well. Very good technique, beautiful and clean jumps and good partnering of Lane. But, he lacked projection and energy. He is very young and inexperienced so I hope with more opportunities and good coaching he will improve in these areas. (I also hope we’ll see him as Bluebird or Benno, etc.) Teuscher smiled a lot and her dancing was fine, very good even, but she lacked the wit and charm (and overt personality) that I feel this part requires. Abrera was spot on when I saw her in this last year and really funny. Royal was awful, and it pains me to say that. As noted above, he played Pierrot as angry (extremely so) and a bit spastic. It was all wrong and though I thought the audience in general was low energy (except for the children’s sections, as it was cleared filled with their families) he got no laughs. Why didn’t they cast Zhurbin instead, their most accomplished actor? Hallberg was wonderful in this last year, but for whatever reason was not cast this time. I thought Royal and Teuscher had no chemistry. Lane was gorgeous, secure, light and just lovely. The lark section is so beautiful and I’d prefer to see it as a stand alone. Lane needed a stronger fellow principal cast to feed off of. The children were adorable and very well rehearsed, but I still feel that their section goes on way too long with too much repetitive prancing. I don’t need to see this ballet again. Some lovely parts but not enough dancing (and by the adults).

Sarah Lane just posted an Instagram story (public facing, but you can't link a story here) that says "Last chance to see Whipped Cream coming up", and then lists her performance dates. So, it seems that the company has already decided, and told the dancers, that they're not doing it next year.

A lot of casting updates/additions. Casting for Brahms-Haydn Variations has finally been posted, plus changes for the other two Tharp ballets. Also, Young Jane in Jane Eyre is now listed - Brandt, Hurlin and young corps dancer Breanne Granlund alternate (Granlund is also listed for principal casting in Ratmansky's The Seasons. This is the first time she's being featured). Ahn has been the given the last TBA for Ali on 6/15. Birbanto's are now listed. https://www.abt.org/performances/master-calendar/

It's opening night. Hard to believe the season is finally here! I'm looking forward to seeing the debuts of corps dancer Gonzalez as Harlequin and Royal as Pierrot. But, most of all, seeing the ever glorious Lane again as Columbine.

Thank you, abatt and NinaFan. I'm going to skip it!