its the mom

If there were those who were complicit by looking the other way, I would not trust them for the future either. They could be looking the other way about many things or simply other people. This is what bothers me. I agree with abatt's post above that an investigation needs to be done for the safety of all.

pherank - I am not sure about other companies, but Boston Ballet has an English as a second language teacher for their dancers from other countries. She also helps them with everyday tasks, like apartment finding, shopping, etc., if need be. I know her personally, so I do know this for a fact. I hope that other companies do the same.

https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/Bay-Area-Ballet-Instructor-Arrested-on-Child-Molestation-Charges-471693464.html

Please know that I am always grateful to read the reviews from the west coast, as I am not able to travel there just for ballet. First, I would like to say that I am glad to hear Weeks is doing well. I watched him as a younger dancer and was impressed then. I know he had a setback with an injury, so it is such good news to hear that he has made a comeback. About Ana Sophia - she has had numerous opportunities to dance full-lengths as a guest artist. She also has performed classical pas in numerous galas, so she is not unaccustomed to these roles. I very seldom post in NYC Ballet's thread because I do not watch their performances as much as I do other companies, so I do not feel qualified to comment. However, the few times I have seen her dance, I felt a coldness from her. I was struck during World Ballet Day at her rehearsal of SB with Greco. She did not look happy at all, and seemed to be annoyed with him. I agree that her technique is impeccable, but I would not purposely pay to watch her dance, as I feel nothing when I watch her. But, hopefully she will improve in the acting area as time goes on. I may have missed it, but in relation to the pictures above with Hernandez and Sheehan, did anyone see them? I love his dancing!

Graham Watts shared the following on his Facebook page: I read today's news story about discontent at ENB in The Times with considerable dismay and increasing annoyance. So, apparently there are some disgruntled ex-ENB dancers (perhaps even some current ones) who are unhappy with Tamara Rojo's leadership. Let's leave aside the fact that people can take pot-shots on the front pages of a national newspaper without the courage to say who they are but I'm guessing that you could ask ten former or current dancers of any ballet company in the world and you'll find a fair bit of disgruntlement in the mix. Let's also just consider the state of ENB now and how it was five years' ago prior to Rojo's appointment. If anyone tells me it was better then....well, let's say I would be surprised. Rojo's artistic choices have built a deserved reputation, each programme enhancing the repertoire - from the outstanding bill that marked the centenary of WW1 to 'She Said'; from Kylian, Petit, van Manen, Forsythe and MacMillan through to Lopez Ochoa; from Corsaire to Sylphide - I would say it is a rollercoaster ride but that isn't true since the only way has been UP! The recent programmes at the Coliseum got not one but two five ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ reviews from Clement Crisp, not the easiest of people to please. Some dancers have left. One exceptional male dancer at the beginning; another just recently. They have been and will be missed but such is life in the face of career choices. On the other hand, many dancers who were already experienced long before Rojo came are still in the company and still performing (Takahashi, Oliveira, Cao, McWhinney, Streeter, Reimar etc - and all had leading roles in the recent season). So, one assumes that there are plenty of dancers who are actually not that disgruntled! I mean no disrespect to the dancers who have left ENB in recent times but the quality of those who have replaced them has been high - Rojo deserves praise from attracting Aaron Robinson to his home country's national ballet and her other recruits - Dronina, Tamayo, Khaniukova, Corrales, Cirio, Adams, Kundi (and not forgetting Isaac Hernandez) and many, many more have been superb additions to the company. And let's not forget the coup that kept Alina Cojocaru dancing in the UK. For that alone, she deserves a medal. If it was a premiership football team I would argue that this manager is doing pretty well on the transfer market. One particular point that needs to be noted is that Rojo has made ENB a more diverse and inclusive company. There's a long way to go but she is moving steadily in the right direction both in terms of diversity in the dance ensemble and as the only UK director I know to have programmed a full main stage evening of work by women. And as to encouraging dancers to dance while injured, all I can say is that I've known many dancers at ENB who have been injured and they have been off. Rojo drives herself harder than most - combining two tough, tough jobs - and she would not be who she is without being forceful but it is what has driven the company's successes. So, let's come to the central allegation, which suggests a conflict of interest due to the relationship between Rojo and Hernandez. Granted that it is an unusual situation, in business, for a director to be romantically linked with an employee; but as the article makes plain, it is not at all uncommon in the arts. To Rojo's credit - and to my certain knowledge - she has never hidden the relationship in any way. If Hernandez was a new, young untested dancer gaining surprise lead roles then perhaps I could understand these "sources' " concerns but, let's not forget that the guy was on his way to Paris Opera Ballet when Rojo brought him to ENB! He has been chosen by the British Dance Critics as one of the five most outstanding dancers in the UK in 2017 and so far as I can see he deserves every role he has been given. Does he dance with Rojo all the time - No! Does he get every opening night - No! So far as I can see he gets the roles and prominence that he deserves and nothing more. I doubt any other director would treat him differently. As ballets so often show us, you really cannot help with whom you fall in love! If either Rojo or Hernandez were to leave ENB for this perceived "conflict of interests" who would be better off? Certainly not the audiences at ENB. And, finally let's not forget Glastonbury, publicity that an ENB of former years could only dream of and a slew of awards that I can't count. My name is Graham Watts - many people will not agree with me. I ask the "sources", who are you? If you had an ounce of the courage that Ms Rojo has to stand up and be counted then I might respect your views.

I agree. I was just wondering if some of the principals (Hallberg and Cornejo) decided it was just not something they wanted to do. As ABT Fan said it may have been Cornejo's choice, maybe Hallberg decided after the season started that he just didn't want to do it after all.

I thought he was cast in DC, but I could be wrong. But he did perform it last year.

I also noticed that Cornejo is no longer cast in Whipped Cream.

Agreed with everything you said above, abatt.

Didn't Hoven suffer an injury which sidelined him for a bit? I love his dancing and am hoping for more for him also. I agree that Forster is another dancer who has been underutilized. I would hate to see any of the openings go to a guest. I know someone said that the audience "deserves" it, but I think the dancers deserve a chance to develop.

Yes, most articles point to this fact: http://www.insideskating.net/2017/11/09/events/2017-finlandia-trophy-the-blue-dance-the-blue-dream https://europeonice.com/2017/12/05/papadakis-and-cizeron-reaching-perfection/ If you haven't yet had a chance to see it, it is a gorgeous program:

I would love to see this shown here in the US in cinemas: https://www.broadwayworld.com/westend/article/English-National-Ballets-Akram-Khans-GISELLE-Comes-to-Cinemas-20180122

It is a crime that Simkin and Cirio are so underutilized with small girls like Lane, Trenary, and Brandt fully capable. Both Simkin and Cirio have done all or almost all of those full-lengths elsewhere. Is Lendorf back yet from his injury? And, yes, start using Hoven.

The instagram account is run by the dancers. It says it at the top of the account.

I find it sad that people are more upset about the picture used in the article than the content of the article and what it means to the dancers.

As an aside, from Instagram posts and stories, the dancers were apparently in contract negotiations until right around 2:00 a.m. last night. Let's hope they got their contract ironed out, as they are right now working on an expired one.

Thank you, Ms. Flack.

Why would they do that when they don't even use all of their principals and soloists in these roles?

Thank you! People can be wonderful at their jobs and still commit heinous acts. I have an acquaintance whose son graduated from the Naval Academy, was a Navy Seal, and an upstanding, accomplished young man. He killed his wife's ex-husband (and, may I add, I probably would have done the same as it involved sexual abuse of their daughters). He is spending his life in prison for this act. His amazing accomplishments did not diminish the fact that he committed a crime. I understand that right now much of what we are hearing may just be accusations, however if those "ten-minute" periods are what they are truly purported to be, Martins deserves to be judged for them. Actions have consequences, or at least they should. The fact that he is/was a great director, the fact that Gomes is a great dancer, the fact that Weinstein is an amazing producer, Spacey is a great actor, etc., does not excuse their actions!

Thanks for sharing, Helene! Ivonne is a delight and a wonderful teacher to boot!

Just for the record, I in no way shared the article above to excuse Martins' behavior. I just believe it sheds light on the situation. Yes, dysfunction is the name of the game here in this instance and across the ballet world. In fact, I believe that both the Martins' and the Gomes' accusations bring much needed focus on the ballet culture's ills.

Two very telling paragraphs in this article, most of which we have already mentioned or surmised. http://articles.latimes.com/1992-12-06/magazine/tm-3085_1_city-ballet

The press never said "happened outside the company." The words used were, “does not involve any current or former members of the ABT community, aside from Mr. Gomes, and did not occur in relation to his employment duties with the Company.” This language is vague. I am not speculating anything, however, as Sandik says, did I miss something further? Do we know more details? Do you know that ABT overreacted? One has to assume it was a serious enough situation for Gomes to resign.

An often overlooked team that might work well: Margaret Tracey: https://www.bostonballet.org/Home/Global/Profiles/Education-Faculty/Margaret-Tracey.aspx Russell Kaiser: https://www.bostonballet.org/Home/Global/Profiles/Artistic-Staff/Assistant-Artistic-Director/Russell-Kaiser.aspx (Mikko Nissinen depends very heavily on Kaiser.)

While I agree that RB offers more for dancers in terms of full-length, I think it's quite sad that he didn't even give ENB a year as a principal dancer. ENB gave him so much opportunity and moved him along the ranks very quickly. Nothing wrong with a little respect and gratitude in this business.