Marta

I'm also echoing what almost all of you have said. No dancing, "perfectly dreadful", infomercial, way too much talking, boring celebrities, amateurish. I don't mind seeing Jennifer Garner as she is a known balletomane. Most of the others just struck an off-key note even more than Tony Bennett. Why didn't ABT show 5 minutes of the new Ratmansky instead of a speeded up mashup montage that gave no sense of what it's like? Same with the stars of tomorrow montage in which you couldn't identify any of the dancers or choreo, and most of that was also in fast forward. Those were deeply unimaginative wastes of footage. Jessica Lang in my opinion is a mediocre to crappy choreographer and her PdD was not interesting. I was particularly struck by who did NOT appear in a cameo toast to ABT. As someone noted on another site, there was no mention of Tharp, or others who were of significant importance to ABT. Whaa??? I'm sure you can fill in the blanks. I sent a contribution too, but it was not the equal of those I gave to NYCB and the Metropolitan Opera.

I absolutely love Farrell. I thought I had seen the film on youtube, but searching doesn't find it. There is an interesting interview with her though: I saw the film at the MFA in Boston, introduced by Farrell herself. She also spoke with the filmmaker [I think] afterward, or mayb before. It was memorable! Several years ago I watched the film again on a DVD from a public library. You could try your local.

A video just appeared recently on youtube: "An Evening with Natalia Osipova", showing Valse Triste [Osipova & Hallberg], Ave Maria and Qutb, a work by Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui danced by Osipova, Kittelberg, and O'Hara. It's worth a look. I'd watch her in almost anything. There's a charming intro by her in English. I liked Valse Triste . I wouldn't want to see either of the other two pieces again. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRct7defoiU

Thanks, pherank & cycling martin. I don't recall going to the WP for months but maybe they really track forever!

I was unable to bypass the pay wall. Does anyone know how to do this without subscribing?

I also got my refund from NYCB within 3 days. I don't have a subcsription to ABT, but did request refund from Met Opera and received it quickly.

California said: I still have the Giselle Videotape and it says it was taped at the Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center. But if the issue is whether the sets work in a smaller theater, like the K*och, the Colorado Ballet rented the ABT sets (and costumes) and they were just fine in the Ellie Caulkins Opera House in Denver, which seats 2,225. Yes. I have the tape too and was just about to post the same thing. Maybe ABT started dancing at the State in the later 70s.

I didn't see an overt statement of No public gatherings until 2021 from De Blasio. What I saw quoted by De Blasio was talking about thousands of people at public gatherings. Am I reading the wrong source?

Thank you Leah. I did read about next year but then didn't read the forum for a couple of days.

ABT canceled its spring season. I haven't heard anything about a shorter season starting later in spring and ending by late July. How confused am I? Drew said: It already overlaps just a week or two -- which has rather been a bad thing for me as an out-of-towner, but of course makes sense. But I gather from @Leah's post and others that the plan now is for a shortened season anyway, not a season extending into late July. And this is assuming that in the wake of Covid 19 and its economic fallout the company doesn't go the way of New York City Opera.

Now that Lincoln Center has cancelled all summer programs, I wonder if there will be any fall seasons. NYCB, ABT, Paul Taylor?

I agree completely about Onegin. The great Hvorostovsky, that beautiful set, Renee Fleming. No Mozart is listed for the next few weeks but maybe in April or May. I saw the Macbeth, Don Carlo and Norma at the Met with the same casts and all are wonderful. I'm really looking forward to watching them again.

In case you haven't seen it, this NYT article about how Italian dancers are managing to keep dancing is wonderful and has an upbeat inspiring video. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/17/arts/dance/italy-coronavirus-dance.html

I loved it too and the set design was great. The Netrebko Hvorostovsky Trovatore is magnificent. I've seen it 3 times.

I thought Smirnova was excellent. True, she sometimes doesn't emote. I think her dancing is much richer than it was 5 years ago although I've never seen her in person. I was underwhelmed by Tissi. He's very princely but somehow just didn't sing. I dislike Grigorovich's SL, the production in general, the almost total loss of mime, and visually the colors, the costumes, the gloom, the lighting -- are not thrilling. The national dances in particular were quite dull, even the Spanish, although Sevenard is a dancer to watch.

Somewhere I read that Shipulina was cast for Sunday. although it seemed unlikely since she is not getting many roles. I was really looking forward to seeing her. I do like Smirnova but she's been in 3 recent transmissions, so I had hoped to see a different dancer.

Very sad news. She was a wonderful writer. i read her New York mag reviews and later on her own blog. For quite some time I've wondered where she was.

Absolutely! Sure, fine with me also to discuss the minute details of Ramasar et al., but it's good to acknowledge that there's another massive problem that affects us all.

I think you're right. I saw it in June and don't remember all the interviewees. Too bad some/more of the sopranos he sang with weren't in it but some are dead, others perhaps not familiar enough names.

I saw it and enjoyed it a lot. Even though there aren't many surprises if you've already been a Pavarotti fan for eons as I have, there is some new footage. Howard is not the ideal choice to direct the best doc. on Pavarotti, nor does he know much [anything?] about music but I think the film is well done and I recommend it. I wondered too why Freni or others who sang with LP, Domingo and Carreras to name the most obvious, were not interviewed. Let's face it, we don't know why. Maybe Freni thought there wasn't much to add, or maybe it was too personal. Bonynge and others may not have been invited, and many who sang with him are dead. I agree that the PBS doc. was excellent.

I thought The Chaperone was one of the worst things I've ever seen on PBS. There is no drama! Yes, we see Robbie Fairchild as Ted Shawn teaching class with Ruth St Denis, and there are some brief dance sequences. The character of Louise is fairly well drawn, but the chaperone Norma is at least a co-protagonist. I can't figure out who the writer thinks the audience for this work would be. So many topical ideas are stuffed in there that seem perfunctory. The ending is particularly ridiculous.

I can't disagree about the young girlish aspect, I just wished it looked less like a nightgown and more like a Juliet costume. Kirkland is incredibly delicate with a weightless jump and seems to barely touch the ground.

I love Kirkland's SPF variation in MB's Nutcracker too and have also watched it a ton. I've always disliked her unfortunate costume. My least favorite is Puss 'n Boots with Red Riding Hood a close second.

I read the article and I'm shocked that he is still so clueless. A part of me feels sorry for him, yet how can anyone be so insensitive and self centered in 2019? Consciousness raising is not going to work.

I didn't think it was cute at all. It was being rude in the guise of a "joke", although unfunny, at D-W's expense.