Marta

8 hours ago, dirac said:

Yes. That's what I assumed when I read what Macaulay wrote. I'm sure he meant no harm, and it's just a social media post, but it's not as cute as he thinks it is.

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.

8 hours ago, tutu said:

If he is who I think he is (I’m not totally familiar with him), he had an absolutely princely demeanor and seemed like a sure and stable partner. Spartak Hoxha also was good.

8 hours ago, cobweb said:

Thanks for the report tutu! He is a very handsome dark-haired Italian. 

I saw last night's performance and agree that both Riccardo and Hoxha were very good.  I've been noticing Hoxha for a while and he's a very strong dancer. He should be made soloist.  While Riccardo does look more princely, I thought he seemed a little hesitant at times.  He is also much younger than Hoxha.  Joe Gordon was absolutely wonderful in TPC2.  I do dislike the costumes very much.  The men's costumes were just plain ugly, and the women's Juliet skirts were a dishwatery color and wrong for this ballet.  All the movement of the skirts was quite distracting. Bring back the tutus.

canbelto said:  I am NOT a fan of these dresses for the muses. Way too summer sundress.

Agree! Those tunics  are hideous. Are they new? i don't remember the pleated look when I saw Apollo at ABT about 6-7 years ago.

3 minutes ago, nanushka said:

FWIW, in Repertory in Review Reynolds lists under "other casts" Farrell, Mazzo, McBride and Paul for the women and Bonnefous, Blum, Clifford and Mitchell for the men.

I think  that Mitchell and Allegra Kent originated the roles in Bugaku.  Kent seems absolutely right for it!

Thank you Amy Reusch for your perceptive review.  Although I didn't see the same cast I agree with everything you wrote below:

Things I would love to see changed..

the lighting design... In general the lighting was a problem. In Act 1 it was initially very dark for a daylight scene.   And the cross on Giselle's grave being upstage did not help Albrecht's entrance (or is that Hilarion's?) I was surprised  that Giselle's grave was so far upstage and that I couldn't tell whether it was Hilarion or Albrecht entering.  Not good.

... this  long slow walk toward nothing in particular with lots of light effects...   the cross was rarely visible... not sure what was up with that... and it almost seemed like they could not afford enough follow spots.  Often Giselle & Albrecht were entreating a Myrtha left wholly in shadow.

The props...  I felt like the props department thought everything extra large because surely we would never "get it" otherwise...   everything had an amateurish quality. 

Coaching of Albrecht in Act II...  he has to sense Giselle's presence... not just turn and look her immediately straight in the eye... it should be like sensing at the back of the neck that someone is watching...  if he sees her plain as day, why does he miss her when he reaches for her later... This was a major disappointment.  Albrecht's entrance had no nuance as performed by Yocum.  Ditto the lack of legato in Act 2 adagio as well as staccato arabesques voyagés.  

In act 2, that lovely adagio was missing legato in the dancers' musicality... idon't know if it were the conductor playing with it or the dancers themselves, but the setting Giselle down on pointe shouldn't be so precisely accented to the note... it's not a moment to express precision... it should be like a dream...

This production needs a lot more cohesion and thought, along with more coaching.  In the BB Giselle 10 years ago I don't recall being so critical of the production itself.

27 minutes ago, FauxPas said:

Casting Asian dancers gets rid of the yellowface problem.   No white dancers putting on black wigs and trying to look Asian.  Also the ABT dancers I suggested are mostly principals who certainly have merit and the corps dancers merit dancing corps roles.  

Certainly they have merit but what I also meant was being "right" for the roles rather than being cast solely on the basis of race. 

2 hours ago, FauxPas said:

Discussing non-white dancers, there is also a lack of Asian dancers in NYCB.  I fell into a conversation with Wendy Whelan during the intermission of a recent performance.  I was interested in Balanchine ballets that have been out of the repertoire:  "Tzigane", "Gounod Symphony" and also "Bugaku".  Wendy replied that "Bugaku" is problematic right now with the yellowface and cultural appropriation issues.  I mentioned that "Bugaku" might fly if cast with Asian dancers and Wendy replied that they don't have that many in the company right now.  So there's that.

ABT actually has more Asian dancers and could cast Stella Abrera and Hee Seo in "Bugaku" (Hee is not ideal but she is Asian) and Joo Won Ahn as the partner - maybe Kimin Kim could guest.  Plus there are two other Asian men and two girls in the corps de ballet and Zhong Jing Fang, a soloist.  The piece requires a soloist couple and four corps couples - so five women and five men.  Allegra Kent and Edward Villella are still around to coach it.

I've been wondering if the second paragraph is a serious statement.  How would casting Asian dancers in  Bugaku remove the thorny aspects of this ballet?  Shouldn't dancers be cast on merit and not race?  It's not as though we're talking about. for example, Porgy and Bess, which is mandated by the Gershwin estate to be cast with all black singers, chorus etc.

56 minutes ago, Kathleen O'Connell said:

I wouldn't mind if they danced in all their balding glory, frankly, but it should be their choice. If they're more comfortable dancing with toupees, they should by all means do so. I just hope they don't feel pressure from the company, or their peers, or the world at large to wear them. They may view their toupees much as some ballerinas (or opera singers) view pinned on hairpieces or wigs: part of the costume—and that's fine too.

Personally, I'd like to see a more relaxed approach to on-stage hairstyles in general, and wouldn't mind a few beards in the bargain. 

So they wear toupees.  Singers wear them too.  Canbelto mentioned maybe Nureyev wore pne in late career, which I think he did. Ordinary people wear them. To me it's a non issue and should absolutely be left to the individual.

On 9/28/2019 at 11:11 PM, nanushka said:

GK’s review of the new Lovette made me interested to see it, but then reviews by members here on BA have made me doubtful.

I'd really like to see it but cannot get there.  Marina Harss in Dance Tabs wrote an excellent thought provoking review.

15 minutes ago, Kathleen O'Connell said:

Honestly, given the current state of Domingo's voice, I think I might have preferred to hear Željko Lučić in the role anyway. (Lučić, a Serbian baritone who sings a lot of Verdi, will replace Domingo. I wouldn't rush to the theater just to hear him, but if I had signed on hear Netrebko's Lady Macbeth, I wouldn't tear my tickets up in disgust just because he'd been cast, either.)

It's a shame Domingo couldn't manage a more graceful exit for the sake of his fans if nothing else.

I agree completely.  It is sad that Domingo goes out on a sour note.

I saw Netrebko & Lučić on opening night of Macbeth a few years ago.  She was absolutely stupendous and I thought he sang very expressively. He didn't rise to her level but I think only Hvorostovsky could have, so I wasn't disappointed.

16 minutes ago, nanushka said:

No time like the last minute.

This followed pretty closely an NPR report on Met employees' anger and frustration at the company and Domingo's continuing presence.

 

The NPR report was the kiss of death in my opinion.  There are still people who don't want to believe  the allegations.  

On 9/23/2019 at 10:26 PM, Blue Velvet said:

Hi everyone,

A long time reader and thanks to the whole forum for all of your informative and wonderful news, views and information.

 

Joining now to be involved in the discussions especially with Boston Ballet.

 

 

Hi Blue Velvet,

Welcome.  I'm a Boston balletomane too.  Have you seen Giselle?  Would love to read your opinion of it and of BB in general.

I'm glad to hear that a confrontation with the ushers was productive.  It's appalling that they were creating such a disturbance.  I would think that a   phone call via the box office or even an email would be helpful.

I saw the Saturday night 9.21 performance with Kapitonova, Yokum, and Atkins.  Kapitonova was very good and I'd be happy to see her again.  Her Act 1 portrayal of a naive young woman dazzled by the amorous Albrecht was convincing.  Her solo was delightful; only the very rapid hops on pointe seemed rushed and unmusical.  Her Act II  was terrific.  Technique, phrasing, musicality were all there.   I was really wishing she had a different partner.  I found Yocum not particularly expressive.  He didn't make much of his entrance in Act 2.  His technique is strong enough, but he seemed to really flag in his difficult variation. I really thought he wasn't going to make it around on his last few turns.  Atkins did well as Myrtha but you could see the effort in the challenging arabesques pencheés. Yocum again was rather flat as Giselle returns to her grave.  Paul Craig was very good as Hilarion. The peasant PdD was danced by Ji young Chae, who was light and fleet with nice ballon. Tigran Mkrtchyan was an uneven dancer. He never seemed to finish his jumps cleanly yet I think he has the potential to grow.  The two chief Wilis, Zulma and Zoyna [?]  were both excellent.  I am not sure what "adapted" means in the description of this production, "staged and adapted" by Ponomarenko.  It seemed to me that there were truncations in Act 1, where Albrecht's solo was happening almost immediately after their previous dance together.  Were some of the villagers' ensemble dancing cut short?  Also in Myrtha's initial solo, why did she hold lilies?  She later entered with myrtle.  I've only seen previous Myrthas with the myrtle.   

I'm curious to read reviews of  others who have seen different casts. 

On 9/6/2019 at 1:35 PM, abatt said:

I agree.  Maria was captivating in Diamonds in the Spring.  She is not to be missed.  Given Maria's age and history of recent injuries, you can never be sure whether she will continue to dance the role going forward.  The Farrell coaching only improved and built upon what Maria had already accomplished in the role through years of performing it.   The allegro portions of the role are  becoming more difficult for Maria as time marches on.  I hope that whenever she decides to retire, the Diamonds pas will be part of her final performance program.  Along with  Agon , I regard the Diamond  pas as one of her signature roles with the company.

Maria was transcendent in the spring Diamonds.   I was thrilled to read that Farrell had coached her.  Maria  is phenomenal in both Agon and Diamonds.  There are others, such as  Reichlen, who shine in Agon, but in Diamonds, Maria reigns.

36 minutes ago, stuben said:

Seems Waski might be dancing her Myrtha with Boston after her injury that took her out at ABT? I could be wrong since there is no music to this video: https://www.instagram.com/p/B1cBHmojPWw/?igshid=9u2imdutk0vs
Would love to hear about her debut should anyone from BA attend.

I'm planning to attend if the Giselle is Kapitonova.  I don't know who the other Giselles would be, but there are a few dancers I would avoid.  I think BB doesn't usually publish casting until the week before.

8 hours ago, nanushka said:

It took longer than I expected, but this big clomping shoe has finally dropped:

https://www.apnews.com/c2d51d690d004992b8cfba3bad827ae9

There are numerous specific stories told in vivid, excruciating detail.

The detail is  excruciating.  Painful to read, and difficult to imagine despite the detail. He always struck me as being very correct ... so much for impressions.   Does "longer than I expected" mean that Domingo's reputation has preceded him for decades?

On 8/5/2019 at 4:30 PM, Roberta said:

Not Harss. We'd get a steady diet of "All-Ratmansky, All-the-time." Kourlas is perfect - fresh and light, yet knowledgeable.

10 hours ago, kbarber said:

I don`t think that`s fair to Harss at all.

I agree.  Harss has reviewed ballet, modern, flamenco, Indian and maybe other dance forms.  She's not a one note writer.

I II agas reviewed ballet, modern, flamenco, Indian and maybe other dance forms.  She's far from a one-note writer/

1 hour ago, nanushka said:

I just don't really consider Kourlas first and foremost a "dance critic," but oh well.

I'm disappointed to see this too.  I don't know how I'd classify Kourlas, but she lost me when i read that she was writing a bio of Misty Copeland.   I recall too  about 5 years ago Kourlas had  described Julie Kent as [paraphrasing] one of the finest or ABT's finest dramatic ballerinas.  Nothing against Kent, I simply do not see her that way.  Yes, better to have a dance critic, although not "chief", than not.  I was hoping the NYT would name Marina Harss, who I think is an excellent writer. 

8 hours ago, Roberta said:

Oh, that's basically about the creation of the Goh ballet Configurations, followed by the ABT performance - Baryshnikov - The Dancer and the Dance - emphasis on the dance part. We're grateful to have it but no cigar. Absolutely not a biography docum. Neither are the shortish docums about Makarova going back to the USSR. I'd love to see Baryshnikov and Makarova get "the Patricia Foy treatment" in a documentary...although I know that Foy herself passed away a while back. We need a new Patricia Foy.

I think it's worth seeing as Baryshnikov speaks quite a bit before the performance of Configurations.  I would love to see a documentary on Makarova and Baryshnikov, both individually and together.  There is also at least one doc in Russian on Baryshnikov and Godunov on youtube, unfortunately with no option for subtitles in English.  Also as Sandik observed about the unpopular doc on Nureyev, the scenes with him and Bruhn were intriguing: 

One more thing, though, about the Nureyev film -- the footage looking at Bruhn and Nureyev taking barre together was so interesting -- I think it showed us all kinds of things about how ballet can operate and their their fundamental different approaches to the discipline.

Just watching those scenes gave you more information than paragraphs of text.

3 hours ago, Syzygy said:

I'm genuinely curious to see how this corps contract at BB suits Joy Womack in comparison to her previous positions. Polarizing personality aside, she's talented and I wish her all the best. But what I'd give to understand the reasoning... 

I completely agree.  Although she didn't realize her dream to be in Bolshoi, she did dance with secondary companies in Russia. Even if  she isn't really suited to a corps position, I assume it  must have been a "take it or leave it" offer.

4 hours ago, YouOverThere said:

I was left with a couple lingering questions:

- There are 2 people who are still alive who had some importance in Pavarotti's career but did not appear in the documentary: the conductor Richard Bonynge, who was Joan Sutherland's husband, and the soprano Mirella Freni, whom Pavarotti knew as a child and who sang with Pavarotti at several important events, including his La Scala debut. Were they not interested in participating, not in good enough health, edited out for film length reasons, or did their opinions not fit with the narrative?

- Pavarotti's eldest daughter played a much smaller role than his 2 other adult daughters. Again, was this to keep the film shorter or was it because she didn't fit in with the narrative?

I wondered the same about Freni.  I didn't think of Bonynge.  I would be shocked if Freni had negative comments about Pavarotti though.  Did you think the narrative was deliberately leaving out criticism?  I did not but certainly the director seemed admiring of and awed by Pavarotti's gifts.

1 hour ago, Kathleen O'Connell said:

I suppose it depends on who's cast as his muses. I always think Cornejo is too short for a role until I see him dance it; then I stop thinking about his height at all. 

Peter Boal was the shortest Apollo I can recall seeing dance Apollo live. (was Baryshinikov taller than Boal?) In my mind's eye, Apollo is a tall (or at least tall-ish) role, but it's also a porous one that's suited dancers of wildly divergent types. Boal and Hübbe, for instance.

I think Cornejo and Baryshnikov are the same height, either 5'6 or 5'7".  I remember Boal as being similar in height or even slightly taller.  I thought Martins was the greatest, he was a god. but also saw the other two and Hubbe and thought they were all  wonderful.