CharlieH

Great news about Erica. I’ve admired her more & more this year, most recently as the featured (pdd) lady in Robbins’ Interplay.

ABT’s Harlequinade recon will be just that. No Balanchines or contemporary choreographies on the same program, as in all of the Petipa “tributes” at the Bolshoi, Stanislavsky, Mariinsky.

The more I read about the so-called Petipa Galas/Tributes in Russia, the more I think that the grandest tribute of all is happening right here in the USA with Ratmansky’s reconstruction of Harlequinade at ABT. No bull - 100% Petipa.

Thank you, Royal Blue. You perfectly captured my feelings about Goldberg, in general, and last Saturday night’s performance in particular! Now imagine the thrill of following THAT with Robbins’ magnificent Les Noces - more powerful, colorful, forceful & dramatic than the Nijinska original (a masterpiece in its own subtle way). Full chorus, vocal soloists, four grand pianos and full percussion ensemble AND dancers on the stage...with special kudos to Indiana Woodward and apprentice Andres Zuniga as the bride & groom. Goldberg + Noces = A Double-Whammy of a Sensorial Delight! Also delicious, in a much lighter vein and on another program: Fanfare...a far more effective music-education experience than “Show the Music” lecture that preceded The Cage on Friday night. I’m looking forward to seeing the fifth and sixth programs on Saturday, especially the one that includes Dances at a Gathering. A mostly wonderful festival thus far.

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As luck would have it, Petipa’s choreography for La Gioconda’s Dance of the Hours was revived for Kremlin Ballet around the time of the Petipa 175th birthday celebrations. It has been further revived a number of times since then, such as at NBA Japan, circa 2000. Apparently, one of the big Russian academies is doing it this year (forget which academy but it’s all part of the Petipa celebration).

STDA was an anomaly, as I thoroughly enjoyed most of the rest of the four Robbins-100 programs seen during the past two weekends. I initially did not report on the Carlyle to not dampen the rest of the celebration, until I read all of the above negatives. Glad that some folks liked it.

ITA on the horrible mess that is Something to Dance About. The Charleston was the one saving grace but we didn’t see enough. NYCB already does West Side Story Suite, with dancers in the roles. Mearns and her red bling dress in the Carlyle Crap are ALL WRONG as Puerto Rican Anita!!!! The Fiddler “bottle dance” without the bottles...imagine the Manu Dance from Bayadere without a water jug on Manu’s head! The #s from Funny Girl (from which Robbins was fired (?) before opening) and Gypsy are totally boring and useless. To add insult to injury, one of Robbins’ most celebrated B’way numbers - the Mack Sennett ballet from High Button Shoes, with the line of beach hut doors & everyone running in and out - is omitted. The one rarity that I expected to see went AWOL! Bummer.

Actually, Shakirova danced an excerpt of Sleeping Beauty Aurora with the Vaganova school, not the complete role.

Last night’s double bill of Goldberg Variations and Les Noces was a once-in-a-lifetime event that left most everyone in the venue in awe. A double tour de force. At the end of the evening I thought: “How privileged I am to be here, witnessing something so extraordinary and meaningful, so magnificently performed...that is not beholden to pop culture and would never ever be marketed in cinemas.” Best of all, I was surrounded by audience members that cheered and understood what they were watching. What a night at NYCB: a program of substance and intelligence! Hands down the grandest of the four Robbins programs seen on my most recent trips to the Big Apple. (Dybbuk was also wonderful but it was sandwiched between two Broadwayish works, both weakly performed, with the exception of Pazcoguin in WSSS.) I’ll leave it up to others to point out details. I’m just offering a big “Wow!” to hopefully begin a conversation about the fantastic Goldberg/Noces double bill.

From what I saw, it appears to be a very dark, grim, Germanic Goth, and “heavy” production. Maybe more lights will be turned on during the actual shows?

Yes. Hallberg revealed that factoid at the public book discussion & signing in DC, the week of the last Kennedy Center engagement (with Michael Kaiser as emcee). Hallberg told us that he & “Natasha” had selected the date & that this performance means a lot to both of them...same birth date but different years. In other words, Hallberg seemed to indicate that both would move mountains to make this happen (assuming both are healthy & free from injury).

They’re still showing Osipova & Hallberg dancing on the 18th - their joint birthdays. Fingers crossed!

Was he rolling a suitcase or just a dance bag...or was he empty handed? Clues!

We used to count on American Repertory Ballet in Princeton to occasionally stage Arpino ballets but that was 3-4 years ago (Viva Vivaldi and Confetti).

Nice but they can only do so much with $10,000. It’s a start, though. Hopefully it will inspire Nevada patrons to donate more.

Didn’t Claire Von Enck dance Pierette in Harlequinade, very early in her career?

Great news! Some of the best new work that I’ve seen recently is by female choreographers - Bond, Reisen, Karen Schwarz, to name a few.

Some photos of celebs at the gala can be seen via the link below. Is there a normal outfit in the bunch? It all looks Harper’s Bizarre to me. https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/headpieces-crowns-won-2018-met-034300340.html

Correct decision. People won’t have to puke when they read the names on the wall of honorees. Explanation: I don’t want my heroes (Balanchine, Graham, Tudor, Robbins) listed in the company of a convicted felon who carried out such sickening acts against women (or any fellow human being).

We should know the casting for Coppelia soon, as Week 5 (containing the initial 4 or 5 performances) will be posted this week. The remaining Coppelias will be performed in Week 6. https://www.nycballet.com/NYCB/media/NYCBMediaLibrary/PDFs/SubscriptionDocuments/3517-FY18-SpringCalendar_V20.pdf

Looks & sounds like the A2 Scottish Dance to me. I am happy to read this news, being a fan of the New Pereira, so beautiful in her Divert 15 sólo recently. A more complete artist than before. She even looked taller and sleeker than before, not the soubrette of before. Promotion to Principal soon?

I’m so saddened but am sure that he is a new angel in Ballet Heaven. Mel and another ballet angel, Gleb, were my indispensable BalletAlert experts on All-Things-Joffrey...and beyond. Rest In Peace. 👼

I guess that we’ll finally know the title & music of Justin Peck’s new ballet tonight. A low-key premiere compared to the big Carlyle Broadway work. Is anyone else as excited as I am about The Dybbuk?