BalanchineFan

Another thing I noticed is how often and how HIGH the men throw the women. Gilbert Bolden gave Gerrity serious air time in the 2nd movement of Bourree. Roman Mejia threw von Enck so high in the Bizet that one of his hands caught the underside of her tutu and flipped it up as he caught her. (Why oh why don't they reinstate the Karinska tutus??) Tyler Angle, from Row F of the orchestra, seemed to be doing a disappearing act with Mearns. She was downstage right next to us one second, and 40 feet upstage the next. He just dragged her, running at quite a clip, time and time again.

The tempo is super fast and there are a LOT of jumps and turns. I'm surprised all of the men's hair isn't blown back into an aerodynamic afro by the end! Kikta and Takahashi were fabulous tonight. Very funny, well (mis)matched. I saw him do it with Mira last fall, and Kikta is better in Bourree, she works the comedy more seriously, more realistically. I LOVE this program. And I think I'm seeing it again. Mearns and Angle are literally breathtaking in the second movement of the Bizet, strong performances from Fairchild & Gordon and von Enck & Mejia in the Bizet. Mira Nadon is amazing in Errante. Well worth seeing. There was a lot of role/cast shuffling in the demi's in the Bizet. Alexa Maxwell was in for Alston Macgill when she got bumped up. I didn't enjoy Macgill in this quite as much as in 4T over the winter. Macgill is so quick it verges on brittle or clipped, at times. Savannah Durham danced in the corps of Errante, uncredited. I couldn't figure out who was out of that ballet, but it was definitely Savannah Durham onstage.

It is just glorious. I saw at least one snippet of a rehearsal with Olivia McKinnon.

Gabriel is still listed for the May 5th Bourree Fantasque performance. Maybe it's something small.

I received the 2024-25 subscribers calendar in the mail today. One listing made me a bit wistful. Andrew Veyette Farewell May 25, 2025 I’ll be quite sad to see him retire from NYCB. Any guesses or suggestions for rep he should perform? I’d love to see the pas he does in Everywhere We Go. He and Sterling Hyltin originated those parts

@Helene "I can understand a name switch -- and, given its content, it would be a mockery to call it Roma or Romani -- but why Errante, when Balanchine already created up-to-three works with that name to music by Schubert, the Wanderer? According to the Balanchine Catalogue entries: 138 - L'Errante 1933 (also called ERRANTE; ALMA ERRANTE; THE WANDERER, performed in Les Ballets 1933) 143 - Errante 1935 197 - Alma Errante (Errante) 1941 (Performed by Ballet Caravan in rep)" Do you think audiences will come to Errante expecting to see choreography from 1941 (or before)? I think it's a safe bet that no one remembers Balanchine's previous ballets with that title, even if someone is of an age to have seen them. The fact that several ballets already had that title also dulls the objections, imo.

@dirac, that is not quite accurate. I’m looking at a New York City Ballet program from 1979. Balanchine went by Ballet Master. He had refused the Artistic Director title. Many said it was an example of his lack of self aggrandizement. Balanchine valued the craftsmanship aspect of his role. Jerome Robbins and John Taras are listed in the same category. Ballet Masters George Balanchine Jerome Robbins John Taras Peter Martins was the one who instituted the “Ballet Master in Chief“ title. In my opinion, he wanted to follow in Balanchine’s footsteps, but he also felt a need to elevate himself above everyone else. To me it, again, reads as grasping.

1. It discounts the different ballet companies that Balanchine ran before NYCB. Ballet Society and Ballet Caravan even had many of the same ballets and dancers. NYCB literature used to link them. 2. It does compare Martins to Balanchine. “the same X as Balanchine” is literally saying they are equals in that regard. It doesn’t say they both had two legs or other things that are not ballet related but equally true. My reaction would have been different if it said, factually, “Martins ran NYCB for 35 years.” Balanchine wasn’t there helping Martins when Martins ran NYCB, why is Balanchine even named if not to state Martins’ “equal” achievement? It is grasping. I would respect Martins more if he tried to stand on his own accomplishments. Martins comes off better, imo, when the emphasis is on him, The Choreographic Institute and how SAB students now regularly work with emerging choreographers, ie emphasizing things that set Martins apart from Balanchine.

Thank you for the link! It’s an interesting read. The note at end sent a shiver up my spine, though. “Peter Martins ran NYCB for 35 years, the same tenure as Balanchine.”

A Youtube video from City Center's Studio 5 in honor of Arthur Mitchell, including Robert Garland, the exceptional dancers of DTH, NYCB's Wendy Whelan, and dancers Savannah Durham and Chun Wai Chan.

There's a Company class with PNB and DTH

Wow! i can't believe you found that. The weird thing is, I remember it happening in July of 1976. I don't think I'd have been in NYC in April.

There is a huge, enthusiastic audience for Illinoise, judging by the ticket sales and the audience reaction when I went. I hope they do well. If The Park Avenue Armory was one of the original producers they might benefit from the Broadway transfer as well. I believe A Chorus Line kept The Public Theater afloat for years, though this is advertised as a limited Broadway run. And I wonder who will replace Robert Fairchild for the Broadway run.

Thank you so much for the report, @On Pointe! It sounds like a wonderful evening. I hope I get to see that theater at some point.