BalanchineFan

On 10/6/2018 at 7:14 AM, KayDenmark said:

If it is just an external nutjob, I'm not quite sure why it is the lead in the Times story. Every public-facing business has to deal with crazy people. It's only really relevant if it reflects some kind of (vulgar) internal support for the fired dancers. 

The language quoted in the letter ("jilted whores") seems similar to the Jared Loghitano quotes from the texts in the Waterbury complaint. I wouldn't be surprised to find the stage door letter came from him. I was glad that he was included in her amended complaint.

On 10/6/2018 at 11:25 AM, Helene said:

No one has run a successful Company in LA for very long.  Neary and Christensen are making a go of it, but they are essentially a local touring company on Miami City Ballet's model, and their season is skeletal, with one performance of two rep programs at each venue, aside from Nutcracker, where there are only two performances at two of them and three at two others, before a six-performance run Christmas week at UCLA.  One of the rep programs is 2/3 contemporary (Barton, Cerrudo) with "Western Symphony," and the second is "La Sylphide" and "Serenade."

Because it's still, essentially, a Board-appointed position, no matter how much feedback even SAB Board members give, let alone dancers and other internal stakeholders, if there's a surprising choice, I don't think it's going to be someone who campaigns to the outside world.  I agree that he doesn't stand much of a chance with the Board, especially having to get out of "committee."  While there are Martins supports on the Board -- there hasn't been any changeover, and one Board member is on record with the NYT wanting him back after the third-party internal investigation did not find evidence to support the complaint -- I don't know how deep that support is among the committee/group that is vetting the candidates.

I can't imagine that the board member who made the now famous "we hope Peter comes back" quote back in December 2017, still feels that way. I thought the quote was shocking in 2017, but now time has moved on and it would not be in anyone's interests to have Peter return. For one thing, imagine the effect on the Waterbury complaint.  I wonder if the board member was just trying to express generic support for Peter and got caught saying something he shouldn't have when all the information came in.

In terms of finding new choreographers, the Interim team has been making some good picks! I hope they still have a voice with the new director. New choreography (along with the Balanchine/Robbins rep) is the life line of this company.

I just watched several of John Clifford's postings. Boy, I don't envy the board having to pick a new director. The egos involved can be enormous.

On 10/3/2018 at 12:02 PM, abatt said:

Major program change, folks.  For the Sat Oct 6 matinee, they have replaced the Ratmansky masterpiece Concerto DSCH with the decidedly NON-masterpiece New Kyle Abraham work.  The Concerto DSCH was the main  draw on that program.  (See updated casting sheet posted today.)

[...]

Oh, and the casting for This Bitter Earth on that same program is changed from Tiler & Tyler to Reichlin and LaCour.  Glad I decided to skip the Oct 6 matinee.

Well, I, for one, was THRILLED to see the new Abraham piece on Saturday! So exciting to see such a compelling new work, The Runaway. Taylor Stanley's performance is a revelation and the cultural references just keep coming. It's one of the things I love about modern work. Much like Agon, where the dancers' identities seem so fluid, Stanley seems to have an identity that shimmers and changes, one minute he's like one of the ball queens in Paris is Burning, the next he's a break dancer on the floor, and out of THAT he becomes a classical prince. And there's this serious, searching quality to his journey. It's an astounding piece of dancing. His physical facility is breathtaking. How great it is to see more of Black popular culture developed and referenced in the classical idiom onstage at NYCB. Ballet did not stop in the 19th century!

I've also never seen a choreographer make such good use of the costume gala. After seeing the pictures I wasn't sure the costumes would work (Personally, I would forbid sleeves for dancers), but the costumes are spectacular... though I would still omit Georgina Pazoquin's sleeves. The costumes were amazing, the choreography made USE of the costumes, and several dancers even came out in multiple looks.

On 9/13/2018 at 11:15 PM, California said:

As someone on this board said long ago: Symphony in C is bread and  water for ballet lovers. And if there's anybody who has not yet discovered Nancy Goldner's brilliant essay, I would highly recommend that, too, in More Balanchine Variations (pp. 14-23), including her analysis of that amazing tendu sequence for the corps in the last movement.

Thank you California! I just got my copies of the two Nancy Goldner books in the mail, Balanchine Variations and More Balanchine Variations. They are fabulous, detailed, easy to read and really get to the heart of Balanchine's choreography. 

I remember Unity saying that the "apprentices now have contracts," as well.

Just fyi, Clara Ruf-Maldonado is now a member of PNB. I bet she was injured. I can't imagine AGMA would make an exception otherwise.

https://www.pnb.org/artist/clara-ruf-maldonado/

On 9/20/2018 at 4:40 PM, Balletwannabe said:

I could be wrong.  I thought he said it in a dance video I was watching.. can't recall which one.

I wonder why they don't list apprentices on the "dancers" NYCB webpage?

On the SAB website it says apprentice contracts can only last one year, due to AGMA's constraints.

On 9/20/2018 at 4:38 PM, vipa said:

I think it's 1 year, but of course I could be wrong. I've never heard of anyone doing more than that. I know that AGMA frowns on long apprenticeships, because it would be considered taking advantage of cheap labor.

https://www.sab.org/winterterm/career_planning/nycb_apprentice_program.php

8 hours ago, nanushka said:

One of her interview responses would seem to clarify that "underage" means under 18 (given that they were apprentices):

ETA:   @tutu has corrected me on this, it seems "underage" may indeed have meant under 21.

According to the SAB website (below) apprentices are between 16-18 years old and can only remain apprentices for one year. The website may be old (it says Peter Martins invites the dancers to be apprentices). I also remember Unity Phelan saying in an online interview that you now had to be 17 to be an apprentice.  That would make the apprentices at the party somewhere in the 17-20 year old range.

https://www.sab.org/winterterm/career_planning/nycb_apprentice_program.php

9 hours ago, Helene said:

So they didn't distribute inappropriate videos and/or photos of their co-workers? Ramasar didn't actively solicit them and make demeaning comments about them? They participated at knifepoint?

IIRC, Waterbury’s complaint doesn’t say what Catazaro distributed. They might have been stock nudes from paid models on his own time, off company premises, i.e. not a crime and only involving NYCB because he happens to dance there. 

11 hours ago, fondoffouettes said:

Nor does she do the balance with the developpe a la seconde, which I admit, I find a little disappointing. I've never seen a ballerina opt out of that. Does anyone know if historically, ballerinas (and their partners) have sometimes eschewed the balance? He also holds onto her during the change of position that occurs around 1:17, which hasn't been the case in any NYCB performances I've seen. (I find Kent absolutely stunning in this, btw. The falls into his arms are the best I've ever seen.)

For me, the pressing of the nose to the shin is not important at all. Kowroski, when she last danced it, probably got about as close as Kent in the video above. Kowroski has always struck me as a very flexible dancer, with absolutely gorgeous arabesques. So, maybe for her, it was just an artistic choice; or it's something that has become more difficult to do as she's gotten older.

 

The story I heard about the balance (perhaps it was from John Clifford, perhaps it’s in Kent’s book, I can’t quite remember where) is that she was having trouble balancing that day and they reshot that part of the ppd without the corps. Conrad Ludlow was able to cover the balance, which I think he does beautifully (both of them dance beautifully, really). I know it’s  Clifford who says that Allegra originally wasn’t supposed to do the filming (she’d had three kids by then) and stepped in for Gelsey last minute. 

13 hours ago, California said:

As someone on this board said long ago: Symphony in C is bread and  water for ballet lovers. And if there's anybody who has not yet discovered Nancy Goldner's brilliant essay, I would highly recommend that, too, in More Balanchine Variations (pp. 14-23), including her analysis of that amazing tendu sequence for the corps in the last movement.

I will look for the Nancy Goldner! Thank you for recommending it. I see that she has two books analyzing Balanchine ballets; Balanchine Variations, and More Balanchine Variations. I can't believe I don't have them already.

This is my attempt at a general response to ideas expressed upthread. I can’t seem to make the text smaller.

NY Times: Sexual harassment training Doesn’t Work. But Some Things Do  

One thing of interest in this NY Times article is that it shows how certain kinds of sexual harassment training protect companies from lawsuits but make the issue worse by perpetuating gender stereotypes. When women are seen as weak and in need of protection and masculine is equated with strong or powerful then harassment is more likely to occur. Now add that the Waterbury case occurred among people working in an art form that historically portrays women as delicate and vulnerable and men as powerful and strong. For those reasons I think it’s dangerous, and potentially offensive, to assume Ms Waterbury is so vulnerable that we, the uninvolved, should second guess how much she takes on (school, work, etc) and question her decisions about how to proceed with her legal complaint. She was violated without her knowledge or consent over a period of about nine months. However she chooses to work through that, whichever legal remedies she pursues, in whatever order, is now, finally HER choice. 

I understand that this is an online forum and all we do (in a sense) is discuss other people’s choices. Still, we wouldn’t be discussing this issue if it weren’t for her. Dance schools around the country (the world?) wouldn’t know about it. Teachers wouldn’t be giving quotes to Dance magazine, Pointe or whoever. She has moved the needle and if her name comes up on Google for it we should all be grateful. 

I now see that by suing NYCB Ms Waterbury has chosen to make her horrible experience less about just herself and more about the girls and boys, women and men, past, present and future, who might have suffered, or might still suffer similar violations.

7 hours ago, yukionna4869 said:

I’ll add my vote to Gerrity as well. I thought she was fabulous as Sanguinic in 4Ts. 

I saw Gerrity’s debut as Sanguinic in 4T’s. She was great. I liked her better than Mearns in that ballet. 

I’m a total fangirl for Unity Phelan. I’d crawl over broken glass (love that phrase!) to see her do 2nd movement Bizet or Diamonds. I feel certain they will come at some point. I’ve seen her dance Agon ppd in a lec dem with Heather Watts lecturing. Unity dances it with Calvin Royale, like they did at Vail. They are well matched. There’s a short clip on her IG, if you haven’t seen it. 

I love Sterling best in Symphony in 3 Movts. There’s something both matter of fact and incredibly detailed about her in that ballet. She lives inside the music and just plays around calmly hitting all the right notes. 

Still, I could watch the Bizet every night. Put a new woman in there and keep it coming. I always feel so happy after that ballet. 

John Clifford has posted a video on YouTube of the Bizet with Allegra dancing the 2 nd Movt, beautifully partnered by Conrad Ludlow. That’s one thing I like about Clifford - he posts great Balanchine videos. 

On 9/11/2018 at 10:20 AM, Kathleen O'Connell said:

I worked at a company that had mandatory diversity training that included a unit on sexual harassment. We had something even more valuable, though: men who were willing to call out other men when they engaged in behavior that demeaned and degraded women. 

This NY Times article is on topic. I hope the link works:

Sexual Harrassment Trainings Don’t Work, But These Things Do

Traditional methods can backfire, but ideas like teaching bystanders to intervene and promoting more women have proved effective.  Read More...
 

9 hours ago, Jayne said:

I'm not a NYer so I can only suggest from afar that if NYCB is short on appropriate male partners for roles he already knows.....he could save the day.  

I saw Craig Hall dance After the Rain ppd several times. He danced it with Wendy Whelan at her farewell performance and they added it to the program on HIS final performance in NYC. He was beautiful in it, seamless, soulful. I think Maria dances it with Ask Lacour, and they are well matched physically. Tiler dances it, and I can’t think of who she’s partnered with. It’s certainly not Ask due to the height discrepancy. I may have seen her dance it wih Craig as well. I’m not sure any man would want to step out of retirement and onto the stage with their shirt off, but Craig Hall would be worth seeing again. 

On 9/11/2018 at 9:00 AM, nysusan said:

When I saw the casting for the recent tour - Reichlin did all the Bizet and Kowroski only the After the Rain PDD - I held my breath for NY casting hoping I'd get to see Kowroski in Diamonds and the Bizet one last time. I expect that her technique will not be what it was 5 years ago, but I'm sure its still strong enough, and there's no one I'd rather see in those roles.

I can wait for new interpreters, especially remembering the last new  ballerina to be given 2nd movement Bizet- Sterling Hyltin who was totally miscast.

I’m of the opposite opinion. I wish they’d let a few more women do 2nd movement Bizet. All the women who dance it have been doing it for quite some time (Kowroski, Mearns, Reichlen). They’re each good in their different ways but it would be so exciting to see someone new take a crack at it. 

I remember Sterling dancing it. Justin Peck partnered her IIRC. She was good, but not earth shattering. They usually cast the taller women. Is that why you say she was miscast?

The past several years I haven’t seen her dance much. She danced Concerto Barocco with Maria K last spring or winter. She dances Helena in Midsummer, when they’re performing it. She did Kammermusik a few years back .... she’s lovely, but in the period I’ve been going to NYCB she just hasn’t danced that much. 

33 minutes ago, cobweb said:

Week 2 casting up. No one new in La Sylphide. (And no Woodward...??) But, Roman Mejia debuts in Allegro Brillante. Whoa. Must see. 

There’s your young, male phenom: Roman Mejia. 

On 9/11/2018 at 11:55 AM, cobweb said:

I like Chamblee the best in roles where his elegance shines, rather than the leotard ballets or modernist pieces. For example, he's been leading the third movement of Glass Pieces for awhile, and to me he lacks the requisite angularity and force. But in, say, the corps of "Diamonds" and other similarly grand, elegant pieces, he really stands out. MHO. 

I really like Chamblee in Not Our Fate. He’s great dancing with Taylor Stanley and partnering him, seems to me he could partner Reichlen in Agon or do one of the leads in 4T. Personally, I like him in Glass Pieces, to each their own. I haven’t seen him in any of the princely roles.

Silas Farley seems more princely to me, and in fact he’s danced Titania’s Cavalier and the Nutcracker Cavalier. There was a moment in one of Justin Peck’s pieces where Farley and Miriam Miller were face to face (they made eye contact and smiled at each other) and I thought they’d make a great partnership, both so tall and long. 

I see a lot of promise in the men’s corps de ballet. Women, too. I’m not sure how you could compare them. I suppose we haven’t quite seen young male performances at the level of say Unity Phelan or Indiana Woodward, but they’re there. Why do you think otherwise about the men?

13 hours ago, cobweb said:

Kowroski certainly has her work cut out for her (and Tyler Angle, too). While many were raving about her dancing last year (I was one), many were not (at certain points I was one of those, too). In any case, I'm also ready for some new interpreters of these roles. 

It seems the Interim Team is not going to promote. That seems a shame, especially when it comes to the male ranks. While I'd love to see Ashley Laracey take her deserved place among the female principals, I can't actually say the female ranks are thin. When it comes to the men, however, they need to step it up. If Joseph Gordon acquits himself well with his big new assignments, he would seem ready to become Principal. But what about the very thin male soloist rank? If they are going to promote men who may make it to principal one day, it's time to promote Harrison Coll, Silas Farley, and possibly Sebastian Villarini-Velez. On the other hand, they could also promote a few men who may remain as, um, "flagship soloists." Dependable, highly experienced men who could fill this bill include Daniel Applebaum, Devin Alberda, and Andrew Scordato. 

I think Preston Chamblee is also deserving of more principal roles. Has he done Agon or 4T that anyone remembers? If so, which roles? Oh, I just looked at his company bio and they’re not listed. If I was AD I’d at least have him learn those two ballets. 

Rock, I was referring to rewriting the agreement the dancers sign upon entering the company, not to hiring new apprentices or replacing departing dancers, which are things that happen every single year.  

4 hours ago, Rock said:

Bouder grew up with Jon Stafford. Naturally the position he's in right now would be difficult for her, but you'd think she could be a little bit supportive. "Throwing them under the bus" as Helene put it is unnecessary. I don't think it speaks well of her diplomatic capabilities. 

I didn’t take what Bouder posted as “throwing the interim team under the bus.” The four on the interim artistic management team have a different mandate than an AD, namely, “the day-to-day artistic management...” I can’t imagine they’d be expected to

1. redo or update contracts,

2. design and instigate a training program for new hires, a program that would apparently be the first of its kind in the 70 year history of NYCB

3. Respond to any ongoing or new litigation. 

4. Write a code of conduct, or direct an appropriate person to write one (please remove this is it’s too speculative)

I’m not even sure they have the authority to promote, demote or suspend dancers. NYCB doesn’t have an AD, neither the founder (because there was truly only Balanchine) or the ONE person who tried for those 30 odd years to replace him. It’s not an insult to Stafford, Hall, Krohn and Peck to state the truth, and I don’t think it in any way minimizes the admirable job they’ve done. 

5 hours ago, cinnamonswirl said:

NIED is negligent infliction of emotional distress and IIED is intentional infliction of emotional distress. Waterbury's NIED and IIED claims have a twist because they are indirect -- it wasn't NYCB that took the actions that caused her distress. Usually these claims are direct (like her claims against Finlay).

A couple of people have asked me very specific questions that I don't feel comfortable answering off the top of my head. My posts have been based on my initial reaction to the complaint (issue spotting it, if you will). I haven't looked at case law or even the relevant statutes so I think I need to stop answering such specific questions. 

I don't think merely doing something on company time would give rise to liability if they were on personal devices using personal phone numbers.  Even if they were on company Wifi, I'm not sure the company has the duty to actively monitor Wifi use for improper activity (if that's even possible). Using company Wifi won't go through the company's server. Certainly if they used company email or devices that would be very different and I would have expected the complaint to state that.

Thank you for the NIED and IIED definitions!

When I see the phrase “expectation of privacy” all that comes to mind is the expectation of privacy you have in an apartment having sex with your bf. Once Ms Waterbury discovered the texts, the senders had no protection on that basis due to the harm they were doing to her. A thief who breaks into your car can’t claim “expectation of privacy” when you catch him. 

15 minutes ago, FPF said:

Yes, I agree. I also wonder if the interim team had any idea that they would be in this role for more than a few months. I would expect that the earliest a new AD would start would be after the 2018/19 season. It may be that given how AD contracts work, they realized that even if they started to look immediately, they wouldn't be able to hire immediately and decided to take their time and be to make the right decision.

Could/should the board have hired a new AD before the investigation into Martins’ conduct was concluded? I think that may have slowed the search. They waited for the outcome and tried (in their small ways) to address that situation in their search. 

31 minutes ago, rkoretzky said:

Ashley states  “I do not condone this behavior”. To me this is her personal statement and she is saying this as a member of NYCB, but not speaking for the organization. 

There is a world of difference between “condone” and “encourage”. I don’t believe there has been any mention of this reprehensible behavior being encouraged. Please point out if I’ve missed that.

NYCB is not, in fact, leaderless. There is an executive director. Other than her signature on the recent email, along with Jon Stafford, where is Kathy brown? 

As I reread what I’ve written, I want to state in the clearest possible way my unwavering support and admiration to Ashley in making this statement. If she so chooses she will run a company some day, or should. 

The language “condoned, encouraged, fostered, and permitted” is from the Waterbury complaint. 

“ for several years the defendant NYCB Inc. has condoned, encouraged, fostered and permitted an environment where its agents, servants, employees, donors, principals and/or others affiliated with it abused, degraded and mistreated alcohol, drugs and women.”

The entire situation is controversial but in posting, Bouder backs up the company’s position that NYCB should be excluded from the complaint, imo. That was why I didn’t understand why the post itself was controversial.

Reading the responses here I’m getting a fuller picture of the implications. Thank you. 

41 minutes ago, Balletwannabe said:

I guess I'm not allowed to sleep at night if I want to keep up on this thread...

I was happy Bouder said something because she has always positioned herself as a leader.  Often it's easy to be that leader, her posts are largerly supported, they encourage, and inspire people.  This post?  Difficult...very controversial...possible ramifications for her work environment.  Do her colleagues agree with her?  Maybe, maybe not.  So for me, it's not that I was looking to her for an "answer", I was looking to her as the leader that she is.  And she continues to blow me away in her strength and resolve, regardless of whether or not I always agree with her. 

 Bouder’s IG post bolsters NYCB’s claim that they did not “condone, encourage” etc the reprehensible behavior in question. It supports the company line and, imo, may have been vetted by NYCB.

I was glad to see her condemn the illegal behaviors. How is it controversial?