Phrenchphry11

Not to start a dogpile on SFB marketing choices, but I know the exact photograph you're referencing, and I had a similar head-scratching response to that. SFB truly has had an embarrassment of riches at least since the 10-12 years I've been following them closely. I don't mean to speculate too much, but I wouldn't be surprised if other dancers feel disheartened when one gets significantly better billing than the rest. More logistically speaking about Angelo Greco's leaving - it seems a shame to me that they're losing a smaller, powerful dancer. There are quite a few shorter principal/soloist women, and while there still are some smaller principal men on the roster, I thought Greco looked great partnering not only Misa, but Frances Chung, Sasha de Sola, and others. End of an era for sure.

I posted in the other thread, but I'm both shocked and pleased that Dores and Max are back! Off the top of my head, there's quite a few pieces next season that they'll look great in. And I believe Max originated the title role in Frankenstein, so it'll be nice to have some of the original dancers in it.

Yes! Agree! A bit surprised but I can think of a few pieces in the next season that each of them will look great in. Also very sad to see Angelo Greco is out. Yeah Rojo's Raymonda got pretty mixed reviews in the UK so I'm not sure how excited I am for it, but I do know Phil Chan has been working on a modernized Bayadere. Bayadere's one ballet that doesn't age well to me (I saw Mariinsky do it a few years and still cringe inside at the shameless use of blackface), but with a few tweaks I think could ultimately be really compelling.

Very happy to see Manon entering the rep. I also really loved Frankenstein, and I'm glad Scarlett isn't fully blacklisted from major ballet companies now. That said - I'm a bit disappointed that so much of the programming leans not-child-friendly and a bit heavy thematically. The fact that there are no lighter tutu ballets and no Balanchine feels like a big miss to me. SFB has deep Balanchine roots that I was hoping for a rerun of Midsummer or maybe Coppelia or something.

That's a great point. I wonder which ballets make SFB the most money? I wouldn't be shocked if Swan Lake sells out more easily than other shows, but I also assume the cost of shipping all the sets/costumes will be quite high. SFB is certainly very good at full length classics, but I think Swan Lake pretty far from what they do best and make them interesting as a company. I feel like of the works they've done this season, Broken Wings and MADCAP represent the company and its skills much better. Maybe even Midsummer, given the American choreographer and several dancers in the company with Balanchine training.

I was there last night too Agree with you - Broken Wings is a real gem, I hope it has a place in SFB's regular rep. Everything about it was spectacular - the music, the costumes, the fantastic and creative set. And time and again, Isabella DeVivo knocks it out of the park. I was very unexpectedly moved by several scenes (her miscarriage, the final scene + Frida dancing with the Doe), and I think Isabella brought a rich characterization to the role. Really really hope this piece enters the rep of more American companies, as Frida did spend a considerable amount of her life in the US. I was a little more mixed on Carmen. I thought the approach and reworking of the plot was interesting. The set and music was great! Some of the movement vocab started feeling a little bland by the end, and I didn't really love the final scene. It was unclear what Carmen's fate was at the end, and I don't think the ambiguity helped with the plot at all. However, the dancing was great, Jen Stahl in particular was riveting. I think I'd like Carmen a lot if perhaps the final scene was reworked a bit.

I have to say, I am such a fan of Dani Rowe. I saw MADCAP for the second time and was utterly riveted through the entire thing. Thought this was a nice interview with her, with some MADCAP footage, so I'm linking here: https://www.opb.org/article/2024/04/02/oregon-ballet-theatre-theater-dance-arts-dani-rowe-culture-art-artistic-director-portland/

I'm surprised by the negative Saturday review, but I suppose that's why we have multiple casts! I just saw Frances and Joe tonight, both were stunning. Frances is definitely a more understated Odette/Odile, I wouldn't say she brings over-the-top pathos to the role. However, as always, she's really tasteful in her technical and artistic choices (it's something I appreciate more and more, especially in this era of social media ballerinas). She knows when to go for big turns, balances, etc and when to hold back. I never feel like her dancing "distracts" from the actual ballet. And I'm continually amazed that she never seems to have an off night, ever. A thoroughly great evening, well worth the cost of admission and then some!

Also I believe married to the fantastic Beckanne Sisk, also with Houston Ballet. (Never seen her live but there's lots of footage of her online) Hopefully this isn't too speculative, but since Rojo is bringing in lots of guest artists for Swan Lake later this season, I wonder if this means some anticipated future guest artist opportunities with Chase O'Connell (and maybe even Beckanne Sisk?)

Just saw tonight's show with Esteban Hernandez and Katherine Barkman as the pas de deux. WOW. Tons of flair, drama, and a spectacular balance by Barkman at the end of the pas. What a great partnership, and I'm excited to see more to come! Overall a great evening, the company looked good all around.

Jasmine Jimison looked great at World Ballet Day. Though on the ABT side, Jaffe I don't think has promoted anyone either. I wonder if Rojo and Jaffe both a bit cautious in their first big "solo" season before making big moves. I do agree that Jimison and DeVivo both deserve to be promoted.

Major major yikes. He 100% lost me once he started comparing American attitude to race to Russia's. I get the feeling of tokenization, I'm a minority in my career field as well, and it sucks to feel singled out at times. But, his arguments feel totally unserious when he starts comparing ABT to Russian dance. I was just reading Olga Smirnova's most recent interview post-leaving the Bolshoi, and was struck with her poise through this whole thing. She denounced Russia, called out their war crimes, and has moved on to bigger and better things. Shayer's refusing to admit any of the problematic parts of Russia purely so he can frame his own argument, all while bringing Royal and other dancers down with him.

Big agree about DeVivo! I saw her as Cinderalla, and she was ethereal and radiant in it. In general she looks great in everything - has the solid technical base for the classics, but is also versatile and musical and does well in the neoclassical and contemporary stuff.

Are they doing any additional promotions this year? At the very least, I would have expected Jimison to get promoted.

Yeah I have been thinking: there's obviously been speculation around whether Rojo's artistic and management decisions are contributing to the significant roster changes. Nevertheless, we also have to consider that many of the dancers (especially Mathilde) had significant changes in their personal lives over the past several years (births of children, changes in marriage status, overall re-evaluating of life goals/priorities), and I don't doubt many dancers are looking to make big moves in this "post-covid" world.

Wow, that's really too bad. She was one of my favorites, especially in Cathy Marson roles. She really rounded out the group of SFB principals nicely, I thought. It seemed she ran into visa issues last year, would be terrible if that were the cause of her departure.

I’m curious about who had say in casting this year - I’m assuming it’s Rojo, but I’ve really been enjoying the shakeups of the “standard” partnerships!! It’s been nice to see some different, unexpected casting! Nikisha and Aaron were wonderful. Simultaneously subtle, yet dramatic in their interpretations. Lots of musicality, culminating in the moving final scene. Cavan Conley and Mingxuan Wang were the delightful surprises for me though. Both were well rehearsed and brought humor and great acting to their roles. Hope to see lots more of them in the future! One question though - I noticed the corps de ballet didn’t come out for the bows at the end. That seemed a bit of an unusual choice, no?

Lauren Parriott is leaving the company: https://www.instagram.com/p/CrHxKA5rlKL/?igshid=OGRjNzg3M2Y%3D Also, I noticed Natasha Sheehan no longer has SFB in her social media bios. Which is too bad, for several years there I thought she was on the fast track to promotion.

WOW! I'm surprised by the programming (in a good way!), and I'm very much looking forward to next year!! Some observations: 1. I'm glad Rojo is keeping Balanchine in the rep, I was wondering if/how SFB would move from its Balanchine ties once Helgi was gone. And Midsummer is one of my favorites. Many opportunities to showcase rising soloists, and lots of charming children's roles. 2. Yes so glad about Madcap! And Josette, I agree that Tiit should reprise his role in it. Madcap was my favorite work of the season. 3. I've never heard of Aszure Barton but I'm intrigued! I looked up her past work and it looks very innovative. 4. Glad to see lots of female choreographers, generally! 5. I do hope Breiner's Salome gets programmed, and same with Colorforms. 6. As Josette mentioned, I'm a bit surprised there's only one major full-length classical work. I'm definitely used to seeing 2-3 big meaty classical works in the season. I can't say I'm too sad - I prefer seeing new works, but I've always gotten the impression the story ballets are the big money-makers. 7. Surprised that Khan's Giselle isn't programmed!

I really love this production of Cinderella. It's been a few years since SFB has done it, and I forgot about all the clever and humorous moments throughout. It's definitely a fresh take on Cinderella without really altering the original plotline. I'm so glad I got to see Isabella De Vivo's first full-length role. She was so etherial, and she's got such a contagious smile. I never know what goes on behind-the-scenes, but based on this performance alone, she looked like a full-fledged principal dancer, and I definitely think she's deserving of promotion. She eats up the stage so well too - there was a little moment where I think her foot got caught on the flooring while she was running, but she managed to keep moving through it without losing any momentum or musicality - it felt like such a "mature" principal dancer moment. And Joseph Walsh was great as he always is. My eye was frequently drawn to Jimison as one of the stepsisters. She stands out to me (in a good way). Based on what I've seen of her and how often she's been casted, I'm assuming she's in line for promotion very soon. Given the announcement of Dores Andre leaving (and perhaps overly speculative, but I wonder if YYT is nearing the end of her career), I wouldn't be surprised if Jimison and De Vivo are promoted next. Overall, a wonderful performance, I really recommend seeing it if you have the chance!

Woah, I believe Max grew up at the SF Ballet School, if I correctly recall. That seems like a big loss for some home grown talent. Dores Andre is great in Marston works, so on some level the move makes sense, but overall the rep between SFB and Zurich is pretty different.

For Giselle in particular, I think Helgi made some wise decisions that play to SFB's strong group of soloists. In most other productions I've seen of Giselle, there's been a peasant pas de deux in the first act, but in SFB's production, it's been increased to 5. It's a good opportunity to showcase a variation for one stronger soloist woman, and then a second variation for two more junior soloists/strong corps women. And then of course two men get their own variations. It doesn't advance the plot or anything, but it's a nice diversion from all the pantomime and setup in Act I. Also, for at least as long as I've been going to SFB (~10 years), it's felt to me a shorter company height-wise, especially among the soloists. And in general they're pretty strong when it comes to speed, fast footwork, petit allegro (maybe due to the fact that some of the dancers come from SAB, and SFB had a strong Balanchine rep under Helgi). The peasant pas de cinq has lots of that - the variations have lots of toe hops, little jumps, much more so than the other Giselle productions I've seen. It also helps that SFB has a strong school, so the kids are always show-stealers in Helgi's full-lengths, imo

I agree with you 100%, pherank. Helgi's Giselle staging is excellent, and I agree that he knows how to play to the dancers' strengths. Curious if this particular production will live on, it really is a great production of Giselle (though I wouldn't complain if Rojo brought Khan's version over, I've heard so many good things). Just got back from the show tonight, I think it was Wona Park and Wei Wang's debut? Wow, Wona has a buoyant jump, and I think her artistry has developed quite a bit over the past year or so. A very impressive debut. And Wei Wang brought such nuance to Albrecht. He's a fantastic dramatic actor - I definitely felt the character arc of Albrecht, from him being a selfish count knowing he was in the wrong in Act I, to becoming remorseful and repentant in the second act. I do feel that Helgi has a great eye for developing dancers through the ranks, and it definitely shows for Wei Wang and Wona Park. Very curious how it will continue under Rojo.

Wow! Lucky them. I was secretly hoping she'd stay on at SFB full time in some sort of resident choreographer role. That does make it seem more likely Luke Ingham will leave SFB, which is too bad!

Now that I've finally seen all the next@90 programs, I have to say I really agree with what you said, Terez. The Queen's Daughter was spectacular - sad, elegiac, but also thoughtful, nuanced, and transformative. I've never felt like I understood the story of Salome, but Breiner brought something totally new and complex to the table with her telling of it, and Britten's music really helps tell the story. It definitely was heavy and draining, but in a thought-provoking way. Breiner had such a way of bringing a fresh angle to the story, rather than the overdone Salome-as-a-seductress story. Both Wei Wang and Sasha de Sola had career-making performances, in my opinion. Wei Wang really has such a grounded way of moving, and Sasha de Sola had so much nuance in her dancing. I also really liked Bolero, I loved the work with the video projections too. A great way to end the evening. All in all, I really liked next@90, and for the most part I liked all the works. I really hope MADCAP and The Queen's Daughter have a life beyond the festival, hopefully in standard SFB rep and potentially beyond. Though there's quite a few that I could see in SFB's rep! And the dancing was fantastic.