FayBallet

I think he used two arms in Act I and it didn't seem very steady. Act III lifts were much more solid. His being pulled in to perform yesterday has me all the more curious about him not performing on Wednesday as originally scheduled. I agree that he seemed to be holding back and also assumed it was about staying well for Monday. Even so, it was a great night.

It was still Stearns when I last checked at noon, so thank you for the flag, abatt!

I didn't attend Monday's gala, but these galas often feel all over the place dancing wise whether they're fitting as many dancers into one piece as possible or fitting as many pieces as possible into one night. As boring as the speeches may be, that's kind of what you sign up for when you go to a gala performance, so I think complaining about them in a review is a bit much. I do think quality dancing will do more for fundraising than any speech, but if all you want is quality dancing, you can go on other nights. I really enjoyed the performance. I thought that the jumps didn't look especially high, but I wasn't sure if it was the dancing or the angle from the Family Circle. Thanks to everyone's commentary, I'm thinking it might have been a little bit of both. On a non-Don Q note, I wish ABT had a plain old pdf calendar available. The calendar on their site can be so slow to load.

I share a few of these highlights. My favorite highlight of the season was Maria Kowroski and Tyler Angle having the time of their lives in the Slaughter finale of Kowroski's farewell performance. What a way to leave!

And that also wasn't the line. The sentence was actually, "With her model good looks and feisty personality, Waterbury was a perfect #metoo change agent." Taking the word "change" from the sentence makes it take on a completely different meaning.

I think I saw Justin Peck there as well.

Was it something in the air? On Tuesday night someone in the second ring was talking through much of the beginning of the first act and then continued to talk during the second act until he was thankfully scolded by another audience member ("What if everybody decided to talk?"). It's annoying that people don't recognize the music as an important part of the experience. Especially when the music is this good.

I'm not familiar with Piano Pieces at all. The beginning seemed especially sloppy to me, but I couldn't tell if it was the dancers, the choreography (folksy ease?), or both. Did anyone else get that impression? The tenderness of Gerrity and Furlan's dancing really stood out to me last night.

Hyltin was Eurydice tonight.

Now I'm kind of wondering whether they should isolate Amar Ramasar at some point, so that he can actually perform on the 29th!

Week Four casting changes are up. For the 5/10 and 5/11 Apollos, Taylor Stanley is replacing Danchig-Waring and Peck replaces Hyltin. Hyltin is back for The Cage on 5/12. Aside from Danchig-Waring and Stanley, are there any other dancers who have done Apollo?

Week Five casting is up along with Week 3 changes, but it doesn't look like there's an update on Week Four changes yet.

Right. I have heard that some people do choose to take classes elsewhere and/or do private lessons, but I haven't heard about people practicing daily on their own. Is that common? Was it common "during the pandemic?" And is that what Abi was doing? I also believe I've read that management sometimes frowns upon regularly missing company class. More context would be helpful in my evaluation of why City Ballet chose to highlight Abi's lack of attendance and how relevant the missed classes were.

The article would have been improved by insight into how company class works at NYCB. There was no mention of what the practices and expectations are. Did the writers leave it out assuming people already know? Even having an understanding of the usual practices, I'm not aware of how company class worked "during the pandemic," which I took to mean some time between March 2020 and September 2021. Was practicing at home so unusual during this time? Also, there were no details on the home and gym training Abi did. Was it a private class, self led?

I love Bernard Herrmann's music, so I'm excited to see something choreographed to it.

The Ribbon is about a 15 minute walk away. I think the menu can get on the pricier side, but you can get a sandwich/burger and fries for under $30.

Is there any way to tell which Valse Fantaisie is scheduled?

In case you missed it: Why Misty Copeland should be American Ballet Theatre’s new director - The Washington Post

I'm glad it was something so benign. I was worried something was wrong!

NYCB's performance of Slaughter on Tenth Avenue last night was dedicated to Susan Hendl.

From the NYT: It sounds like those adjustments have worked out!

Completely agree. For me, the tone wasn't as commanding as it could've been and the smiling didn't help that. Still thought she did a great job though. I adore the music for La Valse. I wish there was time between the first and second valses nobles et sentimentales for audience applause. The first waltz was played so well and I wanted the orchestra to take in some applause just for them before any dancing started, but the second waltz started too soon.

Anyone feeling a little relief about the season starting later? I'm actually a bit nervous about returning to the theater, but I'm hoping I'll be over it by February. And there's the added bonus of getting a chance to see Sonatine. Has anyone here seen it?

Thank you for your point of view. They aren't allowing subscriptions to the Balcony Boxes, but it was a good idea!

I have opera glasses that I use sparingly, usually just to see who's dancing if I can't tell with the naked eye. They're the cheapest ones that the Met sells, so they aren't at all fancy, but they work for how I use them. I wasn't sure if the magnification would be enough from the Family Circle, so I thought I might need to invest in binoculars. I'm glad to hear you enjoyed your Family Circle subscription with opera glasses! Ugh, I wish I had a neck chain. I'm always worried mine will fall off my lap and embarrass me.