brokenwing

http://www.startribune.com/entertainment/stageandarts/300294711.html Repertoire for Minneapolis announced as 'Symphony in 3 Movements', 'Serenade' and the new Peck, 'Heatscape'. Looking forward to hearing what they will bring to NYC and Chicago!

Dates (April 29-30, 2016) and a venue for the Chicago visit has been announced. Still no word on repertory, though. http://entertainment.suntimes.com/dance/miami-city-ballet-slated-harris-theater-visit/

I'm a little curious about the upset over the rep. All three of those ballets premiered under Villella. The last time the Taylor was programmed, it appeared next to one of Edward's ballroom ballets, so swap that out for the Tharp ballroom piece and you have a near identical program. Not a single Morphoses choreographer, other than Wheeldon himself, has been programmed by Lopez. Are we romanticizing the Edward days a bit or is a change in the style/dancing making us grumpy about things that might not otherwise bother us? Jordan's writing is more hit or miss for me, and I can't help but feel she's looking for something she's supposed to be seeing. She sometimes finishes what appears to be a highly flattering paragraph on a very negative note, so it can be confusing what her actual opinion is.

I think we would do well to keep in mind that there have been years in the past where only three Balanchine works were programmed, and all of the new works being added are things that would easily fit into any other Villella-led year. Saying otherwise, in the Miami Herald, stirs the pot and keeps the (presumably non-dance attending) reader interested in a tabloid-y sort of way. I take it you haven't seen the post-Wheeldon Morphoses, for you would know it is almost entirely different from what MCB is presenting now, MUCH more contemporary, and thus, presumably, even less to your taste. ;) While the repertoire has inarguably seen little to no change, style and presentation are another matter all together and subject to many differences of opinion.

West Side Story Suite is performed by many major companies around the world (PNB, SFB, NYCB, Royal Danish, National Ballet of Canada) because it is very dance heavy, utilizes classical vocabulary (if you look for it) and is choreographed by one of the great ballet/dance geniuses of all time. I don't think we should expect to see a non-dancing full-evening musical theater evening by a ballet company any time soon.

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The Cranko is the version they performed last, CubanMiamiBoy. I too, would prefer to see some Petipa. For full lengths, I'd really like to see MCB have a crack at one of the two Tchaikovsky greats, Swan Lake and/or Sleeping Beauty.

MCB has posted a Facebook status linking us to their website where the new season is revealed. You can see it here: http://www.miamicityballet.org/renew PROGRAM I: Romeo & Juliet (Cranko) PROGRAM II: Nine Sinatra Songs (Tharp)/Mercuric Tidings (Taylor)/Symphony in 3 Movements (Balanchine) PROGRAM III: Carmen (Alston)/Sweet Fields (Tharp)/Allegro Brillante PROGRAM IV: Raymonda Variations (Balanchine)/The Concert (Robbins)/Justin Peck World Premiere I must say I'm surprised how closely she's staying to the Villella mold of programming. It's a lot of Tharp/Taylor. 'Allegro' closing is a head-scratcher. But, always nice to see 'The Concert', new to the rep and the new work by Peck will be exciting. What does everyone else think?

Thanks for posting the links, Bart! It's always nice to see the company getting good press. I hope you write about your experience watching program 2. I missed your thoughts on the company's first program and I do always love to hear what you have to say since I can't attend the performances myself.

All the talk of doing away with Karinska's flower costumes is practically sacrilegious! I love the muted shades of lilac and rose and the way the tulle cascades in the moments that echo the Rockettes. I also can't say I know of any other version of Balanchine's Nut (PA, MCB, CPYB, OBT) where I found the costumes to be anything other than unflower-like or even flat out hideous. They also rob the demis of any distinction, another mistake. Just my opinion, of course. To each his own.

Would Rieti's nod to Bellini be one?

I looked through the casting and noticed both Delgado sisters were missing all together . Let's hope that whatever is ailing them or causing their absence ends quickly!

Casting is up on the website, here: http://miamicityballet.org/uploads/news/NewsPDF558.pdf Looks like each ballet gets two casts, with lots of opportunities among corps dancers. Looking forward to hearing everyone's thoughts!

I have to say I agree with Pherank on this one. I respectfully disagree with your opinions on both Sarah Van Patten and Patricia Delgado, as I've seen both give near-definitive performances of several coveted roles, particularly in the Balanchine rep. I may prefer them to Chung, but that opinion is perhaps not even relevant to this conversation. I think it would be nice if we simply presented the dancers we loved most in America. By putting dancers down to elevate those we like, it puts us on the level many complain Macaulay is stooping to, especially when it's pitting sister against sister. I'm not sure that his exclusion of several wonderful ballerinas has anything to do with him showing preference to specific companies. I, too, love Margaret Severin-Hansen, but perhaps he simply hasn't seen Carolina Ballet perform. Macauley is certainly a lightning-rod for controversy, but ultimately, and in spite of some comments in his work that irk me, he writes intelligently and with passion, and that is what matters to me.

According to the latest brochure, featuring big, glossy photos of various dancers in studio shots of the ballets premiering, there have been several promotions. Kleber Rebello and Renan Cerdeiro are newly minted principals (both having risen VERY quickly), while Christina Spigner and Sarah McCahill join the corps. Damian Zamorano is also new to the corps and Leanna Rinaldi is an apprentice. Congrats to all!

And the mystery is solved! Justin is using two MCB dancers in a collaboration with New World Symphony. Is this the first time the two organizations have collaborated? http://miamicityballet.org/uploads/news/NewsPDF476.pdf

Casting is up for Broward: http://www.miamicityballet.org/uploads/news/NewsPDF462.pdf Two La Valse casts (Albertson/Guerra, Manning/Trividic), three Tchai Pas casts (Catoya/Penteado, Albertson/Reyes, J. Delgado/Rebello) and four Steadfast casts (Lauren/Rebello, S. Esty/Breeden, Lubin/Cerdeiro, Catoya/Penteado). Nice to see Lourdes getting lots of casts out there.

There is an article in the Miami Herald with Lourdes discussing her programming decisions for next season here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/02/23/3247628/mcbs-lourdes-lopez-takes-reins.html The full season is listed as follows on MCB's website in a press release for subscriptions to next season going on sale: Program I: Ballo Della Regina Polyphonia (premiere) Serenade Program II: Concerto Barocco Jardi Tancat (premiere) Symphonic Dances Program III: Episodes (premiere) Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux West Side Story Suite (premiere) Program IV: Don Quixote Nice to have lots of premieres and some real Balanchine classics back. Don Q, not so much...

I thought I'd stick this article about upcoming plans here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/02/14/3234790/lopez-reveals-plans-for-miami.html So it seems we have four company premieres (one each from Balanchine, Robbins, Duato and Wheeldon) and a repeat of 'Symphonic Dances'. Does the company normally do encores like that?

Around the time of the centennial, Peter Martins told a story about Balanchine involving the scherzo, in which he said it was being cut due to either his or Suzanne's injuries at the time. One night before 'Diamonds', Balanchine was wanting to bond with Peter and have some vodka before the show. Peter protested saying he had 'Diamonds' to dance, to which Balanchine responded 'We'll cut the scherzo!'. I thought it was a charming story.

Program II is featuring a new Scarlett premiere, Balanchine's 'Divertimento No. 15' and 'Duo Concertant' as well as 'Don Quixote' pas de deux. Who is planning on attending? Casting is up on the website: http://miamicityballet.org/uploads/news/NewsPDF417.pdf

Arsht casting is up. Lots of opportunities for corps, including Zoe Zien (whom many of you enjoy) in Dewdrop on Saturday at 2. http://miamicityballet.org/uploads/news/NewsPDF405.pdf

It's a little late, but the company has posted casting for Broward. Here is the link: http://miamicityballet.org/uploads/news/NewsPDF405.pdf

I bet the NYCB corps ladies aren't too happy about that, but the audience sure is!

Looks like MCB got the $5 mil grant from the Knights Arts Foundation that many were skeptical about post-Villella. This is wonderful news, and it appears that Lourdes must be on the right track. http://www.knightarts.org/community/miami/announcing-new-arts-funding-projects-to-enrich-south-florida