Helene

Charles McCall will perform with his parents -- violist and cellist -- and his brother Henry Max, also a dancer, in a recital in St. Louis. The article also says he danced as a soloist with New Zealand Ballet after he left PNB. http://www.stltoday.com/entertainment/arts-and-theatre/culture-club/musical-mccall-family-will-play-and-dance-together/article_10d215b8-604a-5f16-97b8-07845fe31c9f.html

[Admin on] Speculative posts/diagnoses have been removed. Please feel free to re-read our rules and policies. [Admin off]

Miranda Weese has joined Boston Ballet as Children's Ballet Master, where she will partner with her former NYCB colleague and Director of the School, Margaret Tracey: https://www.broadwayworld.com/boston/article/Boston-Ballet-Announces-Miranda-Weese-as-New-Childrens-Ballet-Master-20170921

Casting is up for second weekend: https://www.pnb.org/season/17-18/jewels/ Here is the link to the downloadable spreadsheet: Jewels Casting Weeks 1-2 21_Sep_17.xlsx There aren't any "*" indications of debuts, but there are new casts in second weekend: Emeralds Verdy couple: Leah Merchant (who danced with Steven Loch last time Emeralds was performed) and Joshua Grant (Thurs/Fri) Emeralds Paul couple: Emma Love Suddarth and Miles Pertl (Thurs/Fri) Emeralds Pas de Trois: Elle Macy, Madison Taylor, and Dylan Wald (Thurs/Fri) Rubies Tall Girl: Cecilia Iliesiu (Fri) Diamonds Couple: Sarah Ricard Orza and William Lin-Yee (Fri)

Alexandrova's strength is one of the reasons she's among my favorite dancers I've ever seen live. The penchant for skinny has never intersected with my taste.

Casting for Week 2 should be coming shortly, but, in the meantime, Jonathan Porretta is out of Week 1 of Rubies; James Moore will dance both the matinee and evening performances, with Leta Biasucci and Angelica Generosa respectively. https://www.pnb.org/season/17-18/jewels/ Here's a link to the revised Week 1 spreadsheet: Jewels Casting Week 1 19_Sep_17.xlsx Here's a video with Jerome Kaplan with some footage of the costumes and images of his drawings. He also speaks about the differences between costume design and fashion, although "Twirl" spans both:

That's certainly true. Not all of Houston was ravaged, though, and using University facilities might be an answer for the ballet and local theater companies. The opera can't turn its rep around on a dime, where ballet rep is more adjustible, since the company is on contract and resident, while the opera performers are contracted for specific operas, and the orchestra space needed is sustantial. They can't go to a recording or piano/chamber arrangement. The opera's statement: http://www.houstongrandopera.org/emergency-update/ I wonder if the audiences would go to semi-staged or concert versions. That would give them a lot more options.

I think it would be a good idea for Houston companies to look at what San Francisco companies did during their 18+ months out of War Memorial Opera House. The opera especially used spaces creatively.

This is an article in the NYT, which Marina Harss tweeted: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/19/arts/music/hurricane-harvey-closes-houstons-opera-and-ballet-home-for-a-season.html It, too, says that the Wortham Theater Center is closed until at least May ("best case scenario"), but that

According to an article in today's Links, Houston Ballet will be out of its building in Wortham Theater Center until at least May as a result of Hurricane Harvey.

Invited dancers spend time in Vail: for the most part, they don't pop in and then jet out. One of the recurring themes of interviews is how refreshing it is to be there and how Woetzel grows them as dancers. A common narrative is that in the first season, they do things that are more comfortable for them, and as the years go by, he stretches them by having them collaborate with choreographers and fellow dancers in different styles, working with different partners, working in rep that they wouldn't necessarily get to do in their home companies, but with time and being mentored. Different situations and circumstances are different, as are different dancers, some of whom, like Kochetkova, thrive on it and either sleep easily on planes or function at the highest level on little sleep.

Videos are fine, as long as they are public-facing. It's fine if the platform makes you have an account/login to see them, but everyone who is logged in has to be able to see them.

[Admin beanie on] The board software wouldn't let me split off posts this morning, and I made a post listing the tweets of a critic invisible. (I need to pursue with tech support, but it's the weekend, and it won't be solved immediately.) Please no links to critics' impressions in the company forums. They are for members' impressions. [Admin beanie off]

If people want to post the spelling that the dancers give in other character sets, that's fine. There's no rule here about following any particular spelling convention. I've explained our policy enough, and discussing the discussion, including any demands of fellow posters, is off limits.

Lindsi Dec was interviewed about motherhood for "Dance Magazine": http://www.dancemagazine.com/lindsi-dec-2484912321.html

Please let us know what you think of Kovalyova's "Swan Lake." I think it's been over a decade since a major company toured to Seattle. We had the Bolshoi come once in the '00's, and I was able to see the Bolshoi and Mariinsky in Berkeley a few times, and then the Mariinsky when they performed for three weeks at City Center on my way to Europe, but there are so many dancers that people have loved since, and the only way I can "see" them is on tiny YouTube videos, but, as important, what people describe here.

Also in the evening you get Shklyarov's Spectre.

Here is a photo from mnacenani:

The moving process captured in these photos:

"Mayerling" has moved to The Hobby Center for four performances from 22-24 September. In preparation, Houston Ballet has published an org chart, which will be a great help in keeping the characters straight:

More details on how the costumes were designed and made -- to Larae Hascall's shop -- and a lovely photo of the "Emeralds" bodice from an article by Moira Macdonald in "Seattle PI Times": http://www.seattletimes.com/entertainment/dance/pacific-northwest-ballets-jewels-gets-sparkling-new-costumes/