nysusan

I agree, Nina was much better last night than she was last week. The technical glitches were gone and her adagio was much more focused, more musical and more tragic. Corella was his usual wonderful, exuberant self with effortless multiple turns and perfect partnering.

I loved Part and Hallberg at the Sat matinee. I thought they looked absolutely gorgeous together and I guess I was far enough back that it looked like Hallberg was looking at her and not through her - so I thought they had great chemistry together. I don't think you can find another pair of dancers with such stunningly beautiful & complimentary line, I loved them together in Apollo a few seasons ago and I'd definitely like to see more of them together.

Her Odette was pure poetry – the best I've seen at ABT in the past 5 years. She has an arabesque that just goes on into infinity, absolutely beautiful plastique in motion or stillness and an incredible depth of emotion to her interpretation. I do love it when a ballerina does major undulating swan arms as they turn back into a swan during their lakeside exit but that's a small flaw and I prefer her understated arm style in general.

I also loved her Odile, I thought the characterization was fabulous and that she really nailed the black swan pdd. I know it wasn't perfect but it seldom is and I just don't agree with the following statement:

Yesterday's Odile was wonderful on persona, but elementary on technique. Not principal level - not yesterday.

I think that's a very harsh assessment. It's true I've seen better fouettes but usually that's coupled with major overreaching resulting in botched endings, falling off point etc (I'm referring to performances I've seen by Murphy and to Nina's Swan Lake last week). I don't consider that preferable to 32 clean ones. Just earlier this season both Reyes & Kent showed really poor form in their fouettes (not in Swan Lake, but still - Reyes fell off point several times during the fouettes in her variation during the gala and Kent pretty much took a tour of the stage during hers in Corsaire). Part's were slow but they were right in time with the music, almost no traveling, perfect in form – the working leg was high the entire time & she picked up the speed at the end & finished with a multiple – in perfect position. I don't see a problem with that and I didn't see a lack of technique in her pique turns, her balances etc. She will never be a monster allegro ballerina but I wouldn't say that the level of allegro technique she showed was not at a principal level.

Regarding whether or not she will stay at ABT – the only official report I've seen is the interview that specifically states that she gave ABT notice that she was leaving at the end of the season. There is a post from Juliet in the casting thread about a conversation she had with ABT's PR person who says that she's not leaving. That would be great news but I won't believe it till there has been an official announcement. Frankly as much as I would miss her I don't think she should stay unless the circumstances change. It's ridiculous for her to be dancing demi-soloist roles like a big swan at this stage of her career – shameful really. I'd miss her terribly if she left but unless they're promoting her I think that moving to another company would be a better career move.

NYSusan found Nina's arms "over the top", I just found them ultra-Russian and typical of Nina Ballerina's romantic style. I judged her still a lovely Odette but the Odile is on borrowed time.

I wouldn't say her arms were over the top - they were Bolshoi.

Yes, I did think her arm movements were excessive, but that's just my taste. Although Odette is imprisoned in a swan's body by day I always think of her as as a woman in her scenes with Siegfreid. The struggle to recover her human nature is also an essential element and it's the humanity that matters to me so I dislike an overly swanny or animalistic portrayal. I also think that the constant use of swan arms diminishes their effect and lovely as Nina's arms are I wish she'd tone them down - they'd have more impact for me if used a bit more judiciously. And while her arms are gorgeous I didn’t really feel that their movement was connected to her back in that deep Russian way. But that's my opinion. It’s been about 30 years since my last Bolshoi Swan Lake - I barely recall it but maybe I just don’t like the Bolshoi approach. It’s certainly true that the Kirov Odette/Odile is my favorite, although Fonteyn was my first great O/O the next one was Makarova and current favorites are Pavlenko, Part & Lopatkina.

Anyway, although I didn’t consider the Thurs night performance as one for the ages I do think that Nina, Marcelo & co were very, very good. The act 3 lapses were troubling, but that’s what happens with age & lack of rehearsal time. On the other hand, there were things about Nina’s Odette that were wonderful - her mime in the first lakeside scene brought tears to my eyes and she had many other striking moments but the sum of the parts just didn’t add up to a great SL for me. I will admit that I was distracted by the absence of V Part after the pdd, but I recall not being enthralled by the pdd before I noticed her missing.

I’m going to see Nina with Angel on Monday so this is to be continued...

Two years in a row without a VP Swan Lake is cruel & unusual punishment…

This is her last season at ABT, so unfortunately, we have to get used to many years without VP Swan Lakes

Yes, but she's not retiring - just leaving ABT. I'm sure she will be dancing somewhere - and whether near or far I still hope to be able to see her in SL and much else. It will undoubtedly take extra effort and planning and require a major dip into my ABT budget - but I can't bear the thought of never seeing her dance again. That's not possible.

Gad, I wish they'd do Blair's or Ashton's ACT IV.

along with Blair's or Ashton's Act II

But you're right, it's McKenzies Act IV that's most egregious

The policy is that of the individual companies, not the Metropolitan Opera House. That's why ABT has one set of policies, and the Metropolitan Opera has a different set.

It's also why subscribers must return their tickets to the company and not to the box office. The Metropolitan Opera House (that is, the administration; I'm not referring to the building) itself has no policy. If a company or presenter chooses to rent the building and let it sit empty, that's the company's or presenter's decision.

Adam, I don't know about that. In fact I ALWAYS exchange my tickets at the box office.

This recent incident has exposed the bizarre nature of the ABT refund exchange policy...Why PUNISH those who purchase individual tickets with no privileges so subscribers have more?

I believe this is the policy of the Metropolitan Opera House, and not specifically that of ABT, but seeing as ABT is performing at the Met, they must follow the Met policy, which is the same: No Refunds/No exchanges. I'm not saying that this is the right policy, but the policy is posted every where--on the website, under the signature line when you pay by credit card, on the ticket envelopes, etc.

Also, while their stated policy is no refunds/no exchanges I've never been refused an exchange at the box office as long as it's at least 24 hours before the performance. I realize that ABT won't tell you that over the phone, that it may be inconvenient for some people to get to the box office and impossible for others – but it is an option and I don't think it's reserved solely for season ticket holders.

Another good option (unless you live way out of town and are planning a trip to NY to see ABT in a specific time frame) is to become a season ticket holder. I always buy a subscription and exchange the early season tickets that I'm sure I don't want during exchange week. I hold on to the ones I'm not sure about until the season is under way.

This allows me to budget my ABT ticket money in advance, exchange the ones I know I don’t want for the ones I'm sure I do want during exchange week (which is always before single ticket sales are processed) and hold on to the ones I'm not sure about until closer to the actual date when the casting and injury picture is a bit more clear

Susan

PS – that doesn't mean that I don't get upset at injuries or casting changes. Last night when I thought Part was injured I was ready to jump into the lake myself – I'm very grateful to learn that her absence wasn't due to injury and that she's likely for tomorrow's matinee. Two years in a row without a VP Swan Lake is cruel & unusual punishment…

Michele Wiles as Odette/Odile was amazing from the hips down with rock steady turns, including a four revolution pique and triple fouettes, but her upper body did not do much to encourage the fantasy. The whole issue is the lack of definition in her arms and shoulders and the lack of lift and strength in the upper arms and elbows.

Thanks for the report Haglund's. That's exactly what I remember from the first time I saw Wiles a couple of years ago, and why I haven't gone to see her since. Strong technique and beautiful line are absolute prerequisites for the role but as far as I'm concerned Odette/Odile is as much about the upper body as the lower body. Seeing half of a great performance doesn't interest me.

I went to the 2 Wednesday performances. I took time off from work for the Wed matinee specifically for Misty Copeland's debut as Gulnare and she did not disappoint. I admit my prejudice here, but to my eye she really nailed it. Her dancing had precision, amplitude, beautiful flow as well as a lot of punch. She also really presented Gulnare's plucky character well. My only quibble is that she felt the need to throw in a way past 180 degree supported jete a la Somova during the partnered sequence. I may not be describing this move correctly, it's not a jete leap, her partner lifted her in a jete position and instead of having both legs extended outward forming a straight (180 degree) line both feet kept heading upward resulting in a "v" shape. While it didn't look as contorted as it does on Ms S, it was really unnecessarily gymnastic, especially considering the perfect classical placement she displayed in everything else.

Hallberg's Conrad was marvelous – although he was the sunniest, most princely pirate I've ever seen and while Kent is not a favorite of mine she gave us a really lovely Medora. She is a beautiful, lyrical dancer who projects well and imbued her character with great warmth & sweetness. It was wonderful to see Stiefel back in action again, he may be a step slower than before but he's still a very special dancer who paid as much attention to his slave's characterization as to his bravura tricks. I thought the whole cast was very strong but although Maria Bystrova had some beautiful moments I thought that she and the other Odalesque girls Melanie Hamrick & Melissa Thomas were the weakest link. The tempos for all 3 variations seemed slow to me and I guess that having seen the Kirov's Jardin Animee so recently I really missed their epaulment & musical phrasing, in fact these barely looked like the same variations. I thought the Wed night trio of Messmer, Pavam and Boone were much better overall and Renata Pavam in particular did a great job with the multiple pirouettes in her solo.

Corsaire is far from my favorite ballet and I bought tickets to the Wed night performance specifically to see Gomes, Carreno, Corella & Ilyin. You can imagine my disappointment at the casting change. Considering that Cory Stearns has only been in the corps for 2 years and has never danced a major soloist role before I think he did a commendable job as Conrad but he was in no way, shape or form at the level of Hallberg, Gomes or any other male dancer I've seen in this role at ABT. This is not meant as a criticism of him - he was fine and if you're going to throw a green kid into a big leading role in a full length ballet you can't expect a fully realized performance. I'm glad he's getting a chance and hope he continues to develop but ABT's calling card is their male star power and that's what I expected to see. I would have preferred to see Gomes or Corella or Carreno as Conrad and let Stearns cut his teeth on actual soloist roles.

I guess it probably helped & hurt in equal measure to have him paired with Dvorovenko. As an experienced ballerina she was probably able to guide him somewhat. On the other hand she really has a take no prisoners stage personality and from the moment she lifted her veil for a peek at Conrad it looked to me like she was running the show. Highlights of the performance for me were Corella, Carreno and Ilyin, all of whom were wonderful.

I thought Sarafanov was good, too. But some of the people who are more knowledgable than I am seemed to feel that his partnering skills were weak, and that the only thing he really excels at is jumping and turning.

I know that this is off topic for this thread but just let me say that Sarafanov has been very weak in the partnering department in recent years which is probably due to a combination of factors such as

His slight physique

His youth

Being pushed too far too fast

I have personally witnessed him dropping Somova from a shoulder lift at a Kennedy Center Gala about 3 years ago, putting Natalia Solugob down in positions she never could have anticipated (or appreciated) circa 4 years ago and entirely omitting several overhead lifts with Daria Pavlenko in Swan Lake a year or 2 ago. However he must have been working hard on his partnering as it was just fine during the City Center season. It's good to see such a talented dancer work to make progress like this. There are some people who will never accept Sarafanov in the classics because they don't think he looks "princely" but I'm not one of them. However no matter how talented a soloist you have to be able to partner a ballerina to be an over all classical dancer so I'm really pleased to see this improvement in his partnering skills.

Back to ABT - I really enjoyed the Gala, it was great to get a first look at Joseph Phillips and I was especially enchanted by Nina & Angel in Giselle. She looks to be 100% back to form.

...

As for the performance, I have to ask: was my count off, or did Angel only do 5 tours, and with prep? I'm kind of new to this, but it was my understanding that the 8 tours are no more optional than the high Cs in "La Fille du Regiment". It doesn't matter how well you do what you do, you're expected to do the tours.

Last month, people were saying "Sarafanov isn't all that" and "the Kirov men aren't in the same class as the ABT men". But Sarafanov did 8 (I counted 9 at one performance). I was sure that whoever the ABT sent out would match it.

Hi Adam!

I'm not really sure that the number of tours (or pirouettes or anything else) is set in stone with these classical variations – except for something like the black swan fouettes. I believe (but am not certain) that many of these "variations" were changed on a regular basis to suit the specific talents of a particular ballerina or danseur. At any rate, I thought the way that Corella performed them was outstanding with great height, speed, form & panache. But having been fortunate enough to see many (if not most) of the Kirov's CC performances and several years worth of recent ABT seasons let me just say that IMO Sarafanov definitely IS ALL THAT! He has better nights/roles/ partners and weaker ones and strengths and weaknesses like any other dancer but I would say that he's certainly one of the top male virtuosos in the world today. It's the OTHER Kirov men (with the possible exception of Skylarov) who don't compare to ABT's men in terms of their virtuosity…

By the way, they routinely do a cursory examination of bags & purses at the MOH

Congratulations to Daniil, I can't wait to see him on a regular basis!

This practice of bringing in stars and/or dancers with star potential has been going on at ABT since at least the early 70's and probably long before that (did Igor Youskevitch or Alicia Alonso work their way up through the corps at ABT? How about Lupe Serrano? Let's not forget that our home grown ballerina Cynthia Gregory was imported from the SF ballet where she was already a soloist. What effect did that have on the morale of the corps?). I'm sure it's discouraging from a dancer's point of view but from a management point of view – when you see a dancer with enormous talent you have to grab them, that's what the audience wants. Especially the NY audience.

This conversation has been going on at BalletTalk for years – just pull up any old ABT thread. We all have our own favorites & can never understand why they aren't given more opportunities. There are many, many talented dancers in the corps and soloist levels at ABT, but you know what? As someone who has sat in the audience for ABT 20-30 performances a year for the past 5 years I can tell you that IMO not one of the current corps men has the raw talent of Daniil Simkin. They have OTHER talents, and hopefully they will continue to develop but McKenzie would have been crazy to let Simkin get away - whether or not he ultimately works out at ABT and regardless of the effect it has on the morale of the corps. Ditto Joseph Philips & Mikhail Ilyin.

Ballet is not a democracy, and not for the faint hearted. Each dancer develops at their own pace but hard work + dedication simply do not guarantee success. Any dancer who doesn't feel they are getting enough opportunities with ABT (or any other company) needs to find another job. It's worked well recently for Carlos Molino, Erica Cornejo and Melissa Barak, and despite the fact that I will miss one of my favorite dancers terribly I truly think Veronika Part's decision to leave is the right one.

I also agree with Faux Pas that McKenzie does a great job developing male talent but is severely deficient in developing ballerinas. In fact I am even more down on ABT's female principal dancers than he is, but that's for another day…

I'm going to jump on the bandwagon with Natalia & Petite Arabesque – Shklyarov was the highlight of the afternoon for me, what a wonderful dancer. In addition to the virtuosity and soft cushy landings, he was so poetic! About halfway through Ballet Imperial I was wishing he'd been cast in last week's Chopiniana.

I saw Novikova in Rubies on Friday night & at the Sat matinee. Found her dancing very strong but she was too sweet for me, no sexiness or sass and no chemistry with either Fadeev or Korsakov. And of course no one on stage had the edge & syncopation, the Balanchinian articulation of the pelvis that gives Rubies its iconic look & feel. During the first intermission I joked that if she subbed in again I was going to scream – and then of course she did. Except instead of screaming I was delighted. She & Sarafanov have such great chemistry, they really played off each other and found the balance of flirtatiousness and competitiveness that this needs. And yes, drb – all of a sudden she was sweet & sexy, all at the same time. Bravo Olesia. And, by the way, Sarafanov was amazing. He is the only one of the 3 Rubies leading men I've seen so far who really gets it.

I've seen better performances of Ballet Imperial – after the incredible performance from Tereshkina & Kolb on the first night of the program these last 2 have been let downs, but it's still a privilege to see Lopatkina & Zelensky. As drb & Waelsung described, they are a wonder to behold – goosebump inducing even when they're not at their best.

I loved Osmolkina's waltz Girl and Konduarova's brilliant dark angel this afternoon, but the more I see the Kirov's Serenade the less I'm liking it. Too many little details out of place for me. Yet it has the flow and musical impulse it needs and this is one ballet I enjoy even when it isn't performed exactly the way I think it should be. Kondaurova's waltz girl in the evening perfomance was monumental - but to me this is an ensemble work & she was overpowing - the other 2 female soloists faded completely into the background. I'd LOVE to see her cast with Bouder/Mearns or Kowroski - can we start an email campaign? NYCB does bring in guest artists from time to time...anyway, one can dream!

Ah, Pavlenko - my favorite. I'm so happy to hear the good news about her personal life, but I do hope she hurries back to the stage. Does anyone know if the Alexander Segeev we've been seeing on this tour is her husband? (feel free to delete this question if considered gossip)

I'll be there, too. Are we talking about the "Will Call" window on the West side of the lobby, or the "Current Sale" window on the East side of the Lobby? I think if we get five more to show up, they do a private performance of the piece of our choice, don't they?

BTW, I've never seen the Mariinsky before, but does anybody know many people who say ANYTHING is better now than it was before? :-)

How about In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated? Seriously, the lobby's small enough - we'll find each other

PS - anything that came before is always better than what we're seeing right now because we only remember the triumphs and the longer ago it was, the less we recall any niggling little flaws. But in the case of the Kirov I know what Catherine's talking about. Don't get me wrong, I love Vishneva but there is a difference not only in technique but most notably in the way she lets the dramatic impulse lead the dance, rather than integrating it into the choreography. I think Catherine hit it on the head as a difference in the mode of expression, as well as the obvious difference of an emphasis on athletisicm & showmanship vs subtlety, clarity and artistry. While Lopatkina may not be an old style dancer in terms of her extensions, a look at the difference between the way she and Vishneva interpret the same roles is illuminating.

BTW, if anyone's attending the Friday Balanchine, I'd love to say hi and put some faces to screennames. Is there a spot in the lobby where people usually gather? I'm flying home Saturday morning, so that will be my only chance to say hi.

--Andre

Hi Andre, and welcome to NY! I'll be there tonight and would love to say hello. I think that pretty much all of the ballet goers I know are planning to be there tonight ,too. There isn't any one central meeting place at City Center, but sometimes some of us meet in the outer lobby (by the ticket windows). Why don't we all meet there during the first intermission? It will be nice to see you again.

Susan

PS - I think the shade of Kondaurova's hair varies depending on how she has it styled. She's always easy for me to pick out not only because of the way she dances but also because she's always the tallest woman on the stage (except in the presence of Lopatkina, and who could possibly confuse them!).

Novikova has very dark hair, like Tereshkina but she's smaller and has a very "sweet" face, Tereshkina generally has a more authoritative look & I actually thought she looked quite fierce in In the Middle.

I agree that it is exasperating that Obraztsova had not been included in recent U.S. tours, but at least I was able to see her as Juliet when the Kirov brought it to the Kennedy Center last year. Do you think there's any possibility that her recent exclusion is due to scheduling conflicts? I remember reading that she had been guesting a lot with the Rome ballet. In any case, the fall tour is still a long way off, I hope we have the benefit of some magical casting changes between now and then. Although I'm already thinking about traveling to see Osmolkina & Lopatkina's Giselles, I would LOVE to see Obtaztsova's too.

I’m just back from the Forsythe program, too. I saw this program a year or 2 ago in DC and my feelings about it haven’t changed. I didn’t really care for the first 2 pieces but I liked the last two - same as last time. Purely as choreography I find much of this material gets monotonous after awhile, I think I would prefer to see any one of these works on a mixed choreographic bill rather than an all Forsythe evening. I think I preferred Vertiginous Thrill & In the Middle because they were more dynamic than the first 2, and because they both got incredible performances- by Sarafanov & Fadeev in Vertiginous and from Tereshkina and yes - the star of the night, Big Red Kondaurova in In the Middle. I really feel badly singling these performers out because all the dancers were great tonight, and they looked so different from their normal classical selves but I can’t help it....

I have always loved Vertiginous and Androsova, Novikova (subbing for Gonchar) and Osmolkina were all beautiful whirlwinds but Sarafanov & Fadeev were the highlight. Such incredible virtuosity from both of them. Fast forward to In the Middle where Tereshkina & Kondaurova were like ravenous lionesses. Kondaurova especially is just incredible here, stretching her long limbs every possible way with such sculptural beauty. She is astounding in this, can’t wait to see her in the Balanchine. I also thought Sergeev was really impressive in In the Middle. In Steptext we saw what a wonderful partner he can be but he really came into his own in In the Middle with a beautiful, lyrical quality that was surprising to see in Forsythe.

BTW- tonight’s playbill contains updated & full casting for the rest of the season. In addition to the Zelensky Alert -

The only changes to the Forsythe program are: Tereshkina replaces Golb in all performances of In the Middle

On Wednesday Alexey Nedviga replaces Pimonov in Appx Sonata

On Thursday Kolb replaces Pimonov in Steptext, Selina replaces Petushkova and Pimonov replaces Nedviga in Appx Sonata

Balanchine program casting:

Fri

Serenade

Walse-Somova & Korsuntsev

Russian: Osmolkina

Dark Angel: Kondaurova (hooray!)

Elegia: Sergeev

Rubies - Vishneva, Fadeev, Kondaurova, Pimonov,Nedviga,Khrebtov, Shcherbakov

Ballet Imperial: Tereshkina, Kolb,Osmolkina,Shklyarov, Zyuzin,Selina, Ivanova

Sat Mat

Serenade

Walse-Osmolkina & Ivanchenko

Russian: Gonchar

Dark Angel: Kondaurova

Elegia: Sergeev

Rubies - Tereshkina, Korsakov, Gonchar, Pimonov,Nedviga,Khrebtov, Shcherbakov

Ballet Imperial: Somova, Shklyarov,Novikova, Sergeev, Zyuzin,Selina, Ivanova

Sat eve

Serenade

Walse-Kondaurova & Korsuntsev

Russian: Osmolkina

Dark Angel: Vasnetsova

Elegia: Sergeev

Rubies - Somova, Sarafanov, Gonchar, Pimonov,Nedviga,Khrebtov, Shcherbakov

Ballet Imperial: Lopatkina, Zelensky, Novikova, Sergeev, Zyuzin,Selina, Ivanova

Sun Mat

Serenade

Walse-Tereshkina, Ivanchenko

Russian: Gonchar

Dark Angel: Kondaurova

Elegia: Sergeev

Rubies - Novikova, Shklyarov, Kondaurova, Pimonov,Nedviga,Khrebtov, Shcherbakov

Ballet Imperial: Vishneva, Fadeev, Osmolkina, Shklyarov, Zyuzin,Selina, Ivanova

I have to ask this, because I'm relatively new. It's a bit off-topic, but I'm posting it here since everybody has seen the Mariinsky. (Anyway, the Mariinsky's not doing a performance until tomorrow, so we have a few moments.)

This is the first time I've seen the Mariinsky. I know the ABT extremely well. I'd like to hear how the people who've been posting comments on the Maryiinsky dancers would compare them to those of ABT. I've had friends make comments placing the ABT and its dancers all over the range of quality - comments on the company range from "not much better than what you'd see in a regional company" to "best in the world". And, while I won't name names, comments on individual dancers were similar - "S/he'd be a star anywhere" to "A principal? S/he couldn't be in the Corps at the Paris/Bolshoi/Royal/Mariinsky."

This is only my own opinion, so take it at that - but I don't think ABT's women can hold a candle to the Kirov's (with the exception of their guest dancers) and with the exception of Sarafanov I don't think the Kirov's men are in the same league as ABT's best male dancers.

It will be interesting to hear your opinion after you've seen ABT do Etudes this summer!

You know, I think Alina Somova has been the Dr. Jekyll/ Ms.Hyde of this engagement - which is a vast improvement over the previous times I’ve seen her when only Ms. Hyde showed up. Everyone has their own opinions, but I had seen her 3 times prior to this tour and the first 2 times she was hideous - absolutely hideous. Uncontrolled contortionist extensions, no flow to her dancing, static poses, ugly positions, playing to the audience - and this was in Bayadere (excerpt) & Swan Lake. The third time I saw her (in the recent Kennedy Bayaderes) she was markedly improved - and almost every one of her detractors who saw those performances (including me) commented on how much better she looked.

I doubt that anyone who posts here takes any joy in bashing a dancer - but you gotta call them as you see them. Especially in a company that is revered as the paragon of classicism. Who cares how many fouettes she can do if she jumps up and down like she’s on a pogo stick and kicks her leg out with each revolution. Or how long she can hold a 180 degree extension when the position is ugly & she pays no attention to musicality, phrasing or any other aspect of her portrayal.

I felt that her Bayadere on opening night here showed most of the flaws that I had seen from her previously, but since then she has been up & down, mostly up. I thought she was excellent in Paquita, and her Bayadere on 4/10 was beautiful - amazingly so. I don’t know what happened to make her change her approach - but guess what? I went back and saw her Bayadere again the next night and she was Ms. Hyde again. I counted three 180’s in the opening and her adagio was so squeaky I wondered if she needed an oil can for those joints as I watched her grind it out. What saved it was that even though she slipped back to her (bad) old dancing habits she continued to offer her new appropriate & lovely demeanor. Then in Etudes her entrance was so beautiful that I literally did a double take, not believing it was her. The “sylphide” variation was just gorgeous, and she glittered in the rest at both performances I saw.

I don’t know if this change is due to a coaching change, or more appropriate repertoire, or if she finally started reading the critics, or if she’s just a young dancer who was pushed too far too fast trying to pull it all together. I can see that she has great talent, and the potential to be a great ballerina but right now she veers from one extreme to the other. I’m looking forward to seeing her in the Balanchine program but as for her classical rep -I wish her well & hope for the best but as far as I’m concerned she’s still way too inconsistent to be considered in the same category as the Kirov’s great ballerinas - Lopatkina, Vishneva, Pavlenko and now Tereshkina.

By the way, FauxPas - I agree completely about Kolb in Spectre. Some people found his Rose too “out there” but I loved it. And I loved Chopiniana.I must have seen it 6 times and each performance was beautiful but the Sun matinee with Osmolkina, Vasnetsova & Gonchar was my favorite. Individually I preferred Selina to Gonchar, but switching Vasnetsova for Bolshakova in the prelude made all the difference.

two comments, 1) i wanted to compliment the two (other, besides the main three) soloists in Chopeniana, Svetlana Ivanova (the blonde) and Maria Shirinkina (the dark haired one). I totally loved the latter's dancing, and couldn't resist but asking a girl (strongly resembling her) exiting the back stage door who the second dancer was, and it was her. A very Sweet, Nice, (on-the shy-side) person. PS: Maria Shirinkina is in the center on picture one of this link (just found it - love the pictures) [url=http://www.mariinka.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1397]http://www.mariinka.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1397[/url

Many thanks, YID, for identifying that lovely dancer. I’ve enjoyed watching her and hope to see what she can do in soloist roles soon. In another forum it was suggested that Elizaveta Cheprasova might be the luminous brunette who some of us found so enchanting in the corps and as one of the 2 demis in Chopaniana. Ms. Cheprasova is scheduled to dance the 1st Shades variation tonight and tomorrow so we’ll know for sure soon enough!

I was also in the house last night and just want to mention that even though Novikova was listed as a soloist in Corsaire and Bayadere it did not look like her in either one. I think it was Selina as the third Odalisk girl along with Ivanova and Gonchar and possibly Valeria Martynyuk with Gonchar and Konduarova as the 3 shades soloists.

I also thought that Somova was fine in Don Q but, again, I’m not sure if it was because she showed more restraint or because the material was more suited to her style. As far as I’m concerned you can’t really be too flashy in this type of thing and there’s no legato line to the music so her lack of fluidity was not an issue. I still really dislike the look of her fouettees but she sure can turn!

I thought that Lopatkina was having an off night - which means that she was merely wonderful rather than miraculous. Tereshkina & Lobukhin were the stars of the night for me - I like her more each time I see her and he was outstanding, too.

Did anyone notice if Gergiev conducted for Shehezerade? When he came out during the bows I assumed that he had conducted the orchestra but I'm embarrassed to say that if it was him I must not have noticed when I applauded the conductor & orchestra before Shehezerade started..

... His Spectre also had a recklessness that was fun to watch. He swung the Girl (Nadezha Gonchar) so quickly that she almost tripped and fell.

That was Yana Selina in Spectre tonight ( I know, you need a scorecard to keep up). I agree that Korsakov was a little dull. Somehow he impressed me more when he was dancing soloist roles like the Swan Lake pas de trois or the peasant pas de deux in Giselle. I thought Osmolkina was beautiful, absolutely pristine & lighter than air, but I had some reservations about Bolshakova. Some of what she did in the prelude was really beautiful but there was something very overdone about it, too. All the head movement & some of her epaulment seemed forced, or perhaps too much like acting rather movement that emanated from the music.

Selina replaced Golub as the third soloist (the program says she danced Valse Op 70 #1) and the style of movement seemed so natural to her it felt like she really was a sylph hearing the call of the breeze through the trees. She was also charming as the girl in Spectre.

Whoever had the idea of casting Kolb in Spectre and Shehezerade on the same night was a genius. Two virtuoso roles with such different modes of expression - he was brilliant in both. And Diana proved yet again that she is perhaps the greatest dancing actress since Makarova. They tore up the stage together.

Still would like to know what the story is for NYStateTheater in July and August. That is probably expensive, too, and the Universal Ballet, as I remember, rents it for only a couple of days.

Enjoying all these reviews though, can't wait to see Vishneva from my uncomfortable seats!

As others have mentioned, even though the stage at the State Theater is bigger than the City Center stage it's still pretty small for big productions. I missed the Bolshoi's visit but I saw the National Ballet of Cuba's Don Q there a few years ago and it definitely looked cramped. In addition to the cost factor you also have to remember that very few "cultural" events are scheduled for July or August in NY - much of the population that can afford to escape the city in the summer heads out of town as soon as school is out, and even those who stay often head for the Hamptons or the Jersey shore, even if only for weekends. Makes it hard to fill those big theaters.

As to the suitability of BAM or NJPAC - I've never been to the Jersey venue but the stage at BAM didn't seem any bigger than the State Theater to me, maybe even smaller. But I only saw Nina's company there and it was hard to tell.

I'm exhausted and will let someone else offer a description of the last night of the Petipa program - except to say that Tereshkina was SPECTACULAR in Raymonda, and Paquita suited Somova better than anything I've seen her do previously. I don't think I'll ever be a fan but with the exception of her fouettes she was fine and both her dancing and her demeanor seemed appropriate to the piece.

Edited to add- the insert slip in tonight's program says that Kolb is replacing Korsuntsev as the Golden Slave tomorrow night and Zelensky is replacing Kolb at the Sunday matinee. I love Kolb, but am so glad we're going to see Zelensky, too! Yana Selina replaces Golub in Spectre on 4/4 and 4/5 at 8 and Nadhezda Gonchar gets the Sunday matinee (she also danced the first variation in tonight's Paquita).

Alastair Macauley weighs in via the NY Times:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/03/arts/dan...l.html?ref=arts

He also has critical words for Somova but is also giving backhanded compliments to Lopatkina and throwing cold water on Vishneva's success. Sounds all very jaded and been there done that. I mean, this is a mixed program of Petipa showpieces - not an evening of Balanchine or Antony Tudor. These are three classical showpieces engineered to show off virtuoso dancers and dazzle the crowd - the "Bayadere" shades working on a higher level as well (though maybe not with Tuesday night's cast). A certain amount of virtuosity for virtuosity's sake is a given considering the repertoire and the gala opening night occasion.

I agree, Macauley’s review was predictably jaded. His editors must be very pleased to see that he keeps coming up with new and ever so erudite ways to be bitchy.

Apollionaire Scherr’s brief take on her blog was almost as disappointing.

http://www.artsjournal.com/foot/

I disagree strongly with her opinion that everything on opening night before Novikova’s shades variation was “so studied”, but it’s her opinion and she’s entitled to it. However some of her other comments just seem inexplicable. And I’m not talking about the fact that she thinks Novikova was the “top shade” or that Somova is “doll like” (well, her movement is mechanical).

I realize that this is a brief comment on a blog, not a Newsday review but she’s still a “professional” critic. You’d think she’d feel compelled to give her comments some context for her readers. I’m not entirely at odds with her opinion, I too would have preferred a full length Raymonda to a single act but it’s clear from the constricted appearance of these “tidbits” on the City Center stage that deciding not to stage the Kirov’s productions of full length classics here was a wise choice. I feel very luck to live in a city that is home to 2 world class opera companies, 2 world class ballet companies and stages for dozens, if not hundreds of smaller contemporary dance troupes. But it’s still a shame that New York, once the world capital of Ballet only has one stage large enough to accommodate these grand productions. It’s also unfortunate that the Met has so little availability but it is what it is. I certainly prefer seeing one act from each of these grand ballets (carefully staged to fit as well as possible on the small stage) than waiting till 2020, or whenever the Met has a window of opportunity to make available to the great classical ballet companies of the world. Would that the Paris Opera Ballet, Bolshoi etc. were so determined to perform in NY.

Take a look at Joel Lobenthal’s NY Sun review for the most thoughtful and balanced opinion in the mainstream press so far:

http://www2.nysun.com/article/74102

Susan

Another, equally ecstatic review also reveals the sad news that this was Schandorff's last Sylphide.

Oh, that is sad news. I was lucky enough to see her Sylphide when the RDB was in Washington DC a few years ago. I found her mesmerizing, and was hoping for the opportunity to see her in it again someday.