nysusan

How much did I love Camargo in Swan Lake? So much that the first thing I did when I got home was buy a ticket to his R&J. Not a pyrotechnic virtuoso but a true danseur noble with beautiful lines, though his floppy hair reminded me somewhat of Corella. Although he flubbed the first double tour in his ballroom variation he came right back and did the second one beautifully. He had great elevation, speed and was a strong, attentive partner. He has such a warm, engaging stage personality and had great rapport with Boylston, who I also enjoyed. Boylston is not a favorite of mine but this is the second time I've seen her O/O and I liked her both times. Somehow her idiosyncrasies don't bother me here. I liked her plastique and phrasing and she was very secure technically and emotionally engaging. I was excited to see Gorak listed as Benno but then disappointed that Hoven was announced to replace him. McBride was fine in the pdt but I really liked Fangqi Li, who did the entrechat variation. Williams & Misseldine were both gorgeous as the 2 big swans and it was a treat to see Curley's purple VR. That man is going places!

I saw L&R last night and have mixed feelings about it. I read the synopsis (and the page in the program that discussed the "challenging subject matter") and had no trouble following the action. Callirhoe's treatment didn't bother me either - this is based on a novel from ancient Greece where enslavement and subjugation of women was the norm. Perhaps we could have hoped that Ratmansky had chosen a different vehicle but this is what interested him and that's what you get. I found it entertaining for the most part, though I did start to zone out a bit towards the end of the first act. I loved that there was so much dancing, and so many roles providing opportunities to see dancers who are not always spotlighted. Biggest takeaway of the evening - who is Jarod Curley and why haven't I seen him before? He was great and I'm hoping to see a lot more of him in the future. Biggest disappointment? Seeing Joey Gorak in the very minor role of one of the 3 suitors. It was an opportunity for the other 2 suitors, corpsmen Frenette & Tamm but a big step down for a soloist like Gorak. In another small role I really liked Katherine Williams as the Queen of Sheba - she is definitely ready to take on more & bigger roles. I liked Camargo as Dionysius - who I agree is the most sympathetic character in the whole story - but not sure how much I liked him. I need to see more of him to decide. There was some great choreography for Chareas and my attention was riveted on Bell pretty much whenever he was on stage. I found Hurlin less compelling, perhaps due to the nature of her choreography. And I agree with other posters who pointed out that you never really care about the characters - which is a major problem with this ballet!

Fonteyn/Nureyev- ah, those were the days! But you don't have to go back that far for ABT Met SRO performances, you don't even have to go back to the days of Makarova or Kirkland and Baryshnikov. Didn't Vishneva & Gomes sell out the Met? Ferri/Bocca? Ananiashvilli? Cojocaru at her guest appearances? If they didn't completely sell out the Met, I recall those performances being extremely well sold, it was very hard to get a good seat. Now you can have any seat you want, except for Swan Lake. Those performances are selling well, though not near to sold out. But when tickets first went on sale you still could have gotten any seat you wanted for any Swan Lake. Re: L&R not selling well - I'm not surprised. Its an unknown quantity, with dancers who are unknown to the general public and Ratmansky has a very mixed track record at ABT. If I was a casual ABT goer or subscriber who sat through The Golden Cockerel or the Tempest I certainly wouldn't be rushing out to buy tickets to L&R. But if it got a great review (it did) and great word of mouth (not so far, at least not here) I might buy a ticket next time around. That's what I recall happening with Whipped Cream, which I loved. I'm going to see L&R tonight and hoping for the best! Did anyone see the Shevchenko/Forster cast?

I mostly agree with Faux Pas. Hurlin was excellent. Very different from Brandt, she didn't have Brandt's polish but was very high energy. There was room for improvement but her performance was great overall and will only get better. Her 2nd act hops on point were not the springiest and she didn't cover as much of the stage as Brandt, but they were perfectly respectable. Her 3rd act fouettes were absolutely spectacular. She did multiples interspersed with singles and alternated opening the fan over her head and at chest level - all in perfect time with the music. I have to say that Ahn to me is just a great big blank. His technique is solid but not outstanding and I find his line & musicality lacking. I also cannot get over the fact that he had to use both arms to hold Hurlin up in the "one arm" 1st act lifts. Geesh, if Cornejo & Simkin can do it, he should certainly be able to do it. I wish she had been dancing with Bell as originally scheduled.

I thought Cornejo was really great. Yes, he's lost a step but he still dances wonderfully - much better than any of ABT's other male dancers except Simkin - and I was happy to see those gorgeous lines, amazing turns and that refined technique. His partnering skills have improved greatly, and that was something that really bothered me earlier in his career. In his solo work he seemed completely in control rather than trying to push for more. And of course there was the Cornejo charm & swagger - not much else you could want in a Basilio. To me Brandt was good, maybe even very, very good but not great. Its funny, I always saw her as a soubrette and was blown away at her amazing Giselle. Now in a soubrette role I liked her best in classical mode in the Queen of the Dryads scene. In the other acts she showed solid technique, great balances, fast secure turns but there was something missing. Maybe attack & fire. I just don't think she was at the same level as my favorite Kitris but considering this is her NY debut I think she did very well. I have not been a big Trenary fan lately but she was an excellent Mercedes/Dryad Queen. Shayer was an ok Espada but I thought he lacked line and elan. Coker and Magbitand were great as the gypsy couple.

There are lots of things I dislike about this production but the butchered & truncated final act (or final scene in this production) is what I hate the most and what really kills it for me.

I remember that production too, and all of those ballerinas were wonderful Raymondas. As I recall Nureyev and Bruhn alternated in the roles of Jean de Brienne and Abderakhman. Those were the days!

Thanks, Helene and Sandy for the input. I am definitely a classical diehard, but have occasionally liked other types of dance and I'm going to the Sat eve program so we'll see how that turns out. Will make a last minute decision about switching my ABT tickets. I'd like to see Diamonds but then again, some part of me still wants to keep Kowroski's last Diamonds performances in my minds eye so skipping this one might not be a bad thing. There's plenty of time to decide.

Can any of our PNB watchers tell me if they have an extraordinary Diamonds ballerina these days? I bought a ticket for one of the mixed bill programs but not their gala. Their Koch visit is up against ABT at the Met and if feels like they only announced it something like 2 weeks ago. I (and most people I know here) booked my ABT tickets months ago and I'm going to ABT on 6/22. I'm loathe to start trying to switch things around for an unknown quantity. I mean, if we were back in the Korbes days I'd switch immediately with no hesitation but I don't know PNB's current dancers and we get a lot of really great Diamonds ballerinas here. Any thoughts?

Casting has been posted on ENB's website: https://www.ballet.org.uk/production/akram-khan-giselle/#cast-section Rojo, Hernandez and Ciro for the opening and closing performances. Tickets are selling VERY poorly, I'd say no more than 1/3 of the house is sold for any of the dates. And this engagement is between NYCB & ABT seasons.

ABT shows 4/25 as the date single tickets go on sale and I received an email a couple of weeks ago saying that "affiliate members" at $480 per year get early access tickets on 4/18. There was no mention of the usual subscriber exchange week in my subscription ticket packet so I emailed ABT asking when the subscriber priority exchange period was. They really didn't answer my question directly but after going back & forth they said that subscribers could buy tickets starting on the 18th. So I went today and had no problem exchanging my tickets. There was no line at all and I was in and out in 15 minutes. Got the seats I wanted for all of the performances I wanted. I bought three Don Qs - Brandt/Cornejo, Boylston /Simkin and Hurlin/Bell. Two for Love & Rage - the Hurlin & Shevchenko casts. Two Swan Lakes - Brandt/Cornejo and Murphy/Forster. I kept my ticket for the mixed rep program since casting isn't out for that yet and I'm done for now. I may wind up picking up a ticket for one of Camargo's shows and/or one R&J but based on my experience today I'm sure there will be plenty of tickets available so plenty of time to make that decision.

That was lovely, thanks for sharing!

The Graham company is bringing some classics. Chronicle is a very powerful anti war piece. My only objection to it is that it seem as if its been on every single program for at least the past 5 years so I'd prefer to see some other works, there are lots that haven't been performed recently. But if you haven't seen it - its very moving. Appalachian Spring is wonderful and very uplifting. I remember loving Acts of Light but haven't seen it in many years. They are doing an excerpt from it in their gala program. I am quite leery of "reimagined" pieces, especially a lost Graham piece reimagined by Sonya Tayeh so I can't recommend Canticle for Innocent Comedians but I am very excited to see Hofesh Schecter's new piece. I know nothing about him or it except that Daniil Simkin will be appearing in it, which is enough to get me there!

Its great that Simkin will be guesting with ABT in DC & the Met Spring season but NY fans may also be interested in seeing him with the Martha Graham company at City Center in April. He is performing in a new piece by Hofesh Shechter, which is co-produced by Studio Simkin. Its on April 6,7 & 9. 4/7 is their Gala. Its not ballet but it should be interesting, especially if you like Graham! This is part of City Center's Dance Festival. https://www.nycitycenter.org/pdps/2021-2022/city-center-dance-festival/

While I'm sure Brandt & Cornejo will be great in DQ, I'd be even more inclined to see them in Swan Lake. I always thought of Brandt as a soubrette but her recent Giselle with Cornejo really blew me away. It was the most magical performance I've seen from an ABT principal ballerina in a long time. Based on that alone I would want to see their Swan Lake, which will be her NY debut. IMO currently ABT's best swan queen is Shevchenko so that would be another good choice. I would recommend Hurlin/Bell in DQ. This will be Hurlin's debut in the role. She is a fierce dancer (nicknamed Hurricane Hurlin) and Bell is fantastic. Hurlin is a soloist who is destined to be a principal soon. For "Of Love and Rage" I agree with other posters that either Hurlin/Bell or Shevchenko/Forster would be good. I love all 4 dancers. If I go see R&J it will be the Trenary/Cornejo cast. Not sure about Trenary - I go hot and cold with her but she is an interesting dancer and I have no desire to see any of the other casts. I would also try to see Murphy before she retires but she's just not my #1 in any role anymore and I don't really think of her as a Juliet. Although if I decide to see more than 1 R&J I may get Murphy/Forster for Forster's Romeo.

NYCB just sent an email with her schedule of performances: If you aren't able to make it to Teresa's farewell performance, she is also scheduled to appear in: Slaughter on Tenth Avenue on February 5 at 2 PM and February 10 at 7:30 PM Walpurgisnacht Ballet on February 8 at 7:30 PM Balanchine's Swan Lake on February 13 at 2 PM and February 17 at 7:30 PM

Oh no, Teresa Reichlin is retiring: https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/01/26/arts/arts-pop-culture-entertainment-news#teresa-reichlen-retires-new-york-city-ballet

Congratulations to all the new soloists! By the way, I received an email reminding me that I have tickets to Friday's performance and it shows that intermissions are back! Friday, January 28, 2022 8:00 PM This performance runs 1 Hr 57 Min Mozartiana Intermission Rubies Intermission La Valse

Absolutely!

I would love to see Laracey in Mozartiana

I would have seen Simkin in anything in a heartbeat! Frankly, I don't think they have the roster to carry even 5 weeks anymore. I am only interested in seeing Brandt, Hurlin, Bell & Forster. Maybe Trenary.

Well, after going back and forth about a dozen times I just bought tickets for the Broward Swan Lakes. They are requiring proof of vaccine or negative test & face masks, which makes me feel a little more confident. And I will need some beach time at the end of February!

I particularly like row R on the sides. There is a cross aisle in front of it so there are no heads blocking the view of the stage!

I had really been looking forward to Trenary's debut but I'm afraid I have to agree with Faux Pas. Trenary lost me in the 1st act long before the mishap with the hops - I didn't like her dancing or her characterization. Her ballonnes didnt have much buoyancy (in fact none of her dancing had much buoyancy) and she didn't stretch her positions, or make any of her poses linger. And I'm all for new approaches to the role - Osipova's was not a standard Giselle it was very bold but still successful. Trenary's characterization just made no sense. A Giselle who is coy & flirtatious and prone to anger and violence? There was one brief moment where it looked like she was trying to be seductive and another with the daisy where I could swear that she stomped her feet and glared at Albrecht. This Giselle was anything but innocent. Her second act was much better but still, there wasn't enough romantic epaulment for me, especially in the arms. Royal was fine but not great and as others have mentioned I didn't see one man land in a clean fifth until Bell on Saturday night, and he was fabulous. Shevchenko was also lovely taking a very traditional approach, dancing beautifully and acting the part well.

I've been very down on ABT lately and have been looking forward to this run of Giselle with a mixture of excitement and trepidation. I'm happy to say that the Wed night performance was great. The only dancer I felt was not up to par was Jose Sebastian in the pdd. His landings were stiff and positions were not stretched. His partner, McBride, was not exceptional but she was good. I really enjoyed both Wili attendants (Li and Gingiarusso) and the corps looked great. Agree with other posters that Peterson's initial balances weren't strong, but I loved her epaulment which gave her the Mariinsky-like mixture of softness/regret and fierceness. I often avoid Cornejo in the classics because he's been such a poor partner in the past. Not anymore. He was great and I was stunned that they even did the table top lifts (I thought they'd sub something else), let alone how well they came off. I know that this was only Brandt's NY debut but she can't have danced Giselle more than a couple of times and she was fantastic. This was an all around well danced, well thought out portrayal. I wish she was getting 2 chances in this run, I'd love to see her again immediately! Not only her dancing but her acting was excellent. In the 1st act her dancing was light, crisp and buoyant and those big eyes served her well. Her second act was exquisite and my only quibble was that at times she didn't seem ethereal enough for me which I think was because she was putting in so much effort to dance as fast as she could and make her jumps as high as they could be. Not that anything looked effortful, just that I feel like the effort she was putting in detracted from the weightless, ghostly movement sense that I like in the 2nd act. In some ways she reminded me of Osipova here but Osipova's barely-dead Giselle seemed like part of her overall approach to the role. In Brandt's case it seemed more incongruent. This is such a minor quibble though. She was wonderful and exceeded all expectations. I look forward to seeing how she grows into the role.