corrival
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Would anyone tell me where I could find a list of the casting for these performances, including the corps des ballet? Or would someone mind posting? Thanks!
The program had all the cast including the changes.
Sara Ivan was Michele Jimenez's replacement.
IMHO I thought Erin Mahoney was superb in the Balanchine piece and new-comer Brian Corman showed lots of promise. Erin is developing into a true 'Balanchine' dancer with her crisp movement and those lovely long arms and legs. She was also quite good as the Mother in Rite of Spring. Sara Ivan was a bit disappointing, her extensions were good but all the smaller movements were vague and wishy-washy and she looked quite strained. Runqiao Du seemed to be adversely affected by his partner's tension.
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Can we talk about the corps in Swan Lake? Never, ever has the ABT corps looked better. My wife even said that she, for the first time ever, was impatient with the very good variations and other dancing and just wanted to see the swans again. I cannot recall the corps ever being so together.
Actually I thought the corps were a bit ragged on Thursday night. And Gillian Murphy not quite up to par, is she perhaps slightly injured? Her right foot/leg seemed a little wonky. The highlight of Thursdays performance was Herman Cornejo as Benno, I wish he had some dancing in Act III.
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Jose-Manuel Carreno
David Hallberg
Daniil' Korsuntsev of the Kirov
Kristopher Sakurai at RDB
Roberto Bolle
and...
Nikolai Tsiskaridze in a funky way...
If you saw Herman Cornejo in Le spectre de la Rose at the Kennedy Center last week you would surely agree with me. Wow.
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First let me say I adore Christopher Wheeldon, my absolute favorite is "Mesmerics". So you realize what I say is most probably prejudiced.
The reviews in the papers seem to be very positive for the most part. I would love to see it. I do hope it comes to DC soon, since I can't get up to NY anytime in the near future. I find Chris' work to be some of the most lyrical being made today. From what I have read the name Shambards is taken from a poem by Edwin Muir (see Star-ledger review 5/10/04) where Muir refers to Burns and Scott as "sham bards of a sham nation" So that perhaps explains the vision for the dance.
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I too, have to agree with Sarah Kaufman's review, what a treat. For me the most outstanding part of the show was Erin Mahoney. She danced in 3 of the 7 dances, each very different and each was wonderful. But 'tink tank' choreographed by Vladimir Angelov was a real gem and very funny too. Erin absolutely shone in this piece.
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Based on what I heard yesterday at lunch in the KC Cafe and during the intermissions, I would say the dance public is getting excited about the Washington Ballet's direction. I enjoy talking to 'ballet' people and the two women I sat with at lunch didn't know a lot about ballet but they had just become interested and have found this season to be exciting and enjoyable.
Having recently seen both the ABT and NYCB I think the WB compares very favorably. We have some very exciting and beautiful dancers and, as you say Mike, Septime Webre is proving to be excellent at developing them.
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The actual website, Willkemp.org is a fansite dedicated to Will Kemp of Swan Lake, CarMan and soon to be movie fame. Dani does an excellent job of keeping it fun, friendly and positive. She wanted to honor some other outstanding dancers and choreographers, hence the Dancers who make us Swoon page.
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For Jason Hartley fans a nice tribute to an up and coming star: Dancers page
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BTW "Broken Fall" won the Olivier award. Congrats to Russell Maliphant and the Boyz
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DancingGiselle: Jean Battey Lewis in the Washington Times also really liked Ethan Stiefel's "Without Words"
""Without Words" reached its apotheosis in Mr. Stiefel's transcendent solo. A dancer with finely burnished technique, he brings a feral alertness to everything he does. This combination of intensity and refinement made for a riveting performance."
I saw his performance of this in the open rehearsal and agree completely that it was 'transcendent'. I think that is why when I saw his performance in "Raymonda" I was so disappointed.
I also thought Marcelo Gomes was wonderful too. Such stage presence.
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Well, after all these knowledgeable people talking about the ABT, I feel a bit stupid making my review but here goes...
ABT - Mixed Bill
Opera House, Kennedy Center
Thursday February 5th, 2004
I also saw the open rehearsal on Tuesday afternoon and in the cast was different.
There was a buzz going round the crowd about the provocative review by the Washington Post writer Sarah Kaufman. From the sounds of the audience around me during intermissions and at the end, they did not wholly agree with Ms Kaufman's scathing review.
Raymonda Divertissements (Staged by Anna-Marie Holmes, after Petipa. Music by A Glazounov)
I found the choreography to be less than inspiring. The bright spot was Xiomara Reyes, she sparkled and danced as if she were in the most glorious ballet. Ethan Stiefel, on the other hand, looked stiff, and when dancing with Reyes he leaned way away from his partner (as if he really didn't like her). In the open rehearsal Marcelo Gomes danced Jean de Brienne and did a lovely job.
In the Grand Pas Hongrois, Sascha Radetsky danced beautifully he demonstrated how I would think a real Hungarian csarda would dance - elegant, cocky, fluid and strong. But his partner Sasha Dmochowski tried a bit too hard and her movements were too quick, making her arms and especially her head movements rough.
Without Words (Choreography N Duato. Music by F Schubert).
This piece was very enjoyable, a beautiful combination of modern and classical movement. Even the costumes (flesh colored) were designed to not detract from the dancers' bodies. The piece opens with 3 dancers, but it features relationships between 4 different couples dancing to music that originally were songs. The couples sometimes break up or combine to form different groupings with different dynamics.
When I saw the open rehearsal Ethan Stiefel danced in the final couple and was wonderful. Last night Maxim Beloserkovsky danced that part and I may have appreciated him more if I had not seen the open rehearsal. Irina Dvorovenko danced with Maxim and though she danced well, her part looked almost too rehearsed, she didn't really look like her movements were in response to him.
Overall a very nice piece combining modern and classical movements to create an intriguing series of relationships.
The dance was also very well received by the audience.
Within You, Without You: A Tribute to George Harrison
The costumes for this, at least, were mostly just jeans. Nice colors! I did not get to see this in rehearsal.
"Something" (choreography by S Welch)
Angel Corella - Wow! He did a super job with the sometimes frenetic choreography. And, I am sure people will think I'm crazy....something in the way he moves...reminded me of Baryshnikov.
"I Dig Love" (choreography by N Weir)
I did not care for the choreography of this piece, it did not gel. It seemed too disjointed. That said, Marcelo Gomes was extremely good. Gillian Murphy and Herman Cornejo did the best they could with the choreography, but were not as effective as Marcelo.
"While My Gutiar Gently Weeps" (Choreography A Reinking)
Again I did not care much for the choreography, a little too dramatic and emphatic. But again Sascha Radetsky was so fluid. And again his partner, this time Sarawanee Tanatanit, looked a little forced and too quick. It made me wonder what it is of his style and form that is so fluid and supple, that it contrasts his partner so that in two totally different dances, with totally different styles, the effect was the same. Is this a bad thing for a dancer in a company of this size to have a negative effect on the dancing of his partner by being apparently so much better?
"Isn't it a Pity?" (Choreography S Welch)
Dark set at first, slowly becoming brighter. Enjoyable but not very exciting or particularly interesting.
"Within You, Without You" (choreography N Weir)
I wondered how someone would choreograph this song, and Natalie Weir did an interesting job, but what made it work was Marcelo's dancing. I could see how someone else might run into trouble and have it look just a mess. But Marcelo made the choreography his own and he really became the song. What a wonderful dancer, everything about him, his presence, his form and his movement is a joy to watch. For me this was the highlight of the whole dance (and this is not one of my favorite GH songs!).
"My Sweet Lord" (choreography D Parsons)
Just a parade of dancers doing their thing. Not bad, not great. Fun but innocuous.
Overall an enjoyable evening and, perhaps because I sat up in the 2nd tier and did not pay a whole lot of money for my ticket, I did not feel cheated. But one of the advantages for me is that, especially with more modern choreography, the balconies are a better vantage point to see the patterns.
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Thank you for your lovely review chauffeur
I saw Baryshnikov last summer at the Columbia festival for the Arts. And I think that at 55, Baryshnikov is still a virtuoso, he just demonstrates his masterly skill and technique in ways that no longer include gravity-defying leaps.
Yes I saw him when he was young and fabulous, now he is older and in many ways even more wonderful. His acting ability is truly amazing. His humor and the way he relates to an audience.
For me the two most beautiful dances were Opus One, choreographed by Lucinda Childs, music by Alban Berg, "Sonata, op. 1", and In a Landscape, choreographed by Cesc Gelabert, music by John Cage, "In a Landscape". In these two dances Baryshnikov danced with such fluidity and emotion, it was breathtaking. His technique is masterful, his extensions close to perfect. Opus One is full of contrasts sometimes soft and fluid other times hard and rigid. In a Landscape Baryshnikov does something that is very difficult to describe, parts of his body suddenly appear to not belong to him. His right arm is not his as his left hand uses it to wipe his brow. Or he looks at his leg as if wondering where it came from and how did it get there. Then his body becomes whole again and off he goes in to some wonderful turn or series of leaps across the stage.
I am so glad that he has been able to come back from surgery and is completing the tour.
A must see.
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Jeannie:
Too bad you didn't attend the Sunday matinee. I believe the Cavalier danced more as you would have liked. And the audience was very appreciative. Lots of curtain calls and cheers.
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Jeannie, Dani, thank you for your views. It is very interesting to read about the other cast. I wish I could have seen both. In the cast I saw Oberon is the true lover of Titania, and the Cavalier is just a dalliance for Titania.
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Balanchine Celebration
Eisenhower Theatre, Kennedy Center
Sunday, January 25th 2002
I, too, am more and more impressed by what Septime Webre is doing with The Washington Ballet, and his Ballet Talks after the show are such a super idea.
I attended the Sunday matinee, Septime came out before the start of the program and because there seemed to be a lot of smaller children in the audience he gave a short lesson on etiquette: not to talk, and how to applaud and shout bravo. But he did it with such humor and made the audience laugh and join in that the effect was wonderful instead of stuffy and preachy. And the result was, the children in the audience were very respectful and enthusiastically shouted bravo, or brava, in all the right places.
I saw a different cast than Dani and they too performed beautifully.
I must admit the Four T's is not my favorite ballet, I think it's really because I am not fond of the music by Paul Hindemith. That said, I thought the dancers did a marvelous job. In the Themes the standouts were Morgann Rose and Aaron Jackson in the 2nd Theme. A beautiful pair whose danced seamlessly together. Their movement was the sharpest and cleanest of the three themes.
In the First Variation: Melancholic, Jonathan Jordan danced well, but perhaps not with enough conviction, but Allison Walsh and Maki Onuki (2 members of the Washington Ballet Studio company) were so light and lovely. The Second Variation: Sanguinic, had Michele Jimenez paired with Runquiao Du. Michele, as usual, was wonderful. But there was no real feeling of chemistry between the two. The Third Variation: Phlegmatic Luis Torres was the standout for the entire dance, he has feline movement and his subtle change of mood midway through the variation was so beautifully done, from the hard, sharp hip and leg movements to a softer, more fluid movement. The ensemble danced very well, very synchronized in the Fourth Variation: Choleric.
After a short pause the company premiered Sonatine, a dance originally made for Violette Verdy, at the Kennedy Center. It is a love duet, and Brianne Bland danced as if she were deeply in love with Jared Nelson. Everything about her, her moves, the way she looked at her partner, the way she leaned in towards him, was of a young lover. Unfortunately Jared Nelson did not quite convey the same feeling. He danced well, just not with the same passion for his partner. He did convey more passion in his solos.
A Midsummer Night's Dream, Act I was also a company premiere and it was magical. The opening scene was lovely, the lighting, the scenery, the costumes of the fairies and butterflies were delightful. Titania was danced by Elizabeth Gaither and she was perfect as the queen of the fairies, so light yet regal. Jared Nelson was Oberon and here he did a wonderful job. A golden king, he wowed the audience with his solos. Puck was danced with mischievous abandon by Aaron Jackson, his acting was 'over the top', yet perfect for the part. Other notables were Charles Pregger as Lysander and Nikkia Parrish as Hippolyta. Nikkia's solo was dazzling, lots of "brava"s for her. What an absolutely lovely way to spend a cold, snowy winter afternoon.
After the show Septime came out with Nikkia Parrish and Elizabeth Gaither to answer questions from the audience. Septime took questions from several of the children in the audience, who mostly wanted to know about the characters of Midsummer, although one young lady did ask the two ballerinas how long it took to learn the all the steps. That brought on a discussion about how the Washington Ballet stages Balanchine works. Septime and the dancers discussed how a member of the Balanchine Trust, Sandra Jennings, comes and works with the dancers in rehearsal. She brought loads of notes and videos. A question asked if the Washington Ballet added choreography to the dances. Septime said no, this is a Balanchine celebration and the purpose is to respect George Balanchine's genius. But Septime's role as AD is twofold. One, to help demonstrate the respect for Balanchine, but Two to ensure that the Washington Ballet style accented the works.
There was a question about the influence of the modernist movement on Balanchine when he made the 4T's. Septime explained how he felt that although Balanchine was influenced by the modernist movement, the efforts to distill to essentials, Balanchine retained the classical form.
Septime explained the reason why he only did Act I of Midsummer. Not enough dancers! He would love to stage the whole ballet but until the Washington Ballet grows some more he doesn't have enough dancers.
Overall a thoroughly enjoyable and enlightening performance.
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I am hoping to go to Sunday's matinee performance. PLEASE don't let there be blizzard.:sweating:
It will be the alternate cast. Sounds like it will be a great show.
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George Piper Dances Will be back in the US in February.
In St Louis Feb 20 through Feb 22
And in Chicago Feb 26 through Feb 28.
Their dances "Mesmerics" choreographed by Christopher Wheeldon, and "Broken Fall" choreographed by Russell Maliphant were both recently nominated for an "Olivier Award" for Best Dance Performance.
Oxana Panchenko won Outstanding Female Artist Classical from the National Critics Dance Awards, Jan 13th.
A must see
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Baryshnikov is back. His 2004 tour schedule is on Baryshnikov Dance Foundation site ( not sure how up-to-date it is!)
January 23-24 War Memorial Auditorium, Holyoke, MA
January 27 The Flynn Center, Burlington, VT
January 30-31 Center for the Arts at University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY
February 7-8, 10-12 Theater Heilbronn, Heilbronn,Germany
February 17-18, 20-22 The Barbican Theatre, London, England
February 27 -28 The Gusman Center, Miami, FL
March 2, 4-7 UCLA Live, Los Angeles, CA
March 9-10 The Moore Theatre, Seattle, WA
March 13-16 Scottsdale Center for the Arts, Scottsdale, AZ
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I agree with kitrisomeday, get your tickets it will be a great show, imagine Jason Hartley as Puck!. Even if you don't like to see just Act I of Midsummer, "Sonatine" and "Four temperments" should make up for it.
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Actually, having just come home from a rehearsal of Midsummer by the Washington Ballet, I kind of agree with zany. It was lots of fun and many the dancers were laughing and looked like they were having a grand time.
Also watching the rehearsal were the OutreachProgram kids, they were quiet and attentive and laughed in all the right spots. And they all said a poem to the dancers once the rehearsal was through. Absolutely adorable, and the dancers cheered the kids for their poem.
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For those of you interested in Modern dance a lovely new fan site was launched this week for Matthew Bourne
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The nominations for the Olivier Awards related to dance:
BEST NEW DANCE PRODUCTION Nederlands Dans Theater 2’s DREAM PLAY at Sadler’s Wells
George Piper Dances’ MESMERICS at Sadler’s Wells
Paul Taylor Dance Company’s PROMETHEAN FIRE at Sadler’s Wells
BROKEN FALL, a George Piper Dances commission in association with The Royal Ballet at the Royal Opera House
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN DANCE
Carlos Acosta for his TOCORORO – A CUBAN TALE at Sadler’s Wells
Thomas Edur and Agnes Oaks their performances in English National Ballet’s 2 HUMAN at Sadler’s Wells
Javier De Frutos for his choreography of Rambert Dance Company’s ELSA CANASTA at Sadler’s Wells
The dancers of Rambert Dance Company for their season at Sadler’s Wells
I know I would hate to have to decide between "Mesmerics" and "Promethean Fire"
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Thank you Bobbi for a lovely review. I wish I could make it up to NY to see the NYCB this season. I would love to see them do Slaughter, since I saw Adam Cooper's version last September (great!) BTW Adam won Best Choreographer (Musical) for his version of On Your Toes yesterday from the Critics Circle National Dance Awards.
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2003 Critics' Circle National
Dance Awards winners
London, Tuesday January 13, 2004
The winners of the 2003 Critics’ Circle National Dance Awards were announced at a special ceremony at Sadler’s Wells Theatre today.Angela Rippon, well-known journalist and broadcaster was joined by Dame Alicia Markova, Elaine Paige, Russian dance star Irek Mukhamedov and a host of dancers representing the major dance companies of the United Kingdom.
Angela Rippon as Mistress of Ceremonies led the dance community in its annual celebration of the best in British dance. Attended by English National Ballet, Rambert Dance Company, The Royal Ballet, Walker Dance Park Music, Northern Ballet Theatre, Henri Oguike Dance Company, Birmingham Royal Ballet, George Piper Dances (the Ballet Boyz) and Scottish Dance Theatre among others.
The dazzling audience applauded Adam Cooper’s double whammy for Best Musical Theatre Choreography (presented by Elaine Paige) and the new Audience Award where the public, rather than critics, choose the winner.
The winners of the 2003 Critics' Circle National Dance Awards are:
De Valois Award for Outstanding Achievement in Dance
Val Bourne, Dance Umbrella Artistic Director
Best Male Dancer
Carlos Acosta, Royal Ballet
Best Female Dancer
Zenaida Yanowsky, Royal Ballet
Audience Award
Adam Cooper
Sunday Express Children's Award
Harry Walker, tap dancer with distinction
Dance UK Industry Award
Theresa Beattie, Director of Artist Development, The Place
Committee Special Award
Lez Brotherston, Designer
Best Choreography (Classical)
Michael Corder, English National Ballet
Best Choreography (Modern):
Akram Khan, for his own company
Best Choreography (Musical Theatre)
Adam Cooper for On Your Toes
Outstanding Female Artist (Modern)
Ana Lujan Sanchez, Rambert Dance Company
Outstanding Male Artist (Modern)
Henry Montes, Siobhan Davies Dance Company
Outstanding Female Artist (Classical)
Oxana Panchenko, George Piper Dances
Outstanding Male Artist (Classical)
Robert Parker, Birmingham Royal Ballet
Company Prize for Outstanding Repertoire (Classical)
English National Ballet
Company Prize for Outstanding Repertoire (Modern)
Scottish Dance Theatre
Best Foreign Dance Company
Paul Taylor Dance Company
7x7- anyone seen?
in Washington Ballet
Posted
I took my mother on Mother's Day to see it. Very enjoyable. The dances I found most interesting were These are the Days of our Lives: Michele Jimenez was, as usual, mesmerizing. Fractures: sad and expressive. And the show stopper was Ritual IV, again Michele Jimenez was fabulous, doing oodles of pirouettes just inches away from me. And Jason Hartley and Jonathan Jordan performing a very macho duet all the driving rhythms of African Drums.