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You will find quite a few Balanchine lovers here, pasdequatre. In fact, your progression in ballet appreciation pretty much parallels mine, though ABT was still plain Ballet Theater when I was introduced to it as a child. If you get a chance to browse through some of our older threads, you will encounter a few of the ballets, choreographers, dancers, and maybe even specific performances that mean the most to you. Glad your on board here.

Welcome, pasdequatre. They say that ballet is best passed on by dancers to other dancers. I think the same holds for the way that the love of ballet is passed down among those who sit in the seats. Dancers teach through demonstration. We help each others to expand our appreciation and understanding of the art by sharing our experiences -- other times, other places -- with one another. That's what attracted me to Ballet Alert in the first place. Looking forward to hearing from you. Can you tell us here about some of the highlights of what you've seen so far? I mean, a little bit of the " who, what, where, and when" of what you value most?

Cristian, please consider that phrase in the context in which I wrote it.. The complete sentence reads like this: I was talking about Balanchine's development of neoclassiscism, something which began as long ago as the late 1920s. I was NOT talking about what might happen at some point in the future, as your reference to Jennifer Homans' book implies. I can't think of anyone who would disagree with the idea that classical ballet in the 1920s and for a long time afterwards was in a very bad way in western Europe, almost non-existent in the Americas, and surviving precariously in the Soviet Union. This decline had definitely been turned around by the 1970s in most of the western world. My point was that Balanchine's neoclassicism -- which honored his love of classical ballet while refusing to be satisfied with merely repeating it -- was one of those factors responsible for that revival. Is this really controversial?

The Miami Paris video, photographed from an upper tier, really shows off the brilliant structure of this ballet – as opposed to Apollo, Rubies and Concerto Barocco, whose triple layering is better seen straight on. Agree entirely. (1) Watching Apollo last weekend from 4 different locations, it actually amazed me how inadequate a sideview (one level up) was. This is a work meant to be seen from the front. (2) Love that phrase "Seligmannesque heft." The Royal's costumes are the Goodyear blimps of tutus, as its set is a version of the Belly of the Whale.. (3) Regarding "desconstruction." It's interesting that essentially the same point was made in by Lourdes Lopez in a lecture/demonstration at the MCB studios. There, however, the point was made in terms of an extended comparison of "classical" and "neoclassical." This relates to your point about Balanchine's "doing two things at once." For example: There are many charms to 19th century reconstructions -- or, perhaps more accurately, to modern attempts to re-capture in some way the glamour and look of what are imagined to be original productions. That's not a bad thing. But I have to wonder about an aesthetic that tries to impose that look on what are, essentially, quite different works. To me, it's equally -- in my feeling, MORE -- important to retain a living sense of what 20th-century "neoclassicism" was and is, and how it revitalized and possibly saved a dying art form.

Quiggan, I know what you mean, especially after a second viewing. For example: you say "It has no propulsion." This is an almost heavy ' --"imperial" in a bad sense -- version of what we saw MCB doing in Paris. I could recognize the familiar the choreography, but saw little of what makes the choreography "dance" the way MCB achieves. Towards the end of the clip there's a bit in which the ballerina pirouettes to the right/ then to the left. This is repeated, until all the women on stage are doing it. The lines of dances are straight; everyone faces downstage. Because the choreography at this point is relatively static (in terms of use of stage), the Royal version does work here.. However, anything requiring swift alterations in direction, shifts from jump to turn, etc., was performed without Balanchine qualities. The RB's design also sabotages this wonderful work. I realize this is a small-screen video, but the set seems dark, over-decorated, cave-line, claustrophobic. I had the sense that the set was slowly closing in on the dancers, who might -- before the end of the ballet -- be swallowed whole and digested.

Thank you so much, Ilya, both for your translation and your illuminating remarks. Pavlenkos final comment makes great sense to me.

By the way, I want to extend a welcome you, Wallis. Looking forward to hearing from you often in future Ballet Alert discussions. It seems to me that the implications of 3D technogy are huge for the future of ballet film. Visual distortion on this order -- and I like Wallis's comparison to distortions of size and depth in certain Baroque paintings -- seriously corrupts the look of any work, but especially one that is so quintessentially visual..

It was the "3D" factor made me decide to pass this by. 3D filming -- even when not shown in real 3D in a theater -- distorts what one sees in a way that destroys things for me. I have been trying to figure out what it is, especially, that made the 2011 Giselle so awful (for me) to look at. Alistair Macaulay's NY Times review of Nutcracker, finds exactly the right words. imo, anyway. Ballet of all arts is most dependent on the visual. I'd be interested in hearing more from those who either don't mind this, or don't mind it enough to allow it to get in the way of their appreciation of what they are looking at.

An excellent distinction. Thanks, Helene, for putting it so simply. You make me look more closely at my preference for non-tutu in this work. That makes sense when I consider that my introduction to ballet, other than some Swan Lakes and a bit of the old Ballet Theater repertoire, was Balanchine as neoclassicist, especially with Stravinsky. Perhaps we tend to prefer, even in maturity, the aesthetic that we learned to love in our younger days..

A child puppet was used sensitively -- beautifully, in fact -- in Anthony Minghella's Met production of Madame Butterfly, available on dvd. The Telegraph article, and especially the photos, look very promising to me. Bourne has great visual imagination, and I found his Swan Lake to be quite respectful of the spirit of the piece. The question I have is whether his choreographic imagination is equal to the scope of the Sleeping Beauty score and story. I no longer live in NYC, but if I did, I would order my tickets as soon as they went on sale.

Miami had a brief run of Nutcrackers in West Palm Beach for several seasons a number of years ago. There were scheduling problems, however. Ballet Florida's own very effective and popular million-dollar production rented the Kravis Center for almost three weeks right before Christmas. That meant that MCB got stuck with a few performance dates in late November, which did not sell well. After Ballet Florida folded, MCB brought the Balanchine version back for one or two seasons), but that too was early in the season. Ticket sales were disappointing, so the production has not returned.. For a couple of years, the Kravis has been presenting the Moscow Classical Ballet's touring Nutcracker right before Christmas. I've seen it once but will be passing on it in the future.

I agree with liebs about Mantel's Bringing up Bodies. (Which led me to re-read Wolf Hall, though I read that only last year.) .They are among the best works I've read in many years. Tudor history has spawned some of the worst film and fictional treatment I've ever seen, but Mantel's two novels are works of genius. It's interesting to compare them to her excellent but much earlier historical novel, A Place of Greater Safety, centering on the relationship of Danton, Desmoulins, and Robespierre. I have difficulty in identifying a single "standout" for the year. My standout at any one time tends to be whatever book I'm absorbed in right now. That means Ross King's Leonardo and the Last Supper. (He also wrote Brunelleschi's Dome and Michelangelo and the Pope's Ceiling.) It's the kind of book that compels me to do something I enjoy very much -- go to the shelves and pull down other books, maps, collections of art reproductions. The internet is a remarkable source, too, especially for quickly locating specific paintings and drawings and for Google Satellite Maps and Street Views of locations.

Perhaps "understandable, given the circumstances ..."???

"Fee dragee" has always been my favorite. Unfortunately, I can't help thinking of the way it looks in English -- with that word "drag" (as in foot-dragging or transvestism). Not the best way to think about this ballerina role. Come to think of it, "zuckerfee" doesn't work well for native English-speakers, either. As in, "There's a zucker born every minute."

I thought I remembered that you had not seen it. I have to say, that this is a most original "case for the prosecution."

Cristian, with all respect, I have to note that you dismiss the Taylor, which you were predisposed to dislike before seeing it, without telling us why. Can you at least tell us what you thought about the dancers? On another point -- and in the interest of fairness -- I have to mention that I spoke this morning with a former high-level dancer who has an incredible eye and memory, and who has seen many NYCB Apollos over the years. He LOVED the same Friday night performance that disappointed me. This was especially true about the women, whom he compared favorably to the Muses he saw at NYCB earlier in the year. We agreed to stay off the topic of the Apollos themselves, since he felt Cedeiro was making interesting choices in his interpretation, but had not seen Reyes. We each had lots of reasons for our opinions. I had to agree, for example, that there was an uncanny and beautiful stylistic unity among Patricia Delgado, Jeanette Delgado, and Tricia Albertson (seting aside their quite different solos) and that they, at least, clearly understood who they were on stage. Vive la difference!

It seems clear which approach Ratmansky likely prefers. If what he says is accurate, wouldn't this be a result of training differences between the two companies? NYCB recruits mainly from its own School; ABT draws from many schools. Is there something about the ABT model that would make its dancers more malleable, more able and/or willing to be formed and changed by a dance-maker?

vrsfanatic, I wish I had known that you were going to be there so we could share a hello.. I did see lots of beautiful young dancers in the audience, but did not know Harid was among them. I understand your distinction between 'dancing well' and 'performing well.' II felt that the Friday Apollo was not 'performed' at all as well as the individual dancers were capable of dancing it. I wish you had been able to see the way Reyneris Reyes, Mary Carmen Catoya, Nathalia Arja and Sara Esty performed the ballet at the two matinees. I was impressed and moved to the point of tears at being able to see this work danced in such a stunning and pure fashion. In the future, if you have a choice of performances, you might want to switch to Saturday nights or one of the matinees. Friday's audience is a rather unresponsive group on the whole. The auditorium somehow seems dead that night, at least when the curtain rises. The audiences at all other performances are livelier, and this seems to stimulate the dancers to do an especially strong job. For those not familiar with the work of Martha Mahr, here is an obituary from 2009: http://www.examiner....n-monday-june-8 I especially liked the following:

Great news, brokenwing. I note that the grant is for increasing outreach and adding new works, including new commisions. Related to that, Liam Scarlett -- in town to create his new, ballet, which will be on Program II -- joined the pre-performance talks at all performances in West Palm. He said that it would be a program-closer, a "bigger" work than Viscera. The music will be another piano concerto by Lowell Lieberman. No word on the title. MCB should be proud that Viscera, a ballet created for and premiered by them, has now entered the rep of the Royal Ballet.

Albany Girl, yes, the two terms stand for the same place. (I was typing on my phone and making lots of typos. For some reason' the stress of correcting on a tiny keyboard drove the English name out of my head. )

kbarber, this is fascinating. I guess "sugar plum" was one of those words that -- because the context tells you clearly that a it is something sweet that children like to get as Christmas treats -- I never actually thought about its definition until your post.. The phrase "SHU-gar plum FAIR-y" glides across the tongue so easily; it sounds to someone hearing it for the first time like a well-known phrase. And the usual setting for Confiturenberg tells you something about the dietary values of the place. (So why is everyone who lives there so thin?) "Dried grape" doesn't quite do it for me. I wonder what a Dried Grape Fairy [dried-GRAPE FAIR-Y .... UGH!) would look and act like -- and, how she would dance. So .... what are sugar plums like to eat? (Come to think of it ... what's a plum pudding like to eat? Never tried one.)

I just returned from the Saturday evening performance and wanted to report a couple of cast changes. (1) Patricia Delgado took over the lead female role in Piazzolla Caldera, and it made a real difference. This role involves a womans brusque rejection by each of the men on stage, a long solo expressing her feelings about this, and some rather stunning developments later on. A beautiful performance. (2) Kleber Rebello took over the Blue Boy role in Patineurs. Rebello is much lighter and less muscular than Penteado, and this is reflected in jumps that are slightly less forceful and turns that are just a bit slower.. Despite that, Rebellos final series of pirouettes were as fast and controlled as Penteado's the night before. Rebello's body actually became a blur, which was exciting to experience.

I agree with Birdsall about Patineurs. It was mostly very well-done. (Liam Scarlett, visiting town to create his second commission on MCB, did some of the coaching.) I agree completely about Renato Penteado, whom I also saw earlier in the day in a tech rehearsal, a setting in which performances usually don't go full out or for a completely finished look. He was good Last night, in front of an audience, he was phenomenal. Penteado has amazing spinning and jumping skills, but he brings a quality of insouciance and humor to his roles (when appropriate, as it definitely is in this work) that make him magnetic on stage. The other Patineurs standouts for me were Natalia Arja and Jennifer Lauren as the Girls in Blue. More than some of the other dancers, they had the Ashton look with arms and epaulement. In their mini-coda -- with Arja spinning out gorgeous, fast fouettes and Lauren traveling around the stage in turning combinations with complex and difficult shifts in arm position -- they were about as good as its gets. They had charm, attack, agility, and they made it all look easy. Among the Couples in Brown, Michael Sean Breeden had jlightness and sense of fun that made him standout. Mary Carmen Catoya and Reyneris Reyes were lovely as the Couple in White. They have a real rapport, and it is fantastic to see these two usually serious dancers let loose their beautiful smiles. My feeling, however, is that these roles are sketchy and rarely command your attention as much as, in theory, you would expect them to. No wonder Margot Fonteyn felt upstaged by the Boy in Blue. What can I saw about Apollo? It's a great work that rises or falls on the strength (or not) of its title character. Renan Cedeiro, an engaging young dancer with considerable technique was I think seriously miscast in this. He never looks comfortable and seems to be struggling to make some kind of sense about what he is being asked to do. As a result, his Muses -- Patricia Delgado (Terpsichore), Jeanette Delgado (Calliope) and Patricia Albertson (Polyhymnia), while dancing well, look as though they are operating in a vacume. Of the three, my favorite for detail and nuance was Albertson. I won't be able to see Reyneris Reyes and Mary Carmen Catoya at today's Matinee. But, based on their performance of iexerpts at the Open Barre in Miami Beach a few weeks ago, I'd say Reyes has the potential to be a major Apollo. Beautifully proportioned, with innate classical line, a wonderful partner: I hope he'll stay injury-free and that we'll be able to see a lot more of him in major roles as the season progresses. (Dancing with Catoya, PLEASE.) Okay, Cristian. Here comes my defense of Piazzolla Caldera. It deserves, I think, its reputation as a crowd-pleaser, combining sexuality, humor, and a great deal of intricacy in the way the dancers interact with one another. Miami as danced this before. I have to say -- based on having seen Taylor's own company dance it only last spring -- that the intensity, volume, and strong floor work of the Taylor dancers becomes something else when danced by a ballet company like MCB. MCB's version is lighter, more airborn, less sexy, less comic. The Taylor dancers "get" what it takes to feel the despair of a young woman rejected by every man in the place. The also get the humor in two drunks reeling around while the overhead lights start swaying in an alarming way. MCB "does" these actions, and very well. But you miss the Taylor conviction. (Mimicking one's idea of sultry or raw sexuality doesn't quite make it.) It's a ballet about lovely young ballet dancers having fun doing something different. That ain't bad, however. The audience -- which gave an untypically tepid hand to Apollo -- loved it, as did I. My favorites: Didier Bramaz and Kleber Rebello as the drunken pals; Callie Manning swft and stunning, especially in a section where she danced alone with two men; and, Natalia Arja as a sometimes predatory and quite genuinely sexy dance-hall denizen. (Her plies in second position, hand planted firmly on her knees, are still vivid in my mind.) Wouldnt' it be great if 2012-13 were the breakout season for Arja. Stagecraft seems to be catching up with this every young dancer's prodigious technique. I can't wait to see what happens. Lourdes Loupes spoke in front of the curtain before the first ballet. She was charming, conversational, articulate, and clearly out to establish a personal connection with the audience and, during both intermissions, with the donors. Opening night ticket sales were down compared to last year. Was this possibly a response to the bad publicity involving the firing of Villella? Or to the program's rather lame title ("Fire and Ice")? Anyway, having seen her in several settings (including working with dancers) I'm genuinely glad she got the job.

Thanks, rg, for this material. I did not know Mr. O'Connor's name, but am struck by how many of he people he worked with have had significance in my life.. Like Peggy, I'm a fan of the Benson books. Long ago I spent a day in Rye, not to visit "Henry James's house," but to explore the house in which Mapp and then Lucia lived, and other places where they had their adventures. I loved one little touch in the obituary: that Mr. O'Connor moved up to Vermont at one point So many interests, talents, experiences, and friends -- That's the kind of life I respect.

"New business model." Dread words indeed, when it means something (what?) that drives someone with Stowell's vision and accomplishment to resign. Good luck to everyone involved.