richard53dog

I'm wandering a little with this comment but I noticed two of the points you list and wanted to add a bit of my own take. I realize more and more how vital the energy and direction is to a successful performance. The basic material itself is often not enough; people will say "X(fill in your iconic ballet, opera, play, etc) is foolproof and plays itself" I don't think so! Almost nothing is foolproof if it isn't charged with energy and purpose. And there is a flip side, which is contained in your second point. In a performance, even without the greatest material or the most accomplished, polished performers, a performance can rocket up to the sky if the performers provide the spark of energy and conviction. Now there is an "if" here, there has to be a certain basic level of competence ; enthusiasm alone won't do it. But I'm sometimes amazed at performances I see in smaller performing venues . It can be just wonderful!

The Met is indeed promoting this as a "new" production. It is new, new in New York anyway. Seriously, there are a whole range of terms for productions that have moved from one theater to another, co-production, etc, etc, etc. The wording all depends on whether all the theaters were involved from the planning staqe or later on in the process. Usually it's just the ideas that travel, often the sets are recreated to fit the stage of each theater that gets the production and often there are some changes including costume changes . Very recently the ROH in London premiered a new production of Adriana Lecouvreur. I've read that this production will be shared by a few other theaters including San Francisco. This kind of sharing is being done more and more.

Helen, thanks for the write up. I haven't seen this production yet but Don Carlo is a favorite piece of mine. It's really a huge, powerful piece with many facets and the libretto really seemed to inspire Verdi to bring out his best. It's a bit uneven, certainly, most obviously the auto da fe scene. It's no wonder that it's hard to stage, all of a sudden Verdi goes for a rather abstract stretch of music, so Hytner wasn't the only director to have a bit of trouble here. Verdi went for a more obvious, pull out the stops, kind of approach to a similar scene in Aida, his next piece, probably with the difficulties he had in Don Carlo in his mind. Well I can't pretend to understand the logic behind what gets released and what doesn't, but I think a release of this performance is a bit unlikely. The production originated at the ROH, London and a DVD has been already been issued of that performance, with the same Elisabetta, Phillip, and Rodrigo. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003Y58CL2/ref=s9_simh_gw_p74_d0_i1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=1DSQCQ5788GCHP6D61TB&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=470938631&pf_rd_i=507846 That release also features the unfortunately ill-advised Don Carlo of Villazon, but in spite of the problems with his performance, his is still a name that sells a lot of media.

Pamela, I enjoyed reading your descriptions of these ceremonies. The Peace Prize award is really a poignant situation. I really admire Liu Xiaobo for his determination in standing up to the terrifying Chinese government. Hopefully his efforts will pave the way for a better future for his country. But thanks again for your descriptions.

Ahhh...mystery solved. Thanks, Helene.

I noticed the same thing. It's been popping up a lot in the last few days. Maybe someone is bumping it up for some reason???

You know I clicked on the photos before reading your comments and my very first thought was that the illustrations so much resembled the production used for Ashton's version of the piece! THEN I read your comments. Well I guess my powers of observations aren't completely gone yet! I'm really glad that the RB and then ABT were able to stage this piece over the last several years. It's really too fine a piece with such a lovely score to be lost. We complain about ABT and their stagings but they certainly have been giving some space and care to the works of Ashton recently for which I am thankful. Thanks again for the ALWAYS interesting photos/illustrations.

I wasn't really focusing on Macaulay's comments on specific dancers, to be honest I don't really follow him all that well when he heads in that direction. I was going more in the way of when he discussion a specific variation or section of a dance piece and does so in a very detailed context. Or specifics of a certain choreographer. In other words I read him for comments on dance, not dancers, although I follow some of the points he makes about certain dancers. A lot of his comments on dancers seem to outrage those that follow those particular dancers and I can understand the mechanics of how that goes. But that's not what I read him for so to be honest I don't really care how he treats the dancers. It seems a bit snarky to me at times but it just doesn't concern me that much.

Agreed. I find some of the points he makes just amazing and he has a wonderful talent for letting the reader "see" what he is "seeing". And even when he makes a very fine point and I look at this same point and decide, ok, for me, that's going to a more specific level of detail that's really meaningful to me and this isn't something I can really use, I still find the range that his eyes take in amazing.

And that is really part of the problem. It's a fine, thin line where "wittiness" ends and "nastiness" begins. It's SO easy to cross that line in certain contexts. And being in text/print flattens out some nuances of communication where in a coversation a particular comment might sort of "hover" on the acceptable side of that all important line. But in print, without any verbal shadings, the comment is blunt and mean. But Macaulay is certainly no fool and I'm sure nothing that I've said is exactly unknown to him. So one wonder's if the Times is actually looking to add a touch of controversy to it's arts coverage. I think that could be a real possibility. And unfortuantely there is a large segment of today's population that finds conversation/reporting/commentary dull and dry unless there is an element of meaness or nastiness. Like try some OTHER interent boards!

Interesting...All four works are still listed on the "Calendar" page on the ABT site: http://www.abt.org/calendar.aspx?startdate=5/1/2011 I got my brochure yesterday and was looking at the ABT online calendar last night. I looked at that mixed bill and thought, that could be a very long evening!! I'd be happy with one less of the new premieres, my pick to ditch would be the Millipied so I hope the brochure contains the later information. Also I'm wondering if the "new Millipied" that is being brought to Moscow in MArch is the same work that ABT may preform in NY in May

It's a very dramatic photo, but I just can't help noticing that the 180 degree line only runs from the top of the toe of the working leg to the knee of the supporting leg. That last segment skews forward on a slant and the knee is caved in. So instead of a 6 o'clock image you have something more like a 5 o'clock image with the hour hand bent part way from the center. This kind of distortion takes away from the other, much more lovely aspects of the photo

Not bad at all for Nestle's Quick!!!!!

Well, the theaters operate differently in the US, at least in NYC. Rather than mix the ballet and opera programs as they do in St Pete (or London and Paris for that matter), the seasons are dedicated to one genre. So in NYC, the Met runs opera EVERY NIGHT from September to May. Then ABT takes over the theater, again every night for 10 weeks or so. The NYST currently runs NYCB for 4 weeks or so Sept to Oct, then opera from Oct-Nov, then NYCB Nut from Nov-Jan, then NYCB rep from Jan-Feb. More NYCO from Feb-April, then NYCB till June. Ballet companies revisit regularly in both theaters. And there is more ballet/dance sprinkled through the Fall at City Center. At least in NY, we do have enough to keep ourselves busy. Perhaps you are in the wrong spot?

You heard it here first! Good for you, miliosr!!!!!

I saw ABT last night at NJPAC and all in all it was a good evening. First off, the venue is very convenient for me and far less complicated and stressful than a trip over/under the Hudson River. And I suspect that added to my enjoyment of the evening. Prudential Hall was a nice setting for ABT, better than City Center and far more suited than AFH (Two of the pieces were staged for that hall). And it's less barnlike than the MOH. Also, the NJ Transit Light Rail now connects both of Newark's train stations, Penn Station and Broad Street Station with a stop right at NJPAC. Company B was had some good performances; Aaron Scott in Tico-Tico, Craig Salstein in Oh, Johnny,and Sacha Radetsky in Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy. Gillian Murphy looked very 40s glamorous with her flaming red hair but the real standout was Misty Copeland in Rum and Coca-Cola. She really had the audience's attention. The ensemble was good with tiny bits of less than real crispness here and there. I enjoyed Seven Sonatas quite a bit. Ratmansky does a lot of lovely things and shows a real talent for creating movement and interesting patterns. The cast was fine with Herman Cornejo dancing with wonderful elan and precision and David Hallberg showing off his customary cool polish and elegance. Among the women, I liked Stella Abrera best, she's really a lovely dancer, I hope to see her one day as Giselle. Xiomara Reyes was good as was Christine Shevchenko but it was a shame Hee Seo was out as I would have loved to have seen her in this lyrical role. Yes, the piece is a descendent of some Robbins works but Ratmansky adds enough of his own voice to the piece to make it a welcome addition to the repertory. Everything Doesn't Happen at Once is a very gimmicky, flashy piece. To see it once was fun and most of it kept my attention. But Millipied's choreography is supplemented by flashy lighting and very percussive music. Without the extra effects, I wonder how watered down the actual piece would look. But as presented, I mostly enjoyed it and there were fine opportunities for the dancers, most noticeably Daniil Simpkin in a very showy role. But I don't think I would want to see this piece again in the near future! Added to the gimmicky nature of EDHAO, it was done as I imagine it was done at AFH. A few minutes after the second intermission started, the curtain went up and the audience watched the stage being set up and the dancers getting ready for the performance in their practice clothes. As the intermission ended, most of the cast was already on stage and they peeled off the extra layers of clothing to reveal the costumes underneath. The audience was pretty enthusiastic , which was good, and all in all, the house was filled respectably if certainly not packed. I hope that ABT returns to NJPAC, it might be the answer to doing an autumn performance in the NYC area in the next few years while doing a Nut season at BAM. Note to Mods: might this belong under the ABT forum? I had a bit of trouble finding the thread, I knew it was commented on a few days ago but searched under ABT and didn't find it there.

What about "Waltz Academy"...? From the Trust site... "Born in Alexandria, Egypt, Vittorio Rieti (1898-1994) was educated in Milan and Rome. He composed the music for the ballets Barabau and Le Bal for Diaghilev's Ballets Russes, both choreographed by Balanchine. He also composed operas and orchestral and other instrumental works in the neoclassical style. He came to the United States in 1940 and collaborated with Balanchine on a number of ballets, including Waltz Academy for Ballet Theatre". http://balanchine.com/content/site/ballets/59 True. And from ABT's Repertory Archives: WALTZ ACADEMY Music by Vittorio Rieti Choreography by George Balanchine Scenery by Oliver Smith Costumes by Alvin Colt World Premiere: Boston Opera House, Boston, Massachusetts, 10/5/44 Original Cast: Margaret Banks, Mildred Ferguson, Barbara Fallis, Roszika Sabo, June Morris, Fern Whitney (Pas de Six), Janet Reed, Albia Kavan, Harold Lang, Fernando Alonso (Pas de Quatre), Miriam Golden, Diana Adams, John Kriza (Pas de Trois), Nora Kaye, John Taras, Rex Cooper (Pas de Trois), Nana Gollner, Paul Petroff (Pas de Deux), entire ensemble (Finale) © Copyright 2003-2007 Ballet Theatre Foundation, Inc. All rights reserved. It's understandable though that Waltz Academy isn't thought of much as it is very rarely, if ever seen in the US and T&V is part of the active rep.

Thanks a wonderful way to describe it!!!! I've watched this several times this week. It's a bit addictive. I can only hope that this ABT program sees a commercial release one day. They have already released a few of their mixed programs but this one seems much stronger. I'd love to have it in some version better than one of the fuzzy old copies of people's VHS tapes

I think you are right, it's really impossible to keep politics out of the equation in this kind of situation and the producers most likely knew it. But it's all about the ratings for the current season, at any cost, which is why TV shows "jump the shark" so frequently. They are very willing to sacrifice anything in the future for a gain in this season.

That's true as far as it goes and it doesn't hurt to remember that this isn't an artistic competition, it's a reality show trying to snag the biggest share possible of the tv viewing audience. But a wrinkle here is that I've heard reports that tea party websites are instructing followers to vote en masse for Bristol. It's a way of "enlarging" her mother's "importance". And so a lot of the voting is coming in from people who don't even watch the show. They are distorting the voting results. But I doubt that the producers would try to adjust for this. How could you split out the results that are nothing more than a political muscle flex? Pretty impossible to quantify.

Indeed. Thanks from me too!

That's my thought too. It just doesn't seem likely that they can do an October-November run at City Center and then a Dec-Jan run at BAM. Not only the smaller principal roster but that's a lot of tickets to sell in one market, or maybe more precisely, in two similar overlapping markets. (I think the City Center audience and the holiday Nutcracker audience are slightly different but many local ticket buyers will fall in both groups) Maybe they will do a Fall season but keep it down to a week or ten days. I hope, anyway. I enjoy the mixed programs a lot. This year they are at NJ PAC. Maybe that's part of a solution. That's VERY convenient for me!

Yeah, I'd love to see these too. But perhaps some of them will show up in the schedule if ABT does a Fall 2011 season at City Center. I hope so. But we may have to see if they do another season of Nutcracker in NYC at the end of 2011, that might interfere with a season at City Center just weeks earlier.

True but keep in mind that the show is geared towards a large audience that knows nothing of the details of the theaters at Lincoln Center and probably doesn't care very much. And the writers gear their descriptions to this very general audience. (I'm trying not to be too cynical here) And I guess "Dress Circle" may have seemed a more glamorous kind of location than, say, "Third Ring". Meet me outside of the Third Ring??? What does that mean??? It may have been determined to be a bit confusing and not posh enough sounding. Although why not use Grand Tier instead of Dress Circle? But it's probably not worth trying to dig too deeply into the reasons behind the script!

Well, I guess this is a good deal for New Jersey Ballet regulars. But too bad it's the same evening ABT will be appearing at the PAC. Hopefully both companies will sell lots of tickets!