Dale

Never to be trusted and always to be changed, but here is the casting for the Kirov's visit to the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles: Kirov Ballet presents La Bayadere http://www.kodaktheatre.com/ The cast performance schedule is as follows: In the roles of: Nikiya-Solor-Gamzatti October 15 @ 8pm: Svetlana Zakharova-Igor Zelensky-Victoria Tereshkina October 16 @ 8pm: Diana Vishneva-Farukh Ruzimatov-Ekaterina Osmolkina October 17 @ 8pm: Daria Pavlenko-Leonid Sarafanov-Elvira Tarasova October 18 @ 2pm: Sofia Gumerova-Igor Kolb-Tatiana Tkachenko October 18 @ 8pm: Svetlana Zakharova-Danila Kortsuntsev-Victoria Tereshkina October 19 @ 2pm: Irma Nioradze-Andrian Fadeyev-Elvira Tarasova October 19 @ 7pm: Diana Vishneva-Leonid Sarafanov-Ekaterina Osmolkina

To the question as to whether the company will perform in New York, the tour has not been released yet. But I checked the possible venues for performances in New York and I don't see anything yet. Maybe when the Joyce, New Victory, and BAM announce their 2003-2004 seasons there will be dates in NY City. The closest now is NJPAC, which is a wonderful venue. Maybe my favorite. And it is very easy (and inexpensive) to get to from NY.

I think one could look to Prokofiev's score as a problem with this Romeo and Juliet or MacMillian, who, in the handful of ballets I've seen of his, is not a very musical choreographer. In an article by Jane Simpson (either in Dance View or Dance Now) suggested his career was thwarted by the desire or need by MacMillian to make evening-length ballets rather than shorter ones, which he had done earlier in his career. It seems to be the padding in all his evening-length works that makes his works fail for me. He is not a good mover of people as other choreographers are. The pas de deux in R&J are the most successful part of the ballet (and I've already made my feelings known about this work elsewhere on the board and many times). That is where his talent lies, for me at least. Regarding Prokofiev, Balanchine did not get along with him. In a Ballet Review article, Mr. B said that in the old days only composers got residuals from performances. He was very broke and asked Prokofiev if he would share in the money as it was a collaboration. Prokofiev said absolutely not. And Balanchine vowed never to work with him again. And I don't think he did. That could have been why he periodically let the ballet drop from the rep. until he just absolutely found a prodigal that excited him. As to choreography to Porkofiev, I am a big fan of Ashton's version of Cinderella, but not Stevenson's.

Thank you Kate for your impressions. Who else was in the cast? I have to admit, I didn't go because I just can't stand that ballet I think it could have all my favorite dancers in it and I still wouldn't go. But I am overwhelmingly in the minority. Most people love it. I wish she could have performed in something else. She and Malakhov have struct up a bit of a partnership - first at the first Mariinsky Fest. in Giselle and now with Vishneva as a regular guest at Berlin, the company Malakhov runs. We haven't seen him too much this season at ABT.

I am eager to read reviews of Vishneva's guest performance in Romeo and Juliet. Vishneva was interviewed, through a translator, by Time Out New York's dance editor Gia Kourlas. On guesting: "I've never danced this version. Psychologically, it is quite challenging to travel to another company -- not performing what you already know! Time is a problem...." On too much travel: "I worry about my legs with all the travel -- this is living tissue! Nobody seems to care. You've got a headache, something hurts? Just go and dance." On dancing Rubies: "That was the first time I had enountered Stravinsky's music. By the end of rehearsals, I felt that there were b ells chiming within me; I had the kind of visceral reaction that people have at rock concerts. I was so wound up that it must have come out in my performance. It's hard to explain, but often I feel that what comes through in a performance doesn't come from me, but through me -- from whatever is the cosmos or in the music." Preferring psychological dramatic roles over Balanchine: "I discover more about myself. In life, I am like the characters. I am naive, I am open, and sometimes it's not so good to be that way. With Juliet, I learned that in the name of love you can stand up against outside forces and find strength."

I think it is interesting to move around - you get a different slant on things from different areas. Yes, you might see expressions up close in the orchestra, but up higher you see patterns of the choreography (pretty important when watching Balanchine). I wish ballet masters and choreographers would move around. I've seen several productions at the Met where scenary was obstructed needlessly from the third and fourth tiers. I've also found that Wheeldon's work is much better from down low. He seems to play to that portion of the audience. I haven't found that with Balanchine, Robbins or Martins. But I'd rather sit higher than deal with an obstructed view. Many theaters don't have a decent incline. Of course, I guess 1st, 2nd and even 3rd ring are optimum at State Theater - you can see faces well and patterns Too close in the orchestra and you can hear grunts and see sweat flying - kind of ruins the mood!

Kultur, which specializes in arts videos, already has the ballet in its catalogue: VHS: http://www.kultur.com/AB2046000/showdetl.c...ID=4956&CATID=8 DVD: http://www.kultur.com/AB2046000/showdetl.c...Product_ID=4957

JUNE 17-22, 2003 TUESDAY EVENING, JUNE 17 AT 7:30PM Glass Pieces: TINSLEY, RUTHERFORD, A. STAFFORD, WHELAN, HIGGINS, FOWLER, HANNA, TEWSLEY Intermission Piano Pieces: CARMENA, SOMOGYI, ORZA, ANSANELLI, MARCOVICI, KOWROSKI, HANNA [Grant] Intermission West Side Story Suite: MILLEPIED, SOTO, WOETZEL, *McBREARTY, RINGER, EDGE WEDNESDAY EVENING, JUNE 18 AT 8:00PM Brahms-Schoenberg Quartet: van KIPNIS, NEAL, TBA, *WEESE, FAYETTE, *ANSANELLI, BOAL, WHELAN, WOETZEL Intermission Thou Swell: KISTLER, RINGER, *TAYLOR, KOWROSKI, SOTO, FAYETTE, MARTINS, ASKEGARD Intermission West Side Story Suite: MILLEPIED, SOTO, WOETZEL, McBREARTY, RINGER, EDGE THURSDAY EVENING, JUNE 19 AT 8:00PM [Kaplow] Walpurgisnacht Ballet: NICHOLS, NEAL, A. STAFFORD, MANDRADJIEFF, RIGGINS Intermission The Cage: WHELAN, KROHN, SOTO, TBA Pause Tschaikovsky Pas de Deux: ANSANELLI, WOETZEL intermission Western Symphony: 1st Mov.: SOMOGYI, MARTINS 2nd Mov.: TAYLOR, EVANS 3rd Mov.: KOWROSKI, ASKEGARD FRIDAY EVENING, JUNE 20 AT 8:00PM Ballade: WHELAN, TEWSLEY [Chelton] Intermission Thou Swell: KISTLER, RINGER, TAYLOR, KOWROSKI, SOTO, FAYETTE, MARTINS, ASKEGARD Intermission Western Symphony: 1st Mov.: SOMOGYI, MARTINS 2nd Mov.: ANSANELLI, EVANS 3rd Mov.: KOWROSKI, ASKEGARD SATURDAY, JUNE 21 AT 2:00PM Walpurgisnacht Ballet: NICHOLS, NEAL, A. STAFFORD, MANDRADJIEFF, RIGGINS Intermission The Cage: ANSANELLI, KROHN, *MARCOVICI, TBA Pause Valse-Fantaisie: *FAIRCHILD, GOLD Intermission West Side Story Suite: MILLEPIED, FAYETTE, WOETZEL, McBREARTY, RINGER, EDGE SATURDAY, JUNE 21 AT 8:00PM Brahms-Schoenberg Quartet: van KIPNIS, NEAL, TBA, WEESE, FAYETTE, ANSANELLI, BOAL, WHELAN, WOETZEL Intermission Reliquary: TAYLOR, ANSANELLI, MARCOVICI, ORZA Pause Tschaikovsky Pas de Deux: SOMOGYI, MILLEPIED Intermission Thou Swell: KISTLER, RINGER, TAYLOR, KOWROSKI, SOTO, FAYETTE, MARTINS, ASKEGARD SUNDAY, JUNE 22 AT 3:00PM Carousel (A Dance): *TAYLOR, MILLEPIED, RUTHERFORD, van KIPNIS, HIGGINS, ORZA Pause Tarantella: FAIRCHILD, ULBRICHT [Moverman] Intermission Piano Pieces: CARMENA, SOMOGYI, ORZA, ANSANELLI, MARCOVICI, KOWROSKI, HANNA [Grant] Intermission West Side Story Suite: MILLEPIED, FAYETTE, WOETZEL, McBREARTY, RINGER, EDGE

In October, Suzanne Farrell Ballet will be at Princeton and NJPAC. I believe both programs are to include Divertimento No. 15, Tzigane, Variations for Orchestra and Chaconne. The Michigan program on Friday, October 31 (8:30 pm) includes Balanchine/Tchaikovsky Mozartiana, Pas de Deux, Meditation, “Elegie” from Suite No. 3, and Serenade. All-schaikovsky, probably the same rep. the company will be doing at Kennedy Center.

Glebb, I saw SF do Afternoon of a Faun with Martins. I saw Kistler do it with Mofid.

I saw Farrell in Other Dances and the Goldberg Variations too.

I think they are just doing the pas de deux from Apollo. The press release is interesting. It's definitely written for the music fan. I was confused by the Apollo thing too, because they kind of get into it, but I believe they are trying to tell the music aficionado that it's OK to come to the ballet because of Stravinsky and then they go into what Apollo is all about. Or, who knows, maybe they'll add another dancer at a later date.

The Vail International Dance Festival presentsPaul Mitchell International Evenings of DanceFriday, August 1 & Saturday, August 2, 2003 7:30 pm Gerald R. Ford AmphitheaterVilar Pavilion Since 1993, audiences have traveled from afar for this eagerly anticipated series of gala performances. Known for the quality and diversity of the dance artists participating, the artistically unsurpassed performances produce a level of excitement and entertainment seldom seen on one stage. Produced and directed by Festival artistic director, Katherine C. Kersten.Highlights for the 2003 season will include favorite pas de deux from the classical and contemporary repertory. Featured guest artits..... Irina Dvorovenko and Maxim Belotserkovsky American Ballet Theatre - New York City Anastasia Goriacheva and Dimitry Gudanov Bolshoi Ballet - Moscow Russia Ana Noya and Eduardo Lao Victor Ullate Ballet - Madrid, Spain Laetitia Pujol and Bernard Courtot de Boutellier Paris Opera Ballet - Paris, France & Ballet de Santiago - Chile, South America Sandy Brown and Desmond Richardson Complexions - New York City Melissa Hough and Danny Tidwell "Rising Young Stars of Tomorrow" Jackson, MS 2002 International Competition Medalists VAIL, THE 2003 SUMMER DANCE DESTINATION! The Vail International Dance Festival is presented by The Vail Valley FoundationTickets available now online or by calling 970.845.8497 or 888.920.2787For all other inquiries contact Yvette by e-mail at yreed@vvf.org

The Kirov will take part in the Kuopio Dance Festival in Finland, June 12-18: http://www.kuopiodancefestival.fi/english/...h/index2en.html

This looks very interesting - and easy to get to: NEW YORK CITY BALLET PRINCIPAL DANCERS YVONNE BORRÉE, MIRANDA WEESE, PETER BOAL AND DAMIAN WOETZEL, TO DANCE THEIR WAY THROUGH A GARDEN OF GREAT MUSIC Katonah, New York .................................................One often associates symphonic, chamber, and operatic music with Caramoor's elegant outdoor International Music Festival. But this year, Caramoor will add another beautiful facet to its gem of a season by adding ballet to the mix. Four internationally-acclaimed principals of the New York City Ballet -- prima ballerinas Yvonne Borrée and Miranda Weese and premiere danseurs Damian Woetzel and Peter Boal -- will perform on Friday evening, July 25, five memorable works created by two the 20th century's greatest choreographers, George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins. The program, "Dance in the Garden," will feature the Pas de Deux from Prokofiev's "Romeo and Juliet" (Lavery), "Pavane" by Ravel (Balanchine), "Duo Concertante" by Stravinsky (Balanchine), "Suite of Dances" by Bach (Robbins), and "Apollo" by Stravinsky (Balanchine). It was with "Apollo," Balanchine's second ballet set to the music of Stravinsky, that the 24-year old Balanchine achieved international recognition and began his lifelong partnership with the composer. The performance begins at 8 p.m. in the Venetian Theater. Tickets are: $27.50, $37.50, $47.50, $57.50 and may be purchased through the Caramoor Box Office (914-232-1252) or online at www.caramoor.org. "Ballet is the supreme combination of dance, music, poetry and drama," says Paul Rosenblum, Caramoor's Managing Director. "By bringing ballet to Caramoor, we add another great art form for our audience's enjoyment. What could be more beautiful than viewing the grace and brilliance of America's finest ballet dancers in this country's most exquisite musical showcase?" The evening's program is designed to show off the technical brilliance, passion and virtuosity of the dancers. In "Apollo," named for the mythological god of music, comes of age when he is instructed by the muses (his half-sisters) of poetry (Calliope), mime (Polyhymnia), and dance and song (Terpsichore). Composed by Stravinsky in 1928 and choreographed in 1942 by Balanchine, "Apollo" marks the beginning of a lifelong partnership between composer and choreographer, which later led to the creation of "Duo Concertante." In the latter, the dancers pause to listen to the music, then they mirror its moods in individual and group interpretation. It is a tight, concentrated piece with bursts of energy and syncopated movement. "Pavane" is more muted than the Stravinsky works, elegiac and elegant, it is a lament for a dead princess . Prokofiev's "Romeo and Juliet" offers a pas de deux of startling lyrical beauty, and the "Suite of Dances," created by Jerome Robbins for Mikhail Baryshnikov in 1994, tests the solo dancer's virtuosity and stamina. Cellist and Caramoor virtuoso Alexis Pia Gerlach will join Mr. Woetzel on stage in this work, performing Bach's Suite for Cello in D minor. Also featured as on- stage musicians will be Caramoor Virtuoso Jennifer Frautschi, violinist, and pianist Nancy McDill. As a young girl, Yvonne Borrée's interest in dance was influenced by her mother, also a ballerina. She attended summer sessions at the School of American Ballet was invited to enter full-time in 1985. It wasn't long before she became a member of the NYC Ballet's corps de ballet. During the Company's 1992 Spring Season, Ms. Borrée was chosen by Ballet Master in Chief, Peter Martins, to dance with guest artist Mikhail Baryshnikov in George Balanchine's "Duo Concertante." She was promoted to the rank of Soloist in 1993 and to Principal in 1997. Miranda Weese, often described as "a true queen of the ballet," says she dances as much for herself as for her audience. Perfectly proportioned with an ample sculpted style, she is an especially agile turner. ``When performing, I feel completely free; it is only during rehearsals that I worry about technique," she once commented. Ms. Weese entered the School of American Ballet, the official school of New York City Ballet in 1990, became an apprentice with New York City Ballet in the fall of 1991. She was invited to join the Company as a member of the corps de ballet in 1993, and was promoted to the rank of Soloist in December 1994, and in January of 1996, to the rank of Principal. Since joining New York City Ballet, Ms. Weese has appeared in many works from the Company's repertory, dancing featured roles in George Balanchine's and Jerome Robbins' ballets. Raised in Bedford, N.Y., Peter Boal has been called the New York City Ballet's superman. By night, he is a supreme classicist. By day, he instructs the next generation of male dancers at the company's affiliated academy, the School of American Ballet. Perfectly proportioned with quick feet and expressive arms that appear to sculpt the air, Boal became a member of NYCB in 1983, and was promoted to Soloist four years later. He became Principal in 1989. Mr. Boal has appeared in practically every major ballet by George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, and Peter Martins in addition to being a favorite of visiting choreographers. He is a fine technician as well as a lyricist, whipping off intricate footwork and bending space to his will. He has been featured in a wide variety of ballets from the NYC Ballet's repertory, and performed to critical acclaim throughout the world. Damian Woetzel As a guest artist around the world and in addition to his New York City Ballet repertoire, Damian Woetzel has starred with many of the world's great ballet companies, including the Kirov Ballet, American Ballet Theatre and Hamburg Ballet. In addition to dancing, he has choreographed several ballets, among them Stravinsky's "Ebony Concerto" (NYC Ballet), and the Glazounov "Pas de Deux," set to the composer's "Les Ruses d'Amour." Mr. Woetzel has premiered new works for various ballet companies, and choreographed the "Polovetsian Dances" for New York City Opera's production of "Prince Igor." Mr. Woetzel starred as the "Cavalier" in the film version of George Balanchine's "The Nutcracker," appeared in Dance in America's presentation of "Dinner with Balanchine," and starred in Peter Martins' "Swan Lake" on the PBS national telecast "Live From Lincoln Center." Mr. Woetzel has been the director of the ballet program at the New York State Summer School for the Arts since 1994, and is a member of the guest faculty at the School of American Ballet. In the spring of 2001, he received the prestigious Dance Magazine Award. George Balanchine and Igor Stravinsky understood one another's art and shared both a love of Russian culture and a classically ordered vision of time and space. The ballets they forged together stand as one of the most extraordinary collaborative triumphs of the twentieth century. As Balanchine's described it: "My choreography allows you to see the music and hear the dance." According to James Oestreich of The New York Times, both "valued spareness, angularity and extended technique, and stressed counterpoint over harmony." The two first worked together in a revival of ''Le Chant du Rossignol'' for Diaghilev's Ballets Russes in 1925, when Stravinsky was 42 and Balanchine 21. Balanchine's greatest achievements at the City Ballet included Stravinsky festivals in 1972, a year after the composer's death, and 1982. Jerome Robbins was one of the true titans of dance, moving between the worlds of ballet and Broadway in a lengthy career that merged popular culture with high art. Growing up in Weehawken, New Jersey, he began taking ballet and modern dance lessons as a teenager. At 26, he choreographed his first ballet, "Fancy Free," which was transformed that same year into the Broadway smash "On the Town." He went on to choreograph such musical classics as "The King and I," "Peter Pan," "Gypsy," and "Fiddler on the Roof." Perhaps his most memorable work was for "West Side Story," where his finger-snapping, athletic gang dances created an indelible image of pent-up volatility. Despite his great success on Broadway, ballet was Robbins' first love, and he worked with the New York City Ballet from the 1940s until his death. Although he stopped performing at 34, he continued to draw on American themes to create vibrant and innovative ballets. Robbins has left an indelible mark on both the worlds of theater and of dance. He changed the face of the Broadway musical, and in ballet, he created a number of true masterpieces. It's Easy to Get Here Caramoor is easy to get to by car or mass transportation. From Manhattan, take the Caramoor Caravan and ride comfortably in a luxurious, air-conditioned coach. Round trip service [$ ] is available for all Saturday and Sunday performances. The Caravan departs from the Port Authority Bus Terminal and Upper West Side and East Side locations. Call the Box Office (914-232-1252) for further information and reservations. By train, take the Harlem Division of the Metro-North Railroad to Katonah, New York. Taxi service from the station to Caramoor (5 minutes away) is available. By car: (West Side Manhattan, New Jersey) Take the Saw Mill River Parkway north to Katonah. Exit at Route 35/Cross River. Turn right, and at the first traffic light make a right turn onto Route 22 south. Travel 1.9 miles to junction of Girdle Ridge Road. Follow the signs to Caramoor. (Detailed directions: 914-232-5035, press 2). Tickets may be ordered by calling the Box Office at 914-232-1252 or ordering on-line at caramoor.org Box Office: 912-232-1252 General Information and tours: 914-232-5035 Garden Guild: 914-232-1253 Online: www.caramoor.org

I checked on the NYPAL for a film of The Guests and came up empty. Maybe PBS will unearth more films for its American Masters program documentary. Wasn't Tallchief involved in some of those ballets? Le Clerq was, and now is gone.

Unfortunately, the Guests, Age of anxiety, Pied piper, and Ballade are considered lost. I hope I'm wrong.

ciara, welcome and thank you for posting. Pas de deux always does seem to get rather frantic, it's a race to the finish at NYCB! I saw Korbes in Interplay last season and she was ravishing. I hope you keeping telling us about what you see.

Calliope, we seem to be on some bizarre wave-length today Dr. Seuss and "Good Night Moon" were favorites when I was very small, along with the Francis the Bear books, Grimm, Winnie the Pooh (all Milne, really) and Babar. I read my older sister's Judy Bloom books when I was in 1st or 2nd grade and then went on to Gone with the Wind, which I loved and read in one day (even in the women's clothes section at Alexanders in Roosevelt Field where my mother was trying on clothes), and Rebecca. Once I stepped up from children's books when I was about 7, I never went back. But the Pushcart War by Jean Merrill was one of my favorite young reader-type books. Another book I loved when I was in elementary school was a young person's guide the Watergate and another on political shenanigans. And of course, Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein.

Just a heads-up, a source told me that on Tuesday, Murphy and Stiefel should bring out all the stops technically (in the pas de deux, she does, single, triple, single, triple etc...fouettes). And Wiles is cast as Queen of the Dryads.

JUNE 10-15, 2003 TUESDAY EVENING, JUNE 10 AT 7:30PM The Steadfast Tin Soldier: ANSANELLI, WOETZEL Pause Ballade: WHELAN, NEAL Intermission Davidsbündlertänze: NICHOLS, KISTLER, WEESE, SOMOGYI, ASKEGARD, SOTO, BOAL, MARTINS [Moredock] Intermission Who Cares?: ASKEGARD, WEESE, SOMOGYI, A. STAFFORD [McDill] WEDNESDAY EVENING, JUNE 11 AT 8:00PM [Kaplow] Walpurgisnacht Ballet: WHELAN, NEAL, TAYLOR, WALKER, EDGE Intermission Davidsbündlertänze: NICHOLS, KISTLER, WEESE, SOMOGYI, ASKEGARD, SOTO, BOAL, MARTINS [Moredock] Intermission Western Symphony: 1st Mov.: van KIPNIS, FAYETTE 2nd Mov.: ANSANELLI, EVANS 3rd Mov.: KOWROSKI, WOETZEL THURSDAY EVENING, JUNE 12 AT 8:00PM [Quinn] The Steadfast Tin Soldier: *EDGE, GOLD Pause Carousel (A Dance): ANSANELLI, WOETZEL Intermission Piano Pieces: MILLEPIED, SOMOGYI, ORZA, ANSANELLI, MARCOVICI, KOWROSKI, HANNA [Grant] intermission Brahms-Schoenberg Quartet: SOMOGYI, NEAL, *ABERGEL, RINGER, FAYETTE, TAYLOR, BOAL, NICHOLS, WOETZEL FRIDAY EVENING, JUNE 13 AT 8:00PM Reliquary: TAYLOR, ANSANELLI, MARCOVICI, ORZA Intermission The Cage: WHELAN, *KROHN, SOTO, TBA Pause Valse-Fantaisie: A. STAFFORD, MILLEPIED Intermission Brahms-Schoenberg Quartet: SOMOGYI, NEAL, *HANSON, RINGER, FAYETTE, TAYLOR, BOAL, KOWROSKI, ASKEGARD SATURDAY, JUNE 14 AT 2:00PM The Steadfast Tin Soldier: EDGE, GOLD Pause Reliquary: TAYLOR, ANSANELLI, MARCOVICI, ORZA Intermission Davidsbündlertänze: NICHOLS, KISTLER, WEESE, SOMOGYI, ASKEGARD, SOTO, BOAL, MARTINS [Moredock] Intermission Glass Pieces: TINSLEY, RUTHERFORD, A. STAFFORD, KOWROSKI, HIGGINS, FOWLER, HANNA, MARCOVICI SATURDAY, JUNE 14 AT 8:00PM Walpurgisnacht Ballet: WHELAN, NEAL, TAYLOR, WALKER, EDGE Intermission Piano Pieces: MILLEPIED, SOMOGYI, ORZA, ANSANELLI, MARCOVICI, KOWROSKI, HANNA [Grant] Intermission Liturgy: WHELAN, SOTO [Jacobsen] Pause Western Symphony: 1st Mov.: van KIPNIS, FAYETTE 2nd Mov.: TAYLOR, EVANS 3rd Mov.: KOWROSKI, WOETZEL SUNDAY, JUNE 15 AT 3:00PM Who Cares?: ASKEGARD, WEESE, SOMOGYI, A. STAFFORD [McDill] Intermission Davidsbündlertänze: NICHOLS, KISTLER, WEESE, SOMOGYI, ASKEGARD, SOTO, BOAL, MARTINS [Moredock] Intermission Glass Pieces: TINSLEY, RUTHERFORD, A. STAFFORD, KOWROSKI, HIGGINS, FOWLER, HANNA, MARCOVICI

The Garland Dance in the NYCB's Sleeping Beauty is by Balanchine. He choreographed it for the Tschaikovsky Festival. Hans, your point is well taken. I am probably one of those who believes NYCB probably should not dance a full-length Swan Lake, but the one-act, Balanchine Swan Lake is another story. I saw a POB etoile dance that ballet here in NY a few years ago, and it was all wrong.

I meant Pennsylvania Ballet, I guess that should be PB or PennB

I agree with you, Calliope. This reminds me of when I went to Columbia J-school. In our TV news class, our professor went around the room and asked what peopole watched on TV. "Kathy?" "I don't watch television, I reeeaaad...." "Jack?" "I only watch the News Hour?" "Dale?" "Like, Oh, great, let me see, I love Beavis and Butthead, all the shows on Nick at Night and TV Land, lots of Sports, Seinfield, the Simpsons, the Young Ones...." "Ok, we get the idea." Why is it more exalted to sit in a movie theater for 90 minutes-2 hours and stare at a screen, but to do it at home with the TV and you're considered witless? As Calliope said, yes, we're being sold to on network tv and there's lots of crap, but there's crap out in films, theater, ballet, etc... What do I watch now? I have to say I have never, ever watched reality tv shows. I just don't like them. But, I have a passion for the Sopranos, OZ, Sex and the City, the first 4 seasons of Law@Order, Frontline (on PBS), sports (although I can't stand the announcers anymore), and the Gilmore Girls (a passion a share with a certain Ballet Alerter). In addition to Gilligan's Island and some other old shows on TV land and the Food Network-typle stuff (love Nigella Lawson). Although I do watch certain news shows, I can't take the talking-head syndrome - no new news, but just rehashing and speculation. That said, I take Ed's point, not everybody watches the Simpsons and it is strange that a NYTimes writer would just assume everyone would be able to make the connection with a side character from the show. The use of popular references has just gone overboard (although the Gilmore Girls use them, they also make references to history, music and literature).

I don't think New York is the dance capital of the world, but it is a very good place to see ballet as many companies come through town during the year. I remember one year, I saw about 5-6 ballet companies in addition to the local companies (ABT, NYCB, DTH, NYTB) in about a 15-month span. In addition, visits to PB and BB are easy day trips. And if we're talking about dance, well there are a ton of things to see every night. However, I think Calliope is right, the Joffrey leaving (they haven't come back for a visit too many times, either), was a major blow, in addition to the death of Balanchine. Now (and maybe it always was, considering the resident's love of ballet), it is St. Petersburg, with its consistent season, plus its Mariinsky ballet and White Nights festivals. My only quible is, who often does the main company perform at home? They are always on the road. It might be a little dispiriting to only see the "B" company, while the top players are away. Things are definitely decentralized. A major dance event might happen anywhere - one of the most important events in the past few years occurred at Cincinnati Ballet last October, with the reconstruction of parts of Ashton's Devil's Holiday and Massine's Seventh Symphony. And we don't have The Great Choreographer anymore, so there is not one place where great ballets are being made. Even if you look to people like Ratmansky or Wheeldon, they work all over.