I am a student at the school so I was in the Gala and am glad to hear that it went well.
I also attended the preview show last night (wed.). I thought it was WONDERFUL! Michele Jimenez was gorgeous and always does a beautiful job in my opinion:clapping: . The other standouts were Jason Hartley, and Alvaro Palau - they were Romeo's sidekicks. I liked the trios that they did - they were very energetic and together! I also particularly enjoyed the trio of Kara Cooper, Maki Onuki, and Jonathon Jordan. They were a comical act and they looked like they were having fun which I like to be able to sense while watching ballet. I thought the company as a whole looked very nice. The corps members looked very well rehearsed.
To comment on the flat shoes instead of pointe - I agree that it is a bit out of the ordinary however it was nice not to have the extra noise of pointe shoes clunking around on stage!
I also believe that Jared is back in the company for good and will be dancing Romeo with Elizabeth Gaither.
As far as the noises coming from on/backstage, I couldn't hear them as in I was seated in row X( :rolleyes: ), however that isn't a good thing at all!
OVERALL EXCELLENT SHOW!