tutu

CNN's just published a great article about Morgan's journey away from and back to the stage. Some nuggets: Morgan had to go to eight (!) different doctors to get her correct diagnosis of Hashimoto's disease; by 2017, she hadn't intended to return to the professional stage or to a professional career; there's still a risk of relapse, so Morgan's planning to take her career in Miami "one day at a time." The whole thing's a good read!

I don't mean to suggest that anybody's opinions are invalid or law-breaking or anything of the sort, rather that that ancient adage, "Dance like no one is watching; email like it may one day be read aloud in a deposition" seems more pertinent than ever 😊 Many on this forum might write solely for the audience of their fellow balletomane peers, and this is a good reminder that the audience for these posts may extend far beyond those users originally intended—including to people who are approaching them from a different context. That's all!

Waterbury’s affidavit states that it was two years. On a separate note, there are now filed exhibits that directly screenshot this forum, so be careful about what you post, friends. (If either of the above links doesn’t work, you can get to them via NYSCEF, using the login as a guest option and the case number 158220/2018.)

Not a lawyer, but it looks like the current stage of this case is a motion to dismiss under CPLR 3211(a)(7), "a staple of defense counsel's practice," in which the court must "take the allegations of the complaint as true and provide plaintiff the benefit of every possible inference." (EBC I, Inc. v. Goldman, Sachs & Co., 5 N.Y.3d 11, 19 (2005)). So even somebody who would look totally unreliable to a jury might be enough to get past the prediscovery motion to dismiss the claim. Also, for clarity, an affidavit is not the same thing as a deposition. As a matter of pure speculation, I'd guess that lawyers would use him because he was available and willing to make his statement on relatively short notice. (Nguyen also seems to have some interest in the legal system independent of his larceny case.)

Good lord, this guy... well, he's certainly familiar with the ballet: ETA: Nguyen's Instagram page is private, but seems to be "followed" by a number of NYCB dancers. (If you are personally a follower of these dancers on Instagram, you'll see their usernames pop up after the gray words, "Followed by")

Entirely agree on City Ballet. I think of NYCB as a company of soloists — on the one hand, because there’s so much incredible talent at every level; on the other, because I expect more, erm, “individuality” than coordinated movement among the corps. Also agree that “objectively” is a interesting and likely inaccurate adverb here. I am so, so, so hoping that I’ll be able to get to Shevchenko’s inevitable T&V in the fall. I can only imagine what she’ll bring to the role!

Pointe has a great story about many of the new or expecting parents at ABT, including interviews with Lauren Post, Alexandra Basmagy, Thomas Forster, and Luciana Paris: There are also some great photos of the dancers with their baby bumps — check out that first picture with Post, Basmagy, and Murphy on the stairs! I also loved this quote from Forster:

My word, she is beautiful! This is so, so fiendishly difficult, but Abrera is just spectacular in this short sequence. I wish I could see her Lilac Fairy this year.

My thoughts exactly.

Constance Grady has a review (if you could call it that) of the production in Vox, published about two weeks after the end of the Jane Eyre run.

A friend recently turned me onto this incredible dancer out of the Kazakh Opera Ballet—his elevation is off the charts! Can’t find out too much about him, but it looks as if he won gold at the Moscow competition in 2017. Here’s video from then, though he seems to have gotten more refined since then. There’s more video on his Instagram profile, but not too much on YouTube. Has anyone seen Adamzhan live?

As may have been clear from my earlier post, I was quite impressed with last night’s pas de trois — agree with @MarzipanShepherdess that this was some of the most thrilling ballet I’ve seen in a while. Simkin was, of course, astonishing. Mack is charismatic, has incredible elevation and is a strong partner (Brandt was noticeably more comfortable with him than with Simkin). It seemed as if he was fighting the nerves—he boffed catching Medora’s tossed flower and seemed a bit tense in the first act, but relaxed into his technique and stage presence as the ballet went on. (Anyone else think he could have used some support from the orchestra? The tempi seemed a little quick for his solos.) Does Mack have Hallberg’s feet and precision? No. Is he absolutely flying in his jumps, attentive and secure as a partner, and capable of dramatic depth, even in this silly problematic circus of a ballet? Yes. He’d be a good addition to the principal roster, and I wish I could see another performance from him as the nerves wear off. Brandt was really lovely, the best I’ve seen her. Her pas de trois solo was remarkably strong. She earned a round of applause for the series of passés—hardly the most thrilling step in the repertoire, but performed with refinement and sparkling energy. (She had some minor, minor trouble with the second rotation of her à la seconde turns in one of the coda series, but nothing throwing her completely off). Brandt is so small, but dances so big, and I couldn’t stop watching her. Based on tonight’s performance, she is entirely deserving of a promotion, whenever the spot opens up. Lane was lovely as Gulnare, and I only wished to see more of her. Like @nysusan, I found Hoven’s Lankendem serviceable but disappointing, lacking in “bite.” I wouldn’t wish those grand plié landings in the solo on any dancer’s knees, and didn’t miss them, but I was looking for something, any kind of acting or presence, to speak to the character. Likewise, I found the Odalisques fine but not fab; I’m hoping it was just opening-night jitters and that they’ll settle in. This ballet is not my favorite. Aside from the Orientalism (agreed that it’s odd that the statement didn’t address that), and the subject matter (I appreciated losing the chains and the whipping—both were unnecessary details), it’s a series of thrills with only the thinnest storyline and movie music. But the principal performances tonight were worth the price of admission—a great evening at the ballet!

Well, folks, he did them tonight. Will have more thoughts later, after my brain finishes exploding. It was a FANTASTIC Act II pas de trois tonight!

I saw the Copeland/Stearns cast tonight. I really enjoyed the performance, much to my surprise. To be honest, I usually avoid these two—they're not my favorites in most of the rep. But they were really, really great tonight. Copeland displayed great depth and used her upper body in an extraordinary way, with breath and range and a fluidity I'm not used to seeing out of ABT. I usually find Stearns entirely flat and boring, and thought that, with his model looks, he'd be miscast in the role, but he was wonderful, with clear character and projection in his first scene and real tenderness emerging later on. It was this cast's third performance of the production, and the roles looked "lived-in." (It was also really, really wonderful to see more of the company get a chance to shine. Lots of great dramatic work throughout many short soloist roles, lots of growth.) Brandt was also really wonderful as Young Jane, and I think she'd be great in the lead someday. I was not expecting to enjoy this production, particularly given the reviews earlier on this thread. But I saw characters, relationships, structure, and interest, and even would like to see it again. For what it's worth, I was sitting in Orchestra Row L, and I did a thorough prep of the source material before attending the performance—both factors that may have helped me appreciate the ballet. Whatever it was tonight, it was worth it.

Any reports from Generosa’s T&V debut?

19 minutes, according to the City Ballet website. ETA: Oops, missed @Leah‘s answer above. Sorry for the double post.

The New Yorker’s Culture Desk blog has a lovely piece on Robbins’ A Suite of Dances and Gonzalo Garcia’s rehearsal process: “When danced well, “Suite” never loses that improvisatory feel; like many of Robbins’s dances, it lies on a knife’s edge between naturalness and an uncomfortable ersatz quality. Its success depends on the dancer’s ability to be in the moment, to find that perfect synthesis of self-knowledge and unself-consciousness. When it happens, the audience feels that it is seeing who that dancer really is, watching him think and react in real time rather than execute well-rehearsed choreography. That’s the trick.” I’m intrigued. Can any BAers report on Garcia’s performance?

@MarzipanShepherdess, thanks for writing this up. I feel like I’ve seen several versions of this same work (or at least the same ballet+bondage inspiration in a non-theater space) over the years, and I laughed out loud reading your post, especially as it stands up to the Vogue rave.

I think I’m in the same boat. I admired Ramasar’s dancing, but I don’t think I can do a program where he’s featured. I recently tried to watch that excerpt from the Tony Awards again, and just felt sick — so I don’t think I could stomach a pas de deux.

Saw Fahoury on Friday night in the same role, and share your sentiments. While nobody can match Taylor Stanley in the role he created, Fahoury is fantastic. Another corps standout: Rachel Hutsell in Oltremare. She’s got an amazing movement quality and sense of phrasing, even in the unison passages, and I couldn’t take my eyes off her. It was my first time seeing Oltremare, and for me, it worked — maybe because the subject matter is close to my heart. Interesting to others’ reactions, though.

This seems like it could be a wonderful fit for Lovette — I hope to get a chance to see her in it!

So happy about this. I'll admit, I was a naysayer -- I thought there was no way she'd make it back. I'm delighted to have been proven wrong!

I love this paragraph: “At PNB, we've abandoned audition locations we suspect are less welcoming to people of color and relocated to ones that are more so. We've added free master classes so students can get to know us better. Audition fees are waived when needed. Hijabs, dreadlocks, afros and brown tights are all okay. We used to send only white people like me to run auditions. Now we send a racially diverse group. In places where we have taken these steps, we see change. Our hope is that all students feel welcomed, valued and empowered.” Reminds me of someone I heard discussing diversity in venture capital: If you’ve got a pipeline problem, build some new pipes. Bravo to PNB and Boal for working on new pipes!

Sara Mearns reflects on the experience:

I’m always impressed with Mr. Farley’s discussions of dance — his explication of Balanchine’s Sleeping Beauty Garland Dance for the company’s Anatomy of Dance video series is a standout. This MoMA event should be great, and I wish I could attend.