Amour

OK, here is the Ferri/ Bocca balcony scene filmed in 1999, from the DVD Variety and Virtuosity. The press lift (Bocca only does 1 ) happens at 6:17. I also love how when Ferri is draped over Bocca's shoulder, she extends her leg while upside down almost 180 degrees. I don't think anyone else can do that now (Obraztsove certainly didn't) also, they are so passionate! Bocca doesn't just kiss her on the mouth but all the way down her neck! The best:))

Oh yes, I understand aesthetically that the no-hands is superior. What I meant to show is that it looks like the hand-supported one has been done for a while. This isn't something new that the dancers have recently adopted. Heck I think even Vishneva/Gomes use a hand, but I could be mistaken

Yes, in the video Diana posted on Facebook before she got sick, she used her downstage arm to balance during the press lifts:(

This one is gorgeous! Very different, because he doesn't raise her up and down, but he has such strength.

He does raise her up but just once. By then he was already having some difficulties with the role. If anyone has seen Frederick Wiseman's documentary Ballet, (which was filmed about 7 years earlier) Bocca does lift Ferri up and down a few times.

I'm not sure if we're all talking about the same lift. What I think Amour is referring to is the lift at 6:15 in this video. Two of the three ABT's Juliets I saw this season had their downstage arm on Romeo's shoulder for balance, here you can see that Ferri is not holding onto him, and at the end of the lift she stretches both arms behind her, which Copeland & Seo did not do. I don't remember this particular moment from the Obraztsova/Cornejo performance.

Amour, is that the lift you were referring to?

Amazing how dizzyingly in love and abandoned Ferri & Eagling look here, this may be my favorite video of the balcony scene, ever. I don't see any pretty poses like I saw with Seo - just a whirlwind of beauty & emotion

The press lifts I'm talking about are at 6:52 on this video. No hands from Ferri. Eagling presses her her up 2 or 3 times. He's on his knees and presses her up with both hands, holding her at her hips, straightening his thighs as he presses her up. Her legs and arms are in the air. The woman has to have a very strong center to hold that balance. To my mind, using the hand to balance kind of destroys the image. Also then you are relying on the hand to balance. It's much less difficult for the woman.

Wow! Ferri is gorgeous in that lift. Thanks for posting. I don't remember seeing anybody else do that this week.

IMO, Ferri and Bocca are still the gold standard for R&J. Nobody does it like they did,

OK, an overview of Julie's farewell performance. I admit, I have never been a fan of Julie's and I remember her since when she joined ABT in 1986 (I had 2 friends in the corps). But this was an emotional night, even for me. Was Julie's dancing great? No, she simplified much of the choreography (an example in a minute) and her back is just not flexible anymore. Can she act? Yes and no. No, she was not at all convincing as a young 14 year old in love, in Act 1. Unlike Ferri (or even Vishneva) she does not have the ability to convey-through a mixture of dance and acting-youth. She also (like virtually every Juliet except maybe Obraztsova) used her downstage arm for balance in the press lifts. However, once past the balcony scene she did a credible bedroom scene and pretty great crypt scene. I especially liked her decision to kiss Roberto Bolle on the lips, before dying herself, rather than hold his hand which everyone else does. Interesting choice. Now as for the simplified choreography, Julie did things like omit the small, rapid ronds de jambe en l'air and instead just brought her working foot to her standing leg. I would liken this to doing a pas de chats when the choreography calls for gargouillades (like Semionova does in T&V).but once Julie got past the first intermission the acting greatly improved. She was able to communicate her despair at her husband leaving the bedroom through a mixture of dance and acting. Though she did not move me quite as Obraztsova did, she was a far cry from the zombie stare of Hee Seo

Roberto Bolle, OTOH, it's not his night. I found his acting quite deficient and his dancing well past its prime. I will say he is a good and caring partner, probably the reason Ferri brought him from Italy to dance HER R&J farewell in 2007, thus introducing him to ABT. But I found that the characterizations I'd seen from both Herman and Marcelo was far more nuanced than anything I saw from Roberto. Marcelo, in particular, (and having just seen him Friday night) is heads and tails a better actor and dancer than Roberto, From Marcelo I saw the youth and passion of a boy, that Romeo could go from being a jokester to a peacemaker. To me, Roberto walked around the stage with little expression on his face (I sat in row J orchestra and used my opera glasses). And his ability to really stretch his legs, arms and feet is diminishing.

The person who really impressed me onstage was Herman Cornejo. His Mercutio was WONDERFUL. He was able to be completely virtuosic yet serious where Daniil and Craig have turned the character into a kind of cartoony caricature of itself. Instead of being silly and over the top, Herman's Mercutio death was solemn and moving. His fencing skills were also great. Twice, he jumped over Patrick Ogle's (Tybalt's) sword. He got almost as many cheers and bravos as Julie and Roberto.

Finally, we had the wonderful Stella Abrera as Lady Capulet and Susan Jones returned to her role as the nurse. They far exceeded anyone else I'd seen in those roles on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. I only wish Tom Forster had been Tybalt. He has a lot more dramatic heft than Ogle. Blaine Hoven was fine as Benvolio and the PDT before the 3 men go into the ballroom was also the best I'd seen it this week.

In attendance in the audience were Paloma, Angel, Jose Manuel, Xiomara, Tiler Peck, even Isaac Mizrahi. David Hallberg, Alex Ferri, Ratmansky, Sascha Radetsky and Makarova were just some of the luminaries who appeared on stage in tribute. Of course, all the principals came out and gave her flowers. Both Marcelo and Jose Manuel lifted Julie in a faux R&J lift. Julie's children and husband Victor all gave her flowers. Kevin knelt down in appreciation.Julie kept wiping the tears from her face throughout the farewell. It looked like she was having a hard time keeping her emotions in check. But she did.

So a lovely, farewell for Julie. I wish her the best as she retires and keeps coaching the younger dancers, crucially passing on this art form we love - ballet.

Also the press lifts. Do they now just let every Juliet use her downstage arm to balance on Romeo's shoulder? Every Juliet I saw except maybe Obraztsova (I can't remember) did that. Did the arms lifted skywards die out with Ferri? Macmillan would not be happy methinks.

I

Hernan doesn't skip the leaps in the mandolin dance... I've seen his Mercutio multiple times and he always does the last leap. Maybe I've been very lucky.

Nope. Saw Herman tonight and he, too, blew off the last leap. But otherwise he was WONDERFUL!!! Finally, a Mercutio who can dance gorgeously and doesn't have to camp up the dying scene (it was very realistic and moving) or otherwise make Mercutio a caricature, cartoonish character. Daniil and Craig need to take note. You can be virtuosic and not make that character a joke. I was also very impressed by Herman's fencing in Act 2. Twice he jumped over Tybalt's sword. Very impressive. He got almost as much in the way of applause and bravos as the leads, Julie and Roberto.

Yay! Yes, just called the box office and she hasn't been removed from casting.

Does anyone know if Osipova is out of her NYC appearances?

Amour, I think "People do not like Hee Seo" is too much. Some people like her performance including my friends who often go to see ballets. Certainly my friends said that Seo was not "marvelous" and had several points to improve on both dancing and acting, but her innocent and fragile atomosphere was charming and was very suit Juliet. Of course it depends on the person's taste.

Well, I have many friends who come almost every night to the ballet. 4 of them didn't come at all tonight (1said he gave away his ticket, the other 3 just didn't come). That's because they dislike the blandness of Hee so much. 2 others left at the first intermission. A few others (and myself) stayed out of respect (and pity) for Marcelo. None of my friends who stayed like Hee. My husband informed me he never wants to see Hee Seo ever, ever again, not even for our comped tickets. As for me, I'm just sick of what I consider her sub-par performances. Especially, for $125 a ticket! No way would I ever spend that money to see her. And the audience tonight was very, very subdued. As I noted, about 1/4 of the audience or more left before the end of the ballet. So that's my perspective.

That's your opinion and you're entitled to it. But it's not one shared by many, I think.

She was excellent on Wednesday. She didn't screw up or do anything wrong

Ok, she didn't fall tonight, like often. Big deal. Are we supposed to be happy a principal doesn't fall? And you didn't see Obraztsova last night did you? The contrast was totally dispiriting.

I feel very badly for Hee Seo. She's been such a trouper taking on so many performances, filling in at the last minute for all these cancellations, which must be incredibly physically demanding and exhausting...and yet, she's incurring the wrath of so many simply because she's "not Osipova" or "not Vishneva." So many performances may not have happened if she weren't ready and willing to fill in when others could or would not. She may not be Vishneva/Semionova/Osipova/etc, but she does have some lovely qualities of her own that I'm glad some do appreciate. It signals a bigger problem with management if there is only one person who is able to pick up the slack, which is unfortunate due to the retirements, injuries, and illnesses this season, but Seo herself should not be blamed for this.

As an employee for ABT, she has certainly earned her keep, and I do hope she is compensated accordingly. They are both principals, but by this spring season's end, she will have appeared in 18 performances vs. Vishneva's...3.

Sorry but I totally disagree. This is Kevin's doing. He likes Hee Seo, he likes the money that comes with her sponsors and so she's cast. Hee is not just "not Osipova". To my eyes, she's an incredibly mediocre dancer with absolutely zero acting ability. I would have rather seen anyone - Lane, Teuscher, Shevchenko - take on Juliet. Even a good corps dancer. I like Seo in Ashton and that's it. She's very weak technically. She falls or otherwise screws up obviously in EVERY performance I see her in. ENOUGH of her! I spent more than $250 on tonight's tickets to see a very bland technically weak dancer? NEVER AGAIN will I believe ABT's advance casting.

Tepid applause during most sections of the first act. Clearly this crowd was not eating it up.

A handful of people got up and let midway through the first act. I'm not sure if they didn't bother to read the slip and were surprised to not see Vishneva in the lead role. Many left early on, so I can't imagine that they were simply running to the restroom. Tepid applause during most sections of the first act. Clearly this crowd was not eating it up.

I do think the whole cast knew the audience was in a VERY sour mood. The guys (Hoven was Benvolio, Salstein was Mercutio, Forster was Tybalt) really tried. Except Salstein AGAIN, bailed on that last handstand and jump in the mandolin dance. But otherwise they tried. And the guys got applause. After Hee would dance, it was silent; you could almost hear a pin drop. People were NOT happy. And at the end, no bravos, just applause, some people taking pictures. But as you can see in the thread, most left early. Kevin needs to get a clue. People do not like Hee Seo!!!!!

How would I go about getting one of these comps?

Try to calling the box office, ask for Akexandria and tell her how unhappy you were. I'm a subscriber and had already had complained to her once about all the cancellations and Hee Seo subbing for all of them. But basically, they'll only comp you for another Hee Seo performance in SL or Cinderella. Do you want to see Hee again? I definitely don't! I'll be writing a letter or email of complaint. This season has been ridiculous:(

I just got back from tonight's ABT R&J. Poor Marcelo. He tried his best, but Hee Seo? BLECH!! If she's supposed to be getting better with all these performances I'm sure as heck not seeing it. She was serviceable in the balcony scene (though she had her hand on Marcelo's shoulders for the press lifts) but everything else was bad. And got progressively worse as the ballet went on. As soon as I saw her sloppy chainées in the opening scene with the nurse, I knew it was going to be bad. She's not a great actress and her acting tonight? Absolutely non-existent! After dancing an unexciting ballroom scene with Hammoudi (tonight's Paris) she just had the mandolin in her lap. No attempt to even look like she was playing. But after the first intermission, things went downhill fast. It was like watching a zombie. I was in the center of row H, orchestra, and using my binoculars, too. Not a flicker of expression came over her face the whole time. NOTHING:(( This girl badly needs an acting coach. From what I could see of the corps (which was good) Hee should never have been promoted to principal. Never. So many other deserving women. The Shen family that sponsors her obviously has a lot of clout.

I have to commend Marcelo for a good performance and trying his best to pull a performance out of Hee. And the harlots (Devon, ZJ Fang and Alexandra Basmagy) were very good. Tom Forster as Tybalt was excellent. Otherwise the performance was a bust. Many people simply didn't show up for the show(knowing the cast change) and after each intermission there were lots more empty seats. By the end, I think the orchestra probably lost a quarter of its seats. My husband said the Hee Seo tickets for Cinderella we were comped by ABT? Well, he's so disparaging of her, he's not going.

Omg. I am in my seat now and I just saw the note in the playbill. I had no idea.

For those who were refused exchanges, are you subscribers? We are supposed to be able to exchange at will. Had I known I would have tried.

Yes, I'm a subscriber and was refused an exchange. Only comps. For another Hee Seo performance:(

Just at the Box Office. Was adamantly and I must say rudely refused an exchange. I'm guessing the guy was just fed up fielding requests. This is disappointing.

When I called, I demanded to speak to a manager or supervisor (which Alexandria is). The ticket agents really don't have the authority to do much. But even Alexandria said it's been a terrible season, the worst she's seen in her 10 years working at the Met. And even she couldn't do a refund or exchange, only comps. That's obviously ABT's policy, one I suspect will cost them dearly in subscribers and/or members next year.

Yes. For instance, Lane and Gorak in R&J would have been a very lovely and suitable couple in R&J.

Yes!

I think some of the good soloists (other than Misty) should have been getting some lead roles (and not just 1 for Stella and 1 for Sarah). That's what they do at NYCB and that's how you grow talent in a company. This over reliance on Hee Seo is just tragic:(

Don't forget Smirnova/Chudin. That should have been changed (even to TBA) long before they did.

Well Diana isn't injured, she's sick. She wouldn't be risking her career by dancing. But if she's that sick, I guess she can cancel. I just wish she'd done it yesterday when exchanges were possible (although exchange for what?).

Just spoke to Alexandria in the box office who gave me 2 comp tickets (orchestra) to try to make up for everything that's happened. They only have them for a few dates (1 being June 25th SL with Gillian but I had the RB that day). So I'm taking a Hee Seo Cinderella on June 29. I advise people to call and complain. The box office is responding.

Diana has posted on Facebook that she is sick and is very unhappy, but she can't dance. She apologizes. (Don't know how to link to her Facebook page but it's there). I'm devastated and furious at the same time. Considering trying to sell my seats (orchestra row H center) outside the theatre. At least I saw Obraztsova last night.

Ok, here's the link: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Diana-Vishneva/252826048061382