Amour

Well, maybe to aspire to but Olesya is just wonderful, one of my favorite Mariinsky dancers. I like Sarah but she's never going to be anywhere near Olesya (who may be younger than Sarah, I'm not sure). Really, no one at ABT except Diana (who is, of course a Mariinsky dancer) is anywhere near that level of accomplishment. But ok, an aspirational goal. Also, maybe Obraztsova (who is also tiny and, IMO, not as good as Olesya) could be someone more realistic to aspire to. I know Obraztsova is now a Bolshoi principal but that was because Fateyev made it clear she was going to go nowhere at the Mariinsky.

When I had friends in ABT in the 1980's they brought me to watch performances, not in the wings, but above them, a bit below where the lights are. I'd get my own chair and everything. (There's a wooden platform up there) But, frankly, the view stinks. I'd much rather watch from out front.

Novikova is perfection. I believe the only reason she hasn't been promoted to principal by the Mariinsky is she's constantly pregnant (I think 3 babies in 4 years-she's married to Leonid Sarafanov). She's now pregnant again with her 4th. You can't promote someone constantly on maternity leave:(

Thank you vagansmom. What a great comment! I'll look for that explanation:))

For me, dancing "small" is primarily a problem with projection, lack of stage presence, charisma, etc. Then it also has to do with really stretching your limbs out to the max they will go. This may be something that can be improved on (of course, so is stage presence) but is also hindered by a dancer's technical limitations. Many dancers, for example, probably do not have the extremely flexible back that Diana V has so they can't to the renversées or cambrés like she does. But Kochetkova (who can't be more than 5') is a dancer who dances much bigger than her size. Sarah did not do that, IMO. That's what I meant by dancing "small".

What does that even mean? "Curated". I'm confused. I know what a curator does in an art museum, but ballet? I don't get it.

OMG, you have got to be kidding me. Wow, that PR machine Misty has is working triple overtime!P.S. Just looked up the offer on the Smyth website. The offer also includes 2 complimentary drinks. There is a disclaimer that not all performances feature Misty. The offer on the hotel website says nothing about a stage door meeting. Still, what a PR stunt:((

Assuming they have a men's class at ABT, I'm sure there's nothing preventing the women from taking it. Men's classes are full of jumping. A common strategy for female dancers to improve their strength and jumps.

If I could "like" posts here, I'd "like" that one 100x.LOL

I thought SB tonight, without the benefit of Diana, Veronika, Marcelo, Stella and Daniil, looked like a totally different ballet, and not in a good way. I was all too aware of the changes in the Lilac Fairy variation and the fact that Prince Desiré's role has essentially been reduced to nothing. Frankly, where on Monday I was wowed, tonight I thought the ballet was boring. The Vision Scene didn't come off well at all and really only the 3rd act was fun, with more familiar choreography. And to think we'll have this ballet for years. I just don't know:(

About Sarah, I love her, but this choreography doesn't really suit her. She is classical but tends to dance small. For example, the renversées Diana did on Monday were really full. Diana put her whole back into it. Sarah kind of just stuck her head and shoulders for a minute to the back. And all the low legs, no flashy fish dives? I mean Sarah did well ienough in the Rose Adagio balances (though she slipped and fell on her butt a few minutes later). Also, her solo variation in the wedding pas was done very well. But, again, these low legs are not flattering to a small dancer. And if you're small, you have to do everything very full out (like those renversēes). Also you need more stage presence and charisma. Not the fake kind, like Misty, but look at Sterling Hyltin or Makarova (she's tiny) or Misha or Nureyev. Even Stella has more stage presence lately. Of I course, if you don't dance enough, it's hard to do this. But whenever she's on stage Sarah needs, IMO, to be able to project more, be more dramatic, even. Then I think we'd see more improvement and maybe more roles.

As Bluebird, I definitely did not like Gabe Stone Shayer. He can jump but lacks both the quick footwork and the pliancy in the torso to get those beats really front and back. Daniil was much better on Monday. But BOTH of them could take a lesson fron NYCB's Anthony Huxley. Between his James and his Oberon, you can see Anthony really has GREAT batterie. Just goes to show you how much this new SB is like Bournonville. Misty as Florine, Blech. No she didn't fall off her hops but there are only 3 hops on each leg. Is that so unmanageable? There are more hops in the 1st Shade variation in Bayadère. And my husband, who sometimes defends Misty, saw her variation and gave me the thumbs down. Just not interesting or delicate and she always projects that same fake smile persona, whether it's appropriate to the role or not.

Canbelto, talk about sloppy, the corps fairies were a mess tonight. When (maybe after the garland scene?) every leg in arabesque on stage right was at a different height. I felt like shouting at them to just peek over at each other and fix that mess. Geez.

On Monday I saw Bella as the Diamond Fairy and tonight I saw Skylar and I feel just the reverse. Bella has a bigger jump but her upper body, I think is terrible, especially her arms and those floppy wrists drive me crazy. I thought Skylar is beautifully proportioned and has lovely upper body, especially those expressive arms. Although, with the exception of Herman and Skylar, I thought no one in tonight's cast looked very good, especially compared to Monday.

Unlike Misty, who works the PR machine like the pro she is, Sarah was suddenly up against some real heavyweights for.....speaking the truth! She did, in fact, do Natalie Portman's dancing. But telling the truth pitted her against a director who wanted an Academy Award (Aaronofsky) and choreographer Benjamin Millepied. It was certainly not a comfortable situation for her.

Exactly! Dancers whose slight improvements are as slow and unsteady as Seo's would likely never have made it past the corps in NYCB or, more likely, never made it into the company at all. At least we saw Erica learned Raymonda in 1 day and by her 3rd performance was already much , much better. And she's only a soloist. But that's why NYCB is doing so well and ABT is hanging on for dear life.

Erica improved with 3 performances! I haven't seen an improvement in Hee Seo in 2 years:(

Compared to Kevin, I think Peter is a genius. And knows how to develop NYCB, something sorely missing from ABT. I won't give money as a patron/donor until he's replaced.

Pathetic, just pathetic:( So glad I exchanged my ticket yesterday.

Sometimes I think our assessment of dancers depends on who else is dancing in the same performance. On Monday night, Diana V was Aurora, Veronika was the Lilac Fairy and both Sarah and Stella were prologue fairies. Boylston was the Diamond fairy and compared to the refinement and elegance of these other 4 she was well.....very underwhelming and looked inelegant. She has a nice jump but her upper body, especially her arms and hands (those wrists:() are just not up to snuff.. I hate to think what will happen to ABT in a few years when/if Diana, Polina and Gilliian retire.

I have to say when I heard about this stuff, abatt, especially the foot contraption I felt crushed. Actually, crushed and deceived. Ashley Bouder wouldn't need any such contraption to hold her super long balances; we see them all the time. And the unsupported cambree seemed too good to be true. I guess it was. Still there's much to like in this production.

That has ALWAYS been the case before. I did call later and spoke to a manager. Hopefully, she will credit my account:) She said she's been with the Met for 10 years and has never received as many complaints as this year.

FINALLY! Took them long enough to announce it. I expect Osipova will also be out of all the RB NYC performances as well:( Wishing her well and a speedy recovery. Being injured is so tough mentally and emotionally, not just physically.Very glad I exchanged that seat earlier today, around 3pm. I got a seat to see a second performance of Diana in SB this Saturday:) I was just not willing to wait around to see who Kevin casts in R&J in her place. I fear it will be Seo:(

I did call the ABT ticket office to complain today. The manager said she's been with the Met for 10 years and has never seen anything like this season. SO many complaints. She was very nice about my problem with exchanging (and everything else I complained about). She promised to get back to me tomorrow and told me the name of the ABT guy who deals with the Met (which, unfortunately I promptly forgot). So if you want to complain, call 212-362-6000 and ask for Alexndria.

I really dislike that about this new site. Before, I could go to the box office and ask for a particular seat. Now you can only see the row:(