sneds

Greetings!

Sylve has been cast for the Week of Jan 20-25, which is a good sign.

The cast change last night was not unexpected-the first cast, for whatever reason, did two performances last week, so it made sense to let Borree, Hubbe & Co do both performances this week. Otherwise one cast would have been doing three of four performances, and it's hardly fair to have dancers debut in a role and then not dance it again that season (injuries, illness etc. excepting).

And you should always check lobby casting if you can. Online casting is often only changed on Wednesdays when the new casting goes up. But, sometimes they don't update the current casting when they update it. The lobby boards are updated for every cast change.

Kate

Hi!

Thank you all again for your wonderful reviews! For those of us too far away to enjoy the Centennial Season live, the reviews bring it to life!

Tom Gold has one of the major roles in Susan Stroman's new ballet, so perhaps they were keeping him fresh for the premiere later this week. As for Sylve, that is very worrying....the only time I've seen a role switched was in The Nutcracker, when someone else appeared as the Candycane in the finale. However, I'm pretty sure that it was to allow the first dancer to leave early, and involved a dancer who was not otherwise performing.

Already, it sounds like the stress of performing so many new and new-to-the-recent repertory ballets is taking it's toll on the company. Taylor and Whelan are out, Bouder was replaced in "Harlequinade", Millepied (resting for Harlequinade?) and Woetzel (who sounds like he's just fine) were replaced in "Donizetti Variations", and now Sylve and Gold. It's probably a combination of plain old bad luck, the usual chronic injuries and lots of guesting in other companies' Balanchine events. I do hope they are intelligent with casting and resting the injured dancers, as with all the debuts in the Spring Season, the tours in Washington, California, Saratoga and Japan, there's not a whole lot of down time in the next year.

Kate

Hi!

NYCB does have student tickets, though the availability changes week to week. For instance, this past week, they were available for all shows except the weekend matinees. You can order tickets online (I've had the best luck ordering online just after midnight)or buy them at the box office.

To find out when tickets are available-info for each week is posted on Monday- and to order them online (unitl 3pm) you can go to:

http://www.nycballet.com/nycballet/html/ti...studentrush.asp

However, if you are going, I would't count on tickets being available in the afternoon. I'm not sure whether by "next week", you mean this coming week or the week of Jan.19, but both may limited as far as student tickets-this week is full of debuts, and the following Thursday is Balanchine's birthday, and is sold out for all but the back of the 4th ring (at least via the web).

Another option, if you might be coming back for another performance, is to join the 4th ring society, which is about $15 for winter and spring seasons, and entitles you to $12 tickets in the 4th ring, which can be bought anytime, for any performance.

As to Dr. Hamilton's office...I've never been there, but if it's on 58th (between 8th & 9th I think), it's about a ten minute walk from Lincoln Center (traffic lights permitting!). If the weather isn't pleasant, you can always hop on the subway at Columbus Circle (59th) and go one stop up to Lincoln Center.

Hope this helps!

Kate

Hi!

I grew up watching Li at the Houston Ballet, and was really excited to read the book. It is now available on both amazon.com and amazon.co.uk, and it's a must read!

Kate

Hi!

Another great night at "The Nutcracker" on Friday (19th)!!

Alexandra Ansanelli was wonderful again, but seemed more restrained than on Tuesday night. Not that it was in any way a bad performance, in fact I thought this was the best I'd seen her dance in long while. She was more elegant, more mature...giving the role some presence instead of the more kinetic, abandoned feel on Tuesday. Bravo!

Damian Woetzel also seemed more restrained, but like Ansanelli, gave the role an approrpiately regal feel. Woetzel and Ansanelli appear to have a formed a great partnership, and Woetzel handled the tricky partnering very well. He had to plie way down to catch her on the second shoulder lift, but the lift was solid.

I was a bit surprised by the restraint Woetzel showed in his brief solos-he eneded the menage with just plain grand jetes off the stage, and actually split his pirouettes in second into two sections, slowing down (in perfect control again) and pushing back off from fifth (fourth). He jetes were all beautifully stretched and his pirouettes, as usual, were fast and his leg in perfect second, but it was less "showy" than one often sees from Woetzel. Not a bad thing, just different and maybe a bit refreshing!

Henry Seth ably replaced an ill Ask laCour in Hot Chocolate and Adrian Danchig-Waring was an unusually mobile Mother Ginger. Daniel Ulbricht made the most of his very brief solo in Tea, his elevation in jumps and jetes as stunning as usual!

I relished the opportunity to see Jennie Somogyi as Dewdrop and was not disappointed! Actually for me, one of the highlights was Ashley Bouder's crisp and sparkling Marzipan!

All in all, about the best performance of Nutcracker I've seen in several years. Almost no glitches at all, and plenty of gorgeous dancing! Bravo, Bravo!

Kate

Hi!

Just back from tonight's (Dec 16) performance, and I'm afraid there might have another injury to add to the list. Joaquin De Luz appeared as the Candycane, dancing nicely, though with a stumble at the end, but was replaced by Daniel Ulbricht in the finale. I do have a faint memory of Ulbricht replacing another Candycane in the finale of a show last year, so perhaps DeLuz needed to leave early.

On to other performances...

Antonio Carmena was wonderfully crisp and soaring soldier, one of the best I've seen in a long time. Also of note was Jason Fowler in Hot Chocolate.

Alexandra Ansanelli was an energetic Sugarplum Fairy, though with a couple of tiny stumbles. Ben Millepied was excellent in his solos, lacing in high leaps into the circle of grand jetes, though he stumbled on the final double tour to knee (I think that's what he intended to do...). The jumps-to-shoulder were a little nerve-wracking, but were solidly performed. However, it appeared, at least to me, that Millepied was laboring over some of the lifts. Not sure if it was a timing thing or something else, but they didn't look quite so smooth as when they danced together in "Coppelia" last spring.

Cheers!

Kate

Hi!

Yes, Peter Boal was supposed to have danced the Cavalier on December 6th, but the weather prevented him from getting back to NYC from Washington (where he'd been performing with Suzanne Farrell's company).

There was a mention of it in one of the NY papers, as that performance was the celebration of all the children who'd ever danced in The Nutcracker.

Cheers

Kate

Greetings!

Tewsley's absence could have been weather related, not illness/injury related. The snow/sleet/rain delayed and/or cancelled many flights and made driving a challenge. Thus, a possibly perfectly healthy Tewsley might have been stuck somewhere else (like Peter Boal was a week earlier).

Cheers!

Kate (who made it safely into NY yesterday and can't wait to see the Nutcracker tomorrow!!)

Hi!

Yes, I believe those are the seven apprentices who were named after the 2003 SAB Workshop. I would guess that Olivia Lavery is Olivia Goodrich.

Cheers!

Kate

Hi!

Actually, (at least based at the roster on the website), a large number (most?) of the Atlantic Southeast Ballet dancers are from the US, or at least were trained in this country. They include four SAB Workshop alums, two who formerly danced with the Carolina Ballet and one from the Kansas City Ballet.

And on a slightly different theme....would we really be so happy if companies in the US did not hire foreign dancers or the restrictions were tighter than they are now?

Think of all the foreign dancers who have and continue to enrich American dance...14 of the 19 principal dancers at ABT are foreign born (15 if you include Gillian Murphy) and I have not noticed many complaints about the international diversity in ABT (or in NYCB, though to a lesser extent).

I think that the diversity of our ballet companies is one of their main strengths and we should not hire American dancers just because they are American. American immigration laws will always limit who can be hired, we don't need to add any more barriers. As for the English National Ballet-they have plenty of foreign dancers, restrictions or no restrictions. Jose Manuel Carreno and Carlos Acosta both danced with ENB in the early days of their careers...

Kate

Hi!

Leslie Browne is indeed a very lovely person! She's done choreography for several groups inclduing the ABT summer program and the Brandywine Ballet in Pennsylvania.

Leslie did indeed dance with NYCB briefly-it wasn't until after "The Turning Point" that she joined ABT. It was during her time at NYCB that she changed her name from Brown to Browne.

Her brother Ethan Brown is still a soloist with ABT. Her father ran a ballet school in Arizona, which I think might have neen the precursor the Ballet Arizona school, but by that time was separated from Leslie's mom. He died many years ago of a heart attack, but Leslie's mother still lives in New York City.

Kate

Hi!

My memory is getting a bit foggy, but I think Veyette didn't dance for a long while last winter & maybe spring 2002, and remember wondering if was sick or injured. However, he was dancing a lot last spring and summer!! I particularly remember him as part of the outstanding cast of 'Piano Pieces' and as one of the asses in Wheeldon's "Carnival of the Animals"!

As for now, I don't see him on the cast list for any of the solo roles, but it's quite likely that he's dancing in just about every performance in the corps. There are so many talented male corps members right now, and only so many casts for each role.

Cheers!

Kate

Hi!

Definately buy tickets sooner rather than later. The third ring is not very big, so tickets there are likely to go quickly. Fourth ring seats are not bad, but I second the advice on the binoculars.

Also, when you order online, it sometimes works to make requests in the suggestions box on the form. In the past I've asked that I be placed farther towards the center, even if it means being a few rows farther back and had my request filled. But, just about any seat in the 4th ring has a good view, if from a distance!

Oh, the ticket availability page is not always very accurate. If it indicates that tickets are sold-out you won't be able to buy them online, but you can often get tickets at the box office. Also, there's a glitch in the system so that the 4th ring L-O seats are always indicated as "limited availability" unless they are totally sold out.

I seem to remember someone posting that they got a good deal on Nutcracker tickets at Playbill.com (??), but that may have been for very late season tickets that the company was having a harder time selling.

Kate

Hi!

The three remaining apprentices all received their corps contracts recently-Zungre, Georgina Pazcoguin and Allen Peiffer.

Kate

Greetings!

As to promotions at NYCB....Promotions are often announced in the spring, but there doesn't seem to be any set schedule as to when promotes are announced. I'm sure there are many factors which dictate the scheduling of promotions.

Without slipping into conjecture and rumors, my impression is that the general feeling is that NYCB may be waiting for the upcoming Balanchine Centennial season to make announcements about promotions and possibly some departures. I would think they'd promote some of the talented men out of the corps to soloist, at the very least.

I don't know the details of the Movado contract, but it's quite possible that the terms of the contract set limits on how the funds can be used. Thus, NYCB may not be able to use the funds for dancer salaries.

In any case, the Movado funds are probably unlikely to have any direct effect on promotions. A company might be hesitant to promote if they are on shaky financial ground, but NYCB hardly falls into that category. And there hasn't been any drop off in promotions in recent years-only this past spring, which could easily be a result of the special nature of the upcoming season.

I eagerly await reports on opening night and the various Nuts from all of ya'll!! Not much ballet here until next year, though they did just announce that the Edinburgh Festival will include a Tudor retrospective (no companies for the Tudor ballets yet announced). I'm still hoping that they might have some Balanchine (or Ashton).

Kate

Hi!

Thanks again to everyone for the wonderful reports! There's plenty to do over here in Edinburgh, but not much ballet However, I am going to see the Rambert Dance Company tonight and the Royal Ballet is only a 4-5 hour train ride away.

Does anyone have any more details on Corella's injury? I hope it's minor, and not something that will force more adjustments in casting, as the company seems stretched enough with the varied repertory.

As to Acosta, I would think that his busy schedule would prevent more than a brief appearance during the 2004 Met Seaon. It seems that his first priority is the Royal Ballet- he performs again in La Bayadere down in London next week-along with future tours of "Tocororo", and he also is likely to perform with the Texas Ballet Theatre (I think that's the right name now) where Ben Stevenson is AD and of course the occasional performance in Cuba.

Cheers!

Kate

Hi!

Another suggestion about student rush tickets...

Though the location and availability of student rush tickets does depend on the performance (always check, as they aren't always available), one tip in getting good seats is to buy as soon as possible. I found that if I was up late, it was well worth buying a student rush ticket online just after midnight.

Cheers

Kate

Hi!

How can ABT have the sole rights to perform Chopiniana/Les Syphildes in New York through 2005 if NYCB is performing Chopiniana during the upcoming season? Is NYCB being given an exception, or is it a matter of different versions since NYCB performs a different version with simpler costumes & which is not the full length "Les Syphildes".

Cheers

Kate

Hi! (again!)

Carmena has done that role in "Piano Pieces" many times, and done it very well. While Carmena is one of my favorite dancers-his pdd with Amanda Edge in Chaconne was one of the highlights of my Saratoga trip- I do think, at this point, that Millepied is better in the role. Again, one has to wonder about the energy level of the dancers and the possibility of nagging injuries. And if one is already tired and/or sick, it makes it that much harder to get over jet lag.

As he's been pulled from quite a few roles/performances over the winter-spring-Saratoga and now touring season, it seems like Millepied probably has a nagging/chronic injury/ache/pain. I give him a lot of credit, as he had to almost singlehandedly (sp?) keep up a chunk of the repertory when Woetzel was out for the winter season, and then has done a huge portion of the 'Coppelias' this year.

The principals (and even soloists) at NYCB are definately aging, but I think, with a few exceptions, they are all very much principal material. Askegard was wonderful in several ballets during the Spring Season (Thou Swell, Western Symphony etc.), but like everyone he has his on and off days and is probably pretty tired (he and Ansanelli are scheduled to dance in Paris next week!). Woetzel looked completely rejuvenated and reinvigorated in the spring after the longest injury layoff of his career, and his pirouettes are as fast and dead centered as ever. I am thrilled to hear that Hubbe is in good shape again, because he worked so hard to come back from his injury only to miss the end of the spring season.

Angle has been injured much of the last two years, and is definately not yet back into top shape. I hope he escapes the injury bug this season, as he's such a talented dancer and partner. When I saw him dance at Saratoga, it was driving me nuts trying to put in words what I liked so much about his dancing. It's a quality of having presence-his limbs don't just go through the air, they move with an awareness and depth-a relaxed, but focused kind of dancing, perhaps. (Am I making any sense at all!?) His younger brother joins the company as an apprentice this fall, and danced in Swan Lake during the Spring Season. Marcovici, to my eye, looked just fine in the Spring Season-he was the best of the Bennos I saw in Swan Lake, though I did not see him at all in Saratoga.

I think there will be promotions from the male corps this fall/winter, and it will be interesting to see who makes the cut. Martins has so much male talent in the corps, and unfortunately there is a limit to how many dancers can be promoted, practically (and probably financially).

Cheers!

Kate

(Who hopes to see the RDB and Copenhagen now that she's moving across the Atlantic!)

Hi!

I have a vague memory of seeing Carla Korbes cast in Serenade before....possibly at Saratoga (?)...but it could easily be a figment of my imagination....

I also am surprised that NYCB is apparently so "off" in Copenhagen since I too thought they looked so wonderful during the spring season. One has to wonder if the dancers are exhausted, given the touring schedule this year. About the only break they've has since rehearsals started in the fall of 2002 is the gap between the winter and spring seasons (and don't they use at least a couple of those weeks for rehearsal?). Saratoga followed the spring season, and then they left directly for St. Petersburg.

Teaching is definately pivotal, but I think between Soto, Hubbe, Kramarevsky, Boal and occasionally Woetzel, the guys at SAB have some of the best teachers around. In fact, I think that the current male corps is among the strongest & most experienced in recent years. With the aging and thinning of the soloist & principal ranks, many of the men in the corps have been dancing major roles and dancing them well. (In contrast to the very young and small-14 or 15 male corps at ABT)

Cheers!

Kate

Hi!

Fairchild has never done 'Carousel' before (unless I've been really asleep!)-it's always been Ansanelli. So unless Fiarchild was supposed to debut in Copenhagen, no surprise there. At one point, Janie Taylor was supposed to make her debut in 'Carousel', but the casting was changed back to Ansanelli.

I don't see Fairchild in the casting, but she's probably in the corps of 'Piano Pieces' and other ballets.

Kate

Hi!

This is a different situation, however from dancers like Martins or Luders or Tomasson. Unlike the Danes previously mentioned, laCour's not a guest principal/ artist (a totally different situation contractually), just a member of the corps.

If a corps dancer is hired, he/she's hired for the period of weeks defined by the contract. (The NYCB contract can be seen on the AGMA website). The first year (or season) might unofficially be a trial period, but companies like NYCB are limited by fairly strict AGMA rules about hiring and firing dancers, and no corps dancer could join the company without signing a contract. So it really has nothing to do with the RDB that he's dancing with NYCB, thus no asterisk.

Guest principals are a different issue. However, when Vishneva and Cojocaru danced with ABT last season, no credit was given to either of their main companies. They were simply dancers who had signed a contract to dance with ABT for those performances, just as they'd obviously negotiated contracts with time off from their main companies.

I think Alexandra is probably correct, in that laCour is on leave from RDB - a leave that may or may not be long term or even permanent. Since he's been getting good roles and is on the roster for 2003-04, one would guess that he is settling in at NYCB (it can't hurt that both his mother and his half brother are also in the US).

Kate

Hi!

A quick question about the 2003-04 Royal Danish Ballet roster. I noticed that Ask laCour is still listed as a member of the corps de ballet. Given the intense NYCB schedule (especially with the extra tours in 2004), it seems that it would be near impossible for laCour to dance with both NYCB and RDB.

Is the wishful thinking on the part of the RDB or might laCour be intending to make a guest appearance once in a while?

Cheers!

Kate

Hi!

I know that a number of SAB students have accepted contracts with PA Ballet II or as apprentices with the main company. As of now, I have confirmation for:

PA Ballet II: Rebecca Azenberg, Keith Mearns

PA Ballet apprentice: Barrette Vance, Elysia Lichtine

When I get confirmation on the other dancer(s), I will post the info at my SAB website: wwww.sabworkshops.org.

Cheers!

Kate

Hi!

I just got the 2004 ABT Calendar, and thought others might be interested in more information...

As usual, all the photos are studio shots by Nancy Ellison. I think some are from/similar to those in her new book.

However, I don't think their selection of photos was wise, given the people who are likely to be interested in the calendar. My guess is that the target audience would be women/girls and fans of ABT, but very few of the popular male dancers are pictured, and almost none of the dancers who were, for good reasons, most often used in ABT ad campaigns- no Corella, Bocca, Cornejo, Gomes or Stiefel. And no Gillian Murphy, who has filled a lot of seats in recent seasons.

Also, given ABT's fairly diverse rep, the pictures covered a less than interesting range of ballets -perhaps because of needing permission to use pictures from certain ballets.

Plus, while Ellison's photos are usually gorgeous, her choice of backgrounds often leaves something to be desired. Several shots were done against something that resembles a shiny, silver tarp-maybe OK for Fille mal Gardee, but totally inappropriate for "Eugene Onegin". And the photo of Carreno in a black costume was done against a dark blue backdrop, rendering him near invisible.

It's one thing to have a less than ideal background in a performance shot, but if you're going to do studio shots, the background REALLY matters.

Finally, the editors missed several glaring errors. It is Carlos MOLINA not Mollina and La Fille mal gardee not La Fille mal garde. The shot of Jose Manuel Carreno is from the Don Q PdD (done separately from the full length), NOT Swan Lake. Also, to be really picky, it's "Onegin" not "Eugene Onegin".

Not that the calendar doesn't have some wonderful pictures, but it does make me go hmmm...

It can't be easy putting together a calendar like this....so many factors...any ideas/commentary on what should be considered when choosing images for a ballet company calender?

The cover is David Hallberg & Michelle Wiles in "Grand Pas Classique". Other dancers pictured: Paloma Herrera (Don Q PdD), Dvorovenko & Belotserkovsky (Swan Lake), Ferri (R&J), Ananiashvili (Les Sylphides), Tuttle (la Fille Mal Gardee), Hill & Kent (Manon), Riccetto (Bluebird PdD from Sleeping Beauty), Malakhov & Reyes (Le Corsaire), Molina & Jaffe ((Eugene) Onegin) and Peterson, Brown & De Luz (La Fille Mal Gardee).

Cheers

Kate