rkoretzky

I was there too! There was quite a contingent of Ballet Alerters there on Saturday afternoon. Kammermusik: I don't care much for the music or the choreography. It just isn't a favorite of mine. I will agree enthusiastically with the poster who said it has lost its edge, though. It was too soft, there was none of the sharpness and attack that I expect with the Balanchine/Hindemith pairing. I will be sorry though, to see Sofiane Sylve go back to Europe. Is there really a possibility that she would stay on? Ballade: Contrary to another poster, I sensed a wonderful connection between Whelan and Tewsley. I found them completely convincing as a couple. I am also here to tell you that I am a Tewsley fan!! Prior, I had only seen him do the Nutcracker cavalier--not much of a part, and I wasn't really taken with him. But, oh boy! He has a gorgeous classical line, he is handsome and tall, and I want to see more, more, more of him! One small criticism--I could hear some landings, both his and Wendy's--and I don't want to. Haiku: It has all been said, some of it by me, last summer. It is a keeper with some of the most inventive choreography in a very long time. Of particular interest to me is the courage to choreograph (and dance) during the long silences in the score. Bizet: It was a Wendy afternoon for me--all the way. The second movement adagio may be the most exquisite piece of choreography ever. I loved the way that she took her time with every movement--very carefully showing each position before she moved to the next one. Jennie Somogyi in the first movement was like a piece of crystal herself. I could see every facet and edge, every position of her feet, every movement of her head. Nilas was terrible. I cannot believe that he gets away with such limp, lusterless work when the demi-soloists on either side of him are showing such effort and such promise. In the third movement, my eyes didn't leave Carmena. Joyful, elegant, elevated, light--everything that was missing from the first movement principal was there in spades for the third. Should also mention that the Bizet began with another horrible screeching "solo" from the french horn section. I don't know how this guy gets away with this kind of playing.

The posts on the NYCB thread regarding Saturday's performances and whether Janie Taylor or any of the other dancers might have been affected by the horrible news of Saturday morning have prompted me to post about another performance that I saw Saturday night. I was also at NYCB for the matinee and will post about that on the appropriate thread, adding my opinion to those that are already there. But I did want to talk about the NY Philharmonic on Saturday night as well. The evening began with a short speech by Zarin Mehta, executive director of the Philharmonic, who spoke of the shocking news and asked for a moment of silence in memory of the lost lives. The Philharmonic then played the most stirring and impassioned concert I have ever heard. I have heard the NY Phil many times. I would not usually describe them as playing passionately. They are an outstanding orchestra, if a bit stodgy and correct. This concert was an outpouring of emotion, and I was reminded of the performances that happened almost spontaneously after September 11, and how much the arts became a part of the healing process. Once again, I found solace and comfort in performance, as our nation, and the world, are once again grieving. There was no mention of the tragedy at Saturday afternoon's NYCB. It had only happened a few hours earlier and details were still limited. I am not saying that either approach--recognition or not--were correct, I am not criticizing either company. I do agree with Juliet that the tragic events of Saturday morning affected everyone--those on stage, those in audiences, and those everywhere else too. Columbia seven, rest in peace.

Whoa Jack! Did I pull your chain? If so, I'm sorry, I didn't intend to. Thanks for clarifying the date. I did know that but messed up with the mental math. I won't agree with you that Balanchine's company has disappeared. For sure there are changes and if you read back through my posts, you'll find that I have had my share of disappointments with favorite ballets that have looked awful. But for every performance that let me down, there have been many that sent me soaring. I would also be very curious to know where you do assign responsibility, if not with the Ballet Master in Chief. I also will absoutely disagree that NYCB is dancing like a "regional company", whatever that is, and for the record, New Yorkers are not the only people who use that term. Yes I am a New Yorker, born in the city, lived almost my entire life within the state, and proud to call myself so, maybe I am being a little defensive here? If so, sorry! I don't feel any kind of dilemma, in fact, the opposite. My life is enriched by both NYCB and MCB, as well as ABT, Royal, Kirov, SF, Taylor, Ailey and all the other companies that I have had the privilege of watching. I'm happy to have so many choices. I do feel that in some crucial ways, MCB is dancing a closer version of Balanchine choreography than NYCB is at this point, and I attribute that to several factors, not the least among them that Edward Villella uses the original dancers as coaches, whereas several do not seem to be welcome at NYCB, and this does make a difference, witness Merrill Ashley's coaching of Abi Stafford in Square Dance and the positive responses here. I didn't see Abi's performance but I did see a bit of a rehearsal with the two of them and it was beautiful to watch. I also see MCB as a most versatile company. I drove my elderly aunt from West Palm Beach to Miami so that we could see their Giselle last year, and I was entranced, as was she. I really do hope that I have been clearer on this point. My sense of disloyalty, I think, comes from my years of watching Mr. Balanchine here in Saratoga, and the closeness that I will always feel to him, and to his company. And maybe "disloyalty" was not quite the right word. There is plenty of room in my life for both companies, and if I enjoy Villella's vision of some ballets more than Martins', that's really OK. Oh and would you please elaborate on your comment about NYCB's performances of ballets made on other companies, with examples? I really don't know what you are referring to, and I would like to know.

Well, Company B and Black Tuesday are certainly two signature Taylor pieces that I adore. And I'm eating major crow here--on second viewing, I really enjoyed Thou Swell.

I was at both performances described by foryourinfo and manhattnik--that would be Friday night and Saturday mat. One of my goals was to see something that would exorcise the memory of that dreadful Serenade on January 11. I can't even tell all of you how disturbing I found that performance. I haven't been able to fit another Serenade into my Winter season and since it is now going on hiatus I guess I won't, at least for a good while, unless I can find another company doing it. I certainly would love to see a good, if not a stellar performance, but the need to exorcise a bad memory has been assuaged, thanks to Saturday afternoon's In the Night, which was magical. Foryourinfo, I am so sorry that you found Friday night such a disapppointment. I know how it feels to look forward to a performance and then to feel so let down and frustrated. Again, that Serenade. I didn't have the same reaction as you, at least not as forcefully. Although it certainly wasn't the best night I have ever spent at the State Theater, I did find things to enjoy. First and foremost, Peter Boal. The man is the jewel in the NYCB crown. I rarely watch the man closely--I confess that for me it is all about the woman and really so much about the woman's feet that is where most of my attention goes. But I knew that Borree would be a disappointment (I had attended the afternoon rehearsal with a friend who is a guild member) so I didn't even watch her. I focused on Amanda Edge, Pauline Golbin and, mostly, Elizabeth Walker, when I wasn't staring awestruck at Peter. The few times I found Yvonne in my field of vision I wanted to scream: "point your foot! relax your arms! attack the floor!". Why, oh why, does that beautiful role that requires perfect allegro technique and a sparkling witty personality go to this girl? Foryourinfo, if you find yourself in that spot again, just watch Peter. You will be completely satisfied by the beauty of his technique. At the end, you will know that the majority of the applause will be for him, and that he will present Yvonne with the utmost humility and grace for her curtain call. Davids.....Oh well. I had never seen it before and was eager for it. Sorry to say that it was my major disappointment of the weekend. I wasn't especially moved by the "story". I thought it was danced adequately by all, but it didn't take my breath away. I was beginning to wonder if I have lost the ability to become emotionally involved--oh not to worry. More about In the Night later. Slaughter on Tenth Avenue. Well I love it. That's all. I've never met a performance of Slaughter that I didn't like. Unlike foryourinfo, I thought that Maria was brilliant. I haven't liked her in much of anything lately. She was just too icy in the abstract or the dramatic roles. But this was just fabulous! She mugged, she swooned, she threw her leg up in the air, and yes her incredible extension does thrill me. The audience surrounding us did not seem to be familiar with the ballet and I am sure there was some speculation about who the two lunatics were who were laughing hysterically while people on stage were being shot. Great work from the "ladies and gentlemen of the ballet" too. I left the theater feeling pretty happy and thinking that I could at least enjoy NYCB, even if I couldn't be transported to another place. Well--In the Night. I had only seen it during one SPAC season but I loved it then and I love it now. I found it so much more moving than Davids.... I do prefer Chopin to Schumann, but I also found the choreography just breathtaking. Did I read here that Mr B thought it was BORING? BORING??? It was gorgeous. The repeat of Slaughter was just as much fun as the first time, although Sofiane didn't quite get the humor that Maria did, but I liked Philip Neal as the Hoofer more than Damian Woetzel. You could just read Philip like a book. What expressions! The big surprise for me was how much I enjoyed Thou Swell, after really panning it on Opening Night. I guess my expectations were lower--and I thoroughly delighted in it. I don't know that it is lasting Great Art, but it surely was fun. I went to Borders today and bought a Richard Rodgers CD, with Slaughter, Isn't it Romantic, and lots of other good stuff on it!

BW, I am quite certain that you would find a complete run of Ballet Review at the Performing Arts Library at Lincoln Center. It is well worth a visit anyway, so I suggest that you try to fit it in on one of your upcoming trips into the city.

Has Robert Tewsley done Apollo? And would he be right for it? I only saw him in Nutcracker, not much of a part and I wasn't overwhelmed with enthusiasm, but is he a possibility? Of course imo Peter Boal is the consummate Apollo. For Terpsichore, as a short dancer, what about Jennie Somogyi? I think so! Yvonne Borree-- I think not! I would love to see Carla Korbes grow into that role. As for Brahms-Schoenberg, will Sofiane Sylve be in NY for spring season? My understanding is that she will only be here for 5 weeks.

Well, at first glance that was a bit of a shock. But I've been thinking about it: Nilas really needs a new career. Maybe this is just the ticket for him. I'm willing to reserve judgment until I see his choreographic abilities. He certainly is musically knowledgable as well as musically talented. I'd like to see the guy do something that he would enjoy.

Jeannie, and others: Sasha Cohen certainly did not deserve to win the gold on Saturday. I don't think there is a person anywhere, who would advocate for anyone but Michelle. It was her--and everyone else. By the way, I learned the term for that move that I described--the head to the knee thing. It is called a "charlotte" and a few other skaters do it too. But no one does it as well as Sasha. The other move that I just love is the spread eagle, especially as done by the men. Will anyone ever be able to touch Brian Boitano in that? Ryan Jahnke has a beautiful position in his. I guess it really isn't about the jumps for me although it is a thrill to see a perfect one landed. Interesting discussion about the music. I will say that the sound equipment at the American Airlines Center leaves a lot to be desired and as a music lover, it is sometimes painful to hear badly made cuts, and terrible arrangements of lovely music. I'm not terribly fond of Sasha's Carmen, because I don't think it suits her. I'd rather see her in something soft and lyrical, too. As for Sarah, she strikes me as a real teenager, giggly and sometimes goofy. I don't always have that impression from the others. So I think pop music is right on for her--and I don't mean to diminish either her or the music by saying so. My favorite routine of hers is her Fosse sytle exhibition piece. Re the Worlds--Jeannie, I'll get back to you on that. I am seriously considering giving it a try. If it wsn't for the conference and Kennedy Center festival that are calling me to Washington the previous week, it would be a definite. And it still may happen.

I see Miami City Ballet at every possible opportunity. I have been known to schedule long weekends in Florida to coincide with something that I really want to see. Of course, those ballets that I really want to see just happen to come along in January and February--what a coincidence. One of the reasons that I was so keen to get tickets for the festival at the Kennedy Center was to see MCB do 4Ts. I hope it will be all that I expect. This winter, however, because of other commitments, I'm not going to make it to Florida until the weekend of March 22, so I am planning to catch Ballet Florida at the Kravis Center. Can anyone tell me anything about them? Anyway re MCB--every time that I have seen that company, I have seen growth and improvement. It is amazing to see what has been built there in such a short time--1989, am I correct? I do know that as Villella was adding Balanchine works to the rep, he was calling on old friends to come to Florida to coach his dancers. So he used Patty, Suzanne and Violette to help him with Jewels, and boy does it ever show! I feel so disloyal in saying this: but sometimes I would rather see MCB dancing Balanchine to recorded music than see Balanchine's own company with an orchestra.

Well, the Ballet Masters Choice won't be MY choice, that is for certain. PM must just love Vespro I guess. As much as others have posted praising some aspects of it, I just will not see it again. We were warned about the ballets that are "resting" after this season, but I still find it shocking to see an entire season without Serenade, Bizet, or Mozartiana. And when oh when will we get Apollo again? Reading the review of MCB makes me wish I had been able to get to Florida for that performance. I'll be posting more about that in the MCB thread. Oh and FF: we in Saratoga are waiting with baited breath for that announcement too. All I can tell you is that we are getting all three story ballets: Midsummer, Coppelia and Swan Lake. So how much more time will there be for repertory?

Just another couple of comments: 1. In the Men's, watch for Parker Pennington. He is another elegant skater with a beautiful classical line. 2. Sarah Hughes skated to La Bayadere. I thought the music was not well suited to her style or personality. Any other opinions? And now I'll be going back to ballet.........

The Women: Generally speaking, this program worked the reverse of the Men's Long: the early flights were fraught with falls and difficulties and the competitors kept getting better and better as the evening went on. Granted, this is the way it SHOULD be and the Men's was truly a series of freak incidents that ended, not with a bang but with a whimper and with palpable relief from the audience that it was over. The old ABC slogan "The agony of defeat" was never truer than it was on Saturday afternoon, and I am still broken hearted for Johnny Weir and Matt Savoie. Four minutes is an eternity for a young skater to be alone on the ice, and many of my favorites from the short fell victim to that. Alissa Cizny didn't look anywhere near as polished and prepared as she had in the short, and I just want to reiterate that she needs more time. Even my wonderful surprise from the short, Jennifer Kirk, couldn't sustain for the long. I agree with the above that she is also bested by her nerves. However, overall her skating is still one thousand percent stronger than it was, even last year. Regarding Jennifer Don, she is new to me. I love watching her, but I would really like her to concentrate on pairs with her partner Jonathon Hunt. They are needed in pairs and not in ladies-- the competition in ladies is so deep that she would have much better chances in pairs. They have only been a pair for about 6 months, I understand. Give them another year and they will be formidable. Another poster mentioned Andrea Gardiner. Andrea is very strong. She is a powerful jumper and has PRESENCE on the ice. But again, the field is so deep that there probably won't be any room for her. AP McDonough dazzled the audience. I don't know how well that carried through to the TV broadcast. There was loud booing for her 5.2 and I felt the same way. I would have placed AP above Sasha (and I am a Sasha fan!). Sasha's skating is exquisite, but she fell--twice, falls that interrupted the flow of her program. AP skated to Puccini--could you TV watchers see the butterfly on her costume?--and in the segment to "Un Bel Di", with the drama of the stabbing motion at the end--it was extremely emotional and anything but mechanical, if I might respectfully disagree. Maybe a little bit over the top, truthfully (although I adore schmaltz, so it was fine with me). Yes, Sarah Hughes pulled it together and she earned her spot on the world team. But even so, her performance was conservative, very safe, and--the best word I can come up with is "dutiful". She did what she needed to do to secure her place. I have great admiration for her, although I prefer the skating of others. I didn't see excitement or joy, I did see relief. She is an incredible young woman--a high scholastic achiever and, from what I have seen in interviews, a truly nice kid who makes her bed at home ( are my kids listening? they don't do that!). Her knees WERE bent throughout the program. I hope the injury didn't kill them! Yebin Mok truly was a wonderful surprise. She is very similar to Michelle Kwan in style and technique. Hopefully there will be room for her and we'll all get a chance to see much more of her skating. Ah. Michelle. Everything that needs to be said here, has been said. She was magic on ice and I am thrilled for her. One of the best things about being live there is NOT having to hear Dick Button's annoying comments throughout every program: everything from "truly first rate position" to "now that should have been done much better". It was wonderful to only have to hear the music--almost all of which was Rachmaninoff by the way. He seems to have been the composer of this year. One of the people I met had this comment for me when I told her that this was my first time at Nationals: "Now you'll be hooked! See you next year!". And maybe so. In fact I am thinking about making a fast trip to DC for the Worlds at the end of March. Any Washington area BAers want to develop another passion? Juliet....are you listening???

I have a few minutes, don't have my notes handy, but I did want to say a little bit. As hard as it is to watch a disaster on TV, being In the Moment is infinitely worse. The Men's Long program got off to a fairly good start yesterday afternoon, especially compared to the last event I had seen--the Pairs--and there were a few guys in the early flights that are definitely Ones to Watch. Standing out in that pack for me is Ben Miller, who finished way down in the standings and has a long way to go in terms of technical issues, but who has the most elegant and lovely classical line. Everything was going along nicely. There were falls and misses, but that is expected in the early part of the competition. Then, in the last flight, just as the bright stars were coming out, disaster struck. Johnny Weir had a freak crash into the boards. It happened under where I was sitting, so I couldn't see it, but it was impossible to not be dumbstruck by what had happened. He asked for a restart and tried valiantly to begin again, but it was out of the question. He fell into a bizarre looking split on his first jump attempt, bowed to the audience and left. Devastating. Johnny's accident must have completely freaked the rest of the field out, because no one fully recovered. Matt Savoie crashed too (he was way too close to the boards) and his bootlace became undone. He tried to continue, and then his boot started to fall off. So he had to restart as well, and was penalized (severely, I thought) by the judges. Tim Goebel had two hard falls and two other major mistakes. Michael Weiss saw his moment and came away with the title. Time for me to go! I'll be back.......

Really late, and I have an early flight tomorrow, so I'm not going to say too much except that this afternoon's Men's Long was disastrous for most of the top contenders, that I guess I have to eat crow since Michael Weiss did win it, and that the Ladies' Long was, for the most part, spectacular. I'm sure many of you saw the TV broadcast, but I will post some impressions as soon as I can. It was lots of fun. G'night!

As promised, from the finals yesterday: The US has a lot of work to do, if we want to be competitive on the world level in Pairs and Dance. Personally, the skaters are far more important to me than the nationality, but if the USFSA doesn't want to be totally humiliated at Worlds, they had better get on those coaches because both final rounds looked pretty bad. Let me say that I am still very glad to be here, and to have had the opportunity to see these events. What these skaters do is so difficult that you just have to be awed. I had hoped to see better, but there were some moments of beauty that I will treasure. 99.9% of us can't do this stuff--any of it. Me--I can't stand on ice! In the Dance, Lang/Tchernyshev bested Belbin/Agosto, a reversal of the standing after compulsories. Both teams will go to Worlds. Belbin and Agosto did their Elvis program. Well. I am not an Elvis fan, I am tired of Elvis programs, and I don't like this one at all. They are wonderful skaters and I like them, but in this program they are not really dancing together. To me, they look like two singles skaters who meet up from time to time. At one time, there were strict rules in Ice Dance about seconds of separation--doesn't apply anymore, I can see. Lang and Tchernyshev were fine, a few small mistakes, too. My favorite couple came fourth, Galler-Rabinowitz and Mitchell. Lovely line, elegant costumes, melodic music and and an easy and smooth style. I think they will be going places. The third place couple wasn't especially memorable. As for the rest of the field, it all looked the same to me: pulsating music, gyrating bodies, tacky and tackier costumes. As much as Dance wasn't what I had hoped it would be, Pairs was worse. Every couple made at least one big mistake, most made several. Every couple, save the last one, fell at least once. The last couple, Orscher and Lucash, managed to stay on their feet for the entire program, and were rewarded with a second place finish. They are "solid" skaters, as opposed to ethereal skaters--power, rather than poetry, as I discussed earlier. And yet their silver medal was well-earned, even if I am damning with faint praise, and I have no quibble with their finish. There was crashing into the boards, some blood (not evident, but there were a few injuries requiring stitches), there was a disastrous pile-up of Steiglers--Johnny fell and then Tiffany fell on top of him. There were also some wonderful moments. Jennifer Don (also competed beautifully in singles) and Jonathan Hunt were strong AND poetic. Larisa Spielberg and Craig Joeright (4th place) have some of the biggest twists and throws that I have seen, outside of the Chinese pairs. The two going-in favorites: Scott and Duhlebon (1st) and Kalesavich and Parchem (5th!) were just not "on". Scott and Duhelbon were better, but they weren't good. Kalesavich and Parchem were bad. I don't really see any of these couples being competitive on the world level. I suppose it is cyclical, but the state of US pairs skating is not good. And I didn't really see too much in the way of up-and-comers.

Oh sorry! I did overlook Michael in my first report. Going into the long this afternoon, he is in fourth behind Goebel, Weir and Matt Savoie. I do think his placement is correct. I have never been a Michael Weiss fan. My tastes run to the Poet rather than the Power, as anyone who has read my gushing over Peter Boal and my tepid response to Jock Soto can attest. (In Jock's case, I am more talking about build here, than power, as he is..well you know, I don't have to say it, do I?) So I would much rather watch Johnny Weir or Matt Savoie than Weiss, or Goebel either, for that matter. And I so miss the good old days of Todd Eldredge, Paul Wylie, Brian Boitano..oh go for the really good old days---John Curry! I will say about Timothy Goebel that he seems like such a sweet young man, I love his infectious grin. Michael Weiss, from what I have observed, is a complainer. I don't want to hear it--I don't want to hear that if he had nailed his quad (instead of landing it on his knees) he would be in first. He didn't, and he isn't. And just how long is he going to hang around doing this, anyway? I sound so harsh, even to myself, but I don't think its going to happen for Michael any more. His strengths are stronger now in other skaters, he has made attempts to improve his weaknesses but it just isn't working. He isn't going to be a Lyrical Artist, ever. So there. I am hoping for Matt Savoie to make a great showing later today. Shepherd Clark is also still around, but he did very poorly in the short. In the Ladies', Angela Nickodinov has withdrawn, citing a flare-up of an old injury. I am sorry about it and wanted to see her skate again so badly. No hope for her for the World Team, so I can't blame her for trying to rest her injury. Re all the talk about Sarah: yes she is definitely being held up, from what I can see. Fine, I guess. She has had tons of pressure with the SATs and college applications (having just gone through that last year with a "normal" child, I do understand the difficulties of that process), her injuries, the media blitzing her all the time, no wonder she is exhausted. But I do hope they don't just hand her the National Title tonight, unless she has the skate of her life and everyone else bombs. She earned the Olympic Gold, and that is the difference. [gossip snip!!! A.T.] I have some words about the Dance and Pairs finals. I'll put them in another post as this one is getting pretty long. What I will say here, to tantalize you--is that it is a shame that we can't send 6 ladies to the worlds, and forget the pairs. They were that bad.

Hi, here I am! It is totally cool to be here! Literally. I certainly didn't escape the winter, as a high of 40 degrees is predicted here for today. At least there is no snow on the ground, but everyone is saying: "oh if you were only here last week..." Just like the last perfomance that was better, so the last spell of weather was always better too. I've only been to Dallas once before in my life and that was about 35 years ago. So I'm not finding anything familiar here and of course Dallas has that President Kennedy memory. Not to get too political either, but this is the state with more executions than the rest of the country combined, and the state that brought us not one but two presidents named Bush...but people here are warm and friendly, even if the weather isn't, and coming to USFSA Nationals is an experience that every skating fan should have. I am so glad to be here. Got here yesterday in time for the Men's and Ladies' Short programs. To my thrill, our tickets were upgraded to a better location. Sadly, there weren't as many tickets sold as expected. But by Saturday for the long programs, I expect to be back up in the cheap seats, and glad to have tickets at all. Because this is a SPORTS event, rather than an ARTISTIC event, (something I might be inclined to quibble about), the rules of engagement are different. The audience shouts things to the skaters (not during skating, but before and after), the person next to you might be eating a barbeque sandwich (this is Texas, after all) and drinking a 24 oz beer, the spectators get up and walk in and out at will. This can be distracting to those who are accustomed to (generally) polite ballet audiences, I will make an exception for the annual free-for-all known as the SPAC gala. Ah, but the skating. I'll talk in reverse order about what we saw, starting with the Ladies'Short. This is a very deep field. I don't think the USFSA has to worry about talent here, current and up and comers. Amber Corwin (who has been around for a long while) started things off with a lovely, lyrical program--better than I have seen her skate for a long while. Amber is not especially flexible, but she gave this program everything she could, and it was wonderful to see. She held on to first place for quite a time, but was eventually knocked down by the BIG THREE. Of those three, Michelle Kwan was the star and she was rewarded by a first place finish. Her skating was exquisite--she was relaxed and seemed joyous--truly happy to be on the ice. No tension from her. She has an arabesque that could be the envy of many ballet dancers, and she doesn't rush out of the position. She uses the entire rink surface to show everyone in the place this beautiful line. Sarah Hughes was not good. She seemed tired and out of sorts. She has had injuries, I know, but if her long looks anything like this short program, she will not receive, nor does she deserve, the national title. When she first showed up on the skating scene, I was not especially fond of Sarah. The Salt Lake Olys were definitely her moment in the sun--she just leaped into that fray and conquered it, and imo she deserved that gold. Now I am not really liking her again. Sascha Hughes has been my favorite because I just love her balletic style, incredible flexibility and precise footwork. She flubbed her combination jump early in the program and I was afraid that would set her up for disaster, but she recovered nicely and was clean for the rest. And her arabesque is spectacular. Her signature move is similar to the "head-to-the-knee" in Bizet, and it really really works. So those three were placed in this order: Michelle, Sascha, Sarah. Correct, in my opinion, except that.... I am not sure that Sarah should even be in third. For me, the big wonderful surprise of the night was Jennifer Kirk. Much was made of her training with Boston Ballet, but until last night, I didn't see the goods. She always looked frail and weak to me. NO MORE! She has developed into an enchanting skater, with an exquisite line and a radiant aura. am I gushing? She impressed me that much! I felt so bad for Angela Nickodinov. I have always loved her skating. In the warm up she looked relaxed and confident, but her program was just not good. She completely choked, as has happened to her many times. One to watch would be Alissa Cizny. Her sister Amber also competed. They are totally different skating types. I think Alissa will make it big, if she can hang in there and not burn herself out. Of Amber I am not so sure. Alissa needs to work on upper body--her hands in particular. She seems to be very young and I think she will be a beautiful skater. She has the idea in her legs and lower body already--she just needs some time. So watch for her. As for the men: the men's competition has become so much about the jumps, especially the quad. Who can land one? Who can land two? Which ones? OK, confession time for me. I can't always recognize a quad. They turn so darn fast that I can't count it. So I don't even try. I just look for beautiful jumps that are landed cleanly. I can't even always tell what the jumps are--except for the axel and the lutz, which are the easiest to recognize. Timothy Goebel is in his expected first place, because he is a jumping bean. His upper body work has gotten much better, but he still has a long ways to go, I think, before I will call him a beautiful skater. Those shoulders have to COME DOWN and RELAX!! He needs some sessions with a ballet coach. I was very pleased with Johnny Weir who is in second place. I'll try to pay closer attention in the men's long and have more to say about the men. Yesterday was all about the women for me. Today will be Ice Dance and Pairs finals. I'll be back with more news.

Manhattnik, for the first time in over 25 years of watching NYCB, I too, am fearful for the future of this company. I have seen them weather many storms, I've seen the retirements of Farrell, McBride, Mazzo, Ashley, Tomasson, Martins, and countless others who were vital to the company, witnessed the deaths of Balanchine, Robbins, Irving, Kirstein, seen Farrell get tossed out of the company that she should be running, I've spent summers at SPAC when I wondered who the principal dancers of the future could possibly be and how the company could ever be "the same" (answer of course: it can't, but it could be very good), and I've also seen NYCB in glory, even after Balanchine. But now I am very afraid. I am scared that the masterpieces will be truly lost. The young kids who are coming into the company are wonderful. They have technique to burn, they are strong and they have the training and the desire to succeed. But something is missing. What is it? There are veterans who are wonderful too. Jeny Ringer and Jennie Symogi can pull my heartstrings in a way that I thought couldn't happen post Patty McBride and Suzanne Farrell. Peter Boal is the purest and most sensitive dancer. We still have Kyra, at least for a while. I can't get that Serenade out of my mind. I chose my programs for winter season really carefully--I want to see one last Bizet before it leaves the rep for a while, I felt compelled to see Barocco and Chaconne. Now I am scared to see them. It really came home to me when I saw the Ailey company. There is so much life in those dancers. I never thought I would say this. NYCB looks stale and deadly in comparison. OUCH.

Carbro, I understand perfectly. E Johnson: I was at Saturday's mat, and had many of the same impressions as you. I think you were kind though, in your evaluation of Serenade. Bluntly, I thought it was possibly the worst performance of that masterpiece that I have ever seen. The corps was fine, but the three female principals were not. I saw Darci Kistler do the Waltz Girl in Saratoga a few months ago and her performance was heart-breaking and beautiful; now I think she needs to think about whether to keep this role or not. She was jerky and frenetic and she couldn't stop touching and pulling on her skirt. The beautifully arched back was gone. She was overly emotional and I felt no emotion. Janie Taylor is just too wild and unrestrained to do justice to the Russian girl. She just appeared to be flying all around the stage; there was no sense of the "weightiness" of this role. And Maria Kowrowski just left me cold. I don't even think she was there mentally. She wasn't with the music at all, she was completely vacant. The music. Oh well. The opportunity to see Kyra Nichols (any chance is something to treasure) was marred by a horrible horn solo at the beginning of the Ravel. Really horrible. Like a banshee screaming in hell. Now. My daughter, who is a musician, tells me that the horn is very difficult to play, that that particular passage is especially difficult, and that horn players frequently have problems. I'm not buying it. These are professional musicians. They are supposed to know what they are doing. I know plenty of student musicians who aspire to these positions. (for example my favorite young violist whose dream job would be to play in that orchestra....but I digress). There were some dicey trumpet passages too, along with some lovely oboe playing, over the course of the afternoon. The strings sounded just fine in Serenade, by the way. So Kyra danced beautifully in spite of the music. As Manhattnik said in another post, the fact that the technique has slipped, that the extension isn't what it was, don't matter, because when you see her dance, you are in the presence of something unique and magnificent. Western. Oh man. Poor Nilas seems so miserable. Talk about phoning it in. At the end of the first movement--the bit with his hat and her feet--not even there. Not even close to there. Can't see it from here.....come on! We paid to see this! Jennie Simogyi was just wasted here. Alexandra and Albert made it up to the audience though, with a hilarious second movement, complete with reckless dives, grins, and spot-on technique. Thanks for erasing that memory. Sofiane Sylve is great. She has incredible extension and a fabulous turn and you can SEE her on the stage, even from the fourth ring. I'd like to see more of her but I fear that I won't. Isn't it only five weeks that she is here?

In 1980, I went to the Olympics at Lake Placid and saw the finals of the Ice Dance competition. Since then, I have been waiting for an opportunity to attend another skating competition. It's here! I'm going to Dallas on Thursday for the final three days of the Nationals. A great combination of timing, frequent flyer miles and the desire to escape the tundra of upstate NY for a little while, and I am on my way. Any other BAers going to be there?

OK, I'll take Alexandra's bait and talk a little about Vespro. It isn't too often that I will say that I hate something, but I hated Vespro. I hated it the first time I saw it when I came to NY for spring season 2002 and that was the Diamond Project piece that was on. (I refuse to call it a ballet). I also hated it the second time I saw it when it was chosen for the Saratoga season, to my surprise, because of the extra musicians required. I hated it so much that when I was planning for this winter season I stubbornly refused to buy tickets for any performance that included it. It is grotesque, with no redeeming qualities that I could find. The choreographic positions are ugly, there is no other word for them. Picture a ballerina, enface, with her legs hyperextended in a split, in the air, crotch in full audience view. Really turned out--and really hideous looking. Albert Evans' piece, Haiku, has some similar positions, but in his ballet they are beautiful. Picture a male dancer jumping on a piano. Picture the ugliest costumes ever--bathing trunks with giant red circles in strategic places. I see no value in this work because I think it is abusive: abusive to the dancers who have to expose themselves in such postions, abusive to the piano that is jumped on and off, abusive to the audience that has to sit and watch such ugliness. Not everything is or has to be pretty pink Raymonda. But this. I am shocked that it is still in the repertory and wonder what I am missing in it.

Well yeah...what was that reception about, anyway? I assume it was for big donors to the company and since the performance was free, I didn't expect to be included in any reception of any kind. But I was really thirsty and wanted to PURCHASE a bottle of water--couldn't because I didn't have the pin that I guess the reception guests had. Luckily schools have water fountains! As we were running out to get uptown by 7:30 we saw that the reception was beautifully set up. So I assume it was....after?

My husband and I really enjoyed meeting balletmama and balletdaughter. In fact it was the highlight of the evening. I say that, not because of any issues with the dancing, but rather a logisitical one. The program, billed to start at 6 PM, began at just past 6:35. We had timed the evening pretty closely and were due to meet our daughter at Riverside Church at 7:30, as her rehearsal was ending. At 6 the auditorium was rather empty and people were still streaming in. I can see holding a curtain for a few minutes, in fact 5 minutes late is SOP at City Ballet--I know that from my years of working at SPAC--but 35 minutes late, with no announcement or explanation was rather annoying. My husband has no tolerance for tardiness and we didn't want to keep our daughter waiting after a 4hour rehearsal so we left at the pause. I love Company B. I have seen Miami City do it quite a few times, but I had never seen Taylor schooled dancers in it, and it did not disappoint--not a bit. The contrast between the light hearted music and the reality of what those young men will be doing breaks my heart every time I see it. My husband and I agreed though that the variation to "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" was the weakest of the lot. We had seen Promethean Fire before. The company was in Albany in November and we had a preview of the work--very exciting for us to see something before it hits New York!. At that time I certainly thought it needed more time. Interesting that balletmama had the same reaction yesterday. Thanks Leigh for making us aware of this appetite whetter. Can't wait for the March season at City Center. I looked for you too, Leigh--in fact I found myself staring at every dark haired young man in the place. Where were you??????