vipa

Thank you for posting this. A pleasure to watch.

Here's my take on Copeland as a dancer. Her body is gorgeous and amazing. I've seen her in many roles as a soloist. She does the steps, is with the music and seems to be well coached. Nice as a soloist. I don't see an exceptional technique, deep musicality or creative imagination. There is nothing that separates her from the pack as far as I can see. Promoting her may be useful to ABT and certainly Copeland has not been shy about wanting to be the first African American principal at ABT. It would have been amazing if Copeland had expressed appreciation that she is a soloist, and sent the message that if minority kids took an interest, one day a black principal dancer would emerge.

Of course Hallberg is selling himself but the to my mind there is a difference. He was a principal in ABT & international star in the ballet world when he joined the Bolshoi all the publicity & interviews started. He was selling himself but his product was really his dancing. Copeland's self promotion has a different aspect. It feels like she is using her PR machine to get promoted to principal and many who have seen her dance, myself included, don't see her as principal material. However it is not so simple. If her media presence brings new audience members to ballet and girls of color into a ballet studio it is a good thing.

Thanks for the heads up cobweb. I'm so happy that I'll be seeing Bouder & Veyette in La Sylphide. Also pleased to be able to see so many corps members given opportunities in Bournonville. It's really exciting.

I don't think you can compare a dancer's announcements on blogs, facebook pages and twitter to Copeland's media blitz. I am not a fan of Copeland's dancing, but I harbor no ill will towards her. I am only saying that her media push is like no one else's

I see no reason why Copeland should not do outreach on social media to reach young girls and teenagers of color. It is a good thing. However, the confusion/criticism/questions have their basis in wondering if she looks at her massive PR campaign as a way of pressuring ABT to give her principal status. A number of people do not agree with KM's choices in who he has elevated to principal, but one assumed there something about their dancing he thought deserving. When he makes Copeland a principal (as I'm sure he will) a lot of people will question his reasons. I can't think of a principal in ABT or any other company who used such massive PR. The Russian defectors had a lot of press, but it was not self initiated. Copeland is really alone in this, as far as I can see, in the field of ballet.

I agree Abatt. I would be shocked but delighted if Lane got promoted. Other than 1 shot at Coppelia and a nice role in Tempest she hasn't been given anything new for a while, although maybe it is a good sign that she got cast as Aurora in the new SB production. If KM was thinking of promoting her, I would think he'd be testing her out in some of Reyes usual roles. Copeland has been given a lot of new roles this year including Rodeo a Reyes role. I see Copeland's promotion as a sure thing. Abrera could be promoted, she's been doing principal roles for a long time. Although I don't see much change in her casting. Copeland is the only one of the 3 who has been given a lot of new principal roles.

I just want to add that few women period are in senior positions in major ballet companies. Lordes Lopez, who I believe is Cuban, is a notable exception. She was an amazing dancer in NYCB and is AD of Miami City Ballet. I don't know what you mean by overpraising Virginia Johnson. I've been watching dance for a long time, saw her dance and don't think overpraising is possible. She was a wonderful artist in every way. In my opinion, Misty Copeland is not half the dancer that Johnson or Debra Austin were. I believe that that is the dissonance the many ballet fans feel. There is the feeling that Copeland's fame is coming from her PR push not from her dancing. If she is promoted to principal dancer at ABT, as I am sure she will be, there will always remain doubt as to why. DTH at the moment is not a first or even second class company. I saw them recently in New York. I wouldn't be dismissive of them, but the truth is that they have a lot of building to do.

Nicely stated. In thinking about companies around the country and rep, my take is that every company should have and maintain acknowledged masterpieces. Those works help dancers develop and help audiences understand ballet. Having Serenade or 4 t's or Apollo in a rep can be invaluable regardless of how many other companies are doing those ballets. When it comes to having new works done on a company, I think most companies could be a bit adventurous and not simply go to the 3 or 4 choreographers everyone else is using. NYC is a different animal IMO. The company has such a rich and varied rep or wonderful pieces that fans and audiences feel cheated when too many performances are given over to experiments. Most companies do not have that problem.

I also agree on that point Amy.

Sorry, I was not clear I can see that. I meant that companies should give more opportunities to lesser known newcomers and encourage local talent. Within any company there might be someone with a choreographic talent. I just think this would be a way for companies to differentiate themselves, instead of being just another company doing new works by the same people every other company is hiring.

Interesting points. Personally I think it's a good idea for any company to have some masterpieces in the rep for the sake of dancer development and audiences who wouldn't otherwise be exposed to the work. Some Balanchine makes sense. Ashton and Tudor also make sense. Tudor is somewhat problematic because there are not a lot of ballets and they take a lot of rehearsal time. Personally I'm fine with no Fokine. I don't think the works are audience pleasers or foster growth in dancers. The part that troubles me is the selection of live/trendy choreographers. Peck, Ratmansky, Wheeldon, Scarlett. They are not big enough names to attract an audience and they have mixed critical reaction. I'm not sure why AD's hire them.

Thanks for the advise Amour. I did call the box office and got some tickets but was told that certain sections were not available for certain dates. I looked online this evening and saw that sections had opened up for some performances. A La Sylphide date that had 0 tickets in 3rd or 4th ring 2 days ago suddenly has a bunch in 3rd ring and some in 4th ring. I think this is part of their pricing/seating plan. It must be working for them or they wouldn't be doing it.

Does anyone understand the ticket availability and pricing? I went to the site to look for tickets. Some dates have no 3rd or 4th ring available. Some dates say something like 12 tickets available in 4th ring (all horrible seats). Some dates gave crazy numbers as far as available seats. I am tempted to take my chances and go to the David Rubenstein atruim for day of discount seats to see what's available. Don't live far so it's not a problem in terms of plans. Any thoughts?

The substitutes for lead roles at the Met season are always people who are scheduled to preform the role or imports (Kochetkova for Cojocaru in SL), but it doesn't have to be that way. I would never suggest that casting relies on who happens to be hanging around the theater. Abatt I think most people know better. I am only saying that there are probably company members who know the role, and with this much notice could be given the chance. When the company tours and there are injuries dancers learn roles. Sometimes they never actually perform them. Just as one example i heard Sarah Lane say in an interview that she learned Juliette while on tour because there was a possibility Hee Seo wouldn't be able to perform. Seo performed and Lane never did it, but she learned it. My point is only to dispute the likely hood that a company member would have to be taught from scratch. There are probably company members who know the role and IMO it would be good for ABT if they developed their own dancers and gave them more opportunities.

I wish they would tell us who was dancing.

There could be someone under studying who has not done it. Lots of dancers learn roles and then for one reason or another don't get to do them. I don't know about his role specifically but it would surprise me if no one in the company knew it.

Don't know if I should be putting this here but on her FB page Sarah Lane said she and Joseph Gorak were doing Theme & Variations pas this afternoon at 3 - live stream Guggenheim works series.

I have to disagree that abt audiences think little of Cojocaru. She is a star and a unique talent. Some of her performances are highlights of my ballet going.I was disappointed by her Swan Lake cancellations but would still like to see it. In this case I am objecting to any guest filling in, not specifically Cojocaru. It would have been a good opportunity for a home team player.

I think both times Cojocaru backed out it was Swan Lake (I had tickets for both of those and was really disappointed). She did all her other roles and I think it unlikely that she'll back out of this. She is a unique and amazing artist BUT I wish they had stuck with the home team and given someone an opportunity. This a perfect chance to help someone develop. It's like KM doesn't trust the talent in the company.

Yeah. I'm glad to see them both back. I have an Apollo ticket for the following Tues. wonder if it will be a different cast. I think Adrian D-W will be good in the role.

Tapfan I'm not sure exactly what you are trying to say. I believe the hype is unfortunate because it makes it difficult to separate self promotion from accomplishment. I disagree that it doesn't take away from other deserving dancers. It is a zero sum game. Every opportunity given to one dancer means others lose out. As far as DTH not being a major company. That is the truth but neither is the Washington Ballet yet ticket prices soared for Copeland's performances. The dancers at DTH - corps, soloists and principals demonstrate the possibility of a career in ballet for African-American dancers every day but ticket sales are not good. So I guess what I'm asking - Has Copeland's publicity created a cult of personality or is she truly bringing a more diverse audience to the ballet? Will anyone new to ballet, who paid to see Misty Copeland do Swan Lake, come to the ballet again?

The one review I read called Copeland's Swan Lake a "work in progress." To my mind that's what it should be. The hype is very unfortunate. I truly don't know what to make of the ticket prices and the reported audience reaction to her entrance, as if she was an established star. Perhaps she's an established star to an audience that is totally non-critical in terms of ballet. These are difficult questions. As a long time ballet fan, I confess I've never been impressed by Copeland's imagination as an artist. If her amazing PR machine translates into more kids of color being interested in ballet and better ticket sales for DTH I'm all for her self promotion. The jury is still out.

Thank you abatt. I was going to buy a ticket based on Lane-Cornejo. Glad I waited. I think I'll wait a while longer. They are not going to sell out.

Is Carrie Imler not cast?