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Jacqueline

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Everything posted by Jacqueline

  1. I am super bummed that as an out-of-towner I can't make Nutcracker this year, but even more disheartened that the insane ticket prices keep our New York City-based contingency from being there and reporting as you do in regular spring and fall seasons -- when I hang on your every word! I'm sure we would all have loved to hear about the Emma von Enck and Mira Nadon Sugarplum debuts.
  2. Week 6 casting is now up and there are many interesting things to note. I don't see a single debut, unless my eyes deceive me. But it looks like Russell Janzen is returning, and that Bouder and Mearns are both scheduled for Sugarplum performances. Where is Harrison Ball? I know he was busy choreographing a piece for New Jersey Ballet earlier this month, but is he injured...or guesting elsewhere? And finally, a Cavalier performance for Daniel Ulbricht. https://res.cloudinary.com/new-york-city-ballet/image/upload/v1670971751/Documents/Casting/NYCB_Casting_Dec_26-31_2022.pdf
  3. I think you are right, Cobweb, that the company sees something in her. And when she was featured on Megan Fairchild's "Conversations with Megan" (which I loved) during the pandemic, Megan said to her "I think it is going to happen for you." Link below because I can't re-listen to the whole thing right now to support this (moderators, please delete if I'm inappropriate.). But, there are many other corps members that seem to be ripe for promotion, including Alexa Maxwell. And India Bradley, Christina Clark, Mimi Staker and I am sure I am leaving some out!
  4. Just checked this week's casting and Kikta will debut Sugarplum Saturday evening (replacing Sara Mearns)!
  5. Bellawood, I am not sure. It may have been her debut and it was certainly during the same era. I remember being unimpressed at the time but don't recall it being a "complete disaster," at least not from an audience member's point of view. She also talked about that performance and her utter terror and dread on "Conversations with Megan." Now, I'm sure she's a sublime Sugarplum and I would love to see her in the role again.
  6. I saw Megan Fairchild dance Sugarplum as a corps member WAY back in the day.
  7. Week two casting is up. https://res.cloudinary.com/new-york-city-ballet/image/upload/v1668553429/Documents/Casting/NYCB_Casting_Nov_30-Dec_4_2022.pdf
  8. Per an Instagram post by Wendy Whelan, apprentices Sarah Harmon, Shelby Mann, Anna Snelgrove, and Dominika Afanasenkov have been promoted to the corps. Congratulations to them all! https://www.instagram.com/p/CjtUVIrJjAx/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link
  9. I agree! (and it was delightful getting to meet up with you tonight, Cobweb!). I cannot say enough about Divertimento. I felt like I had been submerged in a jewelry box full of fantastic treasures and everywhere I looked there was something brilliant to behold. Too many riches, and I loved it. Emma was a highlight for me tonight too and her performance seemed all too brief. She sat across from me at dinner later and I had to resist fan-girling her! Anyway, I feel more opportunities will come her way. I had never seen La Sonnambula and I loved the melodrama of it all. And of course, I was happy to be able to see Sterling in such a beautiful performance, probably the last for me before her retirement, since I'm a (way) out-of-towner. Will never forget her Aurora, "Spring" in Four Seasons, and Mozartiana.
  10. I was at last night's performance. Isabella LaFreniere looked radiant, regal and assured. I loved her musicality and phrasing. There were some quietly breathtaking moments in the pas de deux with Chan, who also gave a very winning performance overall, with a constant spring in his step and dazzling smile. Of the solo variations, for me, the standouts were Nadon (no surprise there) and Staker. Phelan, being cast in both Tschai Pas and Piano Pieces, had a big work load, and it was announced at curtain that Indiana Woodward would replace her in the Piano Pieces June Barcarolle solo (but not the Chant d'Automne pas -- hope that's not too confusing.). Tschai Pas was exhilarating and as others have said, Joseph Gordon was riveting, with technique, charisma and partnering chops to spare. I saw Piano Pieces twice last spring, and the corps parts looked a lot better rehearsed and more polished on my third viewing last night. As others have mentioned, as a whole, this ballet may not seem very cohesive, so I just decided to enjoy each section as its own entity. There was lots of beautiful dancing, particularly the tender and romantic pas by Gerrity and Furlan and Gerrity's solo. (Please bring back Dances at a Gathering soon!) One other observation. There were NO casting sheets up in the lobby, unless I was looking in the wrong place? They used to be in frames on either side of the entrance doors, and now there's nothing there.
  11. Oh, man. Wishing her well. I'm really looking forward to seeing her (and the entire cast) in Symphony in C on Saturday p.m. (Also, setting my alarm for an insanely early flight to New York tomorrow for an epic NYCB binge.)
  12. Wow. Week 4 is up too. And this week's casting sheet has been updated with replacements for Walker in "Raymonda Variations" on Thursday (Chan) and for Mejia in "Symphony in C" on Saturday (Vlllarini-Velez) https://res.cloudinary.com/new-york-city-ballet/image/upload/v1664311169/Documents/Casting/NYCB_Casting_October_11-16_2022_lobby.pdf
  13. Thank you, cobweb! Appreciate your updates and insights as always (and yes, go to the high school reunion! Feel free to PM me on that. I didn't go for many years and was really pleasantly surprised when I ripped off the Bandaid and joined in. Now I wouldn't miss one.) I will be flying in from Texas to attend the performances next Thursday and Friday, and both performances on Saturday. Fingers crossed it all goes well in terms of the health of the dancers (and the performance of American Airlines!). I will report....
  14. Thank you so much to our New York City compatriots on the ground for your insights and musings on the season. As an out-of-towner, I truly appreciate the vicarious thrills. I was there for only three performances and off the top of my head, the standouts for me were Phelan as Titania, Stanley as Puck (I did not get to see Ball), Mira Nadon in anything and everything, Chan in Spring, and as Titania's Cavlier, Huxley in "Piano Pieces" AND "Spring," and Furlan and Gerrity in their beautiful "Piano Pieces" pas de deux. And Walker and LaFreniere in the same pas de deux. If anyone else cares to post their season highlights, I would love it. And Canbelto, special thanks for the videos of the Ramasar sendoff.
  15. Oh no, I hope he's OK. Thank you for keeping us updated, Cobweb.
  16. Balanchine fan, I agree. Saw Veyette Saturday afternoon in the Midsummer Divertissement, as well as Tuesday night in Four Seasons. There may be a tiny bit of prejudice here because he (and his two brothers) danced at my daughters' studio in Los Angeles way back in the day. But, what I saw both times was lovely partnering and a true enjoyment of dancing and being on stage in this moment. It seemed to me that he knew everything wasn't perfect, but that wasn't going to get in the way of giving the audience a great performance, or having one himself. As a visitor from Texas, I saw three performances over the course of the week, not just one as planned. Bad luck turned into good luck and it a long (travel related) story with a happy ending. Just a few observations beyond what I've already posted....Roman was fantastic as the "master of ceremonies" in "Piano Pieces" on Tuesday night, but I was swept away with the grace, precision and refinement of Anthony Huxley in the same role on Friday night. Chun Wai Chan was a revelation in spring on Tuesday night (I just made curtain by about one minute due to my travel travails) but Anthony in the Friday night cast doing double duty delivered again. In the "June -Barcarolle" section of "Piano Pieces" I felt that Indiana Woodward really was at one with the music. This is the same impression I had of her in "Sonatine" in winter. And I loved Mira Nadon and Emilie Gerrity in everything. I'm home now, and a happy camper.
  17. Cobweb, I was at the Saturday matinee and experienced the same joy. Such a magnificent performance all around. A little after 2, Jonathan Stafford came out in front of the curtain and told us that due to all the last minute casting changes, the company needed a little more time to bring us this beautiful production. Didn't know quite what to expect, but the delay was short and there were no further casting changes beyond what I already knew about and what was printed in the program (except I think I saw Alexa Maxwell make a surprise appearance in the "Divertissement" corps-- can anyone verify that?). Everything went smoothly from there. Unity Phelan was glorious as Titania in what I believe was her debut moved up by one performance, and Taylor Stanley was a mesmerizing Puck. Of course, I would love to have seen Ball in this role too. And a special shout out to the children in the production who are so beautifully rehearsed by Dena Abergel and (I think) Arch Higgins.
  18. According to several dancers' Instagram stories, Chun Wei Chan has been promoted to Principal. I imagine there will be a special "Spring" in his step tonight and I am excited to be there to see it! Edited to add: just saw that Abatt already posted about this (sorry) and I agree Emilie G. belongs in those ranks as well.
  19. Ashley Laracey also reported on her Instagram story that she has COVID and will have to miss her debuts in Orpheus and Apollo this week.
  20. I must say I was very impressed with Pereira in Serenade during winter season. (She was cast with Hyltin and Gerrity and it was a glorious trio to my eye.) Glad to see Veyette back (he studied under Yvonne Mounsey at my daughters' studio in LA). I am also super happy to see more opportunities for Ashley Laracey. And can't wait to see Week 5 casting for Four Seasons and Piano Pieces since I'll be there from Texas for my birthday. I will have dinner at the Smith AFTER the show. It is noisy, but fun and lots of times, dancers are there.
  21. Thank you, Canbelto, for a most excellent appreciation.
  22. Excellent and exciting news. Congratulations to them all!
  23. Where to start? I was at both shows today. Agree with all who noted the lackluster applause for 4T's. That baffled me, because I absolutely loved it and saw many standout performances -- Janzen, Nadon, LaFreniere and many others. It has been many years since I have seen this and the choreography remains so fresh and exciting. Perhaps there were a lot of people in the audience who are not used to leotard ballets, including the trio next to me who said they just were not interested because "there were no costumes." (Please note this kind of thing is not new to me. I once brought a client to NYCB, back in the '90s, and he characterized "Square Dance" as a "warm up.") I agree that Indiana Woodward is a breakout star. She was lovely in Andantino tonight, but really exquisite in Sonatine this afternoon, where she brings all the perfume and totally channels Violette Verdy. Also, I thought she and Huxley had a really nice rapport. Bravo. I adored Tchai pas tonight despite a few bobbles and like JuliaJ said before, Unity Phelan has all the glamour and phrasing and elegance. Jovani almost dropped her on one of the fish dives, except he didn't! Vipa, this afternoon, I think Mary Elizabeth Sell actually replaced Ashley Hod in the Valse Bluette, and Ashley Laracey performed the Pas de Neuf in place of Claire Kretschmar? Either way, I didn't love these two sections of Swan Lake. Tess brought all the glamour tonight and reminded us of how much we're going to miss her. It was a pleasure to be there.
  24. Thank you, nycvillager! I look forward to my trip next week from Texas, for both Saturday performances. Snacks and champagne will be the icing on the cake. Fingers crossed.
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