angelica

Obraztsova was beyond exquisite in R&J last Thursday night. And it all seemed effortless, as if it were completely natural for her to move that way. I believe I posted about that performance on the R&J thread. Cornejo danced above and beyond himself, showing more emotion than I've ever seen from him. I was sure that right after the performance they were going to hightail it down to City Hall for a marriage license! However, I agree that she seemed out of place in Symphony in C.

I believe she was also in Symphony in C during that tour. I don't remember which movement she danced in, but she was definitely dancing with the other female principals at the end.

Thank you, Helene. I was really curious about this. I guess I was shielded from this aspect of ballet when I was a child.

This is something of a sidebar to this thread, but I'm posting it here because it is relevant to the three posts above. I'm in agreement with stuben, Drew, and abatt. I recently read (and of course I regret not noting the source) that there is a 100% chance that a professional ballet dancer will be sidelined by injury at some point in his or her career. What I'm wondering is whether the likelihood of injury has increased, along with the trend towards slimmer dancers as well as more acrobatic-like steps. I don't remember injury as being so prominent a factor when I was a girl attending ballet performances. Perhaps it was and I wasn't aware of it. But it seems to me that the bar keeps being raised higher and higher for more elevation, more extension, more multiple turns, and so on. On the other hand, Theme & Variations had its premiere in 1947, and 32 fouettes go at least as far back as Petipa. Does anyone have a sense of whether dancers are facing more injuries in this day and age, or whether this is a hundred-year storm in the history of ABT?

McKenzie should hire us!

Well, if Kevin had done that, Dancerboy90210 (and I also hoped he would), it would have made him, Kevin, look bad for having denied Stella that role, as well as principal status, lo these many years. He would have had to eat crow, but it would have been the right thing.

I believe that when Gelsey Kirkland opened her Academy, her articulated purpose was to bring acting skills back into the training of classical dancers. This quote is from their web site: "Developing classical dancers who are capable of expressing powerful theatrical ideas in ballet through a rich understanding of other artistic disciplines, cultures, and traditions." I haven't gone to any of their performances but I've read positive reviews. Does anyone on this board know firsthand whether this stated purpose is being fulfilled?

You're right, abatt, I remember that ill-fated Nutcracker performance because my son and family had driven down from New Hampshire (5 hours!) to see it. But we couldn't get from Westchester out to BAM because of the blizzard. When I made a terrible fuss to someone at ABT, they gave us comp tickets for the spring season, from a list of performances THEY chose. What a stupid policy! If they had given us exchanges, say to a Nutcracker two days later, there wouldn't have been so many empty seats at BAM for performances later that same week. PLUS, the next year ABT issued a draconian statement that no matter what the weather they would perform and if you couldn't get there you were out of luck. This is just another way that ABT alienates its audience.

It just seems a no-brainer to me that when there is a same-day announcement of a cast change, those who already have exchange privileges as subscribers should be allowed to exercise this privilege on the day of the announcement. It's probably the Met's policy rather than ABTs, and of course they don't want a run on the bank, but exchange privileges should be honored in that instance.

Kaysta, if they bring Obratzova back, you must drop everything to come and see her. She is one of those dancers who moves like no one else, and with such fluidity that it will add an entirely new dimension to your perspective on ballet, and also break your heart. For the bourrees alone, you must come.

I agree totally with mimsyb and Just an Observer above. A stunning performance, perfect in every detail, infused with just the right degree of emotion, from the slightest gesture to complete abandonment, the very best R&J since the Ferri/Bocca performances. And Obratzova's feet alone were a wonder. Did you see the moment when from standing flat on the floor she rolled up onto releve and bourreed backwards at phenomenal speed? If ABT is going to bring in foreign guest artists, this is the caliber it needs to bring in. In addition, I have never seen Cornejo so passionate in a performance. The chemistry was electrifying. I had tears in my eyes when they were married by Friar Lawrence, it was all so believable. I did, however, deeply miss Frederick Franklin in that role.

I will think of that when I go again next season. Perhaps it will help. On the other hand, it is a star turn for Aurora, probably the most difficult role in all the Petipa ballets, technically if not dramatically.

To me it was also a bore, especially the role of Desiree. Even wonderfully danced by Cornejo, the emotion was missing. All the various groups of dancers and individual dancers in various divertissements made me feel as if I was at a community ballet school recital, not watching a cohesive story ballet with a dramatic arc. I guess that's what I missed most in this production--the witnessing of a drama. My three favorite ballets, the ones that move me deeply, are Giselle, Swan Lake, and Romeo and Juliet. They move me every season. Sleeping Beauty is a lovely fairy tale that doesn't have a smidgeon of drama, at least in Ratmansky's production. Charm, delight, sweetness have their place, but not for three hours in hideous costumes. Edited to add: Perhaps I will feel differently after seeing a second performance next year. (Hideous costumes) and wigs.

That is exactly what I meant when I said earlier that I was concerned about the longevity of this new SB and whether it would have the same fate as Ratmansky's Nutcracker. I actually was elated after the first act, but towards the end of the third act, especially during the fairy tale divertissements, I couldn't wait for it to be over. I will probably buy a ticket to see it again next year just to see Vishneva dance Aurora and Part do Lilac Fairy, assuming and hoping they will be, as the consensus on this board seems to be that the Vishneva/Gomes/Part cast was the best, and that's not the one I saw.

ITA. I fear it will go the way of Ratmansky's Nutcracker. It is much too long, with many boring stretches. Completely unbalanced roles for Aurora and Desire, and even if Petipa did it that way, does that mean that a full reconstruction is always the way to go? If you're going to go back to the 19th century original, you still have to bear in mind that the audience is 21st century, not 19th. It is quaint and new this season, but further down the road I think the audiences will thin out. Unlike Swan Lake, for example, which is a highlight year after year, no matter how terrible the production. Think of all the money that went into this production and could have been spent instead on coaching and developing the many talented dancers who begin their careers at ABT and then have to leave because of neglect.

These impressions and differences we have are so subjective. I was sitting in Row A Orchestra last night and was astonished at how far out Lane stepped in her pique turns. Oh, I thought to myself, that's what it means to dance "big." And no one suspends longer with both feet in the air in pas de chat. I would also like to add that although the following is true for all the Petipa ballets, it is most true in SB: the ballerina carries the entire burden of the performance on her shoulders. The prince doesn't do anything until A2 and it isn't until A3 that he really dances. And not so much compared to Aurora. I thought Sarah Lane was gorgeous, and the way she brought her legs in from developpe to passe was worth the price of the ticket. With proper coaching, she could be one of the best.

Yes, you can. But you shouldn't have to. And in the long rows of the center orchestra, it's easy to lose count.

That was my impression too. It's going to take me awhile to get used to the site. It seems very "busy" to me. One thing I noticed that I don't like is that when you put the mouse on a seat, it doesn't automatically display the row and seat number.

Osipova is still listed on the ABT calendar for R&J. Dare we assume she'll dance it (apart from the general rule of never assume anything)?

I third that. Apart from her gorgeous upper body, her handsome legs, and her tremendous talent for drama, Part has the most beautiful feet I've ever seen on a ballerina, and she walks in pointe shoes (flat, not on pointe), with the most exquisite sinuousness. Every joint is articulated.

This is from The Free Dictionary (online): "Usage Note: Oriental is now considered outdated and often offensive in American English when referring to a person of Asian birth or descent.While this term is rarely intended as an outright slur, and may even be thought polite by some speakers, it is so associated with stereotypicalimages of Asians as portrayed in the West during an earlier era that its use in ethnic contexts should be routinely avoided. However, Oriental retains a certain currency in referring to Asian arts, foods, and practices, such as traditional medical procedures and remedies, where it is unlikelyto give offense." I think this is the distinction we are trying to make above. I don't think that Chinoiserie, applied to a style of art, would carry the undercurrent of political incorrectness.

I like the Stella Abrera Fan Club. They really know great dancing when they see it.

The ballerina crisis at ABT is real, but I think would be readily resolved if (1) Part had been given a couple of Semionova's performances instead of piling them (almost) all on Seo; (2) using Part in more performances in general, now that she is in the prime of her career; (3) promoting Abrera and Lane to Principal status, which I believe they could sustain; and (4) whooshing Skylar Brandt to Soloist and then Principal in a matter of minutes. Christine Shevchenko and Devon Teuscher are also potential Principals and should be given a shot at the infamous Wednesday matinee of Giselle (Shevchenko was gorgeous as Moyna), which seems to be the first step on the Principal trajectory, although in years when Giselle isn't being performed, some other Wednesday matinee. It's not that ABT lacks talent. In recent years there has been something of a logjam, with not enough really fine dancers learning the leading roles.

I hope Julie makes that very clear to the Assistant Artistic Director.

Kaysta, there should be a "like" button because I totally agree. (And I think we're not supposed to post something if it's simply that I agree. Is that true?)