angelica

That's awesome, atm711! I wish I had thought to save the Clive Barnes review of Ekaterina Maximova and Vasily Vasiliev's performance in Giselle back in the 1960s. But now I realize I can get it through the NY Times archive online. Still, it's not the same as the original newspaper.

Thank you, kbarber and Drew. Is the Ashton Cinderella better than the Kudelka version? Does Ashton do the same thing in the first act of having Cinderella in one bare foot and the other in a pointe shoe? If so, I will have to prepare myself.

I've noticed something lately, and wondered if others have too, and if you know the reason for it: in the last few months, I've noticed that on the front of the Sunday NY Times Arts and Leisure section, where they post what's on the inside pages, I no longer see a Dance category (which used to be there, if not every week then frequently). It will, for example, say Film, p.XX, or theatre, p. XXX, but no longer dance. Even when there is, in fact, a long dance article somewhere inside that section. Today, for example, there is a nice article on page 11 about Daniil Simkin of ABT, but on the front headings, there's nothing to alert us to it. And that's been the case for weeks. Is this a policy decision, and if so, why???

I have no answers for you, but I have noticed the same thing. I have to go through the Arts and Leisure section page by page in order to find the dance reviews, if any.

I have noticed, on the other hand, that in the past Alastair Macaulay reviewed only the opening night performance of every ballet, and now there are reviews not only of opening night but of a sweep of performances toward the end of the run. For that I'm grateful. I'm also grateful that Macaulay gave Veronika Part a very positive review for her performance in Sylvia.

"La Fille Mal Gardée" would be a wonderful ballet to revive because with the abundance of short male principals, the role of Colas would be easy to cast. That part can work with a smaller more demi-caractère danseur. Simkin, Cornejo (moving up from Alain), Vasiliev (with some coaching) and hopefully Gorak would all be excellent in the part. Lise would still fit Murphy, Reyes and Herrera and Sarah Lane, Osipova and Boylston would all excel in it. But since ABT is adding the Ashton "Cinderella" and is likely reviving the Ashton "The Dream" as half of the Shakespeare double bill with Ratmansky's "The Tempest" that would create a glut of Ashton.

I would gladly trade Cinderella to have La Fille Mal Gardee back again. I think the last time I saw it I was a child. Is the Ashton Cinderella different from the Cinderella that was done a couple of years ago? I couldn't quite get used to the ballerina with one bare foot and the other foot in a pointe shoe.

Jared has been having a fabulous season. He was extraordinary as Lensky in Onegin (which seems like months ago), and I hear that he was terrific in Sylvia. This is a great opportunity for him, although I don't wish anyone ill. I hope you won't be disappointed.

Haha, pherank, thanks for cluing me in. As an aside, it's so sad what's happening at ABT.

Thank you, Pherank. I thought what was meant was someone else from ABT. Phew!

You mean Bolle, Cornejo, Gomes, Hallberg, Herrera, Kent, Murphy, Osipova, Part, Semionova, Simkin, Stearns, Vasliev and Vishneva aren't enough for you? ;)

(Not to mention Boone, Copeland and Radetsky who all went to SFB School)

Now I'm missing the drift here. I'm not sure why you're naming the principal dancers. I just thought you meant that someone else besides Simone Messmer was leaving ABT for SFB.

Another one? Who was the first?

Not another one from ABT: Mathilde Froustey from Paris Opera Ballet, who will take a one-year sabbatical.

And thank you to you, Helene.

Another one to SFB?!!! There's definitely something in the water.

I'm not familiar with Messmer's dancing, and it's not looking like there are many videos of her - Is there anything available on the Web?

Another one? Who was the first?

These discussions are getting all scatterd about on the forums, but what is known for now: Messmer and Mathilde Froustey to SFB, and Messmer herself says that a Bolshoi danseur is headed for SFB, but I've heard no confirmation of that. And I should say that SFB has made no official statements yet.

Thank you, Pherank. I thought what was meant was someone else from ABT. Phew!

Another one to SFB?!!! There's definitely something in the water.

I'm not familiar with Messmer's dancing, and it's not looking like there are many videos of her - Is there anything available on the Web?

Another one? Who was the first?

Oh, no! Cory injured? Does anyone know how seriously? He has had such a great season so far, I hate to see him sidelined.

It's too bad there isn't more flexibility in terms of who Cornejo and Simkin can partner, but this may be helped by the additional principal roles which will hopefully be offered to Lane and Boylston.

And what about Stella Abrera? Where does she fall height-wise? Ought she not also be promoted to principal status?

Her willowy physique makes her seem tall, but I think she may actually be more along the lines of Murphy or Herrera or perhaps slightly taller (not sure).When they pair her with Radetsky she always seems a tad too tall for him. Abrera was one of the dancers I was immediately drawn to when I first began attending ABT performances and the quality of her dancing has been outstanding--consistently musical, lyrical, and simply a pleasure to watch. Unfortunately I feel as if they are no longer testing her out for principal roles, as they had several years ago when she was assigned Cinderella and a couple Giselles (though the latter never took place due to injuries).

I've always been curious to see how she would fair in a full-length classical ballet or as MacMillan's Juliet or Manon. Unfortunately her New York-based fans have never had the opportunity to experience this, though I'm always thrilled to see her as the Lilac Fairy, Mercedes, or Myrtha.

In looking at the bios of ABT principals, it's interesting that virtually all of them were promoted from soloist to principal within a span of two to four years. Veronika Part had to wait seven years to be promoted from soloist to principal, which seemed like a very long time. Abrera became a soloist in 2001, so I'm not optimistic that she will get her shot, but you never know. Savaliev occasionally danced principal roles in his decade-long career as soloist with ABT, so perhaps Abrera could be afforded the same opportunities, even if she doesn't get a promotion?

I agree with you completely about Stella Abrera. I remember those cancelled Giselles and how bad I felt for her. It seems that she has fully recovered from her injuries, as evidenced by her having danced 10 Auroras in 30 days with the Royal Ballet of New Zealand last fall. It seems heartless on the part of ABT to deprive her of the opportunity to dance leading roles and to deny her promotion when she always performs so exquisitely. I would so much like to know the reason why this isn't happening. I'm guessing that ABT will perform Giselle again in its 2014 New York season. Wouldn't it be wonderful to see Stella dance the title role--she has so many fans in New York, who would come out in droves.

It's too bad there isn't more flexibility in terms of who Cornejo and Simkin can partner, but this may be helped by the additional principal roles which will hopefully be offered to Lane and Boylston.

And what about Stella Abrera? Where does she fall height-wise? Ought she not also be promoted to principal status?

Well if I went into the ladies room, I'd probably be quickly escorted out by security.

But I am leaning toward Lane / Simkin.

Oops, so sorry! I think I was "projecting," as the psychologists say. Yes, do go to see Lane/Simkin.

I'd definitely opt for Lane, with vipa's caveat about Simkin's partnering. As for where to sit, it really depends on whether you'll need to get to the ladies room at intermission. Having said that, I'd still go see Lane.

I really miss the times when ballerinas would pull perfect single fouettes on the beat all the way to the iconic 32 and working leg looking in a perfect straight horizontal position a la seconde.

I agree -- those fouettes in the first video you posted are gorgeous. One really realizes what we're missing out on when one sees that.

This is a very good point made clear in the videos. I think that what's happened is now that ballerinas are doing multiple turns, audiences have come to focus on the spinning itself, the number of revolutions, with the fan, without the fan (in Don Q, not SL), rather than on the extension of the leg a la seconde, which is now hardly noticed. I wish I had thought to pay attention to that in the two Swan Lakes I saw earlier in the week, with Semionova and Part. Well, there's always next year.

Here are my thoughts on the two shows I've seen so far.

6/17 - Semionova & Hallberg

...

Personally, I did not care for Semionova's fouettes even though she pulled off a jaw-dropping series of triple pirouettes-they did not fit the music at all, and she traveled around the stage quite a bit.

I am sure ballet dancers need to listen to and follow the music. But, there are some conductors who don't like or cannot conduct for ballet. Once a conductor told me that conductors who don't like to watch the principle dancers feet cannot conduct for ballet. Is it true that the conductors and principle dancers need to cooperate in ballet performances?

It was true in "The Red Shoes," when the new composer/conductor, Julian Craster, tells the principal dancer, Victoria Page (and I may be paraphrasing here), "Vicki, dance whatever tempo you like. I'll follow you."

Referring back to Batsuchan's comparison of the Semionova/Hallbert Swan Lake with that of Part/Stearns, I totally agree that although the Semionova/Hallberg performance was technically correct in every way (well, almost every way), the Part/Stearns performance was far more moving. I wondered whether Hallberg was losing steam towards the end of the Black Swan PdD when he landed his double tours en l'air in nothing resembling any position. And he did that twice. Because I'd never seen Hallberg be so sloppy technically, I watched specifically for that in Stearns's performance, thinking that perhaps by that time in the ballet nobody can do anything technically anymore. But, as Batsuchan noted, Stearns landed both turns in beautiful deep demi plies in fifth position.

I'm beginning to really love Stearns, now that his acting is ratcheted up. His renverses were especially gorgeous, as he extended his torso backwards just a bit extra, to the limit, at the end (I don't really know how to describe this movement but it was beautiful). I'm thinking that he may be one of the purest dancers I've ever seen, never showing off, but always reaching for the best he can deliver.

I think critics are too often presumed to be unkind, and in this review I count six compliments and only one criticism of Semionova. Hallberg is complimented as well. Whether Kourlas has good taste or not, as a critic she's paid to be critical as well as to praise. In any case, the Times has fixed the Odette/Odile mix-up now, and posted the following correction:

This article has been revised to reflect the following correction:

Correction: June 19, 2013

An earlier version of this review reversed the identities of two characters. It was as Odette, not Odile, that Polina Semionova was difficult to connect with and it was as Odile in the Act III pas de deux, not as Odette, that she possessed more glittering allure.

Kudos to the editor who had to draft that correction. It couldn't have been easy to find a succinct way to clarify the identities.

I, too, would love to hear about Hee Seo's debut. I saw her in the dress rehearsal, and although she missed a couple of technical points (she didn't do the battus before the single, double, and triple turns in the PdD; and she didn't do the tiny ronds de jambes en l'air before the developpes a la second in her solo), my overall impression was that she danced exquisitely, rapturously, like liquid silver. I hope her debut was a success.

I'm reading all the above comments and saying to myself Yes! Yes! Yes! I want to quote everyone who expressed praise for both Veronika Part's performance and that of Cory Stearns. Cory has made a giant leap from last season, growing in stage presence and emotional expression. I've been watching him since his performance as James in La Sylphide some years ago, and have always admired his gorgeous line and handsome face. Perhaps it was his success in the character of Iago in The Moor's Pavane that gave him the courage to do more on the acting side. Or maybe good coaching. Or maturing. Whatever it is, it's working. He has never been one to showcase himself, which makes his acting all the more authentic. Last night he seemed thoroughly engaged with Veronika, responding to her outpouring of emotion with beautifully expressed emotion of his own--tenderness, sorrow, love. I was truly moved by his portrayal, which seemed completely genuine.

In the past, Veronika has had to carry the ballet on her own when she was paired with Cory, but now she has the opportunity for a real connection, which she has to make the most of. Watching her last night, it seemed to me that she maintained the same anguished expression throughout the entire lake scene. She has a wider emotional range than that, but perhaps her history with Cory, where she has had to carry all the emotion, has reified that aspect of the role for her. Now it's time for her to engage more with him.

Veronika is surely one of the great Odettes of all time. But last night her Odile had me completely in awe. She was magical: seductive and menacing, and dancing with the utmost self-confidence (I'm still not 100% rid of the knot in my stomach when she does those fouettes, but it's beginning to go away).

I won't say more because others have said it above, except to agree that Vasiliev looked ridiculous as Veronika's father; that Stella Abrera was beyond luminous; and that I wish they would change the costumes for the aristocrats in the first act because their fullness makes the dancers seem heavy and encumbered. They could cut out that maypole and I wouldn't miss it.

I think that Herman was already spinning in the womb and that he came out spinning!

Gomes absolutely owns the role of Purple Rothbart. I thought he was almost over the top yesterday, making "knowing" eye contact with the audience, as if to say "here it comes," something that Corella used to do sometimes before he did an eight-turn pirouette. I saw Vasiliev do the same role in the dress rehearsal and it was sadly inferior.

I'm on board for Matthews as well. He has outdone himself this season, and reached a whole new level. He is definitely principal material. I hope Hammoudi will be back from his injury soon.

As for the Semionova/Hallberg Swan Lake on Monday night, right now there are very few seats available, although of course certain ABT "hold/VIP" seats might be released tomorrow or Monday morning.

Notwithstanding the blackface, which I managed to avoid by focusing completely on the Golden Idol, I thought the Golden Idol was wonderful. Thanks for putting it up. I'll check out the other videos too.