angelica

1 hour ago, fondoffouettes said:

What a debut (so far) for Shevchenko. Aside for a few little off moments in her variation, I thought she was fantastic. It felt like a fully realized interpretation, and she’s so wonderfully musical. Her back is much more flexible than Teuscher’s and she’s able to hit those beautiful iconic arabesque poses. Her arms are also gorgeous, and the swan arms she did for her final exit were a lovely mix of ripples and soft flapping. I think this could become one of her signature roles. Can’t wait for Act III with Bell!

I so much wish I could have seen Shevchenko in this performance. I didn't buy a ticket because I can't bear to watch her partner.

As I've said somewhere else on this board, I think Ratmansky's next task should be to bring Acts 1 and 4 in SL up to the level of Acts 2 and 3. The opening of Act 4 is really a snooze-fest, as I believe someone said above. And those heavy costumes in Act 1 don't really go too well with dancing around a Maypole.

I hope he continues to dance with ABT. I really enjoy watching him.

3 hours ago, ABT Fan said:

If anyone sees Shevchenko’s and Bell’s debuts this week, please report. Though I’ll have the day off, I dont think I can stomach seeing Whiteside in this again.

That's exactly why I'm not going to Shevchenko's O/O. Whiteside has kept me away from several performances this season.

I don't have time to search right now, but I know I've seen a photo of her dancing Juliet, possibly with LakeCities Ballet. 

Just a fleeting thought. Lane has danced O/O and Juliet elsewhere, with companies other than ABT. Perhaps having her learn Nikiya and Kitri is a way of ensuring that she now knows almost all the leading roles and can perform in any of them next and in future seasons. An all-around Principal.

16 minutes ago, aurora said:

She performed one of the 3 shades on June 1st (I believe). There was discussion on here about how it was so beneath her to do a (barely) soloist role but she ended up falling off point in the rapid series of releves across the stage in arabesque and it was not a good showing.

Thanks for the clarification, aurora. I missed that performance, but her debut as Nikiya was stunning.

3 minutes ago, aurora said:

Kristen was talking about her turn at the first shade, which was not good.

I'm not sure what you mean by her turn at the first shade.

I had a very different response to her Bayadere debut. I thought she was exquisite except for the turns in the scarf dance, which were wobbly, I admit. But, at least in my eyes, the rest of her performance was gorgeous.

14 minutes ago, jplombardi said:

angelica, the gelato sounds divine! I hope it's open after the show.

Oh dear, Jp, I don't think I've ever seen the gelato cart after dark. Has anyone here?

I heartily recommend dessert from the gelato cart, L'Arte del Gelato, on the plaza outside Geffen Hall. They will put two flavors in a small cup, and three in a large. My favorite combo is coffee and chocolate. They say the chocolate is milk chocolate but it tastes dark to me. And it's not too sweet, like some of the other flavors. For me, a trip to Lincoln Center isn't complete without the gelato. Be sure to ask for extra napkins.

I love Shevchenko, but I won't go to any performance with Whiteside in a leading role.

Of all the dancers this season, the one who has stood out for me has been Sarah Lane. The Saturday, June 30th, matinee performance will be her debut as Kitri, and I think she's going to knock it out of the park. And with Herman Cornejo as her partner, they comprise Team A in my eyes. Catch Cornejo now, because who knows how many more years he'll be dancing. Sarah isn't dancing Juliet this week and won't be dancing Odette/Odile either. I'm sure she'll be dancing soloist roles in SL, but I think she'll be as fresh and exciting as she always is. I wouldn't miss that performance.

3 hours ago, BalletFan said:

I attended the Friday evening performance with Sarah Lane, Jeffrey Cirio, Stella Abrera and David Hallberg, and was quite pleasantly surprised! I had seen the excerpts of Harlequinade at the Spring Gala and wasn't all that impressed, and I exchanged one of my subscription tickets for something else. I almost exchanged the other one... but so I'm glad I didn't. I liked everything about this ballet: the dancing, the costumes and the sets. Based on the early reviews, I was expecting a lot of empty seats, but that was not the case at all. While it wasn't a sell-out, the house seemed to be well sold. This is a lighthearted ballet. You can’t go in expecting Swan Lake or Romeo & Juliet. Some comedic ballets just don't work for me, but this one did. It is steeped in history, which I appreciate, and you can tell that a lot of thought, effort and work went into this production. If you can, try to attend the final performance tonight... or catch it at the Kennedy Center next year.

I, too, attended the Friday evening performance and thoroughly enjoyed the ballet. I think expectations play a role here. After reading many negative reviews along with the positive ones, and having disliked Whipped Cream and disliked even more The Golden Cockerel, I was expecting another ballet that would disappoint me. Not so. Harlequinade had much more ballet dancing than I expected, and I realized that seeing mime performed by trained ballet dancers is altogether different from seeing mime performed by others. The ballet line is present, which is the thing that my brain seeks out when I go to the ballet.

I also think that much of my  pleasure came from the exquisite performance of Sarah Lane, who handled the technical challenges with no problem and sparkled her way through the role of Columbine. David Hallberg's sad Pierrot had me laughing at his ability to sustain the pathos of his character across an evening. There were more children than I would have liked to see. After all, unlike at the Mariinsky, we are not seeing children who were picked from hundreds of applicants for their turnout and flexibility, and schooled under a regimen that we in the US would find unacceptable. They were cute, but one would have been more than enough. On the other hand, they do help fill the house and raise the enthusiasm of the audience.

Overall, I think that Harlequinade is a good addition to ABT's repertoire, even though it probably cost many arms and legs. Next, however, instead of resurrecting another quirky ballet from the past, I hope that Ratmansky could turn his attention to replacing ABT's God-awful  Acts I and IV of our beloved Swan Lake.

22 minutes ago, aurora said:

Angelica--I'm not meaning to imply your eyesight is poorer than most, but rather to let you know (as you said you hadn't seen it yet) that the mime in this ballet is quite broadly performed (whereas not all dancers really broadcast the mime in Odette's meeting Seigfried in Swan Lake for example), perhaps because this is, at its heart, a rather slapstick comedy.

I can imagine it would be easier to see from closer, but the first cast made it quite legible even at some distance.

Oh, aurora, I didn't think you were implying that my eyesight is poorer than most. You're quite right that broadly performed mime is very different from the danced mime in SL. Having read all the comments so far, I'm really looking forward to seeing this ballet--and I'm not seeing it until Friday!

Perhaps my eyesight is poorer than most, although I do not think so. I just know that the mime passages in ballets have become more meaningful for me now that I can see them close up. Also, though, I believe you're right that not everyone understands all the mime. It took me some time over the years to learn the mime vocabulary and to appreciate its role in a ballet.

2 hours ago, JuliaJ said:

....the Met is not a good venue for more "intimate" productions. The stage is just too far away from most of the seats to feel fully absorbed. 

I agree completely with your view, Juliaj, (even though I haven't seen the ballet yet!) Reading the comments, I'm wondering if the distance of most of the seats from the stage make the mime virtually unintelligible with or without binoculars, which I find annoying to have to use. Personally, I enjoy mime when I'm close enough to "read" it easily, rather than have to work to fill in the blanks.

Would it help if ABT were to visit these schools for talent-scouting? Or is there a downside to this that hasn't occurred to me?

I would just like to add that after seeing Shevchenko as Myrta, and seeing her dance Gamzatti in the dress rehearsal, I think she has the makings of greatness.

1 hour ago, abatt said:

Yes,  there are people who bring their own cushions.   I'm not talking about people in wheelchairs; I'm referring to people who are 100 percent mobile on their own two feet.  As far as I know, the bag inspectors don't care.  They are looking for weapons, not cushions. 

Thank you, abatt. The next time I have what might turn out to be a problematic seat I'll give that a try.

52 minutes ago, abatt said:

I know people who always bring their own cushions. It's a small investment if you attend performances regularly.

abatt, I would just like to confirm this. When they inspect your bags going in, will they allow anyone to bring their own cushion? The size of a Met cushion? I once was seated next to someone who was sitting on her own cushion, but she had transferred from a wheelchair.

27 minutes ago, volcanohunter said:

A year ago Sofiane Sylve attended Alessandra Ferri's performance of Onegin at the Met. She was wearing what looked like a homemade tiara made from white flowers found at a second-hand bridal store. I have no doubt it blocked the view of the person sitting behind her.

IMHO, this is morally wrong. At least take it off during the performance.

27 minutes ago, volcanohunter said:

 

Perhaps we have to start a movement for Orchestra seats to be assigned by height. Young people are much taller these days than they were when I was growing up. I note that the seats in Grand Tier and Dress Circle are steeply raked. Not sure about Balcony or Family Circle.

Does anyone here know the rules about getting cushions at the Met? Some years ago, when we brought my granddaughter, they had to see that she was a child before they would give us a cushion. Can short adults get cushions? Is there a height maximum?

Not as bad as at the ballet, but very sad that people put their own primping and preening ahead of their fellow audience members' right to see the stage. Nobody taught them proper manners. They should be sitting in Center Parterre, not Orchestra.

8 minutes ago, fondoffouettes said:

Yes, I see her sitting there often, always with her hair done that way. But, then again, the Met was built in an era when such hairstyles were de rigueur. They should have raked the floor more!

Yes, the Met should have been raked from Row A, but remember that it was built for opera, not ballet. I think it's selfish and narcissistic for people to dress in such a way that precludes the person behind them from seeing--at least at the ballet. 

5 minutes ago, canbelto said:

During the opera season there is always this exquisitely dressed couple and the wife often wears big fancy hats and fascinators. There was even an article about them:

http://www.metorchestramusicians.org/blog/2014/12/3/opera-fanatics-the-soderquists

I love their sense of style but wouldn't want to be sitting directly behind them in the orchestra.

Oh my, I really hope she doesn't sit in a front Orchestra seat with that hairdo! The hairdo of the woman in front of me was shaped like a round watermelon.

12 minutes ago, Kathleen O'Connell said:

Oh thank you, Angelica for the Performance Manager revelation! I'm pretty sure I have been trapped behind that same bouffant! 

LOL! He comes to the ticketing area, so you get a ticket to go out (which lets you back in), and then you go around the column, and you think this can't possibly be right because you are in a kind of no man's land. But then the PM comes out with his computer and you hope that the new seat doesn't have a twin in front of you. But if a seat is so bad that you'd rather leave than stay for the rest of the ballet, the new seat has got to be better. Also, I think that Row B Orchestra at the Met is somewhat lower than Row A. Is that possible?