Classic_Ballet

Just came back from tonight's performance (Wed) Nina A was in good shape, although you can tell that she is far from where she was a few years ago (which is natural). Very impressive to see her dancing these pretty tough ballets a her age that well. A wonderful way to say good bye to her fans in NY after so many years. Brava ! J.M Carreno danced the best Ali I have seen him dacing in the last 3-4 years. This is another one who seems not to age at all, unbelievable speed in his turns, perfection...just as if he were still in his 20s. Sarah Lane was just beautiful. Crystal clear dancing, loved her line and her elegant dacing. Wonderful debut. What a bright future does this girl has !!! Savaliev did a great job and his usual pyrotechniques in this role (not as big as a few years ago, but still pretty impressive as well). The 3 Odalisques were awasome too. K Boone looked gorgeous, loved her beautiful legs. R Pavam stole the show with a serie of multiplte turns (triple), ending the variation with 4 or 5 pirouettes (pretty spectacular !!!!) Marcelo was as magnificent as he always is. amazing jumps, acting, and the way he partnered Nina A in their pdd was just incredible. He held her over his head with just one hand. Her dives were pretty spectacular as well. She looked real real secure in his hands. Over all, although i am not big fan of this ballet, it was a beautiful show.

I am so so happy to read this, she deserved it so much !!! CONGRATULATIONS VERONIKA ! Still in shock here, is it for real ? what a wonderful susprise for the start of the seasson. I am speechless !!!! It not only means that w'll keep these jewel but also that w'll see her (hopefully) debuting in some new and exciting roles. I am sure that after such a painful process, from now on Veronika will dance better than ever !! I hope that those terribly sad days were you had to see her going from dancing the swan Queen to dance one of the two swans the following night are gone !!! I also hope ratmansky help to put her at the level of stardom that she trully deserves. Congratulations again Veronika, you proved yourself to be strong enough to keep fighting and you finally got it !

I am very surprised to read some posts here questioning abt as one of the top-5 companies in the world. I am just going to throw some questions here that I think may clarify my point. where do A Ferri, Nina A, J. Kent, J Bocca, JM Carreno and others have been dancing for the last 20 yrs ? where is Ms Vishneva, one of the biggest stars nowadays, performing every year (other than the Kirov, of course) ? where is Ratsmansky going to work for the coming 5 years ? where will the future star N.Osipova will be performing in the coming years ? Not to mention current-starts like : S. Zakharova, the above mentioned Cojocaru, and the beloved Acosta who have performed as guest stars at abt too (Acosta was a principal for a few years) Honestly, I dont think any of the mega-ballet stars mentioned in this list had been be willing to perform in a company which is not internationally recognized as one of the best companies in the world. I am not saying is the best or anything, but just to question that is not in the top-5 its to me quite unfare. All those names are at the very top in the list of best dancers in the last decade. Is abt famous in Europe now ? I dont think so, which is not surprising if you think that they hadnt toured in London/Paris for the last 10 yrs (until last year when they toured in both cities). Is RB famous in the US ? they are known but I dont think they are famous as its not POB. Does that means that RB or POB are not good ? of course not, we all know that these 2 troops are also in the top-5 list. Its all about marketing, I think. If you look at the cast that ABT offers during the sping seasson, you will see that you can get at least 1 world-class couple performing for every single ballet, if not 2 or 3. ABT its been a mega-star company more than probably any other company. They actually have been all about mega-stars more than anything else and is always been like that. Currently, I think they are going into a transition stage, especially with the female dancers. If you look at their male roster: Gomes, Cornejo, Corella, Carreno, Hallberg, Sitefel and now Bolle (for the Spring), is easy to realize that very few companies can match this list. On the female side, they are not as strong as they have been, and I think thats Mckenzie's fault. Ferri retired couple of yrs ago, Nina A is leaving this year and Kent will retire soon as well. However, there are dancers like Murphy and Part who are very very talented (very different from each other) and I am sure that with a good marketing behind them could reach certain level of stardom. To keep the female-star-list during its spring seasson, Mckenzie has brought Vishneva and now Osipova. The problem is that when they go on tour none of the famous female dancers travels, and this is something that I particularly dislike. In my opinion it is very difficult to find a mega-star female dancer who can be the best in everything, although some of them have come pretty close. I rather like to analyze different ballets and think who do I enjoy more dancing in them. For example, recently, I have had the oportunity to see Swan Lake by RB (Rojo, Nunes), Kirov (Lopatkina, Vishneva), Bolshoi (Zakharova) and ABT (almost all the females), to mention some of the ones discussed in this forum. Def, Mckenzie's production is not the best (is probably the one that I like less) however, I havent been amazed with the RB ballet production either or the performances of Rojo/Nunes, as I have been with the russian productions and some of their female dancers (Unf I cant have an opinion about POB, which i am sure must be superb). Although I think all the performances that I just mentioned were real good and it would be unfare to dismiss any of them, in my opinion, Part is the best of all the Odettes I have seen so far. After her, I would pick Lopatkina, Ananiashvili and Zakharova. As for Odile, Murphy is probably the one that I enjoy the most. If I have to pick up just one, I stay with Part whose beauty and delicacy is to me unparallel (by the way, I am also making the trip to DC to see the Part/Gomes performance). Part is a kind of ballerina that we rarely see anymore. Her Bayadere also is just out of this world. I hope abt can have a good tour in London and audiences in europe can get to know their dancers better, I am sure they will apreciatte it a lot.

Part/Gomes would be a superb cast for R&J as well as "Le Corsaire" I would love to see them in giselle. Many people wonder why isnt she getting any opportunities with ABT. True she is had some in the past, but not the proper ones and also they have been very few. its very sad....

Just one thing. I was the one who wrote that she is not a "natural turner" and I still think so. First of all, you shouldnt take people's opinion so personal. There is nothing wrong with not being a natural turner and you mentioned a few examples of that. I am actually one of those who happens to like Sarah a lot and I do appreciate her dancing, which doesnt mean that I see everything perfect on her. Every ballerina has her own style, strenghts and weaknesses. In fact, I think she could have a very bright future in abt. FYI (and I may be wrong), to me a natural turner is Gillian or Michelle who can throw "in a performance" (not in a class) effortless triples finishing really strong. Thats all i meant. (and btw I did see her themes and her SB and she had the same problems, which again doesnt mean that she was bad or that she wont do better in the future). The amount of rehearsals and so on...is a different issue which, in my opinion, is not what people are discussing here and is not even relevant to this forum. I think its pretty unfare to abt artistic direction to say here that Lane is been thrown in nearly every ballet with 2 or less rehearsals or with a 20 min notice, its just insane, lol. You dont have to be an insider to know that its just not true. As a matter of fact, she was oficially announced in the cast for Theme...Flames (and SB) way ahead of time before the seasson began (or in SB before her debut in Cali) and btw, my favorite abt ballerina (by far) is Veronika and as you know she doesnt throw triples fouettes at all (boy I wish, ha ha) but I dont need that, her artistry, line, beauty and so on...makes up for that and more....

Part/Bolle may be one of the most, if not the most, beautiful couples dancing SL nowadays !!! gorgeous, cant wait for this !!! I really hope Osipova is given the empty spot in Le Corsaire. Too bad we cant see her Kitri, so it would be nice to see her doing medora.

I was there last night too.. Ballo: I enjoyed david a lot, as most people here. His jump is just amazing, how beautiful !! Michele did a decent job, not the best ballo ever but it was ok. At least this time I saw her going more with the music and enjoying a little more what she was doing, not just executing as some other times. The soloist were really good. I especially liked the 4rth one, which was the only one that I didnt know who she was. When I looked at the program, it said: Lean Underwood. Its the second time that it happens to me with this girl. She did a fabulous 3rd shade in Bayadere last spring, I was very impressed, and I remember trying to read the program in the middle of the darkness to find out who was that marvelous dancer. How old is she ? boy, this girl seems to have a good future, she is taking every single opportunity that she is given, good for her ! Flames: I think Daniil Simkin was just incredible. More than the astonishing athleticism and the pyrotechnics that he showed last night, I was impressed with the tremendous control and the crazy-clean way he finished all the steps. Amazing !! thats control !! Sarah didn’t really reach my expectations, although she didn’t do a bad job at all. To me, she is not a natural turner or a bravura dancer and next to Simkin in this pdd…he just swallowed her. She did fell off point, and as she has done before, she finished pretty weak a couple of times which leaves you a bad flavour, especially in a short piece like this. I agree about the "mugging for applause" mentioned before but I think is more a result of the inexperience of both of them. Overgrown Path: I enjoyed this cast way more than the other one (reyes, carreno, cornejo). The all danced really well. Brief Fling: A lot of fun, loved it. Reyes danced strongly, as usual. My problem with her is her lack of line, such short legs !! I love to see her in R and Juliet, manon, even her kitri, but everytime i see her in tutu....it just doesnt look pretty. I also agree with the fact that her dancing is not pretty either. Herman was great, as he always is. The partnership doesnt look bad but doesnt look great either. I still see a lack of partnership skills on him. Misty was incredible, she stole the show. I like her so much more doing this kind of dancing than in classics !!

Friday Night: Overgrown Path Pillar of Fire Company B. A quick review of Friday Night performances. Overgrowth....well danced, Carreno looked fantastic. Reyes and Cornejo daced pretty good as well. The music is beautiful but the coreography didt do much for me. Pillar of Fire made the night and the seasson so far for me. I have not enough words to describe the ashtonishing performance that Murphy delivered. Marcelo and David supported her at their best as well. Loved it !!! Gillian was simply an oscar winning actress !! Company B was a wonderful ending. To me Simkin was a fenomenal Tico-Tico, although its true that he looks pretty petite and childish. Luciana Paris was so graceful in her solo !! The rest of the cast danced well although I would say that they were behind the music a few times and it didnt seem that they were feeling very confortable in Taylor's hand. Probably more reahearsal will solve that.

I wonder if Kevin ever gets a chance to read these posts Was hammoudi partnering Veronika last night ? loved the basketball team analogy, ha, very funny and true.. I am still "in-shock" with Misty Cop. "laughter" last night. I have never seen such a thing in a ballet performance. To complete the night, after the performance ended, a poor guy fall off the stairs in the mid-mezzanine level and landed against the wall, pretty wild. Do you guys think that bringing Bolle may help to finally see our dear Veronika as a Principal, since now she is going to have another partner

well, I totally agree with the idea of giving young people opportunities to develop. Its just that I think that there may be other young dancers at abt, better suited for a piece like Theme...and for partnering Michelle. I think Stearns has great talent but the two times I have seen him in big roles (Corsaire with Irina and last night) he hasnt performed at the level at which Marcelo or Angel were dancing when they were his age. I personally like Hoven better than the other 2 that you mentioned. How about, for example, Alex Hammoudi partnering Michelle in Theme....

I attended last night (Wed) Baker Dozen: I saw it last year. To me its ok, nothing spectacular. Very well danced though. Craigs Salstein was very impressive. I have a question for you guys. Did you hear Misty C laugh out loud, real real loud, in the middle of the show, from the left side of the stage (behind the curtains) ? I saw it last year and I dont remember that to be there. I know it was her because I was in the right side of the theater and I could see them very well behind the curtains. To me it sounded so grotesque, I dont know, I didnt get it. If any body could explain, I wd really appreciated. Citizen: Weird piece, the coreography a little repetitive but in general I enjoyed it because its something unusual. I have to say here that I was in shock with P Herrera. I have been one of those who has really criticized her a lot in the classics, but boy, didnt she look amazing in those costumes ? Is she in better shape now or is it that this modern dance really suits her dancing style wery well ? She danced beautifully and as I said, I was just really impressed with her stage presence. Leaves are fading: Very nice, quiet, sweet, relaxing. Kent and Gomes were as good as I always expect them to be, wonderful artists. Marcelo, as usual, a magnificent partner. Julie is ideal for this ballet, so refined, fragile, beautiful. The other girls were great too. Seo looked fantastic ! Ricetto danced very well and Veronika, well, I just suffer watching her doing only this small roles, as beautiful as a ballerina can be, there she was.......I couldnt take my eyes out of her i wish I could see her doing Julie's role someday, but I guess it wont happen...... why ? why ? Themes and Variation: Michele's technique was very very strong and secure, as always. Fantastic turns, clean footwork. Again, I have 2 big problems with her. 1.- Lack of musicality, huge, i would say. To me seems like she doesnt listen to the music, just execute, execute. If she were musical and if she enjoyed her dance more..... she def has the potential to be a great artist. 2.- Her face while she is turning or moving is horrible. This is something that def can be corrected. She pretend to be smilling, but the result is just a funny face, very unnatural. I dont really know who is coaching her, but is doesnt look to me like is doing a good job. I always see her with that great potential, making mistakes and doing things that can be so easily corrected... I didnt really like her partnership with Stearns at all. He could not lift her, it was terrible. They dont look good together either. He seemed so weak next to her. Stearns looks like a noble dancer but technically he always falls short for me, especially compared to so many others abt dancers. when he was turning and jumping, at the end, he totally run out of gas. In my opinion, this is another miss-cast from abt. I wouldnt like to see him again doing this.

I attend 2-3 times a week to the met /nyc during abt's spring seasson. Friday and Saturdays usually sell very very well. Many times you have a sold out house (about 4000 seats) Monday-thursday, depends on the performance, but in general they sell very well too (80-90%) People in nyc know very well who they want to see. You will find, for example, Ananiashvili's performances sold out very fast (especially after her come back). Especial performances, like a farewell, are usually sold out before the seasson begins. wed and sat matinee are usually pretty full as well. I attended to San Francisco ballet at City Center. It was pretty bad, friday night the rear mezzanine was pretty much empty. Same thing with morphoses. Its actually the 1st time that I ve seen the city center that empty during a ballet performance (i have been here for 5 yrs now). Kirov sold very well last year and abt usually sells pretty well too. The young america grand prix gala is always sold out 1-2 months before the show. I will be attending to abt tonight and during these 2 weeks, w'll see how it goes.

I attended to Monday's performance (Nina/Angel) Once again, Nina showed what a truly prima ballerina can do on stage. Her acting in the 1st act was incredibly good. Wasnt she a real young girl coming out of her house ? Her happiness and love was touching. The only thing that I didnt like was when she did the diagonal on point in the 1st act (whats the name of this step?), she did not look at the prince at all, just at her mom. I rather prefer what some other ballerinas like Vishneva or Kent do, when they look at the prince and show him how pretty she is and how in love she is as well. Her madness scene was very good, particularly her dead, which was one of the best I have seen. Her 2nd act was just incredible. She was a real ghost, weighless, fluid, her arms and upper body was perfectly used. I cant say enough about her 2nd act performance, I never thought that I would have the chance to see her dancing like this again !!! At her age and after giving birth 2 yrs ago, this is just a miracle !!! I agree with Angelica about the fact that they are not recording these performances. This year the opera not only recorded the shows professionally, but showed them on TV and right now you can see every now and them a performance of this last year on channel 13. If abt could do the same !!!! I am sure it would bring a lot of new and young people into the world of classical ballet. Is it a matter of money ? I just cant stop thinking how sad is not to have Nina's Don Q, Swan Lake and Giselle for the ages. Her performances this year have just been: Ballet Master Classes, literally. Even though she doesnt have the technique she had years ago, she has cover that with her experience. The level of details that she incorporates in every single of her characters, make me think that she is dancing a completely different ballet. This should be def taped for the generations to come !! Murphy’s Myrtha was tremendously powerful, perfect execution (as always), great personality. As in gamzatti, she def own this role. I really congratulate her for the progress shown in these last two years regarding her expressiveness and stage projection. Her acting is much better and she is now putting that together with her amazing technique to take her dancing to a different level. I hope to see her progressing even more and making new debuts in the years to come (I knew she danced in St Petersburg, but somebody else mentioned before that she danced in Moscow as well, did she really dance there ?) Fang’s Zulma was also a big surprise. One of the best I have seen, very impressive !!

This sounds terrific to me !!! Is that the Lincoln Center public library ? Where is that room ? Do you have most of this year abt performances ? I am desperately looking to see Part bayadere and swan lake in video, wd you have that by any chance ?

I think that either Hallberg is injured or most likely they decided he is still not ready for Albretch debut (especially after his Basilio debut this year, which apparently not everybody agreed on it). He has handled two other debuts this year; a third seems a little too much. No matter how good may Reyes/Cornejo be looking in rehearsals, giving them back to back performances is a clear sign that there were not more choices available, especially considering Diana situation which still seems to be question mark. I was planning to go on Thursday and this is kind of disappointing since I rather wanted to see Herman debut than a second performance, right after the 1st one, when both of them may feel a little tired

Standing room tickets are sold the same day of the performance at the met. Box office opens at 10 am, I think. I attended to Monday performance. Kent and Carreno were both very good. I was happy to see Julie dancing so well again (I was pretty dissapointed with her SB ). Carreno partnered her beautifully, especially in the final pdd. Xiomara also did a great job, very expressive, great dancing. Saveliev was ok, he partnered well Xiomara, although I still dont like him. Costumes and set are very pretty and the ballet is funny. Still lacks good choreography (with those costumes, its clear they can barely dance) as to make it a favorite of mine, but it is ok for 1 time. I wont go again, but def something light and refreshing before Giselle.

I also attended to Saturday’s matinee, Part/Gomes Bayadere. There is nothing else I can add to what its been said here. I happen to have the same problem that christine174 has, I cant the find the right word to describe my feelings when I see Part perform (especially this year). I have read some very nice words that seems to describe her: majestic, imperial, astonishing, breathtaking…yes, its all that ......and still more. Veronika is probably the word to describe beauty and classical ballet. The way she raised her arm up after her diagonal pirouettes, her jetes, she literally flew across the stage in the 3rd act.….for god sake, how can she be so beautiful ???? When she came out in the 2nd act in that white tutu, I could barely breathe. I heard a woman in the audience saying, I would pay my ticket to see her even if she were not dancing, just to see her on stage is worth it. Marcelo is just the perfect partner for her. He is as beautiful as she is and his partnering is just marvelous. His is so elegant and expressive !!! We are really lucky to have this couple here. I think Wiles was much better on Saturday than on Monday. I liked her way more. Again, Renata Pavam an Leann Underwood were incredibly good. Bravas !!!

I have not been a fan of Dvorovenko, although I have attended to a few good performances that she has given here, as her last year Gamzatti. Last night I saw the best Irina I have ever seen, very very powerful performance. In the 1st act she had great transition from happiness to saddness. Her fight scene with Murphy was fantastic, both of them were terrific !! I was really moved by her acting, especially that moment when she got bitten by the snake. She also looked very good on those costumes and she used her back and arms beautifully as well. In the 2nd act, she totally blew me away. Her technique was so so strong, so secure, very impressive. Faboulous speed, amazing turns and foot work, absolutely perfect execution, brava !! Her gand-jetes throughout the performance and especially in the 3rd act were veronika-like, ha. Beatiful and very high jumps. I liked her so much that I am going to see her giselle. If she always danced like this !!! (or have I had bad luck with her ?) Hallberg was also great. He had a couple of bad moments partnering Irina (one especially bad in the 2nd act), but in general he was very good. The both looked very well together. From my experience with David, it looks like he needs some time to mature his characters. I have been very disappointed in every single of his debuts, like his SB last year or his Don Q this season. However, in the 2nd performances he seems to pick it up way better, as it happened last year with SB. I have noticed a huge improvement in his acting, he is a lot more expressive and his technique looks much improved as well. It looks like his Solor will be as his Siegfried, better and better every performance. Very impressive for a dancer as young as David, who has also had to manage three very important debuts the current season. Murphy was a fantastic Gamzatti. Her technique was as always, top of the line. Her acting very good. Great improvement from last year. The three shades were fantastic, but I was absolutely speechless with the 3d one, Leann Underwood. I didnt know about this girl, but she did make a huge impression on me. What a variation she danced !!! Musicality and technique at it very best !!! According to her biography she should be pretty young. Would love to see her doing more.

I cant agree more with FauxPas. Veronika Part is not the only dancer who brings polirized opinions in many different ways. I still dont understand the reason why this topic has been so focus on Part. Its true that she has struggled a few times, but also has Dvorovenko, Kent and Vishneva herself, just to mention three big names (I have seen Vishneva fell of point and loosing equilibrium at many different performances when doing fouettes, for example). I adore Kent, but how many times have I seen her taking a whole tour around the stage when turning and struggling so badly that she barely manage to finish standing. These 3 have also struggle when executing tough technical steps, still people seem no to care at all. To me, monster technicians are Murphy and Wiles. Reyes has a good technique as Paloma has as well (when she is inspired), but don’t seem to reach the level of the first two. However, Murphy and Wiles lack the lyrism, musicality, upper body movement, extensions and jumps that Veronika has, plus, to me Part beauty has no equal either. Then, why do people (and reviewers) focus so much on Part previous problems, still is ? to me. Its my feeling that if Part were finally promoted, she would probably dance with much freedom and less stress (the girl is been on continous test for 5 years now, on the verge of being promoted..but no, no this year dear, maybe next, and so on) and she would probably be much more stronger from a technical point of view, as she is been this year and as has been Kent, over the years (compared to where she was when she started) and yes, Reyes was promoted to principal when she was almost 30 yo.

ABT- La Bayadere Opening Night, 06/23/08 Cast: V. Part (Nikiya) M. Gomes (Solor) M. Wiles (Gamzatti) Last Monday, V. Part was one of the most beautiful Nikiyas I have ever seen. Her astonishing beauty seems to fit this ballet so well that I could not look anywhere else but her during the entire performance. Ms Part combined her beautiful line with expressiveness and a lyrism rarely seen nowadays in classical ballet ballerinas. At the same time, she delivered a very secure and solid technical performance, which made her dancing reach the level that we have all been expecting from such a gifted and talented ballerina. The way she flew throughout the stage in the 3rd act was something truly especial (her “grand jetes are out of this world). It was also great not to see the “slow motion piquees” or the "scared faces" that she had in the past whenever something tough to execute was coming. She actually surprised me in the 2nd act with a couple of very well executed triple pirouettes and she went through the scarf variation very successfully as well (much better than the Kirov’s ballerinas that I saw at City Center, Lopatkina and Somova). I have always been an admirer of Ms Part beauty and lyrism, but I have also recognized her insecurities and inconsistencies, especially the tough times that she has had executing technically demanding steps. However, this year Ms Part seems to be finally decided to get over her fears or whatever it was, and she has delivered astonishing performances in all her appearances at the Met. I have seen her “Swan Lake”, Dryads Queen and Mercedes in “Don Quixote”, Lilac Fairy in “SB” and one of the Odalisques in “Le Corsaire”. Every single performance has been outstanding, she is dancing with a confidence that I never saw on her before. Is that because the pressure on her is gone? Is she finally enjoying her dancing? After I saw her on Monday and throughout the season, its hard to think of her as a soloist anymore. Will this be her year ? I really hope so and I also hope we can get the chance to see her in new roles in the coming years at ABT. (Apparently, she is definitely staying with the company) M. Gomes’s Solor was, as always, a master class of elegance, cleanliness and tremendous partnership. What else can we say about Marcelo “the magnificent”, as somebody call him in this forum ? His variations well perfectly executed and his acting was as impressive as always. He definitely has great chemistry with Ms Part and they both have tremendous stage presence, which of course, helps. As for Ms Wiles’s gamzatti, I agree with most of what its been said here. On one hand, her technique is prodigious, especially for a ballerina of her size (although her jumps are not as good as one may expect). She has a beautiful line as well. However, she still looks too stiff especially on her neck, back and shoulders. She does has some “mannerisms”, and one that I particularly hate is something she does with her fingers (like opening her hand and spreading them) whenever she wants to express or indicate something, it looks a little grotesque to me. She has also picked this “head movement” that you guys mentioned before. Her 3rd act variation was fantastic though, very impressive control. Ms Wiles is a ballerina with a great talent and most of her problems can be corrected, its probably just a matter of time or is it a matter of whoever is coaching her ? I also agree with the fact that Irina Dvorovenko delivered a terrific gamzatti last year (to me, the best by far here, and I am not precisely in love of her) The corp was absolutely terrific, perfect synchronization (bravo !!) and the three shades were also fantastic, particularly Sarah Lane (what an Aurora debut !!). Overall, great performance !!! I also wanted to mention here my opinion about the review of this performance that came out in the NYtimes. I totally respect the opinions of the critics, although they differ many times with my personal point of view (and between themselves), but in this case I have to say that the critic that Ms Part received today seems to me pretty unfair . I don’t get the point of mentioning whatever problems Ms Part had last year in Sleeping Beauty or since she arrived in the company in 2002, it seemed to me like the critic wanted to say something bad and that’s what she picked. What does that has to do with her Monday performance ? Why does the critic has to say that Ms Part is both, divine and disastrous, if all she had to say about her Monday performance was good ? Luckily, the danceviewtimes’s critic had a completely different opinion as well as the NYsun.