abatt

ABT casting update. Semionova /STearns are removed from tomorrow's Theme and Variations. They are replaced by Boylston Stearns. Also, Teucher replaces Kent in Pillar for Wed night.

I think some dancers love being followed on social media and use it to increase their fan base. You can arrange for privacy settings if you only want to be followed by certain close friends, and not the general public. Re Boylston, I think her jumping ability is equal to Osipova's, based on what I have seen her do over the years. Her feet are gorgeously curved, and she has a strong technique overall. It's various other elements of her dancing that require refinement, but I think she can definitely get there over time. As for the Fancy Free pdd, I think basic ballroom dancing skills are needed for that. I know that it is part of the curriculum at NYCB (SAB), but have no idea if it is taught to people entering ABT. That FF pdd call for a lot of back flexibility and head movements that you find in certain ballroom dances.

Less money for coaches means more money for Rachel Moore and Kevin McKenzie. No incentive at the top to free up any funds for coaching.

A recent NY Times article about her mentioned that she likes to be called Bella.

Interesting, because I thought overall Reichlin has had the harder journey to the top. It took her, I believe, much longer to reach principal than Maria. In fact, I recall reading that Reichlin contemplated leaving the company and leaving ballet. Maria, on the other hand, always seemed destined for stardom and rose to principal at a relatively swift pace. The tall girls always get certain roles, so I'm not surprised that they occupy the same rep. I'm wondering if/when they will give Reichlin Terpsichore.

Very mixed bag last night. First, the house looked to be only about half full. The Sylphides looked more like America's Regional Company, not America's National Company. Hee Seo seemed to trip over her own feet in the pdd section where she fell down. Boylston definitely has a very impressive jump, but there is so much more that needs finishing in her dancing. I wasn't sure if Bella's error was a partnering issue or was her mistake. Tom Forster landed all his jumps with a thud. Pillar was fantastic, and Murphy was riveting. No huge complaints about Fancy Free, except for Boylston, who had the pdd. Was this her debut in the role? She has no fluidity. Much too stiff. Having seen Tiler Peck across the plaza dazzle in this role, Bella did not measure up. All in all, not a great start to the season. No wonder these programs are selling badly.

My ticket purchasing decisons rest on the woman playing Giselle. Frankly, I would definitely go see Bolle as Albrecht and Murphy as Myrta if they were cast with Giselles I was interested in seeing. Having seen Julie's altered version of Giselle either a year or two ago, I could not bring myself to return. Too many alterations, too much watered down footwork.

Just to give you an idea of who sells tickets at ABT and who does not, both of Hammoudi's Othellos are on TDF, as are the Giselles of Hee Seo, Boylston and Julie Kent. I'm a major balletomane, and I passed on every one of those performances, even at TDF prices.

It shouldn't be a mess, because the Balanchine Police Trust is supposed to monitor and supervise the coaching and presentation of these works.

It showed her humanity and also highlighted how difficult the work is that ballet dancers do. I think that's part of the reason why 60 Minutes showed footage containing the error and her reaction to her error.

Garcia was replaced in the thrid moviement of "C" by Carmena on Sunday

Veyette danced on Friday night and Sunday afternoon in Symphony in C. Both Reichlin and Mearns know the 2nd movement of Symphony in C. Still love Maria K in this role. Despite some faults, she is still breathtaking.

The Outer Critics Circle Awards were announced. American in Paris took home Best Musical, Best Director (Wheeldon), Best Choreographer (Wheeldon) and Best Actor (R. Fairchild). http://www.playbill.com/news/article/curious-incident-top-winner-at-outer-critics-circle-awards-348762

Have not yet seen the interview. However, if you want to see perfect hops on pointe head to NYCB and see the young corps member Alexa Maxwell in her first soloist role (in Walpurgisnact Ballet). Perfect technique. sparkling, clean footwork. Destined for big things, I believe.

The only time i can ever recall Martins pulling somebody from a ballet was when his new SL was being broadcast on PBS. Darci Kistler was advertised as playing O/O. However, at the last second he pulled Darci and gave the broadcast to Miranda Weese. It's very damaging to a person's self confidence to pull them from a role.

Last night was one of those nights when I was grateful to be a New Yorker and to have access to performances by the NYCB. Mearns was brilliant in Walpurgisnacht. She danced with complete abandon, but yet was in total control. This has become one of her signature roles. And who is this wonderful dancer Alexa Maxwell. Sparkling footwork, high jumps. More of her please! I have only cloudy memories of Sonatine. I think it might have been one of those ballets that was regularly assigned to Y. Borree, so that its charms never made any impression. Well, last night w. Tiler Peck and DeLuz it made a wonderful impression. As Amour noted, Hyltin has improved a great deal in La Valse. I didn't notice the problems in the 2nd movement that Amour did. The only issue I noticed was in the 1st movement, with demi soloist Megan LeCrone (subbing for Krechmar). There is a portion where the demisolist must move back and the other demi moves forward. LeCrone was somehow backing up into the line of 4 corps girls behind her, who had to spread out to avoid a crash with LeCrone. Spacing/timing issue. I always smile when I hear gasps from the audience when Maria does her fully stretched arabesque penche in the second movement. I think it should be included in those tour guide books listing must see/must do events in NYC: see the Statue of Liberty, buy a deli sandwich at Carnegie deli and go see Maria K's arabesque penche at NYCB. A great evening of dance where everyone excelled. So unlike Thursday night, where many of the dancers looked like they were trying on new clothes that just didn't fit.

Performers to inclule Janie Taylor http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/05/08/millepied-to-take-on-vertigo-at-cannes/?ref=arts

Since Vishneva only performs approximately 4 times per season at ABT these days, I'm surprised to learn that she performed more with ABT than with the Mariinsky.

I enjoyed La Sylphide. There are certainly dull patches, but overall I think it's a good addition to the NYCB rep. I thought Hyltin was elegant and danced beautifully. As noted, no chemistry with DeLuz. DeLuz got a lot of height in his jumps, but yes, some of the beats were fudged. I didn't like Georgina's interpretation of Madge. She played it like a comedy. Madge is supposed to be evil and menacing, not provide comic relief. Bournonville Divert. was a very mixed bag. First the good. Anthony Huxley NAILED it. He was breathtaking. Such precison, speed and elevation. I cannot wait to see him as James. Lauren Lovette was another standout, as was Ashly Isaacs in a very small role. Tyler Angle danced well too. Mearns was completely miscast in the pdd. Putting this sophisticated drama queen into a peasant costume to play an innocent village girl was a big error. As Amour said, she has many gifts, but airy lightness are not among them. There were times during the pdd when she flexed her hands, as though she were in a neoclassical ballet. Amar Ramasar also does not belong in Bournonville. He looked like a fish out of water, and he does not have the lines for this style. Adrian D-W was a bit better. I didn't care for Krohn or LeCrone. This style simply does not suit most of the company members of NYCB. Having vivid memories of the RDB dancers in my head from their appearance at the Joyce in January 2015, most of the NYCB dancers did not measure up to the stylistic demands of Bournonville technique. Overall, the Bournonville style was coached much more successfully and cogently for the leads in Sylphide than the leads in Bournonville Divert.

Here is an article written by Alastair Macauley for the special Tony Awards section of the NY Times that will be printed this Sunday. The focus is on the performances of R. Fairchild in AiP and Tony Yazbeck in On The Town. Definitely worth a read. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/10/theater/theaterspecial/robert-fairchild-and-tony-yazbeck-have-it-all-on-broadway-stages.html?src=recg Added As part of their Special Tony Award edition, the NY Times theater critics each pick who they believe will win the awards, who should win, and who should have been nominated. Both NY Times critics predict that AiP will win Best Musical, and that Wheeldon will win for Best Director of a Musical. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/10/theater/theaterspecial/the-tony-award-nominations-should-be.html?ref=theater(Brantley) http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/10/theater/theaterspecial/the-tony-nominations-should-be.html?ref=theater (Isherwood)

It's not distasteful, but it should be a matter of choice and should not extend the overall performance running time, especially on a weeknight when people have to get up and go to work the next morning. Some people live far away from the theater and have a long commute home, and 15 or 20 minutes is valuable time. I skipped the last ballet last night because the See the Music lecture extended the evening too long based on the length of my commute home. Commuters, unfortunately, are beholden to various train and bus schedules which have no flexibility. The whole point of starting the weeknight ballets at 7:30 PM instead of 8PM was to accomodate audience members who work and/or have long commutes. The purpose is defeated when you add the mandatory lecture.

Lowery has been out for a few days. Last night that led to a cascade of casting changes, since she was scheduled to be in two ballets. Mearns took her spot in Concerto Bar. I didn't think Krohn (in the lead) and Mearns made a good match, and at one point it looked like they were too close together and may have banged into each other. Obviously, last minute cast changes mean little or no rehearsals together. Mearns is all about bold, go for broke attack and big dancing, and Krohn, in my opinion, is the complete opposite. I miss the days when Maria K. did the lead role. Reichlin took over Lowery's part in Episodes. Somogyi repeated in the section from last week. Mearns and Adrian DW did the final section of Episodes. Quite wonderful, but this ballet is way too long and gets dull fast. It's great to see the last section of Episodes performed so well. It was performed by Darci Kistler in her final years, and most of the actual steps got lost during those pefromances. We were forced to sit through a 15 minute See The Music lecture before Episodes. Since Mearns was in the first two ballets of the evening, they took Mearns out of her scheduled 4T role in Sanguinic and replaced her with Scheller. I like Scheller and I'm glad she's back, but I was hoping for a Mearns trifecta. Since the mandatory See the Dance lecture had already added 15 minutes to the the performance time, i skipped Four T's. I suppose there is some merit to these See The Music lectures, and I admire that they are trying to enlighten us, but they should do these lectures during the intermission and invite people to stay in their seats if they wish to listen to the lecture. From now on I'm going to pay more attention to see which nights have the mandatory lecture, and try to avoid buying tickets for that performance. The woman who makes the casting change announcements when Perry Silvey is not available needs some public speaking lessons. She hasn't improved at all over time.

Thanks FauxPas, for your response. And that, in a nutshell, is why I avoid Hee Seo in all classical ballets. But you're right, this production may be more suitable for her abilities.

Does anyone know if this will be relased on DVD?

Casting up for week four. Fouirth cast of Sylphide is Lovette-Huxley. For some reason the casting sheet for week three is gone. When you click on the link for week 3 you get the week four casting. Probably this error will be resolved soon.