abatt

Misty got two new lead roles in full length ballets this upcoming season - Juliet and O/O. She also picked up the lead in Rodeo. IN contrast, Stella's only new lead role is Ashton's Cinderella, and Sarah Lane has no new lead parts for this upcoming season (having danced SB and T&V for several years). Based on these facts, I can't agree that McKenzie hasn't treated Copeland differently than her peers at the soloist level. Copeland has gained a great deal of traction in the casting recently compared to the other senior soloist females.

The difference between what Misty has done in terms of self promotion and what others have done is that Misty, unlike others, has used social media, media appearances, books, and so on to assert claims of discrimination, indirectly, against ABT. No specifics are provided regarding the accusations, but the only reasonable way to interpret the accusations is that they are made against ABT, since ABT is and has been her professional home since she was a teenager. The perception of some is that Misty is goading ABT into promoting her by taking this route. Think of how much more gratifying her promotion would be (and it seems now to be a foregone conclusion that she will be promoted this year) if she had not engaged in making such accusations.

AIP got 12 Tony nominations in total. It tied with Fun Home, which also got 12.

According to this NY Times Artsbeat item, An American in Paris is doing very well at the box office in comparison to other new Broadway shows. http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/04/27/an-american-in-paris-outsells-other-new-shows-on-broadway/?ref=arts

I'm surprised that they have to discount the La Sylphide tixs on Goldstar. I would have assumed that a "full length" ballet which is new to NYCB would sell. I know it's Memorial Day weekend, but I still find it surprising. I guess that's why ABT doesn't revive La Sylphide too often. I was also quite surprised at how poorly Harlequinade sold at NYCB in the winter. I guess we can chalk those difficulties up to the harsh winter, but I think at some point someone at NYCB will have to take a step back from the rhetoric and the excuses and evaluate ticket sales, pricing and the effect of the closure of the 3rd and 4th rings on sales. On a separate note, the lobby renovations at the Koch have been completed. Wondering what others think. To me, the new look feels more like a hospital emergency room intake area, with it's stark white modernity, than a grand theater lobby. Moreover, the design is incongrous with the beautiful marble in the rest of the lobby area.

Here's another photo of Misty at the Time 100 gala. It's photo no. 20, in which Misty is hugging "transgender icon" Laverne Cox. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/22/fashion/kanye-west-amy-schumer-shake-up-time-100-gala.html?ref=fashion#slideshow/100000003642884/100000003642936

Lane keeps getting the same roles she has been doing for years (T&V, Sleeping Beauty). They have not tested her out in any additional important lead roles. I seriously doubt that she will be promoted, although I hope I'm wrong. The departure of 3 principal ballerinas does not mean that three ballerinas will be promoted. The promotions will likely be Hammoudi and Copeland for sure. They may be saving up for a Gorak promotion in 2016.

Perhaps the reason that there are so few black ballerinas is also the same reason that there are so few black tennis stars. Tennis court time and first rate instruction costs a lot of money. Serena and Venus Williams have been celebrities and role models for quite a number of years. While you do see more black players now, there has not exactly been a sharp rise in the numbers. Tennis is an expensive sport, and to the extent that minorities of all stripes are unable to afford the requisite basics, it is an exclusionary sport. Same issue with golf. Tiger Woods has not inspired an influx of young black golf stars. Golf is a very expensive sport that most people simply cannot afford. Similarly, ballet instruction is expensive and there are many hurdles, including having an adult available to shuttle a kid to class assuming you can even afford the class in the first place. So maybe the explanation isn't racism, but economic factors that are barriers to meaningful entry for many youngsters. Lessons for kids in piano, ballet, tennis or whatever are a luxury for most families.

There is certainly equal time criticism of many of the dancers at ABT, including but not limited to Seo, Boylston, Hammoudi, Stearns. To say that people on the board single out Misty for critical opinion is simply not accurate.

I just read that An American In Paris will be embarking upon a national tour starting in the fall of 2016. No further details are available yet. I doubt that Robbie Fairchild will be part of the tour. By the way, as a matter of strategy shows tend to announce that they are going on a national tour shortly before the Tony Awards. (Finding Neverland, which got panned in the press but is helmed by big film producer Harvey Weinstein), also recently announced a national tour for 2016.) A lot of Tony voters are theater producers throughout the US. The thinking is that they are more likely to vote for a show that is going on a national tour because it is to their economic advantage to present a Tony winning Best Show in their regional theaters.

Dancer jerseys. I love it. I think ABT should start selling those. They would make a bundle.

Does anyone here remember David Alvarez from the JKO School? He was one of the kids in Billy Eliot on Broadway. Well, he is now a "swing" dancer in ON the Town. Here is a very interesting article about what he has been doing. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/25/arts/dance/david-alvarez-on-billy-elliot-the-army-and-on-the-town.html?ref=arts

Ballet is woman...

I thought it was interesting that the author of this article noted that the audience members forced themselves to sit through the rest of the program at the Met in order to see Misty's Firebird in 2012 (We "endured" the first half of the program, even though it was stellar.). The rest of that program included Balanchine's Apollo and Wheeldon's Thirteen Diversions. I'm sure Apollo was first on the program, and I'm not sure, but I think Hallberg may have been the Apollo on the night Misty did her Firebird. (Hallberg being one of the leading classical dancers in the world.) Not sure whether Firebird was last or in the middle. Apollo is a masterpiece. The author's comment suggests that the audience had little interest in seeing any ballet except for the one that Misty was cast in. If the author's assessment is correct, this goes against the assumption that Misty will bring in new audiences for ballet. She will bring in new audiences for her performances, but not for ballet performances in general at ABT.

In the upcoming Mariinsky performances (in May) of Raymonda, the Raymonda casts are Somova, Kondaurova and Matvienko. Probably a glimpse of who we can expect to see during the American performances.

Having seen the SL of Golding and Osipova on film, this is not a great partnership. Also, why would they bring Carousel pdd when they are aware that NYCB does it too. Someohow I don't imagine Carlos Acosta as Billy Bigelow, especially after seeing Damian Woetzel in the role. Any ideas on who will be cast as Puck in the Dream?

For best musical, I think it will be a race between Fun Home and AIP. Fun Home is certainly a critical hit, but the subject matter is dark and disturbing. AIP is more of the type of pure entertainment that most Broadway audiences are looking for, which explains why AIP is selling well in a large theater and Fun Home is struggling to fill seats in a relatively small theater. On a separate note, if On The Town fails to win Best Revival, I don't see how they can keep pumping money into it for a run beyond August or Sept. Yes, Hamilton was absolutely superb in every way. Lin Manuel Miranda deserves every accolade for Hamilton, which will probably sweep the Tonys next season (unless some new genius musical pops up ).

There's a new video up on the NYCB website (homepage) regarding La Sylphide. It features Andy Veyette and Sterling Hyltin. There is no dancing. Mostly it features Veyette hearing noises in a big, creaky house and getting glimpses of Hyltin. Every time he chases her she vanishes. Spooky music added in the background for good measure. I guess it wasn't intended to be funny, but I got a laugh out of it. Way too over the top. How about showing us some dancing!

Here are the nominations for the Drama Desk Awards, second in prestige only to the Tonys. American in Paris has a total of 12 nominations, including Best Musical, Best Director (Wheeldon), Best Choreography (Wheeldon), and best lead actor and actress in a musical (R. Fairchild and L. Cope). Only one show (Hamilton) had more noms. (Hamilton is moving from off Broadway to Broadway in July. Brilliant show.) http://www.playbill.com/news/article/drama-desk-nominations-announced-hamilton-tops-the-list-347557 Great day for American in Paris.

You can access the episode Amour refernced for free at http://watch.thirteen.org/program/nyc-arts/ It's the April 16, 2015 episode.

For what it's worth, here's some casting information on the NY portion of the tour: http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/04/23/royal-ballet-sets-cast-for-lincoln-center-visit/?ref=arts This little Artsbeat piece leave lots of info up in the air. Not buying any additional tickets until they come up with some actual info about casting for all the performances. Why is this taking so long? Also, why haven't they announced what divertissments are going to be performed.

Due to popular demand, the Joyce Theater has added one performance to Wendy's Restless Creature program. The added show is Saturday May 30 at 2 PM.

The Time Magazine gala was last night honoring the 100 Pioneers. Here's a link to a photo of Misty (scroll down to the bottom. Last picture.) http://fashion.telegraph.co.uk/columns/bibby-sowray/TMG11554238/TIME-100-Gala-How-to-look-demure-and-influence-people.html

Casting up for week 2. Hyltin and DeLuz get the premiere of Sylphide. Catazaro gets second cast as Apollo. Janzen debuting in Duo Concertant.

Robert Fairchild and Leanne Cope each nominated for the Drama League Award. An American in Paris nominated for best musical. http://www.playbill.com/news/article/2015-drama-league-awards-nominations-announced-more-than-45-will-vie-for-distinguished-performance-honor-347266?r=n