There were many great male dancers under McKenzie's tenure - Corella, Carreno, Gomes, Hallberg and Bolle just to name a few. Many felt that Part was too big to partner and they didn't want to get injured. That's how Stearns, who was young, strong and not necessarily in a position to dictate who his partner would be, often got paired up with Part. Gomes was always partnered with Vishneva because she had the authority and power to impose her demands on McKenzie. Part never had that kind of power over McKenzie.