abatt

I saw Cheri last night. Although the choreography was repetitive and often felt derivative, I thought it was a cohesive and interesting dance drama. Ferri still moves those gorgeous limbs exquisitely, although as noted above there is no pointe work in this production. I have never fully accepted Cornejo as a "romantic" lead, and have always found his acting somewhat wooden. Last night convinced me that he has more acting ability than I have ever given him credit for, but perhaps the gigantic Met is too large a venue for his acting to register to the audience. He was much more impressive in this intimate space. Amy Irving provided important narration. The piano accompanyment was lovely. (Our programs had an insert with a complete list of the piano works that were played.) I felt it was certainly worth an hour of my time, and at $25 it was a major bargain.

Interesting. Thanks for posting. ABT got $70,000 to stage Ashton's Cinderella, and NYCB got $80,000 to present the new Liam Scarlett and Justin Peck ballets in 2014.

This movie has made it on to a lot of Top 10 year end lists of critics, and is anticipated to be a big contender at the Oscars.

Haven't seen the film yet, but it is based on Solomon Northrup's memoir Twelve Years a Slave. I assume that some of the characters in the film are based on Northrup's written account of what happened to him.

Evan Lysacek says he will not attempt to compete for a spot on the Sochi team due to injury. This comment of his struck me during his interview on Today: The jumps and the physicality of the sport are incredible, and I think people don't know that,'' Lysacek said. "They think it looks like ballet, but really it is among the most difficult and physical sports in the world. http://www.today.com/sochi/exclusive-evan-lysacek-reveals-he-wont-compete-sochi-2D11717316 Does Lysacek think that ballet does not have incredible physical demands? It struck me as an inane comment. He appears to have no clue regarding the physical demands imposed upon top tier ballet dancers.

Forgot to add that the Met Museum has an annual Christmas Tree exhibition which is wonderful. (Link below provides description.) Note that you can pay whatever you want to get into the Met Museum at all times. Admission is based on a "suggested contribution." http://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/listings/2013/christmas-tree

Rockettes sounds like fun. Another option is Alvin Ailey Dance Company, which will be at New York City Center during that period. Or a Broadway show? Have fun!

As someone pointed out earlier in this thread, if the Manhattan engagement is cancelled, then the Saratoga performances would not go forward. (It makes no sense economically for the Bolshoi to go to Saratoga only.) Lincoln Center Festival usually doesn't announce its summer lineup until March.

Smart marketing tool. SPAC might as well get people's money as early as possible, given the demand. The Bolshoi ticket prices at SPAC are CHEAP compared to what I anticipate will be charged for the NYC engagement, assuming it actually goes forward.

The difference is that anyone who gets drafted for one of those top teams you mentioned, even if they are on the lowest rung, gets paid pretty well. Womack wasn't even earning a living wage.

I don't think the critics of Somova are complaining about issues of musicality. They are complaining that her hyper extensions distort her classical line and seem more appropriate to gynastics than to ballet. She was not the originator of hyperextension, but she is certainly a good example of it.

Essentially, she was an independent contractor. Why would she agree to such a contract rather than the same type of contract other corps memebers receive? Wasn't anybody advising her? Was she so desperate to become a affiliated with the Bolshoi that all financial and monetary considerations were thrown to the winds?

Not a good sign that they moved the US release date from awards season (Dec 2013) into Feb 2014. Jan/Feb is usually known in the industry as the time when studios dump bad movies into theaters. However, I find it hard to believe that a movie starring Clooney and Blanchett could be bad, so I'll wait and see how the reviews are.

Going back to the large number of corps layoffs at NYCB in 2009, one of the dancers who was let go noted that Peter Martins cited lack of attendance at or early departure from company class as a reason for the dismissal of certain corps dancers. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/26/arts/dance/26waki.html?pagewanted=all

Tickets went on sale today for Whelan's Restless Creature program at the Joyce Theater in New York City. The engagement is during the first week of April 2014.

I think every civilized person must know it's not right to tell a black person to rub the black off of themselves. Sorry, there's just no excuse for it and nobody shoudl try and make excuses for it.

Is Precious also paying the $18K in tuition that Womack paid? (Just asking because it would add insult to injury if she were paying to have these racial slurs thrown at her.) If her allegations are true, the comment made to Precious is disgusting. The Bolshoi seems to have little sense of political correctness or sensitivity when it comes to race, as evidenced by their disturbing use of blackface in various Live In Cinema ballet broadcasts.

For those of us who are still lamenting Kathryn Brown's/Peter Martin's decision to close the third and fourth rings of the Koch in an effort to artificially control the supply of tickets and thereby force people to sit in higher priced seats, here is an article which confirms what we already know - the fourth ring of the Koch is a pretty great vantage point from which to watch ballet. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/24/arts/dance/at-the-ballet-nosebleed-seats-have-perks.html?ref=arts

FYI, drew, there is a review in the NY Times that was just posted this afternoon re the Obratsova and Osipova Juliets.

I have not seen it yet. I'll be going in mid-December. Has anyone seen Cheri yet? It started previews this week.

Regarding the idea of self-promoting dancers trying to push themselves ahead of the rest of the pack, I remember an interview with Peter Martins in which he addressed this. He noted that there will always be dancers who try to push to the front of the class to get noticed by him, but that is not a trait that impresses him. He said he looks at the person who may be more quiet and less pushy, but who works hard.

Whenever I have the privilege of seeing the Mariinsky, one thing that strikes me is the uniformity of the look of the corps in terms of every nuances of their dancing. They move as one. That is in contrast to other companies like ABT, for example, from what I've seen. So I think there still is a uniformity of style, at least in the corps, of the Mariinksy.

I was struck by the fact that she arranged a sham marriage (against the wishes of her parents) in an effort to further her career. How many 18 year olds do you know who would do such a thing? This seems to me evidence of her complete and unhealthy obsession, which seems to have clouded any possibility of sound judgment.

It's amazing to me how much media attention this is getting. Don't the LA Times and the NY Times have more important Arts news to fill the paper.

It's not surprising that Paris Opera ballet does not rely on "outsiders", since the Paris Opera Ballet school is one of the most prestigious and venerable in the world. It's true ABT has various schools and junior companies, but there has never been a steady stream of world class dancers coming out the ABT schooling system. I think that, in part, explains why ABT relies on "imports", which POB does not. In addition, the POB is state funded. ABT must rely heavily on ticket sales and donations for its existence. Under the circumstances, it's not surprising that they import international stars to boost ticket sales , lure donors and increase the public media profile of the company. The "imports" like Vishneva and Cojocaru can pretty much sell out the Met. House ballerinas do not.