abatt

More patrons would be willing to pay good money to buy tickets to a gala involving fashion. As the song in Gypsy goes, ya gotta have a gimmick....

Here is some info from the NY Times re the Fall 2014 Gala. http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/06/20/new-york-city-ballet-announces-fashion-focused-fall-gala/?ref=arts

When POB came to NYC last summer and brought their Giselle, that didn't stop ABT from doing Giselle. Moreover, ABT knew well before it put out its schedule that POB would be bringing Giselle. The only adjustment was that ABT did Giselle during the first week of the Met season to put as much space as possible between its Giselle and the POB Giselle.

Yes, my understanding is that the non compete has prohibited the dancer from performing in NYC during the ABT Met season, as well as several months prior to and after the Met season. It appears that ABT regularly gives waivers, but refused to give a waiver for the Mik tour for O/V to appear w. the Mik at the Koch. Here is a Time Out article from 2012 in which McKenzie says that the non compete prohibits ABT dancers from appearing with other companies for 3 months before and 3 months after the ABT season within a 100 mile radius of NY City. http://www.timeoutchicago.com/arts-culture/dance/15190196/kevin-mckenzie-american-ballet-theatre%e2%80%99s-artistic-director-interview

YEAH! We're getting the Bolshoi next summer in New York! Can't wait. I'm a little surprised by the rep, since they did Don Q and Spartacus during their last NY visit. I notice that Osipiova and Vasiliev are reuniting with the Bolshoi during the Bolshoi's upcoming visit to London this summer. I sure hope that if the Bolshoi invites O/V to reunite w. the company for the NY Tour, that their agent works it out in adance with ABT so that O/V can appear with both ABT and Bolshoi in NY. The non compete issue destroyed the Mik's planned visit to NY a few years ago. On the conflict issue, I wonder if the Bolshoi will invite Hallberg for the summer NY performances, and if so, what will McKenzie do about that in terms of non compete issues.

MMDG has done L'Allegro before at the Koch (then called the State), and the venue worked very well. Tix prices range from $40-$125. L'Allegro is a masterpiece. I will definitely be there.

Thanks Natalia. I was recalling the NY premiere, not the DC performances.

The purple Rothbart at the premiere, based on my recollection, was Malakhov. I actually don't even recall the other Rothbarts during that initial run. I also recall that Susan Jaffe had an off night at the premiere (partnered by Carreno). I think Malakhov received the most enthusiastic applause that night. He was excellent, but Gomes is better. I remember thinking that the second night cast (with Ananiashvilli and Bocca) was vastly superior, although I can't recall the Rothbart of that performance.

As part of Lincoln Center's "White Light Festival", the MMDG will present L'Allegro ... at the Koch on the above dates. Tixs go on sale to the general public in late June. Presently on sale to patrons and subscribers.

I've been disturbed by Kourlas' interviews. I think some of the people she interviewed spoke too freely to their detriment. Given that she is a seasoned journalist, I sometimes feel that the people she is interviewing are relatively naive and inexperienced in dealing with publicity and the press, and that Kourlas is capitalizing on their naivete.

Sara Mearns' performance w. the Philharmonic is coming up next week. The program is called A Dancer's Dream. It is being filmed and will be shown in cinemas ion Sept 12, 2013. Cinema locations TBA.

Semionova was gorgeous. Those super long limbs are remarkable. Hallberg danced beautifully. Gomes nearly stole the show. He had the audience in the palm of his hands. A spectacular evening. The house was very full.

Yes, Herman's execution of these turns were perfect.

The gate dance is the dance that Mercutio, Benvolio and Romeo perform at the front gate of Juliet's home before they sneak into the party.

Totally agree about the Ashton Cinderella. I first saw it during the RB visit to the Met in 2004 and loved it. (I remember seeing Rojo and Cojocaru.) The other versions that ABT has done have not measured up in any way to the Ashton version. In fact, Cinderella week at ABT was always my week off from seeing ABT performances.

I thought Osipova and Hallberg stuck more closely to the choreography of R&J than last year. Last year I thought Osipova, in particular, took too many liberties with the choreography. Did anyone see Kent and Bolle on Sat evening?

ABT dancers definitely have all kind of union benefits, including pension benefits. That certainly does impact all kinds of decisions that dancers make, including whether to look for employment elsewhere, and whether and when to retire. I don't know the specifics about how many years of service you have to have before your pension fully vests.

I thought Mearns looked heavy during the Winter Season, but looked like she had lost most of the weight by the spring season. Perfectly understandable since she was injured for so long. I don't think weight detracted from her performances and would be interested in knowing exactly what performances Gottlieb felt were diminsihed due to Mearns' weight.

The tall guy that ABT was/is looking at for promotion is Hammoudi. However, he is now missing all of his assignments for the season due to injury, so McKenzie cannot yet determine whether Hammoudi has the right stuff for future promotion. Clearly, if Whiteside is successful in his full length lead assignments, he will looked at for promotion to principal. I don't think it woudl be this season, but maybe in 2014. I think they should promote Scott, Gorak and Tamm to soloist.

I saw both performances yesterday. Hee Seo and Roberto Bolle at the matinee were absolutely wonderful. Bolle is a perfect Romeo. He was a flawless partner to Hee Seo. He made her seem weightless in the lifts. In addition, there are so many small but telling details in his portrayal that I have not seen in any of the other performances. His jumps are not as high as some of the other men, but I didn't care about that because his overall portrayal was so perfect. When you give Hee Seo the wrong role (like a Petipa ballet), all the weaknesses become apparent very quickly. But when you give her a suitable role like Juliet, she shines. This was my first viewing of her Juliet, and she was magnificent. There were no false notes in her performance. It all looked like it was unfolding for the first time before our very eyes. Gorgeous fluidity. Cornejo and Reyes were very good in the evening. Cornejo is an especially brilliant technician, and so he blazed brightly during the balcony scene, and dazzled with his brilliant dancing. Reyes made for a very sympathetic Juliet. Neither is an especially convincing actor, but they were more than solid. Special mention to Aaron Scott, who is my favorite Mercutio of the week. The matinee was very well sold. The evening performance was very poorly sold (about 40 percent full in my section.)

I attended last night's R&J w. Hallberg & Semionova. You don't often see such tall ballerinas as Juliet. Last night, I was reminded of the reasons. Hallberg needed every ounce of energy he could muster to do these difficult lifts of Semionova. His effort was visible and this interrupted the drama of the ballet. I'm not faulting Hallberg. Anyone would have had a tough time lifting such a tall woman. Semionova's long limbs and pliant back made her extensions look particularly beautiful. Hallberg's jumps were buoyant and his turns were quick and covered a lot of space. I was not particularly convinced by Semionova's acting in this. Was this her debut of the role of Juliet? All of the elements that make Semionova great in certain roles (regal demeanor, great height) make her less appropriate for a role like the innocent waiflike Juliet. Of the supporting roles, Gorak stood out. He is a future Romeo, I hope.

Vasiliev as BB is not far fetched at all. In fact, the Ardani website indicates that Vasiliev will perform BB on July 1 (opening night of SB) and July 3. That info has been on the Ardani website for a few months, (No info on whether that means July 3 matinee or July 3 evening.) I'd bet Simkin does BB on July 2. Sometimes Simkin posts his schedule on his website or facebook page. I didn't look there.

Underwood did a wonderful job as one of the Odalisques in Corsaire last week.

Casting info is available on the ABT website re Lilac Fairy and Carabosse casting.

Drew, the audience's response (that is, those who were seeing it live and in person at the Mariinsky) seemed subdued, tepid and not particularly enthusiastic. Was that your impression seeing it live?