abatt

Definitely agree w. you about Wagner's view of women. However, in this production, did you notice that Kundry is the person who brings forth the grail at the end of the opera. That was an interesting and unanticipated event, because I would have assumed that women were forbidden to touch it. Also, at the end of the opera the women and the men reunite and are no longer on separate sides of the stage. Very interesting production. There have also been some interesting reviews regarding the sexual imagery in the production - particularly the second act.

I remember reading somewhere that Balanchine believed that a program should be designed like a meal - an appetizer, main course and dessert. Not a bad metaphor!

Sorry, I meant the 4th movement.

This season was not Reichlin's debut in TPC2. She performed the lead role the last time they revived it (forget when that was). She was marvelous. (She did the soloist role brilliantly for a number of years.) I'm also very glad that Reichlin was given the opportunity to dance the secnd movement in Symphony in C. I thought she did a wonderful job in that role debut (replacing Mearns). I'm going to disagree about the casting of Bouder in Western 3rd movement. Yes, she did an excellent job. However, that choreography is designed to show off a long limbed ballerina. I thought Bouder was miscast in Western.

I have a hard time picturing Lopatkina as Titania. That role requires someone who can convey a sense of humor and warmth. I associate Lopatkina with an icy, dramatic stage presence.

Martins seems to have an affinity for Per Kirkeby - a fellow Dane (designer of sets and costumes of SL and R&J). While Martins might enjoy his artwork, I think he made a huge mistake hiring him for these 2 productions. As noted above, the designs and costumes are hideous. Kirkeby may be an admired artist (by some), but his concepts do not translate well to the ballet stage. It's a big problem when directors like Martins hire their friends for projects that they are not qualified for. (Similar problem with the new backdrop for Scotch Symphony that was unveiled a few years ago, designed by a former NYCB dancer.) The designers used for the sets and costumes of SB are well known and have worked on numerous Broadway productions. They are not studio artists who are dabbling in stage production design..

My understanding is that the only prices that were cut were the super-expensive seats that were simply not selling for mediocre operas/casts. The pricing in many sections of the house remained the same as last year. They are continuing with the policy of variable pricing - charging more for certain operas/casts than for others.. They have abandoned the $7.50 per ticket exchange fee for subscribers who needed to exchange subscription tickets. The Met is the only subscription based institution that I know of that had the nerve to try that, and it apparently backfired. They lost much more in subscription sales than they gained from charging the fee.

Darn. I'm too late. The youtube clip was removed.

The Met has announced its new season, including a list of next season's Live In HD broadcasts. See press release below. The Met Opera website has complete details. http://www.metoperafamily.org/en/news-and-features1/press-releases/releases/2013-14-Season-Announcement/

I thought Jennifer Hudson sang well. However, I thought Catherine Zeta Jones' performance was definitely lip synched. I know she has gotten a number of singing roles, but she can barely sing. The Tony Award she got a few years ago was a gift.

Speaking of the tour, it seems that Somogyi has recovered. I looked at the casting for the Nevada shows, and Jennie Somogyi is cast in Red Angels. Let's hope she stays injury-free for a long, long time.

Thank you for operating this site. It is a pleasure.

Wonderful news for all. Just noticed in my program for tonight that Lovette is the newest Janice Levin award winner . (That info is not even on the NYCB website.) I feel sorry that Lydia Wellington is not among the people promoted. Lauren King was positively radiant tonight as Florine.

I don't think the insurance would be higher for the Bal de Couture costumes. They were executed in house by the NYCB costume department. Valentino probably owns the copyright to the designs, but it is doubtful that he owns the dresses. They regularly transport expensive, elaborate costumes to Saratoga.

I saw Scheller's debut last night as Aurora. She seemed very nervous, especially during the Rose Adagiio scene. She quickly gave her hand from one suitor to the next because she could not hold the balance for long. In fact, at one point she looked dangerously close to coming off the pointe but the strong and able hand of one of the suitors saved her. There were minor glitches here and there in her footwork that I'm sure will be ironed out for the next time. I didn't think she placed much focus in development of character. Nor did I find her vision scene particularly moving. All the steps were done, but it lwas bland. The wedding scene was, in my opinion, the best portion of her performance. I would say her performance is a work in progress that will hopefully improve over time. Savannah did pretty well with her Lilac. She certainly has the height for the role. Most of her variation was well done, although there were some small problems with her footwork. I had high hopes for Brittany Pollack as Florine. However, she lacked refinement, especially in her use of her arms. Garcia was in good form and seems to work well with Scheller.

Could these developments at the Mik in part help to explain why Osipova and Vasiliev have agreed to appear w. the Bolshoi in London this summer in Flames of Paris, or can we assume that the London presenter of the Bolshoi made it worth their effort.

Someone over at NYCB must read these comments, because Scheller is now replaced by Pollack as tonight's Florine.

I hope this means that they will be bringing back Dances at a Gathering during the fall season.

I agree completely w. Balanchinette about Bouder and Veyette. Bouder's balances were held longer and her jumps were higher than any of the other Aurora's at NYCB. She is MUCH better in this run than when she debuted in the role a few years ago. Really excellent characterization too. Ringer is too nice to play Carabosse. She doesn't really do evil. Loved Maria's over the top portrayal of Carabosse, although I wish she would return to the Lilac Fairy role for old times sake. On a separate note, why are they scheduling Scheller to do Florine tonight! She should be resting in prep for her big debut as Aurora tomorrow. She has waited her turn to perform this role. She mentioned either in an interview or lecture a while back that she had learned the role of Aurora for the prior run of SB, but never got to perform it. Wishing her well!

I have the complete opposite view of Katarina Novikova. First, how many people can fluently speak Russian, French and English? Not that many, I would surmise. Moreover, I think she is a very engaging and animated personality.

Mearns has always done Lilac, never Aurora. They generally use the shorter women for Aurora, and the tall girls for Lilac. Janie Taylor is the exception to the rule. Vipa, I saw Ulbricht do Bluebird. Obviously, he gets a lot of height to his jumps. However, he is not an elegant dancer in terms of his line, which tends to get sloppy. I think Ulbricht is much more of a modern dancer, and does not look as good in classical rep. Vipa, yes Reichlin did have some slight trouble in the prologue, but I thought it was minor. Mearns also had some minor difficulty with that variation, but not enough to be a distraction.

I have to agree that after seeing the Maillot R&J I had a new esteem for the MacMillan version. The Maillot choreography is very modern. What's worse is that he tended to make his lead characters into charicatures sometimes, which made it difficult to care about the fate of the characters. I also had the same confusion about Lord Capulet that Barbara mentioned. It was only after reviewing the playbill that I could determine definitively that there was no Lord Capulet, and the tall man in brown was supposed to be Paris. Earlier in the week I thought the Concerto Barocco was marred by first night jitters. However, the Apollo was very well done. I could not stay for Agon. Have to agree that the PNB's program choices for their rare visit to NY was puzzling. I would have preferred to see some good rep instead of this modern version of R&J. The house may have been full, but I know that there were tons of discounts available for many weeks for these performances. I think a very large percentage of the tickets sold were sold at a significant discount.

I've seen three casts -Fairchild/DeLuz, Bouder/Veyette, and Peck/Angle. I enjoyed all of the Aurora performances, but I felt Megan's interpretation was the weakest. Bouder had the most amazing performance in terms of her level of technique. She is a powerhouse. Tiler Peck's performance was very musical. I'm always pleasantly surprised to witness how much Veyette has improved over time. He was an excellent Desire in terms of both his techique and his acting. I'm very familiar with the high level of DeLuz's performances, having seen him since he first joined ABT. I knew he would be excellent, and he delivered on all accounts. The only problem I have w. Tyler Angle is that he is not a first rate technician, but he managed to do well enough. Mearns and Reichlin both dance Lilac with gorgeous phrasing and port de bras. Janie Taylor is completely miscast as Lilac. She does not dominate the action in any way, and her classical technique tends to be sketchy. She fell during her difficult variation in the Prologue the night I saw it (Feb 14). I also want to mention the brilliant Bluebird of Huxley. This guy floats through the air. His feet are always perfectly pointed. Gorgeous.I hope they promote him to principal at some point. The only thing holding him back, potentially, is his height. I don't have enough time to remark about all of the supporting roles right now. This is an exquisite production, with gorgeous sets and costumes. There is very little dumb filler choreography in this production (compared w. the ABT production, where I cringe every time I have to sit through the spindle dance, the prolonged section where Desire defeats Carabosse, or the gutted wedding section).

See attached article. The NY Phil will be performing a concert performance of Carousel. Tiler Peck and Robbie Fairchild will perform the "If I Loved You" pdd. The staging will be broadcast on "Live from Lincoln Center" April 26 at 9 PM ET on PBS. http://www.playbill.com/news/article/174979-New-York-City-Ballet-Dancers-Robert-Fairchild-and-Tiler-Peck-Join-Cast-of-New-York-Philharmonic-Carousel

I'm soooo jealous. Wish I could go to London to see this engagement.