abatt

Things have been bad in Brighton Beach. There has been loss of power and destruction of property from the storm. In addition to the natural disaster, there are now reports of looting by criminals who are taking advantage fo the chaos. The last news report I saw indicated that additional police forces have been dispatched to prevent further looting.

I agree that Osipova/Vasiliev in Don Q is an essential, must see event. Numberr 2 on my list is Vishneva-Gomes in R&J.

Thanks everyone for your good wishes.

That was pretty hilarious, rg. McKenzie probably doesn't care whether Koch calls him Peter or Kevin, as long as there is big a check payable to ABT.

Great news. The sight lines at City Center, while improved since the renovation, are still not wonderful. Koch is a much better theater.

Re the order of the 3 new Ratmansky works, I would have assumed that the chamber work would go first, and the symphonic works would be performed as the second and third works of the evening. Usually, the ballet with the largest cast is the final work of the evening. I think the injury of Cornejo demonstrates the dangers of performing with so few principals at your disposal. He was performing very demanding choreography in the Tharp, Morris and Ratmansky ballets. If ABT had an appropriate number of principals to spread out the workload, maybe things would have been different. If ABT were to schedule an even longer City Center season, they would need more than a shoestring roster of principals.

Herman was injured a few days ago during a performance in New York. The Gomes replacement was announced quite a few weeks ago. Gomes is not injured. Enjoy, and please let us know what you and your friends think of the performances.

Cornejo is being replaced by Cory Stearns on opening night in Barcelona, partnering Reyes. Cory is replaced by James Whiteside on Oct 28, dancing w. Paloma.

I'm pretty sure I've seen Cory as sinister Purple Rothbart, but was not impressed.

I think that the person who has gotten the biggest break is Misty Copeland in his Firebird. I didn't see her performance in that role, but I think a lot of people took notice of how well she performed. (I didn't see Misty in the fall season. Is she still injured?) I also think Paloma's artistry was highlighted especially well in Bright Stream. She has not always lived up to expectations in the more traditional classical rep, but she seemed to be energized and engaged in Bright Stream. Personally, I think most people understand the artistry of Gomes and Cornejo irrespective of their Ratmansky roles. There will always be a divided opinion about Part, as noted in a previous thread on this board. Let us also not forget that Ratmansky was instrumental in the early careers of Osipova and Vasiliev at the Bolshoi. I also think that part of the allure of ABT for Osipova and Vasiliev is to be able to continue working with Ratmansky.

Yes, Schklyarov did well in the Tchai pdd.

Having seen both casts of Symphony No. 9, I preferred Part over Semionova. Part's performance was tinged with tragedy and high drama. She captured the darker aspects of the music perfectly. Gomes was electrifying as Othello. He has a way of conveying primal emotions to an audience that few people at ABT have. The problem for me was that Julie Kent was much too mature to pull of the innocent blushing bride that is Desdemona. When Gomes and Kent were dancing together in this, it seemed more like Hamlet and Mama Gertrude than Othello and Desdemona. So who is going to replace Herman in Barcelona Don Q on opening night? Poor Herman. I hope this is a short term injury.

The Balanchine selections made me appreciate NYCB even more. I thought Shrinkina did a poor job with Tchai pdd. I think Desomond Richardson keeps performing the same solo choreography at every gala, but just changes the music and the lighting. Smirnova and Chudin were worth the wait. I didn't think Lucia Lacarra was still dancing. Seems like she's been around forever. Is Cyril Pierre retired?

I attended a few performances this week, and I'm going back for tonight's performance. I very much enjoyed the new Ratmansky ballet and look forward to seeing it again. This one is a hit. The choregraphy for the corps is especially inventive. Gomes and Semionova were excellent together. Salstein was thrilling. Cornejo was incredible, but something must have happened to him mid-ballet, because Jared Matthews suddenly appeared to perform the remainder of Herman's part. Herman did not come out for a bow either. Hope he is okay. I will see the second cast tonight. I always have enjoyed leaves,. and Kent and Gomes were absolutely lovely. Her fluidity and lyricism make this an very fine vehicle for her. Drink to Me will never be a favorite of mine, but Herman and Isabella were thrilling. Boylston is well on her way to a very bright future at ABT. I didn't think Gorak and Kajiya (second cast) were anywhere near the level of the first cast. I have to agree that S&S is just not a great fit for Sarah Lane. I had not seen Moor's Pavane is at least 15 years. Simone Messmer was deliciously evil. I enjoy seeing Rodeo about once every decade, so I've now had my fill. Reyes was adorable.

I think Faux Pas was referring to Irina & Max's upcoming performances in Greenwich, CT at a high school there. http://irinamaxballet.com/

You can now check out the prices of the ABT subscriptions on the Met Opera website. It looks like they increased ticket prices again compared to last season. A weeknight prime orchestra is now $110, and a weekend prime orchestra is now $120. Balcony weeknight is $45, weekend is $50.

Good point. The visa problem didn't even occur to me, but I guess that could be a significant concern. Their daughter was born in the US,and she is a US citizen, but I have no idea whether either of her parents are citizens. I saw a news story just this weekend about a mother who was trying to stay in the US even though she was not a citizen and her visa expired. She had an infant daughter who was born here, and apparently there is some rule that allows the parent to stay if the parent is the primary caregiver. However, it seems like quite a hassle to get that permission, and it would not necessarily permit both illegal parents to stay in the country.

Muntagirov 1, so far

2nd movement usually goes to a tall girl. I'm guessing Part and Semionova, although I think Semionova would work well in the 1st movement. If memory serves, the last time they did Symphony in C at ABT, the 2nd movement went to Kent and Jaffe. I'm wondering if Vishneva is going to be cast in Month or Symphony in C. She is doing very little at ABT this season. 2 Onegins & 1 R&J. It would great if she was the SL TBA, but I seriously doubt that will happen. There are many roles that she no longer does at ABT. She did one performance of Sylvia a few years ago, but never returned to the role. She also did one performance of SB at ABT, and never did that role again at ABT.

I think the Sat matinee of SL will be Osipova and Gomes. I also think that Muntagirov may end up as Gillian's partner for SL, since he appeared last season in the ABT Swan Lake. Alternatively, I notice that Dvorovenko's only role this season is Onegin. What's up with that? Maybe they will give her the TBA SL.

I'm kind of surprised that they gave the super tall Semionova Juliet. If they are now willing to have tall girl Juliets, why not give it to Part? Looks like Julie Kent has no plan to retire in 2013. Why is Max still listed on the roster? He has not danced at ABT in a long time.

There is a TBA slot on the ABT calendar for Swan Lake in June 2013. It would not surprise me at all if Osipova ended up being cast in that slot. I think that she would not have been given the opportunity to do this role if she were still at the Bolshoi. The Mik gives her tremendous freedom to do guest appearances. She is doing exactly what she set out to do when she quit the Bolshoi. Good for her.

It seems that Mussel's crystal ball is very accurate. See this link to the NY Times, re the ABT Spring Season: http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/10/american-ballet-theater-announces-spring-season/?ref=arts Muntigirov and Cojocaru return!

MM doesn't choreograph at NYCB for similar reasons. I recall reading a few years ago that Peter Martins has invited him to choreograph at NYCB, but MM declined the invite.

There will be a one-night only lecture tomorrow night, (Oct 8) at St. Luke's Theater in Manhattan sponsored by Dancers Over 40 titled "Balanchine and Beyond". The lineup of speakers looks very enticing. See link below for info and tickets. If this has been posted elsewhere, sorry for the duplication. http://www.telecharge.com/BehindTheCurtain.aspx?prodid=9252