abatt

There was an insert in the program stating that Kajiya was replaced by Messmer in Birthday Offering. However, Kajiya was in The Dream. I believe she was Mustard Seed, but I'm not sure. She was one of the lead fairies.

What I find most amazing about her approach is that she is playing both ends against the middle. In one breath, she is complaining that it's not her fault if the ballet is awful because Martins forced her to use the music. IN the next breath, she makes sure to stroke Martins' ego by explaining what a wonderful guy he is for giving her this opportunity and having confidence in her. She is not a starving artist who needed to take this job because she wouldn't be able to eat or pay her rent. She chose to accept the job, and she should also now accept the responsibility for the reviews. That's what professioinals do.

Various Ballet Talkers may recall that LaRocca is the same critic who, in a June 25, 2008 review of Veronika Part's performance of La Bayadere (which she reviewed favorably), LaRocca felt the need to remind everyone that Part had fallen off pointe during the Rose Adagio a year earlier at an ABT gala. Was it really necessary for her to remind everyone of Part's most embarrassing moment on stage, when Part has given so many wonderful performances? La Rocca wrote: In truth, she is a bit of both, now flubbing point work in astonishing fashion (her turn as Aurora in “The Sleeping Beauty” premiere last season was especially nerve-racking to behold, and she was not given the role this year), now projecting a plush, old-fashioned grandeur. LaRocca seems to feel it is her job to wield her pen (or keyboard) as a sledge hammer.

We are a lot better off having Saviliev as Rothbart than in the lead role. I once had the displeasure of watching that a few years ago (I think he partnered Vishneva on short notice because Steifel was out).

I respectfully disagree, carbro. I don't regard it as gutsy, but as arrogant. Writing a script requires craft and skill, just like choreography. She was attempting to be a jack of all trades, and script writing happens to be a difficult trade. He who attempts to be a jack of all trades is master of none. Being gutsy in a discipline in which you have no clue what you're doing might have a place in a workshop performance or in a small downtown theater. It doesn't have a place on the stage of a 2,800 seat theater in the rep of one of the most renown dance companies in the world. As an audience member, I felt like my intelligence was being insulted, my money was wasted, and my time was wasted by NYCB. Even if we had Helen Mirren and Christopher Plummer delivering the lines, it still would have been a disaster because the "script" was not stage worthy. Edited to add: I also find it interesting that Barak is giving interviews to explain that she never wanted to work with this music, but was forced to. Apparently, she is attempting to mitigate potentially negative reviews by offering this as an excuse. If she felt so ill equipped to work with this music, she should have passed on the assignment. If you are offered a job that you think you cannot handle, you should pass on the job, especially when the results of your work will be on display to thousands of paying customers.

A reminder that the Tony Awards are this weekend. It is on CBS. It is likely that Danny Tidwell will perform as part of the Memphis ensemble. I'm not sure whether Tharp's Come Fly Away will perform, since that show was not nominated for Best Musical. I'm sure there will also be a dance number from Bill T. Jones' show Fela, which is nominated for best musical.

Forgive my ignorance. What is PAMTGG?

Comparing Nilas Martins to Borree really isn't an apt comparison. Nilas was very clearly the beneficiary of nepotism. There was always a sense that he never really earned the right to principal status. His performances looked like they were being phoned in on most nights. Borree certainly had difficulties and limitations in recent years, but I never got the feeling that she didn't give a ---- about what she was doing.

Wow. That's terrific. The best program all season.

That's exactly what I thought. The only time he is reading Manon Lescaut is during the ballroom scene in Act I. He is presented with the diary at the beginning of Act I during the auction scene, and he is reading the diary in the final scenes of Act III. I don't have a playbill wtih me to see how ABT described it in the synopsis. It would have helped if they used very different looking books for the diary and the Manon Lescaut book so that the audience could distingusih the two books.

I thought that too, especially since at the end of the ballet Marguerite is struggling to write in her diary. It doesn't make any sense to highlight her writing in the diary unless it is linked back somehow to Armand reading it. The libretto has many confusing aspects, but I knew the story of La Traviata well enough that I was able to follow the story.

I'm so happy Part is being partnered by Gomes in SL. Too bad about Roberto, though. Who will be cast as Purple Rothbart that night? Hoping for Hallberg. Edited to add: Saviliev will be purple Rothbart on opening night, based on the casting update in the Met lobby. Gomes is not scheduled to perform the purple Rothbart role this season at all.

Probably because it cost a ton of money (scenery + costumes). Martins should just cut his losses now and dump this ballet entirely, no matter what it cost. At least when McKenzie at ABT has a major dud on his hands (Pied Piper, HereAfter, Anastasia, Citizen) it never sees the light of day again on the stage in subsequent seasons.

[Admin Edit]: Two dancers made their farewell performances at NYCB in the last few weeks, and there were long discussions about the criticism each dancer's performance received by NYT critics. Since these are separate discussions from performance reviews and observations, I've aggregated them here. Discussion of the reviews of Yvonne Borree's farewell performance begin with this post. Discussion of the reviews of Darci Kistler's performance begins here. All general comments about the topic of "Farewell Performances and Criticism" are welcome. Helene [/Admin Edit] There's a review of Boree's farewell in today's NY Times. It was complementary of her Duo Concertant, but then went on to criticize Boree's BSQ in particular, and her dancing in general. Was that really necessary? It's her final review in the paper. Why use as a final opportunity to take a swipe at her? Totally lacking in class.

Vishneva and Gomes were electrifying. I wish this had been taped.

How was the Dvorovenko-Stearns cast? He was singled out by the critics of Village Voice and WS Journal. Stearns was very good. In fact, this has been his best role in my opinion. He can't really compete with ABT's top tier men in the categories of spinning a million revolutions per minute or jumping as high as the Empire State Bldg. However, in a dramatic, romantic role like this he is very well suited. His line is actually much cleaner than Bolle's, in my opinion. He is no longer this totally blank presence on stage, which is how he used to look. This was the first time that I was able to see why he is being given so many lead roles. Bravo Cory! Dvorovenko was good, and she was much more believable as a courtesan than Kent. She is a lovely dancer with beautiful extensions. However, she was my least favorite of the 3 casts because she appears to be very calculating on stage, and in a ballet where unbridled passion is key, that approach doesn't work so well. By no means was she bad. She just wasn't as good as the other two ladies.

I've now seen all three casts for this ballet. I'm going back tomorrow for another performance of the Vishneva Gomes cast. I thought Vishneva, Gomes and Part were phenomenal. I wanted to weep by the end of her performance. She was perfect, and Marcelo was the perfect partner for her. This ballet is like a guilty pleasure- a trashy romance novel that I just can't seem to put down. I actually enjoyed all of the casts, but Vishneva was my favorite. Kent was wonderful, but much more demure and controlled. Vishneva was unhinged and wild. Loved it!

Damian's presentation of the heart a la Steadfast Tin Soldier was a great idea. Borree danced well and seemed nearly overcome with emotion at certain points during the performance. She's had her share of problems on stage in recent years, but I certainly wish her well. I remember reading an interview she gave a few years ago in which she explained that one of her happiest and most exciting assignments at NYCB was when she was partnered with Misha in Duo Concertante. That ballet has special meaning for her. Millipied looked renewed and energized in the third movement of BSQ. His performances in recent times have run hot and cold. Kowrowski danced with abandon in the final movement. This was my first viewing of Estancia. It was very creative and the choreography was interesting, particularly the sections with the horses. Some of Wheeldon's movements for the horses reminded me of the stances used by the men who portrayed horses in a production of Equus I saw on Broadway in the fall of 2009 (with Daniel Radcliffe and Richard Griffiths). I also liked the pdd for Tyler and Tiler.

La Stravaganza and Lady w. Dog are entirely more professional than the new Barak piece, for which there is really no precedent or term of comparison that I can think. Here's what baffles me: Why throw a (relatively) inexperienced young choroegrapher like Melissa Barak on to that big stage where she's almost certain to fail? I recognize the prestige associated with the main house but the down side to it is the immediate 'Pass/Fail' judgement that comes with it. Wouldn't it be better to find a smaller venue for budding choreographers to work in where they could develop an outlook/style and then graduate to a larger stage? (I'm thinking of what the Royal does in London.) In a smaller venue, if a work flops -- it flops. There's not this huge importance associated to it as there is with the big stage. Moderator: If this is its own topic, please move this post. Barak has done some pleasant but unmemorable ballets for NYCB previously, the first one while she was a company member. None have remained in the company rep. for any length of time. This one was a complete misfire, though. The review is up on the NY Times website. It ain't pretty, but I guess it could have been worse. The problem here is that a lot of money was probably spent on the scenery and costumes. I suspect that they will feel the need to keep this one around to somehow justify the expenditures.

I think cubanmiamiboy meant Abatt, not abby. There was a lot of noise, so he may not have been able to hear everything. Anyway, nice to finally meet you cubanmiamiboy. Check out the NY Times review of Osipova in yesterday's paper (in the "Links" section). Macauley was as smitten with her as we are.

I saw the new ballet, "Call Me Ben", tonight by Melissa Barak. The best thing that can be said about it is that the costumes were lovely, and the scenic designs were beautiful. The choreography was amateurish. The "script" was something that belonged in a high school drama workshop, not the stage of the Koch Theater. I can't really put any of the blame on the dancers, who did the best they could with the awful material they were given. There were some points when the dialogue could not be heard over the music, but that was no great loss. What a waste of time and money. This one is going on my NEVER SEE THIS AGAIN list, along with La Stravaganza and The Lady w. The Little Dog. During the ballet, I kept wishing I was over at ABT to kill time before Scotch Symphony. The evening started out with a very fine performance of Interplay. Though this is second rate Robbins, it had the benefit of an excellent cast led by Tiler Peck, Amar Ramasar and J. DeLuz. Bouder was FABULOUS in her debut in Scotch. Her footwork in the allegro sections was clear and fast. Her work in the adagio sections was lyrical and melting. Millipied was fine as her partner, although he fudged some of the difficult footwork.

The Alonso Tribute was a great evening. I loved the film they showed before the show. From where I was seated, I could not see Ms. Alonso in the Parterre box when McKenzie pointed to her after the film ended. Marcelo Gomes was fantastic last night. Effortless jumps and joy that radiated throughout the sold out auditorium. I don't think he has ever danced the lead in Don Q at the MET, has he? He must be cast in thie lead the next time they bring back Don Q., although I would miss his Espada. Paloma looked a bit lethargic. She was more exciting in the role last Friday with Angel. Herman Cornejo and Simkin (as the gypsy again) were thrilling. They are both brilliant technicians, and they were almost challenging each other step for step to see who could jump the highest and spin the fastest. Reyes was lovely in the Vision Scene. Carreno looked much better in the last act last night than he did on Tues. That is understandable, since each lead dancer was only dancing one act. Osipova again was a marvel, although her full length Kitri was much more satisfying. Veronika Part was a fiery Mercedes and a graceful, lyrical Dryad Queen. I completely agree with everyone else who remarked that Sarah Lane OWNS Amour.

There will be an article in the upcoming Sunday NY Times by Manohla Dargis titled "Un-Innocents Abroad: The Drubbing" about the nasty reception that this movie has received.

Personally, I found the modficiations from the usual choreography in Osipova's variations fascinating and refreshing. I assume that this may be the way the Bolshoi trained her to perform the variations, but I don't know. Unlike performing a Balanchine work, which is subject to copyright and must be performed in accordance with the mandates of the Balanchine Police, the dancers who perform the old warhorses frequently make slight variations in the choreography in their own solos to suit their particular strengths. I noticed some slight changes in Osipova's dancing from the ABT norm when she danced Giselle, too. As for the comment about other ABT dancers who are less than thrilled by the presence of guest artists appearing for one or two shows, this is how ABT operates. ABT has always operated under a "star" system, and has frequently imported international stars from other companies for guest appearances. As an audience member, I'm very happy that ABT makes efforts to bring us world renowned dancers here in New York. Let's face it, Osipova, Cojocaru and others help fill the enormous MET auditorium and sell loads of tickets. IN an 8 week season annually, trying to fill a 3,800 seat auditorium must be very challenging. Moreover, we tend to complain and/or not buy tickets when McKenzie uses some home team members for certain leading roles.

Corella was never scheduled to participate in the Alonso gala. Gomes was always listed as Paloma's partner for the gala.