ksk04

MORE CASTING CHANGES AND A DEBUT. Stearns now dances Hallberg's part on opening night (though Hallberg is still listed for the Saturday mat), and Blaine Hoven makes his debut in place of Stearns with the Friday night cast of Part/Abrera. Anyone hoping over in the principal thread that Hoven would get a break, got their wish. I just thank whatever gods necessary that Part/Abrera didn't get their day swapped again after I finally bit the bullet and bought my tickets for their performance.

Well...he's been in the corps for 11 yrs, that could be contributing to his decision to move on. It's a huge loss, imo, to ABT. He and Roman Zhurbin are among the finest character dancers in the company, and should both be soloists, even if they would never be cast the "leading" man--they have proven indispensable to ABT's story ballet rep. ABT already lost their go-to female character dancer, the always divine Maria Bystrova, earlier this year-another big shame. I am hoping to catch a last glimpse of him in LA before he departs; does anyone know what/if he's be dancing in the Bright Stream?

Semionova and Cojocaru (and Kobborg) also have it in their reps, if any of them will be back. If youtube clips are to be believed, Cojocaru/Kobborg are superb. I think Hallberg would make a good Lensky...that adagio solo would fit him beautifully. I don't see Herrera or Murphy getting cast as either Tatiana or Olga. Part would temperamentally fit Tatiana, but could only be partnered with Bolle most likely. Caroline Duprot and Gemma Bond both danced Olga with the Royal. edit: Yes bingham you are right about Marcelo...I was looking at the original press release of casting, and I think he ended up substituting at the last minute.

The Tatianas last time around were Kent, Dvorovenko, Jaffe, and Ferri...that leaves one more potential spot for another Tatiana (after Kent, Dvorovenko, and Vishneva). Wonder who it could be...I assume Reid Anderson already made his choices if Vishneva is saying she will be cast. Looking at the cast lists from before the men are wide open (except Corella and Beloserkovsky did Lensky--though it's a crapshoot whether either of them would be cast again, esp. Beloserkovsky) and Riccetto and Reyes did Olga. It's interesting to think about this one as Anderson gets to choose, so we may be in for some unexpected choices! I hope Part gets cast as the Firebird. The wingspan alone would be to die for.

I'd like to see Part get a run at Manon...if Zenaida Yanowsky at the Royal can do it, let's put that big old back of Bolle's to work! He is a master at wrangling unending limbs. And Tudor, poor Tudor.

Ah, yes...I think that must have been what I was thinking about because I knew there were (at least) four casts of women. Thank you for clearing it up.

Am I correct in thinking only Hallberg, Stearns and Simkin have danced the Ballet Danseur role in this production? Am I missing someone from the DC tour? Wondering what the company is going to do for LA...a sprained ankle might heal enough in two weeks for a woman, who is used to pointe work, but I don't know if they will want to risk Hallberg (on pointe, natch) ahead of the Japan tour. Simkin clearly cannot partner Murphy...which, in the worst case, would leave Stearns for three shows in a row?? Hopefully they've got someone in reserve if Hallberg cannot perform. I have tickets to opening night and I have been waiting to buy for the Part/Abrera cast (thankfully I have been waiting, since it's already jumped dates once)...I hope things don't get much more jumbled.

He has partially complimented Part twice in a week....one wonders if he is feeling well??

Not to start a trend but Osipova (and Vasiliev) did this a few months ago as well with the Tour de Force gala...she's clearly being overbooked by whomever is setting up these contracts for her. Also, Aurora is a new role to her (in that she danced it one time before), I would have hoped even with her packed schedule she was planning a little more than a few hours of brush up rehearsal with Hallberg. A day or two should be more than enough time to get acclimated to a new partner in the ballet world--Look at Semionova and Gomes with Swan Lake. I am surprised Cojocaru has been so reliable, if you take a look at her schedule on her website it's absolutely insane how much flying around she is doing.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/ct-ent-0705-joffrey-labor-20110705,0,7952832.story This article from today seems very convoluted, and I don't think the Exec Dir of the Joffrey is doing himself any favors by complaining like this to the press. One part stuck out in my mind: Perhaps this is my naivete...but is there any choreographer who actually expects the full 30 hours a week for rehearsal? This seem preposterous as does the idea that this is the management's "sole" motivation for increasing the work week.

I agree--I don't think it's appropriate for ABT to cherry pick male principals from around the world (though I guess Kevin didn't care how this looked previously or it happened over a longer stretch so it was less noticeable). First of all, I think we can all agree ABT needs men who are able to make ABT their home--most of the candidates mentioned, I think (and perhaps I am presuming) would not do that, and why would they if they are a principal at the Bolshoi, for example, unless they truly wanted a dramatic change in their lives. The reason why Carreno, Ananiashvili, Ferri, and Bocca all felt like they were part of the home team though they were not homegrown is that they made ABT a priority...they toured with them, they danced in mixed bills at City Center, they were team players while retaining their foreign appeal. If ABT is going to go on a world wide mission, they'd be best served by pursuing someone like Sarabia, who has no company ties OR they could go the route of Simkin and get a younger soloist who they can mold into a principal. This is riskier as obviously a lot of us are still reticent about Simkin being made a principal right now (or as with Veronika Part, she blossomed later than maybe was hoped for by everyone), but in this way they actually BECOME part of the company. Moreover though, I agree with everyone who says Kevin is the biggest obstacle in making ABT and its dancers successful right now. He clearly has a taste for the most obvious flashy thing, and can't see much beyond that.

Poached her? People guest star all the time, ABT dancers amongst dancers from every other company everywhere, have been doing it for years. It is a great opportunity for her to broaden her rep with a role that she hasn't been given at ABT. If she does well at it I'm sure KM will be paying attention. No, it may not translate to her getting that role at ABT (though certainly its better suited for her than Lilac which I don't think she's right for) but it can't hurt her at ABT it can only benefit her. So good for her. And showing she has the talent and stamina and can remain injury free would go a long way towards that promotion for her that many of you have been talking about. So why the negative light here? There is no implication she is leaving ABT for NZ! I am thrilled for Stella, but I am continually pained at her lack of advancement at ABT. So yes, perhaps I do feel negatively about this in the same way I felt "negatively" when Obraztsova had to make her Swan Lake debut elsewhere than the Mariinsky, or that Sarah Lane had to go make her Giselle debut elsewhere or than Cornejo can do Solor and Siegfried with Corella Ballet, but can't do either with ABT, or that Reyes used to dance Odette/Odile and no longer can at ABT. It's disheartening. I am glad for Stella but I doubt this will change things with her position at ABT--it certainly hasn't for any of the above listed dancers.

Ethan just poached Stella to dance Aurora in the new Sleeping Beauty down there. Not surprised...Sascha and Stella are good friends of Stiefel's. New Zealand's gain is ABT's loss. http://www.voxy.co.nz/entertainment/rnzb-beds-down-biggest-production-date/5/93990

Isn't that where Yoel Carreno dances now also? I wonder if the visa issues still remain for him in the US or would be an issue if an offer was extended from ABT... Edit: It appears if ClassicBallet and I had the same idea!! Whoops!

The Trust would have a field day if they went through the channel Ulbricht's video is on (highly recommended to everyone btw), but I don't think they can do anything about the foreign incarnations of youtube . Thank you all!

You can see the Purple Pimp in action for yourself!!

Wiles used to do at least 2 Lilacs. Now that she has apparently left the company (see thread on Swan Lake), they need someone new to fill in as Lilac. Yes, I get that's why she's being put in, but Messmer or even Copeland, for me, suit the part more temperamentally and could use an opportunity like this. Seo will almost certainly be an Aurora the next time SB gets dragged out.

I think Kevin has enough potential in the ranks to promote from within, but he needs to devote the energy to these guys, and not just chuck them aside. The main problem is if Kevin keeps hiring star guest women to pad the majority of the season, he will continue to be loathe to use soloists from within as partners or replacements. It just doesn't look good to your guest if you stick them with a soloist (potentially in a debut) because their original promised partner was injured (the only recent exception I can think of is Vishneva and Saviliev in Swan Lake years ago). The company women also bear responsibility in this...imo Irina could have taken someone under her wing this year with Maxim being out and she didn't, or couldn't, rather than being put with other male principals when the roster is already strained to its limit. On top of that, ABTs stable of men were famous not only for their bravura technique but also their sublime partnering and partnerships. It's clear this portion is falling to the wayside with the repeated reports of Hammoudi and Simkin botching moves with their partners onstage, and even Hallberg sometimes appearing out of his depths with the tall girls. Get Marcelo to teach a damn class or something. With Carlos Lopez gone, he has only 5 soloist men. Salstein is not really a leading man type. Simkin can't dance with the majority of the women in the company. Radetsky has danced a lot of leading male roles with the DNB, but Kevin seems loathe to give him the push that would allow him to become a more refined dancer (injuries? too old? Stella and Sascha killed his puppy back in the day? Who knows!?). Matthews has gotten increasingly better, and needs more time out onstage. Saviliev is probably getting too old to ever promote, but he (in the past) has been a reliable back up to throw onstage. This leaves the guys in the corps. Personally I'd like to see Sean Stewart out there more. Tamm, Hoven, Hammoudi? I actually don't think that hiring Rolando Sarabia would be a terrible idea. I like him, and while he is injury prone, he would certainly be fine for several years to shore up the roster. He's exciting, has a good story, and could actually make ABT a home as opposed to living on the fringes as a guest for the Met only.

Frankly, I'd rather see Hallberg, but you won't hear me complaining about the substitute: the website now lists Marcelo Gomes. Yes, and it lists Carreno as Gomes' replacement in the matinee! Looks like Carreno is pulling a Ferri on the way out! Seriously though, this highlights the pressing need to Kevin to get it together with his male dancers. Gomes has been unbreakable so far, but I don't think that's always going to be the case.

Gomes is now replacing Saviliev in this chain of replacements. Looks like whatever happened to him as the Purple Pimp was serious enough. I'm a little surprised at Seo being given Lilac Fairy...doesn't seem like her type of role at all.

???? Wow, was that acknowledged anywhere by ABT? I can understand not making an announcement about a soloist's departure, but you'd think they'd release a statement, at least, for a principal. Thanks for all the reports from Jose's farewell! Keep em coming.

Casts have changed, I expect in relation to Cornejo's injury. Here is what we are looking at now: July 14 - Murphy/Herrera/Hallberg/Gomes (same) July 15 - Part/Abrera/Stearns/Hammoudi (previously July 16 eve) July 16 mat - Murphy/Herrera cast repeats(same) July 16 eve - Kent/Boylston/Simkin/Carreno (previously July 15) July 17 - Reyes/Boylston/Simkin/Hammoudi (Hammoudi subs for Cornejo)

I saw this program pop up today--it gives a nice showing of the majority of the programs at the Festival. I think Hallberg's performance and Bouder's debut in Don Quixote especially probably interest a lot of people on here. This video has clips from Le Parc (Vishneva, Kondaurova), Swan Lake (Kondaurova/Hallberg), Carmen (Valdes), Les Sylphide (Osmolkina, back from maternity leave!) Bayadere (Marquez), Sleeping Beauty (Tereshkina), more Le Parc (Tereshkina), Don Quixote (Bouder, the facials really kill the entire thing) Giselle (Cojocaru [looking real stiff unfortunately]/Kobborg), In the Night (Lopatkina, Somova), Millepied's thing, and other ballets I will not mention but are danced by Tereshkina, Bouder and Somova

Amen--Free water is the scourge of society!!

Yes indeed. I know a lot of people who aren't super "into" the arts (in other words, they just go to the theater to go), but they keep subscriptions every year out of habit. Faced with irritation over subscription policy you risk alienating a dependable audience, even if they don't attend as frequently or are as knowledgeable as (for this example) 4th Ring members. A lot of avid viewers subscribe to take the advantages that being a subscriber brings, but for many it's just something enjoyable to do 4 Saturdays a year or what have you. These do people matter in the grand scheme of things and aren't likely to take the time to figure out new pricing schemes and seating.