What Balanchine ballet ABT should dance next?

[Alexandra]

I think getting more Robbins' for ABT would be a terrific idea. He's one of their "native" choreographers, after all. My Robbins wish list would include "The Age of Anxiety" and "The Guests".

[Dale]

These are ABT's listed Robbins ballets, according to its rep. archive:

Facsimile

Fancy Free

Interplay

N. Y. Export. Op. Jazz

Les Noces

Other Dances

Summer Day

Summer Day is from 1947, so I have a feeling it can't be brought back. Facsimile is from the year before and, I think, also considered lost. However, N.Y. Export has been done more recently (and there is video by the Ailey company at NYPAL). It would be nice to bring that back. Les Noces was revived for NYCB in the late 90s, although it was done for ABT with Sallie Wilson. If NYCB has not interest in doing it again, it would be nice for ABT to do it. Or better yet, do the Nijinska version. I have been thinking about ABT doing Interplay - the company seems more suited to it than NYCB.

I can imagine some ABT dancers doing Four Seasons, but I don't think it should be done by the company. I just think of certain ballets belong to one company and not the other. It's like, it would be interesting to see Somogyi do Pillar but I don't think NYCB should do it. That's what guesting is for.

[charlieloki]

after twice seeing abt do mozartiana, with different casts, and then seeing the piece this week with kyra nichols, i am of the opinion that the work was ill-served by abt's performance of it

abt seemed "heavy" as opposed to nycb's lightness: the nearly back-to-back scheduling allowed for a real comparison

kyra and nycb have the choreography in their very bones, and can simply fly with it

what about the reverse? what non-balanchine works could translate well from abt to nycb?

[oberon]

An "ABT" ballet for NYCB?? GISELLE...well, why not...now that they've done the 3 big Tchaikovsky ballets...

Giselle: Whelan/Ringer/Ansanelli/Taylor/Weese/Borree

Albrecht: Boal/Tewsley/Hubbe/Millepied/Marcovici/Liang

Myrthe: Kistler/Nichols/Sylve/Kowroski/Hankes/Krohn/Tinsley

Peasant pas de Deux: Bouder/de Luz

Abi Stafford/Ulbricht

Edge/Hendrickson

Keenan/Craig Hall

Giselle's Mother: von Aroldingen/Ashley

Bathilde: Korbes/Bar/Golbin

Hilarion: Fayette/Hanna/Higgins

Leading Wilis (don't they have names?): pick your favorite corps girls

[Farrell Fan]

Is Peter Martins doing the choreography?

[carbro]

Leading Wilis (don't they have names?)

First one is Moyna, second is Zulma.

I'd love to see Bouder's Myrtha, and although she is tall, I think Kowroski is more a Giselle than a Myrtha.

Still, it's a good roster of casts.

Is Peter Martins doing the choreography?

[GeorgeB fan]

While I personally don't see any reason why ABT can't bring more Balanchine into their repertory, I would love to see NYCB perform Giselle. Oberon your casting in fantastic, but I don't think Peter Martins would cast his wife in the second lead of Myrthe - she'll be Giselle no matter what.

And carbro, your right, Peter Martins choreographing the ballet: double

Maybe one of the great Giselles of the recent past can come and stage it for the company. Does anyone have any suggestion?

[oberon]

Isn't the choreography pretty much established? I nominate one of my favorite Giselles, Mariana Tcherkassky, to stage it.

Darci might be a very good Giselle, actually...and carbro, you are right about Maria K being more a Giselle-type but I think either of these ladies would be interesting in either role.

[oberon]

...or, how about a Chris Wheeldon GISELLE?

[Mel Johnson]

Going back to the original notion of this thread, I think ABT would look great performing "Scotch Symphony".

[klingsor]

I'd like to see ABT do "Concerto Barocco" during their fall season at City Centre, if for no other reason than seeing it done on that stage.

[Alexandra]

Interesting point, Sveiglar -- how about "The Four Temperaments" (which they did during the Baryshnikov era) for the same reason?

[bingham]

I don't remember ABT doing 4 Temperaments during Misha's time.Maybe,you are thinking of Stravinsky Violen Concerto.

Joe

[Alexandra]

Joe, I do remember Violin Concerto. I didn't see ABT do Four Ts; I thought I'd remembered reading about it, but could well be wrong!

In any case, in keeping with sveiglar's wish to see ballets made at City Center on that stage, Four Ts is one I'd like to see in that setting -- its shape -- long and narrow -- suits that stage.

[GeorgeB fan]

Going back to the original notion of this thread, I think ABT would look great performing "Scotch Symphony".

Mel doing Scotch Symphony would be a great ideal. I remember in the American Masters documentary Balanchine part 2 the program talked about how Scotch Symphony was a variation on August Bournonville's La Sylphide. But were Bournonville's ballet was a "full novel" on the subject, Balanchine's was a "poem".

Imagine both ballets on the same program.

[carbro]

I'd like to see ABT do "Concerto Barocco" during their fall season at City Centre, if for no other reason than seeing it done on that stage.?

Hiya, Sveiglar! The same idea occurred to me until I considered the quality of restraint necessary for Barocco and realized that it was probably well beyond this hard-selling ABT. Am I misremembering, or did DTH once do a black-leotard Barocco at City Ctr?

Isn't the choreography pretty much established?

As is the choreography for Sleeping Beauty, much of which PM distorted to no one's advantage. And as is the choreography for Swan Lake, of which PM's staging contains very little of the Ivanov/Petipa.

[Anthony_NYC]

Interesting point, Sveiglar -- how about "The Four Temperaments" (which they did during the Baryshnikov era) for the same reason?

With the original ending, which I've always wanted to see, apparently a kind of fountain effect. I understand Balanchine only changed it after the move to Lincoln Center to make better use of the State Theater's wider stage.

[Ari]

I'm not aware of Balanchine's having changed the ending at any time before 1978, when he did so for the videotaping of the ballet for PBS (the performance in "Choreography by Balanchine" that is available on video and DVD). He said at the time that he'd always wanted to change it but had never had the time. Personally, I've always preferred the original ending, though it didn't look to me like a fountain.

[Farrell Fan]

It may be fun for us to speculate on this subject, but last night at ABT provided a strong dose of reality. The applause and cheering for "Swan Lake" was deafening, prolonged, and bestowed on principals, soloists, and corps alike. This was in sharp contrast to the audience conduct on the Balanchine evening I attended, when the applause was, at best, polite. But what really got me at the end was the comment by an old geezer* sitting behind me, who announced exultantly to everyone around, "That was real ballet, not like that Balanchine stuff."

I'll be glad to get back to the State Theater tonight.

*It's okay to call him that; I'm a geezer myself.

[oberon]

Oh, Farrell Fan, you gave me a good laugh!!!

I guess in the long run each company does best what it does best, which is why they have co-existed for such a long time now.

Another geezer,

Oberon

[klingsor]

It may be fun for us to speculate on this subject, but last night at ABT provided a strong dose of reality. The applause and cheering for "Swan Lake" was deafening, prolonged, and bestowed on principals, soloists, and corps alike. This was in sharp contrast to the audience conduct on the Balanchine evening I attended, when the applause was, at best, polite. But what really got me at the end was the comment by an old geezer* sitting behind me, who announced exultantly to everyone around, "That was real ballet, not like that Balanchine stuff."

I'll be glad to get back to the State Theater tonight. 

*It's okay to call him that; I'm a geezer myself.

Nothing wrong with elitism in my book, but just about any performance at Lincoln Center is accompanied by exposure to the comments and poor manners of dolts.

In the 70s and 80s most of my subscriptions to NYCB were 2nd and 3rd ring center. The quality of the audience, though still good, is not what it once was. I now sit in the AAs of the second and third ring to limit my exposure to inane comments, talking, applause during the music, coughing and interminable candy wrapper opening.

[carbro]

Nothing wrong with elitism in my book, but just about any performance at Lincoln Center is accompanied by exposure to the comments and poor manners of dolts.

. . . I now sit in the AAs of the second and third ring to limit my exposure to inane comments. . . .

I guess that's why, weather permitting, some people go outdoors during intermission. That, and the smoking ban.

:offtopic: Sorry.

[canbelto]

In all fairness, there's some remarkable people at the ballet too. I once saw a mother and a daugher rattling off Balanchine ballets at an ABT performance. The daughter (maybe 7) was asking her mom "Can we see Symphony in C again?" Isnt that precious?

[Anthony_NYC]

I'm not aware of Balanchine's having changed the ending at any time before 1978, when he did so for the videotaping of the ballet for PBS (the performance in "Choreography by Balanchine" that is available on video and DVD).  He said at the time that he'd always wanted to change it but had never had the time.  Personally, I've always preferred the original ending, though it didn't look to me like a fountain.

For the life of me I can't even remember where I read about the fountain thing, but it stuck with me. Maybe the writer just didn't describe it well. Or maybe I fantasized the whole thing! Anyway, I'd love to hear your description of the pre-1978 ending. Is there a film, I wonder?

[miliosr]

Farrell Fan's experience shows that some companies (or at least their audiences) are not especially receptive to Balanchine's dances and their importation. I still say that ABT's time and energy would be better spent preserving neglected treasures from its own repertory rather than investing time and energy in staging all-Balanchine programs. Sorry Balanchine fans!