The Next Apollo, Orpheus, Prodigal Son

[KayDenmark]

Forgive me for revisiting an issue I raised in spring 2005, but the recent spate of retirements and promotions may shed new light on the topic.

Apollo, Prodigal Son and Orpheus are all absent from the NYCB schedule this year. That may be a calculated choice, giving the audience a bit of perspective between the Boal and post-Boal eras. But given that Boal has retired and Hubbe, Woetzel, Nilas Martins are presumably in the late afternoon of their careers, which of the younger NYCB men are well placed to provide the next interpretations of these great Balanchine roles? Who has the talent, who has the emotional intelligence and depth, who has the looks? (Apollo, at least in Peter Martins' mind, seems to require a certain look.)

I only watch the company from a distance, so I'd be very interested to hear what more regular viewers think. Are any of the new soloists good candidates?

[Dale]

I'd like to see Millepied and Marcovicci try Prodigal Son. Millepied is very strong in dramatic roles, something we don't always get to see because he's usually needed in the bouncy roles (due to his natural elevation). I'd like to see Marcovicci do Apollo with the birth scene. I think he's got the "roughness" needed to show the progression from youth to god. Marcovicci's shakey partnering skills sometimes make it tough to cast him in some roles. Reichlen would make a great Siren, by the way. I'd also love to see Sylve in that, too.

Phillip Neal was a wonderful Apollo for Suzanne Farrell's company and I always thought it was a shame he hasn't been given a chance to do it with NYCB. It also will allow for a tall cast of muses, which I've missed seeing since Igor Zelensky left the company.

Orpheus seems to be a property of Nilas Martins for the past 13 years. Hubbe would be very good, I would guess. At this stage of Hubbe's career, I don't think the technique would pose a problem and he's excellent in creating characters. I'd like to see Ringer as his Eurydice. Jared Angle also would be interesting in this part. Hopefully it would stretch his dramatic capabilities.

Those castings don't address the many new dancers. I have to see them more in regular solos to get a feel for what they can do.

[E Johnson]

I'm going to beat the same old drum and argue that Evans should get a shot at Orpheus and Apollo.

Of the younger dancers, I agree that Marcovici could be an interesting Apollo. I also expect LaCour to get cast in it eventually. For Orpheus -- but for a possible height issue, I think Hendrickson could do a great job. Ramasar maybe someday, but not yet.

[Leigh Witchel]

I think if they cast Bouder as Eurydice (something that I think would extend her) Hendrickson could do Orpheus and partner her in the pas de deux.

Has Sean Suozzi gotten a crack at Prodigal already? Maybe also a "wild boy" Apollo. For a more classical Apollo I'd be watching Tyler Angle. Not yet, in a few years.

[KayDenmark]

Yes, I'd also expect Ask to show up as Apollo at some point. Peter Martins still seems to see Apollo as blond or, at least, fair. Perhaps on some level he still sees Apollo as "his" part, and casts it with dancers who resemble him physically, if not always stylistically. I agree that Albert Evans would make a great Apollo, and once asked him during an interview if he would like to do it. He said "Of course." I'm sure it would sell tickets, which is something Martins usually does his best to do.

Dale, now that you mention it, I haven't ever seen anyone but Nilas Martins do Orpheus. This ballet is certainly performed less frequently than Apollo - is it because it is generally considered to be inferior, or is it just not a favorite of the company's current management?

If you'd asked me five years ago, I would have paid through the nose for a ticket to see Millepied do Prodigal. Now I'm not so sure. Again, I'm watching the company from a distance, but in the performances I've seen since then, he hasn't shown the personality and charisma I originally found so exciting. Perhaps he could be coached well in the part and surprise me.

Stephen Hanna and Jared Angle are currently the youngest male principals - would either one of them be appropriate? Or are their strengths in partnering?

[Leigh Witchel]

Jared Angle is a good classical dancer as well as a good partner. He's been rather good in things like Divertimento No. 15. He might be a more classical Apollo, I don't see him as a Prodigal - I think his metier may prove to be in the more classical repertory rather than in ballets like the ones being discussed.

[Farrell Fan]

Dale, now that you mention it, I haven't ever seen anyone but Nilas Martins do Orpheus. This ballet is certainly performed less frequently than Apollo - is it because it is generally considered to be inferior, or is it just not a favorite of the company's current management?

You didn't ask me, but I think it's because Orpheus is not a favorite of the company's current audience. The audience just doesn't respond to it.

[Leigh Witchel]

FF - Chicken or the egg? Do they not respond because it's not shown at its best? It desperately needs a new cast and more studio time.

[Helene]

FF - Chicken or the egg? Do they not respond because it's not shown at its best? It desperately needs a new cast and more studio time.

I'm not sure. I always thought there was something held back in audience response when I saw this in the 1980's with a stellar cast including Ib Andersen and Adam Lüders. I think there's something about the style of which the audience was not entirely accepting.

Perhaps Michael could shed some light on the visual (Noguchi's sets and costumes) and the choreographic style of the ballet in context of each other and the period in which the ballet was made.

But I do agree that without a strong cast and sense of purpose, the ballet, which inspired Morton Baum to invite Ballet Society to become the resident ballet company at City Center, has little chance to reach the audience.

[carbro]

Not that I'd particularly want to see it, but I'd put money on Danny Ulbricht dancing the Prodigal in the not-to-distant future. I'm imagining his pas de deux with Tess Reichlen.

I would love to see Evans' Apollo. I would love to see Woetzel's, even though many insist he is not god-looking. As for the younger gen, Hendrickson and both Angles are promising candidates.

[Michael]

I would like to see Orpheus done with a strong narrative emphasis. As now performed, it comes off as just too stylized. Orpheus himself has to be seeker/poet/hero. He is determined. True. Someone who will go to the underworld to save his heroine. The role calls for emotional weight. I don't know who can do it at City Ballet or elsewhere right now.

Re, Apollo, different company but wasn't Stiefel (unexpectedly) wonderful in the role at City Center last fall. He did it wild, raw and demi character.

[Dale]

I saw Woetzel as Apollo with a pickup group of NYCB and ABT dancers in New Jersey in the 90s. Not bad. The earlier portions of the ballet, when Apollo is an untamed youth, worked better than later section when he is to lead the muses to Mount Olympus/heaven.

[Helene]

I would love to see Woetzel's, even though many insist he is not god-looking.

Unfortunately, Peter Martins has become the contemporary blueprint for what a god must look like, which may make a bit more sense in the truncated version, where the awkward young god isn't shown. (Not that it's unfortunate that Peter Martins looks like Peter Martins, but that other mortals are expected to.) But neither Villella, Baryshnikov, nor d'Amboise fit the blond god mold, nor did Lifar, the originator of the role. (Kronstam fit the god-looking part, but not the blond.)

But there is hope: Lew Christensen was the original blond god, and others who did not look like Christensen were able to make their mark on the role.

[oberon]

I've always thought it would be good to see ORPHEUS revived as a black & white ballet. I think the costumes, however "rad" they might have once been, now look sort of funny to me. Balanchine was known to sometimes discard fussy costumes and sets (4 TEMPS, SYMPHONY IN C) and though I am sure the decision to do a black & white ORPHEUS would be controversial, I cannot see the harm of trying it for one revival to see how it looks and how the public takes to it.

Stephen Hanna strikes me as a potentially fine Apollo, and I would love to see Adam Hendrickson try Prodigal as he is such a good actor. I agree that thinking of Apollo only in terms of blondes is very limiting. Has Marcovici ever done it? He sure has the physique. I think De Luz would be great in Apollo. I could see him with Bouder, Fairchild & Tiler Peck as the Muses.

[E Johnson]

I don't have personal experience to go by, but I have heard it said that Orpheus suffered by the move to the NY State Theater and its much larger stage. I think we can't really judge how well the ballet itself is received these days since it has been, IMHO, seriously miscast for years. A different more expressive Orpheus might make all the difference.

I have a hard time seeing any of the younger dancers as the Prodigal (maybe Hendrickson in a few years, with a teeny tiny Siren) It calls for not only strong dancing but a certain emotional maturity that I don't see, a realization that getting the girl can be a really bad idea. I also don't think there's a good Siren in the company right now -- I haven't liked anyone in the part since Alexopoulos retired.

[sandik]

I would love to see Woetzel's, even though many insist he is not god-looking.

Unfortunately, Peter Martins has become the contemporary blueprint for what a god must look like, which may make a bit more sense in the truncated version, where the awkward young god isn't shown. (Not that it's unfortunate that Peter Martins looks like Peter Martins, but that other mortals are expected to.) But neither Villella, Baryshnikov, nor d'Amboise fit the blond god mold, nor did Lifar, the originator of the role. (Kronstam fit the god-looking part, but not the blond.)

But there is hope: Lew Christensen was the original blond god, and others who did not look like Christensen were able to make their mark on the role.

on looking like a god:

Following this from a distance, since I rarely see the company, but we got a nice look at Apollo here in Seattle (Pacific Northwest Ballet) a couple years ago and had two different views of the main role -- Jeff Stanton's was a more "godly," serious interpretation right from the top, while Stanko Milov had a slightly looser physicality (I thought he looked like Elvis when he first played his lyre). In the end, Stanton ruled through his gravitas, and Milov tamed the muses through his power. They were both extremely cogent interpretations, worked quite well, and I was happy to see them both.

ps We have the full version with the birth and the stairway.

[drb]

Even if it got its stairway back, Apollo might be something of a gamble for NYCB, given what the competition (ABT) is offering this Spring: Acosta, Beloserkovsky, Carreno, Hallberg, and Stiefel. Since NYCB can't deliver this level of mature talent, I might gamble young with Craig Hall, who showed the requisite intensity and ability to sustain a portrayal late last season in After the Rain.

[zerbinetta]

I'm with drb here. Hall has not only the intensity but the elegance & partnering skills .. but perhaps not quite yet.

[nysusan]

I'm with drb here. Hall has not only the intensity but the elegance & partnering skills .. but perhaps not quite yet.

Me too. Hall is #1 on my wishlist as far as NYCB Apollos go. He'll be ready soon provided he gets a few more meaty roles in the next couple of seasons. I think an Ask LaCour Apollo is inevitable at some point, and I think he'll do very well. As for dancers who are ready now - I hadn't thought about Neal in the role, but why not? He's the most classical of NYCB's current male principals. I'll be rooting for Evans & Woetzel though. I know they're not likely to be cast, but I'd love to see it

I haven't seen Orpheus or Prodigal Son enough to have strong feelings about casting. I've only see Orpheus once recently, and I agree it looked very dated. Almost Grahamesque (don't get me wrong, I love Graham but not when channeled through Balachine). Not sure what it would take to reinvigorate it.

[Farrell Fan]

I would like to see Orpheus done with a strong narrative emphasis.

What might help in this regard is a brief note in the program about the plot. Mr. Kirstein seemed to think his audience was educated in the classics and required no such asistance, but this is no longer the case, if it ever was.

[richard53dog]

What might help in this regard is a brief note in the program about the plot. Mr. Kirstein seemed to think his audience was educated in the classics and required no such asistance, but this is no longer the case, if it ever was.

FF, I tend to agree. If you don't know the myth, it's sort of hard to follow the narrative trail.

Richard

[canbelto]

Unfortunately, Peter Martins has become the contemporary blueprint for what a god must look like, which may make a bit more sense in the truncated version, where the awkward young god isn't shown. (Not that it's unfortunate that Peter Martins looks like Peter Martins, but that other mortals are expected to.)

For those who want to see, here's a picture of the original Apollo, Serge Lifar. He doesn't look anything like Peter Martins.

[Alexandra]

Apollo was originally a demi-caractere role, and remained one through the 1960s. Balanchine at one time made a big point about this, saying that his Apollo "was NOT the Apollo Belvedere."

[drb]

Apollo was originally a demi-caractere role, and remained one through the 1960s. Balanchine at one time made a big point about this, saying that his Apollo "was NOT the Apollo Belvedere."

Peter Martins played Apollo during the period when the ballet became Terpsichore; Suzanne was better served by Apollo Belvedere.

Getting back to casting the triple bill, I really like Leigh's idea of stretching Bouder, and pairing her with Hendrickson, in Orpheus. I've never liked that ballet, except to admire Noguchi's set and lyre. But such adventurous casting would make it worth another look.

For Prodigal there's still Woetzel, but they'd better hurry. He will be a virtually impossible act to follow. Let Maria Kowroski seduce him

Sticking with a young Apollo, the Muses I'd pick for Hall would be Reichlen/Hyltin/Scheller. {Being a Bouder addict, I could have also cast her in any part. Actually, any. Perhaps they could invite Bejart (well, Mr. B. did like him) to stage one of his gender-benders, with her as Apollo. Why not a Goddess? Then who for the three male Muses?}

[carbro]

Sticking with a young Apollo, the Muses I'd pick for Hall would be Reichlen/Hyltin/Scheller.

Each would look good with Hall, but I think there's too much height discrepancy between Reichlen on the one hand and Hyltin and Scheller on the other to make a good trio of muses.

The truncated version of Apollo was born, it might be useful to recall, when Mr. B restaged the work for Baryshnikov. It would tend to argue that he may not have seen the shorter version as emphasizing the more noble qualities of role.