Jump to content
This Site Uses Cookies. If You Want to Disable Cookies, Please See Your Browser Documentation. ×

Kent's Farewell?


Recommended Posts

Sorry, I'm new to this forum. But does anyone know if last evening's Giselle was Julie Kent's farewell performance? I believe it said that it would be in the subscription brochure. However, there was no special farewell event appropriate for a principal of her stature at the curtain calls. Thanks.

Link to comment
Are you perhaps confusing her with Nina Ananiashvili who is retiring from ABT this season? I'm sure you wouldn't confuse the two dancers, but rather notice of the farewell...

Nina is retiring at the end of NEXT season, not this one.

I know nothing regarding julie retiring, but I would imagine it isn't the case. She is one of the longest lasting ABT principals and is married to Victor Barbee (associate artistic director) so if she was indeed retiring, I'm SURE the company would make an event of it.

Link to comment
Are you perhaps confusing her with Nina Ananiashvili who is retiring from ABT this season? I'm sure you wouldn't confuse the two dancers, but rather notice of the farewell...

Nina is retiring at the end of NEXT season, not this one.

I know nothing regarding julie retiring, but I would imagine it isn't the case. She is one of the longest lasting ABT principals and is married to Victor Barbee (associate artistic director) so if she was indeed retiring, I'm SURE the company would make an event of it.

I knew about Ananiashvili's retirement next season, but I would swear that the subscription brochure mentioned that the last Giselle of the company's 2008 Met season would be Kent's farewell performance. It was the reason I bought that series. I'm fond of Kent, having watched her perform over the past 20 years in a variety of roles.

Link to comment

Given that Nina Alovert is saying that last Friday was Nina Ananiashvili's last "Giselle" in New York that makes me think that "Giselle" is not scheduled for the 2009 Met season. Which means that Julie won't be dancing Giselle either. What will be Nina's retirement vehicle? "Swan Lake", maybe???

However, Julie's retirement, though probably looming on a not too distant horizon, has not been announced. Julie and the ABT management need to look over her repertory which on the evidence of this season needs to be rethought. The difficult "tutu" ballets like "Swan Lake" and "The Sleeping Beauty" seem to be beyond her technical resources at present and will only become less accessible with time. "Giselle", "The Merry Widow" and "La Bayadere" were successes for Julie this season and things like "The Dream" and "Romeo and Juliet" would still fit her perfectly. Julie seems to be the beloved senior ballerina with management and with the younger corps and soloists - see the Time Out NY interviews with Melanie Hamrick and others and they all single out Julie's dancing as a model for them as to grace and elegance.

I suspect ABT is going to hang on to Julie as long as she is willing and able to dance.

Link to comment

I combed through all of my brochures today during my breaks while writing an angry letter regarding another dancer's departure, but could find no reference to anybody's last Giselle. It wouldn't make a whole lot of sense to plan to bring up a bunch of new players in this production (Cornejo, Hallberg, Abrera), tour it all over the United States, and then not utilize it in the 2009 season. My guess is that we will see it next spring, but that's more of a hope- and faith-based speculation than anything else.

Oh, I am so angry. I cannot wait for us to be able to open a thread for our anger.

Link to comment

I've been away from the board for a while and so am just catching up...thought I'd add my two cents to this topic. Julie Kent tends to dance many of the last nights of the MET season because she is popular and also because her husband has to be there through closing night; she doesn't go off for other gigs during the season (caveat: usually doesn't); on the tutu ballet question - not sure if she is past her prime; do know that she had serious problems with a knee injury and was being treated almost up to the time she went on as Aurora; and for retirement...suspect is will have something to do with the school age of her son.

Link to comment
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...