ABT Met 2010 final 2 weeks of casting

[Dale]

Casting released:

CASTING ANNOUNCED FOR FINAL TWO WEEKS

OF AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE’S 2010 SPRING SEASON

AT METROPOLITAN OPERA HOUSE

Guest Artist Natalia Osipova to Debut in Romeo and Juliet,

Saturday Matinee, July 10

Casting for the seventh and eighth weeks of American Ballet Theatre’s 2010 Spring Season at the Metropolitan Opera House was announced today by Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie.

The season’s second week of repertory programming will begin on Monday, June 28. The All-Classic Masters program will premiere on Tuesday, June 29, featuring Gillian Murphy and Ethan Stiefel in George Balanchine’s Allegro Brillante, Xiomara Reyes and Gennadi Saveliev in Antony Tudor’s Romeo and Juliet pas de deux, Hee Seo and Sascha Radetsky debuting in Sir Frederick Ashton’s Thaïs Pas de Deux, Diana Vishneva and Jose Manuel Carreño in Sir Kenneth MacMillan’s Manon pas de deux, and Julie Kent, Marcelo Gomes and Craig Salstein in Ashton’s The Dream.

Julie Kent and Marcelo Gomes will lead the season’s first performance of Sir Kenneth MacMillan’s Romeo and Juliet on Monday, July 5. Natalia Osipova will debut as Juliet at the matinee on Saturday, July 10, opposite David Hallberg as Romeo. Set to a score by Sergei Prokofiev, Romeo and Juliet features scenery and costumes by Nicholas Georgiadis and lighting by Thomas Skelton.

Tickets for American Ballet Theatre’s 2010 Metropolitan Opera House season, priced $20-$111, are available online, at the Met box office or by phone at 212-362-6000. The Metropolitan Opera House is located on Broadway between 64th and 65th streets in New York City. For more information, visit ABT’s website at www.abt.org.

The Repertory Festival of Ballet's Masters is generously sponsored through an endowed gift from Monica, Stefano, Cosima, and Tassilo Corsi.

Generous support for the All-Classics program is provided by the Estate/Trust of Marina Svetlova and the Audrey Love Charitable Foundation.

The Brahms-Haydn Variations was made possible by the generous support of Patsy and Jeff Tarr and the JCT Foundation.

On the Dnieper is generously supported through an endowed gift from The Toni and Martin Sosnoff New Works Fund. Additional underwriting support has generously been provided by The Ross Stretton Choreography Workshop Fund and Leila and Mickey Straus. Funding is also generously provided by The Rudolf Nureyev® Dance Foundation.

Fancy Free is generously underwritten by an endowed gift from Avery and Andrew F. Barth, in honor of Laima and Rudolf Barth.

The pas de deux from Antony Tudor’s Romeo and Juliet was generously supported through an endowed gift from Cosby W. and Timothy M. George

The Dream is presented in loving memory of Clarence Y. Palitz, Jr. by his family.

The Dream has been made possible with public funds from the National Endowment For the Arts and the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency.

Company B is generously supported by a gift from Marjorie S. Isaac in honor of ABT Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie.

American Ballet Theatre's performances of Romeo and Juliet are generously underwritten through an endowed gift from Ali and Monica Wambold.

J.P. Morgan is the Leading Corporate Sponsor of Make a Ballet.

American Airlines is ABT’s Official Airline.

Northern Trust is the Official Sponsor of the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School at American Ballet Theatre.

LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, Inc. is the Official Sponsor of ABT II.

Mandarin Oriental, New York is ABT’s Preferred Hotel.

ABT is supported, in part, with public funds from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Recovery Act, the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency, and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council.

Complete casting follows:

AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE

Metropolitan Opera House - Spring, 2010

SEVENTH WEEK

Mon. Eve., June 28, 7:30 P.M. ABT PREMIERES

THE BRAHMS-HAYDN VARIATIONS - Murphy, Carreño,

Herrera, Gomes, Kent, Radetsky, Part, Hallberg, Lane, Lopez

ON THE DNIEPER – Riccetto, Saveliev, Messmer, Tamm

FANCY FREE – Cornejo, Stiefel, Carreño, Abrera, Murphy

Tues. Eve., June 29, 7:30 P.M. ALL CLASSIC MASTERS PROGRAM

ALLEGRO BRILLANTE – Murphy, Stiefel

ROMEO AND JULIET Pas de Deux – Reyes, Saveliev

THAÏS PAS DE DEUX – Seo*, Radetsky*

MANON Pas de Deux – Vishneva, Carreño

THE DREAM – Kent, Gomes, Salstein

Wed. Mat., June 30, 2 P.M. ALL CLASSIC MASTERS PROGRAM

ALLEGRO BRILLANTE – Herrera, Stearns

ROMEO AND JULIET Pas de Deux – Murphy, Hallberg

THAÏS PAS DE DEUX – Riccetto, Carreño

MANON Pas de Deux – Reyes, Gomes

COMPANY B - Company

Wed. Eve., June 30, 7:30 P.M. ALL ASHTON PROGRAM

BIRTHDAY OFFERING – Abrera, Tamm

THAÏS PAS DE DEUX – Seo, Radetsky

THE AWAKENING PAS DE DEUX – Herrera, Stearns

THE DREAM – Murphy, Hallberg, Cornejo

Thurs. Eve., July 1, 7:30 P.M. ABT PREMIERES

THE BRAHMS-HAYDN VARIATIONS – Abrera, Hammoudi,

Wiles, Stearns, Reyes, Cornejo, Seo, Saveliev, Riccetto, Simkin

ON THE DNIEPER – Riccetto, Saveliev, Messmer, Tamm

FANCY FREE – Salstein, Hallberg, Gomes, Boone*, Kent

Fri. Eve., July 2, 8 P.M. ALL CLASSIC MASTERS PROGRAM

ALLEGRO BRILLANTE – Dvorovenko, Beloserkosky

ROMEO AND JULIET Pas de Deux – Murphy, Hallberg

THAÏS PAS DE DEUX – Riccetto, Matthews

MANON Pas de Deux – Vishneva, Carreño

THE DREAM – Kent, Gomes, Lopez

Sat. Mat., July 3, 2 P.M. AMERICAN PROGRAM

THE BRAHMS-HAYDN VARIATIONS – Abrera, Hammoudi,

Wiles, Stearns, Reyes, Cornejo, Seo, Saveliev, Riccetto, Simkin

COMPANY B – Company

FANCY FREE – Salstein, Hallberg, Gomes, Boone, Kent

Sat. Eve., July 3, 8 P.M. AMERICAN PROGRAM

THE BRAHMS-HAYDN VARIATONS – Murphy, Carreño,

Herrera, Gomes, Kent, Radetsky, Part, Hallberg, Lane, Lopez

COMPANY B – Company

FANCY FREE – Simkin, Lopez, Radetsky, Riccetto, Boylston

EIGHTH WEEK

Mon. Eve., July 5, 7:30 P.M. ROMEO AND JULIET – Kent, Gomes, Cornejo

Tues. Eve., July 6, 7:30 P.M. ROMEO AND JULIET – Murphy, Hallberg, Matthews

Wed. Mat., July 7, 2 P.M. ROMEO AND JULIET – Seo, Stearns, Scott

Wed. Eve., July 7, 7:30 P.M. ROMEO AND JULIET – Reyes, Cornejo, Lopez

Thurs. Eve., July 8, 7:30 P.M. ROMEO AND JULIET – Herrera, Gomes, Salstein

Fri. Eve., July 9, 8 P.M. ROMEO AND JULIET – Dvorovenko, Stearns, Lopez

Sat. Mat., July 10, 2 P.M. ROMEO AND JULIET – Osipova*, Hallberg, Matthews

Sat. Eve., July 10, 8 P.M. ROMEO AND JULIET – Vishneva, Corella, Salstein

*please note first time in a role:

Tues. Eve. 6/29 – Seo and Radetsky in Thaïs Pas de Deux

Thurs. Eve. 7/1 – Boone in Fancy Free

Sat. Mat. 7/10 – Osipova in Romeo and Juliet

[Colleen Boresta]

I have one main question about the casting. Why is Daniil Simkin not dancing Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet? I wondered the same thing last year. I'm going to the Saturday matinee, and I would much prefer to see Simkin as Mercutio than Jared Matthews.

[Bayadere]

I have one main question about the casting. Why is Daniil Simkin not dancing Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet? I wondered the same thing last year. I'm going to the Saturday matinee, and I would much prefer to see Simkin as Mercutio than Jared Matthews.

I second that. I totally expected to see Daniil listed as Mercutio this year. He is a natural for the part!

[babclyde]

I have one main question about the casting. Why is Daniil Simkin not dancing Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet? I wondered the same thing last year. I'm going to the Saturday matinee, and I would much prefer to see Simkin as Mercutio than Jared Matthews.

So,I third that. And I'd also love to see him as Romeo.

[onxmyxtoes]

Daniil is a great Benvolio. He's probably doing Benvolio.

[abatt]

Hee Seo is back on the schedule for Wed. night's Thais. Seo was originally scheduled for the Wed. evening performance, but a few days ago they had changed it to Ricetto. I'm glad it has changed back to Seo, since I would rather see her than Ricetto in this role.

[Ambonnay]

I went to see last evening's performance of the ABT Premieres Repertory:

(1) The Brahms-Haydn Variations

S. Abrera, A. Hammoudi

M. Wiles, C. Stearns

X. Reyes, H. Cornejo

H. Seo, G. Saveliev

M. Riccetto, D. Simkin

Hee Seo was radiant in this piece, and, although unmentioned as one of the main pairs, Blaine Hoven paired Yuriko Kajiya well. Hoven has been dancing much better this season than last year. This may be the first time I have seen Wiles and Stearns paired (although they have performed various times together before). They have a nice visual presentation together.

Overall, I found this piece a bit frenetic, despite the unfrenetic musical score and the soothing shades of brown and beige found in dancers' costumes with clean lines. There are so many couples in the foreground and the background, traversing the stage and dancing at different positions, that I found it difficult to capture what was happening at any given point in time with respect to a single couple. That might be part of the intent of the piece, but, at least to me, the piece, while visually beautiful in some respects, was difficult to meaningfully digest.

(2) On the Dnieper

M. Riccetto

S. Messmer

G. Saveliev

E. Tamm

G Saveliev is not as exprsesive a dancer as Marcelo Gomes was, in the lead danseur role of the soldier returning to his home town. Saveliev needs to work on improving his communication with the audience through his facial articulation and to develop body movements that convey emotions.

Eric Tamm was a good fiance to Olga. His dancing of the main solo where he exhibits anger involved very rapid feet movements that he executed well. Compared to Hallberg, who originated the role, Tamm's legs and feet (while very nicely positioned) lack a certain line and the poignancy from perfectly pointed toes and curved, arched legs shapes that Hallberg can, in his singular style, provide. In some places, Tamm's long lines in his legs come across as involving a leg that is held quite "straight" (even though he is moving his legs quickly and in different directions).

Tamm has been getting a lot of opportunities this season, deservedly. One area where he could improve is in the expressiveness of his face. His facial features tend to wash out a bit on stage. That is something that could be slightly ameliorated with stronger make-up. For example, I have noticed that Hallberg sometimes uses a very strong darkish (almost blackish) brow pencil in his makeup. That helps the audience to see his facial expressions more. Maybe Tamm should consider doing that.

Riccetto danced well, as did Messmer. In fact, Messmer was no worse than Herrera in the lead Olga role.

(3) Fancy Free

C. Salstein

D. Hallberg

M. Gomes

Ah, finally, the piece that I had bought the night's ticket to see. This was my first ever Fancy Free viewing. What a pleasure to see Hallberg in the uncustomary role (even uncustomary, in my mind, taking into account the fall ABT seasons I have attended) of such a slightly "dopey or goofy" (in a slap-stick kind of way) and romantically challenged sailor. Even the way Hallberg's gait was with his walk, the way he carried his shoulders, the way his legs were positioned when he was standing, were different. He did a fine mime of how he had been off fighting and gunning down people, when he was alone with Julie Kent (the second female role in the piece, the first being K Boone)in the bar before the two other sailors return. It was wonderful to see Hallberg's solo -- so whimsical and endearing and special. And the ending for Hallberg's solo -- where he positions himself along the floor, with his arms propping up his head and looking cutely at Julie Kent's character -- was just right.

Gomes was wonderful as the third sailor.

The two intermissions were not short, even though the overall performance did not end later than is typical for the ABT. I had grabbed a bite to eat at Bar Boulud again before the performance. Yesterday night, the restaurant was pouring Avril's 2004 Clos des Papes (Chateauneuf-du-Pape) en magnum

[atm711]

Yesterday night, the restaurant was pouring Avril's 2004 Clos des Papes (Chateauneuf-du-Pape) en magnum

With all due respect--this is the best part of your review ---But seriously,I enjoyed your comments on your first 'Fancy Free'. You show the same enthusiasm I felt on seeing my first 'Fancy Free'(which was actually only the 2nd performance of the ballet).