ABT 2015 Met season

[CTballetfan]

Fabulous! Thanks for alerting me to these programs. I'll definitely watch tomorrow's. I enjoyed both the reminiscences and the excerpts, esp. Stella, who was so exquisite, her arms like liquid gold. Why is she not a principal dancer?

[Helene]

They had plenty of time for ads during the film clips, which were not shown on the stream.

[Amour]

Ugh those ads, especially interrupting Stella. But yay for Bobby LaFosse, someone who could really speak to how exciting ABT was in the '80's. That was such a great time for the company.

[lmspear]

There could be someone under studying who has not done it. Lots of dancers learn roles and then for one reason or another don't get to do them. I don't know about his role specifically but it would surprise me if no one in the company knew it.

It's a pity that the current ABT management has forgotten the power of the "42nd Street" mythology, You're going out there a youngster, but you've got to come back a STAR.

I wasn't able to see ABT performances at the time, but I remember Susan Jaffe and Paloma Herrera came blazing through very quickly. They should be able to create excitement around their own dancers, or at least not squander the interest audiences display early in a dancer's career.

[vipa]

The substitutes for lead roles at ABT are always people who are scheduled to perform the role already during the ABT season. The leads are assigned the dates they must be on standby in the theater. Hee Seo didn't just happen to be hanging around the MEt the night Gillian got injured, and agree to go on out of the goodness of her heart. It was her assigned duty. It's not like understudies used in the theater or "covers" for the opera, who never appear in a role unless someone gets sick or injured.

The substitutes for lead roles at the Met season are always people who are scheduled to preform the role or imports (Kochetkova for Cojocaru in SL), but it doesn't have to be that way. I would never suggest that casting relies on who happens to be hanging around the theater. Abatt I think most people know better. I am only saying that there are probably company members who know the role, and with this much notice could be given the chance. When the company tours and there are injuries dancers learn roles. Sometimes they never actually perform them. Just as one example i heard Sarah Lane say in an interview that she learned Juliette while on tour because there was a possibility Hee Seo wouldn't be able to perform. Seo performed and Lane never did it, but she learned it. My point is only to dispute the likely hood that a company member would have to be taught from scratch. There are probably company members who know the role and IMO it would be good for ABT if they developed their own dancers and gave them more opportunities.

[mussel]

I don't know if people at home can hear thru the live stream. The applause for Stella's Giselle was thunderous with audience yelling "brava" from all parts of the theater. Kevin was in the audience. So the message from the audience to KM is loud and clear.

[mimsyb]

It's a pity that the current ABT management has forgotten the power of the "42nd Street" mythology, You're going out there a youngster, but you've got to come back a STAR.

I wasn't able to see ABT performances at the time, but I remember Susan Jaffe and Paloma Herrera came blazing through very quickly. They should be able to create excitement around their own dancers, or at least not squander the interest audiences display early in a dancer's career.

Maybe a few of the up and coming dancers at ABT should go elsewhere, to some other company (preferably a Russian company), become a star and THEN come back to ABT as a "guest artist". Hahahaha! Well, that's not going to happen. And besides, while we complain about the use of stars at the Met, who supports this policy and buys the tickets? We do, the public. I doubt seriously many would boycott Osipova's performances or refuse to buy a ticket to see Obratsova. It is what it is. Sad, but true. I still love the policy at NYCB, where, while they do announce casting, it's usually a week or so prior to performance. We go to City Ballet to see the work offered, the choreographers, and also the dancers, of course. But we seldom rush to get our money back if Tiler Peck or Sara Mearns can't dance that day. And in my experience, the totality of the performance is usually wonderful. Sometimes the need for a "star" performer on the bill to sell the show undermines the larger intent of the art form. If it were me, I'd cast Vishneva in "Pillar of Fire", or Osipova in "Rodeo", McRae in "Fancy Free", Cojocaru in "Lilac Garden". Or all of them in "Les Sylphides". Like the old days, when Alonso might dance the lead in "Les Sylphides", but all the other ballerinas also performed. Now there's some casting that would guarantee the Classic ABT bills would sell better, the dancers would get an opportunity to expand their "same old, same old" reps. and we, the audience, would benefit from not having to sit through another full length. Plus, the "guest stars" would truly be performing along side all the other dancers on stage. Too often they come in, dance their Nikiya and go home. It's just a thought.......

[Drew]

If it were me, I'd cast Vishneva in "Pillar of Fire", or Osipova in "Rodeo", McRae in "Fancy Free", Cojocaru in "Lilac Garden". Or all of them in "Les Sylphides". Like the old days, when Alonso might dance the lead in "Les Sylphides", but all the other ballerinas also performed. Now there's some casting that would guarantee the Classic ABT bills would sell better, the dancers would get an opportunity to expand their "same old, same old" reps. and we, the audience, would benefit from not having to sit through another full length. Plus, the "guest stars" would truly be performing along side all the other dancers on stage. Too often they come in, dance their Nikiya and go home. It's just a thought.......

I've had similar thoughts: why not try to cast mixed bills at the Met more ambitiously--with very well known and less well-known dancers cast together including "guest stars"--to attract bigger audiences to those programs? And then, in turn, have more mixed bills which would also mean more opportunities for a range of dancers including those rising through the ranks to gain experience etc.? A certain amount of marketing would need to go into this as well presumably...Actually, it's not that ABT never does this, but one feels as if they could do it more...

But I'm not confident that I know all the realities the company faces on the talent front or on the money front, so...(And, obviously, I've gotten a great deal from seeing serious international artists with ABT dancing in full length works, artists I would not otherwise have much opportunity to see--and I do spend money on their performances, though not exclusively on their performances.)

I certainly would be happy if the company had a longer season at the Koch Theater in Fall. The one time in recent years that I've bought tickets for ABT when casting was entirely unknown to me was a recent Koch theater season when program after program was full of interest with a balance of well known and lesser known ballets (Balanchine, Ashton, Ratmansky, Tharp, Fokine, Limon, and Morris that season.)

I thought that NYCB currently announces casts something like two weeks ahead of time, not just one week.

[choriamb]

Jumping back to the "wishful thinking about ABT moving to the Koch/State Theater" thread: I know that both Sleeping Beauty and Le Corsaire were grandiose...but did anyone notice if they were noticeably flatter or less deep? (i.e., are there any signs that ABT has begun slowly reworking its productions so that they don't require a stage of the Met's depth?)

Tangent to the Cojocaru casting thread: after Herrera and Reyes retire, are there ANY in-house soloists or principals who can dance with Cornejo or Simkin other than Lane and Copeland? I assume that one or both will be first-in-line to cover his partners for every performance after week #3 (unless ABT wants to replace BOTH leads).

[Drew]

Tangent to the Cojocaru casting thread: after Herrera and Reyes retire, are there ANY in-house soloists or principals who can dance with Cornejo or Simkin other than Lane and Copeland? I assume that one or both will be first-in-line to cover his partners for every performance after week #3 (unless ABT wants to replace BOTH leads).

Boylston has been cast with Simkin a number of times.

[abatt]

NYCB rep makes it acceptable to the public to buy tixs in advance without knowing the casting. ON any given night at NYCB you can see numerous different principals. ABT full length ballets are an entirely different matter. You see two, maybe three, principals during an entire evening. Personally, I would never buy advance tixs for any ABT full length ballet without knowing the casting. I always buy NYCB tickets well in advance, without regard to casting.

[mimsyb]

NYCB rep makes it acceptable to the public to buy tixs in advance without knowing the casting. ON any given night at NYCB you can see numerous different principals. ABT full length ballets are an entirely different matter. You see two, maybe three, principals during an entire evening. Personally, I would never buy advance tixs for any ABT full length ballet without knowing the casting.

But would you buy an advance ticket if Vishneva were dancing "Pillar of Fire", or Cojocaru dancing "Lilac Garden"? I think sometimes I wonder if the full lengths can only be sustained by bringing in guest stars. If so, that's sad. Some of us acknowledge, for instance, that ABT's current "Swan Lake" is less than wonderful. But we go any way because it's the only way we can perhaps see some of these dancers we wouldn't otherwise get to see. And ,of course, there is a substantial portion of the audience who goes to see "SL" because it is "SL", or it's Wednesday and is a convenient day to attend. Many sit down in their seats not even knowing who is dancing until they open their programs. Perhaps if some of the productions themselves were better, we wouldn't turn somersaults trying to exchange our seats when the "Star" can't dance, but instead go to see a production because it is excellent in of itself. And perhaps we would allow ourselves to be surprised by the emergence of a "new star". I know, with ticket prices what they are, it's hard to experiment, still I wish it could be so at times.

[mimsyb]

Boylston has been cast with Simkin a number of times.

Speaking of Simkin. Is he out for some reason? I don't see his name except for the one "Fancy Free" and the one "Swan Lake". Did I miss something? Also, I think we can look to see Skylar Brandt moved up soon as she is a very capable dancer and small enough to dance with either Simkin or Gorak. Shevchenko also looks small to my eye. Personally, I also love Nicole Graniero, but don't know if she will move any time soon.

[abatt]

ABT, at this point, really doesn't have a complete enough roster of its own principal dancers who are capable of dancing an 8 week season of mostly full length ballets. Let's face it. They are operating now with a skeleton crew of lead dancers of their own. They have not made the investment in their own dancers, and must "outsource" from other companies to get through 7 weeks of full lnegth ballets. The skeleton crew works for most of their touring engagements and its brief Koch season. Perhaps having a very small number of principal dancers for most of the year is the only way they can afford to continue operating. I'm not sure.

Also, in my opinion they have not always made great choices in who they have promoted. Simkin is a case in point. He's hardly dancing any lead roles this season. Is it because he is too short and a poor partner? Nevertheless, he is occupying a coveted principal spot with virtually no principal roles assigned. Tragic.

Additionally, given the fluid movement of dancers from one company to another that is occurring all over the world today, I'm not sure they could hang on to people like Hallberg and Vishneva without allowing them substantial freedom to dance elsewhere. This is the way of the ballet world now. The top dancers in the world go from company to company for artistic freedom, and piles of cash. Ballet stars have become more like opera stars, who are not tied to any one company but instead travel around the world to choose the projects and companies they want to work with.

[Plisskin]

ABT, at this point, really doesn't have a complete enough roster of its own principal dancers who are capable of dancing an 8 week season of mostly full length ballets. Let's face it. They are operating now with a skeleton crew of lead dancers of their own. They have not made the investment in their own dancers, and must "outsource" from other companies to get through 7 weeks of full lnegth ballets. The skeleton crew works for most of their touring engagements and its brief Koch season. Perhaps having a very small number of principal dancers for most of the year is the only way they can afford to continue operating. I'm not sure.

Also, in my opinion they have not always made great choices in who they have promoted. Simkin is a case in point. He's hardly dancing any lead roles this season. Is it because he is too short and a poor partner? Nevertheless, he is occupying a coveted principal spot with virtually no principal roles assigned. Tragic.

Additionally, given the fluid movement of dancers from one company to another that is occurring all over the world today, I'm not sure they could hang on to people like Hallberg and Vishneva without allowing them substantial freedom to dance elsewhere. This is the way of the ballet world now. The top dancers in the world go from company to company for artistic freedom, and piles of cash.

I highly doubt that, seeing as how McKenzie regularly gets million of dollars in bonus money. Plus shelling out thousands of dollars for all of these guest artists isn't cheap either. Who more often than not, are big disappointments. There's more than enough money to employ a satisfactory amount of home-grown principal dancers. McKenzie, and probably the board, sees ABT as a place to see international (mainly Russian) star dancers, not a ballet company. He's said as much before a few years ago during a press conference when ABT was on tour in Japan. And they also have bad taste with the few dancers they have promoted to principal recently...

[abatt]

ABT doesn't have pension liabilities or health insurance costs for guest artists. It's not so far fetched to believe that, in the long run, paying a guest artist for two or three performances at the Met is a lot cheaper than promoting someone to a principal contract within the company. I couldn't believe how much Kent and Herrera were making at ABT. I saw a publication with the figures a few years ago. I'm not saying that they don't deserve their compensation. They certainly do. But the amounts were extremely high. The fixed costs of permanent employees adds up in a big way over time.

Whatever McKenzie is spending for a one or two performance gig from a superstar like Cojocaru or Osipova is largely offset by ticket sales. The truth of this fact can be discerned by the fact that the Mik did not believe it could even break even on a US tour without Osipova and Vasiliev, and cancelled its tour when Osipova was prohibitied by ABT from appearing with the Mik. Superstars sell lots of tickets.

Additionally, I suspect that "sponsors" are lining up to fund appearances by certain dancers. For example, Bolle is spohnsored at ABT by some major Italian companies. In the end, who gets cast at ABT, and who gets promoted, is sometimes as much about money as artistic intergrity, in my opinion.

[ABT Fan]

Speaking of Simkin. Is he out for some reason? I don't see his name except for the one "Fancy Free" and the one "Swan Lake". Did I miss something? Also, I think we can look to see Skylar Brandt moved up soon as she is a very capable dancer and small enough to dance with either Simkin or Gorak. Shevchenko also looks small to my eye. Personally, I also love Nicole Graniero, but don't know if she will move any time soon.

Simkin isn't cast for much, and wasn't last season either. His size and partnering difficulties make him hard to cast.

Shevchenko is too tall to dance with either Simkin or Cornejo. Brandt has performed w/ Simkin before while guesting. Back in December they did Flames of Paris in Italy: http://www.daniilsimkin.com/photo-1-show-down-2-more-to-go-with-robertobolle-friends-here-at-the-teatro-regio-teatroregiotorino-in-torino-from-left-to-right-sarah-lamb-frederico-bonelli-yours-truly-daniil-skylar/. So maybe we'll see them together at ABT someday.

[Kaysta]

In the end, who gets cast at ABT, and who gets promoted, is sometimes as much about money as artistic intergrity, in my opinion.

It is. Taylor pretty much stated that in his interview. He said that Osipova brings in the money and fills the seats and that one of ABT's lesser known principles brought in 40% of the ticket sales that Osipova brought in (he didn't state which principal).

I know I'm being naive and idealistic, but it's sad that money is more important than art. I totally understand why Misty Copeland has marketed herself the way she has. She knows if she brings in the money, she'll be cast.

[abatt]

Cornejo is another short person who presents casting difficulties. However, the high level of his talent has enabled him to get more roles than Simkin at ABT. For a while I thought they would try and forge a partnership with Lane, but that's not what has occurred. Reyes was his most regular partner. MIsty is short enough to dance with Cornejo, so I'm guessing that in future seasons we can expect to see some pairings of Misty with Simkin and Cornejo. As noted elsewhere, Misty's promotion now seems almost inevitable.

[Plisskin]

ABT doesn't have pension liabilities or health insurance costs for guest artists. It's not so far fetched to believe that, in the long run, paying a guest artist for two or three performances at the Met is a lot cheaper than promoting someone to a principal contract within the company. I couldn't believe how much Kent and Herrera were making at ABT. I saw a publication with the figures a few years ago. I'm not saying that they don't deserve their compensation. They certainly do. But the amounts were extremely high. The fixed costs of permanent employees adds up in a big way over time.

Whatever McKenzie is spending for a one or two performance gig from a superstar like Cojocaru or Osipova is largely offset by ticket sales. The truth of this fact can be discerned by the fact that the Mik did not believe it could even break even on a US tour without Osipova and Vasiliev, and cancelled its tour when Osipova was prohibitied by ABT from appearing with the Mik. Superstars sell lots of tickets.

Additionally, I suspect that "sponsors" are lining up to fund appearances by certain dancers. For example, Bolle is spohnsored at ABT by some major Italian companies. In the end, who gets cast at ABT, and who gets promoted, is sometimes as much about money as artistic intergrity, in my opinion.

Despite declining donations and tickets sales, in 2011 McKenzie took a 30K bonus and the ED's salary, Rachel Moore, increased by 60K. I see your point about in the long run guests might be cheaper, and I do agree with your last paragraph, but I still believe that the company is not that strapped financially if McKenzie, the directors, and the board seem to have enough money for bonuses and 60K pay increases, yet can't seem to have a full-fledged principal roster.

[abatt]

Yes, Misty has brought in high ticket sales and new audiences. Didn't Prince, who Misty toured with, also donate a substantial amount of money to ABT a few years ago. I suspect the promotion of Misty might also bring substantial sponsorship money to the company from certain corporations, as well as from wealthy individuals. Although I have reservations about Misty (and certain other ABT dancers who are already principals), there is no denying that Misty has had a financially positive impact on ABT.

Sad to think that it's all a numbers game, but it is.

[abatt]

Bosses always give themselves raises and bonuses irrespective of their performance. Don't you think that whatever Board has voted for these bonuses was fully stacked by Moore and McKenzie to be simpatico with them?

[Plisskin]

People go see Misty and Osipova because they know who they are. Nobody knows who Hee Seo or Isabella Boylston is. ABT should invest more in DVD/Bluray releases and live telecasts like all the other companies are doing now to create their own star dancers instead of importing them.

[its the mom]

I also think that along with Brandt, Cassandra Trenary will be on the fast track to soloist. Both, if time were to be invested in them, could dance with Simkin and Cornejo.

[abatt]

I think the next principals at ABT will be Gorak, Copeland and Hammoudi.