miliosr Posted September 17, 2018 Share Posted September 17, 2018 (edited) On 9/14/2018 at 11:33 PM, fondoffouettes said: Would the company be obligated to reproduce the Berman sets? Would the Tudor trust insist upon it? I remember thinking the excerpt performed in 2008 was incredibly beautiful and moving. When ABT performed the extract, didn't they present it in a stripped down ways in terms of a set? Since the Tudor version is reduced to a one act anyway, why not (as you suggest) present it in a new, semi-abstracted way? On 9/14/2018 at 11:33 PM, fondoffouettes said: I really don't buy McKenzie's explanation, to be honest. I think the real reason is that ABT has a full-length Romeo and Juliet whose title recognition results in good ticket sales at the Met, so why would they bother to revive a one-act version? I wonder too if there's a fear that Lady MacMillan would take a dim view of a rival production of Romeo and Juliet even though one could be done at the Met and one could be done at the State. Edited September 17, 2018 by miliosr Link to comment
ABT Fan Posted September 21, 2018 Share Posted September 21, 2018 The rest of the casting has been released on their website. Only Dorrance's piece has yet to be cast. Also, Other Dances casting has been switched around. Lane/Cornejo are now cast on Fri, 9/26 (previously on 9/28). That's the ONLY piece Lane has been cast in. One ballet; one performance. https://www.abt.org/performances/master-calendar/ Link to comment
vipa Posted September 22, 2018 Share Posted September 22, 2018 3 hours ago, ABT Fan said: The rest of the casting has been released on their website. Only Dorrance's piece has yet to be cast. Also, Other Dances casting has been switched around. Lane/Cornejo are now cast on Fri, 9/26 (previously on 9/28). That's the ONLY piece Lane has been cast in. One ballet; one performance. https://www.abt.org/performances/master-calendar/ How demoralizing that must be for Lane. I see no reason she couldn't have been cast more. Link to comment
meunier fan Posted September 22, 2018 Share Posted September 22, 2018 I know he is listed in the ABT corps ... but surprised there is no casting that I can see for Gabe Stone Shayer. Is he injured? Link to comment
ABT Fan Posted September 22, 2018 Share Posted September 22, 2018 8 hours ago, meunier fan said: I know he is listed in the ABT corps ... but surprised there is no casting that I can see for Gabe Stone Shayer. Is he injured? I didn’t notice that but you’re right, he’s not listed in anything. He got injured at the end of the Met season but I thought judging by his Instagram he had recovered. (He’s also not cast in Harlequinade in January, a role he did this summer.) Link to comment
Fleurfairy Posted September 22, 2018 Share Posted September 22, 2018 15 hours ago, vipa said: How demoralizing that must be for Lane. I see no reason she couldn't have been cast more. I wonder what’s going on. For a principal dancer, there really should be no reason she hasn’t been cast. I wonder if ABT is giving her the Veronika treatment, or if she’s in the process of leaving of her own accord. I never stop hoping she finds another company who appreciates her. Link to comment
ABT Fan Posted September 24, 2018 Share Posted September 24, 2018 Their season starts in only three weeks and there are a ton, and I mean a TON, of seats available. I only looked at the orchestra, except for one or two shows, but it's shocking how poorly it's sold. I know many of us on this board aren't overwhelmed with the ballets/casting, but I guess no one else is either. Not even the 27th matinee w/ the Copeland Nutcracker pas has sold well (including the first - fourth rings). A strange thing - on the Koch website, I just noticed that it lists Other Dances with Lane/Cornejo for "all performances", but that is not the case on ABT's site (Seo/Stearns get 2). I'm sure that's some weird typo. Link to comment
fondoffouettes Posted September 25, 2018 Share Posted September 25, 2018 19 hours ago, ABT Fan said: Their season starts in only three weeks and there are a ton, and I mean a TON, of seats available. I only looked at the orchestra, except for one or two shows, but it's shocking how poorly it's sold. I know many of us on this board aren't overwhelmed with the ballets/casting, but I guess no one else is either. Not even the 27th matinee w/ the Copeland Nutcracker pas has sold well (including the first - fourth rings). A strange thing - on the Koch website, I just noticed that it lists Other Dances with Lane/Cornejo for "all performances", but that is not the case on ABT's site (Seo/Stearns get 2). I'm sure that's some weird typo. It's true -- there are some dates where about 75% of the orchestra section is unsold. NYCB's fall season and "Balanchine: The City Center Years" offer such great rep that I felt no need to see ABT this fall. Nothing about ABT's fall-season is a must-see, besides perhaps Lane and Cornejo in Other Dances. And if you want to see the rarely performed Symphonie Concertante, you can go see it at City Center (that's what I'm doing anyway). Link to comment
vipa Posted October 10, 2018 Share Posted October 10, 2018 Seeing that Lane was cast in the Dorrance piece gave me some impetus to look into tickets, although the programs I can get to includes Songs of Bukovina, which I don't like. IIn searching, I saw so many empty seats, that I didn't buy. There's no hurry. It can be last minute if I decide to go. I don't know what to make of the season and casting. Link to comment
fondoffouettes Posted October 12, 2018 Share Posted October 12, 2018 (edited) ABT's season is five days away and these are the numbers of seats currently available for the various performances. (The Koch Theater's capacity is 2,586.) I guess there will be no shortage of discounted tickets available. Oct 17 (gala): 412 Oct. 18: 928 Oct. 19: 284 Oct. 20 mat: 1,154 Oct. 20 eve: 951 Oct. 21 mat: 1,034 Oct. 23: 513 Oct. 24: 1,350 Oct. 25: 1,454 Oct. 26: 1,240 Oct. 27 mat: 515 Oct. 27 eve: 879 Oct. 28 mat: 1,351 October 19 and 23, which both feature Copeland in two works, are among the best-sold performances. And ABT seems to have done well with that family-friendly matinee on October 27 for which they've offered discounted tickets. The four dates that feature Afterite are currently the worst-selling performances, with less than half the house sold for three of them. Edited October 12, 2018 by fondoffouettes Link to comment
abatt Posted October 12, 2018 Share Posted October 12, 2018 Some performances have already popped up on TDF, so certain seats showing as sold were actually heavily discounted. Link to comment
NinaFan Posted October 14, 2018 Share Posted October 14, 2018 This is the first time I saw ABT's dynamic pricing at the Koch. I haven't looked at the other sections, but the orchestra seat prices for the family-friendly matinee on October 27 with children's tickets at 50% off has increased their prices. Are they trying to recoup their 50% off? Link to comment
fondoffouettes Posted October 16, 2018 Share Posted October 16, 2018 The've managed to move a modest number of tickets since the end of last week, though the four dates featuring Afterite aren't budging much at all. I noticed a bunch of ABT dancers posted similar-looking pics on Instagram yesterday, with performance dates superimposed on top of images of them dancing or posing. I wonder if it was coordinated by ABT's marketing department as a last-ditch effort to try to sell tickets. Perf date: Seats available on Friday -> Seats available today (# sold since Friday) Oct 17 (gala): 412 -> 241 (171 sold) Oct. 18: 928 -> 838 (90 sold) Oct. 19: 284 -> 284 (0 sold) Oct. 20 mat: 1,154 -> 1,108 (46 sold) Oct. 20 eve: 951 -> 862 (89 sold) Oct. 21 mat: 1,034 -> 967 (67 sold) Oct. 23: 513 -> 390 (123 sold) Oct. 24: 1,350 -> 1,316 (34 sold) Oct. 25: 1,454 -> 1,421 (33 sold) Oct. 26: 1,240 -> 1,197 (43 sold) Oct. 27 mat: 515 -> 525 (inventory increased by 10) Oct. 27 eve: 879 -> 763 (116 sold) Oct. 28 mat: 1,351 -> 1,310 (41 sold) Link to comment
vendangeuse Posted October 16, 2018 Share Posted October 16, 2018 Not sure if this is the right forum to ask this, but looking for a little help. I have a ticket to the performance the night of the Gala—which seemed like a good idea at the time, as there were several ballets I was avoiding on other programs, and juggling some other commitments for October—but I'm not really sure what to expect tomorrow. I know the Gala is a "black tie" event, but as I am not staying for dinner, I assume I can dress a little more casually than that? Link to comment
FPF Posted October 16, 2018 Share Posted October 16, 2018 30 minutes ago, vendangeuse said: Not sure if this is the right forum to ask this, but looking for a little help. I have a ticket to the performance the night of the Gala—which seemed like a good idea at the time, as there were several ballets I was avoiding on other programs, and juggling some other commitments for October—but I'm not really sure what to expect tomorrow. I know the Gala is a "black tie" event, but as I am not staying for dinner, I assume I can dress a little more casually than that? My experience is that those just attending the performance dress as they normally would. Link to comment
ABT Fan Posted October 16, 2018 Share Posted October 16, 2018 Article in the Times today about Lang's new piece: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/16/arts/dance/american-ballet-theater-jessica-lang-garden-blue.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Farts&action=click&contentCollection=arts&region=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=9&pgtype=sectionfront Link to comment
miliosr Posted October 16, 2018 Share Posted October 16, 2018 5 hours ago, fondoffouettes said: the four dates featuring Afterite aren't budging much at all Perf date: Seats available on Friday -> Seats available today (# sold since Friday) Oct. 24: 1,350 -> 1,316 (34 sold) Oct. 25: 1,454 -> 1,421 (33 sold) Oct. 26: 1,240 -> 1,197 (43 sold) Oct. 28 mat: 1,351 -> 1,310 (41 sold) Those stats for Afterite are woeful given the size of the house. (Other Dances, Songs of Bukovina and Symphonie Concertante don't appear to be helping either.) Link to comment
Golden Idol Posted October 17, 2018 Share Posted October 17, 2018 Given the immense number of unsold tickets for ABT this week and next, I'm astonished by their paltry offering on TDF, and nothing is available on the site as of today. Their marketing people must be in severe denial. Link to comment
fondoffouettes Posted October 17, 2018 Share Posted October 17, 2018 2 hours ago, Golden Idol said: Given the immense number of unsold tickets for ABT this week and next, I'm astonished by their paltry offering on TDF, and nothing is available on the site as of today. Their marketing people must be in severe denial. I can't imagine why they wouldn't offer discounted tickets to performances where the orchestra section looks like this. Does TDF regulate how many tickets you can offer and when? I wonder if they are considering canceling any of the poorly performing dates, like the Hungarian State Opera/Ballet recently did for their rental of the Koch Theater. I don't see how that would help from a financial standpoint, though. But I also can't imagine what it would feel like for the dancers to perform for a house that's less than half-full. Even when ABT doesn't sell well at the Met, like for the Giselle performances last spring, it's never this bad. Link to comment
Helene Posted October 17, 2018 Share Posted October 17, 2018 It could depend on the audience. I went to a relatively sparsely attended performance of "Turn of the Screw" at Seattle Opera -- and it was fantastic -- which resulted in one of the better ovations I've heard in the house, outside of The Ring. A small-ish audience can generate a lot of energy towards the performers. Link to comment
Golden Idol Posted October 17, 2018 Share Posted October 17, 2018 Although I don't know for which performance that seat map is representative, it is absolutely shocking. But honestly, would you pay top orchestra price of $165 for some of the programs they've scheduled? I wouldn't and I'm not. Link to comment
abatt Posted October 17, 2018 Share Posted October 17, 2018 The current technology that allows us consumers to see the seating map does not do ABT any favors. I'll bet that a large percentage of the best orchestra seats that are showing as sold are actually house seats reserved for the company or for the press. Unlike at the Met, where every ABT show is part of a subscription, the ABT fall season at the Koch is completely non-subscription. Therefore, they can't even rely on the casual ballet goer who shows up on their subscription date regardless of the program. Ultimately, I'm sure they will "paper" the orchestra. . Link to comment
ABT Fan Posted October 17, 2018 Share Posted October 17, 2018 (edited) 1 hour ago, fondoffouettes said: I can't imagine why they wouldn't offer discounted tickets to performances where the orchestra section looks like this. Does TDF regulate how many tickets you can offer and when? I wonder if they are considering canceling any of the poorly performing dates, like the Hungarian State Opera/Ballet recently did for their rental of the Koch Theater. I don't see how that would help from a financial standpoint, though. But I also can't imagine what it would feel like for the dancers to perform for a house that's less than half-full. Even when ABT doesn't sell well at the Met, like for the Giselle performances last spring, it's never this bad. As you said, I'm sure canceling wouldn't help at all financially, and the bad press it would generate would be detrimental. This looks like the available seating chart for Sunday, 10/26, the last day of the season (with the Lang piece, Other Dances and AfterRite). Though, there are other dates that look quite similar. As someone already stated, the programs with AfterRite are selling the absolute worst, even with Copeland (and Ferri) on the program. I'd hope they get rid of this ballet after this season, purely from a financial perspective (I've never seen it). Edited October 17, 2018 by ABT Fan Link to comment
JuliaJ Posted October 17, 2018 Share Posted October 17, 2018 I might be in the minority here, but I liked AfterRite in the spring... it's a shame that it seems to be bringing down ticket sales (I actually look forward to seeing it again!). The choreography is interesting, and that Stravinsky music never gets old. To be honest I preferred the piece to Ratmansky's Firebird, which was in the same program. Part of the problem is that it's sooooo off-brand for ABT (and ballet audiences generally do not go in expecting such dark subject matter). If NYCB or another more modernist-leaning company did it, I doubt the response would be as negative, let alone financially disastrous! Link to comment
abatt Posted October 17, 2018 Share Posted October 17, 2018 (edited) I don't think it's the dark subject matter that is turning people off. I love Tudor's Dark Elegies and Jooss' The Green Table. They are modern masterpieces that deal with very dark subjects. I would go in a heartbeat to see those works if they were revived at ABT. Edited October 17, 2018 by abatt Link to comment
Recommended Posts