NYCB 2018 Summer Season

[rkoretzky]

It’s mobbed here tonight. Lots of little girls with their dolls (a longstanding SPAC promotion), a noisy packed lawn and for my last minute (my bad, I forgot to come earlier today)  ticket purchase a seat 3rows from the back of the balcony. Most of us diehard every nighters purchase the season lawn pass which allows us 5 upgrades to inside seating day of performance. Tonight is the tightest night for tickets I’ve noticed in many years. 

The week has been phenomenal, in spite of the dearth of Balanchine (one program repeated on the first two nights) and especially almost entire lack of Robbins (only on the gala tomorrow night, other dances and four seasons). 

We are bereft here. Rumors and predictions going forward are flying every day, but no speak from SPAC or NYCB. I can hardly stand that this glory ends tomorrow. 

Please, anyone who cares about preservation of the arts in these dark times, please call, email, write to SPAC in support of the continuation of this unique relationship. PM me if you’d like. I’ll explain further. 

[KarenAG]

Greetings, All,

It has indeed been a wonderful, albeit extremely brief, summer season at SPAC with our beloved NYCB.  I cannot call it a residency, which is what it's supposed to be, with just seven performances.  Hopefully, the company will be back for two weeks next year.  I haven't heard much on that front.  The two evenings of Balanchine were terrific, especially Four Temperaments and Symphony in C.  How I love both of those works, both musically and choreographically - well, I love the Corelli and Vivaldi of Square Dance, too!  Unfortunately, I had to leave Wed night during 3rd movement Symphony in C because of the long drive home (30-ish miles), which I was doing alone, so I bypassed the big wait to get out and on the road before I was truly tired. My husband joined me for Tuesday night and the company has not disappointed in any of the performances I've seen.  Someone on BA said Square Dance was good and that Ms. Pereira doesn't project especially, (with which I agree, but I like her dancing, nonetheless), and I thought the company danced the piece well overall.  So I'd give it a B+ 😊.      

As usual, I'm strapped for time, so I'll continue in this meandering style.  I saw yesterday's matinee of Romeo + Juliet with Lauren Lovette and, cast change, Peter Walker, I believe, in place of Taylor Stanley as Romeo.  I hope Mr Stanley hasn't injured himself.   Lauren Lovette was superb, so beautiful and projecting a girlish, on-the-brink-of-womanhood Juliet, full of her famous resolve and steely character.  I also loved Peter Walker, and the duo had a good chemistry, I think.  I don't particularly love this production, but I found good things to enjoy and love about it, wishing I could have seen Friday night's performance with Sterling Hyltin and Harrison Coll.  Everyone danced so great.  Tonight it's the Gala, which I usually avoid, but I received a 25% coupon and I am intrigued to see Four Seasons and again Other Dances and the new Peck.  From everything I've read about Something To Dance About, I'm not expecting a great ballet, although I will go with an open mind and heart.  it seems a little frenetic, lots of cast and costume changes, as Elizabeth Sobol of SPAC said:   "There's a closing piece called Something to Dance About and it's like 30 dancers in 30 minutes and 130 costume changes."  Whew.  

Speaking of SPAC, I wish they'd organize their box office better.  Instead of dedicated Will Call, this performance and then other performances lines, they just had everyone in line, no matter what their needs.  Hence, I waited TWENTY minutes to buy my R&J ticket, missing the first 15 minutes of the performance. I couldn't arrive at SPAC sooner due other appointments. Boy, was I annoyed. 

Anyway, I am (as are others on this forum) fervently hoping for two weeks next year.  I have emailed SPAC already once earlier in the spring and will again to voice my opinion.  New York City Ballet is the beloved jewel in SPAC's crown and they would be so short-sighted and wrong to keep the season at one week.  Have a great day.

 

[FPF]

2 hours ago, KarenAG said:

Tonight it's the Gala, which I usually avoid, but I received a 25% coupon and I am intrigued to see Four Seasons and again Other Dances and the new Peck.  From everything I've read about Something To Dance About, I'm not expecting a great ballet, although I will go with an open mind and heart.  it seems a little frenetic, lots of cast and costume changes, as Elizabeth Sobol of SPAC said:   "There's a closing piece called Something to Dance About and it's like 30 dancers in 30 minutes and 130 costume changes."  Whew.  

Speaking of SPAC, I wish they'd organize their box office better.  Instead of dedicated Will Call, this performance and then other performances lines, they just had everyone in line, no matter what their needs.  Hence, I waited TWENTY minutes to buy my R&J ticket, missing the first 15 minutes of the performance. I couldn't arrive at SPAC sooner due other appointments. Boy, was I annoyed. 

Anyway, I am (as are others on this forum) fervently hoping for two weeks next year.  I have emailed SPAC already once earlier in the spring and will again to voice my opinion.  New York City Ballet is the beloved jewel in SPAC's crown and they would be so short-sighted and wrong to keep the season at one week.  Have a great day.

 

When I first moved to the area (~15 years ago), I was warned away from the Gala as being for rich partiers and not for serious ballet lovers so I avoided it for years. But, in 2010, I received gala tickets as a gift and I've gone back most years since then because new ballets that I'm interested in seeing are often performed only at the gala. My sense is that the real partiers don't necessarily bother to come in and watch, so the atmosphere inside is pretty normal. 

I also got my ticket this year on discount (first time i'm aware of them doing this)--they sent me an offer for 3 performances for the price of 2 back in May, and after I went to the my first performance (Cuban National Ballet Giselle), I received another 25% off coupon for selected other performances, which included the gala. I find it strange that they jack up the prices for the gala and then offer discounts, but I'm happy to take advantage. I think I got yet another offer this week after opening night. I'm glad to see better marketing of the season and bigger audiences, including encouraging people to come again. Particularly since, In the little I've seen/heard of Sobol (mainly before-curtain speeches and interviews), she came across to me as interested only in music and not in dance. 

The SPAC box office used to be better organized, with separate will call and SPAC member windows. They did away with that about 10 years ago. It's definitely annoying.

KarenAG (or anyone else), who is the best person at SPAC to contact to express support for the NYCB season? 

Also, I wanted to point out this recent (somewhat depressing) article from the Gazette on the shorter season: https://dailygazette.com/article/2018/07/18/shorter-new-york-city-ballet-season-leaves-some-wanting-more 

[KarenAG]

Hi FPF, 

Thank you and I will reply regarding a contact when I’m on my way up to Saratoga.  I appreciate your weighing in on the Gala as this is my first and I’ve been seeing this company at SPAC since 1980!  I received the 25% thank you for attending Ballet Nacional de Cuba in June and attending Tue night. The discounts showed up in my email the day after my first attended performance. (I saw BNC twice and the Balanchine twice). 

I hope we all enjoy tonight’s performance. Looking most forward to Four Seasons and Other Dances.  Wish I’d seen the Pulcinella Suite Thu night. 

Re my post above, I must qualify my B+ grade on Square Dance Tue and Wed.  After thinking about it more,  these dancers deserve an A.  It just wasn’t the crispest I’ve seen Square Dance danced. I remember a perfect Ashley Bouder once, and the PBS of Miami City Ballet dancing it is seared in my memory and is probably the benchmark for all subsequent performances of this stunning ballet for me. Jeanette Delgado and Renan Cerdeiro - heaven. 

 Who the heck am I to rate these dancers with ‘grades’, anyway! 

Best to everyone. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited July 22, 2018 by KarenAG
Name spelling correction

[FPF]

Last night was the end of the NYCB summer season at SPAC.

Good news: they will be back next year. 😁 Bad news:  1 week only.😢

Before the performance, Joaquin de Luz was honored for his final SPAC appearance. He was given a bouquet and got a big ovation from the audience.

I'll have more thoughts on the performances later.

[nanushka]

2 minutes ago, FPF said:

Good news: they will be back next year. 😁 

That is good news! Was it announced from the stage?

[FPF]

13 minutes ago, nanushka said:

That is good news! Was it announced from the stage?

Yes.

[KarenAG]

20 minutes ago, FPF said:

Last night was the end of the NYCB summer season at SPAC.

Good news: they will be back next year. 😁 Bad news:  1 week only.😢

Before the performance, Joaquin de Luz was honored for his final SPAC appearance. He was given a bouquet and got a big ovation from the audience.

I'll have more thoughts on the performances later.

I didn’t hear that! When was that announced, FPF? I was hoping to hear at the opening of the evening; all I heard was Sobol’s welcome and her salute to Joaquin DeLuz. 

One week again? Truly sad. What are they thinking?? Ugh. 

Thank you for the information. 

 

21 minutes ago, nanushka said:

That is good news! Was it announced from the stage?

Yes, it is good news - we’ve all been worried NYCB would be cut out completely. 

[rkoretzky]

I’m glad to have anything but greatly disappointed with the SPAC administration who seem to have it in for NYCB no matter who is sitting in the offices. The Philadelphia Orchestra also loses money every year but their season remains at 3 weeks. Not that I want to see either of our resident companies slashed, but why has NYCB been cut to 3 weeks  in 1979, eliminated and then restored in 2005, cut to two weeks in 2009, cut further in 2013, restored to 2 weeks in 2015, and now this for the second consecutive year . 

Now let’s hope that someone at SPAC has the knowledge to negotiate for better programming: more Balanchine, more Robbins and different rep for each matinee. 

Edited July 22, 2018 by rkoretzky

[KarenAG]

21 minutes ago, rkoretzky said:

I’m glad to have anything but greatly disappointed with the SPAC administration who seem to have it in for NYCB no matter who is sitting in the offices. The Philadelphia Orchestra also loses money every year but their season remains at 3 weeks. Not that I want to see either of our resident companies slashed, but why has NYCB been cut to 3 weeks  in 1979, eliminated and then restored in 2005, cut to two weeks in 2009, cut further in 2013, restored to 2 weeks in 2015, and now this for the second consecutive year . 

Now let’s hope that someone at SPAC has the knowledge to negotiate for better programming: more Balanchine, more Robbins and different rep for each matinee. 

I couldn’t agree more, rkorestzky. With 7 performances, one of the mats could have had mixed rep, instead of a 3rd R&J.  For example, a Balanchine,  a Robbins and perhaps Pulcinella Variations, which would have thematically worked well. It’s very frustrating, disheartening and sad that NYCB is given short-shrift with this new director.  

Edited July 22, 2018 by KarenAG
Name spelling correction

[KarenAG]

Here is the Saratogian review of the Gala program. http://www.saratogian.com/article/ST/20180722/NEWS/180729924 .   

I truly enjoyed The Four Seasons and Other Dances.  It was great to see an unusual Robbins work (The Four Seasons) that was delightful and festive in so many ways, and a bit offbeat. Everyone danced so well and joyously.  Tiler Peck was amazing, as always.  I enjoyed the Verdi score, too.   I haven't seen a lot of Robbins in the past few years.  Of course, I don't get to the NY performances very often. Erica Pereira was replaced by Lauren King and Adrian Danchig-Waring was replaced, but by whom, I cannot remember.  Usually I have a pen in my purse but not this time.  Other Dances was gorgeous and I was happy to have the opportunity to focus on Ashley's and Joaquin's beautiful dancing and study the choreography - I haven't seen it in several years.  Throughout, knowing Tiler dances this role, too, I was envisioning her take on it.  This takes nothing away from Ashley's performance.  I will miss Joaquin.   

I wasn't very impressed with either of the occasion pieces.  Except that I do believe Tiler Peck can do anything.  Her versatility is breathtaking! Lauren Lovette was adorable as Maria in the WSS number.  Everybody danced their hearts out and that was wonderful.  

The Gala was fun pre- and post-performance and on the grounds.  In the amphitheater, it seems SPAC suspends a few considerations, including seating people after the performance starts.  And audience members feel more free to talk, text and take pictures, which is very distracting. 

Oh, and I met Mr. Robert Maiorano. He is often there and was in the line-up at the 50th anniversary dedication to Balanchine and Kirstein on the Walk of Fame, but I didn't know who he was.  Now I do, and he was very friendly and fun to talk with.  I hope I see him again there next year.  

 

Edited July 24, 2018 by KarenAG
to add a statement and correct name spelling

[FPF]

I also was at the Gala. I think the gala crowd is bit more "relaxed" (and maybe drunk) than the typical audience, but other than some whispering, there was no  obvious misbehavior near me in the balcony, except for the phone ringing during Other Dances.The ushers do generally try to shut down the most egregious behavior when they see or hear about it.

I agree with Karen that The Four Seasons received a great performance. It's probably my favorite Robbins ballet and I was smiling the whole time. Special kudos to Teresa Reichlen, who was a very sultry Summer and Tiler Peck, who was just astonishing in Fall. Some additional casting notes: Aaron Sanz debuted in Winter and it was Ask la Cour who replaced Adrian Danchig-Waring in Summer. Other Dances was also very good, and it was nice to have a work that really showcased de Luz in his final SPAC appearance. 

I thought that Something to Dance About was pleasant and definitely went over big with the gala crowd, but suffered from having just small snippets of out-of-context dances. And some of the choices were bizarre--why spring for elaborate ball gowns and Uncle Thomas costumes and then have a uncostumed bottle dance with no bottles? Andy Veyette's singing was only half-intelligible--may have been the miking. Overall, I felt that the money and time spent on this production could have been better spent elsewhere. And that Robbins would have been best saluted by a full program of his works. Casting note: Preston Chamblee (also a debut) replaced Harrison Coll .

I feel like the season barely got started and now it's already over. I only went to 3 performances, my fewest in years. As rkoretzky said, it's disappointing to see how little regard each successive SPAC director seems to have for the NYCB. Although over the past few years I've gone to see some of the other dance companies they've brought in to "replace" part of the NYCB season, I notice that (Bolshoi excepted), their attendance is much lower. When I went to an orchestra concert last year, attendance was also far below that at any of the 8 NYCB performances I saw. Yet, as pointed out by rkoretzky, the orchestra season is never on the chopping block (not that I want it cut, but why should the ballet always bear the brunt?). My cynical thought a few years ago was that the season was restored to 2 weeks only because it would have looked bad not to going into the 50th anniversary season.

On the positive side, I really enjoyed all of the performances I saw this year. Also, the discounts and promotions seem to be getting more people to come, and this is something that has really been neglected and/or poorly done (e.g., the beer-tasting nights for men). Hopefully, the increased attendance will continue and support restoring the season.

[Kathleen O'Connell]

10 hours ago, FPF said:

I feel like the season barely got started and now it's already over. I only went to 3 performances, my fewest in years. As rkoretzky said, it's disappointing to see how little regard each successive SPAC director seems to have for the NYCB. Although over the past few years I've gone to see some of the other dance companies they've brought in to "replace" part of the NYCB season, I notice that (Bolshoi excepted), their attendance is much lower. When I went to an orchestra concert last year, attendance was also far below that at any of the 8 NYCB performances I saw. Yet, as pointed out by rkoretzky, the orchestra season is never on the chopping block (not that I want it cut, but why should the ballet always bear the brunt?). 

It could be that the Philadelphia Orchestra's fees to perform at SPAC are lower than NYCB's and that the net cost to SPAC to present the orchestra are therefore lower, even if its performances are less well-attended. I don't know the fee differential, but it might even turn out to be the case that it costs SPAC less to put on the orchestra's twelve performances than it does to put on NYCB's seven performances. (I only saw seven performances listed on the casting sheet.)

I also note that the orchestra doesn't perform every night, which gives SPAC the opportunity to interleave it with other kinds of acts and thus offer the portion of its audience that is only in town for a week or two greater variety. Someone who's only in town for a short stay might not be up for multiple orchestra (or ballet) performances, but might be willing to take in an orchestra performances and something else. For SPAC, that's a win. 

I'm going to hazard a guess that it costs NYCB more to perform at SPAC than it does the orchestra.  NYCB has to tote its own orchestra up there as well as sets and costumes. I don't know if it brings its own wardrobe, backstage, and technical personnel as well, but I wouldn't be surprised if it did. (The orchestra doesn't need a complicated lighting plot and its members perform in their own clothes.) NYCB may need to charge a higher fee to make the trip to SPAC worthwhile, and it may legitimately insist on performing every night.  

SPAC might genuinely want to offer more NYCB, but it simply may not be able to afford to no matter how well-attended the performances are in comparison to its other offerings or how much it's able to raise via the gala.

Edited July 24, 2018 by Kathleen O'Connell

[FPF]

On 7/24/2018 at 8:59 AM, Kathleen O'Connell said:

It could be that the Philadelphia Orchestra's fees to perform at SPAC are lower than NYCB's and that the net cost to SPAC to present the orchestra are therefore lower, even if its performances are less well-attended. I don't know the fee differential, but it might even turn out to be the case that it costs SPAC less to put on the orchestra's twelve performances than it does to put on NYCB's seven performances. (I only saw seven performances listed on the casting sheet.)

I also note that the orchestra doesn't perform every night, which gives SPAC the opportunity to interleave it with other kinds of acts and thus offer the portion of its audience that is only in town for a week or two greater variety. Someone who's only in town for a short stay might not be up for multiple orchestra (or ballet) performances, but might be willing to take in an orchestra performances and something else. For SPAC, that's a win. 

I'm going to hazard a guess that it costs NYCB more to perform at SPAC than it does the orchestra.  NYCB has to tote its own orchestra up there as well as sets and costumes. I don't know if it brings its own wardrobe, backstage, and technical personnel as well, but I wouldn't be surprised if it did. (The orchestra doesn't need a complicated lighting plot and its members perform in their own clothes.) NYCB may need to charge a higher fee to make the trip to SPAC worthwhile, and it may legitimately insist on performing every night.  

SPAC might genuinely want to offer more NYCB, but it simply may not be able to afford to no matter how well-attended the performances are in comparison to its other offerings or how much it's able to raise via the gala.

I'm sure you're correct about the relative costs of touring the ballet vs. the orchestra.  I would be surprised if the other events were a major factor, as other events do go on (or have in the past) during the ballet season. The opera and chamber music performances are in a separate theater on the SPAC grounds. I believe that they did the Jazz Bar one night after the ballet and there was also a Shakespeare performance to tie in to R+J. LiveNation concerts on Sundays are the biggest moneymakers, and there were concerts on both of the Sundays immediately before and after the ballet season, as there are during the orchestra season. 

For me, due to the repeated targeting of the NYCB season by the SPAC administration (this is the fourth time the season has been cut in the past 15 years--from 3 weeks with the threat of complete cancellation,  to 2 weeks to 1 week, then back to 2 weeks leading into the 50th anniversary, and now back to 1 week), my trust in their commitment to the NYCB residency has really been eroded. The ray of hope comes from the better marketing and substantially larger audiences this year for the evening performances. I hope that If this can be sustained, it will perhaps lead to support for re-expanding the ballet season.

[Kathleen O'Connell]

17 hours ago, FPF said:

For me, due to the repeated targeting of the NYCB season by the SPAC administration (this is the fourth time the season has been cut in the past 15 years--from 3 weeks with the threat of complete cancellation,  to 2 weeks to 1 week, then back to 2 weeks leading into the 50th anniversary, and now back to 1 week), my trust in their commitment to the NYCB residency has really been eroded. The ray of hope comes from the better marketing and substantially larger audiences this year for the evening performances. I hope that If this can be sustained, it will perhaps lead to support for re-expanding the ballet season.

So, I took a quick tour of SPAC's 990s and audited financial statements to see what information might be there regarding the fees it pays to NYCB and the Philadelphia Orchestra. It turns out that SPAC discloses the fees it pays to each organization in its 900s (Part VII, Section B). In 2016 (the most recent year available) SPAC paid NYCB $1,836,750 for its two week season, or $918,375 per week. It paid the orchestra $1,509,142 for its three week season, or $503,047 per week. In other words, on a fee per week basis, it costs SPAC almost twice as much to present the ballet as it does to present the orchestra. SPAC's net income from the ballet gala ($167,866 in 2016 - see Schedule G) is not enough to cover the difference.

I'd like nothing better than to see more weeks of ballet at SPAC, but a prudent non-profit can't commit to more than it can afford. SPAC's endowment is tiny (about $7-$8 million) and is heavily restricted, so it doesn't have much cushion against financial adversity. It's had a couple of year of operating solidly in the black, however, and a spike in donations and grants, so let's hope it will be able to commit to longer seasons in the near future.

[cobweb]

Thanks for these analyses of the financial considerations of presenting the arts. This is something I don't know anything about, and it's been fascinating to read the specifics. 

[ABT Fan]

1 hour ago, cobweb said:

Thanks for these analyses of the financial considerations of presenting the arts. This is something I don't know anything about, and it's been fascinating to read the specifics. 

I agree. Thank you Kathleen for those figures. That was very insightful.

[Olga]

I would think NYCB could reduce its costs, and therefor possibly what SPAC has to pay them, by running ballets that don’t require a lot scenery. Or even, for some evenings at beginning or end of run, that don’t require full orchestras. There are plenty of these in its repertory. Romeo and Juliet is not one of  them.

[Kathleen O'Connell]

1 hour ago, Olga said:

I would think NYCB could reduce its costs, and therefor possibly what SPAC has to pay them, by running ballets that don’t require a lot scenery. Or even, for some evenings at beginning or end of run, that don’t require full orchestras. There are plenty of these in its repertory. Romeo and Juliet is not one of  them.

I wonder if SPAC and NYCB negotiate the repertory that will be presented as part of the fee agreement. I haven't been keeping track of what NYCB brings to SPAC each year, but it could be that SPAC wants to offer its audiences something on a grander scale than, say, NYCB Moves, and negotiates the fee and the programs accordingly. SPAC may have decided that it would rather offer one week of showcase ballets on a grand scale — i.e., with a full complement of dancers, costumes, an orchestra, etc. — than two weeks of chamber ballets. And, there isn't much in the core Balanchine canon that's of chamber ballet scale, frankly; if SPAC wants to provide its audiences with some of the best that NYCB has to offer — e.g., Midsummer Night's Dream, Serenade, Four Temperaments, Symphony in C — it's going to have to pay a fee sufficient to cover bringing along the orchestra, sets, and costumes. 

Of course, it might also be the case that NYCB says "It's Symphony in C and R+J it's or nothing" — I honestly don't know. 

[Kathleen O'Connell]

2 hours ago, ABT Fan said:

I agree. Thank you Kathleen for those figures. That was very insightful.

I happen to like digging around IRS 990s. SPAC is a whole new kind of 501(c)3 animal for me: it's a presenting organization that leases its premises from New York State and generates a portion of its revenue by renting out said premises to for-profit third parties. (Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall do this to some extent as well, but they dwarf SPAC in every respect.)  I haven't wrapped my head around it enough yet to figure out whether it's well-run and ready for whatever the future may hold.

[Olga]

There is a range of ballets on a cost continuum between a ballet like Duo Concertant and one like Romeo, and many of them are not chamber ballets. In fact, two, probably three, of the four ballets mentioned by Kathleen fall into that range. Romeo struck me as a particularly costly ballet to bring there, and since I don’t care for the ballet, I find the cost to far outweigh the benefit. But as Kathleen says, we don’t know — how the programs are set or how the fees are structured. I was struck by a photo I saw of the sets being unpacked in Saratoga, and that is probably the genesis of my comment. 

[Kathleen O'Connell]

42 minutes ago, Olga said:

There is a range of ballets on a cost continuum between a ballet like Duo Concertant and one like Romeo, and many of them are not chamber ballets. In fact, two, probably three, of the four ballets mentioned by Kathleen fall into that range. Romeo struck me as a particularly costly ballet to bring there, and since I don’t care for the ballet, I find the cost to far outweigh the benefit. But as Kathleen says, we don’t know — how the programs are set or how the fees are structured. I was struck by a photo I saw of the sets being unpacked in Saratoga, and that is probably the genesis of my comment. 

Although there is certainly some expense entailed in toting a set up to SPAC, setting it up, and breaking it down, I'm going to guess that the dancers, musicians, and attendant personnel are where the bulk of the expenditure lies. That being said, I'm going to guess that Saratoga got three performances of R+J because it wouldn't have been cost effective to do any fewer.

I heartily agree with Olga that there are worthier productions to haul up to SPAC than Martins' R+J — Coppelia, for example, which the company also performed in NYC recently — but perhaps the people doing the programming thought R+J would have more appeal.   

[FPF]

Thanks, Kathleen--those numbers are very interesting. The money that SPAC receives from LiveNation for their concerts is supposed to support the classical season, and although I don't know much about this myself, there has been grumbling in the community for years that SPAC gets less than it should. Interestingly, although the atmosphere at SPAC for the classical performances is really lovely, many people seem to hate going to the LiveNation concerts, where the conditions are apparently much more draconian--popular complaints are about everything from parking fees to lack of sufficient restroom facilities, jacked up concession prices, and not allowing drinks other than sealed water bottles to be brought in, and allowing drinking in only a limited space. 

I thought I read years ago that the ballets are mutually agreed upon by SPAC and NYCB, and that the elaborate sets/costumes are indeed an issue for some of the story ballets. I think that's why Sleeping Beauty hasn't come since I've been going to SPAC, although Aurora's Wedding was done a while back. Swan Lake has also come in recent years. Romeo and Juliet has sold very well at every performance this year, and I believe this has been the case each of the three times (I think) it has been done at SPAC. Midsummer was the first ballet performed at SPAC, so it was considered important for the 50th anniversary season (and it is especially nice to see it around Midsummer with actual fireflies flitting about. I think Coppelia (originally a SPAC premiere) has also been done relatively recently.

My understanding is that the NYCB contract with the orchestra requires that their inclusion on tours, outside of NYCB Moves. And frankly, although I know other people love them, I can only take so much of the piano ballets. Plus the acoustics are great. When they've brought in outside ballet companies, it has always been for story ballets (Giselle 2x, Don Quixote 1x), and only 1 Giselle (Cuba) had canned music. I believe that the other companies subsidize their visits and may not be as costly to SPAC, even if they don't sell well.

I went to Glimmerglass this afternoon to see West Side Story, and I was thinking about the comparatively great job they do with marketing. They send emails regularly, even during the winter--the director sends notes " from Francesca's Traveling iPad."  So they are always reminding you that they're around and about the upcoming season.  I do get email from SPAC in the winter, but not really about dance.  Glimmerglass has already announced their productions for next year, so even though the specific dates and tickets are not yet available, people might already be starting to think about coming and about which productions they're looking forward to seeing. This maybe gives much more of a sense of Glimmerglass as a destination for visitors from beyond the local community.  This is not to say that nobody travels to SPAC, but my sense is that Vail and the Pillow are much more publicized as summer dance destinations. In part, this may be because new works rarely premiere here (and I do realize that new ballets are expensive to commission). This, in turn, means that there's little nonlocal coverage of the NYCB summer season. My Glimmerglass ticket came enclosed within a brochure that included all kinds of information related to visiting there--a map of the grounds, box office hours and other contact information, how to dress, pet rules, where to find out about hotels, discount coupons to 2 local museums, the menu at their cafe, and other tips. Additionally, the director comes out for a minute before the performance to welcome everyone, especially first-timers, and briefly mentions their other programs/current discounts and that they hope we'll all come back. 

[kbarber]

how much were NYCB ticket prices this year? They've always seemed somewhat underpriced at SPAC to me. Vail's are $60 - $125, much smaller venue.

[Kathleen O'Connell]

14 hours ago, FPF said:

The money that SPAC receives from LiveNation for their concerts is supposed to support the classical season, and although I don't know much about this myself, there has been grumbling in the community for years that SPAC gets less than it should.

Here's a description of SPAC's arrangement with Live Nation, Per SPAC's audited financial statements (which you can download here)

"SPAC has an agreement with a third party to receive exclusive right and license to book, co-promote, co-produce, and co-present all Touring and Professional (T&P) events at SPAC through September 2019.  In consideration of a guaranteed fee paid to SPAC each year, plus a percentage based on attendance, the third party is entitled to all revenues derived from, relating to, or otherwise generated by the presentation of T&P events presented at SPAC.  In addition, the third party bears all the financial risk associated with the promotion, production, and presentation of each T&P event."

If I'm looking at the right lines in the financial statements, SPAC earned $1.1 million from this arrangement in 2017 and $1.45 million in 2016. I don't know what services (if any) SPAC provides to Live Nation in connection with the arrangement; I seem to recall that Live Nation is responsible for things like parking and clean-up, but I honestly don't know.

SPAC's own ticket sales were $2.85 million in 2017 and $3.33 million in 2016. Box Office service fees were $296 thousand in 2017 and $350 thousand in 2016. (This should give you a clue as to why performing arts organizations insist on charging them.)

SPAC also gets a bit of income from renting out the amphitheater for corporate events ($133 thousand in 2017) and from the Saratoga Jazz Festival ($60 thousand in 2017).

On a related note: I'm not surprised NYCB hasn't brought Sleeping Beauty to SPAC: its current production relies on some projections that would probably be impossible to pull off in the amphitheater.

Edited July 27, 2018 by Kathleen O'Connell