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ABT 2019 Manon


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ABT website is a bit slow at updating casting changes. According to the Met website, Simkin has been replaced by Hoven in all Manon performances. Who knows how long it will take for them to update his substitute for SL (I suspect his sub will be Whiteside)

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7 hours ago, alexL said:

ABT website is a bit slow at updating casting changes. According to the Met website, Simkin has been replaced by Hoven in all Manon performances. Who knows how long it will take for them to update his substitute for SL (I suspect his sub will be Whiteside)

Disappointing but not unexpected. It will be good to see Hoven though, who is having a great season.

So I will not get to see Simkin once this season. What a bummer.

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15 hours ago, alexL said:

ABT website is a bit slow at updating casting changes. According to the Met website, Simkin has been replaced by Hoven in all Manon performances. Who knows how long it will take for them to update his substitute for SL (I suspect his sub will be Whiteside)

And here's the thing.... Just three days ago they posted the casting for the last two weeks which included Simkin in Swan Lake.   They could have just as easily put TBA.   I wonder if there is any chance that he'll be well enough to perform.   

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2 minutes ago, NinaFan said:

And here's the thing.... Just three days ago they posted the casting for the last two weeks which included Simkin in Swan Lake.   They could have just as easily put TBA.   I wonder if there is any chance that he'll be well enough to perform.   

His SL is a week and half away, so he could recover, depending on what his injury is of course. 

I think they'd want to be certain on who would replace him, and I also think they'd want to make sure no other injuries occur before deciding on that. Supposedly, Cornejo has recovered himself and will dance Manon this week. But, what if, god forbid, he re-injures himself again and has to be replaced in SL as well. Would Hallberg be willing/able to pick up a second SL? Would Stearns, Whiteside or Bell have to do 3 shows? Or, if those 3 guys are completely exhausted by then cause it's nearly the end of their 8 week season, would Forster get a crash course in Siegfried? They'd have a lot to decide, so since two principals were/are injured, I'd say it's better to wait a little bit, as frustrating as that is.

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1 hour ago, abatt said:

Hallberg never adds performances at ABT these days.  He only subtracts.

Right. I think it will be a miracle if Hallberg dances his one Swan Lake.

If ABT really finds itself in a pinch, Hammoudi does know the role. I know this is an option that very few of us would be enthused about, but it would be easier than teaching the role to someone who has never danced it before.

Assuming Simkin pulls out of Swan Lake, I agree that Whiteside is the most likely sub. I think the rule of thumb is that ABT goes with what is the most expedient, safest option when someone needs to be replaced. Cases like Sarah Lane debuting O/O with just a few days notice seem like a rare exception to that rule. 

Edited by fondoffouettes
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2 minutes ago, fondoffouettes said:

Right. I think it will be a miracle if Hallberg dances his one Swan Lake.

If ABT really finds itself in a pinch, Hammoudi does know the role. I know this is an option that very few of us would the enthused about, but it would be easier than teaching the role to someone who has never danced it before.

True. I forgot about Hammoudi. He’d be the easier choice.

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12 hours ago, fondoffouettes said:

Right. I think it will be a miracle if Hallberg dances his one Swan Lake.

He just danced two Romeo's in London, and that is arguably a more difficult role than Siegfried. I wouldn't expect Hallberg to replace any of Simkin's performances, but at least he should honor his own. 

Edited by MRR
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On 6/17/2019 at 1:10 AM, alexL said:

ABT website is a bit slow at updating casting changes. According to the Met website, Simkin has been replaced by Hoven in all Manon performances. Who knows how long it will take for them to update his substitute for SL (I suspect his sub will be Whiteside)

Is there a place on ABT’s website where they list who is being replaced? At NYCB they will say “Dancer B (replacing Dancer A).”  Also,  they keep the whole  casting sheet up on their website for the whole season and slightly more. So the information and its trajectory are clear. At ABT it seems once a dancer is replaced there is no record of him/her having been cast originally. Also, once the ballet is over there doesn’t seem to be a record of who danced it. Perhaps I am missing something?

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1 minute ago, Olga said:

Is there a place on ABT’s website where they list who is being replaced? At NYCB they will say “Dancer B (replacing Dancer A).”  Also,  they keep the whole  casting sheet up on their website for the whole season and slightly more. So the information and its trajectory are clear. At ABT it seems once a dancer is replaced there is no record of him/her having been cast originally. Also, once the ballet is over there doesn’t seem to be a record of who danced it. Perhaps I am missing something?

They do not list who is replacing who like at NYCB. Their calendar remains up on their website so you can always go back and see who performed what, but I don’t know for how far back it remains. I did check last year’s Met season recently and the casting was still there.

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9 minutes ago, abatt said:

Did anyone see last night's performance?  Reports?

Lovely performance by Hee Seo. She's not one of my favorites, but this is a good role for her. Expected elegance and great partnering by Bolle. Whiteside has been having a good season. He's a natural Lescaut and got extra applause at the end. (He was also a stand-out in Deuce Coupe.) Abrera seemed to love the mistress role and was great fun. The orchestra seemed mostly full, but the sides of the tiers were empty.  No cast changes as of this morning. Fingers crossed for Cornejo and Hallberg!

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1 hour ago, ABT Fan said:

They do not list who is replacing who like at NYCB. Their calendar remains up on their website so you can always go back and see who performed what, but I don’t know for how far back it remains. I did check last year’s Met season recently and the casting was still there.

I see it now - under the Master Calendar. I kept noticing how the performances disappear elsewhere on the site. Thanks!

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Last night's performance was generally a great success - everyone danced well, the production looked handsome, it was well-coached and staged by Robert Tewsley and Julie Lincoln and the audience was enthusiastically appreciative at the end.  If one had seen the ballet with Ferri and Bocca or Vishneva with either Malakhov or Gomes as I have (and most of you have), then it was just a pleasing, diverting evening but nothing earth-shattering.

We'll start with Roberto Bolle - he has not aged in his appearance and his face and body are like an Apollo still.  However, I noticed in his first solo that there were some stamina problems which suggest he is retiring just in time.  Chevalier Des Grieux's first solo, choreographed for Antony Dowell, looks deceptively simple and is slow and unflashy but is actually very exposed.  This solo requires perfect form, technique, control and strength to stretch out those arabesques from the fingertips to the toes and sustain them without wobbling with no breaks.  There are also balances.  Bolle in the first solo was sort of start and stop with breaks between the steps and really didn't do balances.  He is still an AMAZING partner and Hee Seo just flew around up and over his shoulders and back like a bird.  He caught her like she weighed nothing.  I did notice that he warmed up over the evening and by the third act was in good form.  He got entrance applause and a standing ovation at the end.

Hee Seo is a lovely Manon but not a heartbreaking one.  I know that Alessandra Ferri is around to coach the MacMillan ballets for ABT and though I have no inside information, it looked as if Seo was expertly coached.  She danced beautifully and seemed to have the details down.  Of course, other dancers have had more flexible backs or extensions but she was lovely.  

However, the temperature didn't rise above mildly warm in those passionate pas de deuxs  - if you saw either of the pairs I cited above you would see that Seo was lacking in passion and also a certain reckless sexuality.  Ferri or Vishneva looked like they were going to jump over the heads of their Des Grieuxs when they ran into his arms - Seo was safe and sweet.  I liked her dancing a lot, but in the first scene she seemed a poised debutante not a sexually precocious innocent and her courtesan in Act II was elegant but not a femme fatale.  I thought this was very excellent Seo but just "nice" Manon.

James Whiteside really went over the top and took risks as Lescaut and stole all his scenes - he is really a remarkably versatile and creative artist.   Stella Abrera as Lescaut's Mistress had the kind of diabolical sensuality, strong stage presence and authority that I felt Seo lacked.  She really should be dancing Manon.  I actually think the Mistress might have more difficult and demanding solo choreography than Manon and Stella danced with polish and style.  The supporting cast featured such "A" team players like a disturbingly corrupt Roman Zhurbin as Msr. G.M. and Martine Van Hamel as Madame.  Everyone was working well together and this looked thoroughly rehearsed.  Unlike Jane Eyre, this really is a ballet that projects well in a big opera house with visual spectacle and good use of the corps and supers.  Everyone seemed very happy to be there and felt they got their money's worth.

Edited by FauxPas
Typos and details
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15 minutes ago, FauxPas said:

Stella Abrera as Lescaut's Mistress had the kind of diabolical sensuality, strong stage presence and authority that I felt Seo lacked.  She really should be dancing Manon. 

There are a lot of roles that are now out of Abrera's reach technically, but it is criminal that McKenzie did not give her Manon. 

Edited by abatt
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Thank you, California and FauxPas, for your reviews of last night’s performance. Looking forward to seeing Sarah Lane and Herman Cornejo tonight and ready to brave thunderstorms to get there from Connecticut. Will report afterward. I assume a number of other Ballet Alerters will be there to see Sarah and Herman’s debuts as well. Thank you, nanushka, for the post from Hoven that he expects Herman to dance! 

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