City Ballet The Podcast

[Kathleen O'Connell]

Well, this is an interesting foray into new media:

LAUNCHING SEPTEMBER 8, 2019

Welcome to City Ballet The Podcast, an exploration of New York City Ballet where we'll journey through our history, delve into our new and existing repertory, and reveal insider tidbits.

Introduced by Artistic Director Jonathan Stafford, the six episodes in Season One of City Ballet The Podcast span three topics: New Combinations hosted by Associate Artistic Director Wendy Whelan, Hear the Dance hosted by Corps de Ballet Member Silas Farley, and See the Music hosted by Music Director Andrew Litton.

“There are no new steps, only new combinations” – George Balanchine

New Combinations with Wendy Whelan

During our performance season, New York City Ballet showcases recent works from some of the most influential choreographers working today. Associate Artistic Director Wendy Whelan hosts the New Combinations episodes, where she talks to the choreographers and other artists behind the unique new works premiering this season at New York City Ballet.

“Hear the dance, see the music …” – George Balanchine

Hear the Dance with Silas Farley

Corps de Ballet Member Silas Farley explores our expansive repertory, from the earliest Balanchine works to more recent classics, giving listeners an insider’s take on the Company’s rich history with Hear the Dance. Taking on a new ballet each episode, Farley is joined by many key players, from original cast members to ballet masters to current NYCB dancers, who share their personal experiences performing and coaching works from our illustrious repertory.

See the Music with Andrew Litton

In Hear the Music, New York City Ballet’s Music Director Andrew Litton takes us off the stage and into the orchestra pit, giving listeners an in-depth look at the scores from some of our most notable ballets, featuring discussions with both orchestra members and commissioned composers.

Here's the link to the podcast's web page: http://podcast.nycballet.com

The first three episodes have been posted there, and should be available in your podcast app of choice once it gets listed in the relevant directories and databases. 

[ECat]

@Kathleen O'ConnellThank you for sharing this exciting news!  I love the San Fransisco Ballet podcasts so hopefully this will be equally as interesting.

[sohalia]

Thanks for sharing. I love podcasts, so I can't wait to listen to this one. Hopefully it appears on Apple Podcasts soon so it's easier for me to download and listen. This is a great idea.

[Kathleen O'Connell]

20 hours ago, sohalia said:

Thanks for sharing. I love podcasts, so I can't wait to listen to this one. Hopefully it appears on Apple Podcasts soon so it's easier for me to download and listen. This is a great idea.

City Ballet the Podcast has finally made it into Apple's podcast directory, which means it should be available in just about every podcast app out there. I have no idea why it took so long, but it's there now. 

[tutu]

On 9/8/2019 at 11:20 AM, Kathleen O'Connell said:

Hear the Dance with Silas Farley

Corps de Ballet Member Silas Farley explores our expansive repertory, from the earliest Balanchine works to more recent classics, giving listeners an insider’s take on the Company’s rich history with Hear the Dance. Taking on a new ballet each episode, Farley is joined by many key players, from original cast members to ballet masters to current NYCB dancers, who share their personal experiences performing and coaching works from our illustrious repertory.

Really excited for this. Farley’s so, so good at these kinds of discussions — extremely knowledgeable, does his research, and has a great voice and presence. 

[JanLevNYC]

14 hours ago, tutu said:

Really excited for this. Farley’s so, so good at these kinds of discussions — extremely knowledgeable, does his research, and has a great voice and presence. 

Agreed.  And Silas did an outstanding job this past summer at MOMA.  He has a natural curiosity for dance history and is proving himself as a becoming scholar.  Easy to imagine from a young man who turned down several ivy league scholarships to dance.  Bravo for him.

[sohalia]

I finished listening to all three episodes today, and I am very excited for this podcast and the content we will get out of it. Silas Farley has THE perfect voice for this role, he's so soothing yet captivating. I could have listened to him go on and on for hours. I could hear in his voice the passion and enthusiasm he has for ballet and its history, so it truly was delightful to listen to him. I can't wait for more of it, and to also hear from Whelan and Litton.

What a fantastic initiative! I love the direction NYCB seems to be taking right now with outreach and social media, with these new podcasts and the live Instagram video of the DGV rehearsal... Now bring back Devin Alberda's backstage photographs, and I'm going to be the most happy camper and NYCB fan ever.

Edited September 15, 2019 by sohalia

[sunshine67]

On 9/15/2019 at 11:25 AM, sohalia said:

I finished listening to all three episodes today, and I am very excited for this podcast and the content we will get out of it. Silas Farley has THE perfect voice for this role, he's so soothing yet captivating. I could have listened to him go on and on for hours. I could hear in his voice the passion and enthusiasm he has for ballet and its history, so it truly was delightful to listen to him. I can't wait for more of it, and to also hear from Whelan and Litton.

What a fantastic initiative! I love the direction NYCB seems to be taking right now with outreach and social media, with these new podcasts and the live Instagram video of the DGV rehearsal... Now bring back Devin Alberda's backstage photographs, and I'm going to be the most happy camper and NYCB fan ever.

Agree on all points - especially Devin's photographs!

[FPF]

I found the episodes on the history of the company pretty dull (I've been going to NYCB for ~30 years now, so there wasn't anything new for me). And Farley is a little too gee-whiz in his delivery for me and I find his vocal fry a bit grating. But I thought that the latest episode on Opus 19/The Dreamer was a big leap forward. Silas's interviews with Taylor Stanley, Jean-Pierre Frolich, Kurt Nikkanen, and Peter Boal were very interesting and I think Silas sounded somewhat more natural in conversation than on his own.  

[BalanchineFan]

On 9/15/2019 at 12:25 PM, sohalia said:

I finished listening to all three episodes today, and I am very excited for this podcast and the content we will get out of it. Silas Farley has THE perfect voice for this role, he's so soothing yet captivating. I could have listened to him go on and on for hours. I could hear in his voice the passion and enthusiasm he has for ballet and its history, so it truly was delightful to listen to him. I can't wait for more of it, and to also hear from Whelan and Litton.

What a fantastic initiative! I love the direction NYCB seems to be taking right now with outreach and social media, with these new podcasts and the live Instagram video of the DGV rehearsal... Now bring back Devin Alberda's backstage photographs, and I'm going to be the most happy camper and NYCB fan ever.

NYCB seems to be on the frontline of online programming for a performing arts organization. It's so smart and I hope it pays big dividends in growing and maintaining a large and (perhaps) younger audience.

[DC Export]

On 9/20/2019 at 6:10 PM, BalanchineFan said:

NYCB seems to be on the frontline of online programming for a performing arts organization. It's so smart and I hope it pays big dividends in growing and maintaining a large and (perhaps) younger audience.

I came to ballet both in terms of appreciation and weekly practice through the AOL "City Ballet" series when it came out online in 2013. Six years later, I have a subscription to the Kennedy Center's ballet and dance series and I see NYCB whenever I'm in New York. Definitely a big fan of these kinds of outreach methods to reach younger people!

[A1EV3]

I love when companies go behind the scenes like this! It's so fascinating to see the hard work by so many talents that goes into making a wonderful performance. I especially love hearing dancer's insights on their roles!

In regards to a younger audience, I think that stuff like this and those bargain tickets really help. I've always loved ballet but after I started going more often and finding behind the scenes interviews ect. my interest and knowledge have really increased and I enjoy it even more! I know that a lot of people also like to learn and keep up to date with the things they like and many people do most of this on the internet, so I think it is important for any company to have a good web presence.

[sohalia]

I just wanted to say that I love the new feature of the podcast: The Rosin Box with Claire Kretzschmar and Aarón Sanz. It's been so nice to get to know the dancers individually, to hear them talk about their paths, their personal lives, their experiences. It's so fascinating, and makes them so human and "approachable" in a way. 

While I did find some episodes of the first season a bit dry at times, this new series is fantastic. I hope we get to hear from every dancer, and get more behind-the-scened tidbits like these.

Edited December 15, 2019 by sohalia

[GB1216]

5 hours ago, sohalia said:

I just wanted to say that I love the new feature of the podcast: The Rosin Box with Claire Kretzschmar and Aarón Sanz. It's been so nice to get to know the dancers individually, to hear them talk about their paths, their personal lives, their experiences. It's so fascinating, and makes them so human and "approachable" in a way. 

While I did find some episodes of the first season a bit dry at times, this new series is fantastic. I hope we get to hear from every dancer, and get more behind-the-scened tidbits like these.

Completely agree!! the rosin box is by far my favorite so far followed by the episodes that Wendy Whelan did.  

[DC Export]

It's definitely a personal joy of mine when I see that new episodes are posted. Rosin Box is also my favorite, but I also want to add some kudos for Andrew Litton's installments as well. I've enjoyed hearing more about the music and inviting musicians to join him. (The Oboist discussing the 2nd movement of Symphony in C was great!) I wonder if they'll add some interviews in the future with more facets of the ballets: lighting, costumes, etc. 

[uptowner]

I enjoyed "The Rosin Box" episode about backstage that featured the director of production and the mens and women's wardrobe masters. Really interesting! (maybe because in my past I did some technical production work, I do always think about what is going on back there and so this was quite satisfying to my curiosity) 

Edited December 17, 2019 by uptowner

[sappho]

Sanz and Kretzschmar are such delightful hosts. Loved the latest episode & hope they do more crew/wardrobe/admin interviews. I imagine they could spend a whole season in conversation with Marc Happel.

[sohalia]

On 12/16/2019 at 8:28 PM, DC Export said:

It's definitely a personal joy of mine when I see that new episodes are posted. Rosin Box is also my favorite, but I also want to add some kudos for Andrew Litton's installments as well. I've enjoyed hearing more about the music and inviting musicians to join him. (The Oboist discussing the 2nd movement of Symphony in C was great!) I wonder if they'll add some interviews in the future with more facets of the ballets: lighting, costumes, etc. 

Very true, I also did enjoy the episodes with Litton, and have actually gone and watched the 1973 footage of Balanchine's Symphony in C right after the episode discussing Bizet's piece and how Balanchine used it. I hope for more of these pieces about the music and the composers, it was fascinating.

I did like the episode with the Principal Oboist, but it got a bit too technical for me at times in the explanations and they used words I had to look up as I have no knowledge of music theory - but also maybe because English is not my first language and I sometimes am missing the technical vocabulary of very specific fields.

Edited December 21, 2019 by sohalia