New York City Ballet 2021-2022 season

[cobweb]

7 hours ago, abatt said:

Also, please advise whether they are still listing Ramasar for the Act II Divert

Yes for Sunday. Yay!! Replaced by Furlan on Wednesday. Also for those interested Megan Fairchild still scheduled for her assignments this week. If I can figure out how I will post a pic of casting sheet tomorrow. 

[Helene]

Unless you have a personal website or photo site that you can post a link to, you can't, @cobweb.  But you can send it to us in email as an attachment at pavlova.nijinsky@gmail.com, and I'll post it.

[abatt]

25 minutes ago, cobweb said:

Oberon — Lobby casting sheet dated 5/24

Tuesday - Huxley

wednesday - Ulbricht replaces Gordon

Thursday- Mejia (debut) replaces Gordon 

friday - Huxley 

sat mat - Ulbricht

sat eve - Huxley replaces Gordon

sunday mat - Ulbricht, also Phelan replaces Mearns

 

Thank you Cobweb.  So sorry about Gordon.  Wishing him well. 

Mejia should be wonderful as Oberon.  Technique and charisma to spare.

Edited May 24, 2022 by abatt

[Helene]

Here is @cobweb's photo -- thank you so much!

Edited to add:  it's very clear and easy to read when I click on the photo and then the "+" to enlarge it..

[nanushka]

This is Ballet Alert as it was meant to be!

[cobweb]

I will be there again tomorrow night and will check for casting sheet updates. Will try to get a pic with better lighting next time 😄

Tonight’s performance another absolute beauty, bringing much joy to an appreciative and expressive audience. Phelan and Huxley could not be more beautiful, and Harrison Ball has found the role of a lifetime IMHO. Tiler Peck also resplendent in the divert with Tyler Angle’s attentive partnering. And the music is just sublime. I look forward to the other casts… sort of, sorta not! 

[Roberta]

The Kennedy Center casting for both programs (mixed bill and Midsummer Dream) has been up for a while. It indicates either Mearns/Ulbricht or Miller/Mejia leading Dream.  Guessing that this will be updated later.

New York City Ballet | Kennedy Center (kennedy-center.org)

[MarzipanShepherdess]

Lovely performance last night all around. I hope the company is sending Unity on some kind of spa retreat after dancing all three Titania's her debut weekend. She looked great last night, very elegant, very delicate and ethereal. I think I personally prefer a bit of a stronger, more commanding Titania (I'm thinking of how Tess Reichlen danced it) but Unity's interpretation is a lovely one.

I echo @cobweb's praise for Harrison, Anthony, and Tiler and Tyler. Claire Kretzchsmar also stood out to me amongst the lover quartet, and as did Alexa Maxwell as the Butterfly. I was enjoying imagining a narrative link between her stunning debut in The Cage earlier this season and her Butterfly role: maybe she takes down The Queen after the events of The Cage and she leads her fearsome troupe off to the Athenian woods, where they grow wings and mellow out and float around with Puck.

I'm already sad City Ballet isn't dancing Midsummer next season. It's just such a gorgeous, joyful, fun ballet on every level and it gives so many generous opportunities to see dancers from all ranks of the company shine. And I enjoy it as something I can invite people in my life who are ballet-curious to see that they'll reliably enjoy. 

I must vent about a new low in bad ballet audience behavior: last night someone seated near me in the first ring not only had their phone ring and ring and ring TWICE, once in each act, but the first time it was a face time call which they proceeded to answer and started chatting away before being hissed into silence by fellow audience members. I truly cannot fathom how someone would think that was okay to do!

[Balletwannabe]

54 minutes ago, MarzipanShepherdess said:

Lovely performance last night all around. I hope the company is sending Unity on some kind of spa retreat after dancing all three Titania's her debut weekend. She looked great last night, very elegant, very delicate and ethereal. I think I personally prefer a bit of a stronger, more commanding Titania (I'm thinking of how Tess Reichlen danced it) but Unity's interpretation is a lovely one.

I echo @cobweb's praise for Harrison, Anthony, and Tiler and Tyler. Claire Kretzchsmar also stood out to me amongst the lover quartet, and as did Alexa Maxwell as the Butterfly. I was enjoying imagining a narrative link between her stunning debut in The Cage earlier this season and her Butterfly role: maybe she takes down The Queen after the events of The Cage and she leads her fearsome troupe off to the Athenian woods, where they grow wings and mellow out and float around with Puck.

I'm already sad City Ballet isn't dancing Midsummer next season. It's just such a gorgeous, joyful, fun ballet on every level and it gives so many generous opportunities to see dancers from all ranks of the company shine. And I enjoy it as something I can invite people in my life who are ballet-curious to see that they'll reliably enjoy. 

I must vent about a new low in bad ballet audience behavior: last night someone seated near me in the first ring not only had their phone ring and ring and ring TWICE, once in each act, but the first time it was a face time call which they proceeded to answer and started chatting away before being hissed into silence by fellow audience members. I truly cannot fathom how someone would think that was okay to do!

Not everyone wants to go to the ballet (coerced by friends?)- I saw someone at Nutcracker stare at their phone the entire time (not NYCB).  I also know someone who got up and walked out in a rage because there was no singing (they thought the story ballet was...a Broadway show??).  Some people are clueless.  

[cobweb]

Lobby casting sheet updated again as of today’s date. Adrian Danchig-Waring is out of his divertissement assignments, replaced by Tyler Angle. 

[Jacqueline]

Oh no, I hope he's OK.  Thank you for keeping us updated, Cobweb.

 

[Helene]

More casting updates from the lobby -- many thanks, @cobweb

 

[bellawood]

I notice Scordato is out of his final performances!

[BalanchineFan]

deleted.

Edited May 26, 2022 by BalanchineFan

[cobweb]

12 hours ago, bellawood said:

I notice Scordato is out of his final performances!

Scordato performed last night, and he is still listed for Saturday night Lysander. 

[FayBallet]

On 5/25/2022 at 12:43 PM, MarzipanShepherdess said:

I must vent about a new low in bad ballet audience behavior: last night someone seated near me in the first ring not only had their phone ring and ring and ring TWICE, once in each act, but the first time it was a face time call which they proceeded to answer and started chatting away before being hissed into silence by fellow audience members. I truly cannot fathom how someone would think that was okay to do!

Was it something in the air? On Tuesday night someone in the second ring was talking through much of the beginning of the first act and then continued to talk during the second act until he was thankfully scolded by another audience member ("What if everybody decided to talk?"). It's annoying that people don't recognize the music as an important part of the experience. Especially when the music is this good.

[cobweb]

In last night's performance, Sterling Hyltin and Jovani Furlan did the divertissement. I also saw them on Saturday night. Very beautiful both times, last night even more so, maybe a little more comfortable with each other. Sterling Hyltin hasn't always been my favorite dancer, but I've enjoyed her a lot this season and will miss her. Furlan is looking wonderful. 

I prefer the Huxley-Phelan-Ball cast to the Ulbricht-Miller-Mejia cast. Miriam Miller and Aaron Sanz, as Titania and her Cavalier, did not look nearly as comfortable together as Unity Phelan and Peter Walker did. It simply didn't have the same flow and naturalness, where Unity with Walker just seemed to be floating around on the air. Also Miller's phrasing and positions were not as clear as they could be. More generally, while Miller is a beautiful dancer having a great season, I often find her lacking in depth or interest. I hope they are suitably cautious about moving her up to principal, when there are other tall soloists who are more interesting (notably LaFreniere and Kikta). Ulbricht is a wonderful dancer, but Huxley is a hard act to follow; his brilliance and precision are hard to get out of my mind. And no complaints whatsoever about Mejia, but I really love Harrison Ball's Puck, who has a more foreign, non-human quality that is fascinating. 

Still, overall another wonderful performance. I find the moment when the rustics reunite, joyfully dancing around with their restored Bottom, to be very moving. It makes me teary!

[JuliaJ]

Overall very lovely Midsummer last night with Gerrity, Mejia (both debuts), and Schumacher, plus Fairchild and T. Angle in the Divertissement. This is the only Midsummer I've attended this season so I couldn't immediately compare to other casts. 

I wasn't so sure about Gerrity in the opening pas de deux with Chan; she seemed a bit tentative. But she really came to life in the scene when she dances with her group of tall ladies and then in the part with Bottom. Really beautiful lines, solid technique, delicate phrasing, and a lot of warmth in her characterization. The romance scene between her and Bottom is supposed to be silly and funny but I also find it very touching and moving, especially last night. I'm kind of on the fence as to whether Gerrity should be promoted, but either way she's a wonderful dancer who has had a fantastic season.

Mejia (as Oberon) is always a thrilling dancer to watch, and it was nice to see him in an acting role. He doesn't have the delicate fairy quality of, say, Huxley, but I was more than happy to watch him tackle those tricky solos with his ultra-high jump and rock-solid turns. It was a successful debut IMO.

Schumacher was fine, competent. His Puck was appropriately impish but did not have anything close to that otherworldly beauty you see with Harrison Ball's interpretation, which I was lucky to catch in 2019. He doesn't have the lines or the jump to give the character that extra wow-factor. But for someone new to this production, or someone with a less trained eye for ballet, I don't think they would have noticed anything missing. 

Isabella LaFreniere was excellent as Helena, which isn't a role that I've found particularly "moving" in the past. She made it so. And Peter Walker (as Demetrius) is a fantastic comic actor. 

Megan Fairchild and Tyler Angle made me tear up in the Divertissement. It was so nice to see her back. Ashley Hod was a very good Hippolyta but she did step out of one of the supported fouettés in the final wedding dance. It was a pretty noticeable mistake. 

Edited May 27, 2022 by JuliaJ

[BalanchineFan]

12 minutes ago, JuliaJ said:

Mejia is always a thrilling dancer to watch, and it was nice to see him in an acting role. He doesn't have the delicate fairy quality of, say, Huxley, but I was more than happy to watch him tackle those tricky solos with his ultra-high jump and rock-solid turns. It was a successful debut IMO.

Schumacher was fine, competent. His Puck was appropriately impish but did not have anything close to that otherworldly beauty you see with Harrison Ball's interpretation, which I was lucky to catch in 2019.

So, Mejia was Oberon and Schumacher was Puck?

I was just wondering, what qualities a dancer should possess to make you feel they should be promoted? Do you have a particular criteria in mind when you (each of you) start to clamor for the promotion of one or another dancer?

For me, I don't care if dancers fall. I'm interested to know what happened on a given night, but falls usually indicate energy and commitment to doing something exciting. Other times it's just a weird mishap, an unexpected bit of sweat on the stage, or the like. I want to see dancers that make me want to watch them more than other people onstage. Dancers who command with their presence and phrasing. Dancers that somehow take you on a journey throughout the ballet. Yes, they should technically fulfill the choreography (be in the right place at the right time doing the correct steps, feet pointed, etc), but I feel you have to WANT to watch someone. They have to be interesting and hold your attention. Often it's because they're dancing big, but it could be delicacy, subtlety, how they connect the steps, how they surprise you or an engine whirring away in their gut, something less tangible. 

Additionally, In boxing people refer to boxers "hitting above their weight class" and I think it applies to promotions. When I'm consistently excited to see someone dancing onstage, when they have blown me over in a wide variety of ballets over a period of time, when they are consistently excelling in the repertory and workload of a higher rank I start to think "PROMOTE." 

What makes you want to watch a dancer? What makes you think they should (or should not) be promoted.

[tutu]

58 minutes ago, BalanchineFan said:

What makes you want to watch a dancer? What makes you think they should (or should not) be promoted.

This wasn’t directed to me, but these are such fun questions so I’ll answer.

As to question 1, I wish I knew what it was!  I can identify the appeal of long lines (like Miriam Miller and LaFreniere now, Maria Kowroski then), superhuman tricks (like Tiler Peck, Ashley Bouder), go-for-broke bravura (like Sara Mearns), gorgeous upper-body movement (like Indiana Woodward), but there’s also a kind of confidence and charisma onstage that catches your eye and you have no idea why (Lydia Wellington was always this way for me, and Gerrity is now; Janie Taylor also had it, and India Bradley, who reminds me so much of Janie Taylor, does as well).  
As to question 2, I think there’s a difference between the promotion to soloist and principal.  Soloist for me makes sense when they’ve got the charisma and the technique to have handled a leading role (and I think all of the recent soloist promotions are completely appropriate).  The most satisfying principal promotions are consistent technique night after night, across a range of roles, with charisma, showing range, and showing good judgment in their other public-facing media (such as social media or promotional appearances).  
For me, Gerrity’s a no-brainer for principal for me because I trust that it will be a strong performance when I see her name on the casting sheet:  Gerrity’s proven that she’s got the technique, flexibility, charisma, and stamina to get through principal roles—often the really tricky, pure technique exposure roles—by any choreographer in the rep (Balanchine?  Check.  Robbins?  Check.  Ratmansky?  Check.  Wheeldon?  Check.  Peck?  Check.  Cunningham?  Check.), and my eye is always drawn to her when she’s onstage (wasn’t always true, but a couple years ago, something seemed to completely blossom and she just came alive). Reminds me a lot of Rebecca Krohn, who I adored and miss seeing onstage.  Now that Gerrity and Chan are beginning to establish a fruitful (and hopefully long-lasting) partnership, it just seems like the right time.  

[JuliaJ]

It's a cliché but some dancers just have that "je ne sais quoi" factor where whenever they're on stage they seem to radiate an aura even if they're not doing much. Sara Mearns, Mira Nadon, Unity Phelan, and Isabella LaFreniere have that kind of "it." Tiler Peck and Indiana Woodward are both incredibly musical and have astonishing technical abilities. Same with Sterling Hyltin but in a more subtle way. The list goes on. Some dancers simply don't have that transcendent ability and they serve the company better as soloists, and there's nothing wrong with that (not referring to anyone in particular with that statement). 

[cobweb]

1 hour ago, JuliaJ said:

It's a cliché but some dancers just have that "je ne sais quoi" factor where whenever they're on stage they seem to radiate an aura even if they're not doing much. Sara Mearns, Mira Nadon, Unity Phelan, and Isabella LaFreniere have that kind of "it."

Agree with this, and the dancers you singled out. I would add Davide Riccardo to the list of dancers who have that hard-to-define "it." 

[bellawood]

39 minutes ago, cobweb said:

Agree with this, and the dancers you singled out. I would add Davide Riccardo to the list of dancers who have that hard-to-define "it." 

Davide absolutely! There are some very compelling young male dancers in the company and it will be interesting to see how things play out, considering that there are many principal men right now; it might be a bottleneck at the top. Roman for sure, though, and probably soon. 

I remember watching Joe Gordon in the corps. Every time he was cast in a featured role I was blown away. He was someone who always stood out in a crowd and his rise to the top seemed preordained.

Peter Martins promoted many of the current principal women when they were very young. Some had to grow into the role of principal more than others. But, in the balance, if someone has principal technique, the fearless Balanchine attack, and an undeniable stage presence, why not promote them? I for one can't wait for Mira to dance all the major principal roles and why should we wait three or four years for that? I mean, let's see her in 2nd movement Symphony in C sooner rather than later! 

As for Emilie Gerrity, I agree she should be promoted to principal. But, to me, she will never be a very exciting dancer -- a beautiful, elegant one whom I happily watch -- but not someone I seek out or gets my absolute attention, the way I focus on Tiler, for instance, right before the big solo in Allegro Brillante, when you know you are watching a master. 

 

[abatt]

I think for the men, the next clear choice is Roman Mejia for promotion.  However, right now they have a lot principal men.  Roman definitely has great technique and charisma.  His partnering has improved. 

 

Edited May 27, 2022 by abatt

[canbelto]

Amar updates on his farewell:

https://www.instagram.com/p/CeFIeSesNxJ/

He is splitting the role with Andrew Veyette. Veyette I assume will do the fast allegro opener of the divertissement and Amar will do the adagio pas with Hyltin?

Seems like a good solution that gives Amar the send-off he deserves.