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New York City Ballet 2021 Season

Buddy

By Buddy
in New York City Ballet

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BalanchineFan

BalanchineFan

Posted
Posted (edited)

There was a post on Unity Phelan's IG stories, it's just disappeared, that said the dancers who were promoted would all be performing "tonight" in Western Symphony. I wish I had taken a screen shot picture. the thing that confused me was that it also seemed to say something about Joseph Gordon being promoted, which happened ages ago. But I think it mentioned him because he had a debut in Western Symphony Wed night.

Both Phelan and Mejia are so, so deserving of their promotions. Beautiful dancers, great positive attitudes. I thought she spoke very well when interviewed about the Andrea Miller piece in the fountain last fall. They seem to be on an upward trajectory. I look forward to seeing them both develop as artists. I bet they were a fantastic couple at the end of Western Symphony. Did anyone see it?

Edited by BalanchineFan
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meunier fan

meunier fan

Posted
Posted (edited)

Thanks so for your reports.  They mean much.  SO excited by these well deserved promotions.  I can't wait to get back for yet another beloved NYCB Balanchine fix.  It is - for me - the prime reason to LOVE NYC.  

In the meantime I did yet another Zoom session with the British lads inside, (my 146th since May of this year), and used W B Yeats' incendiary sonnet, Leida and the Swan, as a lift off point to inspire their imaginations.  In the recording I made for this purpose I used the opening of the primary Agon PDD to feed;  being  rich - as it so clearly is - with Balanchine's magnificently poetic fire.  The original cast of Diana Adams and Arthur Mitchell were just SO engrossing.  The lads asked to see this little film three different times which really touched me.  One of the chaps said it was 'the most beautiful thing I've ever seen'.  They wanted to know where they could see it live.  I do so hope the Royal does Agon again soon.  If these guys are anything to go by, they could have a whole new audience.  

(A word of warning - if you are listening to/watching this on a mobile/cell phone or tablet - you will need to reduce the volume by at least a third.  If you are on an old PC - as in the prison system - you can leave it as is.  Technology has yet to achieve maximum equalisation in all quarters.  It promises to get there soon, I'm sure.)  

 

 

Edited by meunier fan
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abatt

abatt

Posted
Posted
31 minutes ago, BalanchineFan said:

There was a post on Unity Phelan's IG stories, it's just disappeared, that said the dancers who were promoted would all be performing "tonight" in Western Symphony.

There were a lot of debuts in Western last night - Sanz, Laracey.  I'm not sure what the above post means in relation to those dancers.

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sohalia

sohalia

Posted
Posted (edited)

I am so happy to read that Mejia was also promoted! Well deserved, and he's such a joy to watch inn Western Symphony.

What fantastic news. 

Phelan is the first female promotion to principal since Lovette, right? June 2015...

Edited by sohalia
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abatt

abatt

Posted
Posted

Phelan and Mejia are definitely deserving of promotion. However, there are many people in the corps who deserve a promotion to soloist.  There are also some soloists who should retire. 

Only 2 promotions in total is extremely disappointing. 

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cobweb

cobweb

Posted
Posted
5 minutes ago, abatt said:

Only 2 promotions in total is extremely disappointing. 

Agree with this. I was expecting more. What about Harrison Ball to principal? I only saw Chun Wai Chan in Pulcinella Variations, but based on what I saw he was an outstanding presence and definitely principal quality. I haven't seen much of Jovani Furlan this season, but based on seeing him in Fall 2019 and Winter 2020, he too seemed ready for principal. They might want to give Furlan and Chan a little more time in the company (I guess?) before promoting them, but why hold Ball back?

 

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sohalia

sohalia

Posted
Posted (edited)

Hopefully with all the upcoming retirements, we will see more promotions in the next few weeks or months. I agree that only two was disappointing, but I want to be hopeful. 

For me, the next big promotions up to principal should be Woodward and Furlan. Ball should be on that list... But maybe they will want a tall man like Walker after the departure of La Cour.

Edited by sohalia
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Kathleen O'Connell

Kathleen O'Connell

Posted
Posted (edited)
51 minutes ago, sohalia said:

Hopefully with all the upcoming retirements, we will see more promotions in the next few weeks or months. I agree that only two was disappointing, but I want to be hopeful. 

 

So far only Abi Stafford has actually retired. Lauren Lovette and Ask LaCour retire on Saturday (10/9/21). Maria Kowroski retires on 10/17/21. Gonzalo Garcia doesn't retire until February 27, 2022. Amar Ramasar doesn't retire until May 29, 2022. (Per Faye Arthurs' recent review of NYCB's Fall Season opening night, soloist Lauren King will also retire shortly. Perhaps other soloists are retiring as well, but I don't think anything has been announced.) 

It could be that the company has chosen to time the promotions to correspond with the retirements, either because it wants to or because it needs to.

Edited by Kathleen O'Connell
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miliosr

miliosr

Posted
Posted
26 minutes ago, Kathleen O'Connell said:

It could be that the company has chosen to time the promotions to correspond with the retirements, either because it wants to or because it needs to.

Given the very contentious year the company has had with the orchestra regarding financial matters, the management may very well be staggering promotions so that there's a direct 1:1 link between retirements and promotions.

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JuliaJ

JuliaJ

Posted
Posted

Casting this season seemed to favor Phelan for a promotion all along; also Mejia but to a lesser extent. I assumed it would happen for him when he was cast in Other Dances.

I hope we see promotion hopefuls like Woodward and Ball get more big roles in winter -- I think the only major parts they danced this fall have been opening night Symphony in C? I thought Woodward would be an obvious choice for a debut as Russian Girl in Serenade but that only went to veteran principals this time around. She seemed to be on the principal fast track a few years ago when she danced Juliet and Aurora, but we haven't seen a whole lot of her since then. 

Furlan mentions being disappointed with his fall season casting in this New York Times article. Understandable. Apparently he was originally just cast as an understudy in Russian Seasons but got to fill in, and Ratmansky was really impressed with him. I hope we see more of him, Ball, and Chan (and less of at least one veteran principal man) cast in the classical virtuoso rep. If Chan is tall enough to partner Miriam Miller in Pulcinella Variations, I assume he could be a match for Mearns or Reichlen. And with Garcia retiring, that's an opening for a shorter man like Ball. 

Fingers crossed for more announcements in the coming weeks or months!

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vipa

vipa

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, canbelto said:

Here's the official news release:

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/07/arts/dance/new-york-city-ballet-promotions.html

Thanks Canbelto, I hadn't seen the official word. Does this mean promotions are done? I thought there would be more. IMO the principal rank on the male side is growing a bit thin with 3 retirees and the limited rep of some of the men. The women's soloist rank is a bit thin too, with King retiring, Phelan and Woodward promoted to principal, and (I believe) Pollack & Pereira on maternity.

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BalanchineFan

BalanchineFan

Posted
Posted
14 hours ago, canbelto said:

Here's the official news release:

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/07/arts/dance/new-york-city-ballet-promotions.html

THANK YOU! I love this. I know a few people are disappointed there weren't more promotions, but the news AS IT IS, brings tears of joy to my eyes, even days after the events. There is something about promoting dancers in small groups, particularly to principal, that allows each of them to shine and have their moment of ascendancy. Unity Phelan and Indiana Woodward are really coming into their own, developing their artistry and becoming ballerinas with an indelible, individual mark on the art form, an individual point of view and approach to the repertory. My opinion is that the recognition would be reduced if they were promoted in a group of 15 or even six. It would seem less like a crowning moment. All three dancers have made a mark on the NYCB repertory and have been cast up above their pay grade consistently since well before the pandemic. 

Seriously, I've got tears of joy for all involved! Those are few and far between in these days.

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fondoffouettes

fondoffouettes

Posted
Posted (edited)
On 10/6/2021 at 6:39 PM, canbelto said:

I was somewhat disappointed with Tyler Angle's performance last night. He never was the best virtuoso, but now he appears to be marking some of his dancing. I also noticed that he lands very gingerly from jumps, so maybe he's fighting an injury. But whatever the case is, a lot of his dancing lacks vigor and energy. 

Adrian Danchig-Waring's Insta Stories indicate that he subbed last-minute for Angle in Chaconne last night. He refers to it as a "throw-on" performance. So maybe Angle is indeed dealing with some sort of injury.

Edited by fondoffouettes
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Helene

Helene

Posted
Posted

:flowers: :flowers: :flowers: to all the promoted dancers!  And may there be more to come soon!

I got a glimpse of some of them six or seven years ago at the Opening Night fashionista gala in not the greatest showcase of choreography, but I've been following your reviews and descriptions since then and via video, sometimes in very short clips and some from the video programs NYCB put online during the pandemic.  So it's great to see they're getting recognized, however slowly it seems.  

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