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American Ballet Theatre 2021-2022 season


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On 10/20/2021 at 7:38 AM, abatt said:

The talent pool  seems to be stretched very thin at ABT.  They are putting someone named Petersen from the corps into the lead role of Myrta on the Sat matinee in place of Fang (who in my opinion was never going to be suitable as Myrta).  I don't recall seeing Petersen in any lead or demi-lead role.   

I feel the need to respond to this inquiry. The phrase “putting someone named Petersen”, as if she was a stranger . Stephanie Petersen (née Williams ) was married during the pandemic and also had a baby in February. This off time during the pandemic was a horrible experience for everyone. I think it is brave of her to work hard and come back and perform after so long. It is said she did very well, even though she was probably nervous. Brava to her! 

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Arron Scott like Alexandre Hammoudi and Stella Abrera retired during COVID-19 lockdown last season.  

I notice that Roman Zhurbin is on the roster but not cast in anything - not even the mime roles of Hilarion and the Duke of Courland which he usually excels in.  Hopefully some actual dancing roles next week in the mixed programs?  Roman has movingly danced the Friend of the Family role in "Pillar of Fire" but that is Thomas Forster for all shows.

Catherine Hurlin has nothing this week and next week unless she is in the "Company" pieces like "Bernstein in a Bubble" or "La Follia Variations".  Hurlin's next listed dates are "Nutcracker" in Costa Mesa in December.  Injured?   

Joo Won Ahn also is absent from the "Giselle" run but is dancing in "Zig Zag" next week.

The ABT website shows no casting at all for Joseph Gorak.

Edited by FauxPas
facts
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15 minutes ago, FauxPas said:

Arron Scott like Alexandre Hammoudi and Stella Abrera retired during COVID-19 lockdown last season.  

I notice that Roman Zhurbin is on the roster but not cast in anything - not even the mime roles of Hilarion and the Duke of Courland which he usually excels in.  Hopefully some actual dancing roles next week in the mixed programs?  Roman has movingly danced the Friend of the Family role in "Pillar of Fire" but that is Thomas Forster for all shows.

Catherine Hurlin has nothing this week and next week unless she is in the "Company" pieces like "Bernstein in a Bubble" or "La Follia Variations".  Hurlin's next listed dates are "Nutcracker" in Costa Mesa in December.  Injured?   

Joo Won Ahn also is absent from the "Giselle" run but is dancing in "Zig Zag" next week.

The ABT website shows no casting at all for Joseph Gorak.

Hurlin was originally cast as Myrta but is not any longer.

It certainly isn't due to an inability to do the role (she was cast and excelled in it during the run in DC immediately before the pandemic) so I'd assume it was due to injury, but I've seen no information regarding her absence.

 

Similarly Zhurbin was originally cast as the Friend of the Family in Pillar of Fire during this run.

Edited by aurora
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21 minutes ago, MoMo said:

I feel the need to respond to this inquiry. The phrase “putting someone named Petersen”, as if she was a stranger . Stephanie Petersen (née Williams ) was married during the pandemic and also had a baby in February. This off time during the pandemic was a horrible experience for everyone. I think it is brave of her to work hard and come back and perform after so long. It is said she did very well, even though she was probably nervous. Brava to her! 

I had no idea that Stephanie Petersen was actually Stephanie Williams with a new last name until someone on this board pointed it out. 

Actually, my point was more about the fact that McKenzie now has only  a few soloists, many of whom are not suitable to do a lead role when needed.  It's nice that he decided to promote Fang and Paris up to soloist at the very late stage of their careers, but the result is that when McKenzie finds himself in need of a capable soloist  for a secondary lead role, they cannot step in to fill the gap. 

Edited by abatt
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1 hour ago, abatt said:

I had no idea that Stephanie Petersen was actually Stephanie Williams with a new last name until someone on this board pointed it out. 

Actually, my point was more about the fact that McKenzie now has only  a few soloists, many of whom are not suitable to do a lead role when needed.  It's nice that he decided to promote Fang and Paris up to soloist at the very late stage of their careers, but the result is that when McKenzie finds himself in need of a capable soloist  for a secondary lead role, they cannot step in to fill the gap. 

I have to agree with you in this. The soloist rank is sparse, both on male and female side. So they have to fill in with senior Corps members. It’s good for the Corps, but not good planning. 

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I took a look at the film Dancers (1987) today to see what the sets and costumes looked like there, as those are the ones being used by ABT this week. Several things of note:

  • They filmed in a small Italian opera house with a stage that seemed no bigger than the Koch.
  • Both acts started with a scrim showing the set design in black and white. It lifts to reveal the same thing in color. Much earlier in this thread, somebody mentioned that the original production in Paris wanted to give the sense of being lifted off the page. They are very effective and I wonder why they weren't used. (cost, most likely)
  • Baryshnikov managed six brises on one pass and five on the other, even on the small stage. But he starts way back in the corner almost out of sight, and the final one is compressed as he seems about to run into Myrtha.
  • Giselle has a very elaborate grave with her name on a large cross. It's a platform that turns around to reveal her and later to take her away. But I imagine that would be expensive so we saw the substitute wooden cross brought by Hilarion from earlier ABT productions.
  • They used some silly gimmicks with Giselle appearing on tree branches that lower and return. I don't mind that ABT left those out.
  • Giselle's first act costume has a deep blue top. It's possible it's faded after 34 years or perhaps it was remade in that light color.
  • Albrecht's first act costume is a white loose blouson top with those silly little pantaloon shorts the men in the corps wear. Very glad they changed that.
  • The Willis corps numbered only 18, as at ABT, perhaps to accommodate the small stage.
  • I had forgotten how cloying the plot is with Julie Kent, but I am grateful that we have a recording of this final performance by Baryshnikov of Giselle. He was 39 when that was filmed and it's amazing how extraordinary he still was.
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20 minutes ago, Becki Lee said:

Does anyone with a program know who will be dancing the Peasant Pas at the Saturday matinee performance? My curiosity would greatly appreciate the info!! ☺️☺️

Katherine Williams and Blaine Hoven are scheduled for the Saturday Peasant PdD

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No time for a full report, alas, because Cassandra Trenary's and Calvin Royal's debuts this afternoon as Giselle and Albrecht certainly deserve one. Trenary especially took full possession of the role: had I not known it was her debut, I never would have guessed that it was. She's clearly put a lot of thought into her mad scene, but it looked unmannered and natural: theater without theatrics. She's also put her imagination to work on differentiating her act 1 village Giselle from her act 2 spectral—and I'd be hard pressed to say which one I like more. 

One more thing to note: Trenary is the kind of stage animal ABT hasn't really seen since Marcelo Gomes. Brava!

 

Edited by Kathleen O'Connell
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Sorry to say that I felt both Trenary and, to a lesser extent, Royal were disappointing in their debuts.

Cassandra Trenary didn't have full technical command of the role of Giselle - her technique either let her down or didn't rise above utilitarian most of Act I.  Act II was somewhat better but still nothing to write home about.  Overall she lacked fragility and a sense of impending tragedy.  Cassie's Giselle in Act I could have been a country heroine in a comic ballet like "Fille Mal Gardée".

Trenary plays a "happy peasant girl" Giselle in Act I - normal, well-adjusted and wholesome.  She is coy and flirtatious with Albrecht and all her little hesitations and flights from his advances are coquetry.  Her heart episode in Act I was fleeting and seemed like a mild fainting spell - Trenary otherwise seemed robust and healthy.  The mad scene was surprisingly angry and dark and didn't match up with the selfless forgiving spirit in Act II.  She is a good actress and has a warm engaging stage presence - the audience was very much on her side. 

I didn't see much elevation in her jumps, her extensions are not that high but her turns were adequate.  Things fell apart in the Act I "Spessivtseva solo" where Trenary came off pointe not once but twice during the hops on one foot.  She did try to make that up with a whiplash series of tours piques but the damage was done.

Act II she just seemed rather earthbound.  When Giselle is summoned by Myrtha from her grave, her body should be stiff and lifeless like a soulless automaton - Trenary had loose limbs and relaxed torso and seemed alive before Myrtha's wand spun her to life.  There were no glaring technical fails in Act II's choreography, but Trenary's upper body wasn't hitting the right poses.  No Romantic style.  All sorts of details were missing.  Trenary just ran offstage after the coda of the grand pas de deux in Act II while Calvin Royal III did a jeté.

Royal did well enough without showing any great affinity for the role or the style.  His Albrecht started off as a carefree smiling playboy - a player who gets caught off guard in his own game.  The dancing was good but without much finish.  His landings were kind of loose.  In Act II solo, Royal performed brisé volées but again the upper body wasn't in the right position and he slipped on Giselle's lilies when landing at Myrtha's feet - both times.  He was not bad but he wasn't great.

Act II seemed lit too darkly and it was hard to see faces at times - in other productions when the Wilis and Giselle come on a "ghostly light" fills the forest and makes everything kind of luminescent.  Not here - murky.

It's a shame neither will get a second crack at their roles.  Stephanie Peterson as Myrtha had greater ease and authority in her second attempt replacing the schedule Zhong-Jing Fang.  The opening balances in arabesque were smoother, her arms were lovely and she projected much more malice against Albrecht and Hilarion.  Rachel Richardson and Isabella Loyola were Moyna and Zulma - both fine.  The Peasant Pas de Deux was danced by Katherine Williams and Blaine Hoven - she was a treat and he looked good until he tried to land from jumps where it got a little messy.  Many of the ABT men now have trouble landing cleanly in fifth after the long layoff - they need to work on it in class.  Patrick Frenette was a slighter and more boyish Hilarion than is customary - his gamekeeper seemed a troubled sullen misfit who has taken too much rejection in life and is getting his own back.  Susan Jones was Berthe and Courtney Lavine a very soigné Bathilde with superior attitude but also her own hurt feelings.

The production is looking tighter and better overall with repetition but the leads here didn't rise above adequate.  No poetry and nothing otherworldly. 

Edited by FauxPas
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I wouldn't say Shevchenko is as much of a "natural" Giselle as Brandt, but her debut was overall beautiful last night. She has the lines and extensions and is a strong turner. Her Act I was giddy and very smiley (maybe too much for me). No issues with the hops on pointe. Her mad scene was gut-wrenching; I loved how she switched emotions between angry and heartbroken and even a little bit of delirious laughter.

I thought she nailed the romantic "ethereal" quality in Act II; she has such lovely port de bras and épaulement. Some of the adagio balances were a little unexpectedly shaky, but no bobbles (well, maybe one tiny one). Her entrechats were perfectly buoyant. She didn't achieve as much elevation in the many jetés, but she can definitely fill space. Teuscher was a phenomenal Myrta.

Aran Bell - WOW. He almost stole the show. Is there anything he can't do at this point? HIGH jumps, perfectly controlled turns, and squeaky clean 5th landings. He did the entrechats six and they seemed to go on forever. His acting has gotten a lot better, and while he's not a first-rate partner yet, he's getting closer. And, if I may add, he's grown into such a handsome man. No more awkward teen-boy looks. 

Betsy McBride danced the peasant pas again. She was more secure and relaxed than on Thursday. Her partner was Carlos Gonzalez, who I officially love now. Give this guy more featured roles! Like Bell, he's a high jumper with long lines and clean 5th position landings. I think he knew he nailed the solos -- he looked so happy during his bows. 

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43 minutes ago, JuliaJ said:

Aran Bell - WOW. He almost stole the show. Is there anything he can't do at this point? HIGH jumps, perfectly controlled turns, and squeaky clean 5th landings. He did the entrechats six and they seemed to go on forever. His acting has gotten a lot better, and while he's not a first-rate partner yet, he's getting closer. And, if I may add, he's grown into such a handsome man. No more awkward teen-boy looks. 

So sorry I missed this one. Bell is one of my new favorites and I can't wait to see him at the Met next spring. He regularly joins Brandt's coaching sessions, for Black Swan and Manon, on her Instagram stories. ABT Instagram shows him working on the entrechats. 

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Bell did 32 entrechats.  They were beautiful and high.  (Tom Forster did 21 on Friday.)  And all of Bell's landings in Act II were in perfect 5th position.  As noted above, this is becoming a rarity at ABT.  Bell and Shevshenko were very, very impressive in both the characterization and the dancing.  

 

Remember the old days when Cornejo and DeLuz were knocking our socks off in their brilliance is small roles like a peasant pas?  You just knew that they were destined for big things because their technique was so pristine. Sadly, I saw every cast of the peasant pas but  I didn't see one man from the corps or the soloist level who had such brilliance or talent. 

 

added:  While I'm very pleased by the debuts of Brandt and Shevshenko in Giselle, I so miss Sarah Lane's soulful interpretation of this role.  We only got to see it twice, but it lives on in my memory.

Edited by abatt
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11 hours ago, FauxPas said:

Sorry to say that I felt both Trenary and, to a lesser extent, Royal were disappointing in their debuts.

Cassandra Trenary didn't have full technical command of the role of Giselle - her technique either let her down or didn't rise above utilitarian most of Act I.  Act II was somewhat better but still nothing to write home about.  Overall she lacked fragility and a sense of impending tragedy.  Cassie's Giselle in Act I could have been a country heroine in a comic ballet like "Fille Mal Gardée".

Trenary plays a "happy peasant girl" Giselle in Act I - normal, well-adjusted and wholesome.  She is coy and flirtatious with Albrecht and all her little hesitations and flights from his advances are coquetry.  Her heart episode in Act I was fleeting and seemed like a mild fainting spell - Trenary otherwise seemed robust and healthy.  The mad scene was surprisingly angry and dark and didn't match up with the selfless forgiving spirit in Act II.  She is a good actress and has a warm engaging stage presence - the audience was very much on her side. 

I didn't see much elevation in her jumps, her extensions are not that high but her turns were adequate.  Things fell apart in the Act I "Spessivtseva solo" where Trenary came off pointe not once but twice during the hops on one foot.  She did try to make that up with a whiplash series of tours piques but the damage was done.

Act II she just seemed rather earthbound.  When Giselle is summoned by Myrtha from her grave, her body should be stiff and lifeless like a soulless automaton - Trenary had loose limbs and relaxed torso and seemed alive before Myrtha's wand spun her to life.  There were no glaring technical fails in Act II's choreography, but Trenary's upper body wasn't hitting the right poses.  No Romantic style.  All sorts of details were missing.  Trenary just ran offstage after the coda of the grand pas de deux in Act II while Calvin Royal III did a jeté.

Royal did well enough without showing any great affinity for the role or the style.  His Albrecht started off as a carefree smiling playboy - a player who gets caught off guard in his own game.  The dancing was good but without much finish.  His landings were kind of loose.  In Act II solo, Royal performed brisé volées but again the upper body wasn't in the right position and he slipped on Giselle's lilies when landing at Myrtha's feet - both times.  He was not bad but he wasn't great.

Act II seemed lit too darkly and it was hard to see faces at times - in other productions when the Wilis and Giselle come on a "ghostly light" fills the forest and makes everything kind of luminescent.  Not here - murky.

It's a shame neither will get a second crack at their roles.  Stephanie Peterson as Myrtha had greater ease and authority in her second attempt replacing the schedule Zhong-Jing Fang.  The opening balances in arabesque were smoother, her arms were lovely and she projected much more malice against Albrecht and Hilarion.  Rachel Richardson and Isabella Loyola were Moyna and Zulma - both fine.  The Peasant Pas de Deux was danced by Katherine Williams and Blaine Hoven - she was a treat and he looked good until he tried to land from jumps where it got a little messy.  Many of the ABT men now have trouble landing cleanly in fifth after the long layoff - they need to work on it in class.  Patrick Frenette was a slighter and more boyish Hilarion than is customary - his gamekeeper seemed a troubled sullen misfit who has taken too much rejection in life and is getting his own back.  Susan Jones was Berthe and Courtney Lavine a very soigné Bathilde with superior attitude but also her own hurt feelings.

The production is looking tighter and better overall with repetition but the leads here didn't rise above adequate.  No poetry and nothing otherworldly. 

This article in Pointe Magazine reveals Trenary’s creative process in creating her version of Giselle, which is intentionally different than the frail/weaker version you may be accustomed to. Her interpretation was fresh, unique, and an expression of her artistry and dramatic quality 

Pointe Magazine on Cassandra Trenary’s Giselle

 

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5 minutes ago, onxmyxtoes said:

This article in Pointe Magazine reveals Trenary’s creative process in creating her version of Giselle, which is intentionally different than the frail/weaker version you may be accustomed to. Her interpretation was fresh, unique, and an expression of her artistry and dramatic quality 

Pointe Magazine on Cassandra Trenary’s Giselle

 

Yes! And I personally found it an incredibly moving and strong depiction--as did Kathleen above. Of the three casts I saw (Brandt, Trenary and Shevchenko) the rapport between the leads was the strongest here. I also had no idea that Royal was such a wonderful actor (I'd seen him in very few things that demanded it).

Did Trenary have problems with the hops? Yes. So no, it wasn't a perfect debut.
But the recovery on the turns was impressive and admirable and she didn't let the error shake her or disrupt the rest of her performance, which says a lot for her as a performer.

 

Having seen her deliver technically (and dramatically) wonderful Auroras on several occasions, I know she has the technique for this, and I very much look forward to seeing her next performance of the role.

 

 

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I had really been looking forward to Trenary's debut but I'm afraid I have to agree with Faux Pas. Trenary lost me in the 1st act long before the mishap with the hops - I didn't like her dancing or her characterization. Her ballonnes didnt have much buoyancy (in fact none of her dancing had much buoyancy) and she didn't stretch her positions, or make any of her poses linger. And I'm all for new approaches to the role - Osipova's was not a standard Giselle it was very bold but still successful. Trenary's characterization just made no sense. A Giselle who is coy & flirtatious and prone to anger and violence? There was one brief moment where it looked like she was trying to be seductive and another with the daisy where I could swear that she stomped her feet and glared at Albrecht. This Giselle was anything but innocent. Her second act was much better but still, there wasn't enough romantic epaulment for me, especially in the arms.
 
Royal was fine but not great and as others have mentioned I didn't see one man land in a clean fifth until Bell on Saturday night, and he was fabulous. Shevchenko was also lovely taking a very traditional approach, dancing beautifully and acting the part well.
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I also saw three casts: Skylar Brandt,  Cassandra Trenary and Christine Shevchenko. While all three were fabulous in their own way, in my opinion, Cassandra was the most natural Giselle. Christine is one of my favorite dancers, but I can't say that Giselle is her most natural role. I agree with everyone that Skylar was magical. However--and I almost hate to say this--she was perhaps a little overly dramatic. I'm not really qualified to talk about technique, but as Kathleen said above, Cassandra's interpretation of the role was "theater without theatrics." I, too, found it very moving. Actually, all three interpretations were outstanding. I enjoyed Giselle so much that I wish I could have seen all six casts. 

And I agree with Julia that Aran Bell has become quite a handsome young man. Yes, he did indeed almost steal the show!

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