New York City Ballet 2022-2023 season

[abatt]

I see that Alexa Maxwell is doing the role created on Mearns in the Wheeldon ballet next week for one show.  Nothing against Maxwell, but Mearns is the entire reason to see this ballet.  She is clearly the center of its most compelling moments. 

Funny, I had the opposite reaction of Faux Pas.  I felt the Wheeldon work was a much better crafted work than the Pires work.  To each his own.

[FauxPas]

8 minutes ago, abatt said:

I see that Alexa Maxwell is doing the role created on Mearns in the Wheeldon ballet next week for one show.  Nothing against Maxwell, but Mearns is the entire reason to see this ballet.  She is clearly the center of its most compelling moments. 

Funny, I had the opposite reaction of Faux Pas.  I felt the Wheeldon work was a much better crafted work than the Pires work.  To each his own.

I find with abstract plotless ballets the critical reaction is similar to criticizing abstract paintings.  Do the colors appeal to you?  Is there structure and design that catches your eye?  How does it make you feel?  It's very subjective.

Music also has a big part in it.  I actually like the Schoenberg score which is early and tonal and post-Romantic.  But I liked the jazz score by Frerer which was very danceable.

But I won't say which of us is "right" or "wrong" since it is very subjective.

I think the Wheeldon does need strong personalities onstage so Mearns does the major share of carrying the work though her role is fragmented.

BTW: the rest of the cast are pretty much ensemble, so Clark for Kikta or Zuniga for Grant made little difference.  They didn't register outside of the group.

Glad to see Maxwell getting lead roles in new works by major choreographers.  Her time has finally come.

Edited May 5, 2023 by FauxPas

[bellawood]

17 hours ago, cobweb said:

Wow, hope Kikta, Chan, and Grant all return asap. All very valued! Also I notice on the casting sheet that Pollack replaces Coll in The Times are Racing. It has to be quite, quite awhile since Brittany Pollack appeared on the stage. Has she performed post-pandemic?

Chan (on insta stories) says he has COVID, so here's hoping that dancers out are not hurt but just under the weather. 

Edited May 5, 2023 by bellawood

[Royal Blue]

One hundred years ago, of course, Concerto Barocco did not even exist. Nevertheless, while admiring the beauty of every minute of this work from a premium seat in the orchestra a few years ago, I startlingly felt a tinge of sadness at the thought of a prospective time in the future when this ballet will no longer be performed anywhere in the world. Not long afterward, the arrival of a pandemic caused the suspension of live art performances and even the disruption of regular activities worldwide, offering an unsettling preview of just such a time. A tiny, tiny virus that no one can see suddenly appears and causes havoc, reminding us all of our perpetual vulnerability —both as individuals and as a species— in this strange and dangerous world. This thought process merely enhanced my appreciation for the revival of Concerto Barocco this season. My bias in favor of this ballet is staunch to the point where —barring questionable casting— I am unable to perceive (or be distracted by) any flaws in specific performances of it. All three principal casts this season —Unity Phelan, Ashley Laracey, Tyler Angle; Sara Mearns, Isabella LaFreniere, Russell Janzen; Ashley Laracey, Emilie Gerrity, Andrew Veyette— looked splendid in my eyes. (So did the eight women in the corps.) Phelan, Mearns and Laracey were spectacular in their respective renditions of the divine middle segment of the ballet. All five women assigned the main roles, in fact, evinced a transparent, apt sense of joy at performing this magnificent work on stage this spring.

Balanchine's choreography in Kammermusik No. 2, the next ballet in this program, has proven exceptionally intriguing to me over time due to its striking eccentricity, wildness, and distinctive abandon. Even a slightly lackadaisical performance of this peculiar work by the two women in the cast undermines it. Happily, this season's second cast of Miriam Miller and Emily Kikta dazzlingly matched the thrills and excellence in this ballet provided by Emilie Gerrity and Mira Nadon earlier in the run.

Originally, Jerome Robbins' Brandenburg was scheduled to be performed in this program. Set to selections from one of Johann Sebastian Bach's most popular compositions, it was the renowned choreographer's final ballet, and premiered on January 22, 1997 —relatively recently, depending on one's perception of time. Apparently, NYCB last presented it fifteen years ago. Considering that there seemed no intention of performing it again during the upcoming season, replacing it in the program was unfortunate.

Notwithstanding this, the program change offered the opportunity to further familiarize oneself with the enchanting Raymonda Variations. Isabella LaFreniere, in her second performance of the work this season, showed how effective and captivating she can be in the leading female role. Tiler Peck's masterly debut in the same role rekindled my curiosity as to why she has yet to perform the lead in Square Dance.

[nanushka]

Brandenburg was swapped onto another program this spring. It’s being done with Agon and Fancy Free.

There's an article in the Times about the revival.

Edited May 6, 2023 by nanushka

[Royal Blue]

Thank you for pointing that out, nanushka. My clumsy wording may have given the impression to someone reading what I posted that Brandenburg would not be performed at all this season, which is obviously not true.

And thanks for the link to the article.

[nysusan]

The lobby casting sheet indicated that Huxley will replace Chan for the last 2 performances of La Source.

[bellawood]

1 hour ago, nysusan said:

The lobby casting sheet indicated that Huxley will replace Chan for the last 2 performances of La Source.

Thanks, going tonight. Was wondering if Joe Gordon would dance.

[MarzipanShepherdess]

Saw the Friday 5/5 All Balanchine program.

As with the first time I saw this program this season, Ashley Laracey was the highlight of Concerto Barocco for me. She is absolutely dancing at a principal level, which this ballet and its recent casting makes so clear.

Kammermusik: I found myself missing the attack and sharpness Mira brought to this earlier this season, where she made every movement so emphatic. Miriam Miller and Emily Kikta gave solid performances in this tricky ballet, but I wanted more of that attack. Miriam was more effective for me at the end of the ballet than the beginning, when the movements get looser and more expansive and she brought a kind of jazzy sensuality to it that was compelling.

Raymonda Variations: obviously this is the kind of role that both Tiler and Joseph Gordon just eat up, and they were both excellent. The final fish dive was particularly bold, it really looked like Tiler was going to fly right into the orchestra pit! I know there's been some discussion of the first "hops on pointe" solo last night and how it's evolved over the years. Last night Olivia Mackinnon did travel while doing her hops--not all the way across the stage, but definitely traveling along. When I saw Claire von Enck do the solo earlier in the season she did the hops in place. 

 

[nanushka]

2 hours ago, MarzipanShepherdess said:

Raymonda Variations: obviously this is the kind of role that both Tiler and Joseph Gordon just eat up, and they were both excellent. The final fish dive was particularly bold, it really looked like Tiler was going to fly right into the orchestra pit! I know there's been some discussion of the first "hops on pointe" solo last night and how it's evolved over the years. Last night Olivia Mackinnon did travel while doing her hops--not all the way across the stage, but definitely traveling along. When I saw Claire von Enck do the solo earlier in the season she did the hops in place. 

I completely agree about the excellence of Peck's and Gordon's (and Laracey's) performances! I came back to see this program again specifically for them, and they did not disappoint.

I also had the same thought about the final fish dive — so exciting!

I have to disagree about the traveling hops. The early (much shorter) sets did travel, as with Claire von Enck's in the other cast I saw. But the main longer set toward the end of the variation was done pretty much in place, I thought.

The latter were done facing stage right, and I recently noticed in the old 1965 video of Marnee Morris doing that variation (available at times on YouTube), she was facing stage left [sorry, I typed that wrong at first!], and the hops traveled quite a bit.

Edited May 7, 2023 by nanushka

[abatt]

Peck & Gordon were exquisite on Friday night in Raymonda.  Perfection.

 

How was Emma V. E. in La Source tonight?

[bellawood]

7 hours ago, abatt said:

Peck & Gordon were exquisite on Friday night in Raymonda.  Perfection.

 

How was Emma V. E. in La Source tonight?

I saw last night’s performance. Emma VE was incredibly charming and musical in this role. Physically, she’s quite slight with long legs, more like a taller M Fairchild than an Ashley Bouder or Tiler Peck. She has a beautiful port de bras which she used to great effect in La Source last night. Technically she seemed quite secure except for a near disaster literally three seconds before the end of the ballet — a supported pirouette before the final shoulder lift was 45 degrees off perpendicular but Anthony Huxley muscled her upright and got her on his shoulder as the curtain came down (he was excellent, too). 
 

Baily Jones did double duty in La Source/Namouna last night and I preferred her to Olivia MacKinnon as the La Source soloist. The corps was much sharper this time around. 
 

Namouna was delightful and I particularly enjoyed Unity. I saw the other principals last week and I preferred Roman’s boyishness and huge jump to Taylor’s performance — I always find Taylor’s dancing interesting but this role (for Robert Fairchild originally I think) felt like an odd fit. 

[fondoffouettes]

I agree with all the praise for Peck and Gordon in Raymonda Variations on Friday evening. They were sensational. Peck looked like she was breathing the music. And yes, it really looked like she was going to launch herself into the orchestra pit at the end.

Laracey was beautiful in Concerto Barocco, and I completely agree with @MarzipanShepherdess that she's dancing at a principal level. I felt Gerrity under-accented some of the choreography. 

[pirouette]

At the matinee right now. They announced over speaker that Emilie Gerrity is dancing in place of Sara Mearns in Namouna. Bummed because I came specifically to see her but hope she is ok. 

[Fernie M]

1 minute ago, pirouette said:

At the matinee right now. They announced over speaker that Emilie Gerrity is dancing in place of Sara Mearns in Namouna. Bummed because I came specifically to see her but hope she is ok. 

She posted on her IG stories this morning that her calf is acting up. It doesn’t sound like anything major. Enjoy the show!

https://www.instagram.com/stories/saramearns/3097550557292357764/?hl=en

[fondoffouettes]

Emma V. E. and Huxley were superb in La Source this afternoon. This was my first time getting to see much of Emma, and I love her dancing. She’s small but dances BIG! Very musical and buoyant, with beautiful ports de bras. The final lift was flawless. Huxley was his wonderful self; always a total joy to watch. I think they make a great pairing and I’d love to see more of them together. They’ve sustained the high I was on after Peck/Gordon on Friday night, even in this lesser but still enjoyable ballet.

Unfortunately, it was announced Mearns is out for Namouna — replaced by Gerrity. 

[vipa]

4 hours ago, fondoffouettes said:

Emma V. E. and Huxley were superb in La Source this afternoon. This was my first time getting to see much of Emma, and I love her dancing. She’s small but dances BIG! Very musical and buoyant, with beautiful ports de bras.

Totally agree about Emma VE and Huxley. I enjoyed La Source very much. It's one of the few Balanchine ballets that I wasn't familiar with. It's interesting in that the music is very light, and the ballet has a light feel also, but the choreography is tricky, difficult and takes a lot of stamina. I think it's deceptive in that way. I love the way the ballet starts and ends with just the main couple. Emma VE is very impressive, I hope they cast her more, I can see her growing into the Fairchild rep. Olivia McKinnon in the soloist role looked more secure and joyful than I've ever seen her.

When I walked into the theater lobby today, Mira Nadon was there. Up on the first ring, I saw Teresa Reichlin and Jared Angle. That's when I remember it was Gina Pazcoguin's last performance. At the end of Namouna she was given a front of curtain solo bow. I thought it quite fitting.

Namouna is fun, and was well danced. Ashley Laracey was the highlight for me. Every time I see her on stage, she's dancing like a principal. According to her IG, she just turned 40, but I still think management should have given her principal rank and given Gerrity another couple of years to mature to the point of delivering more consistently.

I had a delightful afternoon at the ballet. What could be better?

 

[Paisley]

I saw today’s performance and was blown away by Namouna. Ashley Laracey was my highlight as well @vipa.  She should have been promoted long ago. Seeing her dance side by side Gerrity on Friday in Barocco she had a much stronger performance. 

[griffie]

Chiming in to say that I also was at Friday's Concerto Barocco/ Kammermusik/ Raymonda Variations and I fully agree with the commenters above - Laracey was just outstanding in Concerto Barocco, not that Gerrity wasn't fine (she was great) but my eye went to Laracey. They both had clean and fleet footwork, but there's something about Laracey's carriage and expressiveness that just makes her the more watchable. She's developed from being someone I looked forward to in more lyrical roles to being someone I look forward to in everything.

I had that same "WHY isn't she principal yet?" reaction to Kikta in Kammermusik. Such energy and precision! She dances big. I love it when a dancer seems to be thrilled to be onstage dancing for us. Though nearly everyone onstage dancing Kammermusik  seemed to be having a grand time! It must be great fun to dance that one.

And of course Tiler Peck and Joe Gordon. Everyone's said it all already... I'll just add that in his cabrioles, Joe had that smoothness to direction changes that make it all look so easy. There's never any abruptness to his transition to the other side, just flow. Tiler is the queen for this quality for ballerinas. The two of them together are just sublime - they can go so very, very fast and you don't see the effort.  I'm sure you need to develop it into full glory but my theory is that some are just born with truly special fast-twitch muscle capability. 

It was a fantastic evening at the ballet and again I was struck by the extraordinary level of execution at City Ballet . The dedication to timing and precision pays off. At one point Peter Walker and Aaron Sanz, who are dark-haired and similar in height and build, were dancing in symmetry and their timing was so synchronized it looked like I was seeing double. Not a fraction of a second's difference in timing, not a moment where their limbs and angles weren't identically placed.  I do dearly love my story ballets but for me nothing across the plaza even comes close to the consistent high quality of City Ballet, and on a good night like Friday, it's touching the divine. What riches we have in New York!

[canbelto]

Gina got a very nice sendoff. Huge ovation for a solo bow, and she was allowed to take some liberties in interpretation with the cigarette girl solo. 

In the audience I saw: Tess Reichlen, Sterling Hyltin, Ashley Bouder, Jared Angle, Tyler Angle and his husband Ralph, Russell Janzen, Claire Kretzschmar, Tiler Peck, and lots of others. So it was a special occasion where past and present NYCB dancers showed up for Gina.

[cobweb]

Last night I attended the "Inside NYCB" presentation on The Balanchine Pas de Deux. This was a very fun and informative presentation, hosted by Sterling Hyltin and Russell Janzen. It seems a shame they are only doing it the once! We saw excerpts from several ballets, along with commentary by Hyltin and Janzen, and some comments from the dancers. First they did excerpts showing Balanchine's range and different kinds of male-female relationships: the pdd from La Source (Indiana Woodward and Anthony Huxley), central pdd from Agon (Miriam Miller and Peter Walker), Terpsichore and Apollo (Unity Phelan and Taylor Stanley), and Kammermusik (Miller and Walker again). Then they showed two beautifully contrasting pieces of same-sex duets, and while it was all done to piano we were meant to envision the two trumpets of Agon (Sebastian Villarini-Velez and Andres Zuniga) and two violins of Concerto Barocco (Unity and corps member Rommie Tomasini). Finally, we concluded with the first movement of Duo Concertant (Woodward and Taylor Stanley). Hyltin and Janzen were personable, charming hosts, although both seemed a little nervous with public speaking and need to get more comfortable with this. The real surprise for me was hearing from Miriam MIller, talking about her role in Agon. In speaking, she comes across as warm, vigorous, and humorous. By contrast, I often find her dancing remote. I hope she can find a way to bring some of that warmth, vigor, and humor into her dancing! I would love to see more programs like this. Well done. 

[vipa]

Thanks for that report cobweb, sounds wonderful. I wonder if there is a way to use programing like this to draw new audiences to the rep. 

[BalanchineFan]

Charlie Klesa and Olivia Bell are now in the NYCB corps de ballet!! Congratulations. 
(It’s on Instagram.)

https://www.instagram.com/p/CsGqwZ-O1UC/

https://www.instagram.com/p/Cr7PvNgMEx1/

Edited May 11, 2023 by BalanchineFan

[MarzipanShepherdess]

Went to the Tuesday night performance of the 21st Century Choreography I program, with the new Wheeldon, new Pires, and Times Are Racing.

New Wheeldon: I saw the cast with Alexa Maxwell in the lavender unitard role Sara Mearns is also dancing. I liked this ballet. It's to the same Schoenberg music as Tudor's Pillar of Fire, which threw me a bit at the beginning as I kept picturing that opening choreography in my head. But you can see why so many choreographers have been drawn to this music, there's so much within it. The ballet opens and ends with the dancers pulsing in an anenome-like cluster, and felt like an exploration of group vs individual needs. Over the course of the ballet the Alexa/Sara dancer breaks away from and rejoins the group, and in the end walks away. I found it moving and appreciated the emotional arc Wheeldon built within this abstract work. The set design involves several progressively peeled away scrims, which eventually reveal a brightly lit backdrop of colorful, oceanic swirls at the end. I thought it was effective, but my spouse thought the early scrims obscured the dancing too much. One of my favorite passages was the pas de deux between two men, danced in that cast by Peter Walker and I can't remember who else. Alexa Maxwell obviously has the unenviable position of being compared to Sara Mearns as the other ballerina debuting the lead role here, but I thought she gave a compelling performance in her own right. Very nice to see her getting opportunities like this.

New Pires: I thought this was a strong debut with a US company from Pires. There are some interesting, surprising movements (some off-kilter, almost mechanistic bits) and I'm still thinking about the frenetic final solo Tiler Peck performs as the curtain comes down, where she's like some kind of furious, malfunctioning wind-up toy. I found the ensemble dances for the corps and the solos for Tiler to be most effective; Mira and Adrian have a series of pas de deuxs that didn't feel so compelling. Mira doesn't have much to do here, as the pas de deuxs involve a lot of her body being manipulated through space by Adrian, but I'm happy to see her on stage in pretty much anything. Would be glad to see more from Pires.

Times Are Racing: This was the highlight of the evening for me. You get the sense watching this that the dancers really, really love performing this one. SO much energy, so exciting. Tiler and Roman were a joy to watch in their pas de deux, bringing a delicious and sweet playfulness. And Brittany Pollack was excellent as the girl in jeans, as was KJ Takahashi who subbed in for Peter Walker as her partner. He continues to impress me this season with how his presence and charisma on stage is so rapidly maturing.

[bellawood]

I was at the performance last night -- originally scheduled as Brandenburg, Agon, and Fancy Free, but actually performed Fancy Free, Agon, and Brandenburg. Beforehand I had the opportunity to hear Wendy Whelan, Gonzalo Garcia, Rebecca Krohn, and Christine Redpath talk about the restaging of Brandenburg. They talked about its history as Robbins' last piece, and Christine Redpath told an amusing story about how she had a young golden retriever at the time, and the pianist Nancy McDill would stick her head out the door of the rehearsal room to see if Christine and the dog were around, because the dog was the only thing that made Robbins cool off when he was in a state. He was very impatient with the young corps who have very complex choreography throughout. They restaged over about 6 weeks, and JP Frolich was the lead, though both Gonzalo and Rebecca Krohn had experience with the ballet, having danced the roles -- Gonzalo as his first big role at City Ballet with Ashley Bouder as his partner. As you might have read in the Times, Wendy was in the original cast, dancing with Peter Boal. Watching Indiana in the same role last night I was struck at how little of Wendy's movements I saw in the choreography, unlike when you see some Wheeldon or Ratmansky works that have been made on her. 

I had been planning on leaving after Agon when Brandenburg was first up, but I'm glad I saw Fancy Free. It was the A team, with Joe Gordon, Roman Mejia, and a very funny Andrew Veyette. He seems to have gotten past some of his injury and other issues and is enjoying being on stage -- kind of like Ask LaCour's stage presence before his retirement. Alexa Maxwell was the purple girl and she was very good, more confident than when I saw her in this in the fall. 

Agon was spectacular last night. Just mesmerizing. Taylor Stanley was a debut in the non-pdd male lead, and I am shocked he hasn't been doing this part for years. His particular genius of movement really comes through here. Unity and ADW danced the pdd. She was astonishingly good, the best I've ever seen her. They got an extra bow at the end of their pdd. Emilie Gerrity was the other female principal, in a role she's done a bunch but never really made much of an impression on me in. She's made strides but was overshadowed by Unity's dancing. (I also watch the Wendy-Albert Evans-Arch Higgins(?) video from when they danced this pas de trois from time to time and I miss that attack in Emilie's dancing.)

Brandenburg I was very much looking forward to, and I enjoyed it, but didn't love it. I might have seen it in 2007-2008, but I didn't remember any of the choreography. The first section is quite sprawling, with a recurring theme of a triangle or wedge arrangement of dancers, with the point facing the audience. Indiana and Anthony Huxley dance in and out of the corps dancers and have a pdd of their own. This was my least favorite section. Then there's a pdd for Mira Nadon and Aaron Sanz which seems dropped from the sky -- quite beautiful and haunting, with lots of movements where they almost touch but don't. Aaron seemed a bit sidelined in his career but Mira's need for a tall partner might give him some momentum; they are very attractive together (as they were in another Robbins piece, Piano Pieces, last year).  The third movement is a series of pdd for 4 corps couples, nicely danced. The finale is really fun with lots of humor, including a lengthy section where everyone jogs backwards for way longer than you expect.

The house was quite full, including 3rd ring. Audience was quite engaged.