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Roster Changes 2022

sf_herminator

By sf_herminator
in San Francisco Ballet

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sf_herminator

sf_herminator

Posted
Posted

Starting this thread to keep track of the dancer roster changes.

Benjamin Freemantle has posted on his IG (and FB) that he is leaving at the end of the season:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CcYhWIGv6EQ/

Ulrik Birkkjaer also posted after Program 4 that this will be his last season:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CbWBi2vPJPk/

Tonight, Julian Mackay will be dancing in both Prism and The Promised Land in his final performance with SFB:  https://www.sfballet.org/tickets/casting/

Friday, April 15, 8:00 PM

  • Tonight we celebrate Principal Pianist Roy Bogas upon his retirement after performing with San Francisco Ballet for 65 years.

PRISM

Conductor: Martin West

Piano: Roy Bogas

First Movement

  • SASHA DE SOLA, MAX CAUTHORN, LONNIE WEEKS
  • Luca Ferrò, Joshua Jack Price, Jacob Seltzer
  • Alexis Aiudi, Thamires Chuvas, SunMin Lee, Carmela Mayo, Lauren Parrott, Tyla Steinbach

Second Movement

  • YUAN YUAN TAN, TIIT HELIMETS
  • Kamryn Baldwin, Samantha Bristow, Anatalia Hordov, Blake Johnston, Elizabeth Mateer, Swane Messaoudi, Pemberley Ann Olson
  • Andris Kundzins, Nathaniel Remez, Alexander Reneff-Olson, John-Paul Simoens, Mingxuan Wang, Joseph Warton, Adrian Zeisel

Third Movement

  • JULIAN MACKAY
  • with Ensemble

 

FINALE FINALE

Conductor: Martin West

  • DORES ANDRÉ, JOSEPH WALSH
  • ISABELLA DEVIVO, BENJAMIN FREEMANTLE
  • ELIZABETH POWELL, CAVAN CONLEY, ESTEBAN HERNANDEZ

 

THE PROMISED LAND

Conductor: Martin West

Cello: Eric Sung

  • LUCAS ERNI
  • THAMIRES CHUVAS, JULIAN MACKAY
  • DORES ANDRÉ, DANIEL DEIVISON-OLIVEIRA
  • ELIZABETH POWELL, MAX CAUTHORN
  • JENNIFER STAHL, HENRY SIDFORD
  • Gabriela Gonzalez, John-Paul Simoens
  • Pemberley Ann Olson, Rubén Cítores
  • Blake Johnston, Nathaniel Remez
  • Elizabeth Mateer, Estéban Cuadrado

 

0. THE WAVE

Led by Lucas Erni

John-Paul Simoens, Gabriela Gonzalez, Nathaniel Remez

 

1. REMEMBER

Led by Thamires Chuvas, Julian MacKay

Lucas Erni

 

2. RELIVE

Led by Dores André, Daniel Deivison-Oliveira

 

3. NEVER LAND

Led by Elizabeth Powell, Max Cauthorn

 

4. REFLECT

Led by Jennifer Stahl, Henry Sidford

 

5. REIMAGINE

Led by Thamires Chuvas, Julian MacKay

 

6. THE PROMISE

Ensemble

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sf_herminator

sf_herminator

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Posted

Just got home from tonight's performance of Program 6.  I will post more in the Program 6 thread, but will note that there was another cast change in The Promised Land.  Earlier this week, Angelo Greco and Wona Park were listed as the first principal couple but was changed to Julian Mackay and Thamires Chuvas.  Just before Finale Finale, an announcement was made that Benjamin Freemantle and WanTing Zhao would dance in place of Daniel Deivison Oliveira.  At the end of the performance after the cast took their bows, Helgi Tomasson came onstage and had Benjamin Freemantle and Julian Mackay take an additional bow.  Although there was no formal announcement in the house, this performance tonight was their final with the company.

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PeggyR

PeggyR

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Posted (edited)
17 hours ago, pherank said:

And now Benjamin Freemantle: https://www.instagram.com/p/CcYhWIGv6EQ/

Freemantle is a real loss:  not only a very fine dancer, but an excellent actor.  His Sea Witch in The Little Mermaid made my skin crawl.

I haven’t been able to get to many performances this year, but next year, it’s going to take some effort to get used to all these (and likely future) departures.

Edited by PeggyR
Removed excess carriage returns.
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pherank

pherank

Posted
Posted (edited)
12 minutes ago, sf_herminator said:

From SFB's IG: Tonight will be Ulrik Birkkjaer's final performance.  

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

He is retiring from the stage to focus on the dance festival he started last year.  In tonight's program, he will partner Sarah Van Patten in the Diamonds PDD and the Balcony Scene from Romeo & Juliet.

Another dancer I will miss very much.  

I envy anyone who is able to see SVP and Birkkjaer dance together one last time. Those retirements are a huge loss to the company.
 

Edited by pherank
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pherank

pherank

Posted
Posted (edited)
12 hours ago, naomikage said:

Julian MacKay has written on his Instagram story that leaving SFB was not his choice. He is thanking Helgi Thomasson for his guidance during his time there. 

For the record, this is what MacKay posted on Instagram (these posts sometimes disappear):

"When you get a raise and your boss is happy with your work, things are going well.  
So I was quite shocked when I recently found out that my contract for next season would not be continued with SFB.  
 
When my director first called me on the phone, I was still working in Russia.  
One of the first things I said was I was tired of all the politics and wanted a place to grow and explore new ballets…. and that is what I have found these past 2 years with SFB.  
 
Now it makes me quite emotional to hear from my director that the decision to not offer me a contract for next year was not made by him but rather someone who I’ve never worked with and was not present for the last 2 years here.  
 
Thank you for telling me the truth Helgi and thank you to all the wonderful people that have supported me in San Francisco and at my performances with SFB!  
In the spirit of Easter I’m looking forward to new beginnings and sharing with you all my summer performance schedule soon"

https://www.instagram.com/p/Ccdav08JY9x/

Edited by pherank
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pherank

pherank

Posted
Posted
49 minutes ago, PeggyTulle said:

Well, guess that shouldn't be too surprising, considering the new AD's track record... but I also feel like McKay didn't dance a lot when he was here...? So maybe this is for the best. 

With Fogo injured, no Swan Lake for JM. I'm sure Tomasson intended to bring MacKay "into the fold" as it were, and shape him more as a dancer, but the pandemic ruined many plans.

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pherank

pherank

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Posted
38 minutes ago, volcanohunter said:

Still, wouldn't it be worth it to keep MacKay for Swan Lake in case of an injury to another dancer?

I'm guessing there was already a backup in place (since it's a plum role). Or perhaps maybe MacKay wanted to be free to move on before the last program occurred. Off to NYC.
 

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pherank

pherank

Posted
Posted

Forgetting about Birkkjaer, Fogo, MacKay, Freemantle, SVP, Robison and Tan for the moment (and Dores Andre who shows little interest in Swan Lake-type roles) - that leaves Cauthorn, Chung, De Sola, Froustey, Greco, Helimets, Hernandez, Ingham, Kuranaga, Park, Stahl, Walsh, Wang and Zhao of the principals. And there may be a couple of soloists who are being groomed for this - Mukhamedov being one likely choice. Froustey isn't doing much at present so she may have an issue we don't know about.

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volcanohunter

volcanohunter

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I am surprised that these dancers are so forthcoming. Normally, I wouldn't expect a dancer to admit that his contract hasn't been renewed, or that Bigwig X makes a her heart sink. I have never thought it a good idea to direct public criticism at my employer or boss, though I've certainly had cause. I always assumed that coming across as disgruntled would make me an undesirable employee.

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pherank

pherank

Posted
Posted (edited)
1 hour ago, volcanohunter said:

I am surprised that these dancers are so forthcoming. Normally, I wouldn't expect a dancer to admit that his contract hasn't been renewed, or that Bigwig X makes a her heart sink. I have never thought it a good idea to direct public criticism at my employer or boss, though I've certainly had cause. I always assumed that coming across as disgruntled would make me an undesirable employee.

Times have changed though, and dancers are definitely expecting more from their 'employers'. I think it's fair to say that Keesler is one of the dancers that has been pushing for change in the ballet workplace. EDIT: I'll add that performers attitudes now parallel changes in the tech industry workplace (and other industries) over the last 20 years. Workers can't rely on loyalty from employers, or a reliable pension, so they are willing to ask for more up front, and move around from place to place gathering experiences.
 

Madison Keesler's announcement on Instagram makes for a nice tribute to Tomasson:

"Thank You, San Francisco… Hello NYC!

I am finally ready to make my big announcement...

This will be my last season with @sfballet.
My final performances will be this May in Swan Lake in the roles of “Pas de Trois” and “Aristocrats”.

✨In June I will be moving to New York City!

I have had an incredible 15-year career in ballet while dancing within some of the world’s best companies — The Hamburg Ballet, English National Ballet, and San Francisco Ballet. And my career performing ballet is definitely not over. I will be continuing to perform classical ballet as a freelance artist and I’m currently looking for principal guesting opportunities and gala performances.

I’m also excited to spread my wings into some new directions through Broadway, acting onstage and on-camera, print modeling, and much more.

When it was first announced that Helgi Tomasson would be succeeded by Tamara Rojo my heart sank because I knew that my time in San Francisco had to come to an end.

San Francisco and San Francisco Ballet has been the one place that always felt like home. I grew up coming to the San Francisco Ballet School summer programs since I was 14 and I have worked in the company for a total of 9 years out of my 15-year career. Helgi Tomasson has played a huge role in shaping my career throughout all these years and I have endless gratitude for all that he has done for me. Helgi gave me opportunities and believed in me even before I believed in myself. He allowed me to leave and come back not once, but twice. My life and my career would not be the same without the support and understanding he always gave me.

Leaving my friends, this company, the SFB audience, and this city to head to New York City is certainly bittersweet. However, I know with all my heart this is meant to happen right now. I’m scared, but also so freaking excited!!! I’m grateful that life is giving me the push I needed to continue following my dreams within ballet and to finally start pursuing my dreams in acting, singing and so much more.

I’m thrilled to be able to call New York City my new home!"

LINK:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CceQ7IAJ3i1/

Edited by pherank
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Ashton Fan

Ashton Fan

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A change of director has a different effect on a ballet company' s personnel depending on where the company is based, local law and employment practices in the industry Local practice varies greatly across Europe. in some countries being a company member means permanent employment until a set retirement age is attained while in other countries there is no fixed retirement age as such.In the UK a change of director does not automatically trigger a change in the company's personnel and it is unusual to see an exodus of dancers in the wake of an announcement of the appointment of a new director. In Germany, as I understand it, the appointment of a new director can result in a complete change of personnel as it is for the director to choose the dancers with whom he or she wishes to work  I would be interested to know whether Tamara Rojo's imminent arrival at SFB seems to have triggered a greater number of departures from the company than is usual at or near the end of a season?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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pherank

pherank

Posted
Posted (edited)
3 hours ago, Ashton Fan said:

A change of director has a different effect on a ballet company' s personnel depending on where the company is based, local law and employment practices in the industry Local practice varies greatly across Europe. in some countries being a company member means permanent employment until a set retirement age is attained while in other countries there is no fixed retirement age as such.In the UK a change of director does not automatically trigger a change in the company's personnel and it is unusual to see an exodus of dancers in the wake of an announcement of the appointment of a new director. In Germany, as I understand it, the appointment of a new director can result in a complete change of personnel as it is for the director to choose the dancers with whom he or she wishes to work  I would be interested to know whether Tamara Rojo's imminent arrival at SFB seems to have triggered a greater number of departures from the company than is usual at or near the end of a season?

Specifically at SFB, at the end of each season there's normally a handful of people who leave (for various reasons), but also a number of promotions are announced to balance things out.

As far as exits related to directorship change, I would say that we have yet to hit an unusual number of exits. It's the added exits due to retirement that are going to hurt this next season - unless there are going to be important new hires coming from Rojo. And those hires will have to happen before rehearsals begin later this summer (SFB begins new work creation and rehearsals in the summer, even though they don't perform on the Opera House stage again until December). Losing the young principal Ben Freemantle is a shock because he's the kind of person we would expect to see as a mainstay of the company going forward. Trained at the SFB Ballet School, Freemantle was asked to join the Corps in 2015 and was promoted to principal in 2019 - a mere 4 years. That's very unusual, but Freemantle is that talented. And he's still growing as an artist. So we're losing the poster boy for the school.

Hopefully the various injured dancers from this year, such as Fogo, Robison, Mukhamedov, are still planning to return next year to see how things go under Rojo.

EDIT: Like Keesler, Robison spent time at ENB, so if he decides to leave this year, it will make people very nervous about Rojo.

Edited by pherank
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Terez

Terez

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Well, this is all gutting to read, but I guess that's just how it's going to be for a year or two. (Good thing the past few years have been so calm, stable, soothing, so that I'm not already feeling shocked, jittered and exhausted by the world in general.)

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