ABT 2022: Mixed Bill

[California]

Is anybody seeing any of the four performances of the mixed bill this weekend? Some puzzles:

• Cornejo is doing three back-to-back performances, with Single Eye on Thursday and T&V Friday and Saturday. Yikes! Nobody could take Single Eye and give him a little respite?
• Shevchenko and Bell are each performing in pieces in the mixed bill and I'm not seeing anything at all on social media about injuries. Their disappearance from T&V is a mystery.

[JuliaJ]

I saw the show last night... I think Cornejo's presence in Single Eye was the result of a lot of shuffling around after Stearns' injury. Royal was listed in the program in what I believe are two separate roles but that are never on stage at the same time. They must have subbed in Cornejo so Royal wouldn't have to do both parts? Cornejo's role didn't look all that arduous to me -- high energy but nothing crazy -- so hopefully it won't affect his T&V performances. 

Agree that Bell and Shevchenko's disappearance from T&V is mysterious. While I was more than happy to see Teuscher last night (she was fantastic, very detailed and regal), Bell would probably have been more suited to the male lead. Ahn really struggled with the double tour/pirouette solo. Perhaps he was tired after dancing Siegfried only the day before. I think he is more than capable of nailing that solo, but it didn't happen for him last night. The rest of his performance was fine, not exactly exciting, and a far cry from Baryshnikov in the Live from Lincoln Center video, but fine. The partnering in the pas de deux looked totally seamless from my view. It was refreshing to see Balanchine after weeks of full lengths, even if it was imperfectly danced. The corps looked pretty good, and the tempo was faster than I expected. It was a better performance than what I saw with Lane and Gorak in 2019, double tours/pirouettes aside. 

Single Eye had some strong moments but felt a bit disjointed. It ended with a somber pas de deux between Brandt and Royal, which made for an anticlimactic finish. I had forgotten how great Boylston is in contemporary ballet. The best part of this for me was the virtuosic choreography for some of the corps members, notably Misseldine, Granlund, de la Nuez, Pogassian, and Clerico. Not a lot of chances for lower ranking dancers to shine in this company, but King really let them shine, and they seemed to be relishing every second of it. Even though it was flawed, Single Eye felt like a stronger piece than some of the contemporary work NYCB has put out in recent years, so it's odd they haven't commissioned anything from King (especially given their diversity efforts). 

[ABT Fan]

54 minutes ago, California said:

Is anybody seeing any of the four performances of the mixed bill this weekend? Some puzzles:

• Cornejo is doing three back-to-back performances, with Single Eye on Thursday and T&V Friday and Saturday. Yikes! Nobody could take Single Eye and give him a little respite?
• Shevchenko and Bell are each performing in pieces in the mixed bill and I'm not seeing anything at all on social media about injuries. Their disappearance from T&V is a mystery.

I’m also shocked that Cornejo is doing 2 T&V less than 24 hours apart! I hope he eats his Wheeties (anyone else remember that?).

I was wondering if removing Bell/Shev was a proactive move for R&J next week, for Bell really. We all know Theme is a killer. Bell has 2 Romeo’s starting Tuesday. Carmago, a guest artist is doing 3 shows to cover Stearns. Whiteside is out. If any other guy goes down from illness or injury they will be screwed. Forster/Royal only have one but this is both of their debuts and R&J is no picnic plus it has a lot of difficult partnering. Forster is getting up in years, would he have the stamina to take a second one (or a third?!) with very little rehearsal time with a new partner? Royal is younger but inexperienced with lead roles and again he’d be thrown in with very little rehearsal time with a new Juliet. Cornejo isn’t tall enough to partner any other Juliet but Boylston but she has Carmago (and no way could Cornejo take his shows heaven forbid he can’t dance). Of course, I could be way off and maybe Bell/Shev or at least one of them will be removed any minute now from the rest of the mixed bill, then we’ll know. Or it’s some other reason  that we may never know.

Edited July 8, 2022 by ABT Fan

[ABT Fan]

4 minutes ago, ABT Fan said:

Deleted 

Edited July 8, 2022 by ABT Fan
Was trying to edit my original post and quoted myself instead 😬

[California]

14 minutes ago, ABT Fan said:

I’m also shocked that Cornejo is doing 2 T&V less than 24 hours apart! I hope he eats his Wheeties (anyone else remember that?).

Just took another look at casting. Cornejo is also doing Single Eye Saturday night! Good grief! He's in all four performances of the mixed bill!

I'm sure most of you have heard the famous Baryshnikov quote that T&V is the hardest ballet he ever performed.

[abatt]

46 minutes ago, California said:

Just took another look at casting. Cornejo is also doing Single Eye Saturday night! Good grief! He's in all four performances of the mixed bill!

I'm sure most of you have heard the famous Baryshnikov quote that T&V is the hardest ballet he ever performed.

ABT's performances of the male solo in T&V is, I believe, easier than and different from what NYCB's men are required to do.  The men at NYCB do more double tours and fewer pirouettes.  Which version of that choreography  did Baryshnikov do?

When I was watching Ahn and Bell in Swan Lake, their ballroom variations seemed like a practice run for what would be required in the T&V solo, except that more double tours and pirouettes are required in T&V.  Also, in SL the orchestra slows the tempo as needed.  Not sure if the orchestra does the same for the T&V music.

Added - J. DeLuz included this ballet in his farewell, and he slammed it out the park despite his advanced age and history of injury. 

 

 

Edited July 8, 2022 by abatt

[California]

3 minutes ago, abatt said:

ABT's performances of the male solo in T&V is, I believe, easier than and different from what NYCB's men are required to do.  The men at NYCB do more double tours and fewer pirouettes.  Which version of that choreography  did Baryshnikov do?

Baryshnikov's Live from Lincoln Center performance was in spring 1978 when he was with ABT. Did he ever perform this at NYCB from 78-79? I don't remember that he did, but I'm not sure.

 

[vipa]

2 hours ago, abatt said:

ABT's performances of the male solo in T&V is, I believe, easier than and different from what NYCB's men are required to do.  The men at NYCB do more double tours and fewer pirouettes.  Which version of that choreography  did Baryshnikov do?

When I was watching Ahn and Bell in Swan Lake, their ballroom variations seemed like a practice run for what would be required in the T&V solo, except that more double tours and pirouettes are required in T&V.  Also, in SL the orchestra slows the tempo as needed.  Not sure if the orchestra does the same for the T&V music.

Added - J. DeLuz included this ballet in his farewell, and he slammed it out the park despite his advanced age and history of injury. 

 

 

So agree that DeLuz was fabulous in Theme in his retirement performance. I've also seen Deluz, Veyette and Peter Martins alternate single and double pirouettes in the double tours/pirouette sequence. Baryshnikov didn't end with a double tour like most do, he added another pirouette. 

I don't think the two companies have different requirements, but sometimes make accommodations. I've seen two men at NYCB, over the years, take a longer walk around to get into place for the first double tours, and therefore do fewer jumps and turns.

Edited July 8, 2022 by vipa

[vipa]

2 hours ago, California said:

Just took another look at casting. Cornejo is also doing Single Eye Saturday night! Good grief! He's in all four performances of the mixed bill!

I'm sure most of you have heard the famous Baryshnikov quote that T&V is the hardest ballet he ever performed.

I'm really looking forward to Sat. mat and Cornejo. I think T&V is hard for any dancer, but for all Baryshnilov's amazing technique, I don't think he was at his best in that ballet. He was wonderful, of course, but to me he looked like his was in a straight jacket. I've seen other men perform it better.

Edited July 8, 2022 by vipa

[volcanohunter]

1 hour ago, vipa said:

I've seen two men at NYCB, over the years, take a longer walk around to get into place for the first double tours, and therefore do fewer jumps and turns.

Josua Hoffalt did the same thing on a POB broadcast. 

[abatt]

Bad news, folks.  I'm just back from ABT and there was an insert stating that Aran Bell is injured.   Royal took Cornejo's role in Section III of  Single Eye, and Curley took Bell's part in Zig Zag.

So assuming Bell doesn't make a miraculous recovery by Tuesday, who are they going to throw into R&J to partner Devon.  I'm sure we won't know until around 4PM on Tuesday.

Herman's performance tonight in T&V was so wonderful.  He knocked out those double tours like it was nothing.  His partnering was flawless.  Where are they going to find anyone at his level going forward once he retires.  Nobody in the company even comes close.  Brandt was fine for a debut.  In her solo I felt she was still channeling Swan Lake sometimes.  I prefer the ladies across the plaza but Brandt did well enough.  She is starting to get annoying with demonstrating in every ballet how long she can sustain an unsupported balance.  This is T&V, not Don Q.

I thought Single Eye had some interesting choreography, but it's not a ballet I want to see again.  Forster looked good in this choreography. I didn't stay for ZigZag because I think it is drivel. 

The house was very poorly sold.  Funny that McKenzie would select this as his celebratory program.

 

 

Edited July 9, 2022 by abatt

[cobweb]

Can anyone report on the T&V demisoloists and how they fared?

[fondoffouettes]

1 hour ago, abatt said:

Bad news, folks.  I'm just back from ABT and there was an insert stating that Aran Bell is injured.   Royal took Cornejo's role in Section III of  Single Eye, and Curley took Bell's part in Zig Zag.

So assuming Bell doesn't make a miraculous recovery by Tuesday, who are they going to throw into R&J to partner Devon.  I'm sure we won't know until around 4PM on Tuesday.

My guess would be Forster, or that they are having Joo Won Ahn understudy the role. 

[nycvillager]

It was a bit odd tonight - not a big crowd, energy felt low, many substitutions, and the night felt too drawn out. T&V didn't have the same impact on me as it did a few years back when they performed it in the fall at the Koch, maybe due to the half empty theater. Cornejo was fantastic - the brightest part of the night. Brandt was fine but didn't blow me away. I think I prefer either taller dancers or just NYCB dancers. Also, as mentioned by others earlier this week, some members of the audience seem to be trying to clap after every single little thing, a bit disruptive. 

It was my first time seeing both Single Eye and ZigZag. They weren't particularly memorable but I was pleasantly surprised, not by the works themselves but by seeing many different dancers who I don't normally get to see featured. The dancers all appeared to be enjoying themselves, so that was nice too. I was very impressed by Jacob Clerico and Michael de la Nuez, and was happy to see Connor Holloway. I've seen more of Jarod Curley and Sung Woo Han this season and am impressed by them each time. Zimmi Coker is always a standout, so bright and crisp.

The website said the estimated run time was 2 hours 5 minutes, which would have ended at 9:35-9:40, but it didn't end until about 9:55. Despite not being very well attended tonight, it didn't start on time and the intermissions lasted way too long. It felt like the audience was getting a bit bored waiting, at least near me.

I have a ticket for tomorrow as well, but not sure what cast I'll actually see given all these last minute substitutions. On an unrelated note, Amar Ramasar was in attendance and I was happy to see him and will miss him across the plaza.

[California]

A little Friday night trivia: If you go to the Instagram stories of @cewtipie the fourth slide shows Baryshnikov standing in the aisle. The white hair is a remnant of his play The Orchard, which just closed. Did anybody else notice this? He always seems to be on the lookout for new artists for his Center, so I wonder if he wanted to take a look at the pieces by Lang and King.  Skylar Brandt includes the same shot in her stories. (Sorry - there's no way to link to Stories)

Bell is still listed for Zig-Zag and his R&Js. Nice that Cornejo gets a week to recover before his  R&J! I look forward to all your reports!

[abatt]

28 minutes ago, California said:

A little Friday night trivia: If you go to the Instagram stories of @cewtipie the fourth slide shows Baryshnikov standing in the aisle. The white hair is a remnant of his play The Orchard, which just closed. Did anybody else notice this? He always seems to be on the lookout for new artists for his Center, so I wonder if he wanted to take a look at the pieces by Lang and King.  Skylar Brandt includes the same shot in her stories. (Sorry - there's no way to link to Stories)

Bell is still listed for Zig-Zag and his R&Js. Nice that Cornejo gets a week to recover before his  R&J! I look forward to all your reports!

I don't know that they update the online calendar info on weekends, so I would be surprised if Bell appeared tonight.

I dumped my tickets for tonight based on the review of Ahn. T&V was the only ballet on the program that I was really interested in seeing. However, I don't want to see it butchered.  Based  on the NYTimes review of Ahn in this I decided this just wasn't worth the time or money.  If you don't have people who can perform the lead roles, don't revive the ballet.

[nycvillager]

Curley replaces Bell in ZigZag at today’s matinee

[theo]

Looks like Bell is actually scheduled for this  evening's  performance of ZigZag.    Curley had been scheduled for the matinee already, if I'm not mistaken.   Fingers crossed for Aran Bell that he is able to dance the rest of his scheduled performances. 

[TheAccidentalBalletomane]

I saw today’s (Saturday afternoon’s) T&V with Brandt and Cornejo and caught the open ballet class prior to the performance.  The Met was very well sold today.  The Orchestra was in very good form.  It was supposed to be Brandt’s T&V debut but she and Herman had replaced the prior evening’s leads (which I assume was to be Bell and Shevchenko).  Both Skylar and Herman should be applauded, specially, for their willingness to do back-to-back T&Vs; not to mention that they are both scheduled to perform in  Single Eye this evening.  Brandt has a history of having several debuts (Giselle and Le Corsaire for example) thrust upon her last minute; and we should assume that even a one-day change can greatly disrupt preparation. And as for Herman, for him to manage that double/triple-header at this point in his great career is astonishing. I hope they both got some rest and a good meal since they are about to perform again in an hour!  I had never seen the ballet before and I greatly enjoyed it and thought it was fluid and somehow relaxing despite being technically difficult; the partnering was beautiful and the music inspirational. The season is just about over - with R&J still ahead -- and I want to congratulate the entire company for rising out of the pandemic with a strong and jam-packed shortened season.  Wishing Whiteside and Bell (injured, per my program and replaced by Curley in ZigZag) complete recoveries.  Based upon the reviews and comments and as a fan who saw several performances, there was overall a very strong set of debuts by at least two of the newer principal ballerinas; Brandt, Shevchenko (and expected for Trenary in R&J) and soon to be principal, Hurlin.  Glad to have dance back to the Met. Thank you all for sharing your thoughts on the season and looking forward to reports from tonight.

Edited July 9, 2022 by TheAccidentalBalletomane
to confirm that season ends after R&J not after the mixed bill

[vipa]

I was at the matinee today. Something of a mixed bag in many ways, IMO. T&V with Cornejo and Brandt was good but far from great. Cornejo's partnering was beautiful in elegance and presentation. In his solos he made accommodations, particularly in the 2nd one. He come out with beautiful, big sissone/rond de jambes. Then he cut the repeat of another step and did a bit of walking around to set up for the double tours/pirouette sequence. He took this at a super fast tempo (easier on the legs). I thought the fast tempo took some of the grandeur and nobility from the step, but as a wise and seasoned professional, Cornejo was a man with a plan, and he made the variation work.  I enjoyed it. Brandt went for everything, technically, and mostly accomplished it with a few very slight mis-steps. Yet, I didn't find her performance compelling. To me, it was lacking in musical imagination and individualism. It was oddly generic. The four demi-soloists seemed to be working to get through. Zimmi Coker was the most on top of the situation.

I don't have much to say about Alonzo King's Single Eye, other than there were several points at which it could have ended, and that would have been fine with me.

I know Zig Zag isn't a popular work, on this board, but this is my second viewing and I enjoyed it even more that the first. I find it joyfully goofy. This time around I noticed even more subtle jokes, gentle gender bending and nuances than I did the first. And seeing Cassandra Trenary having a blast on stage is a treat. I couldn't take my eyes off her.

 

[MRR]

At least on Friday night, Cornejo did the sissonne rond de jambe for the first four sets, a step battement rond de jambe for #5, and walked around to center to start the sissonnes alternating side-to-side before the tours.  Essentially the version Baryshnikov performed in 1978 but with the more difficult sissonne variation of the opening jumps, faithful to the Youskevitch original.  The fast tempo for the tours is incredibly difficult for precision and very few men dare try it; obviously it helps that Cornejo is about Misha's size.  Also confused at Brandt turning T&V into Swan Lake and showing endless balances, neither of which I saw.  Only one balance in the pas was held for notable (not extraordinary) length; the partnered balances with switch of arms were not held longer than normal, and she didn't even sustain the arabesque following "scrambled eggs."  There were a few instances of holding out a rond de jambe (start of the pas de deux, once in the finale) but this for me was part of her phrasing, not a circus act. 

Anyway, I found Cornejo terrific and Brandt very, very good, delivering to my eyes better than suggested here.  T&V is great for Cornejo in that he can mostly eschew anything involving flexibility and instead focus on his strengths, and what strength he continues to show of technique, clarity, and bravado.  The entrechats of the first solo floated up in the air, if tiring slightly in the repeat, and he did the treacherous consecutive pirouettes without a hitch.  I described the second solo above and respect that he went for the sissonne rond de jambe, and the tour/pirouette repeats traveled just slightly to an emphatic finish.  Losing somewhat of his stretch through the leg and the back in arabesque, his feet remain beautiful, caressing the ground in all his landings.

Aesthetically Brandt is not my favorite ballerina:  her head and neck appear disjointed from her torso; her legs extend high but not long.   However, I was thrilled to see a ballerina even take a stab at Kirkland/Akira Endo tempi, and she mostly got there in the second variation while warming up to it in the first.  Ormsby Wilkins gave her a run for her money, but the 5 count pas de chat-soutenu-double pirouette did not fall behind the music, blazing forward into faster chaînés and an emphatic double to finish.  She had an easy, unforced demeanor that wouldn't have looked out of place in Sleeping Beauty, and while I share nycvillager's preference for tall dancers, this is 99% of the time not a tall ballerina role.  The pas de deux was completed admirably, if not as thrilling as what preceded it.  A relative weakness were the entrechats of the first solo: not sixes by any stretch, nor jumps that left the ground. Still, this is a monster of a role and to have most of the technical challenges met, with a spirited tempo and an elegant deportment, I consider a win.

Single Eye was danced better than the choreography probably deserved.  Boylston is effective in contemporary; the splayed fingers and wrists seem to relax in the intimate space of this work.  Skylar DID hold some balances here, including a full circle of her leg (back to side to front) which garnered applause.  Calvin Royal was elegant and earthy both in the pas with Skylar and his own solo; Thomas Forster practically disappeared but perhaps that wasn't a bad thing.  Chloe Misseldine in the Star Trek tutu captivates without effort: her dark hair, long limbs, and sinuous movement draw up a prototype of the perfect ballerina created in a lab.  Jacob Clerico and Michael de la Nuez were agile, gyroscopic, fervent in the two men's solos.

Zigzag is not a substantial ballet nor an obvious one to show at the MET, particularly in ABT's lone mixed rep of the season.  The initial entertainment shown gave way to kitsch, posing a question as to why any of it needed to be choreographed.  The commitment, physicality, and glamour of Cassandra Trenary and Devon Teuscher saved this from being a wasted half hour, and Blaine Hoven's gregarious persona was well utilized here.  Jacob Curley was leopard-like in his opening solo, carving the space in fascinating and unpredictable ways. Luciana Paris is pleasant if the perpetual soloist; Joo Won Ahn was unbearably flat-footed and awkward.  The corps were heavily featured, though I never understood their role.  This wasn't much different from the principals, with the ballet featuring solos, duets, and trios, disparate in how they related to one another.  At one moment, Trenary (or maybe it was Teuscher?) is held aloft by two men while Paris reaches for her, then dances on her own, before Trenary and Paris partner and go off together.  The ending ensemble brought the ballet to a dimmer light to where it started.  

Edited July 10, 2022 by MRR

[DPell]

Curley is replacing Bell in the evening performance of Zigzag as well.

[MoMo]

1 minute ago, DPell said:

Curley is replacing Bell in the evening performance of Zigzag as well.

Curley has been an MVP relief “pitcher”, this Season, with all the injuries. 

[California]

Did anybody get to the Saturday evening mixed bill? I'm seeing some nice pix on Instagram -- flowers, cheers. Also wondering if Ahn upped his game in T&V.

[canbelto]

I attended the mixed bill yesterday. I thought Brandt and Cornejo were excellent in T&V, although I feel like Brandt could use some ballerina authority. The background and costumes need a change -- the black background and extremely bright lighting on the yellow costumes created a glared, washed effect and it was hard to see Herman and Skylar's faces.

Single Eye actually put me to sleep.