Philadelphia Ballet: 2023-2024 season

[California]

Philadelphia Ballet has announced their 2023-2024 season: https://philadelphiaballet.org/23-24-season/

Carmen

October 5-15, 2023

Carmen brings us bullfights, bandits, and lovers, whose passion burns as bright as the sun in southern Spain. Artistic Director Angel Corella’s captivating and innovative choreography combines traditional Spanish dance and classical ballet to tell this tragic story set to Bizet’s indelible music.

Giselle

Feb 29 - March 10, 2024

Perhaps the most beloved early Romantic ballet, Giselle returns to Philadelphia Ballet. Set in the forests of the Rhineland, it is the story of true love, real heartbreak, and the awesome power of forgiveness. Artistic Director Angel Corella’s elegant choreography breathes new life into a timeless tale told on both sides of the grave.

Dance Masterpieces

March 14-16, 2024

Experience the work of three of the most inspiring and influential choreographers of the 20th Century. Featuring iconic works—Alvin Ailey’s The River, William Forsythe’s In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated, and Twyla Tharp’s In the Upper Room—it is a portrait of modern dance genius.

The Dream

May 9-12, 2024

Frederick Ashton’s take on Shakespeare’s timeless and hilarious comedy will dazzle Philadelphia audiences. Hapless lovers, dancing fairies, a braying donkey, and Mendelssohn’s incandescent music make for a magical evening. This dream world is paired with the powerful realism of Balanchine’s Prodigal Son, which showcases some of Balanchine’s most daring choreography, set to equally daring music by Prokofiev and astonishing sets by the great painter, Georges Rouault.

Add-on: George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker®

December 8-30, 2023

The Nutcracker leaps from the stage with prize-fighting mice, gallant toy soldiers, dancing candy canes, and waltzing flowers. Tchaikovsky’s glorious score guides young Marie and her Prince through a fantastical dreamworld in this beloved holiday tradition.

[netrina]

Looks like a great season! Carmen and Giselle both seem like great fits, lots of dancers I'd love to see in the principal roles; Nayara Lopes as Carmen in particular feels perfect (barring injury of course). I really enjoyed her in Sleeping Beauty this spring.

[California]

One disappointment in their 23-24 season: for many years, they have offered an all-Balanchine program, usually three one-acts. Next year, just Prodigal Son (and Nutcracker) - a decided move away from their early founding. The company had been "fostered and encouraged by the great George Balanchine."

https://philadelphiaballet.org/our-history/

Edited March 28, 2023 by California

[miliosr]

19 hours ago, California said:

One disappointment in their 23-24 season: for many years, they have offered an all-Balanchine program, usually three one-acts. Next year, just Prodigal Son (and Nutcracker) - a decided move away from their early founding. The company had been "fostered and encouraged by the great George Balanchine."

https://philadelphiaballet.org/our-history/

To give Angel Corella his due, he has been better at curating the company's history than many people thought he would be - not just the Balanchine repertory but the Ben Harkarvy era as well (i.e. the connection to Hans van Manen).

But to the larger point, I think what we're seeing is that those original "Balanchine companies" - Atlanta Ballet, Boston Ballet, Pennsylvania/Philadelphia Ballet and San Francisco Ballet - are becoming (to varying degrees) less so. Just look at the current crop of artistic directors at these companies: Gennadi Nedvigin in Atlanta, Mikko Nissinen in Boston, Angel Corella in Philadelphia and Tamara Rojo in San Francisco. None of them emerged from his company and none of them can be considered hardcore Balanchine loyalists - Rojo least of all.

The upcoming announcement of Rojo's first programmed season at San Francisco should be very, very telling in terms of how closely she intends to adhere to the Helgi Tomasson model (read: Balanchine/New York City Ballet).

Edited March 29, 2023 by miliosr

[abatt]

Angel, to my knowledge, is not a choreographer.  Whereas the classics like Swan Lake are always "after Petipa", I'm not aware of a full length Carmen using the Bizet music.  Is this going to be his original creation or is there already a full evening Carmen using the Bizet music that he is going to tweak. 

 

[Helene]

The announcement says that it will be Corella's "captivating and innovative chorereography."

Corella previously created work for Corella Ballet, which was renamed Barcelona Ballet.

[Quiggin]

8 hours ago, miliosr said:

The upcoming announcement of Rojo's first programmed season at San Francisco should be very, very telling in terms of how closely she intends to adhere to the Helgi Tomasson model (read: Balanchine/New York City Ballet).

[Side topic] I'm really looking forward to seeing what Tamara Rojo chooses next year to reshape the repertory but don't expect a Balanchine work to be included. Or if so, bravely, a seldom performed work – which would kind of raise the ante.

I never really felt that San Francisco Ballet was a Balanchine company – or as much as I wanted it to be. In the last 15 or so years, SFB's season has been composed of three full length ballets (typically Swan Lake, Giselle, Don Quixote or, more recently, Christopher Wheeldon's Cinderella), and five mixed programs. Sandpiper Ballet or Magrittomania would be recycled, but there was also a commitment to new Ratmansky ballets. There would be one Balanchine program – Violin Concerto, Serenade, Symphony in C or Jewels; Symphony in Three Movements in 2013 was the most adventurous choice. This season there was no Balanchine work performed.

Edited March 29, 2023 by Quiggin

[wallis]

I too am disappointed to see the limited Balanchine offerings next season. In the past few years, the company has done a huge triple bill of Balanchine. I love it! Though this year the triple bill was the weekend directly following after two weekends of Sleeping Beauty. I wondered if that wouldn't be too much, back to back. I saw opening night of the Balanchine program and all the principal roles were well-cast and beautifully interpreted. It was exciting to see!  I can't help but wonder if doing less Balanchine has as much to do with company facility as it has to do with Corella's background?  Mr. B's dances require a level/type of technical prowess and musicality: both are areas in which the young corps has room to grow. 

Next season, I see that another huge triple bill follows directly after Giselle! All of which I do look forward to seeing.

[miliosr]

4 hours ago, Quiggin said:

[Side topic] I'm really looking forward to seeing what Tamara Rojo chooses next year to reshape the repertory but don't expect a Balanchine work to be included. Or if so, bravely, a seldom performed work – which would kind of raise the ante.

Sandpiper Ballet or Magrittomania would be recycled, but there was also a commitment to new Ratmansky ballets.

My Tamara Rojo fantasy triple bill would be an all-Stravinsky one consisting of Maurice Bejart's L'oiseau de feu (from the Lew-Christensen-Michael Smuin era), George Balanchine's Rubies (from the Helgi Tomasson era) and Pina Bausch's Le Sacre du printemps (from Rojo's time at the English National Ballet).

Regarding commitments, Tomasson has been a big proponent of WIlliam Forsythe, which is something he has in common with Rojo.

Edited March 30, 2023 by miliosr

[nysusan]

I know its still a long way away but I could not resist booking a weekend trip to see Dance Masterpieces. Three non Balanchine short pieces that I love (and I get plenty of Balanchine here in NY). Its very unusual for me to love all 3 pieces on a mixed bill, so this is special. Looking forward to getting acquainted with their dancers in The River (hopefully on pointe), In the Middle & Upper Room!

[California]

Has anyone seen Ashton Roxander with Philadelphia Ballet this month? He's doing Cavalier, Tea, and Candy Cane.

https://philadelphiaballet.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Nutcracker-Casting-2023-Dec-20-30.pdf

[cobweb]

I am contemplating a visit to see the Dance Masterpieces program. Can anyone advise on the best seating, and in particular where are good sight lines for someone very short? 

Edited March 9 by cobweb

[wallis]

For shorter stature (like me too) - I recommend aisle seats on the right or left side of the parquet -row G or back because the floor rise starts about there.  Ideal are the box seats either parquet or balcony, because you’d never have to work around a taller head.  I hope this helps!

[theo]

I just came back from the early matinee  (Noon) performance of Giselle.  I agree with Wallis.  I sat in the third row center aisle (parquet row CC) and if you're into seeing the articulation of feet, you need to sit further back.  The seats are slightly staggered so there isn't a head right in front of your face.  The parquet box seats looked like they would provide a good view.

The performance was lovely, by the way.   Nayara Lopes was our Giselle and  I thought she was  endearing, and engaging. She danced well and  brought a tear to my eye at the end of act II.  The Wilis  had their act together.  It's my first time seeing this company dance and I enjoyed them.   

[cobweb]

Thank you very much @wallis and @theo. That was very helpful. I got tickets on the aisle in the rear parquet. Looking forward to it! It's great to hear their Giselle was a success. I have not seen Nayara Lopes, but the one time I saw the company before, I too was favorably impressed with the corps de ballet. This was several years ago (2018 maybe?), when I went in for a day trip and caught two the matinee and evening performances of Swan Lake. I recall being very favorably impressed with the impeccable swans!!

[ABT Fan]

36 minutes ago, cobweb said:

Thank you very much @wallis and @theo. That was very helpful. I got tickets on the aisle in the rear parquet. Looking forward to it! It's great to hear their Giselle was a success. I have not seen Nayara Lopes, but the one time I saw the company before, I too was favorably impressed with the corps de ballet. This was several years ago (2018 maybe?), when I went in for a day trip and caught two the matinee and evening performances of Swan Lake. I recall being very favorably impressed with the impeccable swans!!

I saw their SL back then as well (2018) and was extremely impressed with the swans! I pulled out my program and in my notes I wrote that they were my favorite part of the performance. Impeccably rehearsed and very much in sync with tight formations.

Good choice on your seat. I sat in the front parquet and even though I'm tall I remember there being no raked seating up there so even for me I had to bob my head at times to see around people in front of me.

[cobweb]

55 minutes ago, ABT Fan said:

I saw their SL back then as well (2018) and was extremely impressed with the swans! I pulled out my program and in my notes I wrote that they were my favorite part of the performance. Impeccably rehearsed and very much in sync with tight formations.

What I particularly noticed at the time, and still treasure, was their firmly committed downcast eyes. All too often in Swan Lake (looking at you, ABT!), the swans let their eyes wander. It is more noticeable than they may think. The Pennsylvania Ballet swans kept their eyes definitely downcast, greatly enhancing the mood and impression of the performance. 

[wallis]

I agree with this assessment of the corp in Sean Lake that year!

Went to Dance Masterpieces opening night and it was fantastic! But just a head’s up — make sure to check the casting updates at the door to the left of the merch table before watching the performance. The program casting has inaccuracies.

 

[cobweb]

Thank you for that tip about checking the casting sheet, @wallis! I am excited to be going tonight. OT, my partner and I are spending an arts-filled weekend in Philadelphia, and last night saw The Lehman Trilogy at the Arden Theatre. (We missed this when it was in NY.) What an inspired work of art the play is! We greatly enjoyed the production and the performance… highly recommend!

[ABT Fan]

21 minutes ago, cobweb said:

Thank you for that tip about checking the casting sheet, @wallis! I am excited to be going tonight. OT, my partner and I are spending an arts-filled weekend in Philadelphia, and last night saw The Lehman Trilogy at the Arden Theatre. (We missed this when it was in NY.) What an inspired work of art the play is! We greatly enjoyed the production and the performance… highly recommend!

I’d love to hear your thoughts after. I personally love arts-filled weekends in Philly, and anywhere actually! I assume you’re also hitting some of their great museums. And, there are so many awesome restaurants. Philly is one of my favorite places.

Edited March 16 by ABT Fan

[cobweb]

Just in from the Dance Masterpieces program. I will write more when I get back to NY on Monday and can type on an actual keyboard instead of my phone, but for now I’ll just say that this was a terrific program, the company looks great, and I will be back for more! And I fell in love with Ashton Roxander. What a beautiful, thrilling dancer. 

[nysusan]

Dance Masterpieces was a fabulous program and I'm so glad I made the trip to see it. I went to the Friday & Sat matinees & evening performances. I love all 3 pieces but Upper Room is my favorite. It's the only one I was a little disappointed in, but more on that later.

 

I've seen The River may times, most recently by the Ailey company but they don't dance it on point and I like it so much better with the women in point shoes -  as Ailey choreographed it for ABT! 

 

I particularly liked Oksana Maslova in Meander, she put a very sensual spin on the choreography. Yuka Iseda danced Lake with Austin Eyler and Twin Cities with Arian Molina Soca at both matinees. Dayesi Torriente did Lake with Jack Thomas and Twin Cities with Sterling Baca on Friday and Sat evening. All of them were great and Iseda & Torriente were totally different. Iseda looks to be a small dancer, sinewy with very pliable back and torso. She brought a poignant vulnerability to Lake. Her partner, Austin Eyler, is big, tall & strong but still with a nice clean line. He was a great partner to her, making all of those difficult lifts look so easy.

 

Torriente made a big impression on me years ago when I saw her as Myrtha in Giselle. I loved her Lake too, her take on it was strong and sweeping, more along the lines of the role's originator, Cynthia Gregory.

 

The matinee cast of In the Middle was good, but the evening cast was great. Especially Nayara Lopes, Maslova, Iseda and Torriente. They threw themselves into those crazy attenuated extensions and twisty arabesques into attitudes that folded in and over. Loved this.

 

In the Upper Room felt a tad low energy to me. That may not make sense since its such a high energy piece but this felt like maybe half a step down compared to what I'm used to seeing. I think part of it was the staging/lighting/haze. They used a scrim and the haze didn't move or change at all. The lighting changed, but not the haze. I've seen this often and recently (Tharp's own staging with her hand picked dancers at City Center last year) and I remember the haze billowing and retracting, swallowing up the dancers at some points, sometimes obscuring parts of them and allowing them to burst out of the haze at other times. Here they appeared from and disappeared into the haze at the back of the stage on their entrances and exits but that was about it. The billowing haze gives it a pulse that mirrors the propulsion in the music, sweeping the dance along. I didn't get that feeling here. The cast was the same in all 5 performances and while they were all very good, except for the last 10 minutes of the piece I didn't get the feeling that they were dancing full out. 

 

It looked like they were trying to hit perfect ballet positions rather than pushing through with abandon and I didn't quite get that feeling of euphoria and exhilaration from them. With other companies I felt that by the end they were completely exhausted and unable to take one more step but I didn't get that feeling here. It might have helped it they'd had 2 casts. But a less than perfect Upper Room is still great and I loved seeing it.

 

I loved the company, they have some great dancers and there was not one I didn't like. I'm very much looking forward to seeing their Corsaire, La Sylphide and Swan Lake next year.

[cobweb]

Back from a very fun arts weekend in Philadelphia, where I saw the Saturday evening performance of the "Dance Masterpieces" program -- The River, In the Middle Somewhat Elevated, and In the Upper Room. I had never seen either of the first two pieces before, and had barely seen the company before, so my comments are very general. Overall, IMO the company looks great. The level of dancing is very high and everything looked highly polished and well rehearsed. The roster of talent looks impressively deep, and notably, Corella seems to have assembled, or trained, a large contingent of powerful, athletic male dancers. I loved The River, but had mixed feelings about the Forsythe piece. I might have enjoyed it more had it not been quite as loud -- I saw a couple of people around me plugging their ears, it was so loud. I find In the Upper Room a real joy. After seeing the Tharp staging a year and a half ago at City Center, I was worried I would never be able to enjoy it again since seemingly those performances can never be equalled. Happily, that was not the case, and I succumbed to the exhilaration of the piece. I'll hold off on making comments about particular dancers until I know the company better, the exception being that I was on the lookout for Ashton Roxander, being curious about Jake's brother. Ashton is a beautiful dancer with an intriguing, compelling stage presence. I may make the trip to see The Dream next month just to see him (honestly I would be glad to see him in anything)! And I definitely envision a trip, or two, to see next year's programming. With Philadelphia Ballet looking so good, with ABT at a low ebb, and with Philly being so close to NY and such an attractive place to visit for the arts lover, Corella has an opportunity to grow the audience. 

[cobweb]

Can anyone tell me when does PB usually announce casting, and where can I find it on the website? I'm not seeing a link for "casting" on the website, and when I click on info for The Dream, it just takes me to buy a ticket. 

[wallis]

Casting posting is usually announced on their social media and then you can find it at the ticket page on the website- a week before, usually. But then things might possibly adjust and you’ll need to check on Instagram story and that sign in lobby! 😉