DPell Posted July 15, 2023 Share Posted July 15, 2023 This afternoons Pas de Trois was one of the best I’ve seen. It was Gonzalez, Coker, and Lall, who was replacing Granlund. Link to comment
nanushka Posted July 15, 2023 Share Posted July 15, 2023 Blaine Hoven is dancing Benno tonight (with Paulina Waski and Sierra Armstrong). Link to comment
ABT Fan Posted July 15, 2023 Author Share Posted July 15, 2023 16 minutes ago, nanushka said: Blaine Hoven is dancing Benno tonight (with Paulina Waski and Sierra Armstrong). Where do you see this? ABT’s IG story from an hour ago says it’s Han. Link to comment
onxmyxtoes Posted July 16, 2023 Share Posted July 16, 2023 Erica Lall's ballon in today's matinee was unlike anyone I have seen recently. She gave me Osipova vibes - not quite Osipova but wow here sixes were so high up in the air with such ease!! I sensed a lot of hesitation in Hee's dancing and especially noticed that choreography was modified to avoid prolonged back bends. Her Act II solo was beautiful, with just a small fumble during the turn sequence. Act III solo was competent but she looked like she was struggling and had no characterization at all. It wasn't her best performance. Aran Bell was the most technically sound Sigfried I saw all week. He is the only one that did the same choreography as seen in the early 2000s filming with Angel Corella. Both Daniel Carmago and James Whiteside modified (made easier) the choreography. Aran is one to watch! Joo Won gave a proficient Von Rothbart with beautiful turns and balances. Link to comment
MoMo Posted July 16, 2023 Share Posted July 16, 2023 56 minutes ago, ABT Fan said: Where do you see this? ABT’s IG story from an hour ago says it’s Han. Patrick Frenette just posted a video of Sung Woo Han dancing Benno, as scheduled. Link to comment
California Posted July 16, 2023 Share Posted July 16, 2023 1 hour ago, ABT Fan said: Where do you see this? ABT’s IG story from an hour ago says it’s Han. Hoven is in the print program. No print insert. But an announcement before the curtain Link to comment
California Posted July 16, 2023 Share Posted July 16, 2023 15 minutes ago, onxmyxtoes said: Erica Lall's ballon in today's matinee was unlike anyone I have seen recently. She gave me Osipova vibes - not quite Osipova but wow here sixes were so high up in the air with such ease!! I sensed a lot of hesitation in Hee's dancing and especially noticed that choreography was modified to avoid prolonged back bends. Her Act II solo was beautiful, with just a small fumble during the turn sequence. Act III solo was competent but she looked like she was struggling and had no characterization at all. It wasn't her best performance. Aran Bell was the most technically sound Sigfried I saw all week. He is the only one that did the same choreography as seen in the early 2000s filming with Angel Corella. Both Daniel Carmago and James Whiteside modified (made easier) the choreography. Aran is one to watch! Joo Won gave a proficient Von Rothbart with beautiful turns and balances. Hee seemed tired in Act III. Low jumps, flat footed at one place in pique turn menage. Single fouettes - about 24. Yes - incredible ballon by Lall. Love to see her have more opportunities to show that off! Bell is the complete package. Acting throughout was nuanced and believable. Solid technique. Link to comment
MoMo Posted July 16, 2023 Share Posted July 16, 2023 22 minutes ago, California said: Hoven is in the print program. No print insert. But an announcement before the curtain Blaine was supposed to dance Benno, and was listed in the program. But he didn’t feel well and Sung Woo replaced him. Link to comment
ABT Fan Posted July 16, 2023 Author Share Posted July 16, 2023 I agree with others who have said Bell is the complete package. He has an incredible maturity and dramatic sensibility for such young a person. His technique is so solid and he was really strong throughout the ballet. I also agree that Seo had some issues today. Her Act II was extraordinary - she is natural Odette: lyrical, beautiful use of her head and especially her arms, and she showed real depth and pathos. Technically she was very strong except for one little issue with a pirouette. Act III started off well, but she lost steam. Her solo immediately before her fouettés was really underpowered; even her exit off the stage. Maybe she was saving energy, but her fouettés were quite good, all singles, I didn't count but you could tell she finished them early. Despite that, I thought she was overall really beautiful. Ahn was quite good technically as PR; dramatically he was better than usual. Whenever he gets to play a bad guy (like Tybalt) he comes alive and gives us some personality. It wasn't the best PR, but it was better than some others. Park as one of the Big Swans was absolutely incredible. I think she has more than earned that super fast promotion from last year - I was skeptical, but everything I see her in she leaves me thinking "wow". I didn't think the peasant pas de trois was that amazing. Coker was fantastic - I'd even say she was nearly perfect in every way. Lall - wonderful to see her get this opportunity. And yes, the height she gets on her jumps was really something. She had some trouble on a diagonal set of turns and it looked like her right shoe either wasn't broken in well or she just wasn't pointing that foot - it frequently had a dead fish appearance. But, she has one of the loveliest presentations - beautiful upper body, natural unforced smile and such joy. Gonzalez overall was very good - some solid landings and clean jumps. He and Lall had an issue with a turn, nothing too major but it was awkward. But, there is something about his presentation that always leaves me wanting more. I'm thinking it may be a lack of confidence because his face and upper body are always a bit restrained or shut down. If he could open up a bit and let loose, I think it would make a big difference. Link to comment
ba11et0mane Posted July 16, 2023 Share Posted July 16, 2023 I’m sorry but i would love a brandt/bell swan lake one day. i don’t care about the ridiculous height difference (brandt at 5’2 and bell is 6’3 for anyone who didn’t know). I’ve watched the videos skylar posted on her youtube where they danced swan lake together at boca ballet theatre and it looked amazing(height difference wasn’t all that bothersome) they are both some of ABT’s strongest dancers at the moment. Just a thought i felt the need to share Link to comment
California Posted July 16, 2023 Share Posted July 16, 2023 14 hours ago, ba11et0mane said: I’m sorry but i would love a brandt/bell swan lake one day. i don’t care about the ridiculous height difference (brandt at 5’2 and bell is 6’3 for anyone who didn’t know). I’ve watched the videos skylar posted on her youtube where they danced swan lake together at boca ballet theatre and it looked amazing(height difference wasn’t all that bothersome) they are both some of ABT’s strongest dancers at the moment. Just a thought i felt the need to share I agree. This performance of Swan Lake with Brandt and Bell was live-streamed for a small donation back in May 2021. Brandt posted her white swan and black swan: Link to comment
California Posted July 16, 2023 Share Posted July 16, 2023 I haven't seen any comments on the Saturday evening performance with Shevchenko and Royal. She was spectacular in every way -- dramatic interpretation, dazzling technique (no surprise). Alas, Royal still has too many rough edges and I hope he continues to improve -- especially the wobbly landings and sloppy positions. The audience was extremely enthusiastic -- too enthusiastic, actually. It seemed like she had a cheering section that burst out in screams and applause at the drop of a hat, including the beginning of her impeccable fouettes (plenty of doubles) and throughout her variations. A nice touch: some yellow sunflowers (the flower of Ukraine) in the bouquet presented to her at the end. Link to comment
fondoffouettes Posted July 16, 2023 Share Posted July 16, 2023 (edited) Last's night's SL didn't come together as a fully satisfying performance for me, though, as @California states, Shevchenko was often brilliant technically. Royal has a charming stage presence, but I think he's made zero improvement technically on his Siegfried since last year. It's frustrating to see just how sloppy he is. His partnering was pretty solid throughout, though. His Siegfried is a sweet wide-eyed teenager, but doesn't evolve much throughout the ballet. I think Royal is about 34 years old, so I think the train may have left the station when it comes to him getting his technique together. Shevchenko had impressive technique, as usual. I thought her Odette started off quite compelling but was maybe a bit too icy/aloof for my taste throughout the rest of the act. However, there were some lovely moments, including quite beautiful swan arms in her exit. I don't think she and Royal have much chemistry; I'd be curious to see Shevchenko with a different partner. Shevchenko came alive dramatically as Odile, but her performance was marred by continually trying to go for extra revolutions and other tricks and not quite pulling them off (e.g., having to finesse ending with her back to the audience). Also, she and/or Royal had the idea to extend the supported pirouettes with extra, fast revolutions. I saw this done to stunning effect when Brandt and Cornejo performed their first Corsaire together. However, here it looked like Royal was turning an egg beater. It looked effortful and like Shevchenko was just dead weight being rotated. Her fouettes were very good. She added doubles and I think one triple to the first section of the music, then continued with singles. Overall, I wish Shevchenko had focused on delivering a clean performance rather than adding difficult elements that didn't quite work out, though I understand the desire to take some risks. Sung Woo Han delivered another very good performance in the pas de trois, and Sierra Armstrong (whom I wasn't familiar with at all) was lovely -- light and airy. Paulina Waski was only slightly less of a train wreck than she was last year, when it was conjectured that she was exhausted from her time with the Boston Ballet. The turning section of her variation went almost exactly how it did last year -- flubs throughout, and she had to complete the last couple turns completely off pointe. At the end of pas de trois, she seemed to have no energy left and began marking the jumps while Han and Armstrong actually executed them. I remember her as a promising corps member before the pandemic, but I'm not sure what's happened. Edited July 16, 2023 by fondoffouettes Link to comment
ABT Fan Posted July 16, 2023 Author Share Posted July 16, 2023 Teuscher just posted what had happened to Stearns during their Friday performance: https://www.instagram.com/p/Cuw-g5HutwP/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== Link to comment
California Posted July 16, 2023 Share Posted July 16, 2023 8 minutes ago, fondoffouettes said: Also, she and/or Royal had the idea to extend the supported pirouettes with extra, fast revolutions. I saw this done to stunning effect when Brandt and Cornejo performed their first Corsaire together. However, here it looked like Royal was turning an egg beater. Brandt did the "eggbeater" pirouettes with Bell in the black swan at Boca Ballet. See 3:30. I wonder if other pairs will start doing those. Link to comment
fondoffouettes Posted July 16, 2023 Share Posted July 16, 2023 (edited) 8 minutes ago, California said: Brandt did the "eggbeater" pirouettes with Bell in the black swan at Boca Ballet. See 3:30. I wonder if other pairs will start doing those. Thanks for pointing them out here. They have a much lighter, easier quality here than in last night's performance. I'm realizing now that they just might not be to my taste in this particular pas de deux. I did think they were fun in Corsaire, though. Edited July 16, 2023 by fondoffouettes Link to comment
nanushka Posted July 16, 2023 Share Posted July 16, 2023 (edited) I too disliked those supported pirouettes. Unfortunately, they got applause each time, though, so I worry the positive feedback may mean we'll be seeing them more. The magic of supported pirouettes, IMO, depends on there not being the sense that every ounce of rotational force is coming straight from the hands of turner's partner. As @fondoffouettes described, though, that was indeed the impression I got last night. As @California also described, Shevchenko's fans seemed to be ready to scream at anything — including every entrance she made in the ballroom scene (when she and Rothbart appeared, again when she and Siegfried came out for the opening of the PDD, etc.). Ischuk was decent as Rothbart, but I wish they would cast some dancers who have a bit more maturity and stage presence — i.e. the ability to really come across as a dominating figure, one who can take full control of the room. When I saw Hoven listed in the program as Benno, I was eager to see what kind of shape he's in these days. In the years after his belated promotion to soloist, I thought he gave some quite good performances. Waski's performance was a real head-scratcher; those non-existent jumps at the end of the coda were bizarre. The two sets of cygnets I saw this year (Bonfiglio/Coker/Kimura/Lall on Wednesday night, Bonfiglio/Coker/Marshall/Yamada last night) have been more united and well-prepared than they sometimes have in past years. Carlos Gonzalez stood out in the Spanish dance both nights, and Joseph Markey looked to have gotten some additional coaching between Wednesday and Saturday; last night, he was a much better match for Gonzalez, giving a lot more energy and definition to his dancing. Klein replaced Magbitang both nights in the Neapolitan, dancing with Roxander; both were great, especially on Wednesday. I really hope we get some new productions of these classics in the coming years. I'd love to see the company get a shot of adrenaline from a fresh take on what they've all been doing for years — and I’m very tired of a lot of McKenzie’s choreographic additions. Edited July 16, 2023 by nanushka Link to comment
abatt Posted July 16, 2023 Share Posted July 16, 2023 Thanks for clarifying that was indeed Klein. I did not hear any announcement on Neapolitan for the cast change. I thought Shevchenko was very good technically, but the performance left me cold. Royal's technical flaws are exposed most egregiously in Petipa. Link to comment
angelica Posted July 16, 2023 Share Posted July 16, 2023 1 minute ago, abatt said: Royal's technical flaws are exposed most egregiously in Petipa. Everyone's technical flaws are exposed most egregiously in Petipa. You're right, though, in suggesting that more contemporary ballets have more room for personality. Link to comment
BrazilianBAllet Posted July 16, 2023 Share Posted July 16, 2023 As I watched last night I thought that maybe Waski was injured. Isn’t this supposed to be a role for someone who jumps high? It was strange Link to comment
Papagena Posted July 16, 2023 Share Posted July 16, 2023 (edited) 1 hour ago, nanushka said: As @California also described, Shevchenko's fans seemed to be ready to scream at anything — including every entrance she made in the ballroom scene (when she and Rothbart appeared, again when she and Siegfried came out for the opening of the PDD, etc.) I'm not understanding the mild disapproval in these reports. Thank god there is enthusiasm at the Met! Are we not thrilled that such a technically brilliant dancer (who has room to grow artistically) is getting the attention we wished on her years ago? On another note that has been mentioned by others, the Klein/Roxander Neapolitan was world class. Not only are they technically excellent, Klein has such an interesting intensity and nobility in his stage presence (I haven't seen the other Roxander breakout roles, but what a presence he has as well!). I hope all these young, extremely talented male corps members (Curley! Magbitang!) will follow the path of Bell, not the others who faded out slowly in the soloist ranks. . Edited July 16, 2023 by Papagena Link to comment
nysusan Posted July 16, 2023 Share Posted July 16, 2023 (edited) I went to the Sat mat SL specifically to see Bell and despite the fact that I have avoided Seo since the days of McKenzie's Hee Seo Ballet Theatre when there were lots of ballerinas out with injuries and he had Seo sub in for pretty much all of them. I saw her step in for Murphy with Gomes and then I think later in the run dance it with Bolle. I always thought she had beautiful arms and epaulment but in addition to her technical deficiencies I always found her to be dramatically inert and unengaged. What a difference a decade (or so) makes! On Saturday she was absolutely beautiful and emotionally engaging. As Odette her plastique was gorgeous, she moved from one beautiful shape to another and her epaulment has only become more soft and fluid. Best of all, she moved me. She has learned to integrate acting with her dancing and make her dancing more expressive rather than just beautiful. I found her especially heartbreaking in the second white act, which I usually find to be a complete letdown in the McKenzie version. She will never be a great Odile but I thought she was good enough. She was gleeful and seductive and had one great balance and some sparkling moments in her solo. Her fouettes were not the speediest or peppered with doubles and triples and she only did 24 or 25 but she did them musically and without falling out of them or ending up with her back to the audience like some other ABT ballerinas have. Bell, as expected, was great. I want to see him in everything. Also really loved Coker and especially Lall in the pdt and Crispino in Neopolitan. One weird thing - at the beginning of the program it listed Cy Doherty as swamp thing VR but in act 4 it listed Zhurbin - could that have been a mistake? I was too busy watching Seo and Bell to get a good look at VR but it would be really strange to switch swamp thing VRs within the performance (planned, without an injury). On Saturday night I agree with abatt that Shevchenko was outstanding technically but not emotionally engaging at all. And those screaming fans really annoyed me - it was not just enthusiasm but was like the commotion back in the day at YAGP galas - very intrusive and inappropriate. Also agree that Royal was sloppy. And in a role I almost never notice the lead man in the Czardas was so compelling I had to look it up to see who it was - and it was Zhurbin! Edited July 16, 2023 by nysusan correct name! Link to comment
nanushka Posted July 16, 2023 Share Posted July 16, 2023 39 minutes ago, Papagena said: I'm not understanding the mild disapproval in these reports. Thank god there is enthusiasm at the Met! Are we not thrilled that such a technically brilliant dancer (who has room to grow artistically) is getting the attention we wished on her years ago? I don't mind applause and even cheers at the big moments, but literal screaming at any remotely impressive technical achievement, and at multiple entrances in a single scene? No, personally I'm not thrilled at that. It just seems a bit much. Link to comment
abatt Posted July 16, 2023 Share Posted July 16, 2023 I saw a busload of teenagers entering the theater. Not sure if they were the primary source of the screaming. I didn't mind. If they keep coming back to ABT, it will help ABT survive economically. ABT needs all the help it can get. Link to comment
Papagena Posted July 16, 2023 Share Posted July 16, 2023 (edited) 1 hour ago, abatt said: I saw a busload of teenagers entering the theater. Not sure if they were the primary source of the screaming. I didn't mind. If they keep coming back to ABT, it will help ABT survive economically. ABT needs all the help it can get. Agreed. Might have been The Rock School. Seems like they had a field trip according to their (soon to disappear) IG stories. I've enjoyed looking through all the excited IG stories from them and others this week. A lot of young fans overall making trips to NYC to see Swan Lake (as much as I'm tired of this production, ABT might be wise to stick a couple extra shows with Brandt and Copeland - if she is still up for it - next year to take advantage of midsummer SL-mania). Enthusiastic young fans are one of the things I find really endearing about Misty Copeland's performances - while not everyone likes it, I'm sure Christine did. I recall going to Le Corsaire with my friends as a young teen, and just screaming our heads off for Angel Corella (more so during the bows and at the end of solos, not during the variations). I don't do that anymore, but find it charming when young people treat dancers like rock stars, even if it makes for a different type of evening than I expected. I get more annoyed with all the adults chatting or pulling out their phones. Edited July 16, 2023 by Papagena Link to comment
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