ABT Fan Posted July 21, 2023 Share Posted July 21, 2023 59 minutes ago, California said: A side note on Bell's partnering from a Pointe interview: https://pointemagazine.com/catherine-hurlin-aran-bell-abt/ At just shy of 16, he was taken into ABT Studio Company, at the time directed by Kate Lydon. It was only then that Bell, who was still on the smaller side and slight, began to grow to his current height of 6′ 3″. And, more importantly, where he really learned to partner. Going through a huge growth spurt made things more difficult, but also focused his efforts. “I had a moment of realization when they asked me to do a very simple lift with the lightest girl in the room and it just didn’t happen,” he explains. “I had that panic—’I need to do something about this, fast.’ ” He started to work out assiduously at the gym, bulked up and figured it out. As a result, at 21 he is already considered one of the most dependable partners in the company. My thought on Royal's shaky partnering Wednesday afternoon: he needs to head to the gym! I wonder how many of the male dancers now see that as essential training. I think a lot of male dancers realize how essential it is to lift and cross train. I remember Sascha Radetsky got heavily into lifting weights when he was still dancing. Gomes used to post lots of videos on IG of him lifting. Whiteside is another one and way before he was injured: https://www.instagram.com/reel/CTnUYyhFNnr/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== Curley is another: https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cmg-UAJBPLk/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== Not all guys, of course and I’m not sure about Royal. Link to comment
ba11et0mane Posted July 21, 2023 Share Posted July 21, 2023 3 hours ago, abatt said: And Roxander knocked it out of the park with his superb dancing as Mercutio. The audience loved him and he seemed super in character, right before Mercutio’s death when Mercutio tries to convince romeo to take a sword against tybalt and romeo refuses, you could see Roxander mouthing “just take it / just take one” to Bell. small detail that i loved, he has left such a good impression on me this season and i hope he gets promoted soon! Link to comment
abatt Posted July 21, 2023 Share Posted July 21, 2023 I sat near a large group of teenage girls. I think they were probably not yet high school aged. They thought the ballet was derived from a Taylor Swift song which apparently references R&J. It was clear as they were speaking to their adult chaperones that they never heard of Shakespeare. I guess Shakespeare isn't taught until high school, but I found the whole thing both amusing and disturbing all at the same time. They were completely unfamiliar with the story and when Tybalt killed Mercutio the girl next to me let out an audible gasp, followed by the words Oh my god! The girls were pleased that Aran Bell was dancing. One said - He's awesome. He's like a celebrity! Link to comment
cobweb Posted July 21, 2023 Share Posted July 21, 2023 30 minutes ago, abatt said: They were completely unfamiliar with the story and when Tybalt killed Mercutio the girl next to me let out an audible gasp, followed by the words Oh my god! Glad to hear she was engaged and deeply affected! I sense a ballet, and Shakespeare, fan in the making. Link to comment
vipa Posted July 22, 2023 Share Posted July 22, 2023 6 hours ago, abatt said: I sat near a large group of teenage girls. I think they were probably not yet high school aged. They thought the ballet was derived from a Taylor Swift song which apparently references R&J. It was clear as they were speaking to their adult chaperones that they never heard of Shakespeare. I guess Shakespeare isn't taught until high school, but I found the whole thing both amusing and disturbing all at the same time. They were completely unfamiliar with the story and when Tybalt killed Mercutio the girl next to me let out an audible gasp, followed by the words Oh my god! The girls were pleased that Aran Bell was dancing. One said - He's awesome. He's like a celebrity! This is great. It shows the clarity with which the ballet tells the story, and how well the emotional content was delivered. I hope these first timers come back for more. Thanks for that report abatt. Link to comment
MoMo Posted July 22, 2023 Share Posted July 22, 2023 28 minutes ago, vipa said: This is great. It shows the clarity with which the ballet tells the story, and how well the emotional content was delivered. I hope these first timers come back for more. Thanks for that report abatt. I had Shakespeare in 11th grade in High school. ( A thousand years ago). Thank you Mrs. Burke. So when I first saw Romeo and Juliet as a ballet, I knew exactly what was going on! Link to comment
volcanohunter Posted July 22, 2023 Share Posted July 22, 2023 On 7/19/2023 at 11:41 AM, FayBallet said: Yes, maybe it depends on the usher. Also, I think for practical reasons, the ushers generally don't keep as much as a watchful eye in the boxes (I was in the balcony boxes). Many years ago there was an extremely interesting documentary series about the Royal Opera House titled The House. In it an usher recounted his most unusual experience on the job and it involved a couple engaging in hanky panky in their box, and at the ROH boxes are actually separated from each other with dividing walls. Apparently, the people sitting opposite noticed something going on, and when the usher opened the door to the box, he found the offending couple on the floor in flagrante delicto, which would be nothing like taking pictures on a phone. On 7/19/2023 at 11:41 AM, FayBallet said: Many phones were out all over and that's not so uncommon, but witnessing someone browsing the photo app throughout Acts II and III was a new experience for me. In 2016 I attended the Proms when Pokémon Go was all the rage, and I remember people in my sight line playing it during the concerts. Perhaps a little different during a musical performance, but clearly the action on stage was less interesting to them than what was happening on their screens. Link to comment
abatt Posted July 22, 2023 Share Posted July 22, 2023 (edited) The thing is that the ballet leaves out the ending of the play, in which the Capulets and Montagues agree to end their feud. The chaperone of the kids said the play is about two selfish and dumb teenagers, but that completely misses the point of the themes in the play - a gross oversimplification. Edited July 22, 2023 by abatt Link to comment
ABT Fan Posted July 22, 2023 Share Posted July 22, 2023 Did anyone attend last night? I’m maybe a bit too excited for tonight’s performance - I don’t want to jinx it. Fear all week of Cornejo having to cancel again like last year, and anticipation over Roxander’s Mercutio. Praying to the ballet gods with fervor and please, oh please let Zhurbin be cast as Tybalt! Link to comment
MoMo Posted July 22, 2023 Share Posted July 22, 2023 Any news on promotion announcements? Today is the last day of Met Season. Link to comment
volcanohunter Posted July 22, 2023 Share Posted July 22, 2023 16 hours ago, MoMo said: I had Shakespeare in 11th grade in High school. ( A thousand years ago). Thank you Mrs. Burke. So when I first saw Romeo and Juliet as a ballet, I knew exactly what was going on! 4 hours ago, abatt said: The thing is that the ballet leaves out the ending of the play, in which the Capulets and Montagues agree to end their feud. The chaperone of the kids said the play is about two selfish and dumb teenagers, but that completely misses the point of the themes in the play - a gross oversimplification. I also don't know what English classes are like now, but I read a Shakespeare play in each year of high school and one was included in the mandatory first-year English course every student at my alma mater had to take (except for the engineers ). As it happens, Romeo and Juliet was not among them, but I understand it is a popular choice among English teachers, so there is a good chance those kids will read the play eventually. Link to comment
matilda Posted July 22, 2023 Share Posted July 22, 2023 I found the 1996 Baz Luhrmann film "Romeo + Juliet" (starring heart throb Leo DiCaprio) a great introduction to the story as a preteen, before reading the book in school. I guess Gen-Z doesn't have an equivalent pop culture reference. Link to comment
ABT Fan Posted July 22, 2023 Share Posted July 22, 2023 54 minutes ago, MoMo said: Any news on promotion announcements? Today is the last day of Met Season. Nothing. Jaffe may have a different promotion cadence in mind than McKenzie did. Link to comment
Helene Posted July 22, 2023 Share Posted July 22, 2023 8 minutes ago, matilda said: guess Gen-Z doesn't have an equivalent pop culture reference. If figure skating is anything to go by, there's also the 2013 movie. Link to comment
ba11et0mane Posted July 22, 2023 Share Posted July 22, 2023 christine’s knee started bleeding during the very end of the show. hope it was nothing serious. Link to comment
MoMo Posted July 22, 2023 Share Posted July 22, 2023 ABT official website just posted Congratulations to Joey Gorak on a wonderful career. He took extra page bows. I think he’s retiring. Link to comment
ABT Fan Posted July 22, 2023 Share Posted July 22, 2023 (edited) 9 minutes ago, MoMo said: ABT official website just posted Congratulations to Joey Gorak on a wonderful career. He took extra page bows. I think he’s retiring. I just saw the story on their IG. Yep, he’s leaving. I have to say that despite him not living up to the potential many of us hoped he had, his Bronze Idol was the best I’ve ever seen. Simply gorgeous. Edited July 22, 2023 by ABT Fan Link to comment
angelica Posted July 23, 2023 Share Posted July 23, 2023 3 hours ago, ABT Fan said: I have to say that despite him not living up to the potential many of us hoped he had, his Bronze Idol was the best I’ve ever seen. Simply gorgeous. You might want to tell him that on Instagram or elsewhere. Link to comment
vipa Posted July 23, 2023 Share Posted July 23, 2023 4 hours ago, MoMo said: ABT official website just posted Congratulations to Joey Gorak on a wonderful career. He took extra page bows. I think he’s retiring. Do you know if he's retiring from ballet or just leaving ABT. He was one of those dancers IMO who couldn't seize the opportunities he was given for whatever reasons., but he was/is a gifted dancer. Link to comment
MoMo Posted July 23, 2023 Share Posted July 23, 2023 9 minutes ago, vipa said: Do you know if he's retiring from ballet or just leaving ABT. He was one of those dancers IMO who couldn't seize the opportunities he was given for whatever reasons., but he was/is a gifted dancer. The details weren’t given. Just Congratulations from the Company. Link to comment
fondoffouettes Posted July 23, 2023 Share Posted July 23, 2023 (edited) I found Cornejo and Trenary to be rather underwhelming tonight (I admittedly went into the performance with very high expectations), and I ended up leaving after the first act. For me, this ballet can feel like such a slog when the leads don't deliver extremely compelling performances. I wouldn't be at all surprised, though, if others report that things pick up dramatically with Trenary and Cornejo in the subsequent acts. Overall, I thought Cornejo seemed quite subdued and lacked his usual magnetism onstage (and I love Cornejo). I wonder if maybe he had to focus on pulling off the technical elements to the detriment of his acting. He struggled a bit in the section with Benvolio and Mercutio before the ball, and through he went for broke in his solo in the balcony scene, there was a sense of strain and evident lack of flexibility. Trenary's performance was surprisingly one-note. She has infatuation down pat, but I would have liked to see more shadings in her Juliet. She just seemed like a happy-go-lucky teenager who was going to fall in love with any guy they stuck in front of her. There wasn't much of a sense of fated lovers The balcony pas de deux lacked sweep and passion. I think this may be a pas de deux where it'd be helpful to have a taller Romeo to pull of all the swoony elements; there was nothing technically wrong with the partnering, but there just wasn't much abandon. But, as I said, these impressions are based only on the first act. I'm curious to hear how the rest of the performance goes. Edited July 23, 2023 by fondoffouettes Link to comment
ABT Fan Posted July 23, 2023 Share Posted July 23, 2023 It’s interesting to read what others thought of the same performance. I have a completely opposite viewpoint of Cornejo and Trenary. The word I kept thinking of was actually “abandon”, especially in regards to Cornejo. I haven’t seen him dance like that in a long time. Was it because it was the last performance of the season and he had nothing to lose? He did post on IG a few times how excited he was that the house was virtually sold out. Was this his last Romeo so he went for broke? Whatever it was, it was marvelous. Trenary was incredible. I agree that her Juliet at the beginning needs more nuance and development, but at the end these two were passionately in love, devastated, heartbreaking. Roxander indeed rocked the house. I had high expectations and he didn’t disappoint. Pirouettes with countless revolutions and immense control, amazing height on his jumps, swagger up the wazoo. He’ll make an incredible Romeo someday. In the fall, he would be amazing as Puck. Ahn in general was fine as Tybalt but his death scene made no impact. It occurred to me that as a newish principal he’s routinely given little to do. Han was very good as Benvolio. Link to comment
nanushka Posted July 23, 2023 Share Posted July 23, 2023 27 minutes ago, abatt said: Roxander rocked the house He was fantastic! Such stage presence, in addition to his technical skills. Link to comment
DPell Posted July 23, 2023 Share Posted July 23, 2023 42 minutes ago, ABT Fan said: It’s interesting to read what others thought of the same performance. I have a completely opposite viewpoint of Cornejo and Trenary. The word I kept thinking of was actually “abandon”, especially in regards to Cornejo. I haven’t seen him dance like that in a long time. Was it because it was the last performance of the season and he had nothing to lose? He did post on IG a few times how excited he was that the house was virtually sold out. Was this his last Romeo so he went for broke? Whatever it was, it was marvelous. Trenary was incredible. I agree that her Juliet at the beginning needs more nuance and development, but at the end these two were passionately in love, devastated, heartbreaking. Roxander indeed rocked the house. I had high expectations and he didn’t disappoint. Pirouettes with countless revolutions and immense control, amazing height on his jumps, swagger up the wazoo. He’ll make an incredible Romeo someday. In the fall, he would be amazing as Puck. Ahn in general was fine as Tybalt but his death scene made no impact. It occurred to me that as a newish principal he’s routinely given little to do. Han was very good as Benvolio. I had the same thought regarding Roxander as Puck. I’m crossing my fingers that it happens. Link to comment
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