uptowner Posted July 26, 2023 Share Posted July 26, 2023 Has anyone gone to this? (Particularly interested if you have any experience with how early its necessary to show up?) http://www.lincolncenter.org/series/summer-for-the-city/s/BAAND Together Dance Festival"See five of NYC’s most iconic dance companies—Ballet Hispánico, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, American Ballet Theatre, New York City Ballet, and Dance Theatre of Harlem—together on one stage as the BAAND Together Dance Festival returns to Damrosch Park for five midsummer nights! From July 25–29, audiences will experience an exciting program curated collaboratively by the artistic directors of the companies. Each afternoon, one of the companies will also bring its unique teaching style to campus with daily Education Workshops, appropriate for all ages." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abatt Posted July 26, 2023 Share Posted July 26, 2023 It's going to be brutally hot and humid during the next few days. I feel sorry for the dancers who are expected to perform in extreme heat and humidity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nysusan Posted July 27, 2023 Share Posted July 27, 2023 I went last night. I got there just before 6:40 and the fast track ticket holders were already being let in. General public probably started going in about 6:45. I had a fast track ticket and didn't see how long the GP line was so unfortunately can't suggest how early you should get there. I do think the lines may be shorter than usual this weekend because of the heat wave. By the way, I saw Boylston and Ahn in Other Dances. Two dancers I am not crazy about in a pdd I have a hard watching since seeing the originals in the 70s. They did quite well. Ahn played down the Baryshnikov-isms which made it much more palatable for me. He was elegant and his usual lack of presence was not a factor here. Boylston was lovely, very lyrical and they both met the technical demands with aplomb. I love Times Are Racing so it was great to see it again. The rest of the program was fine but there were no real stand outs for me. Well, not quite true - Yannick LeBrun especially and Constance Stamatiou were wonderful in excerpts from the Ailey company's Dancing Spirit, though the excerpts themselves left me with no desire to see the whole thing at their City Center season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
volcanohunter Posted July 27, 2023 Share Posted July 27, 2023 Tonight's performance has been canceled. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abatt Posted July 27, 2023 Share Posted July 27, 2023 Not surprised at all. It's inhumane to expect the dancers to perform in this weather. I suspect all remaining outdoor shows are going to be cancelled on Friday too. Not sure what the forecast is for Saturday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
choriamb Posted July 29, 2023 Share Posted July 29, 2023 (edited) I caught Monday and Tuesday's performances. The times that I've seen Other Dances recently, it's been danced elegantly and technically pristinely...but without much perfume. Some of the sprezzatura has been lost. And if the dancers have sporadically caught a few of the folk dance gestures, they haven't demonstrated that those folk dance gestures convey meanings (or that the meaning of those gestures is usually flirting). Not on Monday. Murphy and Bell nailed the tone. The episodes had nuanced moods but still felt tossed-off. Bell perfectly underplayed the humor. And Murphy performed like someone who has danced Raymonda, worn character shoes, and been around Makarova a bit. Like two artists given some delightful bagatelles after a season of serious full-length works. They danced well together and I'd enjoy seeing them deepen their partnership beyond the pros-meeting-at-a-gala stage. (Based on this, Murphy still turns better than her peers did 20 ago.) On Tuesday, I arrived late and was standing far back in the grove, so I didn't really catch faces or nuances in Boylston and Ahn's performance. (If I were in the Met, I wouldn't have been in the standing room area...I'd have been in the lobby.) From what I saw, Boylston's presentation was great: sunnier overall but with bravura energy and attention to her partner. Agreed that Ahn was elegant and musical in solo varations. (I think he still needs to visibly engage with his partner more, but he's actually better at that than Cornejo at a similar age.) The other companies brought loud full-cast barnstormers, which ABT presumably couldn't do due to the corp being at Wolf Trap. I felt that Ballet Hispanico's piece (Ochoa's Línea Recta) needed a bit more editing/workshopping. Lots of flamenco-influenced movement without a deeper formal exploration or a clear narrative. Antonio Cangiano and Gabrielle Sprauve had enough dramatic verve to fully lift it briefly, but all of the dancers gave committed performances. But it warmed my heart to see how far Dance Theatre of Harlem has come over the past decade. They are fully back: every dancer looked in top-notch form in a killer petit allegro workout and had an individual stage presence and movement quality. And if this is the kind of ballet Robert Garland is going to make for the company, I don't have any worries about the rep either: I would be happy to see his stuff at ABT or NYCB. Edited July 29, 2023 by choriamb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
California Posted July 29, 2023 Share Posted July 29, 2023 3 hours ago, choriamb said: The times that I've seen Other Dances recently, it's been danced elegantly and technically pristinely...but without much perfume. Some of the sprezzatura has been lost. And if the dancers have sporadically caught a few of the folk dance gestures, they haven't demonstrated that those folk dance gestures convey meanings (or that the meaning of those gestures is usually flirting). Not on Monday. Murphy and Bell nailed the tone. The episodes had nuanced moods but still felt tossed-off. Bell perfectly underplayed the humor. And Murphy performed like someone who has danced Raymonda, worn character shoes, and been around Makarova a bit. Like two artists given some delightful bagatelles after a season of serious full-length works. They danced well together and I'd enjoy seeing them deepen their partnership beyond the pros-meeting-at-a-gala stage. (Based on this, Murphy still turns better than her peers did 20 ago.) Thanks for this report on Other Dances. In the Pointe interview a few years ago, Bell said he spends a lot of time studying tapes of greats before him. I've wondered what kind of coaching the men get at ABT -- anything? Murphy-Bell would be a great addition to the ABT gala in October. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
California Posted July 31, 2023 Share Posted July 31, 2023 (edited) On 7/29/2023 at 1:01 AM, choriamb said: Murphy and Bell nailed the tone. The episodes had nuanced moods but still felt tossed-off. Bell perfectly underplayed the humor. And Murphy performed like someone who has danced Raymonda, worn character shoes, and been around Makarova a bit. Like two artists given some delightful bagatelles after a season of serious full-length works. They danced well together and I'd enjoy seeing them deepen their partnership beyond the pros-meeting-at-a-gala stage. (Based on this, Murphy still turns better than her peers did 20 ago.) On Instagram Stories today (Monday): Aran Bell posted a clip of the performance, possibly from Saturday. The detail and nuance are gorgeous. It sounds like they were coached by Isabel Guerin. Does she work for ABT on other things? Unfortunately, those stories are only on-line for one day and there's no way to link them. @aran_bell Edited July 31, 2023 by California Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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