ABT Met Season 2024

[Fraildove]

6 hours ago, stuben said:

If “cranky” is the issue, I wonder if that created some “bad blood” between the two?! If so, it would indeed be an awkward situation and unfortunate for the rest of the cast, and audiences who got tickets just to see them.

I was actually just about to ask if Camargo had been in any Cranko rep since jumping ship from Stuttgart? M Just curious if this is the first time he has been pulled or if it’s happened before or if he has had additional opportunities to perform?

[Fosca]

10 hours ago, Fraildove said:

I was actually just about to ask if Camargo had been in any Cranko rep since jumping ship from Stuttgart?

He was even invited back to Stuttgart for Reid Anderson's farewell gala in 2018, where he danced the pdd from "Taming of the Shrew". Anderson discovered him and made him a star.

[BalanchineFan]

On 6/16/2024 at 2:26 PM, California said:

I don't think I could find a source, but I remember somebody saying that everybody new to Balanchine ballets has problems with tendonitis. And he was dancing a LOT in that era, as this story notes. 

I have danced in that theater and the floors are notoriously hard. I can’t imagine doing Balanchine rep (or any petit allegro) there for a long period of time. 

[California]

11 minutes ago, BalanchineFan said:

I have danced in that theater and the floors are notoriously hard. I can’t imagine doing Balanchine rep (or any petit allegro) there for a long period of time. 

Balanchine famously said his company would not return after the 1981-82 season, unless they replaced the floors:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1981/11/26/kitchen-tested-dance-floor-for-jfk-center/b5cae230-4a63-48b8-a44d-d871b3653a4f/

This seems to be behind a paywall, so here's the key info:

Early this year [1981], Balanchine had said his company would not return to Kennedy Center for the 1981-82 season and not thereafter until the floor situation had been remedied. The new floor design thus paves the way for the return of the NYC Ballet to Washington, and indeed the company is "penciled in" for the fall of '82.

...The original floor for the Opera House was supposed to be capable of being "tuned" to different resiliencies, but not long after the hall opened in 1971 it was discovered that there was no "give" in the adjusting screws, and complaints from dancers about the hardness of the floor -- and the consequent danger of injury -- have been chronic ever since. In recent years the Kennedy Center has reiterated its determination to improve the situation; now, with the cooperation of NYC Ballet and ABT, deliverance would appear to be at hand -- and foot.

[nanushka]

16 minutes ago, California said:

Balanchine famously said his company would not return after the 1981-82 season, unless they replaced the floors:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1981/11/26/kitchen-tested-dance-floor-for-jfk-center/b5cae230-4a63-48b8-a44d-d871b3653a4f/

This seems to be behind a paywall, so here's the key info:

 

Here's a link that doesn't require a subscription:

https://wapo.st/4eqweyS

[abatt]

6 minutes ago, matilda said:

I don't think we can say that with certainty. Camargo did leave the company after all, so there could be tension. 

Can we presume that Jaffe presented the casting proposal to Cranko's Estate well before last week?  If so, why would they wait until 3 days before to ax this cast?  Was there a rehearsal last week of this ballet?  If so, were members of the Cranko estate present and decided they didn't like what they saw.  It is a puzzlement. 

[ABT Fan]

Since my office is closed tomorrow I just switched my Thursday evening ticket to tomorrow afternoon since it’s the same cast and then seeing the evening as well. That’s a lot of drama for one day but commute wise it’s better. But, there is now a great orchestra seat available Thursday night if you call the box office.

Also, Teuscher’s post yesterday has a lot of comments from ABT dancers sharing their bewilderment and frustration with her and Camargo being pulled. A lot of support being shown here.

https://www.instagram.com/p/C8U7_CAuIlb/?igsh=bDA3OGtnaTZ3YzZh

Added: I can’t remember who but someone up thread commented on how maybe Teuscher’s lack of flexibility may have contributed to her being pulled. I agree she lacks flexibility and in certain roles, most glaringly O/O, it’s really obvious. But, if that was the issue then why cast her in the first place. She’s about 35 - it’s not going to improve at this point. 

Edited June 18 by ABT Fan

[Helene]

The only things we can say with certainty are:

1. The previously announced cast with Teuscher and Camargo has been pulled.

2. From her own words, it was not Teuscher’s decision, and she is sad about it.

3. The Cranko people have in the past pulled casts and cast members, including those with high profile dancers, from Onegin. They have that power.

4. Carmago left Stuttgart Ballet in 2013 to join Dutch National Ballet, and, five years later, while he was with that company, he was invited back for Reid Anderson’s Farewell Gala.

Everything else is speculation.  When there is more official news, please feel free to discuss it.  It’s not that I don’t understand the frustration at having casts changed for whatever reason, but there are some things we may never know officially, and there are plenty of places to discuss unofficial news in person and on the internet.

 

 

[volcanohunter]

20 hours ago, Drew said:

I missed Vishneva...

For what it's worth, she was my least favorite Tatiana among all I've seen.

20 hours ago, Drew said:

If Camargo and Teuscher were indeed pulled by the trust, then perhaps they can take a smidgeon of comfort at finding themselves in some pretty illustrious company.

Yes, Sylvie Guillem, Leanne Benjamin, Tamara Rojo and Jonathan Cope are very distinguished company.

[abatt]

2 hours ago, ABT Fan said:

Since my office is closed tomorrow I just switched my Thursday evening ticket to tomorrow afternoon since it’s the same cast and then seeing the evening as well. That’s a lot of drama for one day but commute wise it’s better. But, there is now a great orchestra seat available Thursday night if you call the box office.

Also, Teuscher’s post yesterday has a lot of comments from ABT dancers sharing their bewilderment and frustration with her and Camargo being pulled. A lot of support being shown here.

https://www.instagram.com/p/C8U7_CAuIlb/?igsh=bDA3OGtnaTZ3YzZh

Added: I can’t remember who but someone up thread commented on how maybe Teuscher’s lack of flexibility may have contributed to her being pulled. I agree she lacks flexibility and in certain roles, most glaringly O/O, it’s really obvious. But, if that was the issue then why cast her in the first place. She’s about 35 - it’s not going to improve at this point. 

It seems that Devon was a favorite of McKenzie, and that has carried over to the Jaffe regime.  Actually, I think Trenary would have been a good choice for Tatiana.  However, I do think in spite of lack of upper body flexibility, Teuscher would have been interesting as Tatiana.  

Devon is one of my least favorite Juliets.  I thought it was because she is too patrician, but the lack of upper body flexibility may also be a factor.

[BalanchineFan]

I was referring to the State Theater in NYC where Baryshnikov danced while a member of NYCB. I haven’t found any public facing confirmation but, imo, the floors at the former State Theater are still hard.

Early this year [1981], Balanchine had said his company would not return to Kennedy Center for the 1981-82 season and not thereafter until the floor situation had been remedied. The new floor design thus paves the way for the return of the NYC Ballet to Washington, and indeed the company is "penciled in" for the fall of '82.

[jeff-sh]

13 minutes ago, BalanchineFan said:

  the floors at the former State Theater are still hard.

 

that is why ABT brought their own floor for last year's fall season

[ABT Fan]

Thought I’d mention in case some were unaware - given the heat this week, the Met Opera gift shop is a great place to pop in and cool down before the performance. It’s next to the ticket booths and is always open hours before performances (and their AC is always blasting). Obviously, if you can’t arrive till close to curtain that won’t help you. 

[FauxPas]

Word to the wise:  it seems that $35 day of rush tickets are being sold through the Met website.

You have to order the day of - noon for an evening show and four hours before a matinee.

Lots of bells and whistles but it's worth the hassle.

https://www.metopera.org/Season/Tickets/Rush-Page/

Edited June 20 by FauxPas

[Royal Blue]

Thank you to all the members who inform the rest of us about casting changes, and anything else of importance. Without them, personally, I would not know what was happening. So, as long as the rules of the forum are followed, they should post any valuable information they become aware of as soon as possible.

I read hurriedly, for the first time, Pushkin's verse novel (the Charles Johnston translation) in time for this season's run of Onegin. So I am more conscious than ever of why the love affair between Tatiana and Onegin is unquestionably one of the greatest in literature. The passage of time and extraordinarily poignant parallelism of the scenes involving the two letters in Eugene Onegin naturally make the situation piercing and unforgettable.

Evidently, many here bought tickets for Friday's performance, originally cast with Devon Teuscher and Daniel Camargo. That was the one I bought as soon as I could, too.

In the Instagram post by Teuscher referred to above, she writes: "I have poured my heart and soul into preparing the role of 'Tatiana' and look forward to the day I will bring her to life." (My use of the single quotation marks here is for the purpose of clarity.) These words provide even greater justification for wanting to observe her interpret this role. The character of Tatiana deserves no less, as she is one of the finest and most affecting portrayals of a woman in literature. I trust, and I am hoping, of course, that Christine Shevchenko, Hee Seo and Chloe Misseldine will also do well.

[Fosca]

5 hours ago, volcanohunter said:

Sylvie Guillem, Leanne Benjamin, Tamara Rojo and Jonathan Cope are very distinguished company.

I'm not sure but wasn't Cope cast in the role and then broke his leg? I can't find the casting for the Royal Ballet's Onegin in 2005 though...

[volcanohunter]

The Royal Ballet production of Onegin premiered in 2001. All the casting through 2015 is available online at ROH Collections. The casting information for performances in January-February 2020 hasn't been posted yet.

In the autumn of 2001 Cope danced Basilio in Don Quixote and performed in The Nutcracker that Christmas season. In the new year he danced in Stephen Baynes' Beyond Bach and Ashton's Marguerite and Armand.

Cope broke his leg in 2006, which prevented him from appearing in his planned retirement performances of The Firebird that year.

The information in the archive shows that while Tamara Rojo was the first-cast Tatiana, she did not appear in any subsequent revival of the ballet. And, of course, no sign of Guillem, Benjamin or Cope.

https://rohcollections.org.uk/production.aspx?production=6410&row=0

Edited June 19 by volcanohunter

[Josette]

32 minutes ago, volcanohunter said:

The Royal Ballet production of Onegin premiered in 2001. All the casting through 2015 is available online at ROH Collections. The casting information for performances in January-February 2020 hasn't been posted yet.

In the autumn of 2001 Cope danced Basilio in Don Quixote and performed in The Nutcracker that Christmas season. In the new year he danced in Stephen Baynes' Beyond Bach and Ashton's Marguerite and Armand.

Cope broke his leg in 2006, which prevented him from appearing in his planned retirement performances of The Firebird that year.

The information in the archive shows that while Tamara Rojo was the first-cast Tatiana, she did not appear in any subsequent revival of the ballet. And, of course, no sign of Guillem, Benjamin or Cope.

https://rohcollections.org.uk/production.aspx?production=6410&row=0

And this is why Onegin is unlikely to show up in San Francisco any time soon as the director will not want to revisit her memories.  

[Mary Mellowdew]

10 hours ago, ABT Fan said:

Thought I’d mention in case some were unaware - given the heat this week, the Met Opera gift shop is a great place to pop in and cool down before the performance. It’s next to the ticket booths and is always open hours before performances (and their AC is always blasting). Obviously, if you can’t arrive till close to curtain that won’t help you. 

That is an excellent idea, though I would suggest getting there very early. When I tried to do that last year, arriving maybe 35-45 minutes before curtain, I was unable to get in. They made everyone line up outside and when they finally let people in it was through only one set of doors, so it was a slow process and by that point I did not have time for the gift shop, The apparent reason for this was the Met not wanting a lot of heat pouring into the house. I was thinking of trying it again this week, but don't know what their current procedure is. Hopefully, their AC system is in better shape this year. I was thinking of arriving an to an hour and a half ahead.  Alternatively, I may just go late and risk missing the beginning of the performance. I just don't want to have to stand outside in that  hot plaza again.

[Fosca]

6 hours ago, volcanohunter said:

All the casting through 2015 is available online at ROH Collections.

Thank you very much. I was looking for the announcement of the Onegin casts in 2005 which was changed until the performances, as announcements often do. I remember how glad I was that Cope finally should get the role, and then he dropped out because of an injury.

[volcanohunter]

 The ROH archive has information about performances in 2001, 2002, 2004, 2007, 2010, 2013 and 2015, so perhaps the performances in question took place in 2004? Casting announcements are hard to come by. They tend to get deleted on theater websites, and the links on forums go dead accordingly. That's why personally I'm grateful when people take the time to copy and paste them here as a matter of record.

Edited June 19 by volcanohunter

[ABT Fan]

8 hours ago, Mary Mellowdew said:

That is an excellent idea, though I would suggest getting there very early. When I tried to do that last year, arriving maybe 35-45 minutes before curtain, I was unable to get in. They made everyone line up outside and when they finally let people in it was through only one set of doors, so it was a slow process and by that point I did not have time for the gift shop, The apparent reason for this was the Met not wanting a lot of heat pouring into the house. I was thinking of trying it again this week, but don't know what their current procedure is. Hopefully, their AC system is in better shape this year. I was thinking of arriving an to an hour and a half ahead.  Alternatively, I may just go late and risk missing the beginning of the performance. I just don't want to have to stand outside in that  hot plaza again.

Yeah, getting there about 30 minutes beforehand isn’t enough time. Certainly we all have things to do and can’t always afford to arrive at the theater an hour or more ahead of time. But, if you can that’s the way to do it. If by some odd reason security still says you can’t go in tell them you’re going to the gift shop, which is definitely open and the only way to get there is through the main theater entrance. You can then cool off and then be first in line INSIDE to go into the theater (watch the time and the line). 

[balletlover08]

Thought I would share this article of two young dancers people love, Chloe Misseldine and Jake Roxander. Enjoy! 

https://gothamist.com/arts-entertainment/it-runs-in-the-family-at-abt-2-rising-stars-follow-in-their-parents-steps 

[ABT Fan]

Well, the mystery surrounding the corps rehearsing Kingdom of the Shades has been solved- they performed it this morning at ABT Kids. 

Lea Fleytoux posted a story about it (only visible to IG members):

https://www.instagram.com/leafleytoux?igsh=eGh5a2l3aW9vanZz

Hoping they still perform it during the Fall season, or next year.

[California]

On 6/18/2024 at 11:13 PM, Mary Mellowdew said:

They made everyone line up outside and when they finally let people in it was through only one set of doors, so it was a slow process and by that point I did not have time for the gift shop, The apparent reason for this was the Met not wanting a lot of heat pouring into the house. I was thinking of trying it again this week, but don't know what their current procedure is. Hopefully, their AC system is in better shape this year. 

For the Saturday matinee today, they opened the second set of doors marked for "subscribers" and people crammed inside, but there were still people stranded outside in the brutal heat. I wish they would open the lobby one hour ahead, as the State theater does, at least to get people out of the heat, which is really dangerous.