NYC Ballet Fans, part 2

[emason]

Joffrey Maverick of Dance show is on PBS tonight.

I saw this at Symphony Space many months ago. Cannot overemphasize how great I thought it was. Thanks for the reminder; I'll try to catch it.

Went to both Program A and Program B of the Trocks. Their take on Paquita is my all-time favorite. Sorry,Adam Sklute, Rex Tilton and Ballet West, but the Paquita you brought to Fall for Dance cannot hold a candle to the Trocks. Olga (Robert Carter) Supphozova is a Super-Star. Also loved the Flames of Paris pas des deux, but didn't catch who was dancing.

Marge, where is your more in teknik review of when you went?

[BigB08822]

This is on my list of things to do next time we go to NYC. I absolutely must see the ballet! Is it hard to get tickets to? Expensive? I've never been to the ballet anywhere other than local productions of the Nutcracker. We are making NYC a yearly trip so I am already thinking about next year.

[kwanfan1818]

The Trocks are a touring company, so you have to check back here when there's more detail. It's says "USA" for July, but they might come through NYC to and from their other performances.

The two resident companies in NYC are American Ballet Theatre (ABT) and New York City Ballet (NYCB). New York City Opera has had a bunch of financial woes, and they gave up their times slots at the Koch Theater (formerly New York State Theater) in Lincoln Center, and both ABT and NYCB have taken up some of that time.

ABT does three sets of performances a year:

• Fall, 30 October-10 November, mixed rep, at the Koch Theater, where the sight lines are so much better than at City Center, where ABT had been doing its Fall season. The contract runs for Fall 2013, 2014, and 2015.
• "Nutcracker" (Alexei Ratmansky's version), at Brooklyn Academy of Music. According to the ABT website, dates are TBA. This year's dates were 7-16 December.
• Met Season, this year from 13 May-6 July. It's usually mostly full-length ballets, with some mixed rep thrown in. Metropolitan Opera House.

NYCB also has three seasons now, four if you consider "Nutcracker" separately, all at the Koch Theater. This season's dates are:

• Fall 2012 (September 18 - October 14)
• Nutcracker 2012 (November 23 - December 30) This is the George Balanchine version, seen in the Macauley Culkin/NYCB film.
• Winter 2013 (January 15 - February 24)
• Spring 2013 (April 30 - June 9)

This is a newish schedule, with a new Fall season offset by a January break and a shortened spring season. They have to be out in time for ABT on the 30th, probably at least a week earlier, so I wouldn't expect them to go much later this year.

Usually the programs are mixed rep with some full-lengths thrown in. (Could be Peter Martins' "Swan Lake," "Romeo + Juliet," or "Sleeping Beauty" and Balanchine's "A Midsummer Night's Dream" or "Coppelia." I'm sure I'm forgetting something.)

The Met is a lot bigger than the Koch Theater. I used to get the cheapest seats in what was then the New York State Theater, and I was fine. I didn't really like to sit closer than the Second Ring, and I particularly liked Fourth Ring Rows A and B. At the Met, I really don't like to be in the top level (Family Circle) for ballet -- opera is a different story -- and prefer the Balcony or Dress Circle.

Once you decide on your dates, I'm sure Marge_Simpson, emason, and Rob can give you more detailed recommendations on what rep and casts to see (and avoid) and where to sit. ABT releases casting long in advance. NYCB only releases it a week in advance.

[kwanfan1818]

Hey, lucky NYC ballet people: The Royal Ballet''s Steven McRae will dance Lankendem in "Le Corsaire" and the Royal Danish Ballet's Al will be dancing Prince Desire in "The Sleeping Beauty" in ABT's spring/summer season at the Met. In return, Cory Stearns will dance at the Royal Ballet -- he received a full scholarship to the RB School after winning YAGP -- with role(s) TBA, and Isabella Boynton is going to go to Denmark to dance in the Royal Danish Ballet "Nutcracker."

I saw Steven McRae in a couple of things in London, and he was terrific. I wouldn't have pegged him for a character dancer, but you never know. I've never seen Alban Lendorf in a featured role, but from all accounts, he's a wonderful dancer.

[emason]

Thanks for the heads up. The new season just got more interesting.

[Rob]

I have to get up there to see Vishneva do something at ABT. Onegin?

Then I would like to see Semionova and Cojocaru. I was hoping they would bring someone down here to do Corsaire other than Kent, Reyes, Murphy, Herrera, Part and the usual people they bring here. I got Herrera on Thursday night. But bingo, Osipova is doing it Sunday matinee so I can trade in my seats for that or for the mixed bag so I can see Gomes do Moor's Pavane. Corsaire isn't my fave, and neither is Vasiliev, but if you have to see him do something, I guess Corsaire is the right kind of thing (other than cheesy Spartacus).

[Marge_Simpson]

Works & Process tickets go on sale Monday. Info here:

http://www.guggenheim.org/new-york/calendar-and-events
I'm going to get a ticket for ABT even though I'm not subscribing this season. Hopefully Simpkin will be off "branding" himself somewhere that day and I will be spared having to watch him. Otherwise I will probably laugh hysterically if they introduce him as a "versatile dancer".
I might see Wendy Whalen; she's my favorite lady at NYCB.

I've seen Lendorf several times. Besides being a very nice dancer, he has amazing assets. But I loathe ABT's "Sleeping Beauty" (I'm seeing NYCB's) so I will have to give it a miss.

Rob, don't forget, I will be in DC for "Alice". Hopefully we can meet up at some point.

[Rob]

What day do you get here?

ABT's Beauty is ZZZzzzzzzzz. If they don't get off that boat sometime soon I am going to drown myself.

[Marge_Simpson]

I'm arriving on Wed the 23rd but I probably won't be up to much that evening. (due to my early train and general inability to wake up at ungodly hours, I will probably stay awake all night in order to make the train) I'm seeing "Alice" on Sat the 26th, and returning home on Monday the 28th. I'm up for dinner on any evening except Wed.
Especially if it is at CocoSala, Zaytinya, or Jaleo.

I saw the original version of ABT's "new and improved" SB. It was a Saturday matinee, and I'd gotten mandated to do a double shift at work the night before. I got off from work at 8 AM and knew if I went home to get a few hours sleep, I'd never get out of bed and make it to the ballet. So I swilled lots of coffee and just stayed awake.
By the time I got to the theatre I was quite giddy from caffeine and sleep deprivation. I was in a grand tier box with a 30-ish woman and her young daughter, who became increasingly alarmed at my presence in the box. When the lights went down I had to stifle my laughter at the day-glow, "burger king" costumes and the transparent curtain that looked like it belonged in a shower. It only got worse from there, to the point where I was snorting out loud at the horrible production. I actually debated leaving at the intermission, but I decided to stick it out. But the woman and daughter moved to an unoccupied box for the 2nd act. They probably thought I was a dangerous lunatic.

[Marge_Simpson]

Last week I received 3, yes, 3 brochures from ABT saying "last chance to renew your subscription!"
I would have thought that they would have deleted my name from their list after the earful I gave them.
Is anyone planning to see NYCB on Friday? If you are and you want to meet up, just say the word.

[Buzz]

There was an acid attack against the artistic director of Russia's Bolshoi ballet. Sergei Filin may have been a victim of an internal feud at the ballet company. He is in hospital where doctors are trying to save his eyesight.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...civil-war.html

[DustPuppyOI]

Not ballet but has anyone watched Parsons Dance before? There's blog reader special offer: http://oberon481.typepad.com/oberons...ial-offer.html

[Marge_Simpson]

I returned home from DC to find 3 more ABT brochures cluttering up my mailbox. I can see why they keep raising ticket prices; their postage expenses must be through the roof.
I'm seeing NYCB's "Sleeping Beauty" on the 15th, if anyone would like to join me.

[beepbeep]

It's POB, but it might as well be NY ballet news.
Benjamin Millipied is the new AD of the Paris Opera Ballet.

I don't think it's the best of ideas, but time will tell...

[kwanfan1818]

Millepied was chosen by the incoming director of Paris Opera, and that guy is risking his reputation on him, rather than one of at least three former or soon-to-be-retired etoiles that were considered forerunners.

I suspect they think he'll be able to raise private funds as government funds start to dry up. I'm not so sure this will work, as Paris has a lot more to be dazzled about than the presence of Natalie Portman.

[beepbeep]

It's Prix de Lausanne week!

Miko Fogarty, from First Position, is one of the contestans (and she's Swiss, apparently!).
And, if you're into ballet tumblrs, vaganovaboy (who's canadian rs) is also competing.

I lurrve the video blogs

[kwanfan1818]

I think Fogarty is Swiss through her dad.

[Marge_Simpson]

And if she ends up a lunatic, it's from her mom.

When I saw "First Position" the audience cracked up laughing everytime her mom or her brother appeared on screen.

[kwanfan1818]

Her brother was a scream.

[beepbeep]

I didn't know, up until the video blog, her father was Swiss.
Jules is a riot And that tiger mom

And waht is it with the brazilian girls and Swanilda variation?
There's always one doing it (Marcella Paiva, Mayara Magri and now Letícia Domingues).