NYC Ballet Fans, part 2

[Marge_Simpson]

The Frick Museum has a series of "salon evenings" to tie in with their current Don Quixote tapestry exhibition.
I went to the one on Friday, which was titled "Balanchine and Imagination" and presented by Jennifer Homans (former dancer and author of "Apollo's Angels". Which btw is a very good read, except for the fact that ballet in Cuba does not get a single sentence in this book that claims to be a "history of ballet")
Ms Homans is an excellent speaker and gave a fabulous talk about Balanchine's Don Quixote. I've never seen it, and all I recall about it came from Suzanne Farrell's autobiography, which I read many years ago. She showed lots of photos but couldn't show clips due to issues with the Balanchine Trust. She said it's available for viewing at the NYPL's performing arts branch, though...I'll have to get myself over there some day and check it out.
Has anyone ever seen this version of Don Q? NYCB does not have it in their rep anymore, but she said Suzanne Farrell staged it for her company in 2005.
I'm doing the ABT salon evening in April, but I can't figure out how they are actually going to present any real dancing in the Frick's music room where these events are held. The stage in there is TINY. The room is gorgeous, however. If you go to one of these evenings, you get a tour of the tapestry exhibit afterwards. This was really cool as the museum is closed to the public by that time; it was like an intimate private tour.

 

[emason]

I have seen it, but, oh so many years ago. I don't think I liked it very much. Paging Kwanfan1818; if she hasn't seen it, I'll eat my hat.

 

[Rob]

I saw it back in the 70s. I remember thinking it was strange and disjointed. This suggests you can go see a restored film of it at Lincoln Center. http://www.nypl.org/press/press-rel...y-performing-arts-restores-and-edits-historic

 

[emason]

As I recall there is heavy emphasis on Quixote (played by Balanchine) and his muse, Dulcinea, danced by Balanchine's muse, Suzanne Farrell. Lot's of talk about this at the time. Hints of voyeurism as we look at their private relationship.

 

[Rob]

Yes, very psychological with some variations thrown in.

 

[Spun Silver]

I saw it back then and loved it. A magnificent lyrical role for Farrell. Balanchine only danced it a couple times. I didn't see him, alas. I always thought it was tragic that they didn't revive it while she was still dancing - it was only done one season between 1976 and 2000 - my years in NYC.

There are a few pix of Farrell and Balanchine in Don Q here. I am attaching the whole page because I worship Farrell.

https://www.pinterest.com/pinhjt/suzanne-farrell/

 

[Artistic Skaters]

Lastly, I saw Ballet 422, the documentary about the making of one of Justin Peck's ballets in 2013. A real dance insider who has seen it all and done it all would probably be bored, but a no teknik fan like me would enjoy it. I love seeing backstage glimpses into the creative process. Did I know costume designers worry about whether fabric pills? I never think about stuff like that when I am at a performance, so I really enjoyed the film.

Thanks for the update. This just started playing where I live, so I came here to check for reviews & will go see it this month!

 

[emason]

Enjoy and please report back what you think.

 

[Marge_Simpson]

There are still tickets available for ABT's salon evenings at the Frick; info here



http://www.frick.org/programs/salon_evenings

Also, ABt will give a presentation at the Performing Arts Library (at Lincoln Center) on Thurs May 28. The event is free but you need to pre-register. Registration opens on April 28. Info here:

http://www.nypl.org/events/programs/2015/05/28/american-ballet-theatre-selfie-session

 

[Marge_Simpson]

Is anyone planning to see any of ABT's W&P at the Guggenheim this season? I wasn't planning to go, but when I read that they are doing a 25 year retrospective for each of the 3 presentations, I caved and got a ticket for the first one, which will cover 1940-1964.
I'm totally disenchanted with ABT these days, and only plan to see one performance this spring - "Othello" with Alex Hammoudi and Gillian Murphy. Everything else on their upcoming schedule makes me yawn.

 

[Rob]

I want to see Vishneva do Sleeping Beauty. It is a new Ratmansky production - I am not a fan of Ratmansky, but I couldn't stand Kevin's Beauty - so I am happy to see a new production. I would like to see Nunez and Obratsova too, but Royal is coming here so I hope Nunez will be here, and I think Obratsova is mid-week and I probably can't make it up there.

 

[emason]

Kevin's Beauty is heinous. I'm not really interested in much ABT is doing this spring, but maybe I'll fall on my sword for you and check out one of these performances. I'm going to wait until the last possible moment to get a ticket to anything, because casting always seems to change greatly at this company between announcement and actual performance.

 

[Marge_Simpson]

Yes, I'm planning on waiting till the last minute also.
OTOH, I've renewed my NYCB subscription. If you tend top prefer ABT to NYCB because ABT mainly does full-length ballets, NYCB is doing "La Sylphide" and "A Midsummer's Night Dream" this season. Their schedule is here:

http://www.nycballet.com/Season-Tickets/Calendar.aspx#family events=1&performances=1&special events=1&talks/demos=1&sunday=1&monday=1&tuesday=1&wednesday=1&thursday=1&friday=1&saturday=1&s=3/20/2015&e=4/7/2015

 

[kwanfan1818]

Ratmansky's Sleeping Beauty is based mostly/heavily on the Sergeyev notation, with a few concessions to later versions, like the fish thingies in the Wedding pas de deux, and it clocks in just under three hours, rather than four, to avoid expensive overtime, plus illustrations from early productions, and the stage directions (and maybe mime) in the original score. Like in the Munich "Paquita," he's trying to get the dancers to approximate the original style, rather than apply the current mania for over-extensions.

Judith Mackrell's preview in The Guardian

It did its out-of-town preview at Segerstrom in southern California at the beginning of the month.

Alastair Macaulay's review in the NYT
LA Times review
In arts meme
Costume descriptions in the LA Arts Examiner

The opening night Lilac Fairy, Veronika Part, was injured, and friends from LA who saw it said that the choreography was simplified to accommodate her injury, and that dancers who weren't all reviewed did the planned version.

 

[Marge_Simpson]

I was poking around the V&A website for something totally unrelated, and discovered they have some great articles about ballet history. Have a look:

http://www.vam.ac.uk/page/b/ballet/

 

[Frau Muller]

Ratmansky's Sleeping Beauty is based mostly/heavily on the Sergeyev notation, with a few concessions to later versions, like the fish thingies in the Wedding pas de deux, and it clocks in just under three hours, rather than four, to avoid expensive overtime, plus illustrations from early productions, and the stage directions (and maybe mime) in the original score. Like in the Munich "Paquita," he's trying to get the dancers to approximate the original style, rather than apply the current mania for over-extensions.

Judith Mackrell's preview in The Guardian

It did its out-of-town preview at Segerstrom in southern California at the beginning of the month.

Alastair Macaulay's review in the NYT
LA Times review
In arts meme
Costume descriptions in the LA Arts Examiner

The opening night Lilac Fairy, Veronika Part, was injured, and friends from LA who saw it said that the choreography was simplified to accommodate her injury, and that dancers who weren't all reviewed did the planned version.

I saw it in Costa Mesa and it was pretty bad. The designs were after the Bakst 1921 Diaghilev version - but crafted with cheap materials - and the steps were performed in an antiquated 19th century manner, yet with vestiges of 20th century moves, as you mention. So we saw dancers trained in the 21st-C dancing a 20th-C version but performing in 19th-C style, such as pique turns in demi pointe and bent working legs in arabesques, for example. Big mess. I hope that a lot of this is fixed before the ballet goes to the Met, then La Scala.

 

[Jubak]

Frau Muller, I'm sorry you didn't like it. I know for an absolute fact that the costumes & set were made in Italy and not crafted with cheap materials. I know several people who travel far and wide to see ballet and they all loved it. I guess different strokes for different folks. I'm looking forward to seeing it, although after attending the finals of YAGP and seeing too many junior women doing Sleeping Beauty variations, I thought I was going to slit my wrists.

 

[danceronice]

I saw it back then and loved it. A magnificent lyrical role for Farrell. Balanchine only danced it a couple times. I didn't see him, alas. I always thought it was tragic that they didn't revive it while she was still dancing - it was only done one season between 1976 and 2000 - my years in NYC.

There are a few pix of Farrell and Balanchine in Don Q here. I am attaching the whole page because I worship Farrell.

https://www.pinterest.com/pinhjt/suzanne-farrell/

If there is one ballet I could see with the original opening-night cast, this would be it. Sadly I had the disadvantage of not being born at the time...

 

[kwanfan1818]

Paging Kwanfan1818; if she hasn't seen it, I'll eat my hat.

I hope your hat is made of pastry: I didn't see my first live ballet in NYC until 1971, while Balanchine's "Don Quixote" premiered in 1965 and wasn't performed after I graduated from college and started to go religiously.

couldn't stand Kevin's Beauty

The "Sleeping Beauty" that the Ratmansky replaces was originally staged primarily by Gelsey Kirkland and her husband, Michael Chernov with a credit to McKenzie, who supposedly edited out the most egregious parts after the premiere.

 

[Rob]

The "Sleeping Beauty" that the Ratmansky replaces was originally staged primarily by Gelsey Kirkland and her husband, Michael Chernov with a credit to McKenzie, who supposedly edited out the most egregious parts after the premiere.

I think they billed it as more of a collaboration: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/01/arts/dance/01beau.html?_r=2&
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/01/arts/dance/01beau.html?_r=2&
but this makes it sound like the other way around: http://www.abt.org/insideabt/news_display.asp?News_ID=166

 

[Rob]

I think they billed it as more of a collaboration: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/01/arts/dance/01beau.html?_r=2&
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/01/arts/dance/01beau.html?_r=2&
but this makes it sound like the other way around: http://www.abt.org/insideabt/news_display.asp?News_ID=166

oh, and Either way, if I were Gelsey, I wouldn't want to be the one who was primarily responsible for it.

 

[kwanfan1818]

Allegedly they were going in completely different directions, with Kirkland and Chernov going for more detail and McKenzie trying to turn it into a shorter greatest hits version, and it ended up like a ruin. I saw it after he simplified it further, but it was still a hodgepodge of misdirection.

 

[emason]

The good thing about the SB was the night that Gelsey turned up as Carabosse. That alone was worth the price of the ticket.

 

[Rob]

Allegedly they were going in completely different directions, with Kirkland and Chernov going for more detail and McKenzie trying to turn it into a shorter greatest hits version, and it ended up like a ruin. I saw it after he simplified it further, but it was still a hodgepodge of misdirection.

I couldn't agree more. I seem to remember a rumor that Gelsey wanted to take her name off if it. Can't find evidence of that though.

I saw Martine Van Hamel as Carabosse. She was good. Would liked to have seen Gelsey. Kinda says something if you go to SB because of who is doing Carabosse.

 

[kwanfan1818]

Kinda says something if you go to SB because of who is doing Carabosse.

Especially when it's not a Nureyev production, where whatever Nureyev danced is the main character.

 

[emason]

I saw Martine Van Hamel as Carabosse. She was good. Would liked to have seen Gelsey. Kinda says something if you go to SB because of who is doing Carabosse.

I bought my ticket on the strength of Gelsey's name, and judging by the deafening applause Gelsey got at the curtain calls, fully 75% of the audience seemed to be there to see her and only her, and it certainly does say something about SB and ABT.

 

[kwanfan1818]

Especially for those of us who remember a time when it wasn't all about guest stars. Even Makarova and Fracci danced the entire season, like I understand Vishneva and Ananiashvili did, and the company was full of "house" ballerinas like D'Antuono, Gregory, Kirkland, Tcherkassky, van Hamel, McKerrow, Paul, etc.

 

[Spun Silver]

I couldn't agree more. I seem to remember a rumor that Gelsey wanted to take her name off if it. Can't find evidence of that though.

I saw Martine Van Hamel as Carabosse. She was good. Would liked to have seen Gelsey. Kinda says something if you go to SB because of who is doing Carabosse.

If I still lived in NYC and could afford it, I'd pay to see Van Hamel as Carabosse. She was one of my all-time favorites in the classics, with that glorious line, strength, and fluidity. But I take your point!

 

[emason]

Van Hamel is still the definitive ABT Myrta for me. Sorry, Veronika Part, but you didn't even come close with that wishy-washy performance I saw you give a season or 2 ago.

 

[Rob]

Especially for those of us who remember a time when it wasn't all about guest stars. Even Makarova and Fracci danced the entire season, like I understand Vishneva and Ananiashvili did, and the company was full of "house" ballerinas like D'Antuono, Gregory, Kirkland, Tcherkassky, van Hamel, McKerrow, Paul, etc.

And it was a big deal when someone like Amanda or Susan Jaffe debuted as Giselle or whatnot -- not a 2 pm Wednesday matinee afterthought. Gala night was when you got the parade of guest artists. Otherwise, they were Resident Guest Artist for a season or two. I suppose one big difference is that the Soviet ballerinas weren't allowed to remain members of the Bolshoi or Kirov while dancing with ABT, Royal, and all over the world, and people want to see them so they sell tickets. But that doesn't explain why a San Francisco Ballet ballerina would get to guest in lead roles in evening performances over some of the "house" ballerinas. I see Hallberg hasn't recovered from his injury so he has been replaced by guest artists too.

Martine was my idol and role model when I was at Washington School of Ballet because I am tall and had a similar strong body type. ITA, she was absolutely the perfect Myrtha. I haven't seen anyone at ABT take hold of the role like she did.

HAHA, looking through some old reviews-this headline is pretty funny:
http://www.nytimes.com/1987/05/09/arts/ballet-bureyev-joins-tcherkassky-in-giselle.html