NYC Ballet Fans, part 2

[kwanfan1818]

Kochetkova was asked for several reasons: she's tiny and was originally brought in to replace an injured Cojocaru, Cornejo's scheduled partner. (Sarah Lane was already partnered with someone else in the run.) She trained at the Bolshoi School, danced with ENB and the Royal Ballet before joining San Francisco Ballet, and, besides being ubiquitous on the international gala circuit, she's guested with the Bolshoi and Stanislavsky ballets and has as solid a resume and pedigree as just about any of their recent guests, aside from Osipova and Mariinsky one-offs. Not that there's anything wrong with being a San Francisco Ballet dancer: Sarah van Patten has blown away anything I've seen from any of the ABT ballerinas in years during my sporadic visits.

The question is why they continue to import -- she's been back again to be Cornejo's partner -- instead of giving the chances to their own dancers. I don't have a sense of who's short enough for Cornejo besides Lane,and, ironically, McKenzie doesn't see Natalie Portman's "Black Swan" dancing double Lane as Odette/Odile material.

Martine van Hamel was a goddess on the stage.

 

[emason]

If you want to know why they continue to import, go read what Haglund posted (yesterday I think) on his blog. It's a deliberate policy choice on the part of ABT. I'd link it for you, but I'm the house Luddite here and not too good at that stuff.

 

[kwanfan1818]

I know there was a YouTube video with some ABT top administrative dog who talked about who sells tickets and who doesn't, and house ballerinas no longer sell tickets. The video was removed.

 

[Rob]

If you want to know why they continue to import, go read what Haglund posted (yesterday I think) on his blog. It's a deliberate policy choice on the part of ABT. I'd link it for you, but I'm the house Luddite here and not too good at that stuff.

Sounds typical. The Board holds the purse strings.

 

[kwanfan1818]

They've done their best to make it a self-fulfilling prophecy.

 

[Rob]

Did I mention that I saw Misty Copeland do Odette/Odile in Swan Lake with Washington Ballet? I couldn't find a post about it in this thread.

 

[kwanfan1818]

What did you think?

 

[Rob]

Well, I am not the biggest fan of her technique in classical works, and I think she is at her best in more modern choreography. But considering the image she projects (strong curvy nontraditional ballerina), I do respect that she portrayed Odette as a strong woman turned swan fighting to be free of Rothbart. Not the least bit helpless. In the past, I conceded that she has stage presence for days, but I found her to be a bit wobbly and sort of dancing around her core rather than pulling up through it. A little rough in transitions. I always say that you can tell when someone started their training late when you are painfully aware of her heels. Does that make sense? But she was fairly precise and smooth as Odette. No glaring technical errors and not wobbly like I have seen her in the past. But she is not yet finding her own phrasing and nuances that make you go "ahhhhh."

It then surprised me that she did not let evil Odile rip -- she was quite conservative and sort of distracted. Lacking in drama and sparkle. I thought she would be better suited to Odile than Odette. Perhaps she was nervous about Black Swan generally because she completely messed up her 32 fouettes -- started ok with single doubles, then started traveling sideways, very wobbly, nearly ran into the bystanders, then had to do a few single pirouettes to eat up the music. EEEK. She apparently did this in both performances. She was far more dramatic in the 4th act death scene than she was as Odile. Definitely has some technical work to do in Black Swan.

It was at Eisenhower Theatre in Kennedy Center and the stage was too small or the sets were too big. Didn't really leave Brooklyn Mack enough room for his bravura. He's not Hallberg, but he is a very good and charismatic dancer. I thought there was plenty of chemistry between them, but the critics disagreed.

The amazing thing was the reception she got. From the moment she stepped onstage, people in the audience were hooting and cheering like she was a rock star in a rock concert. Not polite applause/Brava -- actual woooo-hoooo, cheering and screaming. It was so bizarre. She's definitely become the master of self-promotion if not the master of technique. Standing ovation at the end lasted for a long time. I even heard "Go Misty!" DC is so weird.

It puzzled me that ABT would give her (and not Sarah Lane) Swan Lake, but now I see. Wednesday matinee will sell out. Woo-hoo!

 

[kwanfan1818]

Thank you so much, Rob!

That is surprising that she didn't let Odile rip, especially since she's been a Gamzatti, not a Nikiya. But collisions, yikes, since the fouettes are one of those highlight moves that people wait for that can overwhelm the impression of the entire performance.

ABT has Sarah Lane typecast as the technical whiz. Many companies won't cast short dancers as Odette/Odile, but that hasn't stopped them from hiring Cojocaru for the role or Kochetkova to replace her.

I remember reading a study that said that people are more generous with their impressions the more they pay. That seemed counter-intuitive to me, because I'd expect them to be more demanding to get their money's worth, but I guess it makes people feel justified in paying the price. Apparently ticket prices (in DC), both official and from scalpers, were through the roof for Copeland's performances. The Russian-speaking audiences in NYC have a reputation of making a racket when they're not talking when "their" dancers aren't dancing, among themselves or on their cell phones. (Which leaves out all of the Russian-speaking audiences who aren't at all conspicuous in any way and never get counted.)

I've heard wonderful things about Brooklyn Mack.

There are two things I think about where I'm aware of heels: the first is their placement (or not) over the pointe -- I've seen this among kids who rushed into pointe shoes too early and aren't using their muscles to keep them up there -- and the second is that they don't seem quite an organic extension of the foot in turnout, like the lead is happening from there. It's almost like the heels are turned in, when the rest of the foot is turned out.

 

[Rob]

Thank you so much, Rob!
There are two things I think about where I'm aware of heels: the first is their placement (or not) over the pointe -- I've seen this among kids who rushed into pointe shoes too early and aren't using their muscles to keep them up there -- .

Right, the ankle is pushed back making the heel look big. This isn't really Misty's problem though.

and the second is that they don't seem quite an organic extension of the foot in turnout, like the lead is happening from there. It's almost like the heels are turned in, when the rest of the foot is turned out.

Yes! The foot wings out when it hits its final destination, but while in movement/transition, the heel leads or it causes the foot to rotate inward making the heel more prominent. And making the movement have a wobbly look. This is what I have seen in Misty - she's getting better though.

 

[skatesindreams]

Of interest:
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmas...about-american-ballet-theatre-a-history/3638/

 

[Marge_Simpson]

Here is the post from Haglund's Heel:

http://haglundsheel.typepad.com/hag...ed-statistics-to-promote-a-faulty-star-s.html

I would have thought ABT would celebrate its 75th anniversary by giving opportunities to its own dancers, but reading the rationale behind this decision is beyond depressing.
For the past several seasons I have refused to shell out my money for a guest star, and I will continue to do so.

 

[Rob]

I want to see Marianela Nunez, but fortunately, I can see her at Kennedy Center in June with her own company. Sick of Don Q, but its here.

 

[ballettmaus]

Here is the post from Haglund's Heel:

http://haglundsheel.typepad.com/hag...ed-statistics-to-promote-a-faulty-star-s.html

That strategy is appalling! Some of the phrasing is as well though - especially the "so-called stars" comment because many of them are and have actually danced at Mariinsky and in Paris as guests (Does NYC Ballet even have any guest stars? I know that they are said to not even hold auditions and only take students from their own academy).

But dancers earn little enough as it is, so wanting to reduce their salary is outrageous. But I guess it's hard for the dancers to do something against it. They should consider going on strike like the dancers in Berlin are currently doing. They have refused to dance a couple of performances these past couple of months. ABT might be willing to reconsider their policy if they don't earn any money at all and even have the reimburse people.

 

[Rob]

Article on ABT strike decades ago:
http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1979/11/11/page/195/article/dance

 

[kwanfan1818]

NYCB does take dancers who haven't been trained at SAB. But it isn't common. There have been a number of dancers from Royal Danish Ballet over the years, like Bruhn (unhappily), Martins, Helgesson, Andersen, Luders, and Peter Martins son Nilas and his son's stepbrother through his mother, Ask La Four. There have been notable French-trained dancers like Violette Verdy, Sofiane Sylve, and Benjamin Millepied. Karin von Aroldingen and Otto Neubert trained in Germany.

My understanding of auditioning for most companies in the US is that a dancer asks to take Company class. Sometimes they send video packages, depending on the company. There aren't many cattle call auditions anymore, since they're expensive to run, even from the home company.

Paris Opera Ballet holds auditions for the equivalent of apprenticeships on short-term contracts for corps roles.

 

[Jubak]

I have some fairly good inside track of ABT, and as far as guest stars, I can tell you that the Russians really support their own when they dance w/ABT. They sell out the house. No comps. All arts organizations, including ABT, need money. About Osipova & Vasiliev - much of the shifting around is due to their more-than-shady manager. He is devoted to them but is really oily-slick. Osipova has been doing very well @ the Royal, which from what I heard, suits her better than ABT. She was coming back to ABT to dance Juliet, which was smashing for her w/Hallberg 2 yrs ago. Since he's injured, she's dancing w/Marcelo Gomes, no slouch. I hope their chemistry is good. And yes, David really has been injured and has had a hard, long road back from ankle surgery. He's working hard & plans to come back. Some of the posting really has really bashed him on whether he really has been injured. He has - continually and heartbreakingly - but he's an incredibly hard worker & disciplinarian in addition to being a great dancer (he is also a really sweet guy).

 

[kwanfan1818]

I don't know why anyone would accuse Hallberg of not being injured. What dancer wants to lose years of him prime, especially as a Principal with two of the most prestigious companies in the world, his choice of partners, and constant lucrative offers to guest and do galas?

 

[emason]

Thanks for posting this, Jubak. I agree the Russians support their own. If I go on a night when a Russian is dancing, Russian is the most prominent language I hear spoken - in the ladies room, in the line for drinks at intermission, etc. It isn't only the Russians, either; when Bolle dances I hear Italian everywhere. I'm sure when I go for the double-header final performances of Paloma Herrera and Xiomara Reyes on the 27th, I will hear Spanish, Spanish, and more Spanish.

I'm sorry to hear about Hallberg; I hope he is on the road to recovery.

 

[Jubak]

I don't know why anyone would accuse Hallberg of not being injured. What dancer wants to lose years of him prime, especially as a Principal with two of the most prestigious companies in the world, his choice of partners, and constant lucrative offers to guest and do galas?

kwanfan, I've read this in some posting, like he's a fragile flower who will cancel at the drop of a hat. People can be pretty cruel in their assumptions without really knowing what is going on. What you said makes the most sense out of assumptions. What I've read is just people gossiping and speculating.

 

[kwanfan1818]

Yeah, every delicate flower moves to Moscow without knowing the language and faces the resentment of colleagues and coaches who don't agree with his having been hired in the first place, especially the Grigorovitch groupies.

 

[Jubak]

Kwanfan, you hit the nail on the head. ABT was initially very proud of him. He went their to further his partnership with Osipova, who abruptly left (due to the slimey manager who was promising her & Vasiliev more) David likes living in Russia and they were very welcoming to him. His injury, however, started over there. BTW, what I hear from many people is as talented as Vasiliev is, he is lazy and for that reason, will not technically get better. That breeds resentment at ABT. I have never heard that about Osipova, though.

 

[ballettmaus]

Not entirely related, but Maya Plisetskaya just passed away. http://rt.com/news/255153-russian-ballerina-plisetskaya-dies/

May she rest in peace on that eternal stage where all the legendary dancers still perform!

 

[Rob]

Kwanfan, you hit the nail on the head. ABT was initially very proud of him. He went their to further his partnership with Osipova, who abruptly left (due to the slimey manager who was promising her & Vasiliev more) David likes living in Russia and they were very welcoming to him. His injury, however, started over there. BTW, what I hear from many people is as talented as Vasiliev is, he is lazy and for that reason, will not technically get better. That breeds resentment at ABT. I have never heard that about Osipova, though.

I love him with Osipova, but his partnership with Zakharova is pretty fabulous too. I see him as the ultimate dedicated and gifted artist - I don't peg him as a delicate flower at all, but I do guess that he is a perfectionist. I am sorry he is losing time, but I am happy he is not pushing himself to come back too soon. I pray that this injury will not become career ending, but his risk increases if he pushes it too much.

 

[Artistic Skaters]

I saw a commercial about this today -

ABT's 75th Anniversary Featured on JEOPARDY! Today :

http://www.broadwayworld.com/articl...to-Be-Featured-on-JEOPARDY-Next-Week-20150504#

American Ballet Theatre's 75th Anniversary will be the subject of a category on the television quiz show JEOPARDY! today, May 5, 2015. The featured ABT category will include performance footage from several of the upcoming Spring season's iconic ballets, with clues read by ABT dancers.

 

[kwanfan1818]

Not ballet, but a photo from Jordan Matter. Love his post:
https://instagram.com/p/2lr4bTsObO/

 

[Artistic Skaters]

It doesn't look like this has been posted yet - Misty Copeland on 60 Minutes last Sunday:

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/misty-copeland-unlikely-ballerina-60-minutes/

 

[kwanfan1818]

For Stella Abrera fans, she was just cast in place of the injured Semionova in "Giselle" with Sklyarov and Part on Saturday, May 23 at 8pm.

She was lovely in the excerpt in the Guggenheim Works & Process stream of the ABT at 75 programs from last month.

 

[Artistic Skaters]

Of interest:
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmas...about-american-ballet-theatre-a-history/3638/

I'm home watching PBS & waiting for this show to start right now. Finally, some real ballet has come to town (even though it's TV - better than nothing)!

 

[emason]

For Stella Abrera fans, she was just cast in place of the injured Semionova in "Giselle" with Sklyarov and Part on Saturday, May 23 at 8pm.

She was lovely in the excerpt in the Guggenheim Works & Process stream of the ABT at 75 programs from last month.

I snatched up a ticket last night as soon as I heard about this. I shall report.

Marge_Simpson and I went to see the Don Quixote of Gelsey Kirkland's Dance Academy. It was fresh, energetic, well cast, a true delight. We loved it and plan to check out future offerings of this company.