ABT – Don Quixote – Osipova & Carreno 6/1

Natalia Osipova rocked the house tonight with her Kitri in Don Quixote.  All during the first act Haglund kept saying to himself "Leaping lizards!"  That was, of course, because Osipova was launching herself into one torpedo-like grand jete after another, sometimes without the benefit of a preparatory step.  She detonated her Kitri variation in Act I with a stabbing pas de chat of heretofore unheard-of fierceness.  Then, instead of doing the pirouettes and following up with the customary kick to the back of the head, Osipova pirouetted and then executed a grand jete from a standstill that, well, let's just say if it had been the bull's horn, it would've gored you good.

 

Act I, particularly the last Kitri variation, is Osipova's calling card.  The Act II variations were almost as good except there were a few times when Haglund had to ask, "Was that line supposed to be arabesque or attitude?"  That thorny question came up frequently over the years with regard to our beloved Nina - so maybe it's a Bolshoi thing. 

Act III was no disappointment but Osipova did not differentiate herself from the multitude of wonderful Act III Kitris which we have seen over the years on the Met stage – except when she was leaping, of course.  Any ballerina who is going to plaster her leg to her ear in the Grand PdD needs to have a remarkably shaped foot at the end of it – otherwise, it looks like community-level gymnastics.  Osipova's feet weren't bad tonight (and she did not appear to be wearing her arch enhancers - at least Haglund did not notice them) but they weren't good enough to withstand a 180 extension.

 

Fouettes were darn pretty in form with each one beginning with an authentic developpe to the front instead of the flinging-of-something-off-the-end-of-the-foot as some ballerinas are prone to do.  The speed of the fouettes and the multiple revolutions were dizzying.

 

Jose Manuel Carreno was Osipova's Basilio this evening.  No question that the old dynamite still packs a dangerous, explosive charge.  However, unless JM is going to dance more regularly, he's not going to be in the kind of shape that will allow him to bring the house down with his explosiveness.¹  Hey Bud, once you're over 40, there are no days off when it comes to training.  There's lots of dance left in Carreno so long as he dances lots.  It was apparent this evening that he enjoyed the challenges of partnering Osipova, particularly when she hurled her horizontal self at him from halfway across the stage. 

 

Jared Matthews and Kristi Boone were Espada and Mercedes/Dryad Queen.  Haglund thinks that the key to Jared's progress over the past year may be that he's finally comfortable in his own skin and isn't trying to figure out who he's supposed to be.  Maybe that's a longwinded way of saying he's found self-confidence.  His Espada tonight had pizzazz and flourish.  Here's hoping that he continues to study Marcelo Gomes' Espada interpretation - one of the best ever.

 

Kristi Boone's Mercedes was one hot smoldering lady with a beautiful Temps de Flèche.  Her Queen of the Dryads was perfectly lovely.  Haglund must say, however, that her particular brand of pointe shoes does a tremendous disservice to the quality of her leg lines.  The shoes look as chunky, clunky as Capezio Pavlovas with triple full shanks. 

 

The Gypsy Couple this evening were Misty Copeland and Daniil Simkin - both of whom turned in first rate performances.  Misty was a very sexy gypsy and Daniil, though not a fierce looking gypsy, executed a fierce line of 540s that drew gasps from the audience.

 

The Guests at the Wedding made a particularly good impression this evening - especially Katherine Williams and Isadora Loyola who were in the orange costumes.

 

Conductor Ormsby Wilkins is a rock star.  His orchestra sounded glorious this evening and he miraculously read Osipova's tempi, at times even challenging her.

Haglund bestows this fashionable and fiery Pump Bump Award on Ms. Osipova for her hot performance this evening:

¹Morning After footnote:  Carreno was damned good – and he had the signature zillion pirouettes that stop on balance.  It's just that they weren't at his top speed, and his lines were a little soft.  Haglund would still go to see Carreno's Don Q. seven nights in a row if it were possible. 

Comments

[Xenia]

Hagland,
did you see cast for Swan Lake? Wiles and Sterns for Friday? Are they mad? One would think that Monday cast of Bolle, Part and Gomes should perform on Friday and not on Monday. No wonder The Met is empty.

[Haglund's Heel]

Hi Xenia.

With Bolle & Part performing on Monday, it's more likely that THEY will be the couple primarily reviewed in the papers. Haglund knows of no plausible explanation for putting Wiles & Stearns on a Friday night instead of plunking them into the Wednesday matinee, if anywhere. It just seems like ABT is begging for empty seats.

[Sylvia DelaCerna]

I want to thank you so much for your kind words about Misty. She is my daughter and I am so very proud of her!!

Very Best,

Sylvia DelaCerna

[Haglund's Heel]

We ALL are very proud of Misty, too, and as you probably know, she has a large following of fans who are with her for every step, mourn her every injury, and cheer her every return. She's one of ABT's dancers who is going to make the next decade so rewarding for us all.

-- Haglund

[Sylvia DelaCerna]

Wow, thank you so much!! You are so kind!! I'm sure you probably already know but Misty has a new website www.mistycopeland.com and Facebook fan page. Again, thank you so much for your support of Misty. I hope we will meet someday very soon.

Best!!

Sylvia