Haglund's Heel

NYCB – Western Symphony, Symphony in Three Movements, Symphony in C – 2/7

OK, so last night wasn't the greatest ever evening of ballet.  There were some good things; there were some not so good things; and there were things that Haglund would prefer never to experience again.

First, it's time to stop with all the guest conductors and settle on who is going to be on the team.  The orchestra is suffering from the continual changes at the podium and at times it sounds like it doesn't really care about the music.  Last night the farting from the brass stunk up the theater time and time again.  There was little life in the music.  This orchestra, which has in recent past sounded extraordinary, last night sounded like a pickup garage band.  Come on folks, we need this orchestra back in top form. 

Western Symphony opened the program with the debut of Taylor Stanley in the Allegro section opposite Rebecca Krohn.  This guy has got stage magnetism and technique to boast about.  With a black cowboy hat pulled down so far that it shadowed his eyes, Taylor summoned his inner Gene Autry while bowing his cowboy legs and aw-shucks-ing his way around Rebecca, who looked a little off her game last night and had trouble mustering up energy.  When the two of them engaged in battement renverse, Taylor's had a brilliance, snap, and height that were missing from Rebecca's.

Megan Fairchild and Jared Angle were a story all themselves in the Adagio.  Great charm, great clarity of form and a joy to watch.  Andrew Veyette had some spectacular moments in the Rondo that included sizzling pirouettes and batterie.  Teresa Reichlen was sultry, if a bit reserved, and was clearly the impetus for Cowboy Veyette's kickin' his hoss into overdrive.

Symphony in Three Movements was beyond brilliant last night thanks to Sterling Hyltin and Tiler Peck who picked their ways through the pointe work like Chet Atkins and Jethro Burns pickin' Gallopin' Guitar.  High energy from start to finish was delivered by one and all.  Amar Ramasar, substituting for Sebastian Marcovici, and Daniel Ulbricht helped to make this ballet a true centerpiece of the whole evening.  Savannah Lowery and Andrew Scordato, substituting for Adrian Danchig-Waring, were less appealing mostly due to their particular dancing styles.  Savannah's upper body is continually careless in positions and tends to slump.  Andrew's upper body looked very un-dancer like last night - like a pedestrian who had just been thrown on stage.

The corps and demi-soloists were all outstanding and seemed fully prepared and confident as they danced with full-out energy.  It's probably a little unfair to pick out anyone in particular for praise, but Emily Kikta, who suffered an unfortunate spill earlier in Western Symphony, was an eye-catcher in white leotard.  With some of the longest legs in the company, she is clearly increasing her ability to match the speed and articulation of the much smaller women with whom she dances. 

Symphony in C which closed the program was, as a whole, much less brilliant than last fall although Lauren King in the Fourth Movement was just as exciting and accomplished, and even more confident than a few months ago when she debuted in the role.  The First Movement was danced by Abi Stafford and Chase Finlay.  We haven't seen Abi much on stage this winter, and her dancing was a bit careful and conservative in a movement that required glass-etched clarity and a little more grandeur than she delivered.  The others who have recently danced this movement, Megan Fairchild and especially Ana Sophia Scheller, have more technical chops with which to enhance the role.  Last night, it all seemed a little watered down. 

Maria Kowroski and Tyler Angle were sublime in the Second Movement although it was not without problems.  However, one of the most impressive moments came about because of a problem.  When Maria developped a la second and Tyler moved from supporting her right hand to her left hand, Maria started a long, slow fall backwards and it appeared that she would never be able to maintain her position on pointe.  The strength in her torso and left arm would not give up and she slowly pressed her way back to vertical.  It looked utterly amazing from the upper tiers.

Erica Pereira and Anthony Huxley were a nice match, if a bit fizzy, in the Third Movement.  If Erica was assigned this role so that she would address her inadequate jumping, it seems to be working.  She has more strength than the last time we saw her in this movement last fall, but will probably never compare favorably to others who have danced it - most notably, Ashley Bouder.

The corps de ballet and demi soloists weren't as clean and precise as we saw them last fall, but the finale looked pretty good.  One dancer who Peter Martins has occasionally featured in soloist roles, is becoming an eye irritation for her nervousness and lack of musicality.  Every step that she takes is full of uncertainty about whether she's on the right count.  She steps and then pulls back with her body or lurches forward and never seems sure about where she should be.  Last night, she was happily and grossly exaggerating the step that requires a pique backward, hip thrust and dropped chin, when shortly thereafter she was on her knees with her ass toward the audience.  It wasn't at all unexpected.

The H.H. Pump Bump Award is bestowed upon Sterling Hyltin for her prickly pointed performance in Symphony in Three Movements – another highlight of the Winter Season.

On Haglund's Calendar – a whole slew of "Cs"

NYCB runs with Symphony in C this week, and Haglund plans to see all four performances.  Everyone should see at least one of these performances.  In the past year, the company has proven that it has cast after cast after cast drawn from all levels within the company who can deliver this ballet with peerless beauty, blistering speed, and precision.  

This week we'll see debuts in the Third Movement from Anthony Huxley on Thursday night and Ana Sophia Scheller on Friday night.  Also on Friday night, the electric Taylor Stanley will debut in the Fourth Movement.  Haglund cannot wait to see him dance with Lauren King that night.  Taylor also debuts in Western Symphony on Wednesday night.

Very strong programing this week.  If you haven't seen Sterling Hyltin rip & pick her way through the light pink leotard role in Symphony in Three Movements, you must see her in one of her four performances on Thursday, Saturday matinee, Saturday evening, or Sunday matinee.

 

NYCB – Sighs matters – 1/31

What a terrific but curious night at the ballet.

The oldest dance on Thursday night's program was the most experimental and inventive; the newest ballet on the program was the most traditional; and the third ballet was in a class of its own.

Variations Pour Une Porte et Un Soupir (Variations for a Door and a Sigh) was created by Balanchine in 1974 to a composition by Pierre Henry in the style of musique concrète which can include recorded sounds from most any source.  In this case, the sounds are those of a creaking door and a human sigh.  Henry's composition was conceived in 1963.  In 1965 Maurice Béjart used it in a highly experimental and improvisational piece for seven dancers.  At each performance, Béjart changed the group of dancers and randomly selected each dancer's improvisational segment.  The dancers were given parameters within which to work but were not given any choreography.  Surely, Balanchine must have been aware of Béjart's earlier experiment when he selected the composition for his choreography.  Also in 1974, the year of Balanchine's creation, Suzanne Farrell began communicating with Balanchine about leaving Béjart's company to return to NYCB, and she did in fact return the next year.

The long and the short of last night's performance was that Maria Kowroski and Daniel Ulbricht held the audience spellbound.  In the role of the Door, Maria wore a white unitard but was affixed to a huge black billowing skirt that covered most of the stage except for the front quarter where Daniel as the Sigh writhed, tumbled, and contorted in misery.  He pounded his fists in the air at the Door, but she wouldn't let the Sigh out.  She was in complete charge of the Sigh's fate and ultimately wrapped him up in her black skirt which suddenly became something like a black venus flytrap that snapped shut.

The whole performance was quite simply a brilliant piece of theater by two brilliant artists.

The newest ballet on the program was the premiere of Justin Peck's Paz de la Jolla which was created to exiled Czech composer Bohuslav Martinu's Sinfonietta La Jolla, a three movement composition that was commissioned by the Musical Arts Society of La Jolla in 1950.  At that time, Martinu was teaching composition at Princeton, and the tri-state area was a hot bed of classical and neo-classical musical creativity.  While Martinu was at Princeton, Hindemith was teaching composition at Yale, and Bernstein and Stravinsky were forging new paths in New York. The rhythms and harmonies of his contemporaries pop up time and time again throughout Martinu's bright and accessible La Jolla. 

Justin indicated that his choreography was inspired by his own upbringing in Southern California.  The first movement opened with a crowd in beach-type wear - not swimsuits, but play-wear of shorts and summery tops. Tiler Peck opened the first notes of the music with a multiple revolution pirouette in the center of the stage to start the others romping.  She had a number of highly kinetic allegro variations which she executed wonderfully. 

This isn't an insult – but the choreography kind of reminded Haglund of some of Millepied's early work when everyone had their hopes up about that new choreographer.  There was a lot of casual messing around mixed in with classical ballet steps that seemed to mark Millepied's work in a unique way.  The second movement, however, was impressive for its coherence and interesting choreography.  Here, a couple (Sterling Hyltin and Amar Ramasar) lay on a moonlit beach watching the waves which were actually a group of dancers in ocean-colored costumes who ebbed and flowed onto the shore and out.  When Amar fell asleep on the beach, Sterling ran out and played in the waves.  They washed over her and around her, and then the waves got mean and began sweeping her out to sea.  Amar woke up and ran looking for her, but got washed out to sea, too.  While the action sounds elementary, it was quite beautifully danced and clearly evoked the sea.

Here's where things got surprising in an O'Henry kind of way.  Haglund was sure that Sterling and Amar were still lying in a pile at the back of the stage at the beginning of the third movement because they had succumbed to the waves.  Suddenly, the other dancers rushed in and woke them up to dance the allegro finale.  So, was the whole waves episode in the second movement real or was it just a dream?  The allegro of the finale was more pleasing than the first movement and the ensemble choreography was delightful. 

The third ballet on the evening's program was Alexei Ratmansky's Concerto DSCH to Shostakovich's Piano Concerto No. 2 which was created for NYCB in 2008.  The cast was supposed to include Sean Suozzi, but there was an unannounced replacement by Troy Schumacher.  He was fantastic – maybe a touch nervous and doing a whole lot of thinking – but, heck, he was running with Joaquin DeLuz, Ashley Bouder, Tyler Angle, and Janie Taylor!  Here's hoping that Troy gets another chance to dance this on Saturday night because he really earned it Thursday night.  A super job.

The high energy and precision of Ashley and Joaquin are always astonishing but when they come together in Concerto DSCH, they are almost at a combustible level.  Tyler and Janie in the PdD were lovely, too.  The pianist, Cameron Grant, really had a full night of work with the piano obbligato in Justin Peck's new ballet and the Shostakovich piano concerto, and it was all beautiful.

The H.H. Pump Bump Award, a Jimmy Choo black mesh platform stiletto, is bestowed upon Maria Kowroski and Daniel Ulbricht for their riveting performances as Door and Sigh in Variations Pour Une Porte et Un Soupir.

NYCB – Glass Rabbit Waltzes – 1/29

It must not be easy to plan the casting for a six week season of 90 repertory performances and 14 full Sleeping Beauties – in the middle of one of our worst flu seasons in years.  Flu virus, norovirus, common colds – they're everywhere and they stay and stay and stay - until they get everybody.  So far this season the substitutions at NYCB have been fewer than expected, but we're only halfway through it, and the audience is coughing and sneezing at the stage with hurricane force every night of the week.  We may have to put the dancers under glass in order to protect them.

Speaking of glass, last night's performance of Jerome Robbins' Glass Pieces was pretty spiffy – especially from the corps men in the final Akhnaten section.  Everyone was very energetic and collected, but Taylor Stanley and Zachary Catazaro threw their limbs like knives – sharp and precise.  Ashley Laracey & Chase Finlay, Lauren King & Adrian Danchig-Waring, and Faye Arthurs & Christian Tworzyanski were all fine soloists in the Rubric section, although the winds in the orchestra struggled.  Maybe it was just a matter of their being out of balance volume-wise with the rest of the orchestra.  Maria Kowroski and Sébastien Marcovici in the Facades PdD were as handsome and riveting as could be in all that blue and red lycra. 

Justin Peck's Year of the Rabbit got a fine reading from all – especially from Ashley Bouder who danced in the premiere performances last year while still recovering from an injury.  Sometimes it's hard to believe how totally coordinated she is because she seems always to have a good fix on the point of balance long before she ever arrives at it.  Robert Fairchild brought intensity and drama to his solos.  Joaquin De Luz brought a bright energy to his.  The ballet shows the promise of the young choreographer but also is a collection of a lot of ideas that don't necessarily connect or weave a satisfactory whole.

Once again, the wahoos from Woo-whoville collected in an upper tier and were screaming at bows.  No doubt they'll be in full force for the next premiere on Thursday night – hoping to influence everyone else's opinion of what is on stage.  Sorry to sound so Grinchy, but the obviousness of it all is annoying.

Vienna Waltzes was lovely with excellent performances from Anthony Huxley & Megan Fairchild in Fruhlingsstimmen and Maria Kowroski & Jared Angle in Der Rosenkavalier.  Huxley and Fairchild were a fabulous match-up.  He's small but his speed and clarity are comparable to Megan's and last night they seemed especially coordinated together.  Maria was devastatingly beautiful and elegant in the white ball gown and sparkly head band.  Jared's suave was in full play, and their waltzing was divine.

The H.H. Pump Bump Award, a perfect mix of sparkle, mystery, and sultry, is bestowed upon Maria Kowroski who we are so, so lucky to have.

NYCB – Silk and Diamonds 1/24

Fashion still dictates much of our behavior, though not as much as in the past, regrettably.

At last night's NYCB repertory program, a late-middle aged married couple arrived to sit in the econo-seats.  He helped her remove her winter coat; she thanked him.  He wore a dark suit, tie, and cufflinks; she, a nice wool outfit, pretty scarf, colorful earrings.  They chatted softly without stepping on one another's sentences and admired the inside of the theater.  They had dressed up to come out for a night at the theater and their behavior was mindful and respectful of where they were.  It didn't matter that they were sitting in the least expensive seats anymore than it would have mattered if they were sitting in the back pew of a church. 

The couple seemed genuinely pleased by the fashion tribute Bal de Couture with exquisite silk designs by Valentino.  Haglund didn't want to invade their personal space to let them know that two of the fabulous designs were totally missing; but since this is his space, he'll complain about not seeing the gorgeous coral gown that was originally worn by Maria Kowroski or the the uniquely kaleidoscopic tutu that Tiler Peck originally worked her spins through during the Fall Gala when Valentino was honored and these designs made their debuts.

The choreography by Peter Martins was not made to appeal to the dance crowd – which it doesn't – but was designed to reveal the beauty of Valentino's work – which it does.  But with the editing out of two major costume designs and the omission of the truly charming film about Valentino that was originally part of the segment, this piece should not have an intermission on either side of it.  Cut it further, if need be, but don't make us wait another intermission before we get some real dance.  That said, the dresses are heavenly.

Excerpting Diamonds from Balanchine's three-part ballet, Jewels, is a great idea mostly because it's the best part of the entire ballet and can easily stand on its own.  Last night's performance was preceded by a "See the Music…" presentation by Conductor Andrews Sill who explained a little about Balanchine's choice of music (Tschaikovsky's Symphony No. 3 in D Major) and why the First Movement of the symphony was not used in the ballet.  Apparently Balanchine thought it was not danceable.  Then the orchestra played a Cliff's Notes version of the First Movement to give us an idea of what was missing.  Finally, after way over an hour of intermissions, fashion show, and music lecture, we got to the dance.

When women adorn themselves in diamonds, it is usually because of a special event that also mandates special clothes, careful makeup and hair, and a special sense of elegance.  They don't put on diamonds and then behave like they're at a Yankees game or at the local bar tossing back a beer.  They behave differently, more elegantly and refined.  It's the diamonds.  It's one of those cases when what is worn dictates your behavior.

Last night, the corps de ballet was wearing the glorious Diamonds costumes by Karinska, but it danced like CZ jewelry from Kmart - no disrespect intended to Kmart.  There were so many pointy dropped elbows and gross disfigurements of the hands, fingers, and arms that for a moment Haglund thought that he was watching The Cage.  The port de bras cheapened everything else that went on.  The arms had the elegance of hangers from the drycleaners - no disrespect intended to drycleaners.

Maria Kowroski, while generally lovely, had some of the same issues.  But the air of mystery and the sense of story that she wove with those gorgeous and very articulate legs and feet was as clear as it was captivating.  Tiler Angle was a strong and attentive partner and had great chemistry going with Maria.  He had serious problems with turns a la seconde but got control before they became disastrous.

Also on the program were Tschaikovsky Pas de Deux and Divertimento from "Le Baiser de la Fée".  In the Tschai Pas, Abi Stafford and Jared Angle were less flash and more song.  It was a refreshing interpretation, especially from Abi, who looked beautiful in the peach costume.  Because he is often stuck behind tall women who he continually has to lift, we sometimes forget that Jared can move with some speed.  He did really well last night although when he performed the manege of coupe jetes, his front foot almost appeared flexed instead of pointed.  Le Baiser was sweetly danced by Megan Fairchild and Andrew Veyette but it was a little boring.  Andy was stiff in the neck and back but otherwise was fine.

Gosh, Haglund has to say that he was a little disappointed with the dancing last night, but the costumes were great.  So, the H.H. Pump Bump Award, a Valentino design of flowers and diamonds, is bestowed upon Valentino and Karinska for their unparalleled gifts for making women beautiful.

NYCB – Wed 1/16 & Thu 1/17

There has been so much thrilling dancing during the first few days of NYCB's Winter Season that it takes your breath away.  During Thursday night's performance of Allegro Brilliante alone, Haglund must have had 101 OMG moments courtesy of Tiler Peck, the company's rubato wizard. 

Audience members covered their ears with their hands while waiting for the sonic boom when Tiler accelerated her chaine turns past the speed of sound. Time and time again she flipped through several chaines and then suddenly lowered her elbows to a neat resting position, which was actually the equivalent of putting the pedal to the metal, and blew out those turns like she was going down the Bonneville Salt Flats.  Then she stopped on a dime – with no parachute.  Not lyin' here – go see for yourself this weekend.  And while eyes can sometimes deceive, Haglund swears that he saw serious acceleration in the revolutions of an en dehors pirouette upstage.  Tiler's creative shading, individual musicality, and crystal clear shaping of the movement made this one of the most masterful Allegro Brilliantes in memory.  Amar Ramasar did a fairly fine job of partnering Tiler, and his own variations were respectable although they didn't approach what Tiler delivered.

Also on Thursday night's program was Balanchine's one act Swan Lake (2.4) -- some of Act 2 plus some of Act 4 equals a bunch of nothing, but of course, steps.  Surgically precise forms of corps women in black tutus rushing around starting and stopping do not a swan corps make.  There's just no heart and no drama to this Swan Lake.  It's almost a crime to put the beautiful Maria Kowroski out on the stage in this because it becomes immediately evident that she could be a world-class Odette -- ahh, but only if she had a real production in which to develop. 

A few years ago, Maria did get one shot at dancing Swan Lake at the Mariinsky opposite Danila Korsuntsev and received the benefit of Uliana Lopatkina's coaching.  Happily, much of this experience still informs her performance in the Balanchine version.  A lot of the traditional Ivanov Act II PdD is present in this version, but right when Odette gets ready to finish off the last ninety seconds, Balanchine stops the action and inserts his own nonsense which completely destroys the traditional theatrical moment.  Tyler Angle was Odette's appropriately perplexed and loving Siegfried.

Tschaikovsky Suite No. 3 was fabulous Wednesday night.  Teresa Reichlen & Ask la Cour, Janie Taylor & Sebastien Marcovici, Erica Pereira & Daniel Ulbricht, and Megan Fairchild & Andrew Veyette – all turned out solid performances.  Haglund loves Erica and Daniel in the Scherzo movement; it's a good match for their energies and Erica looks great flying around with her hair down.  The Theme and Variations was danced well by Megan and Andrew without it being particularly special in any sense. 

Wednesday evening's Serenade marked the return of Sara Mearns in her debut as the waltz girl.   Everyone was glad to see her and especially glad to see her dancing so well following such a long layoff from injury.  However, this may not be Haglund's favorite role for Sara.  Her dancing had great power and intensity but somehow those cancelled out some of the beauty of the choreography. 

Megan LeCrone had a brilliant debut as the dark angel.  Freakin' brilliant.  She is a perfectly wonderful dancer and only needs help on how to address the audience and make her smile work for her.  Megan is one of the last and most capable products of Melissa Hayden's training, and Martins owes it to Hayden's memory and to the City Ballet institution to ensure that this young dancer realizes her full potential.

Ashley Bouder's Russian girl was as beautiful and exhilarating as she always is in this role.  Jared Angle and Adrian Danchig-Waring completed the principal cast and partnered the women superbly.

Sterling Hyltin, Chase Finlay, and Anthony Huxley made a sincere and mostly successful effort in Mozartiana.  For Sterling and Chase, it was their debut.  Haglund found it all perfectly charming and expects that in another performance or two, Chase will have addressed little issues like all those quick swishing battement cloche with the body changing directions and will get on top of the petit allegro.

The Tschaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 2 was beautifully danced by Teresa Reichlen and Tyler Angle, but it was the debut of Ana Sophia Scheller in the third principal role that knocked Haglund's socks off.  The elegance of the classical shapes she made coupled with the attention to transitions between steps and her intelligent musicality made this a stunning debut. 

The mid-week H.H. Pump Bump Award, a winged platform of precious metal, is bestowed upon Tiler Peck for her extraordinary performance in Allegro Brilliante which Haglund intends to enjoy again this weekend.

FAILE succeeds; Bouder & Stafford sublime

The Brooklyn-based urban artist collective, FAILE (pronouced like fail), is NYCB's selection for the inaugural NYCB Art Series for which ballet-inspired original art will be commissioned.  FAILE's exhibit is installed on the promenade level at the Koch Theater and will be on display until February 24. 

The skyscraper-like pillar, with appropriate setbacks which were probably demanded by the local community board's land-use committee, is constructed of stacked wooden blocks of different sizes on which images – many from the middle of the 20th century – have been stenciled and painted.  The images are of a design like that used in comic books in the 1950s and '60s.  Richard Nixon's image stares proudly from one side of the pillar.  His pal, Chairman Mao Zedong, is around the corner.  Prince Charles and Tanaquil Le Clercq are depicted along with anonymous faces and a few drawings of ballerinas.  Printed slogans, random phrases or words, and designs – many recognizable from the 20th century – are stenciled on the wooden blocks, some with a modern twist.

Haglund's favorite: SAVE YOUR STILETTO

The installation is fairly fun to wander around and read during intermission.  It's better than staring adoringly at the little plastic bowls of gummies and M&Ms that you know you shouldn't have.  But it's not art that beckons you to return to it time and time again – unlike the glistening art that filled the stage last night.

The Winter Season got off to a terrific start with a program of all Balanchine/all Tschaikovsky.  The highlights of the evening were Ashley Bouder and Jonathan Stafford in Tschaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 2.  Prior to getting to the good stuff, however, Ashley spread herself across the stage floor like broken egg yolks in the supermarket aisle. Before anyone could yell "Clean-up in Dairy," she was back on her feet and on her way.

Because Ashley's repertory at NYCB tends to be more jumping than anything else, one often hears words like blazing, brilliant, buoyant, and bold to describe her performances.  Rarely does one hear the words sublime or luminous to describe her dancing.  But those are exactly the words that came to mind last night as she and Jonathan Stafford caressed their PdD.  These dancers were perfectly and tenderly in tune with one another.  The smooth as silk partnering looked like a loving conversation that perhaps was too private for us to be watching.  Once separated, they glanced over their shoulders toward but not at one another. Their eyes searched for and sensed the presence of the other dancer. 

Stafford is such a gallant partner who reads his ballerinas well and responds perfectly.  Not blessed with great turnout of the legs, he nevertheless uses what he has to maximum effect and doesn't cheat or try to compensate by forcing something in bad taste – as we might observe happening elsewhere in the ballet world.  His series of entrechat six were crisp and clean, and complimented by an easy, relaxed upper torso.

Some of the lingering images from Ashley's dancing included an exit of delicate temps de fleche to the back while looking upward, breathing balances in arabesque, allegro jumps that were grand by definition but were also light and airy. 

Savannah Lowery as the soloist would not have been Haglund's choice for the role although maybe it was simply the wrong cast for her.  There were no mishaps to speak of, but the quality of her dancing was effortful as though that should make up for the sometimes missing qualities of shape, elegance, and control.  Savannah would probably fare better in tonight's cast that includes the statuesque Teresa Reichlen.

Among the demi-soloists, Ashley Laracey didn't miss an opportunity to fill each note of music luxuriously.  She also shone brightly as a demi-soloist in Serenade along with Lauren King, Alina Dronova, and Georgina Pazcoguin.  Ashley and Lauren have two of the most elegant profiles of the company with their long straight necks and lovely defined jawlines that help set them apart along with their gorgeous dancing.  Add Ms. Dronova to the list as well.

Serenade looked a little curious last night with the addition of Sebastien Marcovici to the cast.  The rounding of the top of his back always catches the light which makes his movement appear like that of a much older dancer.  In movement that requires him to face front, his dancing is very appealing, but Serenade doesn't have a lot of that type of choreography.  His partnering of Janie Taylor should have been more on the money.

Janie's waltz girl was beautiful with great flowing hair, as always.  Her series of arabesques that fell forward as the back leg surrendered to attitude were lovely. 

Megan Fairchild and Rebecca Krohn as the Russian girl and the dark angel were resplendent.  Megan's saute fouettes neatly sliced from left to right sending the tulle flying like a blue mist.  Rebecca's generous bends of the torso and gentle pirouette finishes were gorgeous as was her arabesque line when rotated on pointe by Ask la Cour.

The middle of the program included some of the evening's most captivating dancing by Maria Kowroski in Mozartiana.  Still in the sweet spot of a career now into its 18th year, Maria's artistry continues to flourish.  She is surely one of the most genetically gifted dancers of our time.  Following the retirement of her longtime and frequent partner, Charles Askegard, there was some fleeting concern about the path of her career.  But Tyler Angle has injected new spirit into her dancing.  They look wonderful together and have great rapport on stage.  Their performance last night was enhanced by Arturo Delmoni's sweet and magical violin.

Although last night was Tyler's debut in Mozartiana, he and Maria were assured, vibrant, and harmonious in the PdD. His turns left and right were authoritative and accurate although he got a little caught up on the final series of rapid-fire single tours en l'air.

Daniel Ulbricht's energetic and engaging Gigue looked a little Tarantella-ish, but Haglund cannot put his finger on exactly why. 

The corps de ballet was tidy most of the evening and danced with a high level of energy and joy. 

The first H.H. Pump Bump Award of the season, a Prada art-shoe styled after cars of the 1950s, is bestowed upon Ashley Bouder for taking her dancing to yet another new level of artistry in Tschaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 2.

NYCB Art Series

NYCB is launching its inaugural Art Series with its performances on Feb 1 and May 29 for which all seats will be $29.  Tickets for these two dates go on sale tomorrow at noon.

Although it doesn't look like this will be an event where the art makes its way to the stage like the recent Santiago Calatrava collaboration (which Haglund enjoyed quite a bit), it's not clear how it will be more than an exhibit in the roaming areas of the theater.

NYCB Art Series will commission contemporary artists to create original works of art inspired by the Company, its history, and repertory. The inaugural collaboration features Brooklyn-based artists FAILE, and each attendee to the 2/1 and 5/29 Art Series performances will receive a limited-edition work made specifically for this event.
[from the NYCB website]

If you're up on your urban art, you may already be familiar with FAILE's unique projects involving stenciling and murals.  Haglund will admit that he took a fancy to the huge Wolf Within sculpture shown here, which FAILE recently installed in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, but the other portfolio components don't sway him much to the side of urban art.  Nevertheless and since the tickets are $29, Haglund will loosen his tie and pull out his shirttail and just go with the flow.

 

When you think you're giving to the ballet

Following a comprehensive investigation, New York's Attorney General recently issued a report entitled Pennies for Charities, Where Your Money Goes, Telemarketing by Professional Fundraisers.  It's a scathing report that lists each charity in New York that uses an outside telemarketer to raise funds and the percentage of funds that actually goes to the charity.

The report shows that ABT's outside telemarketer collects 23.67% of what it raises over the phone.  When you think you've just given ABT $1000 by phone or increased your donation level by $500, you've actually just handed over $236.70 or $118.35 to a telemarketing firm. 

The report shows that NYCB's telemarketer collects a whopping 40.34% of whatever they can get you to fork over by phone.

These firms usually identify themselves as the charity when they call.  Sometimes they say that they are calling "on behalf of" and sometimes they say "from the offices of" but the true identity is always obscured if not blatantly lied about.  Their pitches are frequently fictionalized to create a sense of need or to create a sense of opportunity for the giver.  When a caller claims that the charity desperately needs money because the company is stranded overseas on tour or when a caller claims that the donor will have special access to artists or board members if only he or she will just give money over the phone today, hang up. 

If upon serious reflection, you then want to contribute money, do so by later directly contacting the company through its website donor page or mailing a check.  If you have previously told the telemarketer that you will contribute directly to the company or you will think about their pitch and perhaps contribute later, the telemarketing firm may be able to collect their finder's fee for persuading you.

Here is the link to A.G. Schneiderman's report which massages the data in various ways including alphabetically by charity, alphabetically by telemarketer, and numerically by percentages retained by charity and telemarketer:

 http://www.ag.ny.gov/pdfs/2012%20Pennies%20Final%20Review.pdf

Oh, "ditto" on buying subscriptions over the phone -- although the percentages paid to the telemarketers may vary.

 

Dancing at the edge of the cliff

Enjoy the rest and relaxation for the next two weeks, because when NYCB opens its Winter Season on January 15th, it's going to be an exhausting task trying to get to Lincoln Center every night.  How can one possibly pace oneself when there are six weeks filled with Tschaikovsky's greatest hits seasoned with a sprinkling of Stravinsky, Shostakovich, and other spicy tunes?  'Twill be tough but worth the twouble.

We may soon get pushed over the edge of the fiscal cliff by a bunch of clumsy politicians who can't two-step together, but we'll glide on the updrafts under our wings for the next several weeks from the uplifting and rich performances of NYCB. 

There are $29 tickets available.

NYCB will take the unusual step of excerpting Diamonds from Jewels, a very welcomed event, and favorites will return including Serenade, Allegro Brilliante, Mozartiana, Sleeping Beauty, Tschai PdD, Symphony in Three Movements which last fall saw the electric debut of Sterling Hyltin in the light pink leotard role, and Symphony in C which last fall debuted a new young cast including Lauren King in the Fourth Movement.  Haglund saw five of Lauren's six consecutive performances in the role and was impressed with her ability to conquer the technical challenges and improve with every performance.  She passed the test with flying colors and has earned the company's confidence in her performances in blistering allegro roles.

People should see NYCB's Symphony in C this winter so it's authenticity and uniformity of style are fresh in everyone's minds when ABT attempts to dance it during the Spring Season at the Met with its hodge-podge of principals.

Speaking of ABT, Haglund just received another subscription brochure for the spring season in the mail.  The largest figure in its pages is Sascha Radetsky pictured as Espada in Don Q.  It's a fetching photo and would prompt a lot of people to buy tickets except for the sad fact that Radetsky isn't listed anywhere in the spring casting.  So while ABT knows enough to put a big picture of him in the brochure because it knows lots of people would like to see his performances, it doesn't tell anyone when he's dancing.  How will that translate into sales?

It's nice to see that Radetsky and Stella Abrera will get to debut in Limon's The Moor's Pavane in Beijing in March (in the Iago and Emilia roles), but Haglund had to plow through the Chinese language version of the theater's website for that information since it's not listed on either the English version of the website or ABT's own site -- obviously because ABT doesn't want anyone back home to know about it.  Both dancers were outstanding in Lar Lubovitch's production of Othello a few years back and will undoubtedly be so in the Limon version.  We'll probably never see it, though. 

Also on the Chinese language version of the website, it showed that Veronika Part and Marcelo Gomes will open the three performance run of Swan Lake in Beijing.  This, of course, irritates the home crowd in New York which has been unfairly denied this duo's brilliant performances of Swan Lake for several years.  By all rights, they should open Swan Lake Week at the Met every single year.

And so, as 2012 ends and 2013 begins, NYCB continues to make grand strides in the right direction while ABT obstinately marches toward its self-made fiscal and artistic cliffs.  And so it goes....
                                                                                                                                           

The day after

Haglund spent the day after Christmas working off the holiday sugar and distilled elements by sitting around and enjoying a high calorie buffet of ballet.

Lauren King's second performance as the Sugar Plum Fairy at NYCB's packed theater was quite polished and was supported responsibly and attentively by Robert Fairchild.  They fixed the troublesome step-over turn to arabesque that evolved into a penche as the Cavalier stood close by ready to step in as needed -- a big improvement over last week's performance.  Lauren was in glistening, true ballerina form yesterday.  It will be a treat next year to see how her SPF develops after a presumed year of major casting.  Yesterday she looked ready to leap into the principal roles of Lilac Fairy and Mozartiana.

Expectations were low for last night's dancing tribute to Kennedy Center Honoree Natalia Makarova which was televised on CBS -- not expectations about the dancing, but the camera work and editing.  Opening the segment with a walk-on role for a small student from ABT's JKO school to try to remind us that Makarova started out as a young Vaganova student was a stupid idea.  The young girl, while very pretty, didn't move like a Vaganova student. 

What followed was a vivid Robbins solo from Tiler Peck, an excerpt from Giselle by the still-beyond-wonderful Angel Corella and his partner, Alina Cojocaru, whose feet marred every classical line.  It is completely ridiculous, unjustifiable, and hypocritical for ABT to hand Cojocaru a coveted spot in Swan Lake for the spring season while denying it to other homegrown ABT dancers based on some gratuitous insult that they don't have the right shape of legs or strong enough technique.  Hypocritical.

The brief excerpt from Romeo and Juliet by Julie Kent and David Hallberg made a startling impact on Haglund.  For Julie's final ABT years, she doesn't need to be dancing with people who can easily carry her around the stage through performance after performance.  She needs to dance with someone who cannot do that so that it forces her to be less relaxed and more alert to the moment.  Age notwithstanding, these two dancers look stunning together – perhaps the best classical match that ABT can offer.  It is our loss that they did not come along during the same stages of their careers.  It would be nice, however, to see what they might be able to accomplish together for the next year or two. 

Hallberg's lack of upper body strength is still inexcusable.  He's been recovering from a foot injury for many months.  Why hasn't he been focusing on building his upper body strength? There's nothing worse in a dancer than an I'm-as-good-as-I-need-to-be attitude.

Finally, what would a televised dance segment be without fouettes?  So, we got Marcelo Gomes in a manege of coupe jetes followed by Veronika Part's fouettes -- fast singles just the way Makarova believes they should be done.

And that comment/insult from Jimmy Kimmel about "… everyone but the people who came to see the ballerina" was despicable.  Big apology is in order.

While this may seem cruel, Haglund wishes that Caroline Kennedy would work on her public speaking abilities.  She hasn't gotten any better over the years and her speaking doesn't compare favorably with that of the other Kennedys in the public eye, most of whom are known for being charismatic and effective speakers.  She's still relatively young, and we have many more years of speeches to go through; so, she should give it the old Kennedy Try and get some tutoring.

Everyone should remember to watch the PBS American Masters program this Friday which will broadcast the fabulous Joffrey documentary. 

NYCB – Slew of debuts – 12/22 matinee

The last two weeks of NYCB's The Nutcracker can be unusually exciting because Peter Martins often casts several deserving corps dancers in meaty principal roles.  These opportunities are meaningful beyond words for the dancers -- many of whom incorrectly assume that no one ever notices them on stage except for Mom and Dad, as a dancer's parent once mentioned to Haglund. 

At the Saturday matinee performance of The Nutcracker, eight members of the NYCB corps de ballet debuted in prominent roles.  All succeeded in varying degrees and a couple even soared.  But it was not an afternoon for weak hearts.  And on such important days when seemingly – but not really – careers hang in the balance, everyone – dancers and audience alike – should stick to decaf, and that includes Haglund.

The highlight of Act I was Taylor Stanley's debut as the Soldier.  There are few roles in ballet where "wooden" is appreciated, and this is one of them.  When Taylor as the toy soldier emerged from the huge gift box, it was apparent that he was going to take this to a high level.  He moved from rigid toy position to rigid toy position with such speed that one really only saw the ending positions and not how he arrived at them.  There were reverberations in his body just like one would expect to see from a wooden soldier.  Even his stage exit back into the gift box was 100% in character with the soldier bent over while looking left and right, almost as if he wasn't ready to be shoved back in the box quite yet.

In Act II, Justin Peck debuted in Hot Chocolate opposite Megan LeCrone who was announced at curtain as the substitute for Georgina Pazcoguin.  An early slip to the floor by Megan brought an over-reaction from the audience, but she and Justin completed their dance as smoothly as the espresso hot chocolate at The City Bakery on 18th Street in Chelsea.

Ashley Laracey debuted as Coffee and managed to jingle all those bells affixed to her body with sensuality.  Ashley is fast becoming another favorite ballerina when cast in roles requiring a legato quality.

Spartak Hoxha debuted as Tea supported by Lauren Lovette and Claire Von Enck.  Okay, Haglund will admit that this was the first time he has noticed Spartak on stage, but heck, the guy was just upgraded to the corps last August.  A very spirited, quick and light jumper, he made some effortless and beautiful shapes in the air.

Devin Alberda came out and worked the hoop in his debut as Candy Cane with a seasoned mastery.  Another light and quick jumper who makes it all look easy, he also has a fabulous rapport with the audience.

Kristen Segin managed a wonderful debut as the head shepherdess in the Marzipan section with her articulate feet, lovely smile, and absence of affectations.

Our newest Dew Drop, Mary Elizabeth Sell, found herself on stage in the biggest role of her life yesterday.  Excited, confident, raring to show that she was up to the task – which she certainly was – there was no question that she could accomplish the job.  So now it's time to calm down and think about musicality.  There's a difference between holding an arabesque balance to imbue it with musicality and holding an arabesque balance for as long as possible just to show that you can do it.  Mary Elizabeth should pull out the Tiler Peck/Ashley Bouder videos for a bit of study, and if they still have them, Kyra Nichols as well. 

One of Haglund's favorite ballerinas, Lauren King, debuted as the Sugar Plum Fairy with Robert Fairchild as her Cavalier.  A few excited nerves were in play but the debut as a whole was terrific.  Her initial solos in the peach costume were perfectly placed and musical but at times the footwork was on the small side.  More shape and articulation in the feet are needed.  Her rapport with the children on stage seemed to send a few of them into overdrive.  When Little Prince Maximillian Brooking Landegger realized that this particular Sugar Plum Fairy was actually listening to and communicating with him, his mime solo held new drama.

The Pas de Deux with Robert Fairchild had some exceptional moments, such as the SPF's jumps to the cavalier's shoulder and the dramatic ending poses to phrases.  The dark haired cavalier and the vivacious strawberry blonde made a handsome pair, and their overall musicality around the stage was a good match. 

There was an issue with the ever-risky step-over turn that opens to arabesque and evolves into a penche.  For some reason, the cavalier decided to retreat upstage toward the wing almost out to 9th & 62nd Street while the newbie SPF prepared to execute this very difficult maneuver.  Sure, he had his arms wide open to second position like he was there for her benefit, but he wasn't really.  The SPF must have been scared out of her mind at the thought of having to do the step without a partner, but she cautiously stepped into it and the cavalier rushed in and just barely got there in the nick of time to avoid disaster.  Did he then adjust his stage position for her second try?  No. 

Haglund can't remember seeing a cavalier move so far away from the SPF during this phase of the PdD, and he doesn't want to see it again, especially when it needlessly pushes one of his favorite ballerinas so close to disaster – during her debut.  Their variations during the PdD were executed well and Lauren's feet and legs looked more alive and articulate under the mint-colored tutu than when she danced in the peach costume.  She was radiant.

It was a fairly exciting afternoon, and Haglund has decided to insert into his Christmas stocking another ticket to see this same cast at next Wednesday's matinee. 

The Pump Bump Award, one that will surely enhance a few Christmas spirits, is bestowed upon Lauren King, Taylor Stanley, and Devin Alberda for their impressive debuts on Saturday afternoon.

Ring those bells

 

What gives? 

The New York City Ballet rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange this morning, and the market tanked nearly 100 points. 

Didn't the traders see the dazzling smile of Lauren King in her Marzipan costume? Her stock is certainly rising.  Haglund looks forward to seeing Lauren's debut as the Sugar Plum Fairy this weekend - a sort of rite of passage at NYCB – let's hope.  Her Cavalier will be the dashing Robert Fairchild.  The equally Lovely Lauren Lovette (L³) will also debut as SPF this weekend (with the young apollonian Chase Finlay as her Cavalier) although it looks like Haglund will have to wait to see them in their second performance next week.  Both ballerinas will dance the role twice before the end of December.  It sweetens the season just a little bit for us.

Yes, folks, the NYCB Nutcracker is the one in this city where everyone does all the steps.  All the ballerinas who dance the Sugar Plum Fairy do that risky step-over turn that developpes to arabesque and twirls itself into a penche.  All the Candy Canes have to jump through the hoop.  Contrast that to ABT's recent run at BAM of Alexei Ratmansky's beyond-wonderful Nutcracker where there was so much watering down of the technical challenges by some of the lead dancers that one wondered whether they were simply marking the steps.  We're seeing more and more of that at ABT.  Can't do the steps?  Just change them to something you like to do.  That's one reason why ABT's stock is declining.

On December 26th, the Kennedy Center Honors will be televised on CBS.  As part of the tribute to honoree Natalia Makarova, several of our most beloved dancers will perform excerpts from Makarova's repertory.  Hopefully, CBS will not excise the Black Swan PdD segment danced by Veronika Part and Marcelo Gomes.  Possibly, we will finally have a snippet of their Swan Lake preserved on professional video.

On December 28, PBS will run the fantastic documentary Joffrey: Mavericks of American Dance as part of its American Masters series.  Here in NYC, it will air at 9pm, but check local listings to confirm date/time in your area.  Haglund's earliest recollection of the Joffrey is Christian Holder's powerful portrayal of the figure Death in The Green Table.  It was one of those "art changes you" moments.

A toast to art that changes you.

Henry Leutwyler's new NYCB book Ballet

Sorry to sound so down right bah humbuggish, but this book is a disappointment.  Haglund can't claim to have even an elementary knowledge of photography or "art" photography, but blur doesn't do anything but make him strain his eyes.  This book is filled with blurry pictures of remarkable dancers known the world over for the crystal clarity of their art -- and we see precious little of it in these images.  The black and white photos look like they were processed to try to achieve a 1950s historical feel to them, but who cares about making 2012 look like the 1950s.

If someone made a recording of Dmitri Hvorostovsky singing a Verdi aria and then scratched it up to make it sound like it was an old 78 rpm record being transmitted over a bad radio signal, would people call that art?

The color portraits in the back of the book are lovely and are the same ones that have been circulating within NYCB brochures for the past year.

NYCB on 60 Minutes plus

CBS has loaded tonight's 60 Minutes segment onto its website.  Additionally, some footage that did not make the final cut, including film footage of Balanchine, is on the website as Correspondent Candids. 

As fluff promo pieces, these were great.  And thank you CBS for mentioning that the dancers are homegrown.  But as 60 Minutes pieces, it would have been nice to see something a little more objective in certain areas which were overstated.  When in the Correspondent Candids Daniel Ulbricht demonstrated NYCB style jumps in first position, any journalist who had done his research would have challenged Martins on the controversy of jumping without putting down the heels and how that increases the probability of injury.  Also, the business of "how they bow everywhere else in the world versus how we bow" is old Martins schtick where he encourages his dancers to demonstrate a caricature of the classical ballet bow. 

Again, nice fluffy promo pieces, and it is absolutely wonderful that NYCB got these opportunities on 60 Minutes and on the CBS website, but the journalism should have been a lot better.