Hats off to the New York City Ballet's corps ladies for their performance this evening in Divertimento No. 15. Standing in line with their arms in demi-seconde, they were a vision of beauty with lifted elbows and tidy hands with moderately curved fingers. They moved as a cohesive unit with joy on their little faces. The principal cast was strong as well with superb and energetic performances by Megan Fairchild, Sterling Hyltin, and Tiler Peck. All three were radiant and confident and had the technical chops to match the fiendish choreography.
Haglund was slightly disappointed to learn of Kaitlyn Gilliland's inability to appear in her debut in After the Rain. But upon reflecting further, he realized that he does not want to see Ms. Gilliland exploited in pretzel poo, but wants to see her in tutu roles going forward. The cast in After the Rain performed the choreography well, but the piece is short on substance, especially when compared to the choreographer's earlier efforts.
Firebird was hampered by marginal horn playing and overall lackluster conducting. The last time Haglund saw this piece, Gergiev was at the podium and the orchestra was on fire. Not so tonight. No one will try to argue that Firebird was Balanchine's best effort. The choreography is limited in scope and content, and doesn't allow for character development in a story that is blessed with all sorts of character potential. But the Chagall-inspired scenery and costumes are rich and the added choreography by Jerome Robbins for Kastchei and his monsters saves this piece from itself. Maria Kowroski, as the firebird, was lovely, particularly in her final variation, but she must have thought she was in the middle of a nightmare given the performance of her Prince Ivan. Granted, he doesn't dance many steps, but he's a crucial character and shouldn't be played like a one dimensional Nicholas Cage imitation. It was so painful to watch.
Haglund gives this pretty Pump Bump Award to the ladies in the corps of Divertimento for their very stylish performance this evening:
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