Balanchine's Stars and Stripes PdD added to ABT City Center program

Kind of odd, wouldn't you say, to see that ABT has added Balanchine's Stars and Stripes PdD to two of the fall City Center programs?  This couldn't be any more obvious an effort to pump up their "American" image which has been all but lost as the result of all the ridiculous and needless foreign guest dancers and imports. 

Since Daniil Simkin has been performing this during summer gigs, it would seem that we could see him in it this fall.

But what an odd choice for the program.  First, NYCB's Daniel Ulbricht, Bouder, Peck and others at NYCB are peerless in this ballet right now.  Not only peerless, but they've set such a high standard that there's a 95% chance that anyone who has ever seen them perform it will be disappointed with whatever ABT puts on the CC stage.  The last thing people want to see is the Stars and Stripes reduced to cuteness and kid-like. 

And is that the only PdD that's going to be sandwiched in between Mark Morris and de Mille on opening night?  What a rip-off of an evening.

 

Comments

[Rachelmarch]

Sigh, love Daniel Ulbricht.

[Haglund]

Me, too.

[Kallima]

Looks very fragmented as a programme if that is the case. And reflects some issues the company has without even trying to do so ;)
I remember seeing parts of that pas de deux in the Center Stage movie back in the day with Julie Kent. She looked so extremely odd in it, by itself and especially compared to other things I could see on Youtube before they were deleted. I hope that someone more suitable for the part is cast for it in the programme this time(definitely not Julie anyway I'd say, but there are other candidates who would not fit), even if they might not be able to hold a candle to those from NYCB that you've mentioned.
And let's hope Daniil won't make meant-to-be-cute faces, or any sort of faces he often carries.

[Angelica Smith]

So whom might ABT cast? Isabella Boylston and Daniil Simkin would be my guess. Or maybe Marcello to give it class.

[Haglund]

Hi Angelica. Simkin, Boylston, Brandt, maybe Lane, maybe Herman. But the whole idea is to get a big American flag on stage. I can just hear the McKenzie/Moore opening night speech:

"We're so proud to be America's national ballet company. What could be more American than the flag and cowboys that we're presenting tonight? [pause for applause] And look, we're both wearing American flags on our lapels. Did we mention that Natalia is studying for her American citizenship exam? We ARE America's national ballet company, and we have the prepackaged, off-shore manufactured talent to prove it!"

[Haglund]

Kallima, you're right, it is a very fragmented program. It's really a desperate attempt to inject some Americanism into American Ballet Theatre, even if they have to borrow it from America's REAL national ballet company, which is the New York City Ballet. The meant-to-be-cute faces are but one problem we have to contend with.