Historically in Major League Ballet, when the New York City Ballet sends an All Balanchine Black & White lineup to the plate, they bat close to 1000. So, it was something of a surprise on Tuesday night when the first Balanchine Program of the fall season was a little hit and miss. The good thing about the block programing and the block casting – and maybe the only good thing – is that the very next night, there was a chance for a do-over. Haglund went to both performances, averaged out the stats for both nights, and is pretty pleased.
Some of the uncertainty of the first night might be attributed to some injuries to key players during last week's Swan Lake run. As a result, the team manager had to adjust the pitching Angles. Jared Angle was shifted to Duo Concertante while Tyler Angle stepped in for the Sanguinic section in The Four Temperaments. It worked okay the first night; it worked much better on Wednesday. The first night, Ashley Bouder's cleats were a little slick and she took a tumble dashing out of the dugout toward the hitter's box. It didn't matter, though; she still hit a home run – on both nights.
(Metaphor called on account of lateness.)
Continuing on the topic of Ashley Bouder who danced the Choleric section in The Four Temperaments – it's not often that we get to see her in any of Balanchine's leotard ballets. Good heavens, has she got a screaming strong arabesque line – made all the more apparent by the wandering, vague lines of a few of the youngsters around her. Ashley's Choleric was piquant without being overly peppery. Her heat and spice emanated from her prickly pointes.
Debuting in the role of Phlegmatic, Adrian Danchig-Waring was properly stoic but you could sense the attention surging through his every fiber. Every movement, pose, and position was articulated to the maximum degree. Suddenly the visual of a bent elbow with a flexed palm seemed more significant than ever before. Danchig-Waring is becoming an increasingly riveting performer. His steely muscular lines are particularly suited to Balanchine's Black & White masterpieces, and his intensity is gripping. And although we rarely see it, he has a handsome smile that conveys warmth and sincerity.
Robert Fairchild danced his Melancholic variation with intelligent drama. Sometimes this role is presented as angst from note-one to note-end but Fairchild varied the degrees of emotion to create an arc of despair. One knew that the backbends were coming in the choreography, but unexpectedly, Fairchild's backbends conveyed a sense of healing that Haglund couldn't recall in others' interpretations.
Savannah Lowery and Tiler Angle performed the Sanguinic variation. The Theme was a little rough on Tuesday but Faye Arthurs, Zachary Catazaro, Lauren King, Allen Peiffer, Ashley Laracey, and Justin Peck smoothed it out to a glistening beauty on Wednesday night.
Oh my, is Balanchine's Episodes difficult to sit through two nights in a row. On both nights, numerous seats in the theater emptied out after this ballet. This "homage to Anton von Webern" must be Balanchine at his most static. Three-quarters of it is interesting without being the least bit entertaining. Only when Maria Kowroski and Jonathan Stafford showed up for the Ricercata in the final movement did we get a reprieve from the surgical analysis of the starved score.
Haglund loved watching Megan Fairchild tear through the allegro in Duo Concertant with such joy and freedom. Likewise it's always a pleasure to see Jared Angle moving in high speed choreography instead of being relegated to mere lifting. The second evening's pianist, Cameron Grant, offered a more dynamic reading of the Stravinsky score than Susan Walters on Tuesday, and Kurt Nikkanen was the solo violinist for both nights.
Symphony in Three Movements looked like a good rehearsal on Tuesday night, but on Wednesday night, it revved up to full power led by Sterling Hyltin and Amar Ramasar. However, some of the ladies in the corps of white leotards continued to mar the iconic diagonal lines by not knowing where their faces should be focused. Rebecca Krohn, Andrew Veyette, Ana Sophia Scheller, and Daniel Ulbricht completed the superb principal cast.
The H.H. Pump Bump Award, an eco-friendly stiletto with climbing star, is bestowed upon Adrian Danchig-Waring for his stunning debut in the Phlegmatic variation.
Some of the uncertainty of the first night might be attributed to some injuries to key players during last week's Swan Lake run. As a result, the team manager had to adjust the pitching Angles. Jared Angle was shifted to Duo Concertante while Tyler Angle stepped in for the Sanguinic section in The Four Temperaments. It worked okay the first night; it worked much better on Wednesday. The first night, Ashley Bouder's cleats were a little slick and she took a tumble dashing out of the dugout toward the hitter's box. It didn't matter, though; she still hit a home run – on both nights.
(Metaphor called on account of lateness.)
Continuing on the topic of Ashley Bouder who danced the Choleric section in The Four Temperaments – it's not often that we get to see her in any of Balanchine's leotard ballets. Good heavens, has she got a screaming strong arabesque line – made all the more apparent by the wandering, vague lines of a few of the youngsters around her. Ashley's Choleric was piquant without being overly peppery. Her heat and spice emanated from her prickly pointes.
Debuting in the role of Phlegmatic, Adrian Danchig-Waring was properly stoic but you could sense the attention surging through his every fiber. Every movement, pose, and position was articulated to the maximum degree. Suddenly the visual of a bent elbow with a flexed palm seemed more significant than ever before. Danchig-Waring is becoming an increasingly riveting performer. His steely muscular lines are particularly suited to Balanchine's Black & White masterpieces, and his intensity is gripping. And although we rarely see it, he has a handsome smile that conveys warmth and sincerity.
Robert Fairchild danced his Melancholic variation with intelligent drama. Sometimes this role is presented as angst from note-one to note-end but Fairchild varied the degrees of emotion to create an arc of despair. One knew that the backbends were coming in the choreography, but unexpectedly, Fairchild's backbends conveyed a sense of healing that Haglund couldn't recall in others' interpretations.
Savannah Lowery and Tiler Angle performed the Sanguinic variation. The Theme was a little rough on Tuesday but Faye Arthurs, Zachary Catazaro, Lauren King, Allen Peiffer, Ashley Laracey, and Justin Peck smoothed it out to a glistening beauty on Wednesday night.
Oh my, is Balanchine's Episodes difficult to sit through two nights in a row. On both nights, numerous seats in the theater emptied out after this ballet. This "homage to Anton von Webern" must be Balanchine at his most static. Three-quarters of it is interesting without being the least bit entertaining. Only when Maria Kowroski and Jonathan Stafford showed up for the Ricercata in the final movement did we get a reprieve from the surgical analysis of the starved score.
Haglund loved watching Megan Fairchild tear through the allegro in Duo Concertant with such joy and freedom. Likewise it's always a pleasure to see Jared Angle moving in high speed choreography instead of being relegated to mere lifting. The second evening's pianist, Cameron Grant, offered a more dynamic reading of the Stravinsky score than Susan Walters on Tuesday, and Kurt Nikkanen was the solo violinist for both nights.
Symphony in Three Movements looked like a good rehearsal on Tuesday night, but on Wednesday night, it revved up to full power led by Sterling Hyltin and Amar Ramasar. However, some of the ladies in the corps of white leotards continued to mar the iconic diagonal lines by not knowing where their faces should be focused. Rebecca Krohn, Andrew Veyette, Ana Sophia Scheller, and Daniel Ulbricht completed the superb principal cast.
The H.H. Pump Bump Award, an eco-friendly stiletto with climbing star, is bestowed upon Adrian Danchig-Waring for his stunning debut in the Phlegmatic variation.
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