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January 25, 2014

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Haglund,

I went to the January 30th performance of "Jewels".....and went home very disappointed. What struck me immediately was the lackluster playing of the orchestra.....which has been the case since the prior music director Karoui (SP ?) left for greener pastures conducting in Europe...the lovely Faure score sounded like a dirge , which is shame...the Stravinsky fared a little better...but the Tchaikovsky was a real disaster. Casting: "Emeralds "- Peck and Stafford were a revelation....probably the best performances in these roles in years....King and Le Crone competent , but Huxley danced way beneath his usual high standard....Ramasar....a real surprise...and an attentive partner for Peck.....ditto for Danchig-Waring partnering Stafford. "Rubies".....an exiting ,sexy Bouder with Garcia....it probably was his best performance in this role.....Lowery - up to her usual high standard."Diamonds"... Mearns - I cannot share the Times` critic high opinion of her.... She was partnered by Catazaro....and that is a real mystery - he is tall and good looking...but has no partnering skills , and the few solos that this role has, were a disaster...one of the worst performances I have seen in years ! Perhaps he could handle the "walking pas" in Emeralds...which was given to Danching-Waring - who should have partnered Mearns . That bring me to the corps.....it used to be that the NYCB corps was known for its speed and musicality.....but now ? Incredibly slow and sloppy with a port the bras that looked like the flopping of turkey wings...and the corps choreography in "Jewels" is not that difficult - unlike most of Balanchine. Could it be not enough rehearsals , too many new works ? Whatever the reason , they are just not producing anymore ( I saw one "Nutcracker" - and had the same impression of their work last month ). It is perhaps time to get new designs for this ballet.....look at the beautiful Christian Lacroix designs for the POB.....All in all - some wonderful performances by most principals dancers......but ballet is more....

Hi Friedrich.

I saw Catazaro's debut in Diamonds on Jan. 28th which wasn't bad at all. But you could sense it was his first time out in it.

I think Catazaro is being thrown some huge challenges in an effort to increase his usefulness as quickly as possible. I've seen him dance solos well and I've seen him partner well. But partnering Diamonds and on top of that partnering Mearns in Diamonds is a tall order to fill. It takes someone with the skills and experience of Jonathan Stafford to pull it off smoothly with Mearns. Catazaro is a long ways off from being a partner in Stafford's class but it is apparent that he's receiving a lot of attention and that he's trying hard to execute precisely as told - even if it ultimately doesn't turn out pretty the first few times.

Friedrich, I think you're going to be a fan of Catazaro's in the not too distant future. Hang in there.

Haglund,
To be fair to Catazaro - I have seen him in some of the"Black and White" ballets , and he acquitted himself well . I do remember Stafford in that role - attentive , competent , but utterly boring. He does not erase memories of Askegard and Adam Lueders...or Peter Martins ( You can see him and Farrell in that pas on Youtube ) . ." Catazaro is along ways off from being a partner..." How true . Remember when Stiefel was in the corps - he stood out...and outdanced everyone - I do not see that with C. Tall , good-looking - that is about all . Perhaps you are right about his potential..only time will tell. But at this stage he should not be dancing major roles . I do not want to pay premium prices for such performances....

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