UIEX: ABT guest artist developments

The Unofficial Information Exchange (UIEX) has received two tips that ABT will add two more guest artists to its spring season.

Denys Nedak of the National Ballet of Ukraine will arrive to dance we-don't-know-what-yet. The Honored Artist of the Ukraine has danced the role of Solor in Natalia Makarova's production of La Bayadere, and there is now a need to find a replacement for Cory Stearns. It is extremely doubtful that Mr. Nedak is a better choice than any one of a half dozen of ABT's outstanding dancers (particularly Jared Matthews), but Haglund didn't plan on seeing the Stearns/Semionova/Seo cast anyway; so he would pass this up regardless.

As a sidebar, there is a petition over at Whitehouse.gov to allow Ukranians to enter into the United States for 90 days without the requirement of Visas. If you want to sign that petition, go here.

Why doesn't ABT invite a bunch of the Ukranian corps dancers to come here so that our own dancers can move up into soloist and principal opportunities? Since there are oodles of corps dancers around the world who already know Makarova's staging of La Bayadere, why not hire them instead of importing principals? ABT should be hiring outsiders at the bottom ranks, not the top.

McKenzie would never hire these guys (Nedak, Jackson, Lendorf) as permanent soloists, let alone permanent principals, but he brings them in as guest artists and holds them over the heads of the company's hard working, starving-for-opportunities, enormously talented dancers. No wonder the dancers are so demoralized. When is ABT going to get an artistic director who can actually coach the company's dancers in principal roles instead of depending on the rest of the world's directors to do his work for him?

NYCB's Andrew Vyette will also make a guest appearance in we-don't-know-what-yet, but with Cory Stearns out, there is a need for someone to dance his two performances of Theme and Variations. Maybe Andy will bring along his orchestra, conductor, costume and a few corps members to help out, too. Hey, maybe he'll even bring along Bouder. No objections to that.

 

Comments

[Genna]

I went to ABT's twitter feed and clicked on the link for the announcements. Vyette will dance Theme and Variations with Gillian Murphy. Lendorf will dance with Gillian in Don Q.

[Sandra]

I'm sure your dancers are very talented, but you also will be so lucky to watch Denis Nedak's perfomence!!! He's so brilliant dancer!

[Haglund]

Thanks, Sandra. I'm sure that Denys Nedak is a wonderful dancer, and I would love to see him perform with the Ukranian National Ballet or in a Festival. There are literally thousands of brilliant dancers around the world, including 80 or so at ABT. The problem is that ABT has become background scenery for dancers from other companies to perform in front of. The management continues to convey the impression that anyone who comes from somewhere else has greater artistic value than ABT's own dancers.

[friedrich]

Haglund,

Denys Nedak ????? Vadimir Shklyarov - a mediocre dancer - Leonid Sarafanov would be a much better choice . How about Evan McKie and Friedemann Vogel from the Stuttgart Ballet -these two can dance rings around Stearns - even though I have enjoyed his dancing in some roles . Why not rename American Ballet Theater : Perhaps it could be called "International Guest Star Ballet Entertainment "...with the current crop of mainly Slavic circus freaks....and just present short excerpts of the classics souped up with the newest tricks - so that the audience can scream for an hour and then stand in line for the toilets for 45 minutes...most will be gone in the next few years anyway . Yes, it is sad the way American talent is negated at ABT....I suppose the powers behind McKenzie get what they want . The art of ballet does not concern them at all.

[Haglund]

Hi Friedrich.

I don't think that Shklyarov is a mediocre dancer; he's just not world-class or any better than what ABT could put on the stage out of its own ranks. His pirouettes are not principal quality, and he's not an especially compelling actor. In fact, he's quite boring and ordinary.