OMG STE-L-L-L-A!!!!

Giselle, Saturday night opposite Shklyarov and Veronika!!

I knew that my eyes weren't playing tricks on me, but now the casting has been changed back to the original casting. WTF?  (15 mins later) Whew – so, now it's back the way we want it.

 

 

Comments

[Paula Hall]

I just checked and the May 23rd evening casting of Abrera seems to be back.

[Jeannette]

Stelllllllllaaaaaa!!!! The Met web is about to crash, LOL! What a cast that will be.

[Haglund]

Hard to believe that it's finally going to happen.

[melponeme_k]

This is wonderful news. I purchased a ticket before the website went a bit laggy. Here is to hoping Abrera will dance the role at the Gala as well.

[J]

WOW! Who was originally slated for Giselle that evening?

[K]

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oh man, oh man. So envious on the West Coast, Haglund.

Seriously though: someone check to make sure McKenzie is still alive and that a coup hasn't taken place at ABT.

[J]

Apparently, at the Gala, Maria Kochetkova of San Francisco Ballet is taking over for Julie Kent in the segment of Giselle, with Stella Abrera as Myrtha. Kochetkova was there to perform with Cornejo in La Bayadere and Swan Lake.

[Paula Hall]

Wouldn't it be cool if McKenzie pulled a Martins and promoted her onstage or right after curtain calls?

[Matthew Rusk]

J--Polina Semionova was scheduled to perform Giselle. Would you expect Semionova to withdraw from more performances in June, Haglund?

[Jeannette]

Kochetkova was not appearing in the gala originally but will now replace Semionova as Giselle with Abrera as Myrtha. Seo, Cornejo & corps de ballet still slated for Bayadere excerpts. Copeland and Whitehead dancing exc from Swan Lake.

[Haglund]

You may see Stella leading a group in Les Noces as well, not sure.

[Anna Campbell]

Yay Haglund you'll finally see it :) so happy for you.

[Haglund]

Thanks, Anna. Hope all is well Down Under.

[J]

Yes, Haglund, I join Anna in being so happy for you - and others - to get to see exquisite Stella in Giselle at last.

[Angelica Smith]

I'm both sooooo excited and numb with disbelief! And with Shklyarov, not Whiteside, and Veronica Part!

[rachel]

Had to reschedule family plans because of this epic momentous occasion!

[Joanne]

At last! Will look forward to your comments!

[Laurel]

This is the best news to come out of ABT in a long, long time. I've been giddy with excitement all day! So thrilled for Stella and for those of us who will be able to see her performance.

[Ken]

I came here to express the same sentiments as J and Anna. I look forward to reading your review!

[Jeannette]

After the happy news on Stella came that awful Ric Burns 'docu-mercial' on PBS tonight. What the heck? (Another topic for Haglund, no doubt. No improvement since the March preview at the Kennedy Center. Just shorter.)

[Haglund]

I didn't watch it and probably won't. I was at City Ballet having a great time.

[Genna]

So it took Semionova being injured before KM finally throwing a bone to neglected Stella? He withheld Giselle from her almost as cruel punishment for being injured when she was supposed to dance it a while ago. Does that mean Semionova will vacate all her scheduled performances next month? Anyways great news, only down side is Shklyarov as partner, his partnering skills are quite awful for a principal. But Stella is strong enough to compensate for such shortcomings. Hope someone will film the performance and post on yt.

[Robin]

Have you seen the 75th anniv book? The current principals each get their own page, and Stella gets her own page and the rest of the soloists are in one group photo. Hmm...

[Haglund]

Hi Robin.

Yes, I glanced at the book in the Met Opera House gift shop. It has some nice images and some that are a little strange as well. I don't make anything of the lone image of Stella. She's the senior soloist - by a very long shot – and plenty of people are disturbed with the manner in which she has been slighted over the years. It's an interesting art shot though with the hair spiked in back of her, isn't it?

[Robin]

Yes, it's a cool shot I think- plus she is so strikingly beautiful!

[Laurel]

I just saw this and bought a ticket! very exciting. This is the other Laurel. ;]

[Anna C]

Semionova's out for a year per a French blogger with Connections...https://twitter.com/dansesplume/status/600942064252104704

[Jeannette]

We're down to less than four days, H! Love your countdown clock. I'm sure that it brings smiles to many fans' faces.

[Haglund]

Hi Anna. What a shame if that Twitter news is true. Depending on how she uses her time-off, she could come back as a more compelling artist with more depth to her dramatic portrayals. Every time Stella Abrera was out for an extended time, she brought back a more enlightened, more polished, greater understanding of her art to her performances. I hope Polina sees her time off as a luxury and opportunity as well as the real bummer which, of course, it is.

[Haglund]

Jeanette, I've seen Stella dancing with the lilies so much in my mind over the past decade that it almost feels like this won't be the first performance.