NYCB Opening Night 4/24

Maria “the Miraculous” Kowroski and Abi Stafford opened New York City Ballet’s spring season with a performance of Concerto Barocco in which all of the dancers looked like thoroughbreds primed and ready to Run for the Roses (this year, May 5th). Sleek, glistening, with furlong-length limbs, lungs swelling with air, and hearts pounding with spirit – every one of them was eager to break through the gate and get going. They were in a race against ordinariness, champing on their bits and kicking up the dust of our memories of the best performances of Concerto Barocco we had seen in many seasons. Only a fool would bet against these dancers at this time in history.

At first glance, Maria and Abi made an uncommon pair. Abi with her cherubic, lighthearted joy and fleet feet had to maximize the stretch of every movement in order to keep up with Maria, the company’s long-legged senior ballerina, who was pursued by decades of memories of dancing this ballet, memories that seemed to nip at her feet to make them move faster and faster. She was, in fact, anticipating the music and dancing on the front of the count brilliantly — an example of excellence for the eight young women in the corps who occasionally fell behind her on the music and didn’t always keep the height of their arabesques uniform. But those problems were infrequent and minor when considering the corps' expansive drill of piques, energized jumps on pointe, crisp port de bras, and full-out sprint from start to finish.

As the sole male dancer in this ballet, Russell Janzen turned the pas de deux into a showcase for Maria’s unique gifts and a declaration of his admiration for this ballerina. His scholarly partnering skills, natural inclination to romance, and musical responsiveness enlarged the significance of this pas de deux magnificently. So perfect were his thrown horizontal slides of Maria moving upstage in which she suddenly fouetted into a penche arabesque punctuated with a luxurious stretch that leaned backward into a 180 degree angle displaying lines tapered to infinity – a stunning example, and one of the few on the ballet stage today, of split legs being elegant artistry as opposed to graceless trick. The supported pencil turns from which Maria fell backward into Janzen’s arms – first to the left and then to the right – could not have held more sweeping romance and delicacy.

What a start to the Spring Season this ballet was: a very high point from which the company will undoubtedly continue to rise in the coming weeks.

 

Agon was in fine shape on opening night. Teresa Reichlen and Chase Finlay were a much more confident pair than on their previous outing, although she is still quite a bit beyond him in terms of readiness. Anthony Huxley’s Sarabande, an amusing balance of loose, ungainly but perfectly coordinated movements tickled the audience. Savannah Lowery’s Bransle Gay was solid. Lauren King and Ashley Laracey were like two peas in a pod during their Gailliard – both so ready for much higher profile roles.

 

The Four Temperaments was the surprise of evening. Some who have been struggling to find their ways in this ballet finally did so. Megan LeCrone’s Choleric was much improved and included a dramatic dynamic with unpredictability that made it fresh and interesting. Sara Mearns’ Sanguinic with Jared Angle was still somewhat off the mark. It was like a fight in a Roman Coliseum. The four little Sanguinista Guerrillas, on the other hand, had fierceness that was appropriate. Precise in their marching on pointe, they were all business.

 

Sean Suozzi’s Melancholic was also much improved in the area of flexibility from the Winter Season. His theatrical skills, among the strongest in the company, rewarded us with an interpretation of Melancholic that was sad but questioning, distressed but pensive.

 

The pairs in the Theme section included Miriam Miller and Cameron Dieck. You know, Miriam is working hard and diligently, and there is no question as to the potential for greatness, but it’s going to take some time for her to acquire the torso strength demanded in these black and white ballets. Finding a supported full penche arabesque proved difficult during this performance. Other extensions were somewhat improved, but given her equipment, they should eventually be stunningly beautiful with strongly arched feet. Cameron, whose dancing has acquired power and interest in the past few years, is winding up his career this season as he gets ready to step into the big money in investment banking. Going from dancer to dealmaker is probably one of the most successful direct transitions we've ever noticed. 

 

On this opening night, NYCB made a statement about its own transition. It’s in good hands. It’s focus is strong. Dancers are growing. The commitment to honoring Balanchine is unyielding. The audience doesn’t want it any differently.

 

Our H.H. Pump Bump Award, gold and diamonds on the highest platform, is bestowed upon Maria Kowroski, whose stage leadership at this point is simply remarkable.

 

 

Comments

[Hannah]

Glad to see Abi back on the casting sheet. I don't know why she had been relatively absent for so long, only doing a Nutcracker now and then. Maybe she and Martins didn't get on so well. I know she had a baby but that was a few years ago now. She still has a lot to give.

[Dez]

I'm happy to hear that Abi is seeing more stage time as well. Maybe it's because her brother is now in charge, but I'm a relatively new NYCB fan and I assumed she was just injured/old/bland. Maybe it was Martins? She's great!

[Haglund]

I don't think there is much validity to the speculation as to the reasons Abi hasn't been on stage frequently other than injury and pregnancy, both of which certainly interrupt a career. Sometimes it's a matter of the season's rep being less geared to one's skill set and more geared to another dancer's talents. We've been watching her for 18 years. If one is new to attending NYCB, one has missed most of her career which was quite active for several years.