The heat was on yesterday afternoon at the Metropolitan Opera House – inside and out. Temps were in the 90s with the sun glaring down like this world’s hottest spotlight. Inside, men wore bermudas while some women were in the least amount of fabric they could get away with. It’s possible that the Grand Tier Bar made enough profit off of its $6 three-gulp Evian bottles to replace all of the sinking seats in the opera house. On stage, however, the flames were fanned with blistering virtuoso performances from an A-1 cast of Don Quixote.
Herman Cornejo danced Basilio like it was his final salute to the role. It may well have been. At 37 years old, he’s been appearing in the role at the Met over the past ten years — having debuted it in Tokyo in 2005 and then waiting for three years for a chance to dance it in New York for the first time at age 27. Do readers remember what Cornejo’s technical virtuosity was like when he was 20 through 27? Beyond astonishing. (One reader still remembers being devastated when a teenaged Cornejo showed up in his SAB summer boys class: “Oh jeez, look at that guy. The rest of us will never get any attention.”) Due to ABT’s maladroit management, audiences have been forced to wait until dancers’ best years have passed before getting to see them in important roles. We haven’t seen all that many Basilios from Cornejo given the fact that ABT hasn’t presented Don Quixote every year, and there was a year in which Cornejo had to withdraw due to an injury. We should have seen more.
Saturday afternoon Cornejo’s Basilio was a balance of thrilling go-for-it technical virtuosity combined with theatrical nuance and detail that made this role blaze anew. When Kitri rebuffed his advances, Basilio’s face fell for a mere nanosecond before conveying “Really? You gonna turn this down? Okay (shrug), I’ll just get someone else.” And he motioned the two flower girls, Skylar Brandt and Betsy McBride, to take a spin with him. And boy, did those two ever make it clear that they were looking for their own Kitri opportunities.
Yesterday brought incredible cabrioles, fast pirouettes with ending double tours, huge jumps – all executed with the maximum energy and intense drive that have always characterized Cornejo’s performances. If there was one lesson that he demonstrated for every ABT dancer who shared the stage with him yesterday, it was how to go for a big moment and make it work no matter what happens. A double tour that leaned toward 10 o’clock ended thrillingly when he recovered it as though he had intended it to be that way all along. Making Basilio brilliant no matter what happens: Cornejo, Corella, Carreno and the master of dance-like-it’s-your-last-chance Bocca – they all did it.
Sarah Lane in her long awaited debut as Kitri dazzled. The trajectory of those jetes (new since acquiring coaching from Dvorovenko) was astonishing. When she first arrived on stage, it seemed that conductor Charles Barker was holding back the tempo a little; but Sarah had already accelerated into fourth gear, and tempo and dancing soon meshed. Generous pirouettes, astonishing balances, beautifully shaped extensions, and complete trust in her partner made this a wonderful victory for her and her fans. When she walked out to set up for her fouettes in Act III, she had a sly little smile on her face and a fan in her hand. Soon that fan was waving over her head as she spun around. As Haglund watched in amazement, he wished that she would finish the fouettes by tossing the fan into the air behind her and running off. Maybe next time…
The two one-armed lifts in Act I were a great success with Sarah bravely holding her position while Herman worked it all into place so that he could release his left arm. A couple of supported pirouettes went awry in Act I but that was the extent of any problems with the partnering. The grand pas de deux in Act III included the most gorgeous overhead lift and drop into a fish position. Sarah’s hops on pointe in her variation easily traveled the diagonal. The sequence in which Sarah launched a double turn a la seconde into penche arabesque was textbook perfect. At the conclusion when Herman propelled her into the en dehors attitude turns, she held on for nearly three revolutions. While Acts I and III were virtuoso victories for Sarah, her dancing in Act II won her the highest accolades for breathing balances that arrived and departed with effortless beauty that made them seem heavenly.
This new Kitri’s performance was simply a joy to watch and such relief from a mostly dismal season.
Beautiful Stella Abrera and Thomas Forster as Mercedes and Espada had a delicious chemistry to go with their sensational dancing. How wonderful it was to see this huge man devouring the stage with his mammoth jumps and big personality. Within seconds of seeing them interact on stage, Haglund was dreaming of Forster as Oberon to Stella’s Titania. How incredible would that be?!
Cassandra Trenary danced a lovely Queen of the Dryads with a little bit of unwarranted tension. While she was gorgeous in the tutu, the sleeves really didn’t do her any favors as far as elongating her port de bras. Her Italian fouettes were secure. Her jumps were high and traveled well. No, she isn’t as tall and as long a dancer as we’re accustomed to seeing in this role, but she was very pleasing to watch. Cassandra Trenary: another one we want to see as Titania. Soon.
The Gypsy Couple was not as strong as we’re accustomed to seeing. Isadora Loyola and Gabe Shayer were a mismatch physically, and she was a little too much for him to partner. Gabe’s athletic-based solo was excellently executed. Isadora was less prepared for hers.
Rachel Richardson’s Amour was pitch perfect. The Les Petits Amours from the company’s school made the stage too crowded. We observed them in a performance last year and wondered why all of a sudden McKenzie decided to inject this saccharine cuteness into the production. Obviously, it has to do with the fact that the JKO students’ performing opportunities were gutted when ABT moved its Nutcracker from the diverse community of Brooklyn to the rich, not diverse community of Costa Mesa. Given that ABT markets itself as a professional company, it would seem that the kids should look like little professionals in the making such as is seen in NYCB or Mariinsky productions – not like they were brought in from Miss Sally’s Skool of Danz and Baton Twirling.
Roman Zhurbin as Lorenzo and Luis Ribagordo as Gamache are masters of the side performance – the Harvey Korman and Tim Conway of the ballet stage. The only problem is that it’s hard to tell who is Tim and who is Harvey. Brilliant character dancers – both of them.
Our H.H. Pump Bump Award, a stiletto of hot red satin covered with black lace, is bestowed upon Sarah Lane for her triumphant debut as Kitri.