NYCB 9/22 NYCB takes Balanchine's RV out for a fast spin

911:    911 operator, what is your emergency?

Caller:    The ballerinas are out there drag racing again in the street by Damrosch Park. I can smell the rubber burning and the noise is not exactly music to my ears.

911:    Oh no! Are you sure?

Caller:    Yes, it sounds like they're running the RV at top speed from one end of the block to the other.  What is it with these women? They put on pink and all of a sudden they think they can go out and create a commotion.

911:    A patrol car is on its way. Stay inside. Thank you for calling 911.

[What the cops saw.]

Oh my goodness, what a night it was in the theater. Just to clarify, there was no civil disturbance and the crowd was well-behaved. New York City Ballet was simply dancing the dings out of Balanchine's Raymonda Variations on the third night of the season. This ballet has nothing to do with the story of Raymonda that Petipa created. It's a series of virtuoso solos bookended by the spirited dancing of eight corps women and a pair of principals dancing two pas de deux -- all of it set to the same glorious Glazounov music that Petipa used. It ends with one of those "how brave (or crazy) can they be?" moments when the ballerina -- in this case, Megan Fairchild -- says "Hold my beer" and races forward toward the edge of the stage to launch herself straight at the audience with the hope that her partner -- in this case, Anthony Huxley -- will be there to catch her before she goes tumbling head first into the wind section of the orchestra. He was.

The fine soloists included Sara Adams, Baily Jones, Mary Elizabeth Sell and these two -- Emily Kikta and Ashley Hod -- who as a pair pushed out the wings of the stage with their grand allegro in addition to performing their own remarkable variations. Raymonda Variations is not a dance for any ballerina who is afraid of hops on pointe - it's a hopping Hades if ever there was one. Sara Adams' diagonal of forward hops while in an unwavering arabesque were perfection. Anthony Huxley's batterie, so crisp and clear, included a ridiculous series of brisé volé.

The corps de ballet, but for a moment or two of confusion, was gorgeous although we could do without the Vogue-ing mouths that some were displaying. What's up with that?

Indiana Woodward and Taylor Stanley created new interest for us in Duo Concertant. Every time we see a new pairing in this ballet, we see a new story. It was the first time that Haglund observed violinist Sean Lee instead of Maestros Delmoni or Nikkanen on stage. The Stravinsky sounded less bold but more refined making it another new experience for us. Elaine Chelton was the wonderful pianist.

Our other wonderful pianist of the evening was Susan Walters who rocked the pink shoes as the soloist pianist in Piano Pieces -- Jerome Robbins' ballet to Tschaikovsky's melodies. Sebastian Villarini-Velez stepped in for Roman Mejia as Le Petit Cavalier and performed with intense energy and joy. Would like to see more variability and individual musicality in his dancing as opposed to straight line winds impact.

Sara Mearns and Chun Wai Chan were gorgeous in the Reverie but Sara's neck seemed stiff during the Natha Waltz. Her blond hair was stunning in a unique twist but that made the lack of movement of the head all the more apparent. Would a Ratmansky-preferred low bun (which Sara also wears beautifully) encourage her to use her head and neck, we mean really use it, not just a slight turn of the eyes or chin? But these two dancers as well as the other pairs made Haglund realize that he likes this ballet more than Robbins' Dances at a Gathering which Piano Pieces now and then resembles.

Tiler Peck and Joseph Gordon in the November Troika were playful -- each with a commanding presence in their solos, as well.

But the highlight of this ballet was the Chant d'Automme performed by Mira Nadon and Aaron Sanz. My goodness, are they ever attractive together. Both have luxurious length in their lines, classical carriage, and an ultra sensitive relationship with their music. Their pas de deux was so seamless and beautiful that we did not want it to end. So, we'll toss them the H.H. Pump Bump Award, a Chamandi stiletto available at Bergdorf Goodman for $840, with the hope that we will see them together a lot in the future.

 

 

Comments

[yukionna]

I'm unfortunate enough to miss the entire fall season, but these reviews are a joy! I really wanted to see Raymonda Variations.

[Haglund]

Noooooo, yukionna - I'm so sorry you have to miss the fall season. The company is dancing superbly and the Balanchine rep is glorious.

[yukionna]

I'm absolutely devastated to not be able to see Sterling's last hurrahs this season. She is one of my favorite dancers in Balanchine/Stravinsky ballets, and I'm sad to see her retire.

[Allie Kenney]

Yukionna: I liked seeing Sterling in the Stravinsky works too. One of the most memorable NYCB performances I have seen was her doing Duo with Robert Fairchild about 10 years ago.Another pairing I liked was Sterling with Amar Ramasar in Symphony in Three Movements.I saw her do Duo with Taylor Stanley last weekend and plan to see her do Stravinsky Violin Concerto next weekend.

By the way, for anyone who's interested, I was looking at the casting for the next two weeks and on Thurs Oct 13 Robert Fairchild is scheduled to return as a "guest artist" to partner Sterling in "Vienna Waltzes," which I believe is the only time this season either of them is scheduled to perform that work.

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