Haglund's Heel

ABT Crime and Punishment 10/31 When the ballet requires super titles

— or a heavy lean on another artist's reputation or gimmicky angst & yank choreography of the type that neither William Forsythe nor Jorma Elo could make stick, it’s time to reassess the campaign to force the genre to progress in a certain direction for no reason other than to claim easy attention. As we have chanted before, there is no such direction in art as “moving forward” or “progressing”. Those are marketing tags to make people dissatisfied with what they have so they will buy something new. Art creation simply expands like the universe; it doesn’t move along any progressive line. Music didn’t progress from Mozart to Nico Muhley. Painting didn’t progress from Rembrandt to Gerhard Richter. Architecture didn’t progress from Louis Sullivan to Norman Foster. Art ideas expand and mutate and are born from the imaginations in human brains which haven’t changed all that much since Rembrandt’s time.

 

        ABT, in its misguided effort to look progressive, has suffered yet another failure in Helen Pickett’s Crime and Punishment, a mediocre dance version of Dostoevsky’s epic novel about a character's road to hell that is paved with a trumped-up good intention to commit a crime in order to enrich himself and collaterally help others. Did we even really need to revisit Raskolnikov’s criminality, self-indulgent suffering, conviction, imprisonment, and election to the presidency? Hold on . . . we sense a troubling digression. Let’s all pause to focus on our breathing. Thumbs & index fingers together, palms up, breathe.

 

        Okay. 

 

        Was there anything to admire about Crime and Punishment? Well, yes: the dancers’ commitment and determined effort to sell the angst & yank to the audience. In this particular performance on Thursday, Herman Cornejo quite literally threw himself into Raskolnikov’s steps, rolls, flails, and head-holding. Skylar Brandt portrayed with soulful obligation the beautiful, innocent Sonya who truly loved Raskolnikov but was forced into prostitution. Aran Bell was Razumikhin, Raskolnikov’s friend who didn’t know how to help him. Raskolnikov’s sister, Dunya, (Catherine Hurlin) loved Razumikhin (they kissed passionately - in the dance, not the book) and had to fight off the affections of Svidrigailov, portrayed with skillful theatrical shading by Patrick Frenette. Hurlin and Frenette danced a vigorous Mayerling-like pas de deux that involved a gun. She rejected him and tried to shoot him, but in the end, he decided to shoot himself behind a glass door at the top of a staircase to nowhere. (In Mayerling, the suicide by gun was behind a bedroom screen.) 

 

        The stage was constantly in a buzz of activity — not dancing, but the dizzy swirling in and out of the scenery walls. It has become all the rage for dancers to move the scenery on and off the stage instead of using union stage hands. Ratmansky did it in On the Dnieper, his first ballet for ABT, and then Wheeldon began doing it with his Broadway shows and ballets. There was a lot of obnoxious scenery moving by dancers in ABT’s “Lifted” a few years back, too. This time, however, the audience got to listen to the barking of the stage manager’s instructions from the wings as part of the charm.

 

        The music composed for this dance by Isobel Waller-Bridge was, at its best, unremarkable. Not a minute of it would stand alone on its own merits. Boisterous and dramatically obvious, it was like music running through an old silent movie to predict and warn the viewer of the action ahead. Not a note of it reached the soul of the audience.

 

        Haglund wanted to cry at the end of Crime and Punishment. Cry because of the donors’ money wasted by ABT. Despite all the extraordinary full length works at its disposal, ABT has opted for mediocrity for no reason other than to pander to some audience sub-sector that it thinks it needs. On the horizon, however, it appears that it has the good sense to bring in Wheeldon’s The Winter’s Tale for next year — but possibly too late, because ABT allowed Wheeldon to recycle many of his ideas from The Winter’s Tale for the dud production of Like Water For Chocolate. People will remember. Balletomanes have elephants’ memories.

 

        A dance that depends on super titles flashing across the stage to explain to the audience what is going on despite two magazine-sized pages in the evening’s program full of helpful Cliff-like notes is a dance in trouble. This was one more sign that all of Pickett’s good intentions could not ameliorate the artistic crime.

 

ABT Fall Season What's old is new again

        The saying in the world of antique furniture is that refinishing a museum-quality piece knocks the value out of it. It is the preservation of the artist’s original work that is important, not what the piece looks like compared to today’s manufacturing standards. On the other hand, if the antique is something that is to be handed down from generation to generation for the family's enjoyment, use, and reflection on a time and the lives of members who are known only by name and an entry on a family tree, then refurbishing can actually enhance its value. We’re somewhere in the middle of those two camps of thought with regard to our classical ballets for which we desire to retain their original intent and quality of patina while enhancing their finishes and strengthening their hinges to allow them to continue to be enjoyed.

 

        American Ballet Theatre’s The Kingdom of the Shades from Petipa’s La Bayadere as lovingly remembered by Natalia Makarova, undergoes periodic reupholstering as significant new talent emerges from the ranks. The same is true for Balanchine’s exquisite jewels Ballet Imperial and Sylvia Pas de Deux and Lander’s illuminating treatise on the systematic development of the ballet artist in Etudes. Thanks to these four works, ABT’s Fall Season, thus far, has amounted to a sensational comeback of good sense and good taste. 

 

        Ballet Imperial, aka Tschaikovsky Piano Concerto No 2 at New York City Ballet, benefitted from elegant new costumes by Jean-Marc Puissant which were designed with colors and themes similar to both the retiring costumes and the current NYCB costumes. The ballet further benefitted from pristine technical performances by Christine Shevchenko and Chloe Misseldine and the fine partnering by Calvin Royal III. But was it a good idea for ABT to try to distinguish its version of the ballet from NYCB’s version by using tempi so painfully glacial that the ballerina had to punctuate phrases with chin throws? Everything is open to debate, of course, and this will be, too. Those of us who have watched Shevchenko her whole career and clearly remember her blistering speed in Piano Concerto No 1 know that she isn’t a dancer who requires a grandma pace for a Balanchine ballet as perhaps others required in past decades. In fact, the initial swivel turns off pointe that finished in tendu probably would have been cleaner and easier had they been up to speed. But she was very lovely to watch in most every respect. And the corps de ballet probably would have been more bright and energetic if they had been able to anticipate the music rather than wait for it to appear. Not to belabor the point, but the corps dancers are of a generation that can move a lot more quickly than past generations. Why not let them do so when it would benefit the work?

 

        Calvin Royal III delivered some truly beautiful allegro and classic lines in addition to attentive partnering. Chloe Misseldine soared through the grand allegro soloist role with energy and crystal clarity which turned out to be a mere preamble to her radiant performance in Sylvia Pas de Deux with Aran Bell at the ABT Gala the next week. Terpsichorean in the most Balanchine sense, she was the music on the stage. All of that blessed length made for stunning arabesques of grand statement. Bell’s allegro was plush as velvet, not showy, with an effortless nobility. We’d love to see him as Apollo.

 

        Alexei Ratmansky’s Neo pas de deux was created during the Covid shutdown and premiered as part of a digital program by the Joyce Theater in May 2021. The can’t-stop-us explosion of energy was instantly recognizable by those of us who danced like crazy people in the small spaces of living rooms, kitchens or garages trying to release pent-up wattage, frustration, and impatience while retaining some sense of normalcy. Just let it out of your system however you can, the choreographer seemed to convey. 

 

        The music for the piece, Neo by Dai Fujikura, was the composer’s first for the Japanese instrument shamisen. He said that his aim was to create something that was like distortion on an electric guitar, and that he treated the piece like a guitar solo in a rock concert. His hope was that the audience would scream at the end like they were at a rock concert. Check. We did. It was crazy fun by Catherine Hurlin and Jarod Curley. Playing on stage, Sumie Kaneko ripped the shamisen like she was Peter Frampton.

 

        The excerpt from Lynn Taylor-Corbett's Great Galloping Gottschalk whetted the appetite to see the whole ballet again. The originators of the pas de deux were Susan Jaffe with Robert La Fosse who was beaming as a member of the audience. Sunmi Park and Calvin Royal III hit their stride on their second performance, releasing joy and warmth and dancing as though they were improvising throughout. 

 

        Twyla Tharp’s In The Upper Room received serviceable treatment but was less grounded (less urban, less “downtown”) than previous generations managed to make it. Standouts in the cast we saw were Devon Teuscher, Aran Bell, and Joseph Markey. Memories of Laura Hildago and Maria Riccetto as the joined-at-the-hip bombers in red pointe shoes were running in the back of the mind while watching the current bombers on stage struggle somewhat with unison and finding their fierce energy.

 

        The highlight of the season was the restoration of The Kingdom of the Shades which as a stand-alone ballet is enjoyable but not to the extent that it is within the full production of La Bayadere. It exposes the classical caliber of the company like few other ballets do. The sight of the 24 Shades calmly descending from the heavens via arabesque after taxing arabesque was mesmerizing at each performance. We wondered, however, why most of the Shades smoothly peeled their feet from the floor to initiate their arabesques while a few stopped to do point tendu before lifting the leg to arabesque. Something tells us that Makarova probably has issued a memo or two on this over the years.

 

        At the gala, Christine Shevchenko and Isaac Hernandez were scrupulous and glimmering in the excerpt. What a beautiful transition from Gamzatti to Nikya Shevchenko has made. Such crystalline shapes and flowing port de bras made us ache to see this whole production again. Hernandez grabbed us into the story with his first step and was well-matched with Shevchenko in form and temperament. After a so-so start to the season in Ballet Imperial, his Solor soared with Hernandez’s fabled brilliance. He’s the dramatic heft that ABT needs more of right now. Teaming up with Hee Seo for two other performances of The Kingdom of the Shades, Hernandez was even more effective in his solos. However, Seo’s technique appeared fragile, particularly during the scarf section where she had considerable difficulty with the turns. Despite her unique ability to embody Nikya’s love and suffering, the role has always been on the outer edges of her technical abilities and is more so now. 

 

        Surely, Makarova must have watched Lea Fleytoux as the first Shade soloist and realized she was witnessing her next Gamzatti and Nikya. Oh my goodness, what an utterly gorgeous solo Fleytoux danced. She is, indeed, small (possibly as small as Makarova), but her textbook use of port de bras makes her appear larger on stage. The technical brilliance so apparent in her calm multiple pirouettes, balances, and generous jumps are more indications of a comeback for ABT. Now, listen up. Fleytoux and Miyake or Roxander in Balanchine’s Theme and Variations could possibly eclipse that pair from the 1970s. And while we know that Fleytoux is destined to be a great Giselle, let’s hope that she doesn’t get pigeonholed in 2nd cast Petipa. She is clearly a full-service ballerina on the cusp of greatness. Jaffe should move her along in the way that Baryshnikov moved Jaffe along.

 

        The H.H. Pump Bump Award, the "Paloma" diamond stiletto from Sophia Webster, is bestowed upon Lea Fleytoux, one of the brightest glimmers of hope for ABT’s future.

 

 

 

 

ABT 3rd cast Etudes Takumi Miyake rings the bell

So sorry we missed this performance and this corpsman's bravery and accomplishment of nine incredible double tours in the Etudes finale. Bocca, Corella, Sarafanov, and now Takumi Miyake.  So glad I-gramers were there to make this incredible record:

 

 

ABT Fall Opener 10/16 Better than the Mets' game

        At least ABT didn’t get blown out of the water 8-0. Not an emphatic start to the Fall Season, however. Whatever happened to “start strong, end stronger” in ballet seasons?

 

        ABT’s opening night included a new work by Gemma Bond, a new work by Kyle Abraham, and an old, but gleaming Etudes by Harald Lander. Not exactly a “This is who we are” opening statement.

 

        Gemma Bond’s La Boutique with music arranged by Respighi after Rossini made one thing clear:  we have a serious choreographer, refreshingly serious about acquiring composition skills to which she can apply her own appealing musicality and love of moving within the classical idiom. Some may recognize the music from Leonid Massine’s previous story ballet La Boutique Fantasque about a toy store; but here the music supported no narrative, only new combinations of mostly classical phrasing that really had us paying attention. 

 

        Three main couples — Devon Teuscher & Aran Bell, Sunmi Park & Cory Stearns, Skylar Brandt & Carlos Gonzalez — led a vivacious corps of men and women in Bond’s intricate and inventive patterns that occasionally became too busy and crowded, not just with dancers but with new ideas instead of offering fewer ideas that evolved in a thematic way. But we’ll take it. And we’ll run with it. But first we’ll strip the dancers and turn on the lights.

 

        Oh my, what a costume, scenic, and lighting mess. Would Jean-Marc Puissant’s costumes look good under different conditions? Yes, but black tutus against a scuffed black Marley floor with low lighting will miss every time. White bodices with colorful details that clash with the lighting backgrounds will miss every time. What happened here? Did ABT repurpose the lighting scheme from some other Clifton Taylor ballet design and just throw it onto the stage for Bond’s new work? How could this lighting not have been immediately replaced after a dress rehearsal? None of it works and it all is a detriment to the ballet.

 

        Kyle Abraham’s Mercurial Son to the bombastic, unlistenable noise by Grischa Lichtenberger was too obvious an effort to claim relevance to those who think a hard-hit foul is just as good as a bunt to first base. Wriggles, head rolls, wavy arms, and some swirling turns to loud music — with obnoxious low lighting (again) and costumes that had no rhyme or reason or theme — the flowy fabric and the arm waving were like throw-away edits from Paul Taylor’s hilarious insects dancing in Gossamer Gallants. It would be unfair to call this choreography bad; it was terrible and amateurishly elementary. Next.

 

        The evening closed with an okay performance of Lander's Etudes. Isaac Hernandez’s introductory performance wasn’t from his top shelf. His nerves were evident upon entering the stage and they messed with his pirouettes for most of the night. His allegro was stunningly clear, however, and he managed well the partnering of the vivacious Catherine Hurlin. She was fantastic throughout the ballet. Everything was working for her: lines stretched to the max, solid pirouettes, eager to race at Ormsby Wilkens’ spirited pacing of the orchestra. During the finale we thought maybe she hit the proverbial wall but then bounced off it to finish strongly. 

 

        Jake Roxander repeated his brilliant turning role from ABT’s last fall season, and truly lifted up the performance several notches. We know he wants to conquer those consecutive double tours in the finale, and he will; and we’re excited to watch him and the other ABT men continue to try to nail them. Bocca did them. Corella did them. Sarafanov did them. Roxander will do them, too. His command of the stage was the strongest of the evening, Everything he did was worthy of admiration. The guy’s charisma, power, and precision are the equivalent of NYCB’s Roman Mejia’s — and aren’t we the lucky ones!

 

        The Corps de Ballet mostly kept up with the speed and precision, but the effort was showing by the end. How happy we were to see Cameron McCune back dancing at full pace and form. Sierra Armstrong and Léa Fleytoux were exceptional as well. However, there were a few veteran corps women who had trouble lifting themselves into the air and making those all important arabesque lines.

 

        The H.H. Pump Bump Award, a classic platform with plenty of spike and a big tank, is bestowed upon Jake Roxander for his performance in Etudes.

 

 

 

observations 7/19

    A hopelessly crappy news week ends with some great news.

    Congratulations to Patrick Frenette, Léa Fleytoux, and Fangqi Li on their promotions to Soloists at ABT! High quality promotions every one of them. Susan Jaffe got it right when she acknowledged that Frenette has been deserving of this promotion for a number years. We're very, very happy (and relieved) to see this happen.

ABT Swan Lake 7/3 matinee

        In addition to promoting Chloe Misseldine to Principal Wednesday at the conclusion of her matinee performance as Odette/Odile, Artistic Director Susan Jaffe should have draped Chloe's shoulders with a black & white PhD graduation stole with cords. Misseldine not only deserved the promotion, but she deserved to be recognized for academic excellence and achievement which come with great expectations for future contributions to the chosen field. Hers was a doctoral level performance if ever there was one. Haglund was nearly overwhelmed while witnessing this very young Ballerina’s mature choices and the overall integrity of her dancing. It’s hard to remember the last time that the sole of a shoe in the face felt so good. Her pointe shoe soles were so turned forward on each extension that the front row audience members could probably read the imprint on the leather. But honestly, rather than sole, it’s all about soul, to quote Billy Joel (because we cannot believe or accept that his 150th MSG performance will be his last). And as Billy says quite clearly and, in fact, several times - it’s all about faith and a deeper devotion. That’s what we saw on stage on Wednesday afternoon from Chloe Misseldine and Aran Bell: faith in their own artistry and a deep devotion to telling the story clearly and with the utmost respect for their language. To borrow one more of the piano man's most famous adages: like every good ballet performance, it allowed us to forget about life for a while. Man oh man, don’t we need that . . .

 

        It was a spectacular performance from Misseldine replete with gorgeous arabesques, liquid swan arms, intelligent usage of stillness and flight, dramatic conviction, tightly coiled pirouettes, and balletic lines that were acutely geometric but which also synthesized avian and human beauty. We first noticed the little bump-up at the top of Odette’s high a la seconde extensions as though she suddenly engaged a flexor near the pinnacle, and concluded that it needs to be smoothed out. However, when we saw it again during Odile’s Pas de Deux, it came across as an absolutely brilliant detail that corresponded to von Rothbart’s creepy neck cracks and whipping head movements that conveyed his evilness. Conclusion: Misseldine should eliminate it from Odette but wildly exaggerate it for Odile to give her Black Swan a unique sense of danger.

 

        Aran Bell’s Siegfried was superb as well. We noticed that he launched his pirouettes with an unusual amount of caution and did not rip the revolutions as we have seen in the past. However, the pirouettes were still impressive as were the double saut de basques that he landed with perfectly balanced arabesques. But the extra caution or preparatory delay on the pirouettes took some of the magic out of the moment; it conveyed an upcoming trick as opposed to an emotional expression by Siegfried. We’re not nitpicking, just observing. Bell’s projection of the drama was strong, clear, and as traditional as we could ever ask for with balletic integrity from his first descent of the staircase in Act I to his final descent into the lake at the end of Act IV. We sensed a developing rapport with Misseldine coupled with his sense of responsibility to make sure that she had the brilliant performance he knew she was capable of giving. Bell has grown into a very generous, mature artist, and it is easy to forget that he is still very young. What the 25-year-old Siegfried might accomplish with this 22-year-old Odette/Odile in the coming years is something for us all to be excited about.

 

        Patrick Frenette gave a major performance as Benno. Always a star in his Ratmansky roles, he has also delivered impressive performances as Benvolio in Romeo and Juliet. His character of Hilarion drew such sympathy that one hoped that Giselle would wake up and smell the coffee and eventually choose him over Albrecht. Frenette is on the cusp of becoming one of ABT’s most captivating theatrical dancers, and we need to see much more of him. His technical abilities keep growing — because he is constantly working to improve them. His pirouettes on Wednesday afternoon were clean and his grand allegro was storm-filled with energy and urgency. He was animated and mime-oriented, but sometimes dropped his facial expression when preparing pirouettes. His partnering was impeccable - he saved Paulina Waski’s standard fumblings and highlighted Sierra Armstrong’s magnetic placement and confident charm in the Pas de Trois. The landing to the knee of the final double tour was smudged, but at that point it simply did not matter. We kept wondering if Waski will ever be able to manage the cabrioles and entrechat six required in this section or the supported partnering. There comes a time when further chances should be cut off, and it seems that we have been past that point with Waski for quite some time. Her weaknesses made Armstrong’s strengths all the more apparent.

 

        Joseph Markey as the purple von Rothbart gave an exceptional performance as well. Even though we knew exactly what the upcoming steps were going to be, Markey created tension with an unpredictability that made the choreography look new. Not only a good, good dancer, but he is an interesting one. Cy Doherty as the monster von Rothbart had some great moments: he died without a shred of dignity left and suffered dramatically at the wings of the swan corps. The Corps de Ballet did a competent job at this matinee but did not have the spectacular visual effect of corps in years past. The various Princesses and national dances in Act III were also competent but a little sleepy. Carlos Gonzalez and Melvin Lawovi needed to kick it up a notch in the Neapolitan duet. It was too careful and lacked voltage. 

 

        Small complaints aside, this was a performance of Swan Lake worth remembering for a long time due to the outstanding performances of our two leads, Chloe Misseldine and Aran Bell. We’re going to toss them an H.H. Pump Bump Award, a pair of magnificent Manolo Blahnik diamond embellished pumps, for their dazzling portrayals of Odette/Odile and Siegfried.

 

 

 

 

ABT fails to learn from its mistakes

        Take away the smoke, laser lights, Kabuki makeup, and odd-for-the-sake-of-odd costumes, and what is left of Wayne McGregor’s Woolf Works are the same old neck rolls, rib rolls, arm rolls, twisting women to extremes, arbitrary limb jerking, walking around trying to look dramatic, and posing that we saw in his spectacular failure AfterRite six years ago. Basically, Wayne McGregor is posing as a choreographer. And ABT is posing so precariously on its last legs that many just want to knock it over, clear the rubble, and forget about it. It loses half of its Met Season, is unable to find a replacement venue, and then wastes a quarter of the reduced season on an insipid, worthless production for which it should apologize and offer every patron a refund. And also offer to pay for damages to each patron’s auditory nerve from the bombastic noise that was labeled as Max Richter music.

 

        What a disastrous waste of money, time, and everyone’s talent. Woolf Works has little - nearly nothing - to do with Virginia Woolf’s texts, style, themes, or life. The choreographer has used an association with Woolf’s writing and life as gimmicks to brand his work as having some intellectual value when in fact it is empty as a drum. We can be grateful that Wayne McGregor didn’t decide to use Joyce’s Ulysses as a basis for his nonsense choreography. Surely, the Irish Nationalists would have hunted him down.

 

        And yet, ABT is all pretend-smiles, hoping that if they put out media that all the dancers just love performing Wayne McGregor’s choreography that it will translate into audience acceptance. There were audible boos at yesterday’s matinee where fewer than a quarter of the seats were filled. Quite frankly, nobody cares if the dancers like the choreography. We know that they will basically do anything in order to get on stage. If ABT tells the dancers to don paper bags and yodel, they will do it and put out Instagram media that it is a wonderful opportunity.

 

        What is so distressing about the repetition of mistakes by the artistic management is that it has plans to bring something even potentially worse next year. ABT has chosen another non-balletic, modern dance choreographer who has made nothing of value worthy of being on the Met Opera stage and she’s going to apply all her ballet knowledge to Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment to create another magnificent and expensive debacle. ABT needs to stop recklessly swinging for the fences. 

 

        If people want a laser light show beamed out to the audience, they should go to Madison Square Garden where every gimmick is regularly employed. Big fail, ABT. Perhaps the biggest fail in its history.

 

 

ABT @ the Met Onegin 6/18

        If there was any question as to whether Lensky simply failed to get a shot off or chose to allow Onegin to kill him during their duel, it wasn’t answered on Tuesday night at ABT’s opening performance of Onegin in which Jake Roxander gave a terrific portrayal of Lensky’s ambivalence during Act II of John Cranko’s brilliant ballet based on Alexander Pushkin’s legendary poem. Roxander as Lensky, the brooding poet, who was humiliated in front of high society by his best friend’s flirtations with his girlfriend, initiated the duel with Onegin but seemed conflicted right up to the last moment as to what he should do. Neither Lensky nor Onegin could walk away from the challenge without injuring his own pride. And so the duel proceeded and concluded by shattering the lives of all four main characters.

        Debuting as Lensky, Roxander displayed theater skills equal to his heralded technical skills. His Lensky wore his heart on his sleeve when it came to Olga, dancing with her as though it was his life’s dream. When Onegin decided to have fun at his friend’s expense by flirting with Olga, Lensky at first shriveled in humiliation and then struck back in anger with a challenge to a duel. Lensky’s soliloquy which preceded the duel is one of the most beautiful balletic solos ever created for a male dancer. Roxander with his incredible physical control, flexible arabesques, and dramatic openness conveyed Lensky’s torment brilliantly. Toward the end of the solo, Lensky circled one leg behind him then the other to step backward. He then stopped as though realizing that there was no way to go back now. Still, we did not know what his decision going forward would be.

 

        Zimmi Coker was fresh perfection as Olga — a young aristocrat who failed to see Onegin’s flirtations as hollow and who was initially insensitive to their effects on Lensky. Energy radiated through her facial expressions and her scrupulous dancing. Together, Coker and Roxander looked like ABT’s future, the next great Giselle/Albrecht or Juliet/Romeo or Swanilda/Franz pairing.

 

        The evening’s main characters were portrayed by Cory Stearns (Onegin) and Christine Shevchenko (Tatiana). Their roles were dutifully danced, step by step, gesture by gesture during Acts I and II. Their bedroom PdD included lovely shapes in the lifts which also had a sense of daring. Tatiana’s character, however, was not differentiated from what we have seen in Shevchenko’s Juliet or even in Seven Sonatas. We saw Christine hoping to be Tatiana. The pulse was the same, the facial expressions were the same, the posture was the same as all that has come before. It’s never enough to genuinely feel like the character inside; one must artificially create and communicate in high volume who the character is. Internalized subtleties don’t read well from the Met Opera house stage. Stearns had more success in conveying his character’s boredom and callousness. He was able to almost immediately make the audience uncomfortable about who he was. Should we adore him for his cheekbones and good looks or should we despise him for his sense of entitlement? Onegin has long been one of Stearns' best roles along with Othello. They don’t tax his technique and allow him to dig deeply into the characters' psyches. His partnering throughout the evening was strong and highly coordinated. Gone was the look of terror on his face that we remember a decade ago when he danced opposite Dvorovenko’s Tatiana and he knew that she was going to throw every bit of herself and her soul at him.

 

        By the time we got to Act III, Stearns and Shevchenko managed to bring a good amount of drama to the final scene, even perhaps exaggerating Tatiana’s effort to break free of Onegin’s grip. There was a jolting effect that we hadn’t observed before. Musically, they were superb, hitting the crescendos in the lifts with maximum impact. Stearns was in a good place stamina-wise and in confidence and we were able to admire the dramatic arc that he brought to Onegin. We look forward to seeing how he and Shevchenko are able to further mine the treasure from Pushkin’s greatest poem and Cranko’s greatest ballet in their final two performances.

 

        The members of the corps de ballet were superb in their dancing and theatrical output. 

 

        A word about the behind-the-scenes drama that occurred the week before the opening when staging supervisor Reid Anderson apparently nixed the opening night cast of Devon Teuscher and Daniel Camargo. We don’t care what the reason was or whether Anderson was wallowing in his own sense of entitlement as the primary stager who exercised ultimate control over casting or was simply being erratic and difficult. Waiting until the final week to assert authority and up-end the theater plans of thousands of people was both unprofessional and detrimental to the reputation of John Cranko. The fact that ABT was not forthcoming with an explanation and more importantly silently allowed Anderson to jeopardize the run of Onegin, suggests that the new artistic director needs a firmer grasp on her own authority. We all know that we were gypped out of superb performances by Teuscher and Camargo. 

 

        The H.H. Pump Bump Award is bestowed upon Jake Roxander for his gripping portrayal of the poet, Lensky.

 

 

 

 

 

ABT contract negotiations When Push Comes to Shove

        ABT dancers have put their feet down in solidarity to force management to come to a fair contract agreement after many months of stalled negotiations. The dancers have authorized AGMA to call a strike at any time including for the purpose of disrupting the upcoming sold out engagement at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington DC this month.

        This company's Board of Directors should stand up and take responsibility for failing to prepare for the consequences of the Met Opera yanking three weeks away from the company's spring season. Why didn't this board secure another venue during the several years for which it had notice? Why isn't this board bringing in more money in one of the richest cities in the world with a rich devotion to the arts?

        The dancers' deserve a fair contract. SHOW THEM THE MONEY!!!!

 

observations 1/10

        NYCB's Winter Season is several steps down from its extraordinary Fall Season, but nevertheless, there are some things to look forward to judging from the first week's casting and a few hints gleaned from Instagram.

        Robbins' In the Night will see a number of interesting debuts. Unity Phelan and Andrew Veyette will take on the "can't live with you, can't live without you" third PdD for the first time. It depicts what the internet therapists would call a toxic relationship. Sometimes the ballerina's melodrama seems to suggest bipolar disorder. That said, it's still total fun to watch and includes some of Robbins' most inventive language.

        Also in that cast, Olivia MacKinnon and Alec Knight debut as the first couple, young and in passionate love, and Tyler Angle dances the second PdD for the first time opposite Sara Mearns. In the subsequent cast, Emilie Gerrity and Aaron Sanz debut in the second PdD and Gilbert Bolden may well be able to match Tiler Peck's theatrics in his debut in the third PdD.

        What we're really excited about, however, is seeing Jackie Bologna's debut as the principal passerby in purple in Fancy Free on Wednesday night. Opportunities for this beautiful dancer are long past due. Additionally, Miriam Miller debuts in Martins' Barber Violin Concerto and Alexa Maxwell debuts in the Wendy Whelan role in Wheeldon's Polyphonia. There are many other debuts throughout the week which make multiple viewings of programs worthwhile.

        While sniffing around Instagram, we stumbled over a startling surprise involving ABT corps member Virginia Lensi. She's starting her seventh year at ABT, but you might not be aware of her because apparently McKenzie wasn't either. Virginia just completed a multi-performance stint as Odette/Odile in the International Festival Ballet's full length Swan Lake. Her Siegfried was Ukranian Mikhail Tkachuk who was schooled at the Kiev State Choreographic Institute and has performed with a number of companies including St. Petersburg Ballet.

        My goodness, Ms. Virginia has herself a technically polished, dramatically interesting Odette/Odile in her pocket. We have no idea how this opportunity or her blossoming evolved (we can guess, however), but oh my goodness, people, look at her Instagram clips and the beauty of her shaping! Her YouTube channel has the full White Swan PdD video.