Tag: New York City Ballet

Fantastic POLYPHONIA @ NYC Ballet

Wednesday January 26, 2011 – Christopher Wheeldon’s POLYPHONIA returned to the New York City Ballet repertoire tonight in a striking performance with a cast led by Wheeldon muse Wendy Whelan. Photo of Christopher above is by Peter Hapak.

Opening the evening was the stunning image of the NYCB corps women, pony-tailed and is white leotards, in the iconic diagonal which heralds the start of Balanchine’s SYMPHONY IN THREE MOVEMENTS. Moments after curtain-rise, Daniel Ulbricht came bounding into view; he was soon joined by the vibrant Sterling Hyltin in a high-jump contest: so great to see these two very accomplished dancers giving such vitality to their every move. Savannah Lowery has been out for a while but she came roaring back with a grand performance where she pulled off a triple series of pirouettes climaxing each set with a wonderful Balanchine-off-kilter moment. Sean Suozzi’s energy stood out. In the pas de deux, which starts with that whimsical tune, Abi Stafford and Sebastien Marcovici looked great together; I cannot recall having seen this partnership before and it’s a good one. The ten demi-solistes kept my opera glasses on high alert and the corps girls – including some of the newest Company faces – did well. Faycal Karoui and the orchestra gave the Stravinsky score a fine flourish.

Wheeldon’s POLYPHONIA premiered at NYCB in 2001; for me it’s the work that put the choreographer on the map. I was at the first night and was bowled over by it. And I had the same reaction to tonight’s performance. The Ligeti piano music, by turns quirky and mysterious, was played by Cameron Grant and Alan Moverman. Mark Stanley’s lighting sets the dancing off with some marvelous shadowplay, and the deep-purple Holly Hynes costumes are an added asset.

No one speaks Wheeldon with such clarity and expressiveness as Wendy Whelan; returning to this role that was crafted on her body, the great and enigmatic ballerina astonished once again with her supple movement, daringly stretched poses and her flair for creating drama from the abstract. Everyone who recalls Jock Soto in this ballet will have kept a mental gallery of images of the great Whelan/Soto partnership: they were unforgettable together. But Tyler Angle has put his own stamp on this work with his cool, magnificent partnering and his dancing, which in the past couple of years has taken on a unique lustre. He’s now among the most riveting danseurs I’ve encountered over the past four decades. Photo of Wendy and Tyler above by Erin Baiano.

Power and beauty seem to have been the watchwords in casting this revival, encapsulating in the 30-minute work the current state of NYCB’s roster: an embarassment of riches. Teresa Reichlen and Amar Ramasar are spell-binding not only in physical allure but in the way they channel their personal magnetism into the movement. They are just so great to watch together. Tiler Peck continues to show us in every performance what an astonishing and versatile dancer she is: her technique amazes, her ever-deeping artistry is a true pleasure to behold. In their enchanting waltz, Tiler and the equally impressive Andrew Veyette made me smile in admiration. Andrew has really got the knack for being a contemporary cavalier, and he and Amar turned their duet into a highlight of the ballet.

Sara Mearns danced with quiet radiance in her solo (created originally on Alexandra Ansanelli) and added another compelling performance to her catalog. Her Raymonda in CORTEGE HONGROIS last week was equally fascinating, these two ballets testifying to her expressive range. In the company of these stars, Chase Finlay looked wonderfully at home, his dancing and partnering not only impressive in the moment but also as a promise of things to come.

Normally I don’t stay when I’M OLD FASHIONED (Paul Kolnik photo, above) is the closing work on the programme due to my general aversion to Hollywood or Broadway-style ballets. But Maria Kowroski is having such a glorious season that I felt like I really wanted to see her dancing tonight. She was just splendid of course, dancing with Tyler Angle (who subbed for his brother Jared). And Rebecca Krohn and Jenifer Ringer looked and danced divinely as well, partnered by those handsome dudes Justin Peck and Robert Fairchild respectively. The corps looked spiffy and the choreography is actually pretty good.

But tonight I realized what’s always really killed this piece for me. No, it’s not the comparison people always make between how Fred and Rita move in the film to how the NYCB dancers move onstage. No, that doesn’t irk me: Fred and Rita are in their element and the ‘live’ dancers are working in a hybrid style for all that it’s grounded in classic technique.

No, it’s the music that ultimately makes this ballet unappealing to me. Of course the actual Jerome Kern song I’m Old Fashioned is a gem. But Morton Gould’s arrangement of it is lackslustre, and it’s sad to see great dancers dancing to third-rate music.

The ballet also suffers from cliches: “You bumped into me!”, “That guy cut in on me and stole my girl!” “Let me gaze at the skyline for a moment.” After a while, despite the excellence of the dancing, the piece makes me restless. But it was good to see Maria, Becky and Jeni.

January 26, 2011
Images from POLYPHONIA

Photographs by Paul Kolnik from the current revival of Wheeldon’s POLYPHONIA at New York City Ballet. Read about it here. Above: Teresa Reichlen and Amar Ramasar.

Above: Wendy Whelan and Tyler Angle.

My thanks to the folks at NYCB for their swift photo service!

January 26, 2011
NYCB NUTCRACKER 2010 #5

Wednesday December 29, 2010 @ 2:00 PM – Today’s treat: candy canes!

In the final week of New York City Ballet‘s annual NUTCRACKER season I decided to brave two matinee shows – knowing they’d be packed with tiny tots – in order to see some of my favorite dancers who have taken on new roles in this ballet this Winter. This afternoon I saw Lauren King as the Dewdrop and Vincent Paradiso as Drosselmeyer. Both of these dancers had made their debuts in these roles earlier in the month. Tomorrow I will see our newest Sugar Plum Fairy, Rebecca Krohn who just debuted in this role opposite Zachary Catazaro (another first-timer).

In the week between Christmas and New Year attendance sometimes falls off a bit at the NYCB NUTCRACKER but today the House seemed pretty well packed. Aside from one terribly loud cellphone ringing, the audience was pretty well-behaved.

Vincent Paradiso’s Drosselmeyer (seen in a backstage photo, above) is dance-oriented in its movement and his characterization is detailed and fully-formed. It seems that, aside from some basic blocking, the NYCB Drosselmeyers can develop the character each in his own way. Vincent leaves off the arthritic old-man stuff; just having white hair doesn’t automatically make you a senior citizen: my hair was completely white by the time I was 30. Vincent plays Drosselmeyer as a vigorous gentlemen, young and strong enough to lift Austin Laurent’s soldier doll and carry him back to his gift box after his solo. Using his arms and hands beautifully, Vincent’s is clearly a dance-based portrayal, and in fact he broke into a jig at one point and even added a touch of flamenco footwork. His rapport with the individual children and with the party guests was easy and natural. As the party was winding down, Vincent began sizing up the room and planning his magic spells for the upcoming scene where he will make everything grow. It’s good to see such a polished and well-thought-out portrayal – the latest in a long line of Drosselmeyers at NYCB that stretches back to Jerome Robbins and to Balanchine himself.

The party scene seemed especially pleasant today, perhaps as an antidote to Ramtamsky’s unfortunate concept as presented in the new ABT version. Amanda Hankes as the graceful Frau Stahlbaum and Henry Seth as her spouse welcomed their guests elegantly and worked hard to keep their naughty son under control. Aside from Austin Laurent’s tall soldier, Sara Adams and Callie Bachman were sweet and charming as Harlequin and Columbine. In the snow scene I very much enjoyed watching Lauren Lovette while in the meantime trying to figure out who some of these new faces in the corps belong to.

Teresa Reichlen’s Sugar Plum Fairy is so dreamy to watch: her beautiful floating-on-air quality in the solo is matched by the gentle radiance of her facial expressions. Her two big jetees just before she leaves the stage to the Spanish dancers were so remarkably stretched out and silky. In the pas de deux, Tess and her cavalier Ask LaCour use their height to exude a regal feeling; they moved securely thru all the many dangers that Mr. B has set in their path and reached a climax with an exciting balance from the ballerina. If Tess was an opera singer instead of a ballet dancer, she would be one of the great lyric sopranos of all time. I’m looking forward to what the coming Winter repertory season might have in store for her.

Mary Elizabeth Sell and Daniel Applebaum danced Spanish; Mary looks superb and – speaking of balances – she had one phenomenal one. She reminds me more and more of Alexandra Ansanelli, quite a high compliment in my book. She and Daniel were going great guns with some wonderfully spacious dancing; Daniel had to put a hand-down in the final pose but it really didn’t spoil the effect of their flavorful dancing.

The long-limbed Gwyneth Muller danced Arabian with evocative fluidity of movement; when viewed from above the dancer in this piece casts a triple shadow. Giovanni Villalobos was a musical and technically precise Tea, and Adam Hendrickson spiced up his Candy Cane by increasing the speed of his hoop-leaps as he came down the center line. Later in the finale Adam added an extra jump thru the hoop as he made his exit. Erica Pereira’s Marzipan reminds us how difficult this solo is – and how easy she makes it look. Cameron Dieck’s Mother Ginger has become a more detailed characterization in the course of the season; I expect we’ll soon see Cameron as lead dancer in Spanish and eventually as the Sugar Plum cavalier. He’s too princely of a dancer to keep him in a hoopskirt for very long.

Kokyat photographed Lauren King (above) when she appeared in a Zalman Grinberg pas de deux (with Vincent Paradiso partnering her) at the Young Choreographers Showcase at MMAC earlier this year. This fetching young ballerina caught my eye right from her first appearances on this stage and it was simply a great pleasure to watch her Dewdrop today. She was wonderfully quicksilver in her movement and with a smile that so clearly shows her pleasure in being able to dance as she does. After seeing her in the Grinberg duet, I feel certain she will be dancing Sugar Plum – and several other major roles – very soon. Georgina Pazcoguin and Rebecca Krohn were the demi-flowers, both thoroughly lovely.

Although the Balanchine NUTCRACKER has had a bit of friendly competition this Winter from the new ABT/Ratmansky setting at BAM, today’s performance at New York City Ballet – coming at a point in time when the dancers, musicians and stage crew are probably suffering keenly from NUTZ-exhaustion – served as a reminder that this timelessly classy version with which Mr. B brought the Tchaikovsky score back to prominence is the one that will endure. Its old-world charm may seem dated to some people, but its perfect fusion of music and choreography makes it indispensable.

From spotting the cat in the Stahlbaum’s window (who has been sitting there for a half-century) to that stunning moment at the end of the Sugar Plum Fairy pas de deux when the ballerina lets go of her partner’s hand in a sustained balance, the Balanchine NUTCRACKER continues to cast its spell, however often I see it.

December 28, 2010
Columbia Ballet Collaborative @ MMAC

Sunday November 21, 2010 matinee – The Columbia Ballet Collaborative under the artistic direction of Elysia Dawn gave an afternoon of dance at Manhattan Movement and Arts Center with a new work by Pennsylvania Ballet’s Choreographer in Residence Matthew Neenan starring New York City Ballet principal dancer Amar Ramasar, as well as a premiere work by CBC’s resident choreographer Emery LeCrone. The programme also featured new works by Zalman Grinberg, NYCB soloist Adam Hendrickson, Summer Jones and Amanda Lowe. Photo at the top: from a rehearsal of Emery LeCrone’s new CBC work entitled Palindrome; photo by Kokyat.

The afternoon started well and built from there; each choreographer’s voice was clearly expressive and there was a fine variety of musical styles to keep the ear as content as the eye.

Summer Jones presented Sound in One Movement to a violin solo composed and played ‘live’ by Philip Wharton. Structured with an opening duet followed by a quartet and then an ensemble passage featuring a prominent pas de deux couple the choreographer showed an interesting grasp of having different people doing different things at the same time; the attractive music helped to blend these elements into a cohesive whole.

Matthew Neenan, resident choreographer of Pennsylvania Ballet, set the andante of Vivaldi’s Cello Concerto in A minor as a pas de deux for Elysia Dawn and New York City Ballet principal dancer Amar Ramasar. Both dressed in black, the dancers performed this duet with a quiet tenderness that never became saccharine. With his inherent star power, Amar could easily have turned this adagio into a personal showpiece but instead he gallantly kept the focus on his beautiful partner.

“A wonderful voice, not suited for singing” was my initial thought on hearing Joanna Newsom for the first time singing Sawdust and Diamonds as the score of Amanda Lowe’s Then and Never. I’d had the same reaction the first time I heard Alanis Morisette – til she won me over with The Uninvited. Anyway, after a few moments Ms. Newsom and her harp started weaving a spell. And the choreographer took up the thread and wove it into a really impressive piece for nine women which had an Isadora Duncan feel (or was I having a Duncan hangover from last night?) but which also had a clarity of structure that was refreshing in its appeal. The nine girls took the music and the choreographer’s vision and gave the piece a transportive feminine energy.

Last week Zalman Grinberg set Debussy to very appealing effect at the Young Choreographers Showcase. Today he scored again using a familiar piece (Chopin Impromptu #4) and creating a trio for three sylphs on pointe (The Impromptu Fantasise) that seemed on the face of it to be a reverie in romantic-style classicism; by incorporating subtle contemporary touches here and there Zalman gave the piece a unique quality. His three ballerinas – Caitlin Dieck, Kara Buckley and Katie Kantor – were attractive components of the work’s success. I look forward to following Zalman’s choreographic work in the coming months; he seems to have something unique to say and he isn’t afraid to use the classics as a basis for expression.

The afternoon was on an impressive roll and New York City Ballet’s Adam Hendrickson took up the torch with a wonderfully satisfying piece entitled Sun Will Set. The gently rhythmic score by Zoe Keating evoked cradles, rocking chairs or the endless thrum of a spinning wheel as this Americana ballet evolved with imaginative clarity. Four women in plain soft-coloured shifts gather, glean and weave in a gestural language of repetitive tasks. From their busywork, each has a solo phrase just long enough to make a personal impression before stepping back to the collective. Music, movement and mood were finely integrated; the piece really drew me in. Kudos to the four girls – Sophie Alpern, Lauren Alpert, Lauren DeMaria and Alexandra McGlade – who gave life to Adam’s vision. Past works of Adam’s that I’ve seen tended to feature virtuoso passages for male dancers; in extending his range here, I felt that Adam’s moving steadily along on a unique choreographic path. I will be watching to see where it leads him.

Above: Kokyat’s photo of Erin Arbuckle rehearsing Emery LeCrone’s Palindrome. Here Emery has produced another intriguing dancework to add to her treasury with Palindrome, a dark work set to an often ominous-sounding score culled from music of Chris Clark and Venetian Snares. Four dancers – Erin Arbuckle, Rebecca Azenberg, Paul Busch and Richard Isaac – move thru this stark soundscape with powerful individual performances.There are duets – Erin and Paul, Rebecca and Richard – and a passage of communal port de bras that seems to communicate some ancient language. The choreography flows forward and then at a point everything flows in reverse. Kokyat and I had seen a developmental rehearsal of this piece early on in the process, and a second rehearsal when it was fully set (photo of Erin Arbuckle above by Kokyat) but in the costumed and lit final product there was still a lot to discover.

Manhattan Movement and Arts Center is becoming one of my favorite destinations in the New York dance world. From ballet classes taught by Deborah Wingert to watching Joy Womack rehearsing an Avi Scher solo, Kokyat and I have had some great times at MMAC in recent months. I always look forward to going there.

November 21, 2010
Dancing for Avi: Ana Sophia Scheller & David Prottas

Thursday October 28, 2010 – Avi Scher is creating a new duet for New York City Ballet artists Ana Sophia Scheller and David Prottas and he invited Kokyat and me to watch a rehearsal down in SoHo tonight. This pas de deux will be presented at the Young Choreographers Showcase at the Manhattan Movement & Arts Center Theatre, 248 West 60th Street (between 10th and West End Avenues) on Sunday evening November 14th. Tickets available here.

Avi tells me that this duet will eventually become part of a larger piece that he is working on entitled DreamScapes.

Ana and David are two of NYCB‘s most attractive and charismatic dancers; I always love watching them onstage so it was exciting to observe them in the studio. Their partnership creates an intense and shifting dynamic and the choreography takes wing from that with some really expansive moments (above)…

…as well as a kind of intimate tension that keeps the focus of the duet on the relationship.

Here is a gallery of Kokyat’s images from this rehearsal:

In addition to Avi Scher’s newest creation, the Young Choreographers Showcase will feature works by Emery LeCrone, Ja’ Malik, Justin Peck and Zalman Grinberg.

October 29, 2010