Essential Balanchine

Wednesday May 23, 2007 - A new (to me) conductor, Nicolette Fraillon, was in the pit tonight at New York City Ballet.  Her delivery of WALPURGISNACHT  seemed rushed and over-emphatic but she made up for it with a brilliantly clear & richly detailed SYMPHONY IN THREE MOVEMENTS.

In WALPURGISNACHT Sara Mearns shone with the effortless glamour that marks a real star. She looks luminous and it is very hard to take your eyes off her when she's dancing. Her performance was expansive, strong and technically secure. There was a partnering glitch early on, but I would not be too hasty to judge Ask LaCour based on his SYMPHONY IN C last week and this WALPURGISNACHT; he was not originally scheduled to dance either role, stepping in for Charles Askegard. If he is going to develop into an asset as a partner, he needs to be first-cast and thoroughly rehearsed in new roles. On a stage full of witches, the most bewitching of all was Ana Sophia Scheller.

Tonight's LIEBESLIEDER WALZER was one of the finest performances of this ballet I've ever seen. Everything meshed beautifully: the pianists, the singers and most crucially the dancing all combined to cast the spell which makes this piece so special. It will be difficult to imagine LIEBESLIEDER without Kyra Nichols; she danced tonight with Nilas Martins who has an ideal role here calling for expert partnering and romantic gallantry. Darci Kistler's refined dancing and wonderfully expressive hands were lovely to watch, her series of turns around the salon breathtaking. Philip Neal replaced Charles Askegard and danced expressively. The opportunity to see Kyra and Darci, the last two remaining 'authentic' Balanchine ballerinas, was a real privilege, especially as they were dancing in a state of grace.

Another great partnership, Wendy Whelan and Nikolaj Hubbe, were extraordinary in their total compatibility and dramatic nuance. Nikolaj has really been dancing so well this year. Wendy remains the most intriguing presence in the Company, her mixture of strength and delicacy a paradox. Her musicality and her sense of mystery  illuminate every role.

Rachel Rutherford and Jared Angle gave a very enjoyable performance as the fourth couple, Jared looking ardent and aristocratic; his partnering is immaculate. Rachel has a most felicitous role here. After the pause, during which the women change to toe shoes, the atmosphere of the work really took hold. The audience thinned out a bit between halves, which is normal. This ballet is not for everyone. But those who stayed showered the dancers with warm applause.
   
SYMPHONY IN THREE MOVEMENTS looked vibrantly new and squeaky clean tonight, Mlle. Fraillon's treatment of the score seeming to inject the dancers with incredible vitality. The originally announced Ashley Bouder had turned into Sterling Hyltin, then back into Bouder and finally - via a slip in the programme - into a role debut for Tiler Peck. Tiler tucked into the bouncing leaps with gusto, her spirited performance matched by Tom Gold move-for-move.  Megan LeCrone is a strong, athletic dancer with enormous talent and she is coming into her own now after what seemed like an unusually long bout with injury. (I would love to see her debut in the AGON pas de deux but that would mean seeing ORPHEUS again...)   Adrian Danchig-Waring teamed up impressively with Megan. In the central duet, I was sorry to see that Abi Stafford was not dancing  but Wendy graciously went on in one of her signature roles. Wendy and the divine Albert Evans have just the right touch of irony to suit the piece; together they seemed to transcend the steps and did what Mr. B wanted his dancers to do: show us the music. The corps were terrific, notably Bergstrom, Brown, King & Maya Collins and the five demi women (Arthurs, Hankes, Pazcoguin, Keenan & Beskow) make a big splash in this piece. The audience really seemed taken with SYMPHONY IN THREE MOVEMENTS and called the dancers before the curtain three times; the orchestra was rightly cheered as well.

{The photos are by Pauk Kolnik; Wendy & Nikolaj by Erin Baiano}

Comments

[Bob]

I thought that was an exceptionally strong program tonight. I love Walpurgisnacht. To me, it's an often underrated gem - it's a perfect opening to an NYCB repertory program and it was especially exciting tonight with near perfect performances by Sara Mearns and Ana Sophia Scheller and a fine performance by Ask LaCour as well. I talked briefly to Suki Schorer during intermission and she was thrilled with Sara's performance in particular.

As you know, Liebeslieder is one of my all-time favorite Balanchine ballets (I know it isn't for everyone but at the same time I don't quite understand why everyone doesn't in fact recognize and appreciate its transcendent beauty)and it was brilliantly danced tonight. Everyone in the cast (and the singers) were all superb but if I had to single someone (or someones) out, I guess it would have to be Darci and Kyra - they bring to the ballet a level of mature artistry that only comes from dancing at a world-class level for so many years (and of course, they are the last of Balanchine's hand-picked ballerinas).

Symphony in Three Movements also sizzled tonight - three curtain calls at the end of a long evening was quite a tribute (and a well-deserved one) to the cast. I was initially disappointed that I wasn't going to see Ashley and Abi but you can't complain too much about Tiler and Wendy as backups, can you. A dynamic performance from beginning to end! I would love to have one of those critics (we all know who they are) who like to talk about the Balanchine repertory not being in good shape at NYCB attend this program tonight and tell me with a straight face that Balanchine wouldn't have loved what was happening on the stage of the New York State theater tonight. I went home on a real high!

A final thought on Liebeslieder - I wouldn't trade it for all the story ballets in the world!

[Philip]

Yes, I really felt at the end of the evening that Mr. B was alive and well! SYMPHONY IN 3 MOVEMENTS especially seemed to really soar, right from the opening line-up of the girls.

[tonya]

Critics write for the general public, not for the dancers, not for the fans. I think if anyone is going to get all upset over the reviews, best not to read them at all... isn't that what you do, philip?

[tonya]

Critics say bad things all the time about my favorite dancers and choreographers; they're certainly entitled to their opinions,especially if they back up what they say with support, as at least one of those Balanchine critics does, Bob. I've certainly never had a nervous breakdown over it and I seriously worry about people who do...

[Philip]

I don't consider myself a 'critic', just an observer. My focus is on the dancers, really, not so much on 'issues' although inevitably those come into play when you are writing about ballet, or opera/film/etc. I sometimes read other ('professional') reviews but only to see if the writers agreed with me or not. Basically I go and watch and then write about what I saw and how I felt seeing it.

[Philip]

The only thing that upsets me in reading reviews is that most writers do not take into consideration things like injuries and necessities of casting that are part and parcel of running a ballet repertory Company. It's always sad to see some dancer getting bashed for being 'off' when they are working their way back from an injury, or to get dumped on when they've stepped in for someone else and are trying to keep the show running. I think sometimes people have unrealistic ideas about what goes into putting on these long seasons. Dancing is a short, arduous and risky career; I always keep that in mind when I'm watching. If things turn out gorgeously, which they often do, so much the better.

[Bob]

Tonya, I assure you I'm not close to a nervous breakdown - never have been and hopefully never will. Nor do I really get terribly upset over any review. I was just making an observation about certain contemporary critics who in recent years have seemed incapable of any degree of objectivity with regard to NYCB at all, particularly those who have harped on the idea that the Balanchine repertory has not been well preserved by the Martins regime. Of course, critics are entitled to be negative, when it is done in a reasonably balanced way
and I will continue to read them (because I'm too curious not too)and feel free to either agree or disagree. It's just that I was especially aware last night, when seeing the "Essential Balanchine" program, of what great shape the Balanchine repertory is still in. I am so very sorry that because of your travels you're missing that particular program.

[Philip]

As Sir Rudolf Bing once said, famously: "Critics?! All they do is criticize!"

[Larry]

But everyone here is a critic, too. You guys just aren't getting paid for it.