"Coppélia"
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
September 29, 2024
About twenty years ago I saw Megan Fairchild, then a new member of the corps, dance one of Swanilda’s friends. She was completely absorbed in the ballet, eyes wide, listening carefully to the wheat ear, watching Swanilda’s reaction, and sharing in her disappointment. “There’s our new Swanilda” my seat mate said to me, and indeed
"Divertimento from 'Le Basier de la Fée'", "Each in His Own Time", "This Bitter Earth", "The Four Seasons"
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
September 21, 2024
This somewhat oddly constructed program opened with a jolt: the astringent and fundamentally pessimistic “Divertimento from ‘Le Baiser de la Fée”, Balanchine’s abstraction of Hans Christian Andersen’s harrowing story “The Ice Maiden” is a rather heavy opening work. Two sentimental pas de deux
"Tschaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 2", "Duo Concertant", Glass Pieces"
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
September 17, 2024
NYCB’s opening night, called “Masters at Work” featured ballets by Balanchine and Robbins and could have been called “Masters at Play”, since the choreography (and the dancing) looked effortless, as if it just poured out of these masters while listening to the music. The oldest work, “Tschaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 2”
Fall for Dance Program 1
"Wartime Elegy", "Piano Songs", "Sama"
National Ballet of Ukraine/Aaron Bell/Gallim
New York City Center
New York, NY
September 18, 2024
The Fall for Dance Festival at City Center is 21 years old this year and, based on the rapturous audience reception on opening night, shows no sign of slowing down. Ticket prices have increased from $10 to $30, still an incredible bargain. The opening night program featured the usual
"Swan Lake"
American Ballet Theatre
Metropolitan Opera House
New York, New York
June 27, 2014
The injury bug has hit ABT with a vengeance, and Friday's announced "Swan Lake" cast, Alina Cojocaru and Herman Cornejo, were replaced by Hee Seo and Roberto Bolle; Seo had already stepped in on Monday for the black act to replace Gillian Murphy, injured during the performance. This gallantry meant the audience was already rooting for her, but her Odette/Odile is still very
"Runes", Post Meridian", "Brandenburgs"
Paul Taylor Dance Company
Joyce Theater
New York, New York
June 26, 2024
Marketing has christened the Joyce’s week-long Taylor season as “Extreme Taylor”, a perfectly accurate designation since all of Taylor’s works are extreme challenges, requiring both physical strength and an internal fierceness strong enough to transport an audience. This program highlighted Taylor’s variety; “Runes” (1975) showed his fascination with communal rituals, the rarely seen “Post Meridian” (1965) featured his sly and
"A Midsummer Night's Dream"
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
May 29, 2024
Though it is not quite as inevitable as “Nutcracker” at Christmas, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” often means summer for the New York City Ballet, and it returned this year for a week of magic. Its structure does have some issues—why is Titania off in her grotto dancing with a boy toy, what does that magic flower actually
"Dances at a Gathering", "Brahms-Schoenberg Quartet"
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
May 12, 2024
The double bill of Jerome Robbins’ “Dances at a Gathering” and Balanchine’s “Brahms-Schoenberg Quartet” was a glimpse back at an idealized European past, where elegant youths wore colorful chiffon while dancing to Chopin and, in an idealized Vienna, beautiful and mysterious women enticed stalwart men while luscious Gypsies cavorted on the green. Both ballets
"Rubies", "Dig the Say", "Underneath, There is Light"
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
May 2, 2024
New York City Ballet’s Spring gala had one Balanchine, two premieres, three brief speeches, and no intermission and clocked in at a very efficient one and a half hours. It opened with sparkling version of “Rubies”, in all its bright red glory, danced by the veterans Megan Fairchild and Anthony Huxley, with
"Bourrée Fantasque", "The Steadfast Tin Soldier", "Errante", "Symphony in C"
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
April 24, 2024
The New York City Ballet opened it’s 75th Anniversary Spring season, subtitled “The Future”, with an all-Balanchine program of four ballets whose dates ranged from 1940’s (“Symphony in C”, 1947 and Bourrée Fantasque, 1949 ) to 1975 (“The Steadfast Tin Soldier” and “Errante”, the new name for “Tzigane”). The future,
"The Four Temperaments", "Liebeslieder Walzer"
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
February 16, 2024
This program, made up of two of Balanchine’s finest ballets, had several important debuts; the company’s lower ranks are full of fine and interesting dancers and it’s encouraging that so many are getting opportunities. These ballets, though, need not only fine dancers, but dancers with style, imagination, and depth, characteristics that usually
"Opus 19/The Dreamer", "Solitude", "Symphony in Three Movements"
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
February 15, 2024
“Solitude”, the first ballet Alexei Ratmansky has choreographed since becoming New York City Ballet’s Artist in Residence, is dedicated “to the children of Ukraine, victims of the war”; Marina Harss, writing in the New York Times about the creation of the work, explained that the inspiration came from a photograph of a father