Mary Cargill

"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

Something for Everyone

"Ballo della Regina", "In a Landscape", "Hallelujah Junction", "The Concert"
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
February 9, 2024

This varied program began with Balanchine’s “Ballo della Regina”, a luscious soap bubble set to Verdi, continued with two more astringent ballets, a revival of Albert Evans’ “In a Landscape” to John Cage followed by Peter Martins’ high energy “Hallelujah Junction” to John Adams, and ended with Jerome Robbins’

"The Four Temperaments", "Liebeslieder Walzer"
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
February 6, 2024

NYCB’s yearlong celebration of its 75th anniversary is in it second phase, called "Evolution", but it paused for an evening to look back, and this program featured two of Balanchine’s most memorable works, “The Four Temperaments” (1946) and “Liebeslieder Walzer” (1960), two of Balanchine’s most memorable works.  “The Four Temperaments” is danced

"Rotunda", "Concerto for Two Pianos", "Odesa"
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
February 1, 2024

Tiler Peck’s new ballet “Concerto for Two Pianos” premiered in a program featuring ballets created in the twenty-first century; rather optimistically NYCB calls the program “New Combinations”. It also included Justin Peck’s 2020 “Rotunda” and Alexei Ratmansky’s 2017 “Odesa” (the updated spelling for “Odessa”).  All three were abstract, all three explored

"Fancy Free", "In the Night", "The Four Seasons"
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
January 24, 2024

The Winter season of NYCB’s 75th anniversary is titled “The Evolution” and includes works of a selection of choreographers whose works presumably evolved from Balanchine, who was so gloriously celebrated in the Fall.  Three works by Jerome Robbins, who after Balanchine, is the choreographer most closely associated with NYCB, opened the Winter

"Concerto Barocco", "Prodigal Son", "Symphony in C"
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
October 7, evening 2023

The works danced on this program are some of the oldest in the company’s repertoire—Balanchine choreographed the youngest one, “Symphony in C”, in 1947.  They were also all originally created for other companies;  “Concerto Barocco”, 1941 for American Ballet Caravan, an early Balanchine company, “Prodigal Son”, 1929, for the