“In Creases,” “Solo,” “Partita,” “Everywhere We Go”
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
New York, NY
October 12, 2024
Ten years is a long time to be doing anything, and when it comes to serving as Resident Choreographer and creating ballets at a rate of up to four per year for one company, it’s an especially admirable feat. It was thus fitting that New York City Ballet celebrated Justin Peck’s big anniversary as a resident
“Signs,” “Beneath the Tides,” “Concerto for Two Pianos”
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
New York, NY
October 11, 2024
In the Contemporary Choreography program of recent ballets by all female creators, including this season's world premiere, New York City Ballet presented rich dancing and a level of comfort with the material that is seldom seen with newer works. It may not have been the best choreography the company has in its repertory, but all three works were
The National Ballet of Ukraine and the Shumka Dancers
Classical pas de deux and Ukrainian folk dances
New York City Center
New York, NY
October 15, 2024
Twenty four dancers from the National Ballet of Ukraine and the Canadian based Ukrainian folk dance troupe Shumka are on a grueling three-week, seven-state, sixteen-city tour to raise money for the war effort. The gala format (including a Don Q pas de deux) showed off their dancers and was generally
"Mozartiana", "Monumentum pro Gesualdo", "Movements for Piano and Orchestra", "Concerto DSCH"
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
October 8, 2024
This exciting program, called by the Marketing Department simply “Balanchine and Ratmansky”, does not need any other description to entice the viewer. In addition, it had one of the most anticipated debuts of the season, as the tall and lovely Mira Nadon danced “Mozartiana”, the final ballet Balanchine created for
"Coppélia"
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
October 5 evening, 2024
NYCB has scheduled “Coppélia” over successive weekends, a marketing triumph, it seems, for the theater has been packed (even the fifth ring was open for this performance), filled with excited families; the children especially loved the shivering knees in Act II. But for all its rollicking humor, “Coppélia” lexists in a village of elegant, sophisticated dancers, and few City
"Mozartiana", "Monumentum pro Gesualdo", "Movements for Piano and Orchestra", "Concerto DSCH"
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
Lincoln Center
New York, New York
October 4, 2024
The four ballets, three by Balanchine and one by Alexei Ratmansky, on this program were all abstract, yet each one had a distinctive flavor and emotional resonance; plotless yet nuanced, they all echoed and amplified their scores. Any story or even hint of narrative was up to the viewer to provide, yet
"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
“Like Water for Chocolate”
American Ballet Theatre
Metropolitan Opera House
New York, NY
July 16, 2024
American Ballet Theatre ending its five-week season at the Metropolitan Opera House with Christopher Wheeldon’s “Like Water for Chocolate” seemed like an emblematic move committed to its determined new identity – a company of story ballets, new world-class choreographies and solid, home-grown dancing talent. It is an encouraging direction for the troupe, even if the ballet itself was not the most scrumptious dish ABT
“Woolf Works”
American Ballet Theatre
Metropolitan Opera House
New York, NY
June 26, 2024
For its second week of the 2024 New York summer season, American Ballet Theatre stuck to the literary works theme, but with an unexpectedly modern, multi award-winning twist. Created in 2015, Wayne McGregor’s “Woolf Works” is everything one would expect from him – highly physical, seemingly stripped-down yet loaded with meaning and detail, and pushing the boundaries of traditional ballet. But it was also