Jeannette

The Metropolitan Opera cancelled the remainder of its season, which would have ended in early May. No word yet on the ABT season which follows. Metopera.org

The Kennedy Center in Washington DC will remain dark through May 10, 2020. Among affected dance performances is the New York City Ballet tour in early April. 😢

Further update: No Dante Sonata 3ple bill in April, as the rest of Sarasota’s home season was canceled today. ABT’s wonderful Of Love and Rage was “it” for me in 2019/20. 😃

Since this is still the thread for news about COVID-19-related cancellations outside the Uk... The main opera/ballet theatres in Russia have finally closed, the last one being the Mariinsky in StP, cancelling the remainder of its international ballet festival after tonight’s Young Choreographers program. Moscow’s Bolshoi closed a day earlier.

So sad but such is our world. Stay strong, England. This too shall pass.

Excellent list. I would add The Dream starring Park/Dowell.

The Metropolitan Opera just announced that it would online-stream an opera every night, for free, as of this Monday, March 16 (Carmen, 2009)! This is due to the current COVID-19 crisis forcing the theatre’s closure. Details on metopera.org. Week One: Carmen, Boheme, Trovatore, Traviata, Fille, Lucia & Onegin.

Thanks, Sim. Alas, the next planned trip (Sarasota R&J) is a no-go. Hopefully, my “second chance” at Sarasota, at the end of April - Dante Sonata/ Bintley’s Spider’s Feast / In the Night - will happen.

Sarasota Ballet has just announced the cancellation of performances of Ashton’s R&J. www.sarasotaballet.org

And in Sarasota, FL, Ashton’s R&J apparently will go on next weekend (25 March)! The venue - Van Wezel Center - hasn’t issued any update of any sort...the ballet troupe depends on the venue, which depends on mandate by the local & state governments.

Update: As NowVoyager pointed out, the Kennedy Center is closed through March 31, effectively canceling the opening night of the NYCB tour. The Washington Ballet (A.D. Julie Kent) announced the postponement of its new Swan Lake to mid-June. My contact at Sarasota confirmed that the Ashton R&J is still on for late March...so far!

Perhaps. In the meantime, performances continue at the Kennedy Center here, although the Washington DC local gvt is now calling for all gatherings of 1,000+ persons be cancelled (maybe affecting NYCB tour & Wash Ballet’s new Swan Lake soon). Also, I’ve emailed Sarasota Ballet about the status of the revival of Ashton’s R&J in a couple of weeks time, so as to possibly recoup some travel costs. We’re all in the same boat.

Well, Brexit may be to thank for the UK not included in the new travel ban between the US and Europe (as of midnight Friday).

This is now official from the Berlin Opera and ballet theatres - ALL performances cancelled through mid April. Go to the Staatsballett and Staatsoper webs.

You're most welcome! The amazing thing is that all of the above happens in less than two hours of performing - 60 minutes for AI and 45 minutes for A2. Doesn’t feel like it, it moves along so quickly.

Not sure where to put this but dancers at Staatsballett Berlin are reporting the cancellation of performances into April, specifically Ratmansky’s Bayadere (13, 15, 17, 20 March) and Bart’s Swan Lake (14, 17, 22, 24, 25, 27 March and 2 April). Feel free to move this to a more appropriate forum...

Alexei Ratmansky has peppered Of Love and Rage with rich and substantive dancing for both male and female corps de ballet. This is not a traditional classical full-evening work in which the corps spends 50% of the time on stage milling about, waving arms at the soloists. From the very beginning, in which a mass grouping of ladies pays homage to a bust of Aphrodite in inventive patterns, to the end, when all villagers form interesting “couples” formations to celebrate the reconciliation of the ballet’s heroes (Callirhoe and Chareas…C & Ch) the ABT corps is forever active. A highlight of their work is lots of same-sex partnering and men-lifting-men…in some cases, men throwing men. Scene by Scene Description of the main corps de ballet segments in ABT’s Of Love and Rage – ACT I Sc 1 – Town square in Syracuse (south coast of modern Sicily)…notice that not a single scene of the story takes place in Greece-proper…but the dancers are magnificent in it, regardless of anachronisms! - Hymn to Aphrodite – 12 female corps in mass groupings before C and her unnamed maid – wonderful Luciana Paris at 1st cast – join them. - Entrance of Ch and his buddies – The male corps not only carries Ch in on their shoulders but the men who follow form interesting cluster patterns as if to declare, “Make way for the guys!” Note that one of Ch’s buddies is the character Polycharmus, who gets a lot of virtuosic dancing moments throughout the ballet (in the 1st cast, the brilliant Tyler Maloney) - Corps pleads to the feuding fathers to allow C and Ch to marry…very Romeo & Juliet-like! The dads agree and the lovers exchange silver “wedding bracelets.” - Wedding of C and Ch’s Festivities, with most of the corps “pairing off” and dancing gorgeous choreography that complements that of C and Ch. In this segment, there’s an interesting pas de trois for C’s maid and two male attendants (Luciana Paris and two guys unnamed in the playbill) Sc 2 – Garden outside C and Ch’s house, Syracuse - Interesting dances-patterns for the three scheming suitors, who are angry that C and Ch married. In the 1st cast, their leader was Joseph Gorak, with Duncan Lyle and Eric Tamm – all so effectively nasty while performing amazing steps! - Corps of villagers’ beautiful pdd “pairings” after Ch brings C’s apparently-lifeless body out to the garden (after which C is carried off by four corps men, reminiscent of Sleeping Beauty) Sc 3 – Inside a Tomb beside the Ionian Sea, Syracuse - (One of my favorite moments in the ballet) Procession of Mourners into the tomb, forming ever-changing patterns while in rows…like figures on Greek vases…reminding me a bit of Nijinska-like patterns in Les Noces or even at the end of Ashton’s Apparitions (in which he surely copied his mentor Nijinska). - Dance of the Five Pirates, as they enter the tomb, raiding it for treasure, then finding the living Callirhoe. Some great steps for the leader, Theron (at 1st cast, Aaron Scott). Theron and his crew cart C on board their big ship, to sell C to Dionysius of Miletus…as Ch and his buddy enter the tomb to find C gone…they follow the ship to Miletus (not sure if they have their own boat to travel so far!). Sc 4 – Garden in the House of the nobleman Dionysius, in Miletus (area in SW Anatolia/Turkey) - Dances for Dionysius’ Household (12 women) This includes an incredible segment, during the wedding festivities, in which the 12 women, led by Courtney Lavine in front, form a “diamond” pattern, then shift position to a "square" patterns, by slowly hopping on the flat of one foot as the other is elevated in an attitude-passe. - Celebratory dances, including Pas de Trois for Dionysius’ confidante, Plangon (Courtney Shealy in cast 1 or Zhong-Jing Fang in cast 2 – both fabulous), with two male attendants (Luigi Crispino and Joao Menegussi, both impressive in cast 1). This is the dance to the lilting Khachaturian tune danced by Tatyana Vecheslova-Nune in the famous Soviet film of the condensed Gayane. ACT II Sc 1 – Inside the city wall, at the court of Mithridates (king of Pontus, I assume; this is in northern Turkey, on the Black Sea coast) - Dance of Mithridates’ Six Guards and their leader (wonderful Marshall Whitely) - Entrance of the Chained Slaves, including Chareas and Polycharmus – this part is all very Spartacus, even the way that they dance, each with a short chain binding the hands together. - The Dream Scene – after Mithridates spots the expensive silver “wedding bracelet” on Chareas, he ask the slave to explain his situation, which leads us to The Dream Scene, with the walls of Pontus parting to reveal Callirhoe and her entourage in a garden…another lovely pdd, as the corps dances inventively behind the main couple. - Dance of Mithridates (Cory Stearns, wonderful at 1st cast)and his six harem beauties, a.k.a. “Ladies in Red” - The Danced Dispute between Dionysius and Mithridates over Callirhoe…as the corps of guards and “Ladies in Red” dance pdd’s in unison behind the stars. Dionysius and Mithridates agree to take this dispute to the Court of Arbitration, just “down the road” in Babylon (the group walks off from the Black Sea coast to the middle of modern Iraq…check the map – over 2,000 km – 1,362 miles – from Istanbul to Baghdad; it’s theatre – time to suspend disbelief!) Sc 2 – Inside the Ishtar Gates of the Kingdom of Babylon, at the court of the unnamed “King and Queen of Babylon” - (my other favorite “corps moment” of this ballet!) – Dance of the Six Babylonian Guards (in sea-green long Georgian-style coats!) – This is the dance that everyone will remember in this ballet, a tour de force for six virtuosi jumpers and turners, of which one performs the most amazing moves, such as grand jetes around the rest, leaps ending in slides to the floor, and spectacular tours a-la-seconde. The leader of the six is uncredited as such in the playbill, but it was Sung Woo Han at 1st cast. Bravo!!! - Dance of the Queen of Babylon (Kathleen Williams), two Ladies in Waiting (Courtney Lavine and Alexandra Basmagy) and six attendants – Wearing sea-green lame gowns dripping in gold beads that clang with every quick releve onto pointe…as the six corps ladies often clasp waists and perform in a manner similar to Petipa grouping such as Cygnets in Swan Lake or the Lilac Attendants in Sleeping Beauty. - Corps reactions to the Court of Arbitration, as Dionysius and Mithridates state their cases… a real highlight of the ballet (James Whiteside and Cory Stearns led this at 1st cast) - “Jealousy” Pas de Huit, as the corps dances in pairs in the background, as yet another powerful man – this time the King of Babylon – falls for Callirhoe…so a “Jealousy pas de huit” danced by the Queen with the 2 attendants, Dionysius alone, Chareas with Polycharmus, and the King with Callirhoe. Ratmansky at his most inventive in allowing dance to speak (no mime). Sc 3 – Battlefield in Babylon, where the Egyptian Army attacks (the army of Ptolemaic Egypt must have had good means of transport; it’s not that close from Alexandria to Babylon!) - Battle Dance #1 to the famous Sabre Dance of Gayane – Chareas, having been rejected by the King of Babylon, finds himself leading the Egyptian Army versus Dionysius at the head of the Babylonians. Lots of amazing leaps and falls for the male corps! - A lull in the fighting, as the Babylonian Court Ladies and Callirhoe sneak onto the battlefield to watch…. - Battle Dance #2 – More amazing leaps and falls by the male corps until Egypt Victorious, as Chareas is hoisted by his army! Sc 4 – Reconciliation Scene (assume we’re still in Babylon, as the ruined stones of the battlefield are still there…but the citizens of Syracuse are miraculously there to celebrate!) - The Swan Lake Moment: Chareon searches for his beloved Callirhoe among the bodies of the Babylonian women, who are reclining in clusters among bits of marble ruins. He moves from cluster to cluster and cannot find his wife…until Callirhoe calls out to him. There follows the Reconciliation PDD. - Forgiveness Finale – beautiful poses and lifts by the townspeople (friends of C & Ch) as Dionysius and his loyal lady Plangon present C & Ch with their child. Much joy as all is forgiven and the curtain drops.

As I sit at the Costa Mesa airport, awaiting my flight home - After four performances of this masterpiece, I have so many thoughts racing through my mind, first and foremost Ratmansky’s ingenious use of the corps de ballet throughout the two hours of solid dancing. I promise a detailed analysis here in the coming days. I owe it, if anything, to the glorious corps that delighted in the plethora of small- and large-scaled ensembles...for, despite the fabulous soloists, THEY - the ladies & gents of the corps - are the true stars of this work.

Unfortunately, Calvin Royal is out of tonight’s 3rd-cast performance, with Hee Seo. Replacement not yet announced...hopefully Seo can go on with understudy-new partner.

Forster and Shevchenko were exquisite last night. I particularly enjoyed their solo work - both have incredible jumps and well-centered turns. Forster’s feet and leg lines are so textbook perfect! In the many acrobatic adagios and other pdd work, they were a tiny bit more labored than Hurlin/Bell, eg, one of the high “torch lifts” came down a bit early. Most of the secondary solos were better cast at the first night, with the major exception of Zhongjin Fang as Dionysius’ maid dancing to the aforementioned Vecheslova music. Fang danced with the attack and accents of a woman possessed! An unintendedly funny scenic blooper occurred last night at the start of Act II. As the curtain goes up, depicting a large wall across the back of the stage, one could see that two stagehands in black had remained at the top of the wall. As the character Mitridantes performed a dance with his guards, it was hilarious to spot the two heads slowly slinking down until they were out of view...sort of like the Mistake Waltz In Jerome Robbins’ The Concert, when one girl turns the wrong way & tries to correct it by slowly shifting to the right direction, drawing even more attention to the error. Hey, it’s live theatre!

Ratmansky is a big reason why Forster is blooming. Also the Cathy Marston ballet, Jane Eyre.

Forster is a dancer who many of the “ABT regular fans” have long admired but for whom opportunities in top roles don’t come often. This is one of those rarities. Just think of all of great ballets in the ABT repertoire that could tour to the UK - this, Harlequinade, Whipped Cream...just naming the full-evening Ratmansky works.

Adding to the initial report: I meant to say that Ratmansky has peppered this ballet with many small solo, duo and trio moments for Corps dancers. For instance, young corps member Courtney Shealy shined in the bit role of Plangon - servant to Dionysius (the James Whiteside character) - in which she performs a sprightly character solo to music that’s famous in the old Soviet-Kirov ballet Gayane...made famous by Tatyana Vecheslova as Nune. Many of us have seen and loved that treasure of a film. I thought of Vecheslova as I watched Shealy...the new Vecheslova! In so many ways, Ratmansky is unconsciously (or consciously?) honoring the memories of great 20th-C Soviet dancers.

I traveled to sunny Costa Mesa, California, for last night’s premiere of Alexei Ratmansky’s new full-evening ballet, titled Of Love and Rage. I’ll prepare a true report on all three casts, upon return home. For now, suffice to say that the ever-inventive Ratmansky has created a new huge hit for ABT and the opening-cast lead ballerina, Catherine Hurlin, is on a rocket path to stardom, with her leading gent, Aran Bell, also quite impressive. In a secondary lead male role, crazy & charismatic James Whiteside almost stole the show! All production elements blend together in a delicious meal - elegant yet substantive decors, choreographic compositions, lighting, that lovely Khachaturian score (mostly from his 1940s Gayane). Ratmansky & his team somehow manage to make sense of a truly cockamamie tale; for example, the work culminates in a battle scene between Babylonians and Egyptians...set to the famous Sabre Dance (!). Every ancient western civilization seems to make an appearance here....yet, it works and is great fun, with moments of sublimity. Christine Schevchenko and Tom Forster lead tonight’s 2nd cast, with Hee Seo and Calvin Royal the 3rd on Saturday night. I’ll try to report on all upon my return home on Monday. What a ballet! Excited to read other opinions on this from this initial run or the Met season in NY, in a couple of month’s time.

ROTUNDA is a highly recommended work about dancers being themselves, in a rehearsal room. Mearns and Garcia each dance impressive soli but be on the lookout for a delectable pdd early-on for long-limbed Miriam Miller and Andrew Scordato.