Bruce Wall

Stunning pictures, Dave. I made an error in my notation (the first above). It should, of course, read 'Finlay' and not 'Chase' (although that is his first name). He is probably the finest interpreter of Balanchine's Apollo extant (e.g., dancing) today. Here you can see him taking a curtain call having just finished dancing the role he was born to portray as a guest with the Mariinsky in a gala performance. How lovely to see two of the ladies who appeared last night amongst that Apollo's number as well as the RB's own Vadim Muntagirov (then I assume an ENB leading principal) fresh from a different assignment a tad later on in the clip.

For the moderators - Hasn't there already been a posting on this topic?

Might something like this come to London? Certainly I hope to Paris 'in preparation for / enhancement of ...

The Mariinsky's Balanchine evening was the Company's finest outing thus far in their 2014 London season IMHO. This is I think entirely understandable given the embracing magic woven inside both pieces selected as created by the master dance maker of the 20th Century. While not yet scaling the heights of, say, (Peter) Martins, Boal, Hubbe, Chase or Carreno as Apollo, the exemplary Vladimir Shklyarov was impetuously incisive in his depiction of a young God finding his way in the world. (Is there a one act ballet with a more inviting narrative that Balanchine and Stravinsky's APOLLO? I think not. I only wish that the music had been better played on this occasion. Methinks that Maestro Gergiev has kept all the best Mariinsky instrumentalists at home under his own baton.) After attending more than a few of the performances by the Mariinsky team of balletic performers fielded for this particular London sojourn, I have come to believe that Shklyarov and the incandescently gleaming Viktoria Tereshkina (whose Titania in Balanchine's MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM brought to rapid mind the glories of Krya Nichols in the same role - from the warmth of her glittering smile down) are by some distance the strongest on show. Both did nothing but build on the incisive radiance of their truly outstanding SL performances. One sees well why Kevin McKenzie has selected them as ABT's 'exchange artists'. The enormity of their skill reaches engagingly beyond time; beyond any geographical boundary. Both understand and precisely relate the application of their artistry as embellished both off (as well as on) balance as well as adorn their virtuosity by moving 'through rather than 'on' music much as Balanchine dictated. Sadly a goodly number of their peers do not and struggle to render the 'Balanchinian' magic routine. Balanchine happily sees that they fail. Still there is NO question but that Shklyarov and Tereshkina stand out from that crowd. Without hesitation Tereshkina's artistry is a far cry from the uncertain centre of Oxana Skorik, who almost (but not quite) managed to mangle the stunning glory of that masterful pas de deux which beats at the heart of the second act of Balanchine's DREAM, itself but a thrilling extended divertissement in celebration of the impending nuptials. I, myself, felt naught but sorry for the hard working Konstantin Zverev as her cavalier. Nancy Goldner in Balanchine Variations quotes the progenitor of ballet as we now understand it as writing: "It was in studying Apollo that I came first to understand how gestures, like tones in music and shades in painting, have certain family relations." These could well be appreciated in the rich sharing between Shklyarov and the finely animated Kristina Shapran in what may well be her (very fine) Mariinsky debut. (London audiences have previously appreciated her animated skill at the Coliseum in the title role of Coppelia with the Stanislavsky Ballet aside their current 'guest artist' Sergei Polunin, a former RB principal.) The stunning central Apollo pas de deux sang through Shapran's guiding limbs as Terpsichore. It was suffused with a much appreciated adroit finesse. I was also taken by the bouncing excitement of Nadexhda Batoeva's Polyhymnia and very much look forward to her Cinderella (again in the more than capable hands of Shklyarov) at the final performance of this particular Mariinsky season. I confess I prefer Ashton's DREAM to Balanchine's (even though the latter does more fulsomely address the Bard's work itself). That said, I MUCH prefer Balanchine's finely dramatic La Valse to our British master's take. Horses for courses and all that. Still it was wonderful to be able to revisit the Balanchine via the splendour of this far more than merely handsome physical production. I so appreciate that the Mariinsky design team never appear to clutter their stages with scenery, allowing the dance itself to set the scene. While never touching the diabolical glee of Damian Woetzel's resplendent performance, the talented Vasily Tkachenko rightly glorified in Balanchine's Puck. Xander Parish came into his own I felt as Demetrius and Anastasia Matvienko (an artist we have previously enjoyed in London with the Mikhailovsky) rendered her stealth - if not her smile - on Hypolita, a role that for me will FOREVER have the name of Monique Meunier emblazoned on its heart. (Sadly London - that 'mecca of world dance' according to Sadler's Well's Alistair Spalding - was never given an opportunity to sample Meunier's heady flair.) What came close to making me cry, however, was the approximations of Timur Askerov's Oberon in that MASTERFULLY extended variation created for Villella in 1962. How well I remember attending a free seminar at the NY Public Library (Lincoln Center Branch) where Villella himself choked up at watching a film of his performing the same and then spent an unforgettable hour relating details behind the alchemy of its creation. Last night's audience rightfully applauded Balanchine's genius in the construction of this devilishly difficult feat ... but, oh, that the virtuoso that was Peter Boal could have been been reawakened to show this deserving crowd just how those steps might dazzle in the full flight of their undisputed magic. Still, one must be grateful that a likeness was there at all I suppose ... and there was - as I said - much in the overall evening to admire throughout.

Just can't resist - have to include this link - not only does it feature the (post relevant and) wonderful Robbie Fairchild in a variety of pieces (including Robbins and Balanchine) but also ROYAL BALLET DANCERS Stix-Brunnell (white swan pas), Lauren Cuthbertson (Manon pas with RBS grad Corey Stearns - and boy does he look happy) and former RB principal Alessandra Ferri (Le Parc pas) who will guest in the upcoming RB season in McGregor's new full-length. To top it all off - you get the divine Ms. Tiler Peck in a Jose Limon solo and Don Q Act III coda seg in which she puts some of these current Mariinsky Russians into perspective in terms of variety and placement of fouette turns - replete with a perfect finish in 2nd. So viscerally exciting to witness these dancers taking up the risks that Woetzel so wisely invites ... Would that we might get a peek at some of the same here. Certainly can't beat the setting there though - No way! And this was all on one night - 1st August 2014. Talk about an event!

Points well made, Alison. I don't blame the journalists themselves. They are simply - while they can - striving to make a living. It is the Editors who appoint them and look after (e.g., are responsible for) the potential conflicts for the paper/media that I think should bear the brunt of concern here. That makes Ms. Crompton's situation particularly challenging I fear. In her regard it would really boil down I suppose to the editorial board/owners I imagine. In certain areas (such as the one in which I dwell) her conflicts would be immediately outlawed as a simple point of practice, I fear. Certainly I wouldn't get away with it ... or not for very long - that's for sure. While realising that budgets are finite, I would imagine that the said editors could find (if they wished) informed journalists to do the interviews/features if the named staff themselves preferred to review and/or vice versa. Certainly there seem to be many talented and informed writers floating about on line.

The word 'changing' makes it challenging when speaking of dancers - and, here, they seemed largely reserved in number to the ballet which is, of course, fine (and most fitting for this site) .... Glad to see Whelan still listed amongst that number, should think that (Tiler) Peck and (Robbie) Fairchild should be, perhaps Mearns and Smirnova and (Ed) Watson deserve mention. Certainly Woetzel is stirring things up a tad as is Farrell much as Mitchell, Villella and Thomasson did in the past - but none of those are still dancing in front of the paying public .... Ferri and even Baryishnikov (amazingly) are still going apace and trying to stretch things a bit ... and certainly Rojo ... Lendorf comes happily to mind ... Osipova is MOST deserving in terms of moving human targets ... (myself I'd like to include Sarafanov and of the current Mariinsky crowd Shklyarov ... oh, and Stina Quagabeur if for no other reason than VERA) ... So glad that Chi Cho, the glorious Jose Manuel Carreno and Aesha Ash (who I doubt was EVER seen here but who fought oh, so many very real battles and whose difference made is even now clearly evident) made the list. STILL, above them ALL right now - if we are talking dancers on the international scene - and about currently active 'dancers' who are currently changing/challenging international perceptions 'iconically' ... I'd have to put JUSTIN PECK down for (sadly not much seen here but for one very short but very fine piece with the LA Dance Project) fairly obvious reasons. Even CC on that occasion was able to see through the oft clouding fog of his historic mist and champion the future via this dancer's extraordinary depth of perception. The fact that Justin Peck WASN'T included in yesterday's list makes it a tad suspect in my eyes. How could you NOT NOW include him with 'changing' and 'dancers' in your title, especially while wanting to plant such in a balletic field.

I remember MANY years ago sitting in a Broadway theatre with my mother. We were watching a (not particularly good) musical by Andre Previn about Gabrielle Channel entitled 'Coco'. As the curtain came down after a rather lengthy first act my mother whispered in my ear: 'It's a good thing she's Katherine Hepburn.' It was. While Hepburn's singing abilities were oftentimes doubtful there was no question but that she was every inch a star. (Cecil Beaton's costumes were ravishing too I recall. Indeed both of these entities remain vivid in my mind's eye even now.) In some moments of SOLO FOR TWO - even occasionally in Ohad Naharin's PASSO which I must confess oft dumbfounded me (largely because I'm almost totally unaware of Gaga short of a certain lady and even then only remotely connected) I had a kind of 'far away' response. During such parts I fleetingly felt as if I was again that child visiting a then (to me) strange Manhattan from a country then popularly - and legally - referred to as 'Great Britain'. My ground shifted here as surely as it must have for Vasipova. Somehow at times we both seemed shrouded in a (not always unpleasant or frightening) mist. (And, no, I must confess I've never - even at children's parties - been made to walk like a duck much as Vasiliev had to in time to 'Greensleves'.*) Still, certain goalposts were swaying. That too can sometimes be revealing. At certain points in SOLO FOR TWO I found my mind's eye casting itself upwards as I whispered to my mother: 'It's a good thing that they're 'Vasipova'. Tit for parental tat I suppose. I then winked. My mother snorted - politely. The only thing is, my mother would not have had the good fortune/opportunity to be realistically initiated unto the reality of Vasipova's heady (balletic) charms previously. She would never have (as I fear many in this far from capacity audience had not) seen them together glorify Don Q, Giselle, Corsaire, Flames of Paris, etc. Indeed, the woman next to me had never seen either of them before .. EVER. In many ways I could understand when she turned to her friend after the second interval (both of which were considerably longer than the dance works they preceded) saying: 'I was so relieved when I heard the women in the loo saying they were confused and unhappy. Thank Christ it wasn't just me.' Still I found myself blurting out in joy as Osipova strolled away in dismay at Vasiliev's pseudo 'he-man' display in the aforementioned piece much as I later did when she reattached her wayward groom's 'bunny bow' - this time with sparkles - from the depths of her own burnished (if painful) fantasy buried in Arthur Pita's bemusing FACADA. The ladies next to me remained 'stoney' faced throughout I fear. They didn't even seem to be moved by Osipova's outstanding tabletop dance of death over the final remains of her strangulated and literally strangled Portuguese pain below - for me the single most outstanding feature of the entire evening. Still, they applauded politely and even remained in place for the one front of curtain appearance by the mighty duo. If Sergei Danilian (the producer) had combined, say, two of the three pieces presented (say, Cherkaoui's MERCY and the Pita) with the vision sequence from 'LA BAYADERE (as had been originally promised in the Segerstrom Center's promotion) - or even aside Petit's CARMEN with Ballet San Jose and the magnificent Jose Manuel Carreno in tow as Espada as had been itemised at one point on these pages - those ladies I thought - and many like them - might well have been better offered a more balanced perspective to catch onto/alight (in terms of Vasipova's historic/histrionic strengths) during their journey into this seeming wonderland. I had one additional point of concern this morning. Am I alone in being somewhat troubled by the fact that the two most prominent and positive reviews of this programme - as featured in today's links - are written by reviewers - and in The Daily Telegraph's case the woman who is the overall Arts Editor - who have previously had dinners with and, in the Guardian's case, shared a preparatory class aside the two stars of this production? Years ago I remember chatting with Clive Barnes and his saying that he felt it was "mandatory" - in order to keep an objective critical stance on behalf of his readership - that he not do interviews, other features or in any way socialise with any of the personnel responsible for any of the productions (be they dance or theatre) he would be reviewing. "Other people can write those," he quipped. He even said that he turned down social invitations if he was aware that any such would be attending. I must confess I was myself concerned when Sarah Crompton (ref The Daily Telegraph) showed up to do the pre-class interview and commentary with the Mariinsky Acting Director on the live class feature. Other people (if I recall correctly) took those roles for the Telegraph last year when the paper featured similar video outings with the Bolshoi. (Perhaps she won't be reviewing any of the other items of the Mariinsky fare to be presented. That would, in my estimation, be prudent.) Indeed, neither of these women made ANY reference to their associations in their SOLO FOR TWO reviews - and both, I believe, have additionally written features. Perhaps this is just a sign of our times. They may well now be right (I don't know) and certainly must be (rightfully I think) fearful for their positions given the overwhelming and current industry trends. Within the next decade or so such posts may well be entirely non-vocational. The internet does offer such wonderful succour in terms of alternative resource. Just look at Bruce Marriott's gloriously rich DanceTabs!!! We are, I think, so lucky; so very blessed. * I adore Vasiliev in part because he can often appear as if he wants to break out in glee. While doing that duck walk (repeated four times) this dancer who succeeded in making even SPARTACUS palatable for me (and that takes SOME doing) looked (to me) for all the world as if he wanted to tell a joke. I, myself, had wanted to hear it as I have this hunch it might well have been superior to his rather awkward haunch at that particular moment in time.

Blessedly Waterloo Bridge will (or so they say) be open for traffic. (Fingers crossed.)

Vasiliev just posted a segment of 'his Chippendales fantasy sequence' from Pita's Facada seen in the Solo FOR TWO programme here.

It's now 10.59 am and I can not see a sign of them .... Not even a message from the Daily Telegraph to apologise for their tardiness ... Ah, well .... perhaps I'm looking in the wrong place .... but it does say it will appear in the space of 'this article'. .... Relief ... it has just appeared .... I hear the commercial even now

Thought that Lopatkina's fourth act performance oh, so beautifully constructed last night especially when being partnered by Andrei Yermakov's aerially fine Von Rothbart. As Bruce Marriott suggested she is a unique presence and even though there is now an occasionally obvious lack of upper leg strength this graceful artist does oh, so carefully husband her resources (with several obvious changes to this staging); never allowing herself to undertake anything that she can no longer deliver on behalf of her audience. Even now she offers the previously uninitiated visitor a sense of what made her so special in the first place (and I say that having had the pleasure of her O/O more than a few times in the past.) Those dark eye'd side glances towards her Act III target remain piercing. For me Ivanchenko as her prince brought new meaning to the word 'blandness' and certainly allowed the tension of the overall proceedings to frequently loosen when left to his own devices. Whereas the enticingly vibrant Shklyarov had tossed that bouquet of white roses he was meant to present as a trophy to one of the princesses to one side in clear frustration, Ivanchenko squeezed them up behind his back into the hands of the waiting Jester in embarrassment as if this had been but a production error. I found myself laughing (quietly in respect for those standing next to me in the upper reaches of the amphi) for quite the wrong reasons. Little was left by him to register with anyone. I equally found myself pondering on those hereabouts who are so flummoxed by the placement of Matthew Golding's mouth during performance (largely I think in order that the poor boy might breathe). Here Ivanchenko's face was so often but a blank. When expression did dare to glimmer it looked to me as if it was in (surely unintentional) disdain. 'What do you mean?' I hear you murmur. Well, I'm not sure I have sufficient powers of description to relate such unremarkable commonplace. If I were to attempt just one I might say that he sometimes looked for me (if not all the world) as if the Pilsbury dough boy had been smitten by a vampire. In turn Lopatkina's Odile was animation itself when she tossed a similar bouquet into Ivanchenko's face with an evil dose of thrill similar to that which I remember being exorcised by Makarova in face of Baryishnikov. Sadly even that did nothing to inspire a passionate response from her partner. Vasily Tkachenko was I felt the best Jester of the three I have seen by the Mariinsky this time round (certainly the most precise in his finishes, spontaneous in his reactions and, without hesitation, the most sparing in his make-up) and did what he could to pick up/support the strands of Ivanchenko's disinterested reign. Bless him.

With Gomes in the cast AMP could I think re-visit the Bourne SL for another short run on Broadway. He'd sell tickets there I'm sure. (He sells out his Met performances with Vishneva as it is.) Maybe they could get her as the queen .... or, better still, Martine van Hamel .... or Alessandra Ferri (who did Cheri in NYC last season - see video clips here) .... or Wendy Whelan (that would sell in NYC if not at the Lindbury!). (I'd pay to see any of those combos certainly) .... and maybe ... just maybe they could mount it in London and do a two week preview stint here immediately prior at Sadler's Wells .... where AMP seems to sell regardless - and it being home, of course, to the original with the then RB principal Adam Cooper in the happy creation of its title role. Who knows maybe they could drag another ABT (sometime) principal, Roberto Bolle, along to be the prince!! THAT would be GREAT .... I'm confident that Gomes swanning it over all and sundry, much like Robbie Fairchild giving the world his take on Gene Kelly in AN AMERICAN IN PARIS and Tiler Peck being featured as the girl who inspired Degas in the world premiere of the upcoming musical LITTLE DANCER (steered by Susan Stroman) and being set (as it will be) in the 19th Century world of the Paris Opera Ballet - with both being on the confirmed Broadway slate for next season - would/will, after their respective musical contracts are up trail new audience members to ABT / NYCB respectively for the vast array of different ballets they will no doubt joyously appear in. That too will very much be in the 'Balanchinian/NYCB and Robbins/ABT & NYCB' mold. Not entirely sure about the enchanting Ms. Cope and the RB ... She has said publicly that she ultimately isn't sure that ballet will be her own particular end stop. Time, of course, will tell. Fingers crossed that we will ALL have a chance to celebrate her ROH return in fitting (and deserved) style.

Marcelo Gomes, the ABT principal dancer, is to appear as The Swan in AMP's Swan Lake in Japan only it appears in September. http://new-adventures.net/swan-lake Would that he might revisit the same with them in London.

Correction to the above: The correct link to the Faun segment is here. (I would correct it above but sadly I can no longer do so.) I found another Vail video clip, an interview with Tiler Peck from a few years ago, in which you can see two segments where she is being partnered by RB principal Edward Watson. Though you might enjoy that here. Couldn't resist adding two interviews with Peck/Fairchild just after they got engaged: here and here. Think it shows both have good timing. A good omen for AN AMERICAN IN PARIS methinks.

Vasiliev has just posted this video from, I think, the end of the Pita piece.

While going slightly (but not entirely) off topic, I have just listened to an interview with the extraordinary mind that is DAMIAN WOETZEL. I realise that many here will have little idea of who this actually is so I wanted to include this item here for your greater enjoyment/edification. He is an extraordinary artist (no matter which way you may wish to cut it) and was - in this specific context - the first lead in Chris Wheeldon's first stab at AN AMERICAN IN PARIS which he oversaw/created during his time as the house choreographer for NYCB. In that performance of AN AMERICAN IN PARIS Woetzel danced with a very young artist (who he refers to in the interview) Tiler Peck. She will be, I think, hailed as one of the great early 21st Century female ballet dancers alongside - unquestionably - the current RB principal, Natalia Osipova. I'm confident both are well aware of this fact given their drive to want to (i) put their own stamp on roles and (ii) most crucially have new works created for them by the world's leading choreographers. Certainly Tiler Peck has become a focus - as Suzanne Farrell and Wendy Whelan were before her - for so many key dance makers including thus far originating leading roles in key works by Wheeldon, Ratmansky, Scarlett and the extraordinary potential that is (no relation) Justin Peck. You can see a very brief sampling from this year's Vail Festival on her here. In that brief item you can see her doing a solo segment from Le Corsaire (very much outside of her NYCB regime) with - in the background - former RB prinicipal Sergei Polunin and Apollo with her husband, Robert Fairchild, who is every inch an Apollo that could stand with pride opposite the memories of (Peter) Martins, Hubbe, Boal, Baryishnikov or Carreno. You can also see them both - in again a very different ethic, say, from that of NYCB - in Paul Taylor's Airs here (where Fairchild shows off his own prowess at a Bolshoi one handed lift) and - more appropriately perhaps - in a rehearsal of Robbins' Faun here such as will be performed next year by the RB company. You can see Damian Woetzel himself overseeing that rehearsal in the background. This is wonderfully apt as Woetzel originated many roles in the later Robbins' ballets (much as his wife, Heather Watts,originated many roles in the later works of Balanchine) which sadly have not yet been seen on any UK stage. You can see a brief definition of Woetzel's DEMO incentive for the autumn as part of the Guggenheim Works and Process project here. Would that highlights from this same creative sampling might one day find themselves on the schedule of, say, London's Sadler's Wells.

I would imagine it will have an impact overall (e.g., on everything), but shouldn't think that previous contractual obligations on behalf of the Royal Ballet of Flanders itself would be called into question. For this reason most contracts require more than one signature from the sponsoring body.

Funny, I had such questions in my mind when Jose Manuel Carreno went from the RB (after ENB, of course) to his seemingly immediate triumph at ABT. 'Can he have been that different a dancer when in England and at the Royal?', I had frequently asked myself. Just look at the RB success that met his fellow Cuban peer, Carlos Acosta, (who was IN MY EYES always the lesser entity from a stylistic [balletic] perspective). For myself I have always filed such considerations into that mental folder firmly marked: 'Some things you will simply will never know'. It sits alongside that labeled: 'What might have beens'. It would have been interesting to hear what thoughts passed through Monica Mason's mind as she sat (as she did) in the Royal Box at yesterday's Mariinsky matinee. Whilst acknowledging that hindsight is always advantageous, 'Here, Here' I say in support of that BcoF poster calling herself 'capybara's hopes for a potentially brighter (or at least justifiably broader) field of future RB procurement/developmental prospect under Kevin O'Hare's administration. I agree that the positive suggestions in this direction are happy ones indeed.

Read about it here.

I went to both the matinee and evening performances of the Mariinsky SWAN LAKE yesterday and in some ways felt afterwards that the afternoon had been but a rehearsal for what was to come in the evening. Why? Well, it is perhaps best summed up by two obviously knowledgeable (from a balletic perspective) British ladies sitting on an amphitheatre lobby bench next to me during the matinee's second interval. "The leads are very tentative," one said to the agreeing other. I won't go into specifics vis a vis the matinee as they have been very well covered by Bruce Marriott and others on this Board but what ultimately set the evening's performance apart FOR ME was that sense of confidence that happily lit an additional fire to all round it. This was, I think, primarily due to one Vladimir Shklyarov (of a similar age to Xander Parish) who gave, it must be said, a master class in partnering. Let's face it; Swan Lake is a fantasy coned in Seigfried's fantasy. Shklyarov made his enticingly secure. He more than made sense (and his own) of what mime there exists in this production - it not, itself, being part of the Russian tradition. Without hesitation or falter he made the choreography fit to/for his own streamlined/dedicated purpose. In a delightful fleeting turn early in the first act Shklyarov twisted himself around and placed his finger to his lips in the direction of the young girls with whom he had just been convorting as if to say 'don't tell' whence his regal mother showed up on the scene. There is no question but that Viktoria Tereshkina (herself an established Company principal) was surety itself as both Odette and a dazzling Odile and oh, so very much more relaxed to (i) be able to spin this tale entirely through the conventions of dance itself in (ii) the hands of her established and oh, so able partner. IMHO she did so with far more assurance than I thought she illustrated in her Juliet on Tuesday. Last night's audience had no hesitation whatsoever in roaring their approval throughout. That was deafeningly clear. Her very fine Odile variation in the third act pas de deux deservedly brought the ROH down in justified and prolonged admiration. The audience also seemed much more assured in showing their approval of a particularly fine trio of 'Prince's Friends' during that second performance. It was made up of the talented mix of Ekaterina Ivannikova, Nadezhda Batoeva and Filipp Stepin. Although I remain to be convinced by the reported glories of the Mariinsky orchestra this time round*, I very much appreciated the fact that the opening of the second act's mazurka was played at its rightful rapid speed in order to best emphasise the allegro segment which follows and is so skillfully built within that particular character variation at both Saturday outings. * In but one notation: The fute segment in the middle of Tereshrikna's first (and very fine) Odette solo became so decidedly sour that I could hear audience murmurs about me in reaction and I for one certainly felt sorry for the dancer who appeared sublimely undisturbed in her own precision.

My word. Sounds interesting but am I alone in no longer being able to afford such luxuries?

A differing perspective on Vishneva here.

Buddy, don't you want to add the radiant Novikova to your list????

Here is but a taster for the wonderful NYCB dancer ROBERT FAIRCHILD in a Gene Kelly celebration at Damian Woetzel's annual Vail Festival prior to appearing in American in Paris at the Theatre du Chatalet in the Winter opposite the RB's Ms. Cope (that production itself being but a preview for Broadway). On a side note, I do so hope that the glorious Robert Fairchild (as much as his equally magnificent wife, Tiler Peck) doesn't suffer the same fate in London as the brilliant dancer Damian Woetzel (who could always easily 'out Steven' the RB's vivid Mr.McRae and who Baryishnikov called 'the best turner in ballet history') did, e.g., where his decades long career is summed up in front of London audiences by but one movement of one work just before he retires. You can see a sampling of the opening night of Vail International Festival here, replete with a (smaller) excerpt from the above.