NYCB in Jewels at the Kennedy Center

[Jeannette]

11 hours ago, DrewCo said:

Trying not to get overexcited: I am headed to D.C. tomorrow and have tickets for Friday night and will also be there on Saturday. (Looking forward to several other dancers as well... including Miriam Miller whom you might have seen make her debut in Emeralds.)

 

I've had some bad luck in recent years with illness and--let's call it 'life'-- interfering with my ballet-going plans, but if all goes well...

 

And do please write about your impressions.

 

 

Drew, this (and other) casts in JEWELS will be well worth the trip.

 

The debuts of Mira Nadon and Peter Walker leading Diamonds was the icing on the cake. I’ve rarely seen the Kennedy Center audience go this nuts- shouting “Bravi!” and standing - since the heyday of the Bolshoi with Osipova & Vasiliev. Walker is so tall, strong and handsome - great partner and soloist with fleet feet. Nadon is today’s glamorous superstar - the airs of Tallchief, Farrell and Kowrosky put together. Her floating bourrees and jetes into the wings were to kill! In the final march and polonaise, the corps reminded me of the finest palace halls in old Russia. Tchaikovsky at his best!

 

The evening began with the elegant romantic Emeralds, to Faure music. Indiana Woodward brought a lot of Violette Verdy, the role’s originator, with her. Tyler Angle was her secure partner. Most gorgeous of all was tall auburn-haired Miriam Miller in the Sicilienne solo- the Mimi Paul role - and poignant in her pdd with elegant Aaron Sanz. Spartak Hoxha,  Sara Adams, and Mary Thomas MacKinnon were sprightly in their pas de trois.

 

The middle segment, red Rubies, to Stravinsky, brought the sass  of Broadway and the Rockettes! Emily Kikta pulled punches as their tallest beauty, with legs that go on forever. Emma Von Enck and Joseph Gordon were devilishly musical, dancing the pdd and displaying the verb of Patricia McBride and Edward Villella back in their prime!

 

What an amazing night, making me recall the best of New York City Ballet’s history. Long may the troupe live in splendor!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited June 6 by Jeannette

[Jeannette]

My review of the second cast in Jewels is here: 

 

post of June 6, 2024

https://www.balletcoforum.com/topic/29900-gifting-the-30-may-2024-ny-times-article-on-nycb’s-mira-nadon/

 

[alison]

Not any more, it isn't - I've moved it over  

[Jeannette]

Thanks, Alison. As I posted the review I thought “Oops, not in the Performances section.”

[StillSewingShoes]

Going to see it Saturday, cannot wait after reading this review!

[Emeralds]

@Jeannette, I am one of those who normally never ever asks for performances to be live streamed or broadcast in cinemas if they aren't already scheduled,  but reading your review and having seen Nadon and Walker dancing in London makes me think, NYCB/Jonathan Stafford, please organise some cinema relay or paid  digital live streaming of these two dancers in Jewels from Lincoln Center, or least, a  DVD recording - so much talent in the company at present. (I do enjoy their free video snippets on social media but would love to watch the full ballet, and am sure the company would appreciate the revenue, as well as the opportunity to have some current performances on record!) 

[Jeannette]

2 hours ago, Emeralds said:

@Jeannette, I am one of those who normally never ever asks for performances to be live streamed or broadcast in cinemas if they aren't already scheduled,  but reading your review and having seen Nadon and Walker dancing in London makes me think, NYCB/Jonathan Stafford, please organise some cinema relay or paid  digital live streaming of these two dancers in Jewels from Lincoln Center, or least, a  DVD recording - so much talent in the company at present. (I do enjoy their free video snippets on social media but would love to watch the full ballet, and am sure the company would appreciate the revenue, as well as the opportunity to have some current performances on record!) 

@Emeralds - A great idea for an NYCB 75th Anniversary DVD! 
 

Since I’m wishing, I’ll also hope for a stream or DVD of the current Royal Ballet Ashton triple bill that includes Les Rendezvous!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited June 7 by Jeannette

[alison]

Ain't happening, I'm afraid, Jeannette  

[Jeannette]

I enjoyed the “first cast” of Balanchine’s Jewels last night at the Kennedy Center’s Opera House. The audience went nuts again after the majestic Diamonds led by the tall blonde veteran stylist Sara Mearns, partnered by cool-as-a-cucumber Chun Wai Chan, led an immaculate corps through Tchaikovsky’s Polonaise (from his 3rd symphony)  as if they were strutting at the Mariinsky Theater. Balanchine so captured the spirit of St Petersburg with each note, in each movement of the three Jewels works!

 

Emeralds took us to a green grotto in the French countryside, a group of delectable Ondines spinning their magic to Faure. Indiana Woodward and Tyler Angle were the leaders, not just dancing but evoking magic with their eloquent faces…such as Indiana’s wondrous face looking at her tutu before lifting it during her solo. Emily Gerrity captured the essence of her magical secondary-solo role in her Sicilienne solo - my port-de-bras wonder of this ballet! Newly-promoted soloist Alec Knight later  led Gerrity in the “walking pas de deux” as if his life depended on it. Bailey Jones, KJ Takahashi, and Alexa Maxwell were fleet and magical in a joyous pas de trois. All soloists captured the magic of long-left special moments in the slow ending (which not all companies - not the Mariinsky - perform).

 

From the French grotto, we moved to red-got Broadway in Rubies, with tall Mira Nadon sassily leading Balanchine’s Rockettes with her amazing jetes and developes to Stravinsky at his jazziest! Megan Fairchild and Anthony Huxley did not put a wrong foot down as the leading couple, capturing even more of the devilish mood in their faces and swaying figures than Von Enck and Gordon in the second cast. Kudos to solo pianist Stephen Gosling for capturing Stravinsky’s sass in every note.   The bright finale captured the DC audience to the hilt…preparing us for the finesse of Diamonds in the next act.

 

And what an act was Diamonds… beginning with swan-like choryphees, led by two Demis…then glorious Mearns and Chun in the pas de deux…then four Demi pairs and the two leads in a spot-on Scherzo (Mearns’ chaines and jetes, and Chun’s entrechats) leading us to The Polonaise from Heaven, with Balanchine’s incredible criss-crossing patterns in multiple tempi. If this is my last ballet seen on this earth - I’m darn happy today! The music by The New York City Ballet’s own orchestra - led by “new” (to me) conductor Tara Simoncic - made me live every note. Bravi tutti! … but did I mention that, with this performance, I’ve become an official “Chunner Fan” (Chun Wai Chan’s social media name)? Chunner and Mirrrra Nadon all the way, for my ballet-going future!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited June 9 by Jeannette

[Jeannette]

Still waiting for @DrewCo ‘s reviews! Hint hint! I hope that you made it to DC, @DrewCo ! I’m now back in San Juan, Puerto Rico, thanking the BalletGods for putting me in DC at the right time.

[Jeannette]

In describing Diamonds, I wanted to give kudos to the four Demi-soloist women who were so musical and added tremendously to the stage pictures, reflecting the multi-layered Petipa style that Balanchine tried to show:

 

The two demis featured in the 1st movement (Alla Tedesca…or German style), in both casts that I viewed, were Meaghan Dutton-O’Hara and Mary Thomas MacKinnon (l to r, often dancing together, in a mirrored manner), surrounded by the 12 gorgeous swan-like corps ladies.  In the 3rd movement (“Scherzo”), they were joined by Olivia Boisson and Mary Elizabeth Sell, often dancing Slavic-style folk steps.

 

The four demi men - who joined the four demi women and the two leading principals in the Scherzo - were different than those listed in the playbill…except for Gilbert Bolden III, a tall, dark, and handsome future principal, I’m sure, who I admired in the 2nd cast (Tuesday) as being the partner of Olivia Boisson - the couple who led the entrance of the 16 corps couples in the 4th movement (Polonaise)!

 

A night of multi-layered magic! 🎉 👑 ✨ 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited June 10 by Jeannette

[DrewCo]

Thank you @Jeannette. I made it (ailments notwithstanding!!); I had a wonderful time, and I saw all three casts the company brought.  Nadon was gorgeous in Diamonds. She has room to grow in the role, but there was nothing tentative or unfinished about her performance: she was mesmerizing and always easy and fluid in all of her movements. The next night in Rubies . . .  I thought she was sensational. "Can't take your eyes off her" was Mr. Drewco's comment.  I'd say about as charismatic a performance as I've ever seen.

 

I will say, too, that Saturday night I was quite awestruck by Mearns's performance in Diamonds.  There are qualities that only experience brings to a role. Mearns has been more powerful and also faster in Diamonds in the past (I saw her some years ago), but Saturday I thought she was profound--a grand ballerina.  I also enjoyed the ensemble, though I did notice a hiccup during the quasi-canon that starts up towards the end (one and maybe two of the women in the back row got ahead of themselves and had to backtrack) -- but I loved the energy and the grandeur at all of the performances of Diamonds I saw. This trip was also my first time seeing Emma Von Enck who danced Rubies Friday night and I thought she was terrific.

 

That's a lot of superlatives: I really think they are deserved and I'm so happy reading your descriptions too.  In fact, I should underline that I enjoyed all the performances and casts that I saw.  New York City Ballet has remarkable depth. (When Tiler Peck is the "third cast" for a work or the only flaw of one of the male dancers is that he may be a little too princely for a role...well, you get the picture and it's a very happy one.) I do feel extremely fortunate to have seen Nadon in two major roles. And Mearns is an absolutely remarkable artist. So, a very satisfying trip! 

Edited June 11 by DrewCo

[alison]

Can I just say how nice it is to have some reports from the other side of the Atlantic ?  Thank you.

[Jeannette]

@DrewCo , thank you for the report on all three casts! I agree with you on the greatness of Mearns’ Diamonds. She was coached before her recent performances by Suzanne Farrell (as she relates in the recent NYCB podcast on the ballet).

Podcast link: https://podcast.nycballet.com/episode-252-hear-the-dance-diamonds-part-2

 

Although I haven’t read it, I could swear that Mira Nadon was also coached by Farrell…the facial expressions, the sliding promenades with her partner, Peter Walker, and the whipping speed of her chaine turns going into the wings. I loved both couples, although Nadon presented more of a regal Mariinsky look for me…and Chun was smoother in his solo finishes. So there was much to love in both couples.

[alison]

Did I see that she had been, or am I imagining it?

[Lizbie1]

On 11/06/2024 at 01:44, DrewCo said:

"Can't take your eyes off her" was Mr. Drewco's comment.  I'd say about as charismatic a performance as I've ever seen.

 

"Charismatic" is the word I keep coming back to. I think I'd pay to watch her read a book!

[MRR]

I was also in attendance for the Saturday matinee and evening Jewels.  My interest in NYCB has been revitalized lately: despite not being from New York, D.C., or even the East Coast, this is my third trip in the past 9 months to see them perform.  Indeed, they have pulled out the stops for the 75th anniversary season, but that goes only so far without great dancers.  Fortunately, the company has them in abundance, and could field three starry casts of a ballet with multiple featured roles.  

 

The three gems are not always Balanchine's most inspired choreography, but they are consistently musical, visually stimulating, and easy to enjoy.  Emeralds, the strangest (I say with endearment) and most fragile of the three, is arguably the most dependent on its cast.  Indiana Woodward, in her fifth performance of the week, was never less than serene, flowing, and elegant, caressing the stage like a dewdrop in a forest.  During the solo variation, her curtsy in the downstage right corner felt humble and reverent, as if thanking Mr. B and the role's originator, Violette Verdy.  Olivia MacKinnon in the same role (debut) kept the magic at bay:  abrupt shifts of expression; a somewhat dour, apologetic demeanor down to how she exited the stage. Fortunately she had occasional bright spots:  the shimmering bourees, long sustained pique attitude and arabesque, and an airy jump.  

 

Tyler Angle, technically underpowered, still has obvious experience to utilize and show, partnering with sensitivity and ease.  Davide Riccardo, more lush and turned out, struggled in the pirouette-tour variations of the solo.  

 

Performances of the Mimi Paul role were not transcendent from either interpreter, but the Sicilienne variation of Ashley Laracey in the matinee was lovely: a taste of Old World sophistication and glamour.  Her mile high arabesque was advantageous here, but more so her quiet nostalgia, entering the Walking pas de deux as if she and her partner were strolling through Paris at midnight.  Emilie Gerrity, less adept and nuanced during the evening, was still enigmatic in the pas: a mystery eluding her partner.  Peter Walker (matinee) was more seamless with the off-balance partnering than Alec Knight.

 

Rubies was performed to the hilt with two worthy casts.  Tiler Peck and Roman Mejia (matinee) had great moments, though I prefer both in other ballets.  Mejia---clean, buoyant, expansive, and masterful---seemed too happy-go-lucky, with a plastered smile throughout.  Peck, more dialed down in expression than in the past, was lacking flexibility for the pas de deux, though her third movement was terrific.  Her syncopation and endless technical feats were no surprise, but a singular moment where she arabesque dove into Mejia's arms, looking as if he wouldn't catch until the last second, was thrilling.

 

Megan Fairchild and Anthony Huxley seem more naturally demure, but weren't at all in this performance.  There was tons of speed, dare, and attack, and while not always flawless (one awkward transition in the pas de deux drew an audible gasp from Megan), the audience was certainly in for a ride.  Huxley may not dance at all like Villella, but he is keen to show off his strengths: great ballon, articulation of feet and a cat-like depth of plié.  Fairchild, old hat in the McBride role, danced with more freshness than I have previously seen from her, as she appears to peak in this Indian summer of her career.

 

Naomi Corti's Tall Girl, a debut, is already on the right track: fantastic high attitude battements, a real entrechat six, and great physicality for the role.  Though relatively unstable in her pointe work at the beginning, her nerves appeared to ease, and she increasingly showed authority in the exposed sequenced of penchees and allegro bits with the men. Her projection at this point is fairly muted, with eyes often low or pointed down to the stage.

 

Missing Mira Nadon's Diamonds, I was still grateful to be seeing her at all.  Her Concerto Barocco in October, lush and celestial, gave way to a fairly perfunctory Stars and Stripes in the winter.  Never fear, her Tall Girl reveled in a world all its own: a thrilling, fun, and yes, spectacular performance.  Her femme fatale stare down of the men was the same authority she brought to the penchees: three of them, 180 degree split, held for eternity, to a sly, slinky exit.  The third movement showed a total spitfire, with lightning footwork and grand jetes that pierced through the sky.  Mercifully she never made the role vulgar, preferring almost a classic Noir approach with luscious, magical port de bras.

 

Sara Mearns and Chun Wai Chan achieved a special moment in the Diamonds pas de deux.  Mearns has a rich inner turmoil in the adagio, at once tender and romantic, leaning into Chun Wai, but on a dime transforming into a vision, unknowable and impenetrable.  Her Swan Lake sequence was particularly effective in eluding his grasp.  After such a majestic 10 minutes, the rest of Mearns's performance appeared rather paced and effortful, with awkward spacing in her developee section of the Scherzo (buried in the stage right corner), an often blank expression, and watering down of the fouettes in the finale.  Still, there were other highlights: a fast series of chaines exiting the wing while spotting front, and a grand, extravagant demeanor in the moments that needed it.   Ultimately, the adagio, the most important ballerina moment in Diamonds and perhaps in all of Jewels, was masterfully delineated.

 

Chun Wai, handsome, princely, and a good partner, is a worthy principal. Though he has more extension and elevation to achieve in his manège, one is hard pressed to complain about his double tour---impeccable and clean---or his a la seconde turns, a fast series of singles to a double with arms aloft and an immediate quadruple pull-in, drawing thunderous applause

 

Unity Phelan, elegant and turned out in the matinee, also reaching her peak in the adage.  She resisted a more dramatic Russian approach and danced with serenity, a fine choice except that her expression didn't develop or change much.  She is wonderful ballerina for dance notation, precise in differentiating her positions front, side, and back, with good placement and beautifully shaped feet.  One gorgeous developee a la seconde nearing the end of the adagio was a highlight.  Stamina was a factor: her Scherzo lost steam with a manège of turns that got around by will, ending in a cheated double, and her partner had to physically hold her as she approached the final pirouette in the finale. 

 

Joseph Gordon, gallant and inscrutable as her Cavalier, was attentive at all costs, ensuring Phelan's performance was the priority.  His line, not as pure as some, is good enough, and both his manège and a la seconde turns were explosive and assured, drawing gasps from a packed audience.

 

Edited June 13 by MRR