Some Memorable Performances of 2018 – New York
Other years have been more exciting, I think, but this one has had its share of remarkable performances, including a few thrilling ones. Here, in no particular order, are the ones that really stood out, for one reason or another.
New York City Ballet – The Nucracker – New York
★★★✰✰ Come hell or high water, George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker will return to New York City Ballet, filling the theatre night after night. Balanchine made a ballet built to last, and it has not disappointed.
Interview: Mayara Magri, First Soloist, The Royal Ballet
Jann Parry talks to the recently promoted Mayara Magri at an important time – she is about to make her debut as Gamzatti in The Royal Ballet’s production of La Bayadere – her first major and leading role in the company she joined 6 years ago…
Staatsballett Berlin – La Bayadère (premiere of Ratmansky reconstruction) – Berlin
★★★★✰ In the last several years, the choreographer Alexei Ratmansky has developed a sideline to his main choreographic efforts: the reviving of ballets by Marius Petipa in a way that represents the original choreography with as much fidelity as possible…
City Center Balanchine Festival – Miami City Ballet, Mariinsky Ballet, Royal Ballet, New York City Ballet
★★★✰✰ It’s fascinating to see how Balanchinean charm and wit are interpreted by dancers for whom the Balanchine repertoire is more of a foreign language.
American Ballet Theatre – Fall Gala + Symphonie Concertante & Garden Blue 3bills – New York
★★★✰✰ The fall season is too brief, particularly because it always feels as though it takes the company a few days to warm itself up. The dancing at the gala on Oct. 17 was a little slapdash, but by Friday things had begun to settle.
English National Ballet – Voices of America bill – works by Forsythe, Robbins & Barton – London
★★★★✰ Altogether, a cunningly judged programme that shows off the company at its most engaging…
Interconnections: Thoughts on “Nick Mauss: Transmissions” at the Whitney in New York
Whiteny PR about the exhibition: “Artist Nick Mauss (b. 1980) presents Transmissions, a multidisciplinary work exploring the relationship between modernist ballet and the avant-garde visual arts in New York from the 1930s through ’50s.”
New York Theatre Ballet – Septet, Rondo, Concertino, Wings/A Petroushka Collage – New York
★★★✰✰ New York Theatre Ballet’s director, Diana Byer, is known for dusting off the dance history books, and giving a dose of challenging revivals. This time NYTB joins may companies around the country and indeed, the world, in celebrating Jerome Robbins’ centennial…
San Francisco Ballet – Serenade, The Chairman Dances, Rodeo – San Francisco
★★★✰✰ Not all, but many pas de deuxs have a romantic subtext, whether intentional or not. But in Rodeo Peck has crafted a pas de deux celebrating introductions and the process of getting to know another person.
Suzanne Farrell Ballet – Forever Balanchine: Farewell Performances – Washington
★★★★★ As artistic director of her own troupe, Farrell was able to take her devotion to Balanchine and her aspiration to promote and preserve his legacy to a new level. For nearly 20 years, Washington audiences have enjoyed an annual mini-festival of Balanchine’s works…
Carmen de Lavallade Honoured at The 40th Annual Kennedy Center Honours
Dancer, choreographer, actress, teacher, director, writer, and mentor, Carmen de Lavallade is a true artist in every sense of the word – and a true legend.
Sergei Polunin – Dancer, Choreographer & Actor – on his new London show and life…
On the eve of his new London show, which includes two premieres and a rarely seen piece of early Russian contemporary ballet, we catch up with Polunin about the shows and life in general. He’s clearly a man who wants to leave his mark…
Cesar Morales – Principal Dancer, Birmingham Royal Ballet
So how did a good Chilean boy end up dancing ballet in Europe…
BalletCollective – The Answer, Orange, The Last Time This Ended, Translation – New York
★★★✰✰ What’s different about Schumacher’s dances isn’t so much the end result as the process. He always commissions new music and builds the ballet up from the bottom, with the help of an external source of inspiration.
Washington Ballet – Les Sylphides, Le Corsaire pdd, Bolero, Prodigal Son – Washington
★★★★✰ It was a pleasure to see this company in such a smart and wide-ranging program. It was even more rewarding to see the Washington Ballet dancers masterly navigating the numerous challenges…
‘The Dreamers Ever Leave You’ – Karen Kain on a unique Royal Ballet & National Ballet of Canada collaboration…
Karen Kain, Artistic Director of the National Ballet of Canada, on celebrating Canada’s 150th with a joint work that includes NBoCanada and Royal Ballet dancers in a unique London Docklands event on the 12/13 October… that and lots more
New York City Ballet – 20th Century Violin Concertos bill – New York
New York City Ballet 20th Century Violin Concertos: The Red Violin, In Memory Of…, Stravinsky Violin Concerto ★★★✰✰ New York, David H. Koch Theater 7 October 2017 www.nycballet.com davidhkochtheater.com It goes without saying…
Dutch National Ballet – Hans van Manen, Ode to the Master bill – Amsterdam
★★★★✰ An outstanding bill in showing Hans van Manen’s work for three companies and its rich contemporary diversity – it all looks so fresh and of today.
Paris Opera Ballet, New York City Ballet, Bolshoi Ballet – Jewels – New York, Lincoln Center Festival
★★★★✰ It’s not often that one gets to see three such companies side by side, or to experience a work as familiar as Jewels with new eyes…
