I hope everyone had a nice holiday weekend, and happy belated Martin Luther King Day!
Tonight begins the Winter season at NYCB. Highlights for the season will be a world premiere by Susan Stroman on January 28th, and Peter Martins’ Swan Lake in February. I highly recommend seeing Sara Mearns as Odette / Odile (White Swan / Black Swan), especially if you are a new dance-goer in search of a good Swan Lake after seeing the Black Swan film. The Martins production is very modern, and very accessible to contemporary audiences, and Mearns is a beautiful dancer who manages to excel at both roles. Her swan queen is very human, with great emotional depth. She has a way, like ABT’s Veronika Part, of making you feel like you’re inside her character’s world, going through everything right along with her. She’s not just a great ballerina, but a compelling actress, in other words. And her black swan is a thrill. Here’s what I wrote about her last year. I’m not sure yet which days she’ll dance, but casting should be announced very soon. All of the ballerinas will be good (and I’ll need to see Ashley Bouder’s this year!), but try hard not to miss Mearns.
My recommendations for this week are:
January 18 (tonight), opening night, early 7:30 curtain
It’s a mixed rep program including Walpurgisnacht Ballet, Duo Concertant, Valse-Fantaisie, and one of Balanchine’s most revered works, The Four Temperaments.
Thursday night, January 20th, 8 p.m.
Another night of mixed rep: Mozartiana, Concerto DSCH, and Cortege Hongrois. The special things about this evening are that it’s another in the excellent See the Music series, and Millepied is dancing Ratmansky’s DSCH (one of my favorites of Ratmansky’s). Plus, will be interesting to see if there’s any kind of crowd increase for Millepied now after all the fanfare. Also SLSG favorite Tyler Angle is debuting in Mozartiana.
Friday night, January 21st 8 p.m.
Sara Mearns will debut in Concerto DSCH. Also showing are Robbins’ well-loved Dances at a Gathering, and Walpurgisnacht again.
Saturday, January 22nd, all day.
It’s an all-day celebration of George Balanchine, in honor of his birthday. In addition to the regular matinee and evening performances (all Balanchine of course), there’s a movie at 10:30 a.m., a studio talk in the afternoon, and a performance by students at the School of American Ballet at 6 p.m. The movie, studio talk and performance by SAB students are all free but require tickets. Everything takes place in the Koch Theater at Lincoln Center. For more info on the Saturday events, click on the link below.
Saturday At The Ballet With George
On Saturday, January 22 NYCB will celebrate the birthday of its Co-Founder George Balanchine with a full day of performances and free events all taking place at the David H. Koch Theater.
Saturday At The Ballet With George will begin at 10:30 AM with a free screening of the renowned 1984 Dance in America documentary film Balanchine. The 2 PM matinee performance will offer an all-Balanchine program including Walpurgisnacht Ballet, Duo Concertant, The Four Temperaments and Cortège Hongrois.
Between the matinee and evening performances will be a free Studio Talk on the Promenade of the David H. Koch Theater with Company artists discussing the timelessness of George Balanchine and his work as well as a rare viewing of a School of American Ballet class taught onstage by Ballet Master in Chief Peter Martins. The day will conclude with live music on the Promenade before the 8 PM performance which will feature an all-Balanchine program of Mozartiana, Prodigal Son, and Stars and Stripes. A complete schedule of events follows.
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NEW YORK CITY BALLET – WINTER 2011 PERFORMANCES – Page 3
SCHEDULE: Saturday At The Ballet With George
January 22, 2011 at the David H. Koch Theater
10:30 AM Film Screening – 1984 Dance in America Documentary Balanchine (FREE)
2:00 PM Matinee Performance – All Balanchine Program
5:00 PM Studio Talk – Balanchine Now (FREE)
6:00 PM Onstage SAB Class Demonstration with Peter Martins (FREE)
7:00 PM Live Music on the Promenade of the DHKT (FREE with performance ticket)
8:00 PM Evening Performance – All Balanchine Program
The film screening, Studio Talk, and onstage class demonstration are free events but tickets are required. Tickets for the performances and free events can be obtained at the theater’s box office, at www.nycballet.com, and through Center Charge at 212-721-6500. (Please note: tickets for the free events ordered online or via Center Charge are subject to a handling fee. There is no handling fee when ordering a free event ticket in person at the David H. Koch Theater Box Office. Standard handling fees apply when purchasing performance tickets.)
For more information and a detailed schedule of events for Saturday At The Ballet With George visit www.nycballet.com/balanchine.
