Boy, uninterrupted: Choreographer Alexei Ratmansky in new biography
alexei ratmansky, center, rehearses the sleeping beauty: from rosalie o’connor photo The Boy from Kyiv: Alexei Ratmansky’s Life in Ballet, Marina Harss’s biography of one of the world’s most active choreographers, is just exactly that: a beautifully written, close examination of the many ways in which the 55-year-old artist’s work and life are intertwined. Moreover, her ...
In Tahoe, for Dance Festival 1
Jul
26
2023
stephen hanna, photo: erin baiano “There will be bears in Tahoe,” Festival intern Summer Hatcher warned me — a dance writer who has never lived beyond a five-mile radius from a performing arts center. As we departed Reno Airport, she explained that I should wave arms at the creatures. Summer was navigating Interstate 80’s sweeping ...
REVIEW: Aaron Copland meets the 21st at New York City Ballet 1
Megan Fairchild, Roman Mejia, center. From left, Emilie Gerrity, Jonathan Fahoury, Daniel Applebaum, Isabella Lafreniere. photo: Erin Baiano There is so much that is invigorating and innovative about Copland Dance Episodes, Justin Peck‘s major new full-evening work for New York City Ballet in its world premiere on January 26. Yet it also connects with, and ...
REVIEW: Back to New York City Ballet — with sets and intermissions!
isabella lafreniere, jovani furlan christopher wheeldon’s DGV: danse à grande vitesse Scenery! Intermissions! One takes these for granted – or used to. But experiencing them as part of New York City Ballet‘s opening night marked another step toward normalcy, after the company’s fall repertory season consisted of intermissionless programs featuring ballets that require no time-consuming ...
Film review: ‘In Balanchine’s Classroom,’ a dance documentary
George Balanchine (1960s). Photo: Ernst Hass. As seen in In Balanchine’s Classroom. A film by Connie Hochman. A Zeitgeist Films release in association with Kino Lorber. Watching In Balanchine’s Classroom, the new dance documentary directed by Connie Hochman, you wait and hope for a movie about a significant, if rarefied, subject to add up to ...
Death of a dancer: Elyse Borne
Dec
21
2019
Elyse Borne, after a long battle with cancer, passed away December 16, 2019. After her career as a soloist with New York City Ballet, Ms. Borne further distinguished herself as one of the world’s foremost George Balanchine repetiteurs, and over a period of 20 years from 1996-2016 she staged, with permission of the George Balanchine ...
REVIEW: Sara Mearns’ deep dance-dig at the Pillow
Sara Mearns in Christopher Williams’ excerpt from “Daphnis & Chloé” Being present for the career arc of a singularly distinctive and memorable dancer is a wonderful privilege. And it’s been a privilege to observe the initial 15 years of Sara Mearns’ career on our dance stages. Primarily, she is a leading light of New York ...
REVIEW: ‘I Married An Angel’ at City Center’s Encores!
Sara Mearns, Mark EvansRodgers & Hart’s I Married an Angel Director-Choreographer Joshua Bergasse Over the past few seasons Sara Mearns has found a home at City Center for projects outside of (and sometimes very far removed from) her “day job” as one of New York City Ballet’s leading ballerinas. At Fall for Dance she has ...
On Robbins’s 100th, his biographers raise a glass
I’ll leave the kudos for Jerome Robbins on this auspicious day — his 100th birthday — to the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts now hosting an exhibit, Voice of My City: Jerome Robbins and New York; New York City Ballet with its planned Robbins repertory evening tonight (Afternoon of a Faun, Other ...
Death of a dancer: Peter Frame
Sep
16
2018
Former New York City Ballet principal dancer Peter Frame, a beloved teacher and coach, performs the duet from Balanchine’s AGON with Victor Castelli. Frame, at right, died August 30, 2018 — sadly, the day after the passing away of Paul Taylor. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Kurt Froman (@kurtfroman) ...