Judging from the way that the paparazzi charged down the aisles toward the stage after the wedding last night, it's a good thing that the orchestra pit was between them and Veronika Part. It may soon become necessary to cut loose some 'gators in the pit whenever a performance by Veronika with Marcelo Gomes comes to a close in order to discourage the unruly mobs of paparazzi from trying to climb over the wall of the pit with their rapid fire flashes blazing. It was mayhem at The Met last night for the final performance of Sleeping Beauty, that's for sure.
Nobody turns Sleeping Beauty into a grownup's love story better than Veronika Part and Marcelo Gomes as Princess Aurora and Prince Desire. They take it beyond the fairy tale. Beyond the chick ballet. Beyond what Disney ever envisioned it could be. Probably even beyond what Petipa ever imagined.
All three of the acts last night were stunning, but the Vision Scene took the prize. For those who wait all season for the moments of sterling quality classical ballet combined with exquisite enchantment, these were those moments of ABT's 2013 Met Season. Veronika, Marcelo, and our beautiful Lilac Fairy, Stella Abrera, evinced the purity of classical form and the purpose of the story with clarity that was almost audible. We didn't just see Desire struggle with his decision at the crossroads of his life; we heard him speak of it in our minds. The Lilac Fairy's benevolent insistence that Desire declare his love and commitment to Aurora before allowing them to join together was conveyed with astonishingly beautiful port de bras and mime. Finally, when the vision of Aurora met the mortal Desire, we all thought we'd died and gone to Heaven.
Act I included an energetic entrance variation by Veronika. It was amazing to see those long legs manage the fast little unfolding pas de/saute de chat steps at the beginning and then later in Act I soar in the grand jetes with the front leg ronde de jambe. Veronika smartly played Aurora as jubilant and excited without cloying adolescent features; she was a genuine Aurora for any age group. Her four princes, Vitali Krauchenka, Thomas Forster, Gray Davis, and Daniel Mantei prepared her attitude balances and escorted her promenades with skilled confidence. Krauchenka's support in Veronika's pirouettes was and always has been superbly managed. Forster lifted her to a prolonged shoulder-sit with ease.
The Act III Wedding Celebration PdD was glorious. When Veronika threw herself into the pirouettes that preceded the fish dives, it was like watching a whooshing wave curling off the shores of Hawaii. Then Marcelo caught her around and beneath her waist like Duke Kahanamoku used to catch the epic Pipeline in Oahu. This was greatness – maybe even a folktale in the making.
The five fairies (Sincerity – Katherine Wiliams; Fervor – Kristi Boone; Charity – Gemma Bond; Joy – Christine Shevchenko; and Valor – Simone Messmer) were all lovely. This was Simone's final performance before joining San Francisco Ballet and she showed us many of the characteristics in her dancing that we will miss: strength, clarity, commitment, drama, good classical form, rapport with the audience.
Stella Abrera's dancing as the Lilac Fairy was ethereal if not spiritual in its beauty. Lightness, delicacy, strength and pure classicism – what a combination. She and Veronika are ABT's most exquisite classical ballerinas. Why the audience is continually denied the opportunity to see Stella in leading roles can only be attributed to the narrow-mindedness of the company's director.
Misty Copeland and Blaine Hoven were excellent as Princess Florine and The Bluebird. Blaine's diagonal of brise voles, entrechat sixes, and pirouettes were all exceptionally well executed. Misty was a joy to watch in this PdD – such sparkle – and she handled all of the technical demands with ease. However, knowing that she just came off of a long period from a leg bone injury, it was a little unsettling to see her sometimes put such force into a pique or releve that the reverberations could be seen in her body.
The final Pump Bump Award of the season, a stiletto of gold roses, is bestowed upon Veronika Part for the beauty and enchantment that she brought to Aurora.
4 responses to “ABT 7/6 Evening
Sleeping Beauty – Part & Gomes”
Seeing Veronika Part last night in Sleeping Beauty was a reminder that although ballet has a distinct vocabulary of steps as well as rules for their execution, along with specific principles such as turnout and line, ballet looks different on every body, especially when you enter the stratosphere of great ballerinas, to which Veronika belongs. No other ballerina moves as she does. No other ballerina has the precise physical proportions or the capability to split those long legs in the air so quickly and to such astonishing effect.
For me, one appealing aspect of her dancing is how exactly she adheres to the classical canon, executing steps with precision, never rushing her preparations (as in those pirouettes before the fish dives, of which you speak), never muddying her beginnings and endings. She is true to the ideal. At the same time, she moves through space like extra virgin olive oil, her upper body sinuous, her arms and legs lithe and supple. Would that every ballerina had Mariinsky training sculpted into their bodies.
Why is no one capturing these performances on DVD? Why doesn’t Google invent eyeglasses that would enable me to videotape the performance as I see it and then replay it whenever I want? What?! They’ve done that already? Will I be allowed to wear them into the Met, where no photos or videos are allowed? Exquisite, life-altering performances take place and they become part of one’s history but are all but lost to posterity.
Thanks to you, Haglund, we have a detailed record of these amazing performances to turn to when we need a booster shot of ballet to get us through the day.
Seeing Veronika Part last night in Sleeping Beauty was a reminder that although ballet has a distinct vocabulary of steps as well as rules for their execution, along with specific principles such as turnout and line, ballet looks different on every body, especially when you enter the stratosphere of great ballerinas, to which Veronika belongs. No other ballerina moves as she does. No other ballerina has the precise physical proportions or the capability to split those long legs in the air so quickly and to such astonishing effect.
For me, one appealing aspect of her dancing is how exactly she adheres to the classical canon, executing steps with precision, never rushing her preparations (as in those pirouettes before the fish dives, of which you speak), never muddying her beginnings and endings. She is true to the ideal. At the same time, she moves through space like extra virgin olive oil, her upper body sinuous, her arms and legs lithe and supple. Would that every ballerina had Mariinsky training sculpted into their bodies.
Why is no one capturing these performances on DVD? Why doesn’t Google invent eyeglasses that would enable me to videotape the performance as I see it and then replay it whenever I want? What?! They’ve done that already? Will I be allowed to wear them into the Met, where no photos or videos are allowed? Exquisite, life-altering performances take place and they become part of one’s history but are all but lost to posterity.
Thanks to you, Haglund, we have a detailed record of these amazing performances to turn to when we need a booster shot of ballet to get us through the day.
Yes, it was quite a night! ABT certainly went out with a bang. Veronika and Marcelo were absolute heaven!!
I’m going to miss all my evenings at the Met. I’m already having withdrawal pains. Despite the things we all complain about, ABT remains my favorite ballet company. The eight-week Met season went by much too fast for me.
Yes, it was quite a night! ABT certainly went out with a bang. Veronika and Marcelo were absolute heaven!!
I’m going to miss all my evenings at the Met. I’m already having withdrawal pains. Despite the things we all complain about, ABT remains my favorite ballet company. The eight-week Met season went by much too fast for me.