Vail Round 3
I am about to take off for Vail… for my third time.
I was a wee one when I first came to Vail. 16 years old to be exact and studying at the Bolshoi Ballet Academy for a months time. I remember fondly watching Damian Woetzel in the “Stars Gala” dance Balanchine’s Stars and Stripes with Alexandra Ansanelli. It was a memorable summer.
A young Hallberg in training on the Ford Theatre stage circa 1998 (age 16)
Fast forward 8 years later and I made my return to Vail, now dancing in the “Stars Gala”. It was surreal… to be back as a professional and to be dancing in the program that I watched on the other side of the stage.
Fast forward 3 years after that and I am back… dancing with some great dancers.
Carla Korbes, ballerina with Pacific Northwest Ballet and Ashley Bouder, ballerina with New York City Ballet. The rep includes George Balanchine’’s Apollo and Black Swan Pas de Deux, respectively.
The divine Ms. Korbes (aka Terpsichore) fellow Wingerer.
Ms. Bouder in her powerful glory…
It is always great to come back to a gala more than once. And now with Damian holding the reigns tight, Im happy to return.
Week 4/Giselle
Erik Bruhn and Carla Fracci in Giselle (Photo: Martha Swope)
This is a week I’ve been looking forward to for a while.
Giselle is one of those ballets that everyone that dances it realizes how fulfilling it is (yes, a broad assumption). The story is something that you can so easily dive into, play around with and do it your own way artistically. Just having a few performances under my belt so far, I have already seen how this ballet/character can grow and become more and more nuanced and detailed.
This time around I get to dance with Maria Riccetto, a soloist with the company and someone that also made their debut in the title role with me earlier in the year. I also will finish the week off with Natalia Osipova. A new guest artist with the company from the Bolshoi, she is someone to watch… youtube or live, and see for yourself. She is exciting, alive, committed. She also speaks no english, well… ‘hello’… so we have been communicating through a translator and I’m thankful that dance is a silent art form… we just have to use our bodies communicate.
Should be a fun week.
Life ‘on the Dnieper’
This week has been a great discovery for us dancers at ABT. We have been working with Alexei Ratmansky for months on a new work called “On the Dnieper”, which premiered on June 1st. What was so great about working with him was being given the liberty to create something new. You can trust his ideas, so therefore you can allow yourself room to explore where the movement can go. I can tell you, from the first performance on June 1 to the second show, it felt MUCH more ‘in my body’. It always amazes me how many performances you have to go through before a role becomes your own. Or how you can finally play with the character after you get your initial nerves out and gather your bearings. Which is why I cannot imagine being on Broadway, doing some 400+ performances of the same show. Talk about liberties!
On one of my free nights, I caught a performance of Hair the musical. What an unbelievable cast! From the leads, to the ‘tribe’, as they call them, the singing was so AMAZING! It totally inspired me to ‘be free’ and ‘LET THE SUNSHINE IN’! They are nominated for 8 Tony awards, deservedly so. Good luck Hair!
Corsaire/Dnieper
I had such a great time with Corsaire this season. This is a ballet I have done quite often, so know it well…
Not to say that it is any easier. The variations are HEAVY and huge. And take a toll on the body. But given the story and how much liberty you can have with it, my partners (Paloma Herrera and Gillian Murphy) and I had a lot of fun.
On to the premiere of Alexei Ratmansky’s ballet “On the Dnieper” (pronounced N-eiper). Its a narrative work, a love four some, or lack there of. The rehearsal process has been really great with him. He is pushing the dancers to their unknown limits, and its great to be apart of it. I play ‘the fiance’, who is rejected and left for another man by his bride to be… Always the good guy, I think its the blonde hair. What do you think?
Met Season 2009
In an effort to keep everyone up to date on the season we call MET ‘09, I will be posting updates here and there on what has been happening in the theatre.
May 18- Not to be confused with my birthday! But also our gala opening. Attended by many, the highlight had to have been the attendance of First Lady Michelle Obama. I was one of the lucky few who got to meet and have a photo op with her. IF I get my hands on a photo, I will post. Nevertheless, it was thrilling to me her (taller than me in heels!) and great birthday present.
The show was sprinkled with highlights of the season… Le Corsaire with Dvorovenko and Corella and myself, Gomes and Vishneva in Romeo and Juliet Balcony Pas De Deux etc.
The dinner was its usual chaos. Although I sat next to Rachel Roy and Veronica Webb, designer and model respectively.
And on with the season… Tonight Theme and Variations, tomorrow Tchi Pas De Deux, both Balanchine jewels.
18/29
Dearest Readers,
American Ballet Theatre has now introduced a club for all us younguns.
I know that going to the ballet for $100 is NOT an option, especially in this day and age. So go for only $30. And score orchestra seats in the mean time.
18/29 = 18-29 years old = cheap tickets = amazing ballets at the Metropolitan Opera House
Click the link to further the inquiry or e mail me with more questions…
On my way… home
Apart from the usual ‘On my way to work’ section I am now ‘On my way… home’.
After 6 weeks of traveling…
London
Moscow
Novosibirsk
Yekaterinburg
Cheliabinsk
Ufa
Kiev
Odessa
Paris
I am finally arriving to the walls I call home on a little island named Manhattan.
Loss of Camera-One culture to the next
Photo courtesy of spirit-of-paris.com
I lost my camera in Moscow. So don’t have any documentation of Kiev and Odessa.
Now in rainy Paris for two weeks working with Jerome Bel. Catching up on my Paris Opera performances too.
Maybe that was my sign to get a new camera.
Renaissance Man
From dancer to writer to photographer. In a matter of a year, Matthew Murphy has not only taken on endless forms of creative energy but has officially defined himself as a Renaissance Man. For those who need a refresher course on that meaning click here. Matt’s most recent accomplishment has been in the form of photography…
Do you know this small little publication called the New York Times? Well, meet the newest addition to the freelance photographer field of said publication.
This is huge.
And what is even more huge is the fact that his first picture ran on the cover of the arts section. A mix between reflection and mirrored movement, he captured a gorgeous one. But I’ll stop analyzing and let you see for yourself.
Here is a second shot, expanding his repetoire beyond dance.
Congratulations Matt. Well deserved
Your fans here at the Winger offices a couldn’t be more proud.
