Archive for January, 2008
January 29, 2008 at 4:41 am · Filed under dance, tour, florida, joffrey ballet, LAUREN
Joffrey recently toured to Florida January 15th thru the 22nd with a “Cool Vibrations” program. We traveled to West Palm Beach, Naples, and Sarasota with one performance in each venue. The program consisted of Twyla Tharp’s Deuce Coupe, Donald Byrd’s Motown Suite and Laura Dean’s Sometimes it Snows in April. It’s a pretty upbeat mix of repertoire with music of the Beach Boys, Motown classics, and Prince. It was a special treat for the company to escape the frigid and snowy conditions in Chicago, but the overwhelming response from the Florida audiences was especially rewarding. We returned to Chicago after tour to prepare for our upcoming winter season at the Auditorium Theater. We will perform Anthony Tudor’s Dark Elegies, Lilac Garden and Offenbach in the Underworld to celebrate the Tudor Centennial.
Maia Wilkins and Michael Levine in Motown Suite (Above and below)
Mauro Villaneuva in his solo in Motown Suite.
Dancer Calvin Kitten observes from the wings during Motown Suite.
Thomas Nicholas and Jennifer Goodman during their pas de deux in Motown Suite.
Sometimes it Snows in April. (above and below)
Lido Beach Resort in Sarasota, FL.
Recent Posts by lauren
January 28, 2008 at 8:57 pm · Filed under dance, 890 broadway, MATTHEW
After a brutally long absence, Dancer Trading Cards are back! Here we have the beautiful and talented Stella Abrera! More coming soon. Collect them all, and enjoy the bubble gum.
Favorite New York Location: My Apartment (With husband, and ABT Soloist, Sascha Radetsky)
Favorite Restaurant: Balthazar for breakfast. Landmarc for drinks/late dinner!
If you could be on place in the world right now, where would it be? Our mountain cabin.
Performance that changed your life: Black Tuesday by Paul Taylor
Favorite Band: Big Brother and the Holding Company
Biggest Guilty Pleasure Movie: Singing In The Rain
Favorite Book: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Favorite Comfort Food: My mom’s chicken noodle soup.
Childhood Idol: Cynthia Harvey
Favorite Role to Dance: “Stomper” in In The Upper Room
Who would you want to play you in a movie? A hybrid of Audrey Hepburn and Cate Blanchett if she looks like Lucy
Liu
Favorite Artist: Janis Joplin
Favorite Historical Era: The times of King Henry the VIII and Elizabeth—tied with the
sixties
If You Weren’t a Dancer, what would you be? A Chef
Where do you see yourself in 20 years? With my loving husband and happy, healthy children in a secluded,
ecologically-sensitive dream house in the woods.
Recent Posts by matthew
January 28, 2008 at 2:49 pm · Filed under backstage, ballet, dance, injuries, choreographers, japan, EVAN MCKIE, the stuttgart Ballet, pina bausch, national ballet of canada, wingers, website, dancebloggers, opera house, opera houses, choreographer, issues, dacners, stuttgart ballet, back injury, choreography, bolshoi ballet, suttgart ballet, ballerina, marcia haydee, web, swan lake, injury, stuttgart, paris opera ballet, chirstopher wheeldon, john cranko, reid anderson, marcela goicoechea, luis ortigoza, balet de santiago, patrcio melo, debut, american balet theatre, opening night
( …in the world of Geraldine Georges. more at www.geraldinegeorges.be )
!
It’s been awhile!… I suppose it’s high time that I share a few minutes with the ever-popular Winger family!
Though I have become more of a ‘’distant guest contributor'’ here (not my words) due to an increasingly heavy workload, I still check in from time 2 time to see what has been going down. I have been able to meet a few other contributors in 2007 and especially enjoyed catching up with David H. after a decade, seeing Patricio dance with Luis and Marcela from South America and first meeting and then sharing jet-setting tips with Christopher in a german Christmas market only to realize who it actually was a day later!!!! I also want to congratulate Kristin on being an absolute role-model this past year while making difficult life choices. I wish you, Kristin, happiness in your new position at NYCB and am glad you still manage to make time for this site. There doesn’t seem to be any other cyber-place with such a variety of different artistic voices!
I was asked recently what some of my highs and lows of 2007 were…I thought it might be a good way to discuss what’s been going on with me since I last wrote.
Aside from the little problems that can arise in a world filled with blood, sweat and tears, I found myself confronted with some more threatening issues in 2007. I became sort of plagued by a variety of significant injuries that prevented me from doing things that I REALLY wanted to be a part of; like touring to Korea again with Sue Jin Kang, creating a new role in a Christian Spuck ballet, and just generally working on improving my abilities as a dancer. This is when I was forced to realize that ‘lows’ can turn into ‘highs’ if you come at problems from the right angle. Every dancer goes through a huge injury at some point and having the advice of friends and accomplished dancers like Bridget Breiner and Robert Tewsley to guide me through was invaluable. I launched into therapy that taught me new things about my body and I learned about the power of breathing among other things. I decided to have a GREAT time and so I spent days visiting friends from Berlin to Paris. I was happy to see wonderful art and theatre in both places and meet exciting new people. One night after seeing an ABT(on tour) show at the Theatre du Chatelet I found myself on the Avenue de L’Opera. I stood staring at the beautiful Opera Garnier where I had JUST danced one month before. Now I was an invalid dancer shivering outside in the rain wondering if I’d ever be onstage again. A friend called me and invited me to hear him DJ at Le ParisParis which is also on the Avenue de L’Opera so i turned my back on the Garnier and swore to myself that I would forget the stage if just for that night and have a good time. I did but it was difficult to remove my thoughts from the theatre. During the following months I started to let go a bit and noticed an immense improvement in my condition (two ruptured and herniated discs in my lower back). The time soon came to come back to work and I was ready to take on new challenges and more mentally/spiritually prepared to do so than I was before I left for therapy.
Because things move so quick here (the company has had about 70 shows since I penned my last post even…), I was back onstage within a 2 week time period. Being there this time was like a new experience though. I enjoyed myself more than ever because I could feel that through letting go of the ’silly stresses’ of dancing, I had matured as an artist…if even just a tiny bit. 
I won’t bore with other small details that followed this event but I will mention one thing that happened right around that time that I consider to be a highlight of my year: I was cast as Prince Siegfried in Swan Lake!
I was going to dance my first principal dancer role with a great big company AND my partner would be doing it for the fist time aswell! What happened next was a combination of greatness and misfortune…
My Odette/Odile, Linda and I rehearsed and rehearsed. The company and staff were so behind us and I felt incredible chemistry with my partner. We were finally ready to dance our first show! We stepped onstage together and with adrenaline flowing heavily, we delivered to a hungry audience that was eager to witness our virgin attempt of the Tchaikovsky classic. Things went well and the excitement increased as we completed the 3rd act where the sorcerer’s evil swan daughter deceives the Prince and tricks him into marriage. It was time to ‘fall into’ the beauty of the 4th and final act that has a tragic love pas de deux that is exclusive to the Cranko version. We danced together for what was to be the Swan and the Prince’s final dance before she is turned back into a swan creature indefinitely and the Prince drowns trying to save her. I could feel her breath on my neck and the moment was magic when suddenly there was a funny sounding click and I realized that my partner’s shoulder had come dislocated in one of those backwards port de bras movements that distinguished the swan from all other classical roles. We exited the stage and she courageously held-in screams as the orchestra played on. Her shoulder wouldn’t pop back in and it was a devastating sight. I ran back onto stage and somehow managed to improvise with the corps de ballet of swan girls as if I was looking for the swan queen who I had lost somehow. 5 whole minutes played out as I performed the ballet til the end while wishing I could somehow help my beautiful partner who was by now being taken to the hospital.
Thankfully no lasting damage was done to Linda’s body but mentally it was difficult for everybody invloved to have been a part of such a beautiful process that was abrubtly cut short. The newspapers carried the story in their headlines and there was an influx of well-wishing notes. Linda still needed time to recover so I was scheduled to dance with Anna, another of my frequent partners. I was sad to see Linda watch as I rehearsed with another soloist just a day later but the show HAD to go on. Luckily Anna and I have chemistry that matches the intensity of Linda and mine together. This is rare (the two ladies share the same birthday too) but I was happy to be dancing with her and glad to not have to try and manufacture any feelings that should come naturally. Our show went over well and I felt the confidence that only a second show can bring. My ballerina told me she had never had so much fun and I believed her.
Since that time the direction was kind enough to give Linda a chance to redeem herself in the role and we danced the ballet, in it’s entirety, on a Christmas tour of Spain. Due to the incedible emotional journey that the ballet inspired for me, I’d definitely put Swan Lake at the top of my personal 2007 ‘crucial moments’ list.
4th Act embrace with Anna Osadcenko in ‘Swan Lake’ with the Stuttgart Ballet. Galina Mezentseva as Odette.
As Stuttgart’s autumn season brought scattered flurries to the Schlossgarten outside the theatre, indoors there was a blizzard of different ballets being performed. ‘The CRANKO festival’ was underway. Infact it was all planned far in advance to celebrate the company’s founder. We all danced a long list of roles that Cranko had created for his star-personalities of the time and many of them came back to help us get into each individual role. I danced Lenski in Onegin and special parts in ‘Brouillards’, ‘Jeu de Cartes’ , ‘Holberg Pas de Deux’ and ‘Initials’. Infact, I just debuted over this past weekend for the final two shows of ‘Initials’ in the hauntingly beautiful pas de deux created for Marcia Haydee and Heinz Claus from the 3rd movement. ‘Initials’ is one of those rare ballet’s that demands a large company fueled by a sense of camaraderie. Four principals represent four seasons and the music by Brahms is so powerful and melodic that it is hard for me to imagine it without steps attached. The choreography is difficult and there are alot of leading roles so that everyone has their own personal responsability to the ballet. We were all in it together and every single person felt like an important ingredient that was required to bring this ballet to fruition. The Cranko festival was a ‘high’ for me because it afforded me with the chance to dance roles that I loved while being a part of a 3 month long seminar-like expereince where I was able to focus solely on what made Cranko, the choreographer tick. I saw footage that I had never seen before, saw roles that had been lost in ballet history and celebrated (night after night) the ballets and steps that made the choreographer so famous. There were gala events where guests were invited to come dance all of the most popular Cranko roles. How lucky for them to be able to dance such roles on the stage where they were first received and how lucky for us, here, to be able to see how other artists interpret the roles that we know so well. (Alina Cojucaru as ‘Tatiana’ from ‘’Onegin'’ was one of my favourites.) I also thouroghly enjoyed getting to know Polina Semionova while dancing ‘Lenski’ with her ‘Tatiana’ in a special gala performance of ‘’Onegin'’.
1st time Siegfried in ‘’Swan Lake'’. Flirting with Katja Wünsche’s ‘Olga’ in ‘’Onegin'’
I’ll leave it at that for now as the new year is well underway now and I want to go out and accomplish brand-new things to reflect on at a later date. Altogether, I feel good about celebrating the ups and downs that my career as a ballet dancer brought me in 2007 and I want to make sure to thank the people who have celebrated WITH me! Whether it’s european balletomanes, my family and colleagues, or original Stuttgart Ballet members (antiques) who encouraged me to keep writing here at the WINGER (.. ..) I have recently been getting alot of attention in Japan aswell and am frankly quite baffled by it as I have only ever done ONE show there!..BUT I am always thrilled to receive the notes and extremely creative gifts from my friends in and around Tokyo. I don’t know what I did to deserve you but I am thankful and proud to have such a dance-educated group be interested in me! Thank you.
Let’s see what’s in store for ‘08. I promise to do my ballet-best 
!………
-Ev
Photos: The Stuttgart Ballet. (I am sorry I only have the few from recent while. The truth is I don’t have that many at my disposal!)
Artwork: a gift from the amazing Geraldine Georges
www.geraldinegeorges.be
Recent Posts by Evan McKie
January 28, 2008 at 4:14 am · Filed under SLOAN, dance, hair, life
What is it about dancers retiring and then cutting their hair off?
I don’t know, but I felt that it was time for a bit of a change - beyond whatever odd color combinations I could come up with - so I ended up following that common pattern, and cut it all (most of it at least) off.
I think my stylist was more traumatized than I was. I thought it would feel weird or drastic, but for the most part I don’t notice it unless it’s when I’m washing my hair.
No threat of buns or french twists in the near future!
Recent Posts by kristin sloan
January 28, 2008 at 4:05 am · Filed under SLOAN, dance, california, theater, orange county, OCPAC
While I was in LA last weekend, we went out to the Orange County Performing Arts Center for dinner and a mini-tour of their facilities.
I was out of commission the last few times NYC Ballet visited OCPAC, so my only frame of reference was David’s photos and stories from when ABT was there.
The entrance to the original space is very striking, but it was really interesting to see the relatively new Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall. It’s beautifully light and airy, and filled with lots of blonde wood and walls of windows. The larger space reminded me a lot of the Allen Room at Jazz at Lincoln Center (with a few tiers of shallow seating behind and above the musicians.) We got to see this space empty, and then came back after dinner for a few songs from the evenings performance with The Crusaders.
An incredible image of Segerstrom Concert Hall ©Damian Dora.
Visit the Artec site for more photos.A smaller space there (I’m assuming it must have been the Samuell Theater) is especially interesting to me, because the size and set up is much like Irving Plaza or Bowery Ballroom. Just like those spaces, popular indie bands play there (
The Walkmen will be there at the end of February), but in this case, the space is right in the middle of a swanky cluster of theaters and unique performers. I thought that was really great.
Out on the plaza area, they currently have a beautifully striking Richard Serra sculpture. Definitely a fun detour!
Recent Posts by kristin sloan
January 28, 2008 at 2:18 am · Filed under dance, writing, school, TAYLOR, communications
As of this week, I officially graduated from college! I have my BA in Communication Arts from Marymount Manhattan College…and since I’m only 19 it’s a little scary to be facing this major turning point in my life!
It’s been a LOT of work trying to continue a dance career while finishing school in 2 ½ years, but I have to say that I’m really glad I stuck it out, because now I have two career paths to follow, both of which I love!
Before I write about some highlights of the last two years, here’s a quick update of what’s been going on lately and what’s coming up soon:
-I did a workshop with Rebecca Kelly Ballet, a contemporary company here in the city. One weekend I got to understudy the company for a small showcase they were doing, which was really great but hard! Learning choreography in the back of a studio while trying to stay out of the way of the company dancers flying by is really the art of the apprentice…haha.
The next week she taught a whole series of work from her repertoire. It was lots of quick learning and contemporary movements, some of which were rather foreign at first to my ballet based body. They have an interesting approach where feeling and expressing the movement is emphasized. She spoke a lot about getting rid of the “student” image and dancing more like a “professional,” which is definitely what I’m working on at this point in my dancing. It was such a great experience!
-In terms of my writing, a lot is going on. I started my internship at The New Yorker, which is great. You can read more about that on my other blog. And I was asked to take over the studio newsletter at my former studio, Ballet Academy East. On top of working on that, I got a new article assignment from Dancer Magazine, and my piece in movmnt magazine comes out in the next few weeks! Keep a look out for both of those articles, and see some recent reviews I wrote on ExploreDance.com
Moving on…
TOP 10 MOMENTS FROM MY 2 ½ YEARS IN COLLEGE AND DANCING
(in chronological order)
1. Moving to my dream city
2. Getting an internship at Pointe Magazine & seeing my first real (short) article printed
3. Dancing a soloist role in Balanchine’s Raymonda Variations with BAE
4. Working with big names in dance at BAE
5. Meeting the best teacher in the world
6. Finding the guts and opportunity to interview important people
7. Cashing my first major paycheck for performing with a ballet company
8. Having my website take off and getting writing opportunities from it
9. Starting my internship at The New Yorker
10. Realizing that all the hard work paid off as I graduate and move forward with both careers
To anyone who is torn between pursuing dance or falling back on college - I say YOU CAN HAVE IT ALL
Last but not least, today we had another blogger meetup like the one at Cedar Lake a few weeks ago…this time it was at NYCB’s matinee performance, which was amazing by the way! I’m reviewing it for ExploreDance. It was nice to see all the other bloggers again!
Recent Posts by taylor gordon
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