Elegance, precision, and emotional nuance have been signatures of Johan Kobborg’s dancing since he began performing, first with the Royal Danish Ballet, and then with The Royal Ballet. He has long excelled in classical danseur noble roles, like Albrecht in Giselle, but is a sensitive interpreter of contemporary work, like Tim Rushton’s new version of […]
They’ve got ballet in their blood. Colleen Neary has been dancing since she was 8; her husband, Thordal Christensen, since he was 6. Today, the couple is on a mission: to bring ballet to the cultural masses of Los Angeles, a town not known to be pointe-shoe–friendly. Having founded Los Angeles Ballet in 2006, the […]
Retirement On April 18, Kumiko Tsuji’s farewell performance of Swan Lake brought the audience to its feet and Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre artistic director Terrence Orr to his knees. A flawless Odette, she was delicate but strong, fiercely protecting her captor while yearning for love and salvation. Tsuji’s supple body, articulate legs, and convincing mime […]
With a few majestic leaps Gillian Murphy, ideally cast as the chief huntress Sylvia, spans the vast Metropolitan Opera stage, heralding her arrival with a posse of nymphs who have sworn off love in pursuit of freedom—a kind of Greek mythology of women’s lib. Of course, after three acts of spectacular dancing and hair-trigger partnering, […]
Balanchine said “Ballet is woman,” but that opinion hasn’t deterred men from pursuing their passion for dance training. Dance programs at the preprofessional and university levels have ramped up their curricula in response to current expectations for greater male prowess. Male students are hungry for training that meets their needs, so what are some new […]
You know her when you see her. She’s the woman in the corps de ballet with the eye-catching artistry: the soft lyricism, the rich musicality, and the aura of a blossoming ballerina. That would be Nicole Graniero, an American Ballet Theatre dancer whose gracious stage persona, delicate Renaissance Madonna features, and formidably natural technique beckon […]
After Diana Vishneva and Marcelo Gomes’ balcony scene from Macmillan’s Romeo and Juliet, I wanted to go home. Enough beauty for one night. I wanted to savor what I had seen: the illusion of a true love, where two bodies surrender to each other. Vishneva, who usually sucks all the attention into her, yielded to […]
American Ballet Theatre Metropolitan Opera House, NYC. May 18–July 11, 2009 Reviewed by Lynn Garafola With two repertory programs, six full-length ballets, and wildly cheering crowds, the eight-week American Ballet Theatre season at the Metropolitan Opera was in many ways business as usual. However, with Nina Ananiashvili’s farewell performance, the presence of exciting newcomers, […]
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