3 posts tagged “new york state theater”
So far the weekend has been going well and it's nice to know that there still is an extra day off. I wish I could be more reflective about the holiday, but, at this point, I am most sincerely grateful to have the opportunity to sleep a few hours more and relax a bit.
Yesterday we went to a cat show, which was small but sweet (I guess I had gotten used to the big one at Madison Square Garden). The demographics of cat shows frequently boil down to big boned women (usually in bulky cat sweaters or sweatshirts), developmentally challenged adults, and children (not sure what that says about me). This event also featured a healthy smattering of enthusiastic bunheads of all ages (probably because the venue was beneath the Pacific Northwest Ballet School). Because it was a relatively small affair, it did give one a chance to get to know the competitors both offstage and on.
They also vigorously promoted a local no-kill shelter, which is also a good thing. There were a few tempting cats up for adoption, but the Significant Other and I had to regretfully pass on cat parenthood yet again. Will we ever have the "right" apartment or situation, I wonder. Friends continue to nag me about it and the topic has occupied more than its due share of therapy sessions.
We eventually made our way downtown and, after some fretful wavering, ended up in the International District, where we had a soothing and pretty good Chinese meal. Did some shopping here and returned home to pick up a yet another jigsaw puzzle in neighborhood store. I don't know what to make of this current addiction. It's been helpful for the S.O. (who has been suffering from back troubles) to have something to do during his bouts of sleeplessness and discomfort, but my own mania is less easy to understand. I was so into it last night, I sat up through the entire episode of Saturday Night Live (playing in the background), something I haven't done in a long, long time (and the show, in spite of whatever positive impact it may or may not have had on the presidential election, still sucks). The one we're working on now is pretty difficult, though we seem to be getting through it fairly quickly.
Today it was sunny out and a bit warmer. Reluctantly we went downtown again (after ruling out a trip to Tacoma -- it seemed too late and too long a bus ride by the time we were ready to set out). I stopped in at Macy's and bought a couple of pairs of pants at bargain prizes. We wandered around the (very crowded) Pike Place Market for a little while, stopping for lunch at the Three Girls Bakery (which somehow always epitomizes for me the best of Seattle). Took a longish walk back home and stopped in for (what else?) coffee and conversation about some promising future plans.
Not originally in the short term plans, but more improvised, (spurred on by sale fares), we managed unexpectely to find a time to squeeze in a quick trip back to NYC (he gets to stay a bit longer). I haven't told them at work yet, but it shouldn't be a problem. I'm excited to catch a teeny bit of the NYCB winter season, which I was beginning to fear I'd have to forgo entirely. The rep isn't a dream (or, rather, the repetition of the same program over the few days I'm there), but it's better than nothing. I also am very much looking forward to the upcoming Jewels at PNB. The lecture demonstration was as good as I hoped it will be; I'll write about it separately, if I don't get too lazy again.
Well, I am glad that I made the effort, for, on the whole, it turned out to be a pleasant evening. Had a relaxing and restorative meal at the old school Flame diner (cup of chicken orzo soup and a turbo omelet for me, in case you're interested). We stopped in at Avery Fisher Hall and picked up some nice seats for the just added January Barbara Cook concert with a gift certificate.
Stepped into the crowded lobby of the State Theater and eventually made our way inside. Paused for a while on the 2nd Ring to gawk at the people on the promenade for any celebrity sightings or fashion disasters (more of the latter, I'd say). Then headed up to the cheap seats, which turned out not to be so bad, considering I'd only remembered to buy them late last week. It felt good to be back "home," and all my jadedness became transformed into a sense of privilege to be there.
The show started a bit late as the moneyed nobodies took there time getting to their seats. First up, was excerpts from the NYCB production of The Sleeping Beauty--Balanchine's version of the Garland Dance (after Petipa) and the Rose Adagio. Megan Fairchild was Aurora and did a good enough job. But I always feel underwhelmed by the Rose Adagio; it's so antithetical to Balanchine's conception of the ballerina. The only part of this production I really care for is the Vision Scene, which might have been more fitting for this occasion (I would have preferred "romantic" rather than "imperial" as a theme, any day). Next Ellen Bar and Sean Suozzi (both good to see on any occasion) introduced a segment from the Opus Jazz film project on which they have been working. I very much like one of the taglines on their site, "a new generation pays tribute to the artists that inspired them." Good for them. The filmed pas de deux from Robbins's NY Export: Opus Jazz (with Craig Hall and Rachel Rutherford) was followed after a weird transition by the very much live Wendy Whelan and Albert Evans in the pas de deux from Christopher Wheeldon's Liturgy. Enough said. They were fabulous, of course. The Wheeldon is a very focused piece, yet it doesn't completely sustain its interest for me all the way through. The first half of the program concluded with the finale from Western Symphony. Maria Kowroski continues to confirm that this is indeed her moment.
The second half, predictably, fizzled somewhat. It was all-Glinka. Conductor Fayçal Karoui very energetically led the orchestra in the overture to Russlan and Ludmilla while an image of Kirstein was projected on the onstage screen. This was followed by the inevitable letdown, the world premiere of Martins's Grazioso. Even if it was intended just as a pièce d'occasion (a concept he doesn't seem to embrace), it was a pretty poor showpiece. It showed off the men a bit, but it gave Ashley Bouder very little to do. Italo-Russo by way of Bournonville? I think I may have given it more thought right there than Martins appeared to have done in putting it together. Talk about phoning it in. The evening ended with a reprise of a rather clumsy attempt at doing a NYCB version of the Paris Opera Ballet's grand défilé, recycled from another occasion.
A fairly quick and painless subway ride back home just in time to catch the final results of DWTS. Jennie and Derek, you wuz robbed!
My nose is a bit runny today, but I'm breathing clearer. Happy Thanksgiving!
