“Liebeslieder Walzer” and “Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 2”
New York City Ballet
Koch Theater
New York
February 16, 2010
by Kathleen O’Connell
copyright © 2009 by Kathleen O’Connell
Finally! After six weeks of back-to-back full-length story ballets (eleven weeks, if one counts “The Nutcracker”), New York City Ballet has returned to the foundation of its repertory: plotless — though hardly storyless — ballets by Balanchine and Robbins. The final two weeks of its Winter 2010 season opened with an all–Balanchine program featuring “Liebeslieder Walzer” and “Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 2.”
There are enough stories seething under the polite surface of “Liebeslieder’s” gracious drawing room to fill a fat Victorian novel, but Tuesday’s cast gave us little more than the Cliff Notes version. With the exception of Justin Peck in a role debut, this cast was the same as last year's. Jennie Somogyi has replaced Kyra Nichols in the role originated by Violette Verdy; Janie Taylor, partnered by Sébastien Marcovici, has replaced Miranda Weese in Jillana’s. Nikolaj Hübbe, who partnered Wendy Whelan in Melissa Hayden’s role, has been replaced by Jared Angle. Whelan has returned, as has Kistler (in Diana Adams’ role), partnered by Philip Neal.
On paper, the cast looks ideal: Somogyi—compelling in practically everything—has successfully assumed a number of Nichols’ roles. Taylor triumphed in “La Valse” and fiercely and authoritatively re-imagined Kay Mazzo's role in “Davidsbündlertänze.” Angle—one of the company’s strongest and most sensitive partners—was completely winning in the elegant ardor of his 2007 “Liebeslieder” performances. Kistler, Marcovici, Neal, and Whelan are old “Liebeslieder” hands. Yet, while the ballet received a less insipid performance than it did last year, it was still nowhere near so richly textured as it was in 2007.
Despite some ravishing dancing and moments of finely wrought detail, the ballet received a muted, half–whispered reading, especially in the first half, when the men dance in while gloves and the women in ball gowns and heeled slippers. The cast seemed at a loss to imbue their roles with more than momentary flashes of distinctiveness. This was especially puzzling in the case of Somogyi and Taylor, dancers so different in temperament and style that you’d expect electricity in the air just from their being on the same stage together.
“Liebeslieder” is too rich in possibilities for nothing to happen, and Tuesday’s performance had its delights. In “Am Donaustrande” Angle gently pushed Whelan’s shoulders from behind as if he were wafting her into the music on a swing; it seemed less a present moment than a tender recollection of early love. Marcovici’s serial flirtations, first with Somogyi then with Kistler, were done with a whiff of chilling calculation that made them feel more dangerous than mere ballroom gallantry. Somogyi used her pliant, expressive back to such beautiful effect in Karinska’s satin ball gown that one almost regretted her reappearance in tulle in the second half.
Peck’s role contains some of the ballet’s most iconic gestures—shielding his eyes from his lover’s gaze, as if he were Orpheus and she Eurydice, then carrying her prone in his arms as if she were indeed dead—and he tinged them with a sweet gravity. His performance in the first section was a bit cautious, as if he were afraid he’d knock the furniture over. He—and everyone else, for that matter—danced with more expressive freedom in the second section, when the women return on pointe and the men literally take their gloves off.
“Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 2” is both a dazzling ballet and an odd one. The roles for the first and second ballerinas are vibrant realizations of potent womanhood stuffed into the dry husk of a 19th century story ballet. The second section, set to the concerto’s andante, evokes both the vision scene in “Sleeping Beauty” and the lakeside scenes in “Swan Lake.” It’s lovely to look at, but it’s nonsense as theater. The long, triumphant first section has already established that a queen has arrived and taken possession of the realm, so what’s all this about her suddenly being unobtainable? There’s less of a story here than meets the eye.
Unobtainable or not, Ashley Bouder took possession of both the kingdom and the role. That the steps would be within her command was never in doubt, but she projected an unmannered authority that wasn’t evident when she made her debut in the lead a couple of seasons ago. She’s sometimes used rubato effects to wow the audience with her prowess, but on Tuesday night everything was done in service to the music and choreography. She had the means and the musicality to wrap every step in air, and she triumphed.
The second ballerina role is among Savannah Lowery’s best. Its challenging but straightforwardly classical steps showcase her speed, power, and verticality. In the dance–off with her two cavaliers (Sean Suozzi and Christian Tworzyanski) she hurled her lightning–flash legs like Jove’s own thunderbolts; it was a sight to see.
Jonathan Stafford complemented Bouder’s line beautifully, both when he supported her and when he danced by her side; the man knows how to present a ballerina even when he’s not in physical contact with her. Unfortunately, he seemed more like her Prime Minister than her consort: he executed his brief solos with a statesman’s sobriety rather than a cavalier’s élan—it was all steak, no sizzle.
The corps danced with enthusiasm, but could do with a dollop of authority, too. Ashley Laracey danced the demi-soloist role with her now-customary—and touching—ardor; it sometimes seems as if her heart is ready to burst from the beauty of it all. Amanda Hankes, in a role debut, danced opposite with her customary assured elegance, and both were lovely to see.
copyright © 2009 by Kathleen O’Connell
Photos by Paul Kolnick
Top: Justin Peck and Jennie Somogyi in “Liebeslieder Walzer”
Bottom: Jonathan Stafford and Ashley Bouder in “Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 2”
