“Jewels”
New York City Ballet
David H. Koch Theater
New York, NY
February 27, 2010 (matinee and evening)
by Leigh Witchel
copyright © 2010 by Leigh Witchel
“Jewels” has long passed from being a treasure unique to New York City Ballet’s repertory, but the company closed its season with a weekend of performances that reasserted NYCB’s claim to the setting. There was solid work from the principals to the orchestra as well as several debuts.
Jennie Somogyi was scheduled to make her debut in Violette Verdy’s role in “Emeralds” but because of injury, Abi Stafford danced all the performances. Stafford performed gently, with elegant port de bras and delicate detail. In the afternoon, her solo seemed to intimate the girlish delight of a debutante. She seemed to mature from afternoon to evening, giving a more animated and womanly reading.
Her counterpart at the matinee in Mimi Paul’s role was Jenifer Ringer. She and Stafford are complementary; they have a similar mezzo emotional range and elegant upper body, but age has given Ringer color and theatrical weight.
Sara Mearns paired oddly with Stafford in the evening and almost overpowered her own solo: when she laid her face in her hands close to the end, she was burning with fantasy. She attacks “Emeralds” and “Diamonds” almost the same way: there’s no moderation, but she’s heady and fascinating. Her duet with Jonathan Stafford was filled with sad ether, and she may link “Emeralds” and “Diamonds” from what she’s hearing: the opening call on the woodwinds in the “Diamonds” pas de deux brings the final “Death of Melisande” section in “Emeralds” to mind. Stafford partnered Mearns in both “Emeralds” and “Diamonds.” Though he was about as good in “Diamonds” as he is able, he was more convincing in “Emeralds” as a discreet consort than as a romantic lead.
Sébastien Marcovici made his debut in the afternoon as the cavalier partnering Abi Stafford. It could have used work, from the predatory tilt of his neck at the outset to some rough moments in his solo that opened the penultimate group finale. In the solo in the evening, Jared Angle was light and fleet, and his partnering of Stafford was assured.
Sean Suozzi has to fight for white tights roles, such as the pas de trois. His progress has accelerated the past few seasons: story ballets and contemporary works are entering the repertory and he’s valuable in both because of his presence and intelligence. Robert Fairchild took the same role in the evening in a full-hearted performance more recalling the prom king than a young prince. It contrasted with Suozzi’s darker tones.
Erica Pereira (in her debut) and Ana Sophia Scheller danced the accompanying roles both times. Like Stafford, “Emeralds” gives Pereira useful weight. Scheller could do her part in her sleep. Will the next few seasons be her time to advance?
Often the overlooked gem in the setting, “Emeralds” stood out as the most cogent overall, and it may have been the orchestra’s taut pacing that put it over the top. Peter Harvey’s 2004 redesign, with its finger-painted washes of green, hinted at layers like the layers of time suggested in the dance.
“Rubies” had several debuts, including Sterling Hyltin and Janie Taylor in the leads and Ellen Bar as the second ballerina. Gonzalo Garcia also made his New York debut with Hyltin at the matinee.
Hyltin’s debut was more orthodox but less fully sketched. She was sportive as she pranced about and has a sweet but lightly sassy ingénue quality. Hyltin and Garcia don’t look fully comfortable with one another, but both danced their best in the final movement, which looked the best rehearsed. Let’s see what happens with time and repetition.
Janie Taylor is the opposite of Hyltin; an amalgam of risks – good and bad – that makes her a riveting, polarizing dancer. For the entire season, she’s been a ballerina on the verge, pushing everything seemingly past what she has the capacity to pull off. The results could be bizarre, and yet somehow she seemed to control it. In “The Sleeping Beauty” during Taylor’s Lilac Fairy variation, she did an inside turn that seemed to collapse around her ankle from lack of strength. Then she did it two times again – the exact same way. This time in “Rubies,” she lost her spot and blew her last series of piqué turns. Still, she’s compulsively interesting.
Her “Rubies” was filled with spidery lines and wicked mischief. This pallid creature whacking her leg to her face was no cheerleader. Swaying in Benjamin Millepied’s arms during the pas de deux, Taylor’s aroused expression didn’t look like a metaphor for sex – it looked like the actuality. Yet Millepied was following in Damien Woetzel’s footsteps and doing it all in good loose fun. It looked as if he didn’t know who he was dealing with in this Most Dangerous Game. He was dancing a soft-shoe as Taylor was moving in for the kill: Gene Kelly meets Dracula’s Daughter. And yet, somehow he managed to handle her.
In the solo role at the matinee, Ellen Bar had presence and glamour that made her a good choice for the part despite sluggish turns. Savannah Lowery danced in the evening with her usual attack but also more security. The second ballerina’s encounter with the four men in the corps is one of the ballet’s most pungent moments. Bar is flexible but her body slightly resisted the mens’ repositioning. Lowery dealt with their manipulations with equanimity – which kept it from looking like near-rape.
“Diamonds” had no debuts but it had good solid performances from the corps and Mearns’ remarkable performance in the afternoon. In the evening Wendy Whelan relied on courage and theatrical intelligence to get through the lead. It was a full, rich performance, but not a natural one. She’s not a romantic ballerina and the role is loaded with arabesques and turns, which gave her trouble. Philip Neal also has the benefit of experience to add depth to his performance, and the same need to camouflage declining technique. For both Whelan and Neal the cracks are not too great, but they’re there, particularly in the scherzo.
If Mearns’ technique isn’t a perfectly polished gem yet, it doesn’t matter right now. She gets the part totally and gave all her heart to it. Her full throttle attack that didn’t mesh with the rest of the “Emeralds” cast focused “Diamonds.” The raw, impassioned performance seemed to emanate from her upper back and her sense of fantasy suffused the role from moment to moment as she took Jonathan Stafford’s hand or refused it.
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copyright © 2010 by Leigh Witchel
Photos by Paul Kolnik
First: Abi Stafford and Jared Angle in “Emeralds”
Second: Sterling Hyltin and Gonzalo Garcia in “Rubies”
Third: Janie Taylor and Benjamin Millepied in “Rubies”
Fourth: Sara Mearns and Jonathan Stafford in “Diamonds”
