Interludes

THE HANGOVER REPORT – City Ballet brilliantly commences its landmark 75th anniversary season with a weeklong run of George Balanchine’s JEWELS

• By drediman
• September 27, 2023
• No Comments

Last week, New York City Ballet brilliantly commenced its landmark 75th anniversary season by programming a weeklong run of George Balanchine’s incomparable Jewels (entitled The Foundation, City Ballet’s fall season is comprised completely of Balanchine works). Made up of distinct ballets that draw inspiration from three precious gemstones — “Emeralds”, “Rubies”, and “Diamonds” — the plotless evening length work highlights a trio of classical ballet styles, particularly as embodied respectively by the ethereal classicism of Paris Opera Ballet, the rapid-fire neoclassicism of City Ballet, and the Russian grandeur of the Bolshoi Ballet. Although each is regularly performed individually (particularly “Rubies” and “Diamonds”), seen together a certain alchemy occurs, collectively adding up to more than simply the sum of the individual ballets.

On opening night on last Tuesday, “Emeralds” saw the excellent debuts of Indiana Woodward and Tyler Angle in the ballet’s two primary roles. Woodward in particular seemed attuned to the refined, unaffected intent of the piece, dancing with unadorned elegance and thoughtfulness throughout. Angle was also very good, dancing with more energy than I’ve seen in a long time and proving a reliable partner to Woodward. Emily Gerrity, however, seemed unsteady on opening night, but fortunately found her grounding when I saw her again on Saturday afternoon (Woodward remained enchanting). Partnering Gerrity was Adrian Danchig-Waring, whose cool demeanor and performance fit the ballet like a glove.

Then there’s the showstopping “Rubies”. Although the opening night cast was a mixed bag, Mira Nadon stole the show with her ravishing, stylistically varied performance. As the Tall Girl, she brought a seductive attitude and showy bravado that brought the house down. In the other principal roles, Megan Fairchild and Anthony Huxley were very good, even if Fairchild’s over-eager playfulness distracted somewhat rather than captivated. The subsequent cast I saw was excellent. Tiler Peck and Roman Mejia led the way, bringing power, chemistry, as well as a combustible combination of control and abandon that electrified. Joining them was Emily Kikta, who brought fierce, relentless attack to her performance as the Tall Girl.

Last but not least was the program-capping “Diamonds”. Tuesday night saw the principal Russell Janzen’s penultimate performance with the company (he retired from City Ballet this past Sunday). In the princely male lead role, he gave one of hist finest performances — stylishly measured yet exhibiting uncommon flashes of energetic flair. As his counterpart, Sara Means (clearly emotional as she performed for one of the times with Janzen, her regular partner in “Diamonds”) was similarly understated but undeniably regal. Together, they were breathtaking. While Unity Phelan failed to rival the imperious, unforced majesty of Means’ performance, she nevertheless invested more vigor to her interpretation, as did her counterpart Joe Gordon.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

JEWELS
Dance
New York City Ballet at the David H. Koch Theater
2 hours, 10 minutes (with two intermissions)
City Ballet’s fall season continues through October 15