Mariinsky Ballet / Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center, NYC / July 11 - 16, 2011 A Is for Arabesque: The Mariinsky Ballet's Yekaterina Kondaurova in the title role of Alexei Ratmansky's Anna Karenina Photo: Natasha Razina When New York's dance fans heard "The Russians are coming, the Russians are coming!" they were duly aroused to fever pitch by the news. As part of this summer's Lincoln Center Festival, the Mariinsky Ballet (having officially gone back to its birth name) arrived at the Metropolitan Opera House for a week. … [Read more...]

I'm delighted to welcome Deborah Jowitt and her blog, DanceBeat, to the small but ardent cluster of dance writers at ArtsJournal. As many readers who have followed Deborah's writing--some of us for decades--know, her love for our subject is warm, her knowledge deep, her penetration keen, and her writing style distinctive. From my own earliest days at our trade, I learned from her. From our proximity on AJ, I expect I will learn still more. … [Read more...]

American Ballet Theatre: Alina Cojocaru / Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center, NYC / MAY 16 - July 9, 2011 She's a darling, Alina Cojocaru--petite, pretty (without being pert or saccharine), fragile-looking as a waif. Her secret, which, of course, she reveals almost immediately after her entrance on stage, is a technical proficiency that would impress you even if her appealing personality--that joy that's always slightly tinged with sorrow--hadn't already captivated you. Cojocaru, who has just completed a third guest stint with … [Read more...]

American Ballet Theatre: Jose Manuel Carreño's farewell performance / Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center, NYC / June 30, 2011 Jose Manuel Carreño bowing to the audience at the close of his farewell performance with American Ballet Theatre Photo: Rosalie O'Connor Is any dancer among us today as much loved as Jose Manuel Carreño? The ardor was apparent at American Ballet Theatre's June 30th performance of Swan Lake at the Metropolitan Opera House. The occasion was the company's official farewell to the 38-year-old star … [Read more...]