An ABT press release:

CASTING ANNOUNCED FOR FINAL TWO WEEKS OF
AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE’S 2008 SPRING SEASON
AT THE METROPOLITAN OPERA HOUSE

Julie Kent and Jose Manuel Carreño to Lead
Revival Premiere of The Merry Widow on Monday, June 30


Casting for the seventh and eighth weeks of American Ballet Theatre’s 2008 Spring Season at the Metropolitan Opera House was announced today by Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie.

The Revival Premiere of Ronald Hynd’s The Merry Widow will take place on Monday, June 30, led by Julie Kent as Hanna Glawari, Jose Manuel Carreño as Count Danilo Danilowitch, Xiomara Reyes as Valencienne and Gennadi Saveliev as Camille. Paloma Herrera, Marcelo Gomes, Maria Riccetto and Sascha Radetsky will debut in these roles on Tuesday, July 1. The evening performance on Wednesday, July 2 will feature Irina Dvorovenko as Hanna Glawari, with debuts by Maxim Beloserkovsky as Count Danilo Danilowitch, Yuriko Kajiya as Valencienne and Jared Matthews as Camille. The Merry Widow is set to music by Franz Lehár, orchestrated by John Lanchbery, with scenery and costumes by Desmond Heeley and lighting by Michael J. Whitfield. Adapted from Lehár’s operetta of the same name, The Merry Widow was premiered by The Australian Ballet in 1975 and received its ABT premiere in 1997.

The season will conclude with eight performances of Giselle, beginning Monday, July 7, led by Nina Ananiashvili in the title role, Angel Corella as Albrecht, Gennadi Saveliev as Hilarion and Gillian Murphy as Myrta. David Hallberg will debut as Albrecht at the matinee on Wednesday, July 9, opposite Irina Dvorovenko as Giselle, and Herman Cornejo will dance the role for the first time on Thursday, July 10, opposite Xiomara Reyes as Giselle. Set to music by Adolphe Adam and orchestrated by John Lanchbery, Giselle was staged by Kevin McKenzie with choreography after Jean Coralli, Jules Perrot and Marius Petipa. The two-act ballet features scenery by Gianni Quaranta and costumes by Anna Anni. This production, with scenery by Quaranta and costumes by Anni, was created for the film Dancers in 1987. Giselle is generously supported through an endowed gift from Anka Palitz in memory of Clarence Y. Palitz, Jr.

Superfund Asset Management, Inc. is the sponsor of American Ballet Theatre's 2008 Spring Season at the Metropolitan Opera House. Saks Fifth Avenue is the Leading Corporate Sponsor of American Ballet Theatre's Costume Fund. American Airlines is the Official Airline of American Ballet Theatre. ABT's 2008 Spring Season is also made possible with public funds from the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency, and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.

Tickets for American Ballet Theatre’s 2008 Metropolitan Opera House season, priced $25-$106, are available at the Met box office or by phone at 212-362-6000. The Metropolitan Opera House is located on Broadway between 64th and 65th streets in New York City. For more information, visit ABT’s website at www.abt.org <http://www.abt.org> .

Complete casting follows:

SEVENTH WEEK


Mon. Eve., June 30, 8 P.M. THE MERRY WIDOW – Kent, Carreño, Reyes, Saveliev*
Tues. Eve., July 1, 8 P.M. THE MERRY WIDOW – Herrera*, Gomes*, Riccetto*, Radetsky*
Wed. Mat., July 2, 2 P.M. THE MERRY WIDOW – Kent, Carreño, Reyes, Saveliev
Wed. Eve., July 2, 8 P.M. THE MERRY WIDOW – Dvorovenko, Beloserkovsky*, Kajiya*, Matthews*
Thurs. Eve., July 3, 8 P.M. THE MERRY WIDOW – Kent, Carreño, Reyes, Saveliev

Fri. Eve., July 4 NO PERFORMANCE

Sat. Mat., July 5, 2 P.M. THE MERRY WIDOW – Herrera, Gomes, Riccetto, Radetsky
Sat. Eve., July 5, 8 P.M. THE MERRY WIDOW – Dvorovenko, Beloserkovsky, Kajiya, Matthews


EIGHTH WEEK

Mon. Eve., July 7, 8 P.M. GISELLE – Ananiashvili, Corella, Saveliev, Murphy
Tues. Eve., July 8, 8 P.M. GISELLE – Kent, Stiefel, Radetsky, Wiles
Wed. Mat., July 9, 2 P.M. GISELLE – Dvorovenko, Hallberg*, Stappas, Murphy
Wed. Eve., July 9, 8 P.M. GISELLE – Herrera, Gomes, Saveliev, Part
Thurs. Eve., July 10, 8 P.M. GISELLE – Reyes, Cornejo*, Stappas, Wiles
Fri. Eve., July 11, 8 P.M. GISELLE – Vishneva, Carreño, Saveliev, Murphy
Sat. Mat., July 12, 2 P.M. GISELLE – Dvorovenko, Beloserkovsky, Stappas, Part
Sat. Eve., July 12, 8 P.M. GISELLE – Kent, Stiefel, Radetsky, Wiles

*please note first time in a role:

Mon. Eve., 6/30 – Saveliev (Camille) in The Merry Widow
Tues. Eve., 7/1 – Herrera (Hanna), Gomes (Danilo), Riccetto (Valencienne) and Radetsky (Camille) in
The Merry Widow

Wed. Eve., 7/2 – Beloserkovsky (Danilo), Kajiya (Valencienne) and Matthews (Camille) in The Merry
Widow

Wed. Mat., 7/9 – Hallberg (Albrecht) in Giselle
Thurs. Eve., 7/10 – Cornejo (Albrecht) in Giselle

Interesting that all the Myrthas are principal dancers except Part, who has been doing the role for some years. I would have thought that perhaps one of the new soloists might have gotten a Myrtha (Kristi Boone perhaps? From the little I've seen of her, she would seem to have the stage presence and size for the role...)

Does anyone have any news regarding Vishneva's chances of actually performing in Giselle on July 11? After what happened with Don Quixote, I am hesitant to buy Giselle tickets until I know that she has fully recovered from her injury.

From her site* today:


* http://www.vishneva.ru/eng/index.htm

Kudos to Ms. Vishneva for communicating with her fans and being up front about her situation! Fingers crossed for the Giselle...

Wed. Mat., July 9, 2 P.M. GISELLE – Dvorovenko, Hallberg*, Stappas, Murphy

To anyone interested in seeing Hallberg's Albrecht, the matinee has now been changed to Reyes/Cornejo, same as Thursday night. He was listed for Wednesday as of yesterday, but this morning the calander was changed and the box office confirmed it. He's not listed at all for next week. Third cast for this date & no Hallberg Albrecht.

All the more a puzzle since ABT's casting for Japan the following week includes Mr. Hallberg, including a Corsaire. Also, under the heading of why didn't we get it, is a pair of Ananiashvili/Gomes/COPELAND/Corella Corsaires.

Yes good luck Diana! Up to a meet great at Giselle, to use my best Dianglish.

I would interpret this to mean:

a) The Reyes/Cornejo duo is looking so magnificent that it would be a crime not to give them a second performance; or

b) Vishneva is really in doubt for Friday night, and they are thinking about what on earth they will be able to produce that will come close to curing the (potential) disappointment - that would be a Hallberg debut or a third and most certainly magnificent performance of Reyes/Cornejo; or

c) Hallberg is not 100% and McKenzie sees a legitimate excuse to save him for what will be a world shattering double debut with Abrera in the not too distant future; or

d) a combination of a, b, and c.

It's all good. I was looking forward to the Dvorovenko/Hallberg event, but seeing Reyes & Cornejo twice does not leave me the least bit disappointed.

. . . or,
c.1) Perhaps Dvorovenko is not 100%. Her season hasn't exactly been a cakewalk this year - having to break in two youngsters as partners while still delivering her expected fantastic performances.

I think that either Hallberg is injured or most likely they decided he is still not ready for Albretch debut (especially after his Basilio debut this year, which apparently not everybody agreed on it). He has handled two other debuts this year; a third seems a little too much.
No matter how good may Reyes/Cornejo be looking in rehearsals, giving them back to back performances is a clear sign that there were not more choices available, especially considering Diana situation which still seems to be question mark.
I was planning to go on Thursday and this is kind of disappointing since I rather wanted to see Herman debut than a second performance, right after the 1st one, when both of them may feel a little tired

I'd like to see the Reyes/Cornejo pairing but I'm already going to 3 Giselles and I've decided not to consider any more till I'm relatively sure about who I'll be seeing at the Friday performance!

Meanwhile, there is a story in TONY called the Giselle Files where Gia Korlas provides brief Q&As for 5 ABT corps members who will be featured in Giselle. From this we learn that Blair Hoven will dance the PPD with Hee Seo, Mikhail Ilyin will dance it with Sarah Lane, Melanie Hamrick & Simone Messmer will both dance Moyna. Now if we only new WHICH PERFORMANCES they were scheduled for...

http://www.timeout.com/newyork/articles/da...e-giselle-files

All this does not bode well for the chances of Vishneva appearing Friday

vishneva's out, according to her site:




she took the date off her calendar too.

That was to be expected. I wonder how serious her injury really is.

Oh Diana!

Who will take her place on Friday?

With Diana out, can we get our tickets refunded at the box office?

I wish we could, but I'm afraid we can't.

This whole season has been such a terrible disappointment for me. Of all the casts that I originally wanted to see the only one that was left intact was La Bayadere with Part and Gomes. Everything else was a total waste of my time and money.

I realize injuries happen, but it looks like Diana's condition was serious enough to stop selling tickets to her performances a long time ago.

I don't feel the ABT managemement has been completely honest about this situation and this is why I am not going to renew my subscriptions next year.

I don't think so - a quote from ABT (it may be a Met policy)

All ticket sales are final. There are no refunds, exchanges or cancellations. Casting is subject to change without notice.

I don't really think that fair, not with the comments from vishneva's own website saying she was going to try and start rehearsals for Giselle. If *she* was planning to give it a go, why were they supposed to know better?

Furthermore, maybe I was lucky, but it doesn't seem like, with the exception of visheva, there have been a lot of major changes in the schedule this year, and injuries happen. Unfortunate but true.

Now that the determination has been made, I can say that I saw Vishneva at the Lincoln Center Crafts Fair on June 22. I wished her well and asked her whether she would be dancing the Giselle. She said she hoped so, but made that palm-down wrist rotating gesture meaning "maybe, maybe not." She was not visibly impaired, but her mere presence in New York I took as an indication of her determination to fulfill the date, unless impossible. Her body language in general suggested the odds were less than 50-50.

It's just a guess, but ABT may have asked Nina to stick around through the week in case. She replaced Diana in Don Q & Swan, so it would seem management feels she's the best candidate.

And there's time to rest after her scheduled performance on Monday.

I also saw Vishneva recently - in the audience at the Woetzel farewell. I didn't speak to her but I took her continued presence in NY to mean that she was rehabbing and hoped to make her final scheduled performance (as she later indicated on her website).

I hope Zerbinetta is right and they replace her with Nina again. I was somewhat disapointed with Nina in SL and DQ but I think she will be wonderful in Giselle. It's a great role for her and less exposing than the previous two, so at this point - that's my best case scenario for Friday.

MakarovaFan & Waelsung - don't forget that while ABT's policy is no exchanges or refunds they generally will exchange tickets at the box office as long as you go a few days ahead of time. They definitely will not give refunds.

From the Russian side of her website: Ms. Vishneva has also canceled her two Creative Evenings at the Mariinsky Theater, July 26 and 27.

Thank you nysusan, as a subscriber I have exchange privileges, but what will I exchange my Friday ticket for? I already have a ticket to the Monday performance with Ananiashvili and Corella, and there's nobody else I'd like to see, especially at these prices (my seats are in the orchestra). Had I known in advance, I would have exchanged for a Sleeping Beauty or La Bayadere, but now it's obviously too late.

On top of that, starting next year all ticket exchanges will command an additional $5 fee. If you consider that there was no single subscription ticket that I have actually used myself this season (all of them have been exchanged or given away to relatives and friends), subscriptions start losing their appeal rather fast

Hmm...the ABT and Metropolitan Opera websites still list Diana Vishneva and Jose Manuel Carreno in "Giselle" this coming Friday. Clearly, the ABT management hasn't come up with a solution. I would say best possible scenario: Nina Ananiashvili/Hallberg or Ananiashvili/Carreno. Or fly in a mystery superstar like Cojocaru, Lunkina, Obraztsova, Lopatkina or Zakharova to make a splashy surprise replacement. ABT isn't doing that anymore but maybe...

Friday was a holiday, followed by the weekend. They will probably update the website tomorrow.

ABT has a particularly strong group of Giselle casts. I've seen all of them more than once. Each Giselle is very different from the others and is wonderfully appealing in her own right. I think the auto-response that if it isn't a guest star then it isn't going to be a fantastic performance is really not fair in this case. And it's counter-productive to all of our lobbying efforts to get ABT to give more opportunities to more of its own dancers.

I know - I cancelled 2 out of my 3 opera subscriptions this season because of that surcharge - and if it wasn’t for the ability to order priority Ring tickets I probably would have cancelled the third. I also exchange most of my ABT subscription tickets so let’s just hope they don’t extend this new policy to ABT...

While I personally feel that ABT has several interesting Giselles pairings that I’d be happy to see there are others I would not willingly sit through - even if they paid me to go. And although many of the ABT "house" Giselles I’ve seen have been good IMO none of them have been anywhere near as good as those that I consider to be the current best such as Vishneva, Cojocaru or Lunkina. That’s why even though I already have my own switch in mind if I’m not happy with Vishneva’s replacement - I understand how frustrated you must feel.

There's also the general public and the casual ballet fan to consider. Most of them don’t read these type of boards so they don't know that Vishneva has cancelled and plenty of them are coming specifically to see her. Some of us may think that our favorites are just as good (or better) but it’s a safe bet that there will be a lot of very surprised and disappointed people at the Met on Friday night. I doubt that McKenzie could/would get a guest star to come in to sub at this late date - but I’d be leading the applause if he did.

Hallberg wrote over on The Winger that his shoulder came out of its socket during his final performance of La Bayadere. Guess that explains the casting change for the Wednesday matinee.

The schedule has been changed and Friday night's Giselle is---wait for it---Nina Ananiashvili!

Very nice substitution, predictable but nice since we won't see her after 2009.

A company release:

DIANA VISHNEVA TO WITHDRAW FROM PERFORMANCE
OF GISELLE, JULY 11

Nina Ananiashvili and Jose Manuel Carreño to Perform Lead Roles

Due to injury, Diana Vishneva has been forced to withdraw from her performance in the title role of Giselle on Friday, July 11, it was announced today by Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie.

Principal Dancer Nina Ananiashvili will replace Vishneva in the title role dancing opposite Jose Manuel Carreño as Albrecht.

American Ballet Theatre’s 2008 Spring Season at the Metropolitan Opera House continues through July 12. For tickets and information, please call 212-362-6000 or visit ABT’s website at www.abt.org <http://www.abt.org> .

This is disappointing news and I hope Diana makes a speedy recovery. At least I'll get to see Nina dance live for the first time.

Ms. Vishneva is my favorite Giselle too. But you may not be disappointed to see Nina in this, given her Giselle excerpt at ABT's Gala! (Or, for that matter, her Giselles over the last two decades.) It may seem surprising that the former Bolshoi Prima would sub for each of Diana's full-length ballets, but now that we understand her love and respect for ABT (on her retirement thread), perhaps no surprise at all.
Thank you, Nina Ballerina!

And if Diana is injured then it's best that she not dance a role like Giselle, because you could say her Giselle is almost demented, particularly in the second act. A watered-down tentative Giselle from Vishneva would not do at all.

Hi. With regard to the comments above about the MET charging an exchange fee, it is not clear to me whether ABT will follow the Opera in adopting that policy. Let's hope not. Additionally, it is my understanding that starting in the fall, the MET Opera is requiring that all exchanges occur a week prior to the performance date, irrespective of whether the exchange is by mail or in person. I sure hope ABT does not adopt that policy, given the frequency of last minute casting changes at ABT. I think if ABT decides to adopt these new, restrictive policies regarding ticket exchanges, their advance box office receipts will take a nose dive.

I saw Ananiashvilli's 'Giselle' last night; it has been a few years since I last saw her in the role. At the time I felt she did not give a moving performance; and, alas, my opinion has not changed. I greatly admired her mad scene--one of the best I have seen; quite believable. But--as Swan Lake is Odette, Giselle is Act 2. She and Corella did not match up well--he is too physically slight for her and there was no 'magic'. It is rare to see a ballerina who can excel as both Odette and Giselle; Makarova did. A special nod to Maria Ricccetto who gave a beautiful performance in the peasant pdd; and also to Melissa Thomas as Moyna; when she walked on to the stage she could have been Giselle rising from the grave. One final mention--Karin Ellis-Wentz gave a most moving performance as Berthe in Act 1; in the final moments of the Act she cradled Giselle and gently rolled back and forth with her--something that is instinctive to a mother in such a circumstance, and opened her mouth wide in a silent cry.