American Ballet Theatre Opening Night Gala

Atmosphere Tent

05/17/2010 – American Ballet Theatre celebrated its 70th Anniversary at the Metropolitan Opera House in Lincoln Center. This was my first return to the ballet in many years and add that to a black tie gala complete with a party in a tent afterward and you know I was champing at the bit. When I lived in New York, I was one of the Young Patrons of ABT and this was my first significant introduction to the performing arts. Classical ballet is something to see, I tell you. I am often dismissed by my purist friends as a rube because while I enjoy classical music, beautiful scenery and artistic merit, I am mostly keen on the athletic prowess of the principal dancers who obliterate gravity as they leap so high in the air it is almost beyond comprehension. In my early days in New York I was fortunate to see Angel Corella, who is perhaps the greatest of all the contemporary dancers in his vertical mastery. Oh yes, he’s an artist of the first order, but you can’t believe the leaps.

On opening night at ABT, the audience is treated to snippets of all of the ballets that will be presented that season, sort of like a little youtube preview and it is the only way to go, in my opinion. Yes, again I am tiptoeing into dilettantism here, but I like to see the highlights. And this opening night did not disappoint. The established stars shone and the new generation staked their claim. Roberto Bolle and Julie Kent in Lady of the Camellias was such an extraordinary mastery of artistry I cannot put it into words. Choreographed by the brilliant John Neumeier, the audience — if I may deign to speak for them — was moved to a place of sheer awestruck melancholia that I did not think possible in dance. Run to see this performance this season. I am not kidding.

And then came the finale. Let me begin by reminding you that ABT is America’s ballet company so designated by an act of Congress in 2006 and an institution in which every American should take great pride. The company is serious, classical, and on the whole, congenitally averse to modern presentations, which is really why I like it. Imagine the stuffed-shirted (mine included) audience’s reaction when electronic music blasted from the speakers rather than mellifluously rising from the orchestra pit. The grand gold curtains opened to reveal a pitch black stage. Then, a strobe light’s flash revealed a single man standing center stage. I squinted to see, could it be Corrella? I am afraid I did not consult the program, instead preferring to greet each piece with no expectation. Back to black. With each strobe’s flash Corrella appeared like a Jaromir Funke photograph suspended in air against the black stage. It was startling, genius and again, seeming to defy gravity. It was perhaps the single most extraordinary thing I have witnessed to date on the ABT stage and it was nowhere in the neighborhood of classical. So you see, even if the old dog won’t hunt anymore, he can still learn new tricks. The piece is called Caught choreographed by David Parsons and you should not miss it. Brilliant.

Oh, then came the party. Much carousing with old friends, much scotch and then dancing. What? You don’t think you need a little social lubrication when you take to a dance floor infested with classically-trained dancers? You do.

Alexandra Kerry

Anne Vincent & Cooper Ray

Daniel Cappello & Rachel Moore

Emina Cunmulag

Hamish Bowles

Julia Koch

Julie Kent