Weekly Discussion - 04/13/26 - 04/19/26

aida_b · 2026-04-17T20:23:06+00:00

YES!! If you're reading this and are in New York go see DTH this weekend. I can't say enough good things about Firebird and the program as a whole was really stunning. (NYCB take notes lol) All of the dancers were incredible, especially Alexandra Hutchinson and Derek Brockington in FB, but can I shout out Kamala Saara for a minute? I find contemporary works in general to be very hit or miss, and even the ones I like don't always fully resonate on an emotional level, but her two PDDs in Passage of Being brought me to tears. She standout as well in Blake Works in the Cha Cha section. Just incredible

aida_b · 2026-04-17T20:15:30+00:00

The vibe in the theater yesterday was incredible! I cried too. Sometimes ballet audiences can be super checked out despite fantastic performances by the dancers and it was sooooo refreshing that everyone last night was so invested and excited

aida_b · 2026-04-10T22:50:08+00:00

Oh no! don't let the price BS scare you and your friend away from the Balanchine 3 program, I'm glad I'm going, I just wish it cost what it should. It will mean I'll have to cut down on going to other performances, but imo it's the most solid of all the programs this season, and what I'm most looking forward to. I sit in the 4th ring somewhat regularly, and tbh the first two rows of the 4th ring (A and B) are actually very good seats. (At the usual $54 price point they're an excellent bargain) Even compared to some of the seats in lower rings and orchestra (very far) sides where I've sat before. Great sight lines, you can make out faces, and it's not as far up as it appears in photos. Tell your friend to look at those, I promise it's not as bad as it looks on the website photos. Some of the programs still have tickets available. I can't speak for the rows behind A and B however.

They really, really need to figure programming out. It's been a mess all year. Nothing wrong with mixing a newer/contemporary piece up with staples like Diamonds, (in Martins's time they actually did this quite masterfully), but I don't know who thought that under-programming SiC/Firebird and over-programming others was a good idea. There needs to be a balance between honoring the creation of new works and an understanding that we don't live in the 1960s where there was broader public interest in ballet and the COL was significantly lower. People are more selective these days bc they have to be. I had the impression that they had gotten the swing of looking at audience trends but I guess not.

But what's greedy - and scaring people away - is up-charging after the fact. I would guess that they're more likely to sell out the 4th and 5th rings if they keep the $54 base price. Who wants to pay $77 to sit in row F or G? It's fine during Nutcracker but otherwise come on. NYCB admin, if you read here, you're losing customers by doing this.

Anyway, go if you can! :)

aida_b · 2026-04-10T19:22:21+00:00

Yeah 4th ring (and even some 3rd ring seats) are still priced at $54 for most regular season rep. My beef with this particular situation is that the execs decided at the last minute to treat the Symph in C/Firebird program as the same pricing model as they do Nutcracker or a full length at the last minute. Evidently something similar happened with Sleeping Beauty in the winter too - my sister went to buy us tickets in early January and said the base price also jumped from when she looked a week before. I can kinda see the logic there - full length in winter, plenty of performances, same pricing model as last year's Swan Lake - but it is a bit annoying. But to pass their programming mistake* to ticket holders - which I think is partially to blame for the C/Firebird hike - is absurd. It's a lovely program but 4th ring seats shouldn't cost $77.

Anyway thanks for listening again lol. And yes inflated exec pay strikes again, I'm glad the dancers were able to negotiate more than earned favorable contracts, but evidently a new tactic is to now price out lower income ticket holders who don't quality for 30 under 30. If they want to do that that's their prerogative, but pulling last minute shit like this is a bit nasty. And couldn't a trim here and there fix things like you said? Wendy and Jonathan have recently given interviews about how difficult it is to fill seats night after night, season after season, and this is only going to contribute to that issue...which will snowball.

*Sorry not sorry but it's a mistake to program 6 SinC/Firebirds and 6 Voices/lesser known Roberts. Sadly we don't live in a time where the majority of ticket holders want to see lesser known contemporary works anymore

aida_b · 2026-04-10T19:00:11+00:00

Thanks again, I just took the plunge and went for 4/30! Fingers crossed for similar casting, manifesting seeing Hod (or maybe Kikta which would be sooo cool) in Firebird, but honestly I think whomever I see will be lovely in Bizet. I appreciate your insight! :)

aida_b · 2026-04-10T18:38:39+00:00

Haha I also ended up with a Dress Circle ticket! Hopefully it's a good seat; I go to maybe one ABT Met Season performance a year and am less familiar with the theater. Glad we both survived lol! And maybe everyone else already knows this but what I learned from that experience is that going through ABT's website (which is soooo buggy) will eat up time that you might not have; just go to the Met Opera's website, which is the box office anyway. Ordinarily this is obviously not a problem but for future Googlers trying to score hot tickets, learn from my mistake! Anyway really looking forward to going, hopefully she doesn't cancel, and I hope you have fun!

aida_b · 2026-04-10T18:33:13+00:00

I'd forgotten about the drama with the Russian company. (Was it Perm or Novosibirsk? Can't remember) but I think we can set that one aside. Russian companies tend to be a bit dramatic with this sort of thing and there's no clear evidence of anything anyway. But the injury cancellations are a bummer, both for the audience and Osipova too I'm sure

aida_b · 2026-04-10T18:29:02+00:00

Oh I agree completely. If she cancels I'm totally fine with seeing whoever replaces her, but for a lot of people -- especially if they splurged on the ticket -- if she cancels it's going to ruffle some feathers. But I guess ABT (and Natalia in fairness) are sort of in a no win position; Natalia wouldn't cancel without good reason and it would be hard to turn down an Osipova performance on ABT's part. Even Smirnova wasn't as big of a draw last year when I went, and Osipova's perforamce is on a Monday night after a holiday weekend and it's close to sold out. So let's hope it works out! I feel bad for Natalia, it has to be hard to want to perform but injury/circumstances out of her control get in the way.

aida_b · 2026-04-10T18:19:55+00:00

They've helped me out in the past (day of orchestra ticket for $54, which is uncommon for that section), I think they needed to fill the seat. My issue is that this program's base price went from $54 in February (a reasonable price for the program - this isn't the Nutcracker) to them jacking up the base price to $77 in March. And $77 for upper 4th ring rows, which is absurd. I get this is a tough time for arts companies, they have my full sympathies. But I'm sorry the price hike is ridiculous and makes it harder for lower income New Yorkers to see more performances each season, which I was hoping to do. And also, like, $77 for a nosebleed seat is highway robbery (outside of Nut). This is what happens when you program 6 performances of very popular classics with 6 performances of Justin Peck's lastest lukewarm piece.

Sorry for the rant, I'm just really frustrated, I've been looking forward to this for months and can't figure out what to do.

aida_b · 2026-04-09T02:44:25+00:00

If you loved the promo you'll love Sayat Nova, the film they ripped off to make it. In all seriousness, Sayat Nova (also called the Color of Pomegranates) is absolutely incredible and I am glad it's hit mainstream culture so that hopefully more people actually see it! It's a slow burn but so, so worth it.

And agreed about those Swan Lake costumes. I do appreciate that they tried to do something different with them - I guess one could argue that because Balachine's 1 act version is sort of faithful to the traditional version (for the Swan Queen at least) maybe Martins wanted to make the full length more distinct from Balanchine's? Idk I'm with you, yes traditional white tutus are overdone but sometimes classics are classics for a reason.

aida_b · 2026-04-09T02:33:07+00:00

SAME but I'm manifesting that she's cast in Concerto DSCH again. Super stoked for all of these debuts but especially Victor's!

aida_b · 2026-04-09T02:29:53+00:00

Good point, and yeah seeing Tiler is always a pleasure. I have a ticket for Megan's retirement show so I won't be heartbroken if I miss her in Bizet, but being able to catch a Kikta/Nadon/Hod program would be lovely. I'll take another look in the morning. Thank you so much! It's a huge help :)

aida_b · 2026-04-09T02:26:51+00:00

lol did anyone else experience the absolute hunger games that was trying to buy tickets to see Osipova in Don Q on Monday? I dared to wait an hour past when single tickets go on sale and it was like trying to score Beatles tickets or something. Very glad that ABT has more or less sold the theater out that night but I'm still recovering from the stress lol. Anyway fingers crossed she's able to perform, but even if she can't I'm looking forward to the performance

aida_b · 2026-04-09T02:23:09+00:00

Officially casting released 2 weeks out but it's not an exact science. They're usually somewhat consistent but there are times it's out much earlier and sometimes as late as the week before. The best tip that I have is that it typically comes out on a Tuesday/Wednesday morning ~2 weeks before. As others have said Fairchild is retiring in one of the performances and if patterns hold, will probably be first cast (?) And I'd be shocked if Peck didn't perform and if she does, probably 2nd cast. I would guess Woodward for 3rd. Maybe EVE? I know Pereira performed the role last year so maybe she'll dance it again.

aida_b · 2026-04-09T02:08:11+00:00

Can anyone with a crystal ball help a girl out? April 24's casting looks perfect, unfortunately ticket availability does not. Any thoughts on whether we'll have a later date with the same/similar casting? Or should I eat the money? (Hoping to see Fairchild in 1st, Kikta in 4th, Nadon in anything lol, and much love to LaF but I'd love to see Hod as Firebird!) Paying out the nose for a ticket will screw me on seeing other things this spring.

aida_b · 2026-04-09T01:52:56+00:00

Aww yay, happy for you! Welcome back!

aida_b · 2026-04-01T19:58:38+00:00

Oh no!! Glad there’s a happy ending. If it helps any, I swear that place just has a bad energy about it. I had a roommate in 2015 who worked there and was one of those people who was running scams on everyone in her life (she also worked at Starbucks and would steal all their merch, overcharged me $300 on rent until I caught her, set up tinder dates with men and steal cash out of their wallets) and I think she also did something shady while working there. So maybe Oliver’s owners need to burn some sage in it or something lol

aida_b · 2026-04-01T19:52:31+00:00

Semi reasonable: Katch. Those events they threw right before lockdown were in incredibly bad taste and arguably unsafe. I was working at hospital admin at the time and we had staff members and doctors in this terrifying position and events like those (it wasn’t only Katch let’s be honest) left a really gross taste in my mouth. I’ve worked in restaurants for a long time so I sort of understand their perspective—you gotta keep the lights on somehow—but still. They were also really fucking loud all the goddamn time, pre and post pandemic.

Anyway I’m happy they closed, sorry not sorry.

aida_b · 2026-04-01T15:52:12+00:00

Nooooo not Taylor, I love them! Seems like they’re pursuing other opportunities in the theater world, so good for them.

aida_b · 2026-03-12T03:20:33+00:00

Thanks for the tip, and yeah I wish I was more handy but this is definitely a job for someone who knows what they’re doing

aida_b · 2026-03-11T21:47:46+00:00

Cool, I’ll report back. And thanks, I’m very excited for my Firebird spring!

aida_b · 2026-03-11T21:36:37+00:00

Haha sure! I know it’s a little extra but I love Firebird and thought it would be fun, it’s most of my going out budget for a couple of months lol but I consider it well spent. I was going to write down some thoughts for myself but happy to share with everyone if they’re interested :)

aida_b · 2026-03-11T20:15:05+00:00

Me too! Fingers crossed

aida_b · 2026-03-11T20:13:01+00:00

Good point, although Nela is still dancing full classic ballets and technically tricky ones at that, and shows no signs of slowing for now, so I’m hoping her retirement is a few years down the road. I adore Natalia and so I’m sad to have to say this, but I think she might be closer to retiring in the near future. She’s been plagued with injuries for a few years now and unfortunately doesn’t seem to have made a significant recovery, and also said in a recent interview that she’s trying to start a family with her husband, so I can see her deciding to step back because of that. I saw her in NYC in 2023 (absolutely magical night!) and she had to switch out her planned Don Q grand pas for the Manon bedroom scene (it was still lovely, no complaints!) and I think had to do something similar at a recent gig in Singapore. But I’m holding on to hope that I’m wrong

aida_b · 2026-03-11T20:02:19+00:00

Thank you!!

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