ABT - Romeo and Juliet

I believe Prokoviev's Romeo and Juliet is the first live ballet I ever saw.  Or was it Nutcracker?  No, I'm pretty sure it was R & J.  At the very least, it's the first ballet I ever saw at ABT.  In the mid 90s, a friend worked for the Met, so he would get me free tickets to operas and ballets that weren't sold out.  So, the first time I saw this ballet, I saw Julie Kent dance Juliet and I was entranced.  I already knew her from the movie Dancers, but watching her as Juliet all those years ago was a transcendent experience.  I find her combination of fragility and strength to be so moving, especially as Juliet.  She has been my prima ballerina gold standard ever since.



Last Saturday night, I was fortunate enough to see Julie dance as Juliet once more.  I haven't seen Romeo and Juliet for a few years, since I've seen it so much, but I figure I won't have all that many more chances to see her dance it.  I also enjoy Roberto Bolle, having seen him in La Dame aux Camelias a couple of seasons ago.  So, when I saw they were dancing together, I signed right up.  And I was not disappointed.

Julie was, as always (in my completely and totally blind, biased opinion), sublime.  Her gorgeously lyric arms and beautiful extension were on display throughout.  And her wonderful acting skills were also utilitzed to their utmost.  At first, she was a giddy bouncy girl, who gradually turned into a mature woman in love.  You could almost see the girlish softness fade as the womanly passion took over.  And, in the final scene, her despair was palpable.  That last pose was just heartbreaking.

Roberto Bolle is impossibly handsome.  There, I said it.  He was also a very passionate Romeo.  You totally believed his besottedness with Rosaline (though, I've always wondered why Rosaline doesn't get a more distinctive costume in this ballet - I always have a hard time picking her up out of the crowd, through no fault of the dancer), and then you felt the earth shake when he and Juliet saw each other for the first time.  Then, as he showed off to her, like a puppy dog, you were charmed.  But when they danced the balcony scene pas de deux, all youthful energy disappeared and mature passion took over.  Their dancing, both here and in the bedroom scene, was stunning.  Fast and passionate, yet lyrical and romantic.  There was hope and tragedy in every move.  I just throught they were wonderful.  And that last pas de deux, in the crypt, was amazing.  I used my binoculars for a lot of it and witnessed some wonderful acting as well as wonderful dancing.  It always amazes me how the choreography works in that last pas de deux, with Juliet while 'dead.'  It's just gorgeous. 

I enjoyed Jared Matthews as Mercutio very much, as did the rest of the audience - he probably got the loudest cheers of the night.  Blaine Hoven was a charming Benvolio, and  Gennadi Saveliev was a chilling Tybalt.  Sascha Radetsky was Paris and this role suits him.  As the unexciting suitor, he can play against that and be successful.  I've seen him play Tybalt before and he's less interesting to me there.  I think it's just my taste, though.  The three harlots danced very well, but some of the female corps were a little off at the top of the show, which was distracting.  If you're wearing hard-soled shoes and have to stamp your feet a lot, I'm thinking unison is your friend.  But it got cleaned up as the ballet went on.  I will say that the men had some sloppy sword work - not in their choreography, but in their free arm.  The arms were flopping around all over the place instead of being in a classic fencing position.  But that's a minor quibble.

The balcony wasn't full, but the audience was very supportive and enthusiastic.  Julie and Roberto came out a few times for curtain calls.  Of course, everyone is wearing white, so my pictures aren't that great.  :(   But I was glad for the post-performance enthusiasm.  Sometimes I feel like I'm overly happy with everything I see at ABT, so it's nice to have some positive reinforcement of my own.  You know what, though?  Who cares if I like everything?  That's a good thing, right??  I think it is.  It's better than hating everything.  Anyway, I can't believe I only have three more ballets left in the season - it goes by much too quickly.  Next up, a return visit to Firebird, but it's paired with The Dream this time, and I've never seen The Dream.  Excitement...