City Center 2006

This was our third year to see ABT perform at City Center on the exact same weekend. That makes our Metropolitan Museum of Art letterbox 3 years old. We were able to also check on our Carnegie Hall letterbox, it is doing well.

Maga11 and Toolman Luke were very generous by underwriting the entire trip to the city. RGBisMe was our driver in and around the city and I helped by navigating us place to place. We made it into the city on the tag end of a major storm. We had plenty of time to check out where we wanted to take Ravenboy for a meal after the show and then made our way into the theater just as the skies opened up again.


The performance opened with Stanton Welch's Clear. Our seats in the mid mezzanine allowed a nice view of the entire stage. I felt so fortunate to be able to see this cast, mostly young men, that featured my favorite principal dancers, Xiomara Reyes and Herman Cornejo. I was shocked that my attention was actually drawn away from them to watch some of the very talented younger dancers. Most impressive to me were Blaine Hoven, Jared Matthews and Arron Scott. Hoven's line, Matthew's whip-like turns and Scott's exact footwork as well as stage presence amazed me. Through their talent and ability to project everything from humor to joy of life with their dancing, we were engaged and diverted.





We made a group decision to leave the theater after the first piece. This gave us extra time to take Ravenboy to lunch and visit with him a while. We walked to whole way down to Rockefeller Plaza to see a terrific sculpture called a Sky Mirror.


We can be seen in it's reflection on the edge of the sidewalk, right by where the word "BUS" in the bus lane is.



It was then time to walk Ravenboy back to the theater because he was in the evening performance of In The Upper Room. This allowed us time to visit with Yugio at the Starbucks where I embarrassed myself last year. I almost had the chance to do it again. I was about a half a block behind my party entering the coffee shop and as I approached the entrance, Angel Corella was exiting. Maga11 and Toolman Luke greeted me with broad grins as they remembered my faux pas from the year before.



The evening performance did not disappoint. The maturity and professionalism of ballet dancers is mind boggling. In The Upper Room requires constant movement and awareness of self and others or serious injuries could occur in the blink of an eye. Stomper Jared Matthews and Ballet Men Arron Scott & Herman Cornejo had shined in the athletic matinee performance of Clear. They continued to excel while being accurate and steady partners in what is becoming one of my favorite ballets. The highlight of my evening brought me to tears. I was able to watch my son dance with, at the same level as the most talented ballet dancers in the world. Seeing him, Herman Cornejo and Paloma Herrera performing a beautiful trio had my eyes welling and heart racing. Seeing one's child achieving their dream can be a most satisfying moment.


Ballet dancers are young athletes with a flare for drama. Living in NYC, the city in it's entirety becomes a stage for them during Hallowe'en. These young ladies and men revel in choosing costumes and personas that they wish to put on as opposed to what is put onto them. Driving through the streets on our way out of the city for the third Hallowe'en weekend in a row had us laughing. Between the actors, dancers, singers and young at heart living in the Chelsea area, it was the third show we had seen in one day. Bravisimo!