City Ballet The Podcast

The Rosin Box is back with host Claire Kretzschmar discussing one of the newest roles at the Company with Intimacy Director Leigh Zimmerman. Prior to joining NYCB, Zimmerman trained in ballet, then went on to an award-winning career on Broadway and London's West End. She brings her wide-ranging stage experience, a Master's Degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and Performance Psychology, and extensive training in Intimacy Direction to her work with dancers, choreographers, artistic staff, and policy makers to help establish an active dialogue around intimacy in its many forms. As she says, performers are able to truly "fly" when they know what to expect—"It's freeing dancers, rather than tying them down." (47:18) Edited by Emilie Silvestri Music: "Je ne t'aime plus" by Pink Martini Courtesy of Pink Martini & Heinz Records

Choreographer Alexei Ratmansky joins Associate Artistic Director Wendy Whelan to discuss Voices, his most recent ballet for NYCB, which premiered at the Company's annual New Combinations evening on January 30, 2020. Ratmansky describes his early career as a dancer in Kiev, the importance of watching bootleg VHS dance recordings in his early development as a choreographer, and how he came to set a ballet to Peter Ablinger's complex, avant-garde composition, Voices & Piano. (34:06) Originally released January 20, 2020 Edited by Emilie Silvestri Music: "Sisyphus" by Andrew Wegman Bird Wixen Music Publishing, Inc. as agent for Muffet Music Co

Three sailors walk into a podcast studio… and chat with Hear the Dance host and Principal Dancer Jared Angle about Jerome Robbins' first ballet, Fancy Free, choreographed on the American Ballet Theatre in 1944. Fellow Principal Dancers Tyler Angle, Daniel Ulbricht, and Andrew Veyette describe the importance of developing their individual characters—the "shy" midwestern farm boy, the short-fused "tough guy," and the "cool" know-it-all, respectively—and the camaraderie they share, recalling the collaboration between Robbins and composer Leonard Bernstein, who were just 25 years old when they created the work. (54:44) Edited by Emilie Silvestri Music: Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in D major (1931) by Igor Stravinsky Fancy Free (1944) by Leonard Bernstein All music performed by the New York City Ballet Orchestra

In this week's New Combinations episode, host and Associate Artistic Director Wendy Whelan talks fearlessness and phoenixes with choreographer Keerati Jinakunwiphat, whose first commission for the Company premieres this winter. Keerati traces her path from growing up in Chicago, to studying at SUNY Purchase, to dancing with A.I.M by Kyle Abraham, and choreographing for NYCB; as she shares, the Company dancers' openness to and hunger for the new movement style she brings to the studio has been an inspiration. (26:07) Edited by Emilie Silvestri Music: "Sisyphus" by Andrew Wegman Bird Wixen Music Publishing, Inc. as agent for Muffet Music Co

Hear the Dance host and Principal Dancer Jared Angle dives into the unique challenges and special rewards of dancing George Balanchine's Allegro Brillante with Principal Dancer Tiler Peck. Tiler shares memories of learning the work from the late legendary Repertory Director and former Soloist Susie Hendl and reveals why she feels as though this ballet, which she describes as one of the hardest to dance in the repertory, was made for her. (35:58) Edited by Emilie Silvestri Music: Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in D major (1931)by Igor Stravinsky, Piano Concerto No. 3 in E-flat major, Op. 75 (1892) by Peter Ilyitch Tschaikovsky

A fresh season of City Ballet The Podcast kicks off with New Combinations host and Associate Artistic Director Wendy Whelan in conversation with Repertory Director Craig Hall, Company Pianist Craig Baldwin, and Principal Dancer Chun Wai Chan. Each is intimately involved in the development of Justin Peck's Copland Dance Episodes, NYCB's first non-narrative, evening-length work since Balanchine's 1967 piece Jewels. As Baldwin, Chan, and Hall relate, the experience of taking part in this momentous creation is one rich with the beauty and distinctly American qualities of Copland's music, and the sense of unfettered humanity and community in Peck's choreographic process. (44:50) Edited by Emilie Silvestri Music: "Sisyphus" by Andrew Wegman Bird Wixen Music Publishing, Inc. as agent for Muffet Music Co "Fanfare for the Common Man" (1942), "Rodeo" (1942), "Billy the Kid" (1938), "Appalachian Spring" (1944) by Aaron Copland Performed by Craig Baldwin

For the concluding conversation of this season of The Rosin Box, hosts Claire Kretzschmar and Aarón Sanz are joined by NYCB Principal Dancer Adrian Danchig-Waring, who also serves as the artistic director for the New York Choreographic Institute. The three share memories of their individual experiences with Institute sessions since its launch in 1999, reflecting on the importance of time and space to experiment both for the burgeoning choreographers involved (whose ranks include Justin Peck, Alexei Ratmansky, and Christopher Wheeldon, among many others) and for the dancers cast for each creatively-rewarding and educational two-week period. (57:26) Edited by Emilie Silvestri Music: "Je ne t'aime plus" by Pink Martini Courtesy of Pink Martini & Heinz Records

This week's conversation around The Rosin Box explores the way ballets are passed from generation to generation at New York City Ballet, and the artists who are responsible for carrying on that oral tradition: the Company's repertory directors. Hosts Claire Kretzschmar and Aarón Sanz are joined by Kathleen Tracey, who danced with NYCB for 15 years before becoming a repertory director. Tracey talks about her process—from preparing for rehearsals, to whether she refers to notes, and the essential assessments she makes whenever entering the studio—and the joy she feels from learning something new about the repertory and the dancers every day. (49:35) Edited by Emilie Silvestri Music: "Je ne t'aime plus" by Pink Martini Courtesy of Pink Martini & Heinz Records

This week, hosts Claire Kretzschmar and Aarón Sanz are joined by Shoe Room Supervisor Daniel Wong around The Rosin Box to talk all things footwear at NYCB. Daniel shares how his time as a dancer with Pacific Northwest Ballet and as a merchandiser informs his current position, a role that's all about balancing the art and science of fitting, ordering, and managing over 400 pointe shoes a month—in addition to all the other shoes the Company members use, all of which are housed in the theater's "pointe shoe candy shop." (37:41) Edited by Emilie Silvestri Music: "Je ne t'aime plus" by Pink Martini Courtesy of Pink Martini & Heinz Records

This week we return to The Rosin Box, with co-hosts Aarón Sanz and Claire Kretzschmar in cozy conversation about retirement—a topic fresh on Claire's mind, following her own farewell to performing with the Company this past fall. We join them behind the scenes of her final dress rehearsal and in the wings before she performed the Episodes pas de deux on an emotional yet triumphant night. As Claire shares, she closes the chapter of dancing on the NYCB stage with plenty of wonderful memories to cherish, and much to look forward to—including continuing her role on City Ballet The Podcast. (48:17) Edited by Emilie Silvestri Music: "Je ne t'aime plus" by Pink Martini Courtesy of Pink Martini & Heinz Records Der Rosenkavalier (arranged 1944) by Richard Strauss Music Tales from the Vienna Woods, Op. 325 (1868) by Johann Strauss II Five Pieces, op. 10 (1911-13) by Anton von Webern Ricercata in 6 Voices from Bach's Musical Offering (1935) Arranged by Anton von Webern