Out & About
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
SAN FRANCISCO BALLET AT LINCOLN CENTER
While Lincoln Center cherishes its regular constituents, this year’s Lincoln Center Festival presents the opportunity to welcome talent from around the world. On Tuesday, the New York State Theater welcomed the San Francisco Ballet — the oldest ballet company in America — who last performed there in 1994.
“We are delighted to be back. It’s been a long time,” the company’s artistic director and choreographer, Helgi Tomasson, said at a patron’s dinner before the performance. It was a return to a stage that Mr. Tomasson knew well as a performer: He danced with the New York City Ballet between 1970 and 1985.
For Mr. Tomasson, deciding what to program for Tuesday’s performance was difficult. Ultimately, he went with a two-hour program that involved every dancer in the company. “The program is everything you need to know about the San Francisco Ballet,” he said. “You’ll see a lot of different things, contemporary, classical, modern. The company has the second-largest repertoire of Jerome Robbins next to the New York City Ballet.”
The program was jam-packed and ranged wildly in mood and style. New York balletomanes in attendance included Agnes Gund and Daniel Shapiro, Peter and Susan Ralston, Vera Wang and Arthur Becker, and Kenneth and Kathryn Chenault. Ms. Wang and Ms. Chenault are major supporters of the company’s tour.
There were plenty of proof that the company hadn’t left its heart back home: More than 40 of the ballet’s 65 trustees flew to New York for the opening night. As the co-chairwoman of the ballet, Pamela Joyner, watched the performance, she filled me on dancers’ personalities and milestones, demonstrating her intimate connection with the company.
“Oh, they are on tonight,” she said.
