ABT presents the classics with slightly uneven results

Chloe Misseldine as Nikiya and Joo Won Ahn as Solor in The Kingdom of the Shades

Herman Cornejo and Léa Fleytoux in Ashton's Rhapsody pas de deux

SunMi Park and Michael de la Nuez in Grand Pas Classique

Isabella Boylston and Calvin Royal III in The Sleeping Beauty Act 3

By Ivy Lin, 27 October 2025

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“one spectacular performance: Takumi Miyake as Bluebird”

Reviewed at Lincoln Center: David H Koch Theater, New York City on 25 October 2025

The Kingdom of the Shades (La Bayadère) (Natalia Makarova, Marius Petipa)

Rhapsody (pas de deux) (Sir Frederick Ashton)

The Sleeping Beauty (Act 3) (Marius Petipa, Susan Jaffe)

Grand Pas Classique (Victor Gsovsky)

American Ballet Theatre

Pier Luigi Samaritani, Set Designer

Theoni Aldredge, Costume Designer

Toshiro Ogawa, Lighting Designer

American Ballet Theatre Orchestra

Willa Kim, Costume Designer

Chloe Misseldine, Dancer

Joo Won Ahn, Dancer

Léa Fleytoux, Dancer

Fangqi Li, Dancer

Elisabeth Beyer, Dancer

Herman Cornejo, Dancer

SunMi Park, Dancer

Michael de la Nuez, Dancer

Takumi Miyake, Dancer

Yoon Jung Seo, Dancer

Calvin Royal III, Dancer

Isabella Boylston, Dancer

Natalia Makarova's La Bayadère: a night to remember in Oslo

Vikki Jane Vile, 17th April

Norwegian National Ballet gives a marvellous rendition of Natalia Makarova's La Bayadère. Opening night in Oslo was a strong argument for its place in any season, displaying ballet escapism at its best.

****1

Kingdom of the Shades is a company's ultimate test

Ivy Lin, 27th October

Artistic Director, Susan Jaffe, reviving the Kingdom of the Shades for ABT’s Fall Season was both a testament to her trust in her company, and also a test.

****1

Norwegian National Ballet: strong and harmonious, especially the corps

Jonathan Gray, 9th November

Norwegian National Ballet return to the classics with surprising ease.

***11

A love letter to the art of classical ballet: La Bayadère in Oslo

Jenifer Sarver, 22nd March

Norwegian National Ballet opened its new run of Natalia Makarova’s staging, with Whitney Jensen and Lania Atkins making outstanding impressions as Nikiya and Gamzatti.

*****

Núñez shines in a star-studded, polished Bayadère

Alexandra Desvignes, 1st November

With all the right ingredients – acte blanc, love intrigue, dramatic death – La Bayadère is a classic Russian ballet.

****1

San Francisco Ballet : Classical twists

Terez Rose, 24th February

San Francisco Ballet's Program 3 explores the boundaries of classicism, from both ends, with La Bayadère's 'Kingdom of the Shades' , and neoclassical works from Hans van Manen, William Forsythe and Myles Thatcher.

****1

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Ivy Lin

Ivy Lin's love of ballet began in high school when at the school dance she quickly realized she had two left feet. One always admires things one cannot do, and so Ivy began to attend dance performances to marvel at the grace and beauty of bodies in motion. Ivy's day job is a biology teacher and after a long day in the classroom she loves to unwind by watching dance. She also enjoys theater, opera, pop and classical music. Ivy has her own blog (www.humbledandoverwhelmed,blogspot.com)

American Ballet Theatre presents the classics with slightly uneven results