It's Not That Time Yet

As much as Katja loves Christmas (and is counting the days until her trip to Germany for the Christmas markets), she was slightly disturbed to stumble upon a rather sizable display of Christmas trees and décor a few weeks ago. I mean, she hasn’t even figured out what she’s going to be for Halloween. On that subject, it most definitely is pumpkin season, as well as that time of year when the weather starts getting noticeably cooler.

While Katja has been happy to switch to her fall/winter wardrobe (as cute as they are, she was starting to get bored of her summer dresses), she’s really not a fan of the cold. She hasn’t, however, let the cooler temperatures keep her from trekking up to the Upper East Side for her ballet classes, and from getting out and about in the city. Because while she's definitely not a cold weather kind of girl, she's even less of a stay at home and just hang out kind of girl.

Besides Ballet Academy East (her home away from home), Katja has been spending a lot of time at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She can often be found researching at the Watson Library (which she highly recommends to anybody with art historical research to do), as well as waddling through the museum's endless galleries. It is, after all, no fun to just read about art when there are so many wonderful things to see. Katja also recently attended a preview and reception for Ancient Egypt Transformed: The Middle Kingdom.

She enjoyed checking out the exhibition, and then having drinks in the beautiful Carroll and Milton Petrie European Sculpture Court; she does, after all, love a glass of red wine along with her art. And even better to be able to sip that wine next to Antonio Canova's Perseus with the Head of Medusa (1804-6), which she thinks is pretty fabulous.

Katja had another opportunity to mix cocktails and culture at Choreographers and Cocktails, a benefit for the Joyce Theater, which is one of her favorite places to see dance. The event took place at the DANY Studios, where seven different companies - American Dance Machine for the 21st Century, Abraham.In.Motion, Dorrance Dance, KEIGWIN+COMPANY, MADBOOTS DANCE, Monica Bill Barnes & Company Productions, and Pam Tanowitz Dance - held open rehearsals. She very much enjoyed the evening, wandering from studio to studio, a glass of wine in hand, to watch the dancers rehearse. And afterwards, during the cocktail hour, she even got in a bit of dancing herself (she is, without question, a first on the dance floor kind of girl).

Of course she doesn't need wine to enjoy her culture, and could also be found at various performances over the past few weeks. She caught two Fall for Dance programs at the lovely New York City Center - the first one she saw featured Compagnie Hervé KOUBI (which she loved), Steven McRae, Project FFD: Pam Tanowitz, and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, and the second Nrityagram, San Francisco Ballet, Stephen Petronio Company, and Dorrance Dance.

And while Katja generally sticks to dance, she decided it was time to change things up a bit by seeing some plays. A big fan of the novels of Emile Zola, she was excited to see Thérèse Raquin at the Studio 54 Theatre. She thoroughly enjoyed the play, and was happy that it did Zola's novel justice. She also very much enjoyed seeing a friend in Letters To Sala at the Barrow Group Theatre. Of course she's biased, but she thinks she has amazingly talented friends.

Not surprisingly, Katja also managed to make her way up to Boston a few times over these past weeks. The nomadic type that she is, she can't go much more than a week without traveling somewhere, and as Boston has rather unexpectedly become something of a second home to her, she's happy for any excuse to go up there. And it's never too hard for her to find a good excuse, such as a cocktail making seminar that a friend organized at Ames Street Deli (she chooses her friends wisely). The theme of the evening was New Orleans cocktails, and the cocktail of choice was the Sazerac. Luckily the bartender let her make hers with cognac instead of whiskey, as she's not really a whiskey drinking kind of girl (cognac, on the other hand...). And not to boast, but she must say she was rather impressed with her cocktail making skills.

Katja also went up for a season kick-off party for the Young Partners of the Boston Ballet. She enjoyed catching up with friends and having a few too many glasses of red wine, but mostly she's looking forward to the start of the season, and seeing John Neumeier's Third Symphony of Gustav Mahler.

Of course Katja does more in Boston than just go to parties (not that it would be bad thing if that's all she did), and thus made her way to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, a place she hadn’t been in ages. She thinks the museum, in a building designed to evoke a 15th century Venetian palace, is ever so lovely. She's a big fan of the themed rooms, the Tapestry Room and the Gothic Room probably being her two favorites (although they're all rather wonderful, so she can't say for certain). And, as the dance lover that she is, she's partial to John Singer Sargent's painting El Jaleo (1882).

So, basically Katja's just been hanging out with friends

and doing her usual art-dance-adult beverage thing. It's a rather nice routine to have, don't you think?

Déjà vu

As Katja writes she finds herself exactly where she was just three weeks ago, in the United lounge at Newark (not pictured above, she's just pretending it's as nice as the fancy New York lobby where she met someone earlier this week), waiting for a flight and once again eating snacks she doesn’t need. This time, however, she decided to pass on the wine; she’s not an afternoon drinker, and with all of the socializing she’s been doing lately she knows she should probably take a break, well at least until she arrives in Mexico City, which is where she is currently headed.

The past few weeks have been nonstop, with numerous visitors (one coming from as far away as Bangkok), and, not surprisingly, lots of dance related events and performances. Among the highlights was the Joyce Theater Foundation’s Annual Gala, which this year featured the Royal Ballet. Katja is lucky she actually made the gala, as Mother Nature was not in a good mood that day, leashing a torrential downpour upon the city. Thankfully Mother Nature seems to have needed a break from her storm-making, during which Katja was able to get herself to the Lincoln Center, arriving dry, albeit somewhat flustered. But still looking very fashionable and cute, of course.

The evening began with a performance of Frederick Ashton’s The Dream (based on Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream; the dancers looked great although Katja has never particularly been a fan of his work. She’s more of a contemporary loving girl and much preferred Wayne McGregor’s Infra, with music by Max Richter, which was part of the second program (and which she saw on another very rainy day later in the week – Mother Nature must be upset with someone). After the gala performance it was time for dinner, lots of red wine (alcohol always seemingly more plentiful than food at these events), and dancing. Thankfully she had a fun table, as she wasn’t in the mood for an evening of dull small talk; although after a few glasses of wine even that can become somewhat bearable.

There was also lots of wine and bubbly to be had at a reception she attended the following evening at the Phillips Gallery, which is currently showing Complicities, an exhibition of Brigitte Lacombe’s photography. The evening was in honor of Larry Keigwin, the first choreographer to create a dance on the Paul Taylor Dance Company, as part of Taylor Company Commissions. Katja is looking forward to seeing his piece, but she’ll have to wait until next year, as it won’t premiere in New York City until the Company’s Lincoln Center season.

Katja also found the time to see the Polish National Ballet at the Joyce, where it was making its New York debut. The program, which Katja enjoyed, featured two works by Krzysztof Pastor, the Company’s director, and one by Emanual Gat. She also caught one of New York Theatre Ballet’s Legends & Visionaries programs at its new home in St. Mark’s Church. And, she even ventured from her usual dance going routine (it’s always important to expand one’s horizons, after all) to see a friend in The Pavilion, a play at the Barrow Group Theatre. The acting is great and the play has just been extended for two weeks; she recommends you see it if you live in New York and have the chance.

When not attending performances it’s been nonstop socializing with visitors from DC, Philadelphia, Los Angeles and Thailand. Luckily, despite all of this activity she was able to resume her usual schedule of ballet classes, and even find the time for some extra ones, as she’ll be missing many with her travels. Also, she finds that being constantly on the go makes her much more productive with her research, writing, and anything else that needs doing on the various Robert Indiana projects with which she's assisting.

Or maybe she just likes to tell herself that so she can justify squeezing in that extra class or two…

…because she really does love to dance.

More Culture and More Cocktails

Katja had planned to start off the month of May by heading to Los Angeles for a West Coast adventure, however she sadly had to cancel her trip last minute. Thankfully there’s no shortage of adventures to be had in New York, so she was able to quickly fill her social calendar with outings that involve her favorite things - the arts, and wine/bubbly. She thus found herself in Queens, a place where she rarely ventures (she can be such a Manhattan snob), at MoMA PS1, for the recently opened Math Bass exhibition.

Although she spent most of her time there sipping bubbly, unlike at the last museum reception she attended she did at least take the time to peruse the exhibition, which she very much enjoyed. Then, instead of wisely heading home (life’s too short for wise decisions), she found herself drinking passion fruit margaritas at Esquina’s Cinco de Mayo party. A lover of accessories/party favors she doesn’t need, Katja was particularly excited to go home with a sombrero and maracas (although also rather embarrassed to be partaking in the ridiculous stereotyping of Mexican culture that accompanies Cinco de Mayo festivities).

She also came home with accessories - lovely orchid leis - from a dinner she attended at the beautiful, albeit rather stuffy, Metropolitan Club. The dinner was in honor of the naming of a street after Father Damien, a 19th century Belgian priest who worked with lepers in Hawaii. The whole event seemed somewhat surreal, and the much too long speeches by government officials and medical professionals about infectious tropical diseases were rather dull, but thankfully the bubbly and wine were free flowing, making it all much more bearable (even fun).

Katja then had a few unusually calm days as family was visiting, so she thought it best to be at her most respectable. She thus found herself at a museum simply to see art, not because a party was involved. The Neue Galerie is one of her favorites; she loves the museum’s permanent collection as well as its temporary exhibitions, and going there always makes her feel, even if only for a brief moment, that she is back in Vienna, one of her favorite cities.

The museum excursion was followed by dinner at the Milling Room, a lovely spacious restaurant with very tasty food and good cocktails. That said, she probably won’t be back, as she generally avoids the Upper West Side (too many strollers), unless she’s headed to see something at the Lincoln Center. Sadly she was too full for dessert right after dinner, but once she had a bit of time to digest she indulged in some Marzipan Kartoffeln that she had picked up earlier at Schaller & Weber, a wonderful German store in Yorkville. She did of course accompany them with a glass of red wine, which, I believe she might have mentioned once or twice before, makes everything taste better (of course a glass of bubbly will also do).

As she wasn’t able to get to LA Katja found herself back in Boston on two separate occasions. Not quite as exciting, but the gypsy at heart that she is, she can’t go too long without going somewhere. Plus, there was more ballet to be seen, and she rather likes her friends there. On her first trip she saw Edge of Vision again (different casts), and then it was a reception and dress rehearsal for Thrill of Contact, the last production of Boston Ballet’s 2014-2015 season.

In fact it’s been a dance filled few weeks, as she also saw Hubbard Street Dance Chicago's two different programs at The Joyce. It’s her favorite place to see dance in New York, and Hubbard Street is one of her favorite companies, so she was a happy penguin (and one night there was a reception with free-flowing bubbly, which made her even happier).

Katja also caught a New York City Ballet performance; it was an all Balanchine program so not her favorite. Anyway, she must admit the main reason she went was for the post-performance Young Patrons party, “The Parisian Affair on the Promenade.” And, as hard as it might be to believe, there was, once again, too much bubbly consumed. She had a great time dancing the night away with friends, and happily found herself coming home with a black tutu (it wouldn’t be a party if she left empty-handed), perfect for when she’s having a Black Swan moment.

The Parisian theme had her thinking of her trip there last month, and wishing that her trip to London wasn’t four weeks away. But, even though she has to wait almost a month to put her passport to use again, she was able to end the week pretending she was abroad at the St. George's Ukrainian Festival. It’s an event she loves, and one of the many things that reminds her why even though she’d often rather be in Europe, that New York City is a pretty fabulous place to be.

Out and About

Katja has been a very busy girl since getting back from Paris, not that she would have it any other way. Besides spending many hours researching at the Christie’s library (believe it or not she does actually work sometimes), it has been the usual mix of culture, ballet classes, and socializing taking up most of her time.

She had a very fun evening at one of the opening receptions for the new Renzo Piano designed Whitney Museum of Art, a stunning building downtown with lots of outdoor exhibition space and terraces, and beautiful views from the rooftop. Katja must admit that she spent more time drinking and catching up with her friend than she did looking at art; this is certainly not the first time this has happened, and pretty much inevitable any time there is an open bar with bubbly (there was even a choice between brut and rosé). Good thing the current exhibition is on until the end of September.

Katja also attended a reception at the new space for NYU’s Center for Ballet and the Arts. She learned all about the Center’s mission and upcoming programs, and was able to catch up with a friend over a glass (well two or three) of red wine.

Katja loves going to performances, and last week was a particularly performance-filled one She hadn’t seen an opera since her trip to Budapest, so she eagerly joined a friend at the Metropolitan Opera for a performance of Cavalleria Rusticana (one of her favorites), and Pagliacci. There was a pre-show reception where Katja found herself drinking red wine (yet again), and chatting with some members of the chorus, who were indulging in some wine before heading off to sing (Katja obviously chose the wrong career).

Then it was off to Boston to catch the opening night performance of Edge of Vision, the latest production of her favorite ballet company, Boston Ballet. She hopped on a Lucky Star bus in the morning, which got her to the city in time for some pre-show shopping (Mother’s Day gifts!) and to catch up with a friend. Then it was off to the Opera House. Katja enjoyed the show and socializing during intermission, and charmed a very friendly usher, who provided her with a booster seat so that she would be able to see properly (it’s hard being short).

Back in New York for the weekend, she went to her favorite local spot for dance, The Joyce, where she saw the Lyon Opera Ballet. She was supposed to go to a party afterwards but opted instead to have a relaxing dinner at Prova, a delicious pizzeria across the street from the theater. A good Pizza Margherita is one of Katja’s favorite foods, and the restaurant’s DOP, with mozzarella di bufala, was particularly divine. And of course, like most things, it tasted even better accompanied by a glass or two of red wine.