It was a splendid night at the ballet. All Balanchine. Ballo della Regina--set to Verdi's original ballet music from Don Carlos--was wonderful. I haven't seen this ballet in years. It's a quick-paced series of variations which show off the dancers nicely. The principal roles were danced by visiting artists from other companies. They were very good: the girl had an attractive seriousness to her and the boy was all perfect landings from his difficult leaps and turns. But I was obsessed by the physique of one of the corps de ballet boys, Aaron Severini. His shoulders and upper arms are the upper torso equivalent of "bow-legged" in a way I find appealing, and he seems assured as a dancer but still very young.

The second ballet, Square Dance, is Balanchine's take on square dancing. Set to the Baroque sounds of Vivaldi and Corelli, it was originally set with an actual square-dance caller who would call out each of the steps to the dancers. That was done away with when the piece was revived 20 years after its premiere, and I suspect (without any real knowledge at all) that the dance steps were fleshed out with more complex combinations than were originally used. I suspect that because the ballet feels very classical--and it was Balanchine's intent to play on the orderly similarities between the American folk-dancing of square dance and the classicism of ballet steps. Anyway, Yvonne Borree was again shaky in the principal girl's role--has she simply lost the rock-steady balance she once had?--but for me the amazing part of the piece was an andante movement danced by her partner, Sebastian Marcovici. His arms are amazingly long, and his broad body and shoulders accentuate the power and length of those arms with every movement. He has a grace that looks quite different from the other dancers in the company.

The last ballet was La Sonnombula, a strange theatrical piece who's plot involves a jealous husband, a poet, and a sleepwalker--so this is pretty much up my alley anyway, and with Wendy Whelan in the role of the sleepwalker it's pretty much as wonderful as it might ever be. She always takes on her roles in a very sound, efficient ways--never quite losing her personal identity as a great actor might, but also inhabiting the role with intelligence and lots of music. The crazy-fast footwork of this role is made for someone who can hold her upper body still as her feet shuffle her around the stage. She didn't disappoint. We like to say: It's Wendy's world, we just live in it.

After the ballet a nice group of us trekked down to Landmarc for dinner: Carter, Andrew, Penny, Pete, Bill and Aidan, and myself. (It was, in fact, the second meal I ate there today. It was Ryan's birthday so I took him to lunch there. Besides I was nursing a pretty bad hangover from my swinging singing night, and Tuesday is Spaghetti Carbonara day at Landmarc, which is perfect hangover food--basically bacon, eggs and cheese on a roll, with pasta substituting for the roll!). I had Marc's perfect foie gras terrine, and then a rare strip steak with seasoned butter. Also, Penny ordered the bone marrow as an appetizer and gave me more than half of it, which I polished off with Andrew. Wow! Bone marrow! Seriously delicious. Serious protein! Andrew impressed us with his stories of NBA locker-rooms (he's a journalist), and Aidan was in his seriously charming mode, which I always appreciate. Also, Bill told me again about an extraordinary English poet, who's name I've forgotten twice now--but I will ask him again for the name so I can buy some books.

Tomorrow: guess what? I'm going to the ballet!