Rainer Krenstetter - Principal (Miami City Ballet): An interview
To be quite frank with you: If you're having a bad day, if you are not quite well, just give Rainer Krenstetter a call. I recommend him to you immensely: meet him and you will be amazed at how wonderful you will feel afterwards! This Gentleman is one of the most positive characters I have met in the last years. His way of looking at things is fresh, uncomplicated, intelligent, respectful but also critical - and at the same time full of humour... l'art de vivre, to make it short. Simply a joy to sit down and talk to him! I am glad I have done just that last June!
We met at the traditional „Café Mozart", very near the Opera, to have a short talk, as our time was somehow limited. A very „Viennese" spot downtown to this most international man whose education as a dancer did not only take place in Vienna but also at the Royal Ballet School.
Mr Krennstetter, a native from Vienna, who does not really need an introduction, left his hometown and the Corps de Ballet of the Vienna State Opera in 2002, at a very young age, to work with the Berlin State Ballet under Vladimir Malakhof. After being promoted in 2003 to Demi-Soloist, he became a Principal in 2004 (All this after winning 1999 first place of the Prix de Lausanne). Since 2012 he has been working with the Miami City Ballet, a fact that gave him another kind of professional development and vision. A very different one in comparison to one he would have had, had he stayed in Europe. But I will have to explain this more closely: During this pandemic, for obvious reasons, I developed a stronger contact with dancers all over the world – I wrote more emails, I telephoned more with them, I „zoomed" quite a lot. Very soon you will be able to read the results of that as many interviews, pieces of research, articles are a result of this most creative time during which we had the unique chance of confronting more our beliefs, questions, ideologies, tastes and our "interiors". I like that.
Somebody once said „There are no coincidences" and, with the passing of time, I tend to believe this more and more. As „fate" would have it, there were a number of casualties that lead me to study, research and, primarily, „compare" the European and the American ways of forming Dancers and their minds. As I will be soon dedicating a whole article to this issue, I will not go much into that today but I would like to leave you with a taste of it... And just by mentioning the word „Dynamic" when thinking of Dance in America, is a big clue to the way my thoughts have been wandering while occupied with this subject.
Dynamic. Yes.
After greeting each other, ordering something to drink and catching up a bit, we came right to the point and reason of our meeting because, as I have already mentioned, our time was somehow limited:
„Dear Rainer, talking about the répertoire in The Miami City Ballet: what would you say are the strongest differences to the European Ballet Companies?"
He does not have to ponder this question and answers „We have a new répertoire every year; perhaps with the exception of „Midsummer Night's Dream" and „Jewels" that are mostly kept as part of the Season's programme"
„And „The Nutcracker", of course", I add smilingly.
„Yes, „The Nutcracker", of course!", he winks.
„Do you see any „problems" with this kind of policy?"
„Except for the continuity in order to achieve better command of certain roles – just by being on stage many times with the same production, you are able to understand, master more the roles you are playing in order to polish, refine them"
Tricia Albertson and Rainer Krenstetter in Bourrée Fantasque. Choreography by George Balanchine
© The George Balanchine Trust. Photo © Gene Schiavone.
„I understand this very well... I must say that „from far away", I very much admire Lourdes Lopez' direction work. I try to follow it, whenever I can, the (many) news from the Company as for example when it started performing Twyla Tharp's „Nine Sinatra Songs" (By the way, there's an interview with Lourdes and Twyla at youtube, that is delightfully informal and interesting. It must have been taped by the time „Songs" was being added to MCN's répertoire) and when Jerome Robbins' „I'm old fashioned" was still being rehearsed! Wasn't MCB the first company to perform „I'm old fashioned" outside of New York City Ballet?"
„Yes, it was... and OH, I love that Ballet"
„Which are your favourite ones, by the way, Rainer?"
„Good question and not an easy one... But „Apollo", „Bourré Fantasque" and „Slaughter on Tenth Avenue" are positively on the top of my list" he adds and I keep wondering that I have never seen „Bourré Fantasque". I have a programme and I have to find it again... My parents were lucky enough to be at a New York City Ballet's performance during the Salzburg Festival, 1956 when it was performed in Austria. I don't think it is in the repertoire of any European Company at the moment.
And this is also another exciting thing about Mr Krenstetter's career: the opportunities he had to dance in so many ballets that are very seldom performed in Europe – well, if performed at all, Ballets as „Midsummer Night's Dream" (with the exception of the Mariinsky at the moment), „Slaughter", „Who cares?", „I'm old fashioned" etc.
Tricia Albertson and Rainer Krenstetter in “Emeralds” from Jewels. Choreography by George Balanchine
© The George Balanchine Trust. Photo © Alexander Iziliaev.
All this Balanchine and Robbins Legacy – so much more nearer philosophically to the „New York City Ballet" than, let's say, the (original) „Los Angeles Ballet" (1974-1985). But that is completely another story and it would be like comparing apples to pears. John Clifford's knowledge and Edward Villela's - Both were the founders of the „Los Angeles Ballet" in 1974 and „Miami City Ballet" in 1985 - of the above-mentioned legacies. Mr Clifford was just for a very short period of time (8 years) with the New York City Ballet, becoming a Soloist during his last 5 years there. Edward Villela's experience with the NYCB is quite different. He not only went to the School of the American Ballet (1946-1956) which was under the direction of George Balanchine but was a member of the New York City Ballet from 1957 until 1978! More than 30 years under this "roof". But, as I have mentioned, this is another Story to be carefully told someday.
In Mr Krenstetter's case, this precious legacy added to the vast répertoire and roles in the great classics as Prince Siegfried in „Swan Lake", Albrecht in „Giselle", Prince Desiré in „Sleeping Beauty" as well as the main roles in Uwe Scholz's „Firebird" and Eifman's „Tchaikowsky" just to name a few, speak for itself. Experience!
„Comparing the States to Europe and the private donors/sponsors that make the Ballet World „possible" in America to the more federally oriented system in many European countries... what do you say to the „Liberty" that Ballet Artistic directors have when creating a new Season? Do you think that Donors/Sponsors insist on certain issues and have „preferences"?"
He pauses for a few seconds, pondering exactly and as if reviewing a long film within a few seconds, letting it pass through his mind "Of course I have heard from Ballets, whole evenings, that were scheduled because one person gave the whole money to finance it... IT! „
„Well, if the money is given „like that", why not?" I say „It somehow reflects the wishes of a wide audience. At long last, it is what the public wants to see and not only what the Artistic Director wants to "impose". This is the other side of the medal, not true? Sometimes I also miss a more "democratic" way when a new Season is being planned... But this is another story"
„It surely is the other side of the medal" he answers, adding „But I think that directors like Lourdes have the experience of how to make it, not only knowledgeably but also with lots of charm. Everybody is happy „at the end of the day", I guess!"
„Also with the „Three Ballets Evenings-Formula?"
Yes", he laughs „ and unbelievably, they are what Americans prefer – I know; in Europe people prefer to sit down and watch/listen/ have a long story, like, „Swan Lake", „Giselle", „La Baydére" etc. told... They prefer narrative ballets - well, not in America!"
„Do you see a big difference between the way dancers work in Europe and in the U.S.A.?"
„I think Ricardo, that I notice more the way we used to work and how the younger generation is working today. You see, I grew up in this milieu not only asking, discussing, thinking, philosophizing about ballet at home with my parents but everywhere I studied and worked. This is part of me... Nowadays this is not happening anymore"
His touching a theme that depresses me profoundly, made me only say „Yes, I know" to him, sadly „The problem is that not going deep into the “whys and becauses” the quality of the performance given is totally superficial – how was it when you worked closely to Malakhof in Berlin?"
Rainer Krenstetter in Swan Lake. Choreography by George Balanchine© The George Balanchine Trust. Photo © Gene Schiavone.
He smiles as if remembering precious times "Ah, Ricardo, to work with him was a great experience. Yes. Great! I remember rehearsals for my „first" Swan Lake as Siegfried. We rehearsed daily for two solid months and every day there was an open-end. Yes, we should rehearse just until 6:30 pm but we rehearsed until we were ready – I remember him saying to me, also when times very hard and critical: "You want to get it right, don't you?" And this was a lesson that I have learned for the rest of my life, I still carry it inside of me."
„I can well imagine... „
„It was one of the hardest times in my whole life but one that I have kept in my memory. Everything must/should make sense. I was taught always to ask why? Why is he (for example Siegfried) doing that? Why is he walking this way? Why is he looking up? To see the Swan flying? What is he thinking when he is doing this and that? And the list goes on"
I could not help remembering Sir Anthony Dowell looking up into the sky, very high indeed because the Swan, „Odette" - who would soon enter the stage in the persona of Makarova at the Royal Opera House - was flying up there (Mind you; a Swan flies, all types of Swans can fly. And it can fly very high, contradicting the „legend" that makes people laugh about a Prince looking up to the sky - Just for the record: when migrating Swans can even fly at 6 to 8 thousand feet! But once more I have to say: this is another Story!)
„But" he continues „this same precious kind of experience was to happen many times again in the course of my career. With Lourdes for example and definitely with Reid Anderson with whom I had a very special time rehearsing for „Onegin"!"
Emily Bromberg and Rainer Krenstetter in This Bitter Earth, Choreography by Christopher Wheeldon ©. Photo © Alexander Iziliaev.
We could have stayed there for hours, chatting, exchanging ideas but unfortunately, I am not the Marschallin in „Der Rosenkavalier", so I cannot have all clocks stopped so time will not pass by...
One thing „I take away" with me as a memento from this pleasant time with Rainer: not only his humour, simplicity, his knowledge, freshness but his Naturality. Yes, Naturality in every sense. Especially while talking about Ballet; a theme so natural for him, a theme he discussed daily at home with his parents, a theme he grew up with. Is there something more natural for him than Dance? You cannot compare the naturality of this due to his growing up and being brought up in a family of Artistes (Both his parents, Gottfried Krenstetter and his mother Rosi were Dancers at the Vienna State Opera) and, as I always say: it has to come naturally. It does.
But this is only the case with somebody like him - one that does not have to prove anything, neither to the audiences nor to himself. He is a Dancer.
What a pleasant afternoon with Mr Krenstetter!
