December 30 , 2010
“Time to Turn the Cultural Page”
“Critics, reporters and editors of The New York Times have scanned the cultural horizon of the months ahead, and several offerings have caught their eyes. The creative minds behind the satiric animated series “South Park” take on Broadway with “The Book of Mormon,” a musical history of the founding of the Mormon Church, opening on March 24, while the actor Brian Bedford brings Oscar Wilde’s “Importance of Being Earnest” to the Roundabout Theater Company on Jan. 13. The Metropolitan Opera production of John Adams’s “Nixon in China” arrives on Feb. 2, with the director Peter Sellars making his Met debut. The exciting New York City Ballet dancer Sara Mearns should take on new roles, and the Merce Cunningham Dance Company will take its final bows.
To judge by her 2010 form, Sara Mearns — currently the great American ballerina of our time — will be the single local dancer to watch in ballet. I find myself longing not only to know what new roles will come her way at New York City Ballet, but also what her influence will be on other dancers in the company. (The troupe’s winter repertory season opens on Jan. 18 at the David H. Koch Theater.)”