New York City Ballet
Another central factor has been the contribution of Andrew Litton, who joined the company as music director in 2015. He reached a new peak with the late-May performances of Léo Delibes’s marvelously infectious 1870 score for Coppélia. From the overture – the harmonies for the brass instruments playing quietly, the sweeping, rainbowlike melody for the strings – it was evident that this would be a singularly vivid account. New York City Ballet
— Alastair Macaulay, New York Times
Andrew Litton, who is conducting 10 of the 11 performances, shapes the score marvelously. From individual portamenti to overall sections, he really sets a stamp on the music in a way we seldom hear in ballet. His contribution powerfully enriches a patchy show. New York City Ballet; Romeo and Juliet
— Alastair Macaulay, New York Times
The orchestra, under the baton of Andrew Litton, sounds better than it has in years. He has an interpretation, and the orchestra itself sounds confident and present in the pit, creating a solid platform for what is going on onstage. New York City Ballet
— Marina Harss, Dancetabs.com
The Russian visitors and familiar New York stars topped their own previous accomplishments, with the conductor Andrew Litton providing firm tempos and lustrous orchestral playing. New York City Ballet: Balanchine’s Jewels
— Alastair Macaulay, New York Times
The orchestra, led by Andrew Litton, played beautifully. Usually I carp at ballet orchestras, but under the direction of Mr. Litton, the orchestra has become one of the most distinguished in its field. New York City Ballet: Swan Lake
— Barnett Serchuk, Broadway World
The New York City Ballet orchestra, under the baton of Andrew Litton, has held up its side of the bargain. Seldom have I heard it play with such focused intensity, such assurance, and such clarity among the individual players, especially true in the chamber-music-like moments in the Fauré. Litton's interpretation here is infused with a sense of wonder, even rapture. New York City Ballet: Emeralds
— Marina Harss, DanceTabs
Andrew Litton, Tuesday's conductor and the company's music director, isn't invariably a natural accompanist. Mr. Litton keeps raising the City Ballet's orchestral playing. Dance and music meet as shining equals. New York City Ballet; Allegro Brillante, Four Temperaments, Symphony in C
— Alastair Macaulay, New York Times
New York City Ballet's four-week fall season has belonged primarily to its music director, Andrew Litton...familiar scores have returned with new immediacy. Details of orchestral phrasing have registered keenly, with a wealth of color; he gives many scores a strong pulse. For years, the best orchestral playing in American ballet has belonged outside New York; but this may well now be changing.
— Alastair Macaulay, The New York Times
Andrew Litton became music director of New York City Ballet in late 2015. He conducted the entire closing week of the company's spring season - the traditional block of "A Midsummer Night's Dream" performances - and showed all the virtues of his appointment. This was an unusually powerful and eloquent rendition of the music, which is a singular collage of items by Felix Mendelssohn, culled from multiple scores by George Balanchine for his two-act drama. New York City Ballet; Mendelssohn: A Midsummer Night's Dream
— Alastair Macaulay, The New York Times
As conducted by Andrew Litton, the music was newly vibrant: agile in its scurrying, full-bodied in its braying and sweet thunder, hushed in its lullabies. New York City Ballet; Mendelssohn: A Midsummer Night's Dream
— Brian Seibert, The New York Times
Mr. Litton has rearranged the orchestra's seating to create a new balance of sonority. On Tuesday, Mr. Litton and his players ascended into full view to play this opener (Bernstein's Candide) while the curtain remained lowered; the sound of the rearranged strings and wind sections became all the more exciting. This high-energy overture is, in its way, a good orchestral showpiece - loquacious speed, rattling brio, complex ensemble - though I find it introduces tunes for the first time as if it were reiterating them for the hundredth. This performance suggested that this orchestra's sound is becoming both brighter and fuller. New York City Ballet; Bernstein: Candide Overture; Barber: Violin Concerto; Bernstein: Fancy Free; Gershwin: Who Cares?
— Alistair Macaulay, New York Times
The show was the first performance conducted by Andrew Litton since he assumed the post of company music director. That night - and again during Saturday's matinee - all the colors of Tchaikovsky's enduringly enchanting score were especially robust. New York City Ballet; Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker
— Brian Seibert, New York Times