American Ballet Theatre closed its spring season at Lincoln Center this week with Sleeping Beauty, in the production that has been the company's standard staging since the early 2000s. The production's familiarity makes the casting choices the principal source of interest in any given run; this run's casting paid off in ways that the season's earlier productions had not consistently delivered.

The pairing

The principal pairing of Aurora and the Prince was given to Mei Park and Felix Robles, dancers whose individual work has been the subject of attention but whose pairing had not, until this run, been tested at the principal-role level. The pairing produced the kind of mutual understanding that the long classical adagios depend on.

The Lilac Fairy

The Lilac Fairy, performed by Diana Estrada, anchored the production's second-tier work. Estrada's authority in the role was the steadying presence the production needs across its long architecture; the production benefits when this role is given the weight it deserves.

The corps

The corps work was the most consistent of the season. The Garland Waltz and the Vision Scene both showed the kind of ensemble cohesion that ABT's training programme has been working toward over the past several seasons.

The orchestra

The orchestra under music director Charles Lindberg played the Tchaikovsky with the kind of unhurried confidence that the score rewards. The tempi were closer to the score's slower indications than recent ABT readings have favoured; the choice gave the dancers room that they used.

The verdict

ABT's spring season closer was the strongest evening of the season's classical programming. The pairing of Park and Robles is one to watch across the company's coming productions; the company's investment in their development is paying off at a pace that observers had not necessarily expected.