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ToThePointe

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  • Connection to/interest in ballet** (Please describe. Examples: fan, teacher, dancer, writer, avid balletgoer)
    Teacher / Studio Director
  • City**
    San Marcos, CA
  1. I took my son last night to see Don Quixote. I wish I had bought tickets to see Giselle. It was enjoyable, but not what I expected of the Kirov Ballet. I'm usually not a critic, but this just didn't sit well with me. Act I was fine, Act II was disappointing, Act III was okay. The high points were Cupid and the Matador's Girlfriend(?). They were the only ones IMHO that showed true artistry. The costumes in Act II were disappointing. They looked like something purchased from Curtain Call Costumes. It was hard to distinguish who was Queen of the Dryads until her variation. Her extension was incredible, but again IMHO, it is not about what you do, but how you do it, and the artistry just wasn't there. I remember the man behind me commenting how good she was because she could extend her leg to her ear. I'm a dance teacher, and that just doesn't impress me. I've got fourteen year olds that can do that. It looked like many of the dancers were having an off night. Of course, Kirov dancers having an off night are still worth watching. All that being said, my son (10) loved it and during one intermission was trying to do Italian Fouettes on the balcony. Don Quixote is my favorite ballet. I saw it live by ABT with Patrick Bissell as Basil. When I was a teenager, I watched ABT's version on tape almost every night. I think I'll stick to ABT on this one.
  2. What can I say... ABT, Twyla Tharp, and Danny Elfman... just a few of my favorite things. Rabbit and Rogue did not disappoint. It was one of the most phenomenal performances I've ever seen. I was blown away. I don't even have the words to explain. The play between the music and the choreography was perfect, dark and quirky. I would go back every night, especially with ticket prices as low as $25, if I could afford the gas from San Diego to Costa Mesa on top of it. I might try one additional trip anyways.
  3. Thank you for your responses. It is an idea I've had for awhile and I knew I could count on Ballet Talk for insight.
  4. Does anyone know of any pieces of music that are palindromes. I would like to create a piece that is one but need to find the music to do so.
  5. I have a video in which Darci Kistler guests and performs in Pas de Quatre. IMHO She sticks out like a sore thumb. Even if you didn't know it was she, you would know it was someone from NYCB.
  6. I don't know if it is still available but there is also a video of her dancing Cinderella for POB. I don't care for the altered storyline much, but her dancing, as always, is amazing. I saw a clip on Bravo once (it was the end and I couldn't get the tape in fast enough) of her dancing in a cathedral performing an incredible pas de deux where she barely touched the floor. Does anyone know what that was? My dream is to some day get to see her perform Sissy, but it is very unlikely to happen.
  7. I would think that in the arts, we would be able to get past this issue. As a few have stated, the world of opera is very diverse. Dancers have always been at the mercy of the whims of the AD's. Stories abound (true or not) of AD's who would only hire dancers with brown hair, or green eyes, etc. Let's face it, dance is still one of the few industries where you can be hired or fired just on the way you look. Okay, so one black dancer in a corps of white swans might stick out, but what if half of them were black? There are other roles in Swan Lake as well, and to not hire ethnic dancers because of two or three ballets that require uniformity in the corps seems silly. I recently saw Misty Copeland in Giselle. She did not stick out in my opinion. I do not believe that if a black dancer leaves a company, that she should be replaced by a black dancer. I think the best dancer period should get the job, regardless of race. So here's my sad story. My old dance partner (who is black) and I went to a major ballet company's audition for their summer intensive in the early 1990's. He blew the competition away and was accepted into their program. When he went up to the judges to thank them, one of the judges told him that the only reason he was accepted into their program was that they needed to fill their quota. It was a very quiet car ride home. He was an amazing dancer, and was later offered a full scholarship to Ailey. May 24: Editing this to add that I just got the new Dance Magazine, and it addresses this very issue.
  8. In the video ABT Now, Paloma Herrera's balance in the Don Q pas is amazing. At one point Angel Corella offers his hand, and instead of taking it she just allonges out of attitude to arabesque... and he just gets out of the way. My jaw hit the floor.
  9. As I get older and realize what handrails on staircases are for, my mind drifts back to the good old days. It seems like everything hurts anymore and after five hours of teaching my ankles feel like they are going to explode. So here's my premise: If the ballet fairy came to you with her wand and dust, and zapped you back into perfect form and technique (or gave it to you if you never danced) for one night, which ballet / pas de deux/ or solo would you like to relive. For me, it would be the Act II pas from Swan Lake (or just Swan Lake for that matter). Of course I'd want the fairy to zap some extra strength into that left foot/ankle just for good measure. It is not necessarily my favorite ballet to watch (don't get me wrong, I love to watch it, but it's not my top pick), but it was one of my favorites to dance. The music takes me away and it is a ballet that I can get totally lost in. What about you?
  10. His pirouettes are simply amazing. I've never seen a more textbook turn.
  11. If you time warped her to this day and age, she may not make the grade, but if she'd grown up with today's training, it would most likely be a different outcome.
  12. It disappoints me that unlike the musicals presented in the parade that NYCB is not given center stage to present something a little more substantial.
  13. I took me a minute to find the clip so here's where to look... Upon entering go to taet pa and you will find the link for videoklip. An enjoyable tidbit awaits you.
  14. I love PNB's/Sendak's Nutcracker designs. It was so nice to see a new take on an old theme. The Australian Ballet's Coppelia sets are stunning to behold as well, although they almost upstage the dancers.
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