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Roma

Senior Member
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  • Connection to/interest in ballet** (Please describe. Examples: fan, teacher, dancer, writer, avid balletgoer)
    long-term
  • City**
    New Brunswick, NJ
  1. Clearly. As a Russian American who grew up in this country, and simply as a human being, I found your post incredibly offensive and have reported it to the moderators. As to the point that City Ballet tickets are a rare commodity and, therefore, the company, as a free market agent, can raise their prices sky high, I would argue that they should first try selling out the repertory season at the current price. If, as has been reported on the board, their average attendance rate is only 62%, they can not be said to be in possession of a hot commodity, and should sell their tickets at a discount instead of creating a false sense of scarcity by closing off the top two rings.
  2. I don't see why it should defy belief that someone who has traveled for years could one day lose their passport. It can happen to anyone, and it's always unfortunate. Careless, she may be, but I just don't think that an artist of such caliber would risk her reputation with audiences and company management by willfully skipping out on a Met engagement.
  3. I would imagine that Osipova is contractually obligated to fulfill her ABT dates, since unlike the Bolshoi they are not in the habit and probably can't afford to make principal casting changes unless an injury forces them to (as was the case with Vishneva's appearances last spring). As Helene pointed out, it's feasible for Osipova to dance Corsaire in D.C. on the 20th, although 3 full-lengths in 4 days is really tough going...
  4. It now appears that Natalia Osipova’s performances with ABT this spring may be jeopardized by the powers that be at her home company. The Bolshoi has just released its Kennedy Center schedule listing Osipova for two evening performance of “Corsaire”, on June 17th and 20th. Her dates for ABT’s “La Sylphide” are June 17 and 19 (also evening), and these have been set since September. So appearances in New York and D.C. would seem to be mutually exclusive. According to Osipova’s interview with Moscow critic Tatiana Kuznetsova (given at the end of October and published on balletfriends.ru http://forum.balletfriends.ru/viewtopic.php?p=67756#67756 on Jan 29, 2009) both the outgoing and the incoming Bolshoi administrations (Ratmansky and Burlaka) were aware of and had expressly approved her ABT engagement, so is this simply a casting oversight or something else? Can anyone shed light on this situation?
  5. Natalia, that "rumor" is true. Denis has signed as a principal, Anastasia is going over as first soloist. It was in today's papers (Nezavisimaja Gazeta)
  6. I think that for some reason, it's more or less standard practice at the Bolshoi Academy to use young men from the company to partner the girls from the school.
  7. Natalia, thank you for a detailed report! Actually, Ovcharenko and Tsvirko are both 2007 graduates and joined the Bolshoi last fall (they are listed on the company website). It seems a bit misleading of the school to present them as students. Ovcharenko won gold at Perm this year and has danced some major soloist roles with the company. (There is a video of his Fisherman from La Fille du Pharaon "out there".)
  8. If I am remembering correctly, the all-Balanchine/all-Tchaikovsky program ABT put together in 2004 was overstuffed but sold very well.
  9. Mozartiana (1981 version) is among Balanchine’s greatest masterpieces, and, I think, one of the greatest masterpieces in any art form. But it’s a delicate work. Not in architecture, which is superb and breathtaking, but in musical phrasing and the tonality, the intention given to the steps. There have been some impressive readings of the ballerina role, though none that I saw ever came close to the wonder that Farrell was in it. The prayer gestures sometimes look positively domestic.
  10. Suberb, it certainly was. Corella was not always unerringly elegant, but Vishneva was pitch perfect. A role and dancer have met.
  11. I thought that Vishneva was, as Manhattnik used to say, the cat's pajamas last Wednesday evening. The acting has gotten 100% better since the 2002 performances Dale was referring to, and her dancing was emotionally charged and expansive up to and including her first entrance as a Shade. Thereafter she began to look a little tired. I also thought Stiefel overcompensated through overacting, and that the ballet didn't gel as theater that evening, though I blame Makarova's digest version for that.
  12. I am fairly certain that the costume is from Bejart's I Trionfi del Petrarca. Farrell danced Laura in that ballet.
  13. What terrific news! Congratulations to Mr. Hubbe, and to RDB for finally getting it right. Best of luck.
  14. I apologize if this has been mentioned elsewhere on the board already. Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo's "Gay Parisian" has finally been released on DVD (accompanied by "Maltese Falcon"). Fonteyn's Ondine and Firebird with Somes have also been released. Both DVDs are being sold on DanceBooks and are coded for region 2 only (UK). But once 'the genie' is out, it's bound to come to the US sooner or later.
  15. It could be the ticket prices--the highest ever this season. $75 for third ring seats at a kiddie matinee is really pushing it.
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