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rg

Editorial Advisor
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Everything posted by rg

  1. Anna Petrovna Urakova danced the role of La Bonne Fée in 1900
  2. probably this one? George Balanchine's The Nutcracker DVD New York City Ballet (Actor), Megan Fairchild (Actor), Alan Skog (Director), Katherine E. Brown (Director)
  3. f.y.i. .nytimes.com/2018/05/18/arts/paul-taylor-chooses-a-successor-michael-novak.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Farts&action=click&contentCollection=arts&region=rank&module=package&version=highlights&contentPlacement=2&pgtype=sectionfront
  4. the Peasant Pas de Deux on May 15 was Joseph Gorak and Skylar Brandt - there was a loud-speaker announcement but the chattering crowd largely talked over it.
  5. the English translation long used for the Russian language title of La Fille Mal Gardée is VAIN PRECAUTIONS.
  6. rg

    Sean Lavery Passing

    S.L. was one of many who came to prominent professional careers out of the ballet school linked to Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet; news of this death is quite unexpected. He was initially known in NYC as Owen as that was his given name and the name he used when performing with the dance groups connected to Richard Thomas's New York School of Ballet, sometimes called U.S. Terpshichore.
  7. Disc 2 of this package has now been completed and has been sent out to those who initially got the title without the 2nd disc, the contents, as noted above, are as follows: Bonus Features: The Immortal Swan, 1935 feature documentary by Pavlova's partner Victor D’Andre with amazing footage of the great ballerina Anna Pavlova in Newsreels Anna Pavlova's own 9.5mm home movies! Films of Anna Pavlova dancing her most famous roles
  8. likewise there are those who presume Lincoln Center is named for Lincoln Kirstein
  9. the "Revisions" heading of the entry from the Balanchine Catalog on line notes the following: Revisions: New York City Ballet: 1955, HALLOWE'EN replaced by ARGUMENTS (second movement of String Quartet No. 2, 1907); later that year ARGUMENTS replaced by BARN DANCE (from Washington's Birthday, 1909); 1961, OVER THE PAVEMENTS and BARN DANCE eliminated, IN THE INN rechoreographed, ballet presented in the order CENTRAL PARK IN THE DARK, THE UNANSWERED QUESTION, IN THE INN, IN THE NIGHT; 1978, Peter Martins's Calcium Light Night (also to Ives) included in several performances presented in the order CENTRAL PARK IN THE DARK, IN THE INN, THE UNANSWERED QUESTION, CALCIUM LIGHT NIGHT, IN THE NIGHT.
  10. this now in: We slipped up on THE DUMB GIRL OF PORTICI Dear friends of Milestone, For those who have already purchased (or will be purchasing) Lois Weber's THE DUMB GIRL OF PORTICI, we goofed. Through a chain of human error that ended with me, the second disc (both DVD and Blu-ray) with all the Anna Pavlova bonus features was not replicated and added to the release. For those who have already received the film, my apologies. We will be shipping you the second disc in the next month along with a 2-disc case. If you haven't purchased the DVD or Blu-ray yet, we will be moving the new release date for the complete set sometime in late February hopefully. Again, my apologies. In a month of big mistakes (see Hawaii: button) and other mistakes (see White House: Big Button), I hope you'll be able to keep this in perspective. For me, this was a release that I have been trying to bring out since 1989. I'm disappointed, but proud to be releasing this amazing film. We'll be back in touch when the swan is ready again to fly! Sincerely, Dennis Doros Milestone
  11. seems as if the picture desk thinks the School of American Ballet is directly connected to the American Ballet Theatre...
  12. this has also been announced: Milestone is thrilled to announce that The Dumb Girl of Portici and Shoes — another Weber masterpiece created in the same year — are restored and available on DVD and Blu-ray for Milestone newsletter subscribers only — NOW! “Brilliant.” — Manohla Dargis, New York Times Selected for the National Film Registry of the Library of Congress Lois Weber weaves a beautifully simple story of one shop girl’s struggles into a heartbreaking cinematic masterpiece. Filmed on the streets of Los Angeles — including a remarkable scene in Pershing Square and another in front of Woolworth’s on Broadway — Weber follows the daily travails of Eva Meyer, whose meager wages from her job at a five-and-dime store are the sole financial support for three younger sisters, a struggling mother, and a father who prefers beer and penny dreadfuls to work. When there is barely enough to cover the grocer’s bill, Eva is forced to patch the holes in the soles of her shoes with cardboard. But with each rainy day and every splinter, her plight becomes more painful, and finally intolerable. With no solution in sight, Eva is forced to consider other options. The Shoes restoration by the EYE Filmmuseum combined a Dutch nitrate print and a 1930s “comedic” short reissue of the film found at the Library of Congress. Thanks to the recent discovery of the original script and intertitles in the 16mm microfilm files at NBC/Universal, the Milestone edition more closely reflects the original film. Prominent musicians and composers Donald Sosin and Mimi Rabson have created a mesmerizing and moving score. Bonus Features: Commentary track by Lois Weber biographer Shelley Stamp 1932 spoof Unshod Maiden 1971 audio interview of Mary MacLaren Richard Koszarski on Unshod Maiden Shoes: Before-and-after video 1911 short film, Lost Illusions written by and starring Weber
  13. f.y.i. Film Pioneer Lois Weber’s The Dumb Girl of Portici Starring Anna Pavlova! Newly restored and premiering on DVD & Blu-ray on February 6, 2017! For Immediate Release: The Milestone Cinematheque is proud to announce that following successful worldwide theatrical runs — including a European premiere at the 2017 BFI London Film Festival — the extraordinary restored masterpiece by Lois Weber will be available on DVD and Blu-ray. www.loisweber.net Anna Pavlova and Lois Weber, the star and director of The Dumb Girl of Portici “Once upon a Hollywood time, one of filmdom’s biggest directors was Lois Weber. Woodrow Wilson was president, and women couldn’t have voted for him even if they had wanted to, but inside the movie industry, women thrived, and Weber thrived above all others. An auteur before that word entered the cinematic lexicon, she wrote, directed and edited films and was admired for her sensitive work with actors, her on-set meticulousness and her stories about women. Her name was invoked alongside the likes of D. W. Griffith, yet, like most female directors of that era, she faded into obscurity.” — Manohla Dargis, New York Times The official trailer for THE DUMB GIRL OF PORTICI Read: “A Great Ballerina’s Explosive Movie Performance” — Richard Brody, New Yorker December 15, 2016 Official Website “Pavlova’s artistry is something that we are often asked to take on faith, something where you had to be there. Watching The Dumb Girl, you are there!” — Joan Acocella, The New Yorker The Dumb Girl of Portici has been long overdue for recognition as one of pioneer filmmaker Lois Weber’s finest creations and a landmark in women’s cinema. The blockbuster film was Universal’s most expensive to date and featured an enormous cast, large-scale sets, and an ambitious story. For Weber, The Dumb Girl of Portici represented a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to work with the incomparable prima ballerina, Anna Pavlova. Pavlova was appearing with the Boston Opera Company in D. F. E. Auber’s 1829 La Muette de Portici, portraying Fenella, a wordless fisher-girl living during the Spanish occupation of Naples in the mid-17th century, who is seduced and abandoned by a Spanish nobleman. In the opera and in Weber’s stirring drama, the betrayal of Fenella and the oppression of her people inspire her brother to foment a revolution. Sadly, over the years The Dumb Girl of Portici has fallen out of distribution. This restoration, with a dazzling new score by the acclaimed composer John Sweeney, offers audiences a chance to experience the energy, brilliance, and the talents of maestras Pavlova and Weber. Bonus Features: The Immortal Swan, 1935 feature documentary by Pavlova's partner Victor D’Andre with amazing footage of the great ballerina Anna Pavlova in Newsreels Anna Pavlova's own 9.5mm home movies! Films of Anna Pavlova dancing her most famous roles DVD UPC: 784148015149 Order #: Mile00151 ISBN: 978-1-933920-86-3. Retail: $29.95 Blu-ray UPC: 784148015156 Order #: MileBD00151 ISBN: 978-1-933920-87-0. Retail: $34.95 Read: “Lois Weber, Eloquent Filmmaker of the Silent Screen” — Manohla Dargis, New York Times December 15, 2016 Watch: TO LEARN MORE ABOUT LOIS WEBER WATCH KCET'S SHORT DOCUMENTARY
  14. CIRCUS POLKA was created as a piece d'occasion for NYCB's 1972 Stravinsky Festival - the final tableau had the S.A.B. students grouped as a capital I with a period and captial S with a period. Robbins played the ring master. over the years it was given for festive occasions, for ex. for Kirstein's 80th birthday, to finish with the initials L. K. etc.
  15. rg

    Gomes and ABT

    This has just been sent out by ABT: Thursday, December 21, 2017 Statement from Andrew F. Barth, Chairman, Ballet Theatre Foundation Board of Governing Trustees It is with sadness that I inform you Principal Dancer Marcelo Gomes has resigned from American Ballet Theatre, effective immediately. Last Saturday, ABT was made aware of a highly concerning allegation of sexual misconduct by Mr. Gomes, occurring approximately eight years ago. ABT took immediate action, and initiated an independent investigation conducted by the law firm of Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP. Amid the investigation, Mr. Gomes put forth his resignation. ABT does not tolerate the alleged behavior. As it has been reported to us, the allegation does not involve any current or former members of the ABT community, aside from Mr. Gomes, and did not occur in relation to his employment duties with the Company. I am profoundly disheartened by this matter. We will continue to work hard to ensure that our employees embody the values that have made ABT one of the world’s greatest dance companies for nearly 80 years.
  16. the attached is turn-of-the-century photocard showing of a scene from Ostrovsky's play, SNEGUROCHKA
  17. The NYPL cat. has listings such as these: Snow maiden: Chor: Vladimir Burmeister; mus: Petr Il'ich Chaikovskii (Snow maiden; first & second movements from Symphony no. 1 in G minor; slow movement from Piano sonata in G, op. 37); lib: after the Russian fairy tale; scen & cos: Yuri Piminov & Gennady Epishin. First perf: Italy: Florence, Teatro Comunale, June 20, 1961 (Florence May Festival), Festival Ballet of London.//First English perf: London, Festival Hall, July 17, 1961, Festival Ballet; lighting: Benn Toff. Snow maiden: Co-production of Houston Ballet and American Ballet Theatre. Chor.: Ben Stevenson; mus.: Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky, arr. by John Lanchbery; scen. & cos.: Desmond Heeley; lighting: Duane Schuler. First perf.: New York, Metropolitan Opera House, June 5, 1998, American Ballet Theatre. Snow maiden Chor: Michael Maule; mus: Peter Tchaikovsky. Perf: 1962? Opera ballet. The snow maiden. Ref. Notes: The snow maiden (Opera)--for works about dancing in the opera see: Snegurochka (Opera)
  18. SOKOLOW THEATRE/DANCE ENSEMBLE PASSES TO NEW GENERATION SAMANTHA GERACHT NAMED ARTISTIC DIRECTOR The Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble, the only New York modern dance company dedicated to the works of the late Anna Sokolow, has undergone a change in artistic directorship to a new generation of dancers with deep experience in the work of the iconoclastic choreographer. Artistic Director Jim May, who inherited the Sokolow repertory in 2000 upon the choreographer’s passing, has announced the company’s artistic direction has been entrusted to long-time Sokolow dancer Samantha Geracht. May, whose career with Sokolow spanned over 35 years, will retain the title of director, but stressed in his announcement that significant autonomy has been granted to Geracht and several veteran dancers in the company who will be directing and reconstructing works from Sokolow’s vast and varied collection of works. “Samantha joined Anna’s company in 1992 and has been my teaching assistant for all these years,” said May. “She likes the challenges. She loves dance, and she has such a respect for Anna’s work.” Company members Eleanor Bunker, Lauren Naslund, Francesca Todesco, and Luis Gabriel Zaragoza form the core of dancers with long experience performing the Sokolow repertory. In addition to directing assignments from Geracht they will assist in educating and training a new generation of dancers in the approach to modern dance originated by Anna Sokolow, a hybrid of theater, dance, and behavior that has influenced numerous later choreographers, including Pina Bausch. “All the dancers in Sokolow Theatre Dance Ensemble have been performing Anna’s works for years, just as I did,” May said. “Also, my daily teaching has produced another generation who are learning Sokolow from the base up.” Eleanor Bunker worked with Sokolow while a member of Rondo Dance Company under the direction of Liz Rockwell before joining Anna Sokolow’s company Player’s Project in the 1980s. Lauren Naslund joined Players Project in 1989. Francesca Todesco came from Europe to study with May in the 2000s and in addition to dancing with the company helps run the organization. Gabriel Zaragoza worked with Anna in Mexico when he was a teenager before coming to the states to join Player’s Project in 1992. “These dancers know Sokolow,” May said. “I have tried to assemble a special group of dancers who represent Sokolow at the highest level and I am fiercely protective of them. I watched Anna work for 35 years and now these dancers watched while I struggled to teach them how to carry on her artistry. They have absorbed and will continue the process. That is the only way dance can truly be passed on. Dancers must feel the movement, practice, and perform the choreography repeatedly to absorb the technique and style.” About ten years ago he started sending Geracht, Bunker, and Naslund out to do reconstructions of Sokolow work at university dance departments and with other American dance companies. He said the key result was that the new directors learned how to choose dancers capable of learning the essence of the Sokolow approach. “Sokolow can’t be for a pickup company, because of the requirements of the dancing and the acting that are the style.” Reconstruction and relevance As the great modern dance choreographers of the 20th century pass away it is sometimes assumed the works they left are “historical” and, when revived, merely represent a past period in the art form. But Anna Sokolow’s unique approach to modern dance, starting in the cultural and political ferment of the 1930s, was to combine theater and dance to illuminate universal truths about the human condition, creating dances as metaphors for life as it is lived, now and for all time. For Geracht this describes the path the company will travel into the 21st century. “The fundamental mission of the Sokolow Theatre Dance Ensemble going forward is to present works from Anna’s vast choreography that are relevant to the times we live in and that touch the hearts of all people, everywhere, struggling with the universal issues of living regardless of differences in place and culture.” The real counterculture today, she said, is the same thing art has been about forever - that there is beauty in truth. “We will strive, as Anna did in her 70 year career, to present metaphors that are honest images of the human condition. Anna Sokolow’s work is timeless, always relevant, and will always speak to the challenge for human beings to live as free people struggling to comprehend and understand the great issues of existence, large and small, that were the wellspring of her art.” Upcoming concert The company recently began rehearsals with a corps of 14 dancers for a concert on March 8-11 2018 at The Actors Fund Arts Center in Brooklyn. For more information about Anna Sokolow and the Sokolow Theatre Dance Ensemble, and to stay current with the company visit their website at www.sokolowtheatredance.org.
  19. F.Y.I. the following has just been announced: Dear Friends, Ballet Society and Eakins Press Foundation are proud to announce the Dance Index Project, which consists of a free, completely searchable archival website showcasing all 56 original Dance Index issues from the 1940's, as well as a new biannual print journal of original scholarship relevant to historical and contemporary themes of world dance. You can click on the images below to link to the new Dance Index website where you can browse past issues and pre-order the new issue, "When Noguchi Took The Stage," by Edward M. Gómez, which ships on November 6th. We intend this project to serve as an invaluable resource to the world dance community. In order for our efforts to have the broadest possible reach, we humbly ask you to forward this email to anyone whom you think would be interested in the Dance Index Project. Please help us spread the word! With all good wishes for the fall, Peter Kayafas & Nancy Lassalle Publishers Archival issue: "Dance in Bali," by Colin McPhee Dance Index, Volume 7, No.7-8, 1948 56 pages, 58 illustrations New issue: "When Noguchi Took The Stage," by Edward M. Gómez Dance Index, Volume 8, No.1, Fall 2017 32 pages, 27 illustrations $10 The Eakins Press Foundation is a not-for-profit educational and charitable private operating foundation whose purpose is the advancement of literature and art through excellence of presentation. The success of its programs is fundamentally dependent upon the generosity of its supporters. Click here to make a tax-deductible donation. Eakins Press Foundation 20 West 44th Street, #405 New York, NY 10036 (212) 764-2255 info@eakinspress.com
  20. according to those closest in to David in both the ballet world and that of Merce Cunningham, especially over the past few months when he was in ill health, the well-known author, historian and archivist died this morning. no details have been announced about a memorial, but formal obituaries both here and in England, where David was born, are likely to published in print and on line.
  21. the following text was found on Google Books. f.y.i.
  22. Croce's been working on a critical study of what she deems to be Balanchine's "key" works, i forget the precise number. i was shown a list at one point but don't have it to hand. As w/ all critical studies, it's safe to assume that biographical information is part of the plan. i don't have any hard evidence of a specific release date, but, like Doug, i'm not discounting the book's appearance, despite the time that has elapsed.
  23. if mem. serves and if this question relates to the 4 NYCB NUTCRACKER PdD fotos above, they show: top left; SHyltin w. AVeyette, top right:JdAmboise w/ SFarrell bottom left: ALaracey w/ RJanzen, bottom right: AProkovsky w/ MHayden
  24. according to a communication from a staffer at the NYRoB the audio recording of the AGON symposium will be posted on NYRoB website "within the next few weeks." if anything more definite or a link/posting comes to light, it will be noted here.
  25. um, really? as stated above: Dance Theatre of Harlem presented the multi-act CORSAIRE in AMHolmes staging? i'd love to where and when, as it's not a factor in DTH history as far as i've kept up with it. (i rem. the pas de deux w/ Paul Russell and a number of DTH women, but the complete ballet?)
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