30 replies to this topic

[glebb]

When I was young I saw a local non professional company rehearse and perform the "Pas de Quatre". Victoria informed me that it was a restaging of the Keith Lester version.

Later I acquired a video of the Dolin version danced by Alonzo, Evdokimova, Thesmar and Fracci. I adore the Dolin version. IMO it defines the characters in a strong way.

The ballet seems to only appear on galas (as it did originally), but I wouldn't mind seeing ABT revive this work.

Who would be suitable to stage it? Markova?

[Hans]

I'd like to see it staged by Kunakova, though I don't think she'd know the Dolin version. Alessandra Ferri would make a beautiful Taglioni, and imagine Kent in the 3rd variation (that ends with a saut de l'ange--is that Cerrito or Elssler?).

[Mel Johnson]

Elssler wasn't in the "Pas de Quatre" - just Grahn, Grisi, Cerrito and Taglioni, in order of variations.

And while there are many who would be "suitable" to stage the work, including you and me, glebb, the nature of the undertaking by ABT would require some notable Public Affairs pizzazz. Now, if Markova or Alonso were to stage the work, it would be a real PR coup!

[Hans]

Grisi, that was it! The multitalented one . Then I'd put Kent as Cerrito, Ferri as Taglioni...maybe Ananiashvili as Grisi...but who could do Grahn ?

Come to think of it, I'll bet Ms. Leigh could stage it ;). Or maybe Evdokimova should be given the job, given what's happened at Boston Ballet.

[rg]

actually dolin did stage his PdQ for the kirov, himself. there are pictures of him working w/ his first cast in, if mem. serves, contemp. issues of THE DANCING TIMES and/or DANCE AND DANCERS. (english post-ers might be able to say for certain.)
the first listing i can find for a kirov rendering of his work is from a 1982 film, as follows:
Pas de quatre. Chor: Anton Dolin; mus: Cesare Pugni. Perf. by Galina Mezentseva (Taglioni), Gabriella Komleva (Grahn), Irina Kolpakova (Grisi), and Elena Evteeva (Cerrito).
and this may in fact be the 'first' cast dolin worked w/.
so, kunakova (lubov? elena?) would know that version. it came into rep. around the same time, i THINK that else mariann von rosen staged bournonville's (or after-bournonville to be more precise) LA SYLPHIDE. so it was a kirov period looking at sylphs from outside russia.

the full credits, according to the linc.cent.library for the perf. arts for the film as it came to videocassette are as follows:
The Kirov Ballet: classic ballet night c1982. 87 min. : sd. color
Performance onstage by the Kirov Ballet.
Director: Nina Dimitrieva.
Copyright 1982 by Soviet Film and TV. Reissued as a videotape in 1986 by V.I.E.W. Video, New York.
Diana and Acteon grand pas classique. Chor: Agrippina Vaganova; mus: Cesare Pugni. Perf. by Tatiana Terekhova, Sergei Berezhnoi, and ensemble. - Esmeralda pas de six. Chor: Marius Petipa after Jules Perrot, restaged by Agrippina Vaganova; mus: Riccardo Drigo. Perf. by Gabriella Komleva (Esmeralda), Vitali Afanaskov (Gringoire), and four women. - Flower festival at Genzano pas de deux. Chor: Auguste Bournonville; mus: Edvard Helsted. Perf. by Natalia Bolshakova and Vadim Guliaev. - La vivandière pas de six. Chor: Pierre Lacotte after Arthur Saint-Léon; mus: Cesare Pugni. Perf. by Alla Sizova, Boris Blankov, and four women. - Grand pas classique from Le carnaval de Venise. Chor: Marius Petipa, restaged by Nadezhda Kranocheyeva; mus: Cesare Pugni. Perf. by Svetlana Efremova, Valeri Emets, and ensemble. - Pas de quatre. Chor: Anton Dolin; mus: Cesare Pugni. Perf. by Galina Mezentseva (Taglioni), Gabriella Komleva (Grahn), Irina Kolpakova (Grisi), and Elena Evteeva (Cerrito).

[Mel Johnson]

Hans, your choice for stagers is unerring, and superb. My nominees for Grahn would be Michele Wiles or Ashley Tuttle.

[Hans]

I considered both of them, too, but couldn't decide, though of course I have a strong personal bias in favor of Wiles .

[glebb]

It's true that Grisi was the multitalented one. She was an opera singer as well as a famous dancer. I'm not sure if it was her sister or cousin who was a famous opera singer.

I'm curious Hans as to why you would cast Julie Kent as the Italian Cerrito. Why Nina Ananiashvili as the French Grisi?

[vrsfanatic]

I believe the rites to Dolin's choreography and restagings were left to Jelco Yuresha, Yugoslavian dancer, soloist with London Festival Ballet and Royal Ballet in the 1960's. He is the husband of Belinda Wright. He does travel quite extensively restaging Dolin work if anyone is interested!

[Mel Johnson]

I believe that Jelko and Belinda have the rights to "Pas de Quatre" and "Variations for Four", but he gave several of his restagings of Giselle and other works to some small companies and individuals as a gift outright during his lifetime. One of them was the State Ballet of Rhode Island.

[silvy]

I quote rg:


"the first listing i can find for a kirov rendering of his work is from a 1982 film, as follows:
Pas de quatre. Chor: Anton Dolin; mus: Cesare Pugni. Perf. by Galina Mezentseva (Taglioni), Gabriella Komleva (Grahn), Irina Kolpakova (Grisi), and Elena Evteeva (Cerrito)"

However, I have an earlier version on film, filmed during the sixties, I believe. It is a black and white filming included in a tape called "The glory of the Kirov". The dancers are: Ludmila Kovaleva (Grahn - I loved her portrayal), Gabriella Komleva (the most difficult Grisi variation), Yelena Yevteyeva (Cerrito), Lubov Galinskaha (Taglioni)

Anyone else has seen this tape and has some comments? Maybe this shud go to the "video" forum???

silvy

[rg]

many thanks, slivy, for the alert to this 1968 filming of the PdQ included on 'the glory of the kirov'.
interesting to note that it didn't come up in the linc.cent.library for the perf. arts catalogue. (i just checked and the library DOES have a copy of the videotape, perhaps i missed it first time around.)
to be sure, this film dates dolin's kirov staging as sometime around or before 1968.
interesting as well to find one lubov galinskaya as taglioni.
it's a kirov name unfamiliar to me except o'course from this film.
too bad in the world of ntsc, region 1 the record exists only on vhs cassette; the euro. zone(s) have it in pal DVD as well.

[silvy]

you are welcome rg!!!!!!

Speaking of GAlinskaya, maybe she is the one I like less (of the 4 Kirov dancers)

Regarding the Lester version, this was staged here in Uruguay around 1997 by a ballet mistress of the National Ballet of Cuba. It is quite different, and I remember that when I leartn Cerrito, the Lester version has her doing a turn a la seconde, (like a turning temps-leve a la seconde), which I have always thought as too modern for Pas de Quatre. The Dolin version does nothing of the like, is much more "sweet". :rolleyes:

Silvy

[Hans]

Glebb wrote:

I'm curious Hans as to why you would cast Julie Kent as the Italian Cerrito. Why Nina Ananiashvili as the French Grisi?

Well, for one thing, Julie Kent has a very Italianate style in terms of port de bras and posture. I don't find her "spiritual" enough for Taglioni, but seems to have the right playful quality for the Cerrito variation. I put Ananiashvili as Grisi without paying attention to nationality--the variation just seems to suit her, IMO.

Was Grisi really French? Her sister, the opera singer at La Scala, was named Giulia, which is definitely not a French spelling of the name (of course, "Grisi" is not French, either).

[atm711]

All these casts for 'Pas de Quatre' are fun to contemplate--but none of them are up to the one I saw in 1948 at the 'Met': Alicia Markova (Taglioni); Nathalie Krassovska (Grahn); Mia Slavenska (Grisi); Alexandra Danilova (Cerrito). That was a real battle of the ballerinas.