11 replies to this topic

[Dale]

La Fille mal gardee Press Release
February 3, 2005

PENNSYLVANIA BALLET PRESENTS THE COMPANY PREMIERE OF
SIR FREDERICK ASHTON’S LA FILLE MAL GARDÉE

March 4 – 12 at the Academy of Music

Pennsylvania Ballet presents the Company premiere of Sir Frederick Ashton’s hilarious tale La Fille mal gardée (“The Wayward Daughter”) March 4 through 12 at the Academy of Music. Audiences will delight in the clever choreography of this romantic comedy, hailed by The New York Times as “the most enchanting ballet in existence.”

Tickets, priced $20 to $99, are available beginning February 1 by calling Ticket Philadelphia at
215-893-1999 or by visiting www.paballet.org. Groups of 10 or more can purchase discounted tickets by calling 215-551-7000, extension 1213 or 1212.

The first staging of La Fille mal gardée, by Jean Dauberval, premiered in 1789, on the eve of the French Revolution. Using the original score by Ferdinand Hérold, arranged by John Lanchbery, Sir Frederick Ashton’s version received its premiere by the Royal Ballet in 1960.

The hilarious tale of mismatched lovers takes place in a small French farming village and follows Lise, the young daughter of a wealthy farmer, on her quest to marry Colas, a handsome, young farm worker. Unfortunately, her mother, Mother Simone (who, in the tradition of English theater, is played by a man) disapproves, and instead arranges for Lise to marry Alain, the eccentric, simpleton son of a wealthy vintner. Lise and Colas pursue one another in secret until Mother Simone discovers them and is persuaded to let them wed.

This ballet is filled with charming characters and hilarious antics, including a hilarious “chicken dance” that opens the ballet, Alain’s whimsical solo, and everything the overbearing Widow Simone does. A seamless mixture of mime and dance, this ballet is complete with clogs, a maypole dance and a live pony! In addition to being laugh-out-loud funny, La Fille mal gardée is heartwarming and illuminates the spirit of true love.

Emilio Martins will help Alexander Grant stage La Fille mal gardée for Pennsylvania Ballet. Mr. Martins has worked with Alexander Grant to stage this ballet since he was invited to be a choreologist in 1995. He has staged La Fille mal gardée for Ballet do Theatro Municipal do Rio de Janeiro, The Royal New Zealand Ballet, Hong Kong Ballet, Houston Ballet and The Bolshoi Ballet, among others.

Pennsylvania Ballet’s presentation of La Fille mal gardée was made possible in part by a grant from the National Endowment of the Arts.

Founded in 1963 by Balanchine student Barbara Weisberger, Pennsylvania Ballet is one of the nation’s leading ballet companies. Headquartered in Philadelphia, the Company’s annual local season features six productions of classic favorites and new works, including the Philadelphia holiday tradition, The Nutcracker. For more information, call 215-551-7000 or visit www.paballet.org.

Third Program of the 2004-2005 Season:
La Fille mal gardée (“The Wayward Daughter”)
Academy of Music
Friday, March 4 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, March 5 at 12 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Sunday, March 6 at 2 p.m.
Thursday, March 10 at 8 p.m.
Friday, March 11 at 8 p.m.
Saturday, March 12 at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Tickets, priced $20 to $99, are available beginning February 1 by calling 215-893-1999 or by visiting www.paballet.org. Groups of 10 or more can purchase discounted tickets by calling 215-551-7000, extension 1213 or 1212.

[Dale]

La Fille mal gardee Special Events and Promotions

Pennsylvania Ballet's Barnyard Brunch
Sunday, March 6, 11:30a.m.

Come and enjoy a fun filled day down on the farm!

Pennsylvania Ballet has partnered with the Loews Philadelphia Hotel to present the La Fille mal gardee Barnyard Brunch. This wonderful package includes a fun selection of foods like "chicken" tenders, PB&J cut outs and of corse scrambled eggs, among other farm themed treats like animal shaped cookies for dessert.

Moms and dads don't forget your cameras because children can have their picture taken with a life sized Rooster, color their own country scene and even pet some live animals!

Then everyone will promenade over to the Academy of Music to enjoy the 2 p.m. production of Pennsylvania Ballet's hystercial ballet, La Fille mal gardee (The Wayward Daughter).

Package prices are as follows:
Adult brunch with Parquet/ Parquet Circle tickets: $82.40
Child (12 and under) brunch with Parquet/ Parquet Ciricle tickets: $77.40

Adult brunch with Family Circle Tickets: $55.40
Child (12 and under) brunch with Family Circle tickets: $50.40

Call 215-551-7000 to order your Barnyard Brunch package today!

La Fille mal gardee
Country Fair
Saturday, March 12, 12 p.m.

Bring the whole family to this delightful French country fair held in the Academy of Music’s ballroom on Saturday, March 12 at noon. Enjoy exciting costumed entertainers, craft activities and games for children of all ages! A delicious buffet luncheon will be served. Best of all, you’ll learn one of the dances from the ballet you are about to see!

Includes the 2pm matinee performance of the comical La Fille mal gardee. Tickets from $100 to $225. Sponsorship opportunities available. For more information, call Nora Cohen at 215.551.7000 ext 1255 or email ncohen@paballet.org.

[purelyballet]

Does anyone know if the casting has been posted for La Fille? I missed the last series but should be in town for this one....and am very excited to see PABallet do this ballet.

[Dale]

Casting is not out for this program. I will post an announcement when it is.

[Dale]

Casting is now updated on the official website:

http://www.paballet....aspx?id=3&src=l

Click on "casting roster" towards the bottom right.

[LazerCanary]

Sooo...HOW was it? I'm dying to know, because it looks like
I'll get my first chance to see PA Ballet at the Sunday matinee.

Line-up for the matinee is Julie Diana, James Ady, and Alexei Borovik.
I vaguely recognize Julie Diana's name. Does anyone here have unique
insight on these dancers? It's either PA Ballet or the Dali Special exhibition
down the street...


~Lazer Canary

[Helene]

Line-up for the matinee is Julie Diana, James Ady, and Alexei Borovik.
I vaguely recognize Julie Diana's name.  Does anyone here have unique
insight on these dancers?

~Lazer Canary

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Julie Diana danced for San Francisco Ballet until the end of last season, and she is one of the loveliest dancers I've seen in the last decade, combining energy, sweep, and grace. Most memorable of her performances for me were the Jillana role in Liebeslieder Walzer in 1998 and last year in the Aria II (Kay Mazzo) role in the most overall perfect performance I've ever seen of Stravinsky Violin Concerto.

I think she wilil dance a splendid Lise, and I wouldn't miss it if I were in Philadelphia.

[socalgal]

I'll be there too, Lazar Canary! I saw the tail end of the production last night and peeked in at the finale......very lively colorful production and the cast seemed to be singing whle skipping about! Arantxa Ochoa and Zach Hench, former principal of SFB were dancing the leads with David Krensing as Widow Simone. The house was extremely full and lively for a Friday evening. The exiting audience comments were of joy and laughter. One person even remarked "I didn't think it would be this much fun!"

My DD went to the opening of the Dali exhibit and tells me I MUST go.....so catch that too while you are in town

[Justdoit]

hockeyfan228, you were right, the ballet and Julie Diana and James Ady were not to be missed. I was able to attend the Saturday matinee on March 5th. I was not familiar with the ballet and had no idea what to expect. I soon found out it was not only well danced, but totally engaging and fun!

Two of the character parts were danced with great comedic flair by both Matthew Neenan, as Alain, and Alexei Borovik as the widow Simone. I found myself caught up in their antics everytime they appeared on stage. Jule Diana and James Ady as the young lovers Lise and Colas were absolutely perfect for their roles. Both possess an on stage sweetness and vitality that made them an obvious choice for the parts. I was not only impressed with their acting ease, but their dancing possessed just the right amount of power and confidence. Julie's balance on point, during the ribbon dance, while the entire female corp rotated around her clockwise was one of those in-the-theater-breathholding-experiences.

I have seen PAB perform many times. I have always been struck how everyone in this company seems to perform their hearts out. Everyone up on the stage seems 100% committed to giving the best performance each time they step on stage. I don't usually like Ashton, but La Fille Mal Gardee, as performed by PAB was an entertainment treasure. Thanks for another memorable and fun performance, PAB!

[purelyballet]

I could not agree more wit hockeyfan228 and justdoit, Julie Diana and James Ady were both exceptional in this ballet. I am so glad that I was in town and able to see a few of the performances. I, too, had never seen this ballet before so I was not sure what to expect. But I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised. The dancing was fabulous and the comedic story line had the entire audience laughing.

Matthew Neenan, as Alain, and Alexei Borovik as the widow Simone both did a fabulous job. I also agree that Julie Diana and James Ady as Lise and Colas were absolutely perfect for their roles and Julie's balance on point, during the ribbon dance, was amazing.

I have had the privilege of seeing PAB perform many times and I agree with justdoit "everyone in this company seems to perform their hearts out." Thank you PABallet for a truly delightful evening. I can not wait until the next series.

[Leigh Witchel]

I saw both casts this weekend as well. Julie Diana is very special, and except for being a wee bit too short for her, she and Ady are an excellent match. Between the two casts, I'd try and see that one.

[lillianna]

I was lucky enough to see all 4 of the weekend performances. It was interesting to see how the 2 casts played the roles differently. I have been a fan of Julie Diana and Zack Hench from seeing SFB the last 2 years. Julie is such a beautiful dancer. What impressed me this weekend was her acting ability. She was great as Lise. From the crossed eyes when her mom made her do something she did not appreciate to how sweetly she looked at Colas, she was very believable and engaging. Of course, her dancing was wonderful.
I thought it really tough to have the one handed lift right after dancing the variations when the principals are the most tired. Only Zack and Arantxia nailed it on Sunday matinee.
The Alain part stole the show , though. Both Phil Colucci and Matthew Neenan were amazing and had the comic sense to pull it off. They each brought differences to the role. Phil had more of the slapstick in him, his tumbles down the steps were great.
Although this won't be one of my all time favorites, it was very entertaining and great fun.