39 replies to this topic

[Helene]

I forgot about the Sinatra I saw with PNB last year.  It was fun.  I'll see In the Upper Room for the first time this weekend.

[bart]

Helene, on Apr 12 2007, 12:35 PM, said:

I forgot about the Sinatra I saw with PNB last year.  It was fun.  I'll see In the Upper Room for the first time this weekend.

It's funny the way the same handfull of ballets seem to make the rounds among the major companies.

Re Upper Room:  I saw this 3 times in 3 days, and can still visualize some of the dancing.  The first time was a kind of "blur."  By performance 3, I could see things in detail -- almost as though it were in slow motion, though of course it wasn't.  It was still thrilling, but the choreography seemed a lot simpler, in a way, than it appeared at first.  Though the speed and non-stop quality makes it very difficult for the dancers, I am sure.

I'll be very interested in hearing what you think of it, Helene.

[Helene]

I got my Tharps mixed up:  Ballet Arizona performed "Golden Section" from The Catherine Wheel, not In the Upper Room.

[sandik]

Helene, on Apr 20 2007, 07:34 AM, said:

I got my Tharps mixed up:  Ballet Arizona performed "Golden Section" from The Catherine Wheel, not In the Upper Room.

You'll just have to wait until next year when PNB gets Upper Room.

[bart]

sandik, on Apr 22 2007, 03:19 AM, said:

Another  production of something just a year old.  These things really do get released in bursts, like pollen from a flower.  Puff, puff.  

I understand the economics.  But it's sad that so many other items in choreographers' repertoires remain buried and un-revisited, perpetually "out of print."   By relying so much on the audience's memory, ballet -- and dance generally --  remains a fragile and transitory art than it needs to be.     

A new approach to videography -- accesible to the public -- might help.  This doesn't have to be glossy and expensive, and it doesn't have to be aimed at the largest possible audience.  Just keeping the images in circulation and accessible would be a great gift for people like Helene and all the rest of us, whose memories somtimes suffer lapses.

[Mel Johnson]

I think that we're in a period of journeyman/woman choreographers.  Lots and lots of well-crafted things, and some inevitable trash, but ABM.  All But the Masterpiece.

[pherank]

I've resuscitated this thread to mention a comment from Wheeldon in a recent DanceTabs interview...

Q: The real question is how to move forward in the future.  In twenty years, what are all the young dancers going to be bringing to you in the studio?

A: There does seem to be a swing back toward classical ballet choreography.  I’m seeing that more and more, not only in the appreciation of the public, but also in the young choreographers who are starting to be pushed forward now, are all classical choreographers.  There was a time when the voice of Forsythe and the voice of Kylian was so strong and had such a strong influence on young choreographers that everyone was following them and now it seems that the younger generation of choreographers coming out of ballet companies are going back toward making ballet, which is exciting.  Liam Scarlett in London, who I think is coming here (San Francisco) next year, and Justin Peck in New York and Alexei [Ratmansky] are all doing classical choreography.  I was feeling like I was the “last of the Mohicans” because I was alone.  Although I was very influenced and still am influenced by Balanchine, and Forsythe and Kylian, because they were what was happening, I still feel I want to push for ballet.  It seems like we’re a team all pushing the same way, which is encouraging.

Christopher Wheeldon – Choreographer
By Aimee Tsao on May 1, 2013 in Interviews

http://dancetabs.com...-choreographer/

It may be unintentional, but he lumps Balanchine in with Forsythe and Kylian, and makes it sound as if that is the non-ballet camp.

[pherank]

Christopher Wheeldon - Becoming a Choreographer

[diane]

-sigh- It would have been so neat to see that video - but "the uploader has not made this video available in your country."

Oh, well.

Thanks, pherank, for writing down some of the things  Wheeldon has said.


-d-

[pherank]

diane, on 06 May 2013 - 04:04 AM, said:

-sigh- It would have been so neat to see that video - but "the uploader has not made this video available in your country."
Oh, well.
Thanks, pherank, for writing down some of the things  Wheeldon has said.
-d-

Hi Diane, I went searching, and I may have a fix for you here -
(look for the link near the video that reads, "Are you located outside the U.S.? Click here to watch video.")
http://dancepulp.com...-choreographer/

[I didn't realize there was this issue with the Dance Pulp videos on Youtube, but, it can never be easy]