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Oberon doesn't dance the pdd: Titania's cavalier dances it, I think that sometimes he is the same dancer of the first act, some other not.
In the premiere in 1962, Conrad Ludlow danced both Titania's Cavalier in Act I, and in the Divertissement (partnering Violette Verdy) in Act II.
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And all over the world, young ballet students will sit spellbound before the screen and think, "All I have to do to make it as a professional is get my leg

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What bothers me about Zakharova's legs is that in hoisting them up so high, she can't seem to control her supporting leg. I don't think a dancer gains anything from such high développés if she's not able to roll down smoothly off her pointe, or if she can't keep from wobbling once she's got her heel back on the ground. In this respect she fares badly in comparison with Isabelle Guérin's wobble-free Nikiya, who uses her technical assurance to link the steps together into long, long phrases of movement. I don't see much phrasing in Zakharova's performance.

I'm also not overly amazed by Roberto Bolle. He's a fine technician, to be sure, but he doesn't seem especially responsive to music, and while I have no complaints about his legs, his port de bras aren't equally magnificent. In Makarova's Ballerina series, there is a brief film of Fernando Bujones performing Solor's entrance and the subsequent pas de deux from the Kingdom of the Shades, with Cecilia Kerche as Nikiya. The legs, jumps and turns are marvellous, of course, but what really makes his dancing god-like is the majestic carriage and port de bras, the long phrases of movement (again) with their subtle changes of dynamics and, most of all, the unmistakable impression that for him, classicism is a native "language." If Bolle could bring some of that to his own dancing, he could be really terrific.

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didn't mean to imply the choreg. wasn't 'adams-inspired' or that it was changed for hayden; was just checking that the record shows the ballet to be first done by hayden.

it's probably best seen as an adams-inspired role despite hayden's participation at the premiere and thereafter.

and again, don't mean to deflect the thread from it's stated theme of la scala.

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No offense taken. It's a tricky thing, I think, when tracking how a ballet is supposed to be cast based on the initial performance, when the person who it was choreographed on didn't perform it. Same could be said of Movements for Piano and Orchestra - made on Adams, premiered by Farrell.

re: Zakharova. There's been cold dancers that I've loved but they were cooler in tone, not uninterested. Zakharova sometimes gives an impression of being unconcerned with interpretation, her partner, the music, the others on stage. I think this DVD captures one of those performances in which a little bit of that was going on. I've seen her do Nikiya live, to better effect.

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Didn't Verdy once say in an interview that Tchai Pas was also made on Adams, who was unable to premiere it?

Adams clearly inspired some amazing choreography. How sad and poignant that she was unable to dance their premieres. Also confusing, since the dancers who may have learned the ballets only after they'd been set (e.g., Farrell in Movements) were credited as originators, despite not having provided the inspiration.

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I actually bought the dvd a week ago and I'm sorry to say this but I'm dissapointed. I was looking forward to see Svetlana Zakharova and Roberto Bolle in the roles.

I absolutely love Makarova's production of la Bayadère!!! :blushing::) I also love what Lanchberry did to the music I think it works beautifully (at least the way they played it last year when royal swedish ballet danced it).

The set design looks impressive on the la scala stage. But I think some of the costumes are a bit too much, specially the fakirs in act 1 scene 1. Overall I prefer the costume designs by Theoni V. Aldredge used by the Abt and also Royal Swedish Ballet.

http://www.abt.org/performances/performanc...asp?Event_ID=14

http://www.operan.se/templates/ListingIndex.aspx?id=337

Well on to the dancers:

First of all I think Zakharova would be much more effective if she was an better actress. There's no wrong of portraying Nikiya a bitt colder than usual (everyone's different), but I feel that Zakharova just doesn't live the role, which I think is very important. Also Roberto Bolle as Solor looks almost bored at sometimes. He's a very good dancer but I think it would be nice if he could be a bit more passionate in dancing and acting (it's after all a passionate story)!!!

I didn't like Isabelle Brusson as Gamzatti at all. She has a pretty nice technique but not great enough to pull of this role. She would at the moment look better in the corps I think. It's also not really fear to cast her opposite Zakharova, it exposes her techniqal faults even more. She is beautiful, but not shure enough to play the self assure Gamzatti. Her acting is not very affective at all.

As fore the corps de ballet, I think they did overall a good job. It wasn't maybe sharp enough dancing, specially the shade scene. The three shade soloists had silly smiles on there faces. I find that totally wrong for this act (look Viviana Durante on the Royal Ballet DVD, she's got it right)!!!

The DvD is nicely filmed, put overall it lacks in emotion and exitement. It's though worth having if you want to check out Zakharova's and Bolle's splendid techniques.

Any one else feel the same way?

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