5 replies to this topic

[volcanohunter]

A brief video report on this year's run of Swan Lake at the Bastille with comments from Agnès Letestu and Karl Paquette.
http://videos.tf1.fr...6179.html<br />
Odd that they should do the dress rehearsal given that they're not scheduled to dance together.

[cinnamonswirl]

Thanks for the link.

^ I believe Letestu was scheduled for opening night with Jose Martinez. Martinez injured himself just before the dress, and was replaced by Paquette.

In the end, Emilie Cozette and Paquette danced opening night.

Martinez can't be too badly injured because he's still scheduled to partner Lopatkina.

[silvermash]

I think they probably tried to make the most of what they had filmed considering what happened during the following day with two changes of cast.

Agnès Letestu, José Martinez as Siegfried and Karl Paquette as Wolfgang-Rothbart were supposed to dance the Première so they started the Dress Rehearsals but but José Martinez got injured and Karl Paquette replaced him in the 3rd and 4th act and Stéphane Phavorin took over as Rothbart (he’s in the Emilie Cozette/Karl Paquette cast and was dancing one of the character’s dances).

They set a new cast for the Première with Agnès Letestu and Karl Paquette calling on Stéphane Bullion for Wolfgang-Rothbart but at the end, Agnès Letestu couldn’t make it as well to the Première and it was danced by Emilie Cozette, Karl Paquette and Stéphane Bullion.

José Martinez gave an interwiew the next day and told he could be on stage as soon as the 12th with Agnès.

[DanceActress]

It was absolutely impossible to get tickets for the run of "Swan Lake". I would like to try for standing room at the Bastille. I was lucky to stumble across standing room tickets last Christmas for "Casse-Noisette". How early should I queue up outside? I can only see the Dec 21 performance with Lopatkina!! I'm prepared to wait out in the cold for awhile

[silvermash]

well I can't really give any advice but to come the earliest you can. When I went to the afternoon show yesterday around 2:15, people were already queuing for the evening one which was at 8pm. Of course this was a Saturday so it might be different on Tuesday. The show is at 7:30. If you can afford a higher price, you can also try the box office, as early of course (fewer tickets) but you can wait inside...

[DanceActress]

well I can't really give any advice but to come the earliest you can. When I went to the afternoon show yesterday around 2:15, people were already queuing for the evening one which was at 8pm. Of course this was a Saturday so it might be different on Tuesday. The show is at 7:30. If you can afford a higher price, you can also try the box office, as early of course (fewer tickets) but you can wait inside...

Thanks for the advice! I was unlucky with the standing room queue, but my friend waited inside and we were able to get real seats.

I found the performance a bit disappointing, though. I was really looking forward to seeing Uliana Lopatkina for the first time and in her signature role. The Parisian audience went wild for Lopatkina, but she seemed mechanical and cold to me. Her interpretation of Odette/Odile was very deliberate and it didn't feel like she made any effort to interact with her partners or engage with Nureyev's particular version of Swan Lake. It seemed as though she could have been dancing with anyone. The corps de ballet, however, was magnificent. And I also enjoyed Stephane Bullion's menacing Rothbart and the highflying Pas de Trois danced by Emmanuel Thibault, Ludmila Pagliero, and Eve Grinzstajn.