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Clips from this were on various "The Glory of the Kirov" compilations. Clearly they come from a 1940's or very early 50's dance compilation movie that no one could identify. Thanks for posting this which is a bit more complete.

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THANK YOU THANK YOU Christian for posting these clips, they're wonderful. I've never seen "Raymonda" in its entirety, so these excerpts helped me put both the plot and dance into context. I also liked all the medieval touches. And, of course, it was great to see Dudinskaya & Sergeyev, since I only know them from VERY much later in their careers--esp. when they helped coach/stage SL at BB, (and I think later helped Ms. Holmes with "Le Corsair"?) Those 'in the know' correct my fading memory if necessary.

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The revelation to me is Sergeyev, whom I confess I know nothing about. I cannot imagine how such a compact, even tubby, dancer -- and one relatively inexpressive in upper body -- can do such fleet and elegant things with his legs, especially when in the air.

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You're right !! Though Eglevsky was leaner, more muscular in appearance, and better proportioned. In real life, he was slighter and shorter than he appeared on stage, at least as I remember him. (We lived in the same town.)

Sergeyev, on the other hand, reminds me of one of those short, stout Itallian tenors from the early 1900s. The kind who stood still and delivered, with occasional waving of the arms. That's what makes Sergeyev's elevation and lower-body agility so surprising.

P.S. I love the way the director does some of his cuts, allowing, for instance, Dudinskaya's long medieval dress to turn magically into a tutu. (47 seconds into the second clip.)

I would love to read some impressions about her performance, especially in the Variation in the second clip. I am unfamiliar with both the style and with that period in Soviet ballet. Even though I can see that she was an exceptional (and very individual) dancer, I find it hard to overcome my initial impression that something odd is going on.

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You're right. Though Eglevsky was leaner, more muscular in appearance, and better proportioned. In real life, he was slighter than he appeared on stage, at least as I remember him. Sergeyev, at first glance, looks like one of those short, stout Itallian tenors from the early 1900s. Or possibly the surprisingly graceful Oliver Hardy.

P.S. I love the way the film cuts, allowing Dudinskaya's long medieval dress to become a tutu for her Hungarian variation. Would love to read some impressions about her performance. I am unfamiliar with both the style and with that period in Soviet ballet. So, even though I can see that she was an exceptional (and very individual, I'll bet) dancer, I find it hard to overcome my initial impression of strangeness.

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Quite a bit like Eglevsky.

In defense of Eglevsky ---an emphatic NO WAY! He was my very first favorite male dancer---and he moved with a beautiful feline grace. I saw no sign of that with Sergeyev.....Eglevsky's multiple pirouettes were slo-oow. and were used to great effect in the birth scene of Apollo during the removal of the swaddling clothes. Sergeyev has a rather sloppy technique---and, oh, that back :sweatingbullets:

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Thanks for that visualization, atm711. It's wonderful to have someone like you who saw Eglevsky and can still visuialize what he was like on stage. I envy your having seen his Apollo.

I've only seen tv films of Eglevsky dancing. The filming is not flattering. The studio lights are overly bright but also create dark patches of shadow, sometimes in unfortunate parts of the body. This made Eglevsky look heavier, more compact, and more muscled than he was. That in turn makes his lightness and agility in the air surprising.

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Though I missed Eglevsky's stage career, I do have childhood visual memories of him at his dance studio on Long Island at a time when he was still performing in NYC. Mr. Eglevsky isn't dancing in my memories -- just moving around as in normal life. His bearing and his ease of movement are qualities that I miss in the films.

Sergeyev, as you say, looks and moves like an entirely different animal.

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I didn't meant to insult Eglevsky in any way, just to note that he was a compact-looking dancer -- at least on film -- who could move his feet so fast (when he wanted to). Not to mention hanging the air for what seemed like an eternity.

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There's a wonderful clip of Eglevsky in the PBS Balanchine biography with a camera following him onstage in a pas de trois with two partners. They're like carousel horses in alternating forward leaning and backward leaning positions.

Also in the Maria Tallchief video set, there's a fishbowl-like kinescope with Eglevsky of the whole of Pas de Dix – which is Balanchine's take on the some of the Raymunda variations Cristian posted above. Everyone weighs twenty pounds more than they really do and all the awkwardnesses are picked up and foregrounded by the camera, but much of the charm is still there.

Nice George Platt Lynes photo of Eglevsky.

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There's the great clip of the Balanchine bio of the "Sylvia" pas de deux where he does a zillion pirouettes during the intro music. And the excerpt from "Scotch Symphony" and another somewhere where he hangs in the air in beats and jumps.

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