9 replies to this topic

[dirac]

An interview with Paloma Herrera.

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And while the life of a dancer seems ethereal and glamorous to the outside eye – yes the touring, grooming, and sequined costumes – the likes of Herrera have been twirling and whirling through blood, sweat and tears since their toddler days.

“It’s not just a performance and that’s it, there’s a lot behind it, and you’ll see that if you come to rehearsal and see the dancers in performance clothes. Also, we are completely normal people – but there’s the combination of being completely normal people and all the dedication that goes into it, all of the effort, all of the hours, and all of the time – since we were very little,” she explained. “On a rehearsal day, you’ll probably go from the morning until 7. If it’s a new production, it will take many more hours, but because you’re learning a lot.”

[dirac]

An obituary for Roland Petit in The Telegraph.

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He made the film Black Tights (1960) to show Zizi Jeanmaire's magnetic balletic gifts alongside Cyd Charisse and Moira Shearer, but he now set about reinventing the Paris revue around his wife, exploring new levels of luxury and sophistication for her many talents. Not only did Jeanmaire dance like an angel in any style, dressed flamboyantly (and sometimes minimally) by costumiers such as Erté, but she possessed an alluring singing voice and a worldly verbal wit that sold countless records.

They became the power couple of Sixties Parisian cultural life, wearing Yves Saint Laurent and collaborating with Andy Warhol.

[dirac]

A story on the Mariinsky/Kirov's Lincoln Center engagement by Jim Bessman for The Examiner.

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"The repertoire was clearly linked to our wish to share with the American public new developments," Gergiev said at a press conference yesterday following a dress rehearsal of Anna Karenina, when asked about the nature of his ballet choices.

"New developments are linked to the names of living composer Rodion Shchedrin and living choreographer Alexei Ratmansky," Gergiev continued, then noted, "We don't feel there is something wrong with Swan Lake or Sleeping Beauty or La Bayadère or Giselle. We just feel that it's time for something different."

[dirac]

Carlos Acosta and Zenaida Yanowsky appear on BBC Breakfast. Video.

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Dancers Carlos Acosta and Zenaida Yanowsky joined BBC Breakfast to talk about their tour Premieres Plus.

[dirac]

An obit for Petit by Patricia Boccadoro for Culturekiosque.

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Petit was born in Villemomble on the 13th of January, 1924, the son of Edmond Petit, a French chef of renown, and Rose Repetto, wardrobe mistress at the Paris Opera, who founded the famous Repetto Ballet shoes in 1947 at his instigation. After entering the school there at the age of ten, he joined the Paris Opera Ballet, but left at barely twenty to concentrate on choreography.

"But the adventure really began", he told me some years ago, "when Christian Bérard and Boris Kochno accepted to create the ballet, Les Forains, with me, which we set to music by Henri Sauguet. It tells the simple story of a group of wandering players who perform in a small village but get little reward for their pains. That was just after the war, in 1945, and I danced in it myself with Solange Schwarz. We wrote, designed, and choreographed it in 13 days, and the original pas de deux I’d planned became a full-length work, and I think, marked the beginning of my career as a choreographer."

[dirac]

The junior wing of the Australian Ballet goes on tour with 'Don Quixote.'

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Dow, who has been artistic director at Milwaukee Ballet in the US and at West Australian Ballet, said it was important to take ballet to towns outside metropolitan centres.

The reception in rural communities is generally very welcoming. For the first time this year, the Dancers Company will perform at Port Macquarie, NSW. Both shows there have been sold out since February.

[Helene]

Michael Popkin reviews Mariinsky Ballet in "Anna Karenina" at the Metropolitan Opera House for danceviewtimes.

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More impressionistic dance drama than pure ballet, Alexei Ratmansky's "Anna Karenina" tells the story of Tolstoy's doomed heroine in a series of swiftly moving dramatic incidents, with video projections behind the action providing scenic changes and minimal but suggestive sets used in the actual performance space.  Act One dramatizes Anna and Vronsky's affair from their initial encounter to its physical consummation in about ten brief scenes that flow into each other and last no more than three to five minutes each.  Act Two takes the story at the same pace from Vronsky's fall at the racetrack through the couple's elopement to Venice, Anna's return to St. Petersburg and attempt to see her son, and finally her ostracism and suicide.

[dirac]

A report on ballet in 3D and the Mariinsky's 'Giselle' by Pia Catton in The Wall Street Journal.

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This particular production of “Giselle” packed a dramatic punch, one that makes me especially eager for the rest of the Mariinsky’s productions this week at Lincoln Center Festival. But this is also the first generation of ballet in 3-D, which is evident in that the camera operators stubbornly and routinely shot the dancers so that their feet were cut-off from view — even during some of the most intricate and traditionally important footwork passages.

The priorities were clearly scenery and heads instead feet, which is nothing short of absurd. And it was far more frustrating than the occasional blur or unnecessary cut-away from a full-view shot to a close-up angle of something less relevant.

[dirac]

A review of the Mariinsky/Kirov Ballet by Alastair Macaulay in The New York Times.

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As bad ballets go, Alexei Ratmansky’s two-act “Anna Karenina” is one of the best. It tells its potted version of Tolstoy’s novel with a fair bit of narrative clarity; it manages many complex changes of scene deftly; its décor and costumes (by Mikael Melbye) are generally elegant; its extensive use of video projections (by Wendall Harrington) is unusual and effective; and most of its leading characters are immediately identifiable and distinct. But these virtues don’t suffice. The ballet is a complete waste of everybody’s time.

[dirac]

Social notes on the White Nights Foundation benefit.

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We saw Mr. Aronofsky from acrossthe room bombarded by photographers. He had never seen the Mariinsky perform and had thoroughly enjoyed himself. “I thought it was amazing,” he said. “It’s nice to see modern music and a modern stage, and the dancers are just remarkable. How they move—every inch of how they move,” Mr. Aronofsky reflected. We asked the director about his rumored upcoming projects. “I’ve got stuff coming up, but it can’t keep me away from the ballet,” he replied.