18 replies to this topic

[bart]

Thanks, Bart Birdsall, for reviving this thread.   The original thread is full of information.  But also ends rather abruptly, leaving lots of unanswered questions.

I was wondering what other company versions our members have seen?  How do they compare with the original?

By the way, Miami's Coppelia was last performed in January 2005 and is described in the program as follows:

Quote

Choreography:  Arthur Saint-Leon
Staged by Eve Lawson and Eric Quillere

Lawson was MCB Ballet Mistress in the 1990s, and has held the same position in the National Ballet of Norway, etc.

Quillere, who played Dr. Coppelius in 2005,  trained at Paris Opera Ballet and danced in the corps.  Later, danced with MCB.  He is now the  chief Ballet Master at the Ballet de Bordeaux.  http://www.opera-bor...illere-832.html

Miami's Act III is actually a wedding celebration.  It begins the  Dance (Waltz) of the Hours. The solo portion  of the divertissements includes only Dawn (l'Aurore), Prayer (la Priere), and Spinner (la Fileuse).  This is followed by ensemble and couple dancing, along with a couple of solos.  As I recall, there is choreography for the Waltz of the Hours, though I can't remember it.  There is also an adagio pdd for Swanhilda and Franz.

Hymen and/or Cupid do appear in this version, but I can't recall what they do.  I also can't recall any significant role for Discord or Peace.  None of these is credited in the cast list.  Just about everyone onstage  is dancing by the curtain.  This climax certainly deserves the term "grand ballabile."

[Birdsall]

Thanks for that info, bart! Good to know! I saw Coppelia years ago as a student (local company) and I was not seriously into ballet back then. Just would go to anything that sounded good. Since then I have watched the Australian Ballet video and own the Royal Opera Ballet version with Acosta and Benjamin and like both videos that I saw. So it will be good to watch it live and know what to expect sort of.

[cubanmiamiboy]

bart, on 14 March 2012 - 07:35 AM, said:

I was wondering what other company versions our members have seen? How do they compare with the original?

I've only seen the Cuban version, which has an interesting story. Alonso staged it first in 1948 based on two sources. One of them was her own recollections of the shortened version she danced in Havana in 1935-(just two years after the Sergueyev first staging in London's Saddler's Wells)- and staged by her Russian ballet professor Nikolai Yavorski, which was based on what he recalled back home from the Merante St. Petersburg staging. The other source was what she learned from both the Ballet Russes de Monte Carlo's 1938 staging-(premiered by Danilova/Panaieff) AND Ballet Theater's 1942 Semenoff-after-Merante staging-(premiered by Baronova/Dolin). The 1948 Havana premiere had Alonso/Youskevitch in the leads. Later on she re-staged it again for a performance at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles, where she danced the lead with Andre Eglevsky. From then on, the Cuban Coppelia has remained, just as all her other imported mid-century stagings, untouchable.

I can't wait to see what Miami has to offer. It could be very interesting to see if there's any common points with Alonso's if they decide to honor either Franklin's or Danilova's past stagings. Will report...

[cubanmiamiboy]

cubanmiamiboy, on 14 March 2012 - 09:18 AM, said:

bart, on 14 March 2012 - 07:35 AM, said:

I was wondering what other company versions our members have seen? How do they compare with the original?

I've only seen the Cuban version, which has an interesting story. Alicia Alonso staged it first in 1948 based on two sources. One of them was her own recollections of the shortened version she danced in Havana in 1935-(just two years after N. Sergueyev first staging in London's Saddler's Wells)- and staged by her Russian ballet professor Nikolai Yavorski, which was based on what he recalled back home from the Merante St. Petersburg staging. The other source was what she learned from both the Ballet Russes de Monte Carlo's 1938 staging-(premiered by Danilova/Panaieff) AND Ballet Theater's 1942 Semenoff-after-Merante staging-(premiered by Baronova/Dolin). The 1948 Havana premiere had Alonso/Youskevitch in the leads. Later on, in 1957, she re-staged it again for a performance at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles, where she danced the lead with Andre Eglevsky. From then on, the Cuban Coppelia has remained, just as all her other imported mid-century stagings, untouchable.

I can't wait to see what Miami has to offer. It could be very interesting to see if there's any common points with Alonso's if they decide to honor either Franklin's or Danilova's past stagings. Will report...

Here are two of my best EVER Swanildas...our Cuban darling, AKA "steely pointes" Miss Charin and our very "Queen of Accents", Miss Lorna Feijoo.  Swanilda's Act III tutu is the very short, white number with fluffy shoulders/arms pieces which, along with the white headpiece, looks very much like those pics of Danilova I've seen.  Then we have Act I PDD with Yolanda Correa as Swanilda and a very young Rolando Sarabia, back when he was FIRE in Havana.  Encore presentation by Mme. Alonso as Coppelia









Ediited to add: I just realize that all the dancers on those clips, except Alonso, are exiled...