8 replies to this topic

[dirac]

A preview of the Rocky Mountain Ballet Theatre Company's "Montana Cowboy Christmas" by Russ Lawrence in The Missoulian.

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Choreographer Charlene Campbell Carey is justifiably proud of the unique program, which will also include an “Inter-tribal Powwow” featuring Fancy Dancer Louie Plant, Champion Chicken Dancer Rodney Firststrike, and Jingle Dancer Clara Charlie, traditional dancers from the Salish-Kootenai and Blackfeet nations.

The program features a “Jingle Dance Ballet,” inspired by Salish and Kootenai dancers, and even includes a tribute to the survivors of this week’s seasonal slaughter, “Wild Montana Turkeys.“

[dirac]

Backstage at Scottish Ballet's Nutcracker rehearsals.

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Working with Diana and Lewis, who plays Drosselmeyer, I was quickly taken through some of the key steps from a segment in which Dame Mouserink tries to steal the Nutcracker doll. A flurry of lifts, stretches and dramatic expressions later and I was doing my very best to embody the sassiness and seduction of the manipulative character.

So how did I get on? Well, take a look at the video to find out. Let’s just say I think I'll be sticking to the day job…

[dirac]

Q&A with Aaron Orza.

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Toba Singer: You are at what we can assume is the midpoint in your performing career. Referencing your time at San Francisco Ballet, can you say what you believe will change now that you are dancing with Diablo Ballet?

Aaron Orza: Now that I’m here, at this point not having danced for a year and now dancing where it is comfortable, I find that Lauren is an easygoing person who has faith in me, knows what I can do, and who is not looking for faults but for the good things. You walk into work and it’s a positive environment. You dance without fear that your job is on the line, or that any mistake you make, even in rehearsal when you are learning it, is not forgiven. There is a calm, positive atmosphere, and so you learn quicker and make fewer mistakes and you’re less inclined to be injured.

[dirac]

A column on the National Ballet of Canada's plans for more touring by Martin Knelman in The Toronto Star.

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A limiting factor is that for the Harper government, exporting culture is not nearly as big a priority as exporting oil, so there is only a token amount of federal money available to support touring. Admittedly, there is no big financial return for putting Canadian culture into a global spotlight. But the non-monetary gains are crucial: enhancing Canada’s reputation in the rest of the world, helping artists grow and develop, ending the depressing sense of Canada as a backwater of zero interest and little achievement worthy of attention. To slash arts touring budgets leaves us in our own cultural ghetto.

[dirac]

An item on " Day in the Life," a documentary featuring Misty Copeland, with a link to the movie.

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On the plane on the way to New York (where I am now, full of Thanksgiving dinner and enjoying the crisp cool and the yellow cabs), I watched a documentary: a day in the life of Misty Copeland, ballerina with the American Ballet Theatre. Copeland is the first African American ballerina to be accepted to the American Ballet Theatre, and says she has dreams of being the first African American principal with ABT – her newfound role as an inspiration to young African American girls studying ballet and dreaming of making it big is one she takes really seriously.

[dirac]

Reviews of Wayne McGregor/Random Dance.

The Independent

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Robert Binet, choreographic apprentice at The Royal Ballet, opens Life’s Witness with an image of action and watching. As a string quartet from Southbank Sinfonia play minimalist music live on stage, some of the cast dance duets. Others sit on the floor, legs curled up to one side, calmly observing them. The duets look detached; those dancing pay less attention to each other than the watchers do.

The Stage

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Instead, all three were plotless works. All were ably staged and dance, with Whitley and Binet creating ensemble pieces for the dancers of McGregor’s own troupe, and Mangiola crafting a pas de trois for the Royal Ballet’s Paul Kay, Eric Underwood and Edward Watson. Working with such good dancers is a great opportunity, and each brimmed with ideas. The only criticism is that each work was perhaps too long - each started well, and ended well, but flagged in the middle. Sustained choreographic effort is a challenge.

The Guardian

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This programme is largely what you'd expect from young artists – the works tend to open with a fierce crackle of ideas, then drift into more unfocused terrain. Yet the performers – drawn from Random and the Royal – are generally superb.

[dirac]

A review of the English National Ballet's Nutcracker by Phil Hewitt in The Chichester Observer.

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Even for the ballet novice (and this was my first time), it’s impossible not to be drawn into Clara’s world for a Christmas she’ll never forget, whether it be dream or reality.

The sumptuous elegance of the Edwardian drawing room party is captured magnificently, costume and set providing the perfect platform to the dancers to weave their spell.

[dirac]

A review of the Paris Opera Ballet in an all-Balanchine program by Patricia Boccadoro for Culturekiosque.

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There could have been no finer start to the season at the Paris Opera Ballet than Serenade, arguably the most beautiful ballet created by George Balanchine, one of the greatest and certainly the most influential choreographer of the 20th century. It is possibly the most popular of all his works, a world-wide favourite, and when danced by the Paris corps de ballet, a group of young dancers reputed to be amongst the best in the world, the effect was breathtaking.

[dirac]

A cover story on Tamara Rojo by Margaret Willis in Dance Magazine's November issue.

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Well educated in her native Spain, she continued to study, receiving her BA in dance and her master’s in scenic arts in Madrid. She is resident guest teacher at The Royal Ballet School, gives master classes, is an eloquent speaker and advocate for dance, and has received various international honors in ballet today, including a Laurence Olivier Award, a Benois de la Danse, and the Kennedy Center Gold Medal for Fine Arts, presented by King Juan Carlos I of Spain. She spent a month shadowing Karen Kain, artistic director of National Ballet of Canada, observing every department of that company (arranged by DanceEast in England); she has also visited Cirque du Soleil, which has revitalized the art of the circus. Both these experiences gave her new insights and fuelled her desire to become an artistic director.