9 replies to this topic

[dirac]

The board chair of Ballet West  writes on the company's Washington engagement for The Salt Lake Tribune's op-ed page.

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The 2,300 seats in the Kennedy Center’s Opera House were full on opening night and for each performance of the sold-out five-day run.

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I wish all Utahns could have been there, not only to witness the stunning performance of our artists but to see the beaming faces of some Ballet West Board members who were in attendance.

[dirac]

The Joffrey  wins the Goldstar National Nutcracker Award for the second year in a row.

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The Joffrey first won in 2011. It's celebrating its 25th anniversary of its Nutcracker production.

[dirac]

The Westside Ballet presents its first Nutcracker without founder Yvonne Mounsey.

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Joy Womack danced the role of the sugar plum fairy in this season’s production. She grew up dancing in the Westside Ballet. But she didn’t stop there. At 18 years old, she’s the first American ballerina Russia's Bolshoi Ballet has hired. Womack said she came back to dance the ballet’s starring role because she wanted to honor what she'd learned from Mounsey.

[dirac]

Canada's ballet troupes attract large audiences in 2012.

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In terms of strategies it’s a revolution away from the era when it was enough to buy ad space in the mass media, put up some posters and expect to sell tickets.

From the 1970s onward, the major thrust was toward discounted season subscriptions. It worked well, until people’s lives became so busy and unpredictable they found it harder and harder to commit far in advance. Industry-wide, sales for full or even mini-subscriptions have softened, making it more crucial than ever to attract single-ticket buyers.

[dirac]

A look at the year in dance  by Donald Rosenberg in The Plain Dealer.

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A bounty of new works, as well as familiar themes, graced the dance scene in Northeast Ohio in 2012. From classical ballet to hot-off-the-presses modern dance, the offerings provided much terpsichorean nourishment.

[dirac]

The Sasonko jewelry house introduces a new ballet-themed collection.

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Designed by artist Tatyana Khromoseyeva, the rings, pendants, necklaces, earrings and bracelets in “Images of the Russian Ballet” evoke the movement of dancers in the depiction of a ballerina’s tutu in full performance.

[dirac]

A story on Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo and their new "Laurencia" by Valerie Gladstone in The New York Times.

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As part of the Trocks’ mission, Mr. Dobrin likes to offer audiences an opportunity to see idiosyncratic works, like “Laurencia.” “Everything in the Russian repertory has a specific look,” he said, “especially in regard to the national styles of the character dancing.”

“Western dancers usually don’t have this as part of their training, because it’s considered too exaggerated and old-fashioned,” he added. “The fun aspect of dancing with the Trocks is learning and performing the proper style of the individual ballets. It’s also one of the fun aspects of watching a performance of the Trocks.”

[dirac]

Two reviews of the cinema broadcast of the Royal Ballet's Nutcracker.

TheaterJones

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The camera work is even more frustrating in the big ensemble pieces, "Snow" and "Waltz of the Flowers." All of those lovely patterns and the sweep and flow are chopped up and broken into fragments. That's a shame because Clara and the Nutcracker (Ricardo Cervera)—now turned into a real person—weave their way in and out of both scenes in a seamless, heady rush, enthralled by each other and the joys in their midst.

The Sarasota Herald-Tribune

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  That said, this is a grander and more elaborate production than you will likely see elsewhere, with as many as 120 dancers on stage, more than 600 costumes — from Elizabethan wigs to glittering angel wings — and a Christmas tree that, with the help of a rising bridge, grows to truly immense proportions. (A back-stage tour during intermission filled viewers in on how the “magic” works.) That’s not to say, however, it’s all material flash; the dancing, from the principals to the lower school children in the roles of party children, mice and soldiers, is uniformly clean, crisp and correct, yet full of life.

[dirac]

The Trocks ring the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange.

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But, on Monday the heavily made up ballet troupe made the appearance on its off day. The troupe, known throughout the world after making appearances in more than 30 countries, shared their excitement by racing out into the streets after launching the morning markets.

[dirac]

Former Marine Roman Baca stages a military-style Nutcracker. Thanks to YouOverThere for sending in the link!

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This is his third, military-themed “Nutcracker” in Connecticut. He invites veterans’ groups to the show each year, along with the public, and has a Marines Toys For Tots collection associated with it.

“It’s the perfect merging of the two worlds I’ve inhabited for so long,” Baca explained. “For most ballet dancers, ‘The Nutcracker’ is their bread and butter. I’ve been able to look at this story and re-imagine it."

Related article posted in the Links earlier this year, also courtesy of YouOver There.