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San Francisco Ballet Opening Night Gala: Moving the Compass


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The performance lineup for SF Ballet's Gala has just been released - and there's apparently a lot to be seen.

San Francisco Ballet Opening Night Gala: Moving the Compass

Thursday, January 24, 2013

"SF Ballet fans won't want to miss this spectacular performance, featuring a thrilling line-up of short, crowd-pleasing works including the Act 3 pas de deux from Don Quixote and the pas de deux from After the Rain. See the full line-up."

Tarantella

Composer: Louis Gottschalk

Choreography: George Balanchine

final solo from

L’Arlésienne

Composer: Georges Bizet

Choreography: Roland Petit

The Flower Festival at Genzano Pas de Deux

Composer: Matthias Strebinger, adapted by Holger Simon Paulli

Choreography: August Bournonville

In the Passarine's Church

Composer Wojceich Kilar

Choreography Myles Thatcher

Raymonda’s solo from

Raymonda Act III

Composer Alexander Glazunov

Choreography Rudolph Nureyev after Marius Petipa

2nd movement from

Trio

Composer Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky

Choreographer Helgi Tomasson

grand pas de deux from

Don Quixote, Act III

Composer Ludwig Minkus and Riccardo Drigo

Choreography after Marius Petipa and Alexander Gorsky

INTERMISSION

pas de deux from

Onegin, Act I

Composer Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky

Arrangement and Orchestration Kurt-Heinz Stolze

Choreography John Cranko

pas de deux from

Stars and Stripes

Composer: John Philip Sousa

Adapted and orchestrated by Hershy Kay

Choreography: George Balanchine

pas de deux from

After the Rain

Composer: Arvo Pärt

Choreography: © Christopher Wheeldon

excerpts from

Suite en Blanc

Composer: Édouard Lalo

Choreography: Serge Lifar

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Casts for the Opening Night Gala. Great news: Lorena Feijoo is back and dancing Raymonda's Act III solo.

TARANTELLA

Composer: Louis Gottschalk

Orchestrated by: Hershy Kay

Choreography:George Balanchine

Current Staging by: Elyse Borne

Costume Design: after Karinska

Conductor: Martin West

Piano Solo: Michael McGraw

Casting: Sasha De Sola*, Pascal Molat*

Final solo from ARLESIENNE

Composer: Georges Bizet

Choreography: Roland Petit

Staged by: Luigi Bonino

Scenic Design: René Allio

Costume Design: Christine Laurent

Lighting Design: after Jean-Michel Desiré

Conductor: Martin West

Casting: Pierre-François Vilanoba*

THE FLOWER FESTIVAL AT GENZANO pas de deux

Composer: Matthias Strebinger, adapted by Holger Simon Paulli

Orchestrated by: William McDermott

Choreography: August Bournonville

Current Staging by: Helgi Tomasson

Conductor: Martin West

Casting: Clara Blanco*, Gennadi Nedvigin

IN THE PASSERINE’S CLUTCH

Composer: Wojceich Kilar

Choreography: Myles Thatcher

Costume Design: Susan Roemer, Myles Thatcher

Lighting Design: Kevin Connaughton

Conductor: Martin West

Casting: Dores Andre*, Dana Genshaft*,

Joan Boada*, Jaime Garcia Castilla*

Raymonda’s solo from RAYMONDA ACT III

Composer: Alexander Glazunov

Choreography: Rudolph Nureyev after Marius Petipa

Reconstructed and Staged by: Grant Coyle, assisted by Bruce Sansom

Lighting Design: after John B. Read

Conductor: Martin West

Casting: Lorena Feijoo

2nd movement of TRIO

Composer: Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky

Choreographer: Helgi Tomasson

Scenic Design: Alexander V. Nichols

Costume Design: Mark Zappone

Lighting Design: Christopher Dennis

Conductor: Martin West

Casting: Sarah Van Patten, Tiit Helimets, Vito Mazzeo

grand pas de deux from DON QUIXOTE, ACT III

Composer: Ludwig Minkus and Riccardo Drigo

Choreography: after Marius Petipa and Alexander Gorsky

Staged by: Helgi Tomasson and Yuri Possokhov

Costume Design: Martin Pakledinaz

Lighting Design: after James F. Ingalls

Associate Costume Designer: Heather Lockard

Conductor: Martin West

Casting: Frances Chung, Taras Domitro

pas de deux from ONEGIN, ACT I

Composer: Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky

Arrangement and Orchestration: Kurt-Heinz Stolze

Choreography: John Cranko

Staged by: Reid Anderson and Jane Bourne

Scenic and Costume Design: Santo Loquasto

Lighting Design: after James F. Ingalls

Copyright Dieter Graefe

Condctor: Martin West

Casting: Maria Kochetkova, Vitor Luiz

pas de deux from STARS AND STRIPES

Composer: John Philip Sousa

Adapted and orchestrated by: Hershy Kay

Choreography: George Balanchine

Current Staging by: Elyse Borne

Costume Design: after Karinska

Lighting Design: after Sarah Linnie Slocum

Conductor: Martin West

Casting: Vanessa Zahorian*, Davit Karapetyan*

pas de deux from AFTER THE RAIN

Composer: Arvo Pärt

Choreography: Christopher Wheeldon

Costume Design: Holly Hynes

Lighting Design: Mark Stanley

Conductor: Martin West

Violin: Roy Malan

Piano: Michael McGraw

Casting: Yuan Yuan Tan, Damian Smith

excerpts from SUITE en BLANC

Composer : Édouard Lalo

Choreography: Serge Lifar

Staged by: Maina Gielgud

Conductor: Martin West

Casting: Sofiane Sylve*, Tiit Helimets*

* Indicates premiere in role

^Indicated guest artist

Program and casting subject to change

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Wow, Feijoo is back and in the big final Raymonda solo, right into the deep end.

So extremely happy to see Lorena again!! I'll never forget the year I went to the gala and she danced the Giselle PDD. When it was over the woman sitting next to me leaned over and whispered 'That's my daughter.' - bow.GIF

But a bit sad since this will be the last gala for Pierre-François & Damian.... After the Rain with YYT & Damian clapping.gif Can't wait for tomorrow night!!!

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I went to this year's Gala after skipping the last one. The theme was “Moving the Compass” which meant moving through the compass or through world ballet – rather than being about deflecting the direction dance was going. Overall the program seemed more subdued than usual.

The two Balanchine pieces – Tarantella with Sasha DeSola and Pascal Molat and Stars and Stripes with Vanessa Zahorian and Davit Karapetyan – were skillfully done but didn´t have the dazzling superficiality and playful exaggeration, and total belief in that superficiality, to bring them off. I liked Flower Festival at Genzano with Gennadi Nedvigin and Clara Blanco, who was lovely and brilliant.

Don Quixote grand pas de deux with Frances Chung and Taras Domitro was also very good and finely done, but strangely cool, as if missing the impelling force of its usual context. It seemed to lack certain accents such as Kitri’s flashing head and shoulder movements, laughing or resisting, when Basilio presents her to the audience upside down. [Later: I just remembered those pure and thrilling one arm lifts.] In the Raymonda Hungarian dance, Lorena Feijoo, whom I assocatiate with those flashing Don Q accents, didn’t make the great pop-off-the-ground-into-arabesque steps really “pop.”

There was a new piece, In the Passerine’s – songbird’s – Clutch by Myles Thatcher which was elegantly structured. For the Roland Petit L’Arlésienne solo, Pierre-Francois Vilanoba performs an all-out dance of agony before his leap through a beckoning window. I thought of Jerome Robbins' Afternoon of a Faun, which has a similar set arrangement and about how Robbins might have understated and detailed-out the role. And the child-like simplicity of the big open window reminded me of the Garcia Lorca poem Suicidio that begins, "The young man forgot himself / It was ten o'clock in the morning / his heart was filled with broken / wings and flowers of cloth ... "

Suite in Blanc, a sort of kingdom of the shades for mildly happy couples, nicely completed the program, and how wonderful was Sofiane Sylve who really inhabited her part. She was the white silk ribbon that pulled the whole thing together.

Anyone else have any thoughts on the overall character or about individual performances?

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Suite in Blanc, a sort of kingdom of the shades for mildly happy couples, nicely completed the program, and how wonderful was Sofiane Sylve who really inhabited her part. She was the white silk ribbon that pulled the whole thing together...

What an evocative description!

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Wow, Feijoo is back and in the big final Raymonda solo, right into the deep end.

So extremely happy to see Lorena again!! I'll never forget the year I went to the gala and she danced the Giselle PDD. When it was over the woman sitting next to me leaned over and whispered 'That's my daughter.' - bow.GIF

What can I say...I will never forget her as a very primising young starlet back in the early 90's -(91 to be precise). Too bad she was never permitted to dance the big roles in her homeland...

I guess she should be around Kent's age...?

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Suite in Blanc, a sort of kingdom of the shades for mildly happy couples, nicely completed the program, and how wonderful was Sofiane Sylve who really inhabited her part. She was the white silk ribbon that pulled the whole thing together...

Beautiful, Quiggin; thank you: I wish I'd said that.

I'm also eager to see the ballet again.

Edited by Paul Parish
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