9 replies to this topic

[dirac]

Sergei Filin says he forgives his attackers.

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Asked about his condition, Mr Filin said: "I won't hide it: this is, of course, very hard for me, very difficult. Every morning when I wake up I tell myself: Sergei, you are healthy, everything is in its place – arms, legs."

The former dancer, who appeared to be in some discomfort as he spoke, added that he would do "everything possible so that I become once again the Sergei that I was before."

Related.

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Police plan to use a polygraph when interrogating witnesses in investigating the acid attack on Bolshoi Theater artistic director Sergei Filin, a spokesman of the Interior Ministry told RIA Novosti on Monday.

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After several operations, doctors have managed to save Filin’s eyesight, the Interfax news service reported, citing the country’s chief ophthalmologist, Vladimir Neroyev. The Bolshoi artistic director can see well for a person who has undergone such a trauma, Neroyev said, according to Interfax.

[dirac]

A review of the Joffrey Ballet by Jessica Pena for The Daily Californian.

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In 1967, the Joffrey Ballet became the first American company to perform “The Green Table.” After 46 years, the ballet is still as powerful as ever. Using pistols with blanks, the show went out with a literal bang — capping a collection of emotionally vibrant and physically potent pieces both old and new.

[dirac]

The Joffrey announces its 2013-14 season.

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The Joffrey Ballet will add a special weekend of performances to its 2013-14 engagements at Chicago’s Auditorium Theatre in order to celebrate the 100th anniversary of “Le Sacre du Printemps” (“The Rite of Spring”).

[dirac]

The Australian Balletmoves its costumes and sets to a new warehouse.

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The move was a monumental logistical exercise taking four months. The costumes had to be moved on trucks fitted with special rails.
The largest item was a pumpkin carriage from the first production of Sleeping Beauty and the smallest, a pair of earrings.

The new purpose-built production centre will house 132 containers full of scenery, props, lighting gear, smoke machines, projectors, costumes, dance floors, office, medical and scenic equipment.

[dirac]

Ballet B.C. tours Ontario.

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The program Ballet BC will present in Burlington (Feb. 7), Kingston (Feb. 9) and Ottawa (Feb. 12) includes Herman Schmerman, a 1992 Forsythe classic that deconstructs the bones of traditional ballet; 1st Flash, a dazzling visual interpretation of Sibelius’s D Minor Violin Concerto by Finnish choreographer Jorma Elo; and Petite Cérémonie by Medhi Walerski, a young lion on the European dance scene, choreographed for the company in 2011. In St. Catharines (Feb. 2) and Markham (Feb. 15), Molnar’s 2012 work Aniel, inspired by American composer/saxophonist John Zorn’s Book of Angels, will replace 1st Flash.

[dirac]

A review of Miami City Ballet by Alastair Macaulay in The New York Times.

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The “Don Quixote” number, however, is just a cartload of ballet clichés, most of which were certainly added long after Petipa’s death. And is “Euphotic” innovative?

Certainly you can see how the 26-year-old Mr. Scarlett has so quickly achieved a reputation as an important choreographer. He smartly handles shifting large-scale geometries, he responds to music with taste, and he matches energetic full-orchestra conclusions with excitingly fast-changing formations that fill the stage. These are no small accomplishments. Yet much of this choreography is just skilled bluster.

[dirac]

A review of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet in "Moulin Rouge-The Ballet" by Calvin Wilson in The St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

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But as conceived by choreographer Jorden Morris, “Moulin Rouge — The Ballet” stumbled a bit before hitting its stride. Not enough time was devoted to establishing the romance between artist Matthew (Tristan Dobrowney) and dancer Nathalie (Amanda Green). In contrast, so much emphasis was placed on the creepy entreaties of Matthew’s rival, cabaret owner Zidler (Amar Dhaliwal), that it threw the storytelling off balance. Only a lovely duet between Matthew and Nathalie shortly before the intermission hinted at the glories to come.

[dirac]

An interview with Ryan Vetter of the RWB.

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He didn’t get a chance to perform in costume or with props until the first show of the tour last week in Lufkin, Texas.

“Being a ballet dancer, you just have to say, ‘Yes, I can do it,’ ” Vetter says. “You have to have that confidence that you can do whatever anyone asks you to do.”

[dirac]

The Bolshoi carries on. Story by Ellen Barry in The New York Times.

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“Captains change, but the ship keeps sailing on,” said Ivan, a stagehand who would not give his last name, saying he was wary of angering management by commenting. “The theater is a huge system; several thousand people work in it. A huge mechanism is at work, and even if such an important person as Filin has dropped out of it, nevertheless the mechanism continues to work. Because it has a mission, and it cannot stop working.”

[dirac]

A review of New York City Ballet by Tobi Tobias in her blog, "Seeing Things."

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Allegro Brillante looked as if it had been made with Peck in mind. She is more than swift, strong, and accurate; she’s musical as well. So her speed and dazzle were tempered—or, let’s say, complemented—by a seemingly intuitive sense of phrasing. Her performance in this ballet is enhanced by her ability to take physical challenges as occasions for pleasurable play. She was partnered by Amar Ramasar, a very attractive fellow, whom the viewer is meant to find persuasive, but hardly a virtuoso.