Jump to content
This Site Uses Cookies. If You Want to Disable Cookies, Please See Your Browser Documentation. ×

Swan Lake 2013


Recommended Posts

Casting has been posted

http://www.pnb.org/S...anLake/#Casting

Looks like I'm going to see Leslie Rausch's debut. I'm a fan, so quite excited!

Friday 4/12: Korbes / Cruz (a.k.a. Lac de Cisnes de Brasil y Cuba!)

Saturday 4/13 Matinee: Rausch / Bold (debut for Rausch)

Saturday 4/13 Evening: Nakamura / Orza (now there's a short / tall combination!)

Sunday 4/14 Matinee: Korbes / Cruz

Sunday 4/14 Evening: Chapman / Tisserand (debuts for both)

Other notes:

Louise Nadeau returns to the stage as the Queen Mother, and Josh Grant debuts as Baron von Rothbart, and on Sunday Otto Neubert debuts Rothbert as well (surprised he's never played this role before).

Thursday 4/18 Evening: Chapman / Tisserand

Friday 4/19 Evening: Imler / Herd (former PNB principal Casey Herd is guesting, he is currently principal at Dutch National Ballet)

Saturday 4/20 Matinee: Korbes / Cruz

Saturday 4/20 Evening: Rausch / Bold

Sunday 4/21 Matinee: Imler / Herd

Sunday 4/21 Evening: Nakamura / Orza

My Russian-Ukranian friend can only go on Sunday 4/14, so I am going to pick up tickets tomorrow. The question is this: should I get the Korbes / Cruz show or the Chapman / Tisserand debut??? I am leaning towards Chapman / Tisserand, because I have thought for a while that Maria would make a queenly O/O. Thoughts???

Link to comment

My thoughts are that PNB did *not* take me, me, me, me and only me into consideration when coming up with this schedule, and ir's going to be hard to lose even one of these casts.

I can't give you advice, because I want to see all of them equally. Although I'd have expected a Rausch/Tisserand pairing, since both of them are debuting in the roles, it's nice to see how Boal mixed it up. I think Chapman and Tisserand will look great together.

My programs aren't at reach, but I'm fairly sure Neubert has rocked the von Rothbart boots before.

Link to comment

I know. I could make a flowchart with pros and cons, but I'd end up ruing any recommendation, and I'm still tearing my hair out over missing Nakamura's Juliette (this run) because of scheduling.

Maybe one time or the other would be more practical or given her schedule she'd have more energy and focus for one or the other? The 1pm start time has put the kabosh on the reasonably early bus, but there's a trade-off in hopping off it and running to the theater when the curtain is 2pm.

Link to comment

Friday 4/12: Korbes / Cruz (a.k.a. Lac de Cisnes de Brasil y Cuba!)

She danced with Stanko Milov in 2009, the last time they did the ballet.

Saturday 4/13 Evening: Nakamura / Orza (now there's a short / tall combination!)

She danced with Wevers in 2003 when they debuted the production, and with Postelwaite in 2009. I can't find my notes from the 2007 performances.

Other notes:

Louise Nadeau returns to the stage as the Queen Mother, and Josh Grant debuts as Baron von Rothbart, and on Sunday Otto Neubert debuts Rothbert as well (surprised he's never played this role before).

The double asterisk in the listing means that he's performing as a guest artist -- not a member of the company. Neubert has played Von R since this production debuted.

The question is this: should I get the Korbes / Cruz show or the Chapman / Tisserand debut??? I am leaning towards Chapman / Tisserand, because I have thought for a while that Maria would make a queenly O/O. Thoughts???

A tough choice -- I'd probably go with the Chapman/Tisserand option, but only because I've seen Korbes O/O before (and thought she was astonishing) so I can afford to add to my collection.

Link to comment

As a part of their 40th anniversary celebration, the company is inviting all and sundry to send video of their best "swan arms," to be included in a video montage. The explanation is

and some examples are here.

And

is an interview with Peter B about the production, and some archival footage from Stowell and Russell's staging in 1981 (including a look at Deborah Hadley).
Link to comment

In 2007 Korbes danced with Casey Herd.

One of the highlights of this run will be the lecture/demo presented by Doug Fullington this Saturday, 6 April at 3pm. Edited: (although) It appears to be in McCaw Hall, since the website is showing the hall's seating chart and is resolving to "Dress" as the section, it's actually in the Phelps Center, per sandik's post below.) Here is the link for tickets, which are $20 + $3/order:

http://www.pnb.org/S...ve/?perf=13LD05

According to PNB's Facebook post, Doug will lead a discussion with Maria Chapman and Jerome Tisserand, who debut as Odette/Odile and Siegfried.

Link to comment

Just read the email sent by PNB - they are offering 25% off the Sunday April 14 7:00pm show (Maria Chapman / Jerome Tisserand debut). Order online / call with the code "WING". So I guess that solves it for me! Fortunately I was too busy working to get my tickets ordered earlier this week. So my procrastination results in a 25% discount!

Link to comment

One of the highlights of this run will be the lecture/demo presented by Doug Fullington this Saturday, 6 April at 3pm. It appears to be in McCaw Hall, since the website is showing the hall's seating chart and is resolving to "Dress" as the section. Here is the link for tickets, which are $20 + $3/order:

http://www.pnb.org/S...ve/?perf=13LD05

I got a confirmation today for this event, and it's scheduled for The Phelps Center -- not sure why the website was leading people astray.

Link to comment

I look forward to seeing what Thomson will do with Wolfgang. He's been doing more and more character roles, like Dr. Coppelius and Mercutio, and even his first forays into the roles have moments of keen insight and a very personal approach.

Link to comment

I thought Thomson's Mercutio had several excellent moments in it -- he brought a great energy to the part, and used it in some specific ways, rather than just raging all over everywhere. His Coppelius was slightly less specific, in my eyes.

This version of the tutor has the potential for some excellent characterization -- I'm curious to see both Gaines and Thomson in it.

Link to comment

I still remember the moment when Thomson's Dr. Coppelius came into his studio at the beginning of Act II, after he had just lost his key, been roughed up by Franz and gang, and found his studio door open -- just being the end of Act I -- and he sat at the end of the chair, diminished, a frightened, diminished man trying to gather himself. It was one of the most moving details in any portrayal of that character that I'd seen.

Link to comment

I still remember the moment when Thomson's Dr. Coppelius came into his studio at the beginning of Act II, after he had just lost his key, been roughed up by Franz and gang, and found his studio door open -- just being the end of Act I -- and he sat at the end of the chair, diminished, a frightened, diminished man trying to gather himself. It was one of the most moving details in any portrayal of that character that I'd seen.

And I'm glad that you saw it. Moments need witnesses.

Link to comment

I went to Doug Fullington's lec-dem last weekend, and thought people might like a brief report:

Swan Lake: Then and Now

Doug Fullington presented another of his excellent background lectures in conjunction with PNB’s upcoming performances of Swan Lake. Unlike many works in the ballet canon, Swan Lake has been the subject of scholarly examination almost since its premiere – there is a wealth of material for people who are interested in exploring the history and context of the work. Doug’s lecture was equally rich, dealing with the general history of the ballet as well as the more recent development of the production that PNB has in its repertory.

One of the most interesting parts of the presentation covered the actual order of events in different productions of the ballet – Doug traced the shifts and interpolations in the score from the original composition in 1875-6, through its first production in Moscow in 1877, its 1895 revision in St Petersburg, through to the current PNB version. Tschaikovsky’s ballet music is such a standby today that it’s hard to remember earlier audiences felt that the original score for Swan Lake wasn’t very ‘danceable.’

Because its been in almost continual production somewhere in the world since the 1895 revision, Swan Lake is a great way to view our changing expectations of classical ballet, especially when it comes to amplitude and virtuosity. Doug had a fascinating collection of slides that show just how varied the iconic “swan” image has been over time, and followed that up with some performance excerpts by Margot Fonteyn and Michael Soames from the mid-1950s. Both dancers were excellent examples of the classicism of their time, and while they gave a truly evocative performance, it was very interesting to compare them with current expectations of speed, clarity, and range.

After a short break Doug introduced Maria Chapman and Jerome Tisserand, who will be making their debuts as Odette/Odile and Siegfried during the first weekend of the run. They were very gracious, answering questions and describing their experiences as they prepare for what is a very challenging work. Chapman explained that it was the first program-length work she had ever seen live, as a student in the Boston Ballet’s summer session -- in a serendipitous coincidence, the Odette/Odile from that performance, Elaine Bauer, is now a coach at PNB and has been working with Chapman on the role.

The bibliography Doug circulated includes Roland John Wiley’s books on Tschaikovsky and Ivanov, Cyril Beaumont’s “The Ballet Called Swan Lake,” the Royal Academy of Dance’s “Mime Matters” DVD illustrating basic ballet mime as well as signature sequences from the historical canon, and the recent ICA release of mid 1950s performances by Margot Fonteyn and Michael Soames.

As always, Doug was an excellent presenter, combining lecture and video with artist Q/A and general questions. He manages to embue scholarly detail with a loving enthusiasm for the art form – everyone in the room, no matter their previous level of expertise, learns something new about the work in question. It’s a wonderful skill, and I’m always thrilled to see it in action.

Link to comment

Thank you for posting that, Sandy: I hadn't see that for a while.

Patricia Barker danced with Jeffrey Stanton, Carrie Imler with Batkhurel Bold, Kaori Nakamura with Lucien Postlewaite, and Carla Korbes with Stanko Milov. Only Bold is still dancing non-character parts: he'll dance with Lesley Rausch in this run.

Link to comment

Thank you for posting that, Sandy: I hadn't see that for a while.

Patricia Barker danced with Jeffrey Stanton, Carrie Imler with Batkhurel Bold, Kaori Nakamura with Lucien Postlewaite, and Carla Korbes with Stanko Milov. Only Bold is still dancing non-character parts: he'll dance with Lesley Rausch in this run.

Postelwaite is certainly still dancing -- just not here, alas!

Link to comment

What are your thoughts on the performances and different casts? I'm curious about opening night?

Today I saw Karel/Carla at the first Sunday matinee. They work so well together.

Karel easily whips out 5 to 7 pirouettes and then sustains his releve. His jumps seemed effortless. Carla was enchanting. Her white swan was so nuanced with small details I don't even have words to describe. Toward the beginning of the Act III pas de deux Karel set her up in an arabesque with her arms in fifth and it seem like she balanced for ten seconds! I was in the front row of the orchestra and saw her managing that balance and subtly fighting for it have when she could stepped out of it and filled the time with some traveling steps. Such a great moment!

Also enjoyed Kiyon as Jester, Leta/Price in Neopolitan, and Lindsi Dec in Persian. The music was exquisite - I never tire of listening to it. Bravo!

Link to comment
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...