Lincoln Center Festival 2017

[KarenAG]

On 8/13/2017 at 3:19 PM, DanielBenton said:

It would be interesting to know what the original generation of dancers (I am thinking of Allegra Kent, Karin von Aroldingen, Jacques d'Amboise etc.) who may have seen this summer's performances thought about it.  Their thoughts on how Balanchine's works are being passed down and out of New York City to other companies would be most welcome.

 

Daniel, I would LOVE to hear their thoughts about how Balanchine is performed today, by both NYCB and other companies.  I wonder if they still coach, as Merrill Ashley, Maria Calegari and others do.     

[DanielBenton]

If memory serves (?) I think Merrill Ashley coached the Bolshoi in Diamonds a few years ago, and Karin von Aroldingen is still an active coach.  In coaching music, a good teacher is able, while remaining true to the essence of a piece, to dissociate themselves from the way they learned a piece and thus have a fresh perspective when listening to students perform.  Bolshoi, Mariinsky, Paris Opera and NYCB are so different in their training and presentation, and thus it would be fascinating to get their views.  Balanchine (like Beethoven, Bach, or Shakespeare), has a universal message such that his compositions can be presented in these really different traditions.     

[KarenAG]

12 hours ago, DanielBenton said:

If memory serves (?) I think Merrill Ashley coached the Bolshoi in Diamonds a few years ago, and Karin von Aroldingen is still an active coach.  In coaching music, a good teacher is able, while remaining true to the essence of a piece, to dissociate themselves from the way they learned a piece and thus have a fresh perspective when listening to students perform.  Bolshoi, Mariinsky, Paris Opera and NYCB are so different in their training and presentation, and thus it would be fascinating to get their views.  Balanchine (like Beethoven, Bach, or Shakespeare), has a universal message such that his compositions can be presented in these really different traditions.     

Hi Daniel - thank you. An interesting and provocative thought because many of us can view interpretations of Balanchine through the lens of 'how should the piece look' or 'is it being performed in Balanchine's style', or 'does the company understand Balanchine?'.  As for Merrill Ashley coaching Diamonds a few years ago, yes, I remember that and it was discussed in an issue of Ballet Review. Also, the program from the LC Jewels performance I attended (Bolshoi performing Diamonds) states that the staging is by Merrill and Paul Boos.