Behind the Scenes at the Ballets Russes (new book)

[mnacenani]

https://www.ilona-landgraf.com/2018/01/the-post-diaghilev-generation/

Many thanks to Ilona Landgraf for this heads up. By Michael Meylac, foreword by Ismene Brown, aft-word by John Neumeier.

Edited January 6, 2018 by mnacenani

[Drew]

Absolutely--thank you, too, for bringing attention to it here. Book sounds fascinating.

[kfw]

Thanks, mnacenani. I'm struck by Anatoly Joukowsky's quote about Balanchine: “He ruined American ballet … He repudiated the spiritual side of dance. He only left the technique and abstract ideas. And just think what he had choreographed before.”  Joukowsky is not a dancer I'd heard of before. There is more about him in the Google Books excerpt. It seems he's had a noteworthy post-dancing career, but I'm surprised he would make that statement in 1996. It's possible that, living on the West Coast, he just didn't see much of Balanchine's work in New York. We have plenty of West Coast posters here - I'd be interested in knowing more about Joukowsky. 

[atm711]

The Russians at that time did not like Balanchine---"they dance from  the waist down" was their frequent comment.  I would however buy the book just to read Danilova's take on Nicholas Legat's kidney transplant from a orangutan!!

[dirac]

Thanks for starting the topic, mnacenani, although I do feel the need to clear my throat and point out for the record that this link went up several days ago in our ever-helpful Links, where we regularly post Ms. Landgraf's invaluable articles.   Looks like a great book.

 

[mnacenani]

27 minutes ago, dirac said:

this link went up several days ago in our ever-helpful Links, where we regularly post Ms. Landgraf's invaluable articles.

Sorry for trespassing - no harm in extra publicity I hope 

[dirac]

3 hours ago, mnacenani said:

Sorry for trespassing - no harm in extra publicity I hope 

No apology necessary, not trespassing at all, and the book absolutely deserves a thread of its own.  We rarely have the time to post both a link and a new thread on the same link, so new topics are always welcome.

[canbelto]

I'm reading this book now. It's a very good collection of interviews. Some of the stuff Danilova says can be found in "Choura" and the baby ballerinas are interviewed extensively in the film "Ballet Russes" but there's still plenty of good stuff here.

The hand-to-mouth existence the dancers' describe so matter of factly seems shocking today.