Ari
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Notable events in yesterday's two performances were the opportunity to see Peter Boal in Agon (he replaced the injured Sebastien Marcovici) and the debut of Megan Fairchild as Calliope, both in the evening performance. Fairchild danced well but hasn't yet grasped what the role is all about, which is understandable. It would be nice for her to be given another opportunity to do it, but she is not scheduled for the final performance on Saturday.
In other casting news, Daniel Ulbricht did dance the second male soloist in Mozartiana at the matinee -- I liked him very much, although he and Tom Gold (who had replaced Ulbricht on Wednesday), who is also wonderful in this role, are very different. And Benjamin Millepied replaced Robert Tewsley in Theme & Variations in the evening.
One of the pleasures of Saratoga is the opportunity to hear talks by dancers and others associated with the company before each performance. On Wednesday it was Merrill Ashley, who talked a bit about her recent trip to St. Petersburg to participate in the Balanchine Centennial celebration organized by the Maryinsky/Kirov. She said that some of the Russian teachers were very interested in the Balanchine technique and asked a great many detailed questions. One of them was the former ballerina Gabriella Komleva. When Ashley explained a fine point of Balanchine technique -- something to do with the way the toes were pointed -- Komleva said, "Ah, that's the old Imperial style." I asked Ashley about an issue we had discussed on this board: when she sees the Maryinsky dance Balanchine, does she want it to look like NYCB or does she like to see some of the Kirov style? She said it's a mixture. There are some things the Russians do that are beautiful and make the ballets look better, such as the way they hold their upper bodies and arms -- but only in the slow dancing. In the fast dancing, she said they want to retain their use of the arms, holding them far from their bodies, but it's not possible to move quickly that way, and they have to learn to bring them in closer to the torso. She also mentioned that "some people" (she didn't say who) who had seen the Kirov's Jewels a couple of years ago in America and had thought that they hadn't understood Emeralds at all, were very pleased with the company's progress in the performances they saw last month.
Only one more performance for me here in Saratoga. I hope that others will go to the rest of the season and report in!
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Leigh, about the ending of Cortege -- I didn't see Hayden do it, so I can't say whether Balanchine changed the ending after she left, but as long as I can remember the ballet has ended with a homage to the ballerina in which the curtain falls on her standing in a pool of light. This was completely absent last night -- it ended on an upbeat note, after the big ensemble dance, with the the principal couple posed centerstage in front of the corps. This is the first time I've seen it done this way, and I'm wondering how long the company has been doing it.
Tonight's performance was Mozartiana, the Violin Concerto (replacing Agon), and Tchaik. Suite #3. I'm afraid I can't agree with those who say that Kyra Nichols looks ageless; she seemed out of breath before the end of the pas de deux and while she danced well enough, her face betrayed the labor involved. Hubbe's solicitous partnering helped, but I'm not sure that's really appropriate in this ballet, in which the two principals seem to be dancing in separate worlds, coming together only fleetingly. Tom Gold replaced the originally scheduled Daniel Ulbricht as the second male soloist.
The Violin Concerto looked a bit better than on Tuesday, although Jock Soto is also showing his age, and Yvonne Borree is indulging in inappropriate emoting.
Tchaik. Suite #3 looked pretty good, with Carla Korbes luscious and dreamy in the first movement, Stephen Hanna, while still very American looking, showing promise in the romantic yearning department, and Ashley Bouder displaying the kind of hunger I love to see in dancers but so rarely do. Miranda Weese, in Theme, was not at her best but has developed a true ballerina authority that won over the audience as Sylve did last night, and Benjamin Millepied -- a dancer I have not been impressed with in the past -- gave a surprisingly fine account of the tough danseur role. This was, in fact, the best performance I've seen him give.
Bobbi, I wish I could report on next week's Emeralds, but I won't be here!
I'd love to see Sylve do the Verdy role. But I must say I think that Bouder will be wasted on the pas de trois -- she's far beyond that now. -
NYCB's Saratoga season opened last night with a "Russian tribute:" Robbins's Circus Polka followed by three Balanchines: Apollo, Stravinsky Violin Concerto, and Cortege Hongrois. Three Stravinskys and a Glazunov. Rather odd programming taken as a whole. I think of Glazunov as being not so much "Russian" as Romantic, and can't see much of a connection to Stravinsky, but whatever. :shrug:
The highlight for me (and the rest of the audience, to judge from the reaction) was Cortege. I've always considered this the least of Balanchine's essays on Raymonda, with Raymonda Variations and Pas de Dix (another setting of Act III) far superior, and the tacky costumes, better suited to a circus, don't help. (The ballet could also use more of a set, suitable to the palatial wedding being celebrated, than the swags of curtains at the sides.) But it was so well done last night that I was able to overlook the garish designs.
This was my first-ever glimpse of Sofiane Sylve, who was making her debut in the role, and it just made me want to stay put for the rest of the season and see her every performance. She is a terrifically strong, mature, and theatrically sophisticated ballerina who knows just how to shade a role like this without going overboard. Her authority is tremendous -- she made her entrance on a stage full of dancers and the others just seemed to vanish. She had the audience in her spell instantly. How often these days do we see someone with this kind of ballerina authority? Most "ballerinas" these days are just leading dancers. Here is someone who knows what being a ballerina is all about. The audience, which had been in blah mode until then, went wild.
I believe that Stephen Hanna was also making his debut (as Sylve's partner) and he looked quite impressive, more so than in my previous (brief) glimpses of him. The rest of the company also looked good. But what happened to the ending? The homage to the ballerina, made initially for Melissa Hayden's retirement, but which was retained in all subsequent performances that I've seen, was gone last night. When did this happen?
Before Cortege, Nikolaj Hubbe danced an intense Apollo, but the Violin Concerto looked wan and underpowered.
Emotions are running high here in Saratoga about the company's future at SPAC. "Save the Ballet" buttons are everywhere, and there is much gossip and intrigue. If SPAC's decision to drop the company after 2005 is reversed, the whole episode might be seen as salutory, a revitalization of a relationship that perhaps had come to be taken for granted.
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With summertime here and performances petering out until the start of the 2004-05 season, we're going to need something to talk about on BA.
Of course, there are always interesting issues that can be discussed at any time, but in the absence of live performances, we thought we'd go to the videotape (or DVD).In a couple of weeks -- whenever enough people have watched the video -- we'll be discussing the 1968 recording of Ashton's Cinderella by the Royal Ballet. We thought this would be an appropriate choice for two reasons: this is the start of the Ashton Centennial year (his birthday is in September), and the Royal is touring with its new production of the ballet, and those in the Los Angeles and New York areas (and, of course, London, where it was performed this past season) will have a chance to see it live. Comparing the two productions, and the dancing in 1968 and 2004, will be two of the topics we can discuss.
The 1968 recording is available on both videotape and DVD. See these links:
Or you might be able to find a rental copy at a video store. This video seems to be available virtually everywhere, so those outside the U.S. will be able to join in the fun, too.
This is an opportunity for all of us, wherever we are located, to watch the same performance and talk about it. I thought I'd let people know in advance so they can arrange to get a copy of the video, and then post some suggested topics for discussion. I'd like to wait a couple of weeks to allow people to get the video and, if possible, see the live performances in LA and NY.
Anyone interested?
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Wouldn't it also depend on who owns the copyright? If the San Francisco Chronicle owns the rights to Roca's first published articles, then reprinting them in another publication to which the Chronicle does not own the rights would be copyright infringement, if not "plagiarism" as the word is usually used.
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Edward Villella, if he's old enough.
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Rachel, I agree with you completely about how choreographers should draw on the Balanchine legacy. In pointing out the many different ways the Balanchine esthetic could be interpreted I was thinking more of the point of view of audience members, including critics, who might not immediately recognize the influence for what it is. If a devotee of Petipa had been told in 1929 that Apollo was a ballet in the tradition of The Sleeping Beauty, he probably would have been incredulous and outraged. For that matter, there still are people who would react that way! The difficulty is that artists are always in advance of everyone else, and it's our (audience members') job to try to catch up to them. Would we recognize the Balanchine esthetic in a ballet that might, at first, look very different? I hope so, but I'm not optimistic.
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One problem with wanting more ballets in a certain esthetic is that we are constantly re-assessing the nature of an esthetic -- not always consciously -- as time goes on and tastes change. I remember reading a book by a member of the Diaghilev crowd that praised The Sleeping Beauty for being a ballet that was, in essence, a gesamtkunstwerk, a fusion of all the arts -- in other words, a Diaghilev ballet. Years later, when Ninette de Valois decided to use the ballet as the foundation for her own company, she was primarily interested in it as the repository of classical style which her dancers could use as a basis for all their work. Nowadays, it means . . . well, who knows what it means, other than a lavish full-length story ballet that will sell out the house? It probably means different things to different companies. But the point is, its significance has changed over the years, and choreographers who were charged with making a ballet in the style of The Sleeping Beauty in 1913, 1940, and 2000, would probably interpret the assignment in three different ways.
We've already seen that Peter Martins's interpretation of the Balanchine esthetic is, at best, narrowed to B's spiky black and white works, although in the past he has made ballets, like The Magic Flute and the Schubert ballet of the early 80s, in other modes that Balanchine worked in. So one's interpretation of the "Balanchine esthetic" depends on many factors, including the temper of the times and one's own preferences.
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Sylvia Pas de Deux is another ballet I would love to see NYCB perform but they don't. ABT perform it but City Ballet for some reason don't.
Balanchine used the man's variation (the music and choreography both) for Franz's solo in the third act of Coppelia, which may be why he didn't want to revive the original pas de deux. Although I wouldn't mind seeing it twice -- it's a beautiful variation.
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If Eifman's tactic is to use big names as a box office draw, it's not going to work with Musagete. People who love Balanchine have been outraged by it, and those who don't won't care. It's not as though he's a celebrity outside the dance world.
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About Eifman's Russian emigre audience, there's one thing I've been wondering: if these people dislike Balanchine (it was mentioned upthread that that they complained about having to sit through his ballets in order to get to the Eifman), just what are they seeing in Musagete? I mean, there are all these references to Balanchine's life. When Eifman's emigre fanclub sees Ansanelli's legs give way, do they know what that's a reference to? And if not, just what are they getting out of the ballet and why do they bother?
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Helgi Tomasson, Anthony Dowell, Nikolaj Hubbe . . .
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All I'm saying is that as its been roughly 20 years since Balanchine's death, it's a bit unrealistic to expect all new commissioned ballets to adhere to something Mr. B would have approved of.
I agree completely, canbelto! I think it's wrong for the company to box itself into an esthetic that is too narrow to allow for experimentation and development. But looking at history is not encouraging. When the creative forces behind the development of ballet in Paris and Petersburg died, ballet in those places degenerated into parodies of themselves, and it took an outside force -- Diaghilev -- to shake things up and provide the stimulus for genuine creativity. Although it's also true that the Diaghilev esthetic, which did not primarily emphasize classicism, has not been lasting. The question is, can a company preserve its own heritage while at the same time allowing for internal Diaghilevs?
That said, I do not think that Eifman is one. This is probably unfair, as I've never seen any of Eifman's work, but the many reviews I've read are quite enough to assure me that this choreographer is unworthy of NYCB because he just isn't good enough.
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According to the Houston Press, Broomhead is leaving the company to join Ben Stevenson in Fort Worth:
Houston Press article (last paragraph)
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The series (four episodes) appears to show Michael Nunn and William Trevitt in the act of choreographing. See this brief blurb:
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Deep Discount DVD, which regularly sells DVDs for very low prices that include shipping (in the US), is having a special sale until June 25. All DVDs are 20% off the company's regular price when you enter the code DEEPDISCOUNT in the promotion code box when you check out. You can only use the discount code once, which I assume means that you can buy as many discs as you want in one order. The discount only applies to currently released discs, not pre-release orders.
This company is a legit operation; I've ordered from them twice and had no problems. They offer quite a few ballet discs, but the trick is finding them. The web site is a bit funky in that regard. Don't bother clicking on "ballet" on the left-hand side of the screen -- that will only bring up a small number of discs. Even doing a search for "ballet" will yield fewer discs than they actually have in their inventory. Your best bets are one of the following: (1) search for a specific DVD, such as "Trockadero," (2) call the company (there's an 800 number on the site), or (3) go to DVD Talk's PriceGrabber and search for the disc you're interested in. You'll get results from a number of different sources, with the cheapest highlighted. This may be the best way to browse, since in my experience you can find discs through this search engine that do not show up on DDDVD's own search engine. Confusing, I know. But consider these bargains:
American Ballet Theater at the Met (1984) Les Sylphides, Sylvia pas de deux, Triad, Paquita, with Baryshnikov, van Hamel, Makarova, McKerrow, Tcherkassky, Bujones, Gregory, etc.
List price: $29.95
DDDVD's Regular Price: $16.18
With discount code: $12.94
Trilogy of Ballet The Bolshoi in Giselle (Bessmertnova, M. Lavrovsky), Romeo & Juliet (same dancers), and The Nutcracker (Maximova, Vasiliev, Pavlova, Gordeyev)
List Price: $39.95
DDDVD's Regular Price: $21.58
With discount code: $17.26
Choreography by Balanchine, Vol. I (1978) Tzigane, Andante from Divertimento #15, The Four Temperaments, selections from Jewels, Stravinsky Violin Concerto, with Farrell, Martins, McBride, Ashley, Calegari, Saland, Lavery, von Aroldingen, etc.
List Price: $29.95
DDDVD's Regular Price: $19.94
With discount code: $15.95
Happy shopping!
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Am I being hopelessly old-fashioned, or does anybody else wish that they'd change the company tradition a bit for Ms. Quinn and let one of the men lead her out for her bow instead of the women?
Oh, I'm so glad you brought this up, Leigh. Quinn being escorted onstage by the ballerina bothered me all week when the company was here in Washington, and I wished they'd adapted the tradition to suit the changing times.
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He would often close one eye and optically split the body down the center, leaving each half with all the necessary components-head, arm, body, leg, and foot. To him, the lower body was as capable of expression as the upper."
If I understand Farrell correctly, she's saying that Balanchine wanted the body to work integrally, without the north/south divide. But then why did he "optically split the body down the center?" What was the point of that?
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It was a long time ago, but Martine van Hamel stands out in my mind as the perfect Raymonda (in the old ABT version, Nureyev's). Gorgeous dancing, of course, but more important, a mature and full-bodied femininity, which is suggested in the choreography and sets this role apart from others in the 19th century repertory.
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Balanchine expected his ballets to look 'different' when he was no longer around---but they also looked 'different' when he was around. They changed and evolved during his lifetime.
Yes, they did look different during Balanchine's lifetime, but back then he was still around and able to judge what was acceptable and make alterations, if he wished (and, as atm says, he often did). The challenge facing his heirs is deciding where to draw the line. There may be several different ways in which to dance a Balanchine ballet authentically or to solve a problem a dancer may be having with a Balanchine ballet, but determining what those parameters are is the task that the Trust is facing right now. To that extent, yes, it is "putting Balanchine in a box." Maybe it's hopeless; perhaps, as Alexandra says, the style will inevitably die out. That's what Balanchine meant when he said that he expected his ballets to look different after he was gone -- he said something like, "Oh, in the future people will all have a hole, and they'll go around being proud of their hole." But that doesn't mean we have to cave in. The issue of what constitutes Balanchine style is particularly acute now, when those staging Balanchine works are still those who have first-hand experience of working with the choreographer. Fifty years from now, stagers will look to their work for guidance.
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Where do we cross the line between a shift of accent and a distortion of aesthetics?
I think the point of dancing the great choreography has something to do with the challenge of mastering its style. (Another spectrum question.) How much of its style and exactly what aspects of that style, are necessary for the performance to be artistically valid? :shrug:
Let's see if we can pin this down. Marc has already given one example of the elastic snapping (for him) -- when the Bolshoi danced Agon and Bizet as though these ballets had a narrative. Can anyone else give other examples of crossing the line between maintaining a company's own style and rendering an unfamiliar choreographer's work faithlessly?
I can think of one. In the Diamonds scherzo, there's a moment when the four female demis are dancing alone, in a horizontal line, far downstage. At one point they are supposed to extend their right hips gently. When done properly, and to that music, the effect is one of great elegance and sophistication. But the movement went against the dancers' training, which is very straight up and down. Now this aspect of Kirov style, when applied to their native works, is beautiful and gratifying, but straight up and down is not what Balanchine is about at all. The Kirovians couldn't do the movement; one or two of the dancers looked like they were trying to jut out their hips (which is not what is called for at all) but couldn't; the others didn't even try. As a result, Balanchine's choreography was lost.
So, this raises two questions: is dancing Balanchine in a straight up and down fashion an acceptable native "accent" (my own opinion is that it's not, but I'm open to hearing others
) and if not, is it fair to expect the dancers to be able to master the looser Balanchine style? Can they extend their hips in Diamonds and keep them strictly in line in Swan Lake? -
As Leigh's, Daron's, and atm's posts indicate, Balanchine fans seem willing to accept performances of his ballets that are danced in the "accent" of the company doing them. So why isn't the reverse true? Why, when NYCB does Petipa, do Petipa fans complain about the NYCB "accent" in the performances?
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I agree that lack of skill or craft is at the root of the problem of contemporary choreography, but it's also true that alienation and anger have become ingrained in our cultural expectations. It's hard to imagine a choreographer these days making a pas de deux that is unironically tender and loving. Perhaps that's why some younger members of the audience consider choreographers as recently with us as Balanchine and Ashton to be old-fashioned, because they made ballets that showed people as -- gasp! -- happy.
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I'm not aware of Balanchine's having changed the ending at any time before 1978, when he did so for the videotaping of the ballet for PBS (the performance in "Choreography by Balanchine" that is available on video and DVD). He said at the time that he'd always wanted to change it but had never had the time. Personally, I've always preferred the original ending, though it didn't look to me like a fountain.
I'd love to see Sylve do the Verdy role. But I must say I think that Bouder will be wasted on the pas de trois -- she's far beyond that now.
Of course, there are always interesting issues that can be discussed at any time, but in the absence of live performances, we thought we'd go to the videotape (or DVD).
) and if not, is it fair to expect the dancers to be able to master the looser Balanchine style? Can they extend their hips in Diamonds and keep them strictly in line in Swan Lake?
More SPAC politics
in New York City Ballet
Posted
Ari the reporter here. You can take the girl away from Links, but you can't take the Links away from the girl.
This story is available online only to paid subscribers.
As Rhona mentioned, today's Schenectady Gazette contains a front-page article about a joint press conference given at SPAC by Herb Chesbrough and Peter Martins. Martins is quoted as saying that Chesbrough's demand that the ballet increase its attendance by 30% this summer is unrealistic because the ballet boom is over. In the 1970s and 80s, he said, Balanchine was creating new work, Baryshnikov's defection brought new attention and excitement to ballet, and ballet "had a buzz." The average head count per performance in recent years has been 2,500, about what it would take to sell out the New York State Theater. But Chesbrough's target is 3,500 to 4,000 per performance in order to keep the company at SPAC.
From the Gazette: