sandik

Thanks for the first-hand report!

And is he a redhead?

Directors of all nationalities reconceptualize all kinds of works (operas, operettas, musical theater) for all kinds of reasons in all kinds of places. How many different takes of Carmen have we seen in the life of that work? Far more than a couple of different views of West Side Story.

Well, having watched big swathes of the Watergate hearings back in the day, some of the ins and outs of the details felt like a soap opera!

Colleague of mine who worked in arts administration in Miami in the 1980s-90s said that they were awash in drug money looking to be laundered.

Thanks for the link -- I've read a chunk about this period, but hadn't seen this.

Jockey Club, yes. And an excellent illustration of "male gaze." Not to mention the disconnect -- once we get to the theater, he's going out for relaxation, but she's going to work. I did find some of the visual checks to be interesting (typing and bourees, stretching and stretching), but the overall message of the video is pretty sketchy.

Voila

There's a TED talk somewhere in the ether of McG developing movement material with a couple of his dancers. I remember it being quite engaging -- I'll see if I can find it. He's been happy to experiment with technology for quite a long time, especially with his own ensemble. They've come through Seattle several times, and I don't think I've ever seen them where they weren't using some kind of something.

Press release from Ballet BC -- she's scheduled to shift a year from now. This is a big change for both institutions.

The Jockey Dance! I love the Jockey Dance!! Oregon Ballet Theater did Napoli last year, and one of the thrills was to see the total stage picture, full of everyone. I'm sorry that the Danes couldn't bring that part of the work to NYC with these performances, but I suppose some Bournonville is better than no Bournonville!

McGregor's work often seems to me to be in line with the same kind of physical experimentation that William Forsythe continues to pursue. Performers are frequently enthralled by the kinetic challenge, and many speak of doing some of their best work in that context. (David Dawson is another choreographer who seems to ask for a similar physicality) Honestly, the idea that it's dangerous for performers to work in that way has been leveled at choreographers from Fokine onwards. Ballet is fundamentally unnatural, as are many other dance forms (not to mention sports). The Ailey company performed Chroma in their recent broadcast from Lincoln Center, and looked spectacular in it. I wish that someone would bring that film out on DVD, but I don't think it's happening any time soon.

Just in time for summer!

Thanks for the link -- glad for the characterization of the work and that performance, but this made me smile: "Act III of Raymonda, which closes the bill, inhabits a different balletic universe altogether: the one in which classicism comes to Ruritania." Snap!

I'm very frustrated to be missing this -- I saw a rehearsal last month and was very impressed. I'm hoping they find a way to perform some of these works around town this year...

Me too.

I agree heartily with you about the Speaking in Dance feature, and other mixed-media projects that we see in online publications these days. Whatever I think about the more dithery aspects of Facebook and its friends, we see, hear, and read so much more about the ins and outs of professional life now than we ever did in the past. My biggest frustration, though, is what we are able to do with that experience. With outlets closing right, left, and center, there just aren't enough places for long-form, thoughtful criticism and analysis. In the recent past, the NYT and a few other newspapers had the space and resources to give writers the time to do that kind of thinking-in-print in outlets that the majority of us had access to. Think about Deborah Jowitt's long tenure at the Village Voice -- her work is an overview of 40 years of dance history, and 40 years of thoughtful consideration of its development. That's no longer happening in most journalism now. (the fact that the specialty publications, like Ballet Review, are also fading away, just adds to the frustration) But many thanks for the good news about an anthology of Crimp's dance writing -- I'll look forward to seeing it!

Someday I'll manage to get there!

Were you able to see it? And if you did, what did you think. My memory of it is totally wrapped up in Nureyev's performance, so I don't really feel that I have a clear idea about the ballet itself, except that it's a remarkable vehicle for someone with great expressive skills.

Thank you so much for posting this -- I don't use Instagram, and so wouldn't have seen this. I've always said that the Lilac Fairy is doing the hardest steps in the world to the loveliest music, and here it is!

Your comment reminded of an observation by Alexandra Tomalonis, a number of years ago. I think it's somewhere on this board, but I don't have the wherewithal today to rummage for a link, so here it is plain: "I think that's the key to the Princes. They're heroes. They don't have biographical details. They have destinies." If we go back to the Romantic model, the hero is not necessarily the action guy -- he's distinguished by his sensitivity. I agree that in an artform where kinetic drive is used to convey all kinds of personality traits, it's harder to show qualities that don't necessarily involve physical dynamism, but there it is -- we work with what we have. (and I do love your insistence on meritocracy coming on July 4!)

I appreciate your observation, but I have to say I think that is what the original was like. When you look at the photos from those foundational productions, and especially when you look at the cast lists from SB, they are just packed full. An incredibly dense stage picture, and all those astonishing names we conjure with. Our 21st century eyes have been trained by all those pared down ballets that Balanchine (and colleagues) made during the heyday of the 20th century, where they made a virtue of spareness.

The original folk/fairy tales were often quite grim (no pun intended!) One thing I try to remember, when looking at a dance that is "based on" another artwork, is that the choreographer is not necessarily making a point-for-point translation of the source work -- they are often using it as a jumping-off point. So Matthew Bourne's Sleeping Beauty can peacefully exist in an alternate universe from Marius Petipa's -- they can make each other more clear by being more true to themselves.

I did see this on one of the Nureyev and Friends tours in Vancouver BC in the late 1980s.

As flattering as this might be, the fact that I live 3000 miles away from NYC would seem to make this idea pretty impractible. As I understand it, it is not likely that the Times will hire a full-time critic. As with many of their other departments, they are working with freelancers and part-timers.