sandik

She did astonishing work, and we are all the richer for it.

I skimmed Kaufman's followup to her original story about the Trust -- I was disconcerted at the news that they don't actually keep spreadsheets about their finances.

2 hours ago, Leah said:

Looking forward to Merce Cunningham’s Summerspace. I didn’t realize he’d been in NYCB’s repertoire!

Oh yes -- he taught in the school for a time and some of the company performed with him in various projects.  Despite Cunningham's compositional independence, there is a real kinesthetic commonality between ballet (especially as it's practiced at NYCB) and Cunningham technique.

He talks about what he's been seeing at auditions for the school around the country, and comparing diversity in the visual arts with dance (and specifically with ballet).  Some nice insights on the company's audition practices, but also some very interesting observations about how things are working in the field now.

https://www.dancemagazine.com/race-ballet-peter-boal-2632243900.html?rebelltitem=4#rebelltitem4

All three projects sound fascinating -- I'm so glad they're getting support from the NEH.

10 hours ago, Helene said:

Price Suddarth has choreographed a work for Kansas City Ballet's "New Moves" program that opens Thursday and runs through March 31.

 

3 hours ago, Helene said:

Olympic Ballet Theatre will perform a work by Kyle Davis in its New Works program:

 

I'm very glad for both of these projects.  I think both of these artists have potential as choreographers, but the way to learn to make dances is to seek out opportunities to make dances.  It's a trick to fit these out-of-the-building projects into their rehearsal and performance schedules, but it's what needs to happen.

On 5/18/2016 at 3:52 PM, Deflope said:

Surprisingly, a lot of football players take ballet as it improves their flexibility and footwork. The multi-talented Herschel Walker even appeared onstage with the Fort Worth Ballet (Now Texas Ballet Theater)

When I was a student at the University of Washington in the mid-1970s, my ballet teacher (Eve Green) invited several members of the football team to join the beginning level classes -- they were often surprised at how difficult seemingly easy things were, but they were very respectful of the work.  I don't follow sports, so I don't know if any of them felt these experiences improved their football skills, but they were willing to try.

Program order is such an interesting topic, and so many different elements go into it.  Some of them are purely functional:  set changes/, shared performers.  Some are financial: musician time, extra stagehands (as above).  And of course some are aesthetic. 

I think the order for this program was probably the strongest one for these three works.  Peck is a pretty obvious closer, but the Neenan has a similar vocabulary and energy in parts -- I think it would have made each of them look weaker if they ran side by side.  The Williams might be considered an obvious opener as a more naturalistic work with a softer dynamic (not to mention a set that needed to be installed and checked), but I think it showed best by having two contrasting works surrounding it, like a crispy frame.  (the fact that dancers don't like to go from bare feet/socks to pointe shoes is a mark against either of those orders...)

In this case, the best aesthetic choice winds up being a bit more expensive -- I'm glad they have the budget for these kinds of exceptions.

11 hours ago, seattle_dancer said:

If anyone wants to come to Seattle to see Marie, the closing weekend is a good time, you could also see A Midsummer's Night Dream at Pacific Northwest Ballet April 12th or 13th.    https://www.pnb.org/season/midsummer/  Dress rehearsal is April 11th open to public for $30, includes pre-rehearsal lecture/discussion with the one and only Doug Fullington and costume shop manager Larae Thiege Hascall.

Thanks so much for posting so thoroughly here -- life is keeping me from seeing this, so I'm extra glad for the report. 

And yes, the combo weekend would be very efficient!

Thanks for the Instagram links -- I read some of his postings on Facebook, but don't have the wherewithal to follow people on IG!

Well, it's here in Seattle -- friends have seen it and said that, at three hours, it felt long, and that although the score was tuneful there didn't seem to be anything that stuck with them once they left the theater.

Has anyone been going to this series?  If so, could you please let us know a bit about what's been discussed.

That's Frederic Franklin!

I never saw her perform (I understand from a colleague she spent some time with Kansas City Ballet dancing for Todd Bolender) and so cannot speak to that.  If the Trust is sending her out to stage works, I'm sure she's got the credibility, but I was surprised to hear her give such a literal interpretation for a work that Balanchine was far less narrative about.

I was glad to see bits and pieces of the older version of Apollo -- I love it very much.

Thanks for the link here -- I've heard/read Howard on diversity in ballet, and felt she was a thoughtful and articulate part of the community, and this conversation underlined that impression. 

I agree that there are several positive aspects to competitions, especially the ones that come with significant masterclass and coaching.  And for young dancers who come from fairly small communities without a lot of options for training, these can be an eye-opening experience.   But I do worry about students who are encouraged to narrow their focus to a couple of "party piece" solos, and train only with those in mind.  And that, for me, is where this podcast really does dig into a substantial issue.

(Tangentially, I don't recall them commenting on the Regional Dance America programming, which places big emphasis on training and on long-form choreography)

I've written in the past about the effect that music videos have had on dance viewers, as they rarely show an entire dance from beginning to end as it might be performed in real time and space -- as our technology has sped up, so have these videos.  Howard's description of the Instagramization of dance video, focusing on individual steps and skills rather than longer dance phrases, was primarily aimed at dancers, and the changes she sees in their training.  As someone who spends her time in the audience, I think this has ramifications for viewers as well.  If I never see a dance phrase from beginning to end, but instead see a series of high points and zippy moments, I'm going to lose track of the longer arc -- I won't be watching for the things that develop over time.

In the 1980s, when Paula Abdul made a music video for her song "Cold Hearted Snake," she modeled it on Bob Fosse's "Air Erotica" number from his film "All That Jazz."  Copyright issues aside, the thing that made me concerned was that there were almost twice the number of jump cuts in Abdul's video, which ran shorter than the Fosse number.  Fosse showed us longer phrases, with more development within the phrase -- Abdul's video had shorter phrases, which meant she could do less within each one.  Any development over the arc of the video happened through the cuts rather than through the movement.  Howard's concern, as I heard it, was similar -- a dance is a long thread rather than a series of short moments.  And whether you are doing it or watching it, it's becoming more difficult to see the length develop.

On 3/18/2019 at 5:04 PM, pherank said:

"Interview with Balanchine Trust Repetiteur, Eve Lawson on her career, influences of the arts, and working with City Ballet of San Diego on Balanchine repertoire"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxVsNIrIxuQ

I listened to this interview -- she had some very unusual things to say about what she sees in 4T's (relationship to WWII).  I think it's possible to make that interpretation, but was surprised that a representative of the Trust would have such a narrative viewpoint on the work when Balanchine hardly ever did.

On 3/18/2019 at 5:56 AM, Kathleen O'Connell said:

Also, just a reminder that Macaulay was for a time (the late 80s) the guest dance critic at The New Yorker. 

That was when Croce took a leave to work on her Balanchine book -- way back then...

I saw two of the opening weekend performances (same cast twice, so no compare/contrast).  Of the three works, I think the Peck was the strongest, both structurally and in performance.  It was full of references to the NYCB repertory, but didn't seem overly worshipful or derivative -- just a reflection of where he was raised and works.  Everyone looked good, with particular standout moments for both Laura and Jerome Tisserand, Joshua Grant, Margaret Mullin and Lucien Postelwaite  (off the top of my head -- if I went back and looked at the program I'd likely list everyone).  The new Neenan has a lot of zest, with some really nice structural development and a bright sense of energy, but he paints himself in a corner a couple of times and has to work hard to get out (a false ending or two, and some funny choices about dancing in silence.  There's a false ending in the Peck as well -- you'd think that by the time you'd made several works, as they both have, you'd learn to avoid that).

Both Peck and Neenan made fairly conventional ballets, relying on the technique and the structures of the dance form.  Robin Mineko Williams comes from a contemporary dance background, and those are the tools she used here as well.  The movement material seemed connected to her experiences at Hubbard Street, and while the PNB dancers are becoming more familiar with it (they've danced a couple of works by Williams colleague in Chicago Alejandro Cerrudo) some of them are still grappling with the elastic push and pull.  Leah Merchant looked quite wonderful, as did Ezra Thompson and Christopher d'Arriano.  Noelani Pantastico was working hard, but for some reason every time I focused on her, she seemed to be having a difficult time.  I know she's coming back from an injury, so perhaps that was part of the equation.  The work itself was much more circular than the other dances in the program, and while there were witty moments in the text (sung onstage) I didn't really feel they were connected to the arc of the work, but that's my opinion.

Coming as it did right after their run of Sleeping Beauty I have a feeling that Peter Boal is really trying to signal about the versatility of the company -- "see everything we can do."

I remember years ago the Canadian publication Dance Current ran a tongue in cheek piece about a post-mortem hearing for Giselle -- it read a bit like a police procedural, but it brought up all the usual discussion points.

I'm sorry to hear about his retirement, though I'm glad that he's going to remain connected to the work and the company, especially as they negotiate the transition into the next phase.

On 11/19/2018 at 2:05 PM, Jayne said:

... I kind of wish PNB would change their Mandarin dance to show Chinese traditional animals instead.  Keep Balanchine's steps, but create Panda costumes.  Animals seem to get away with silly steps.  ...  Imagine if the Shanghai Ballet made a production of Western Symphony, and dressed them all as New England clamdiggers. 

Still working my way through some older posts -- forgive the blasts from the past. 

One of the things I find interesting is that when Nutcracker rolls into town every year there's often a discussion of yellowface presentation, but no one seems to object to the "Arabian" dance, which is in many ways equally non-authentic and sometimes out and out creepy.  (I thought that Kent Stowell's version, making the lead dancer into a peacock, was a very smart way to get around that problem).  I agree that a New England version of Western Symphony would be pretty odd, but we're not likely to see that, or to see any radical changes in the costumes for the Chinese dance in the Balanchine Nut -- the Trust is very specific about that. 

On 11/20/2018 at 11:55 AM, Helene said:

As an aside, Peter Boal said that all of the corps men and soloist wanted to do the bullfighters' dance and the Act I Finale in the Ratmansky Don Q

I totally would love to do that part -- those capes!

On 10/3/2018 at 2:22 PM, Jayne said:

... Regarding the Robbins pieces, I think we can honor him (and even include Peter Martins in the documentary) without applauding misogyny.  Hitchcock will still be honored for his masterpieces, but some of his portrayals of women appear in 2018 to be terribly sexist, and his obsessions with his female stars were entirely unprofessional and grounds for termination in the modern sense. 

Regarding RaKU, it's a fictional story, but I didn't think we were in Charlie Chan territory.  OTOH, I still love "Breakfast at Tiffany's" and "Mame" even though the treatment of an Asian characters is appalling.  I'm not sure how I will reconcile this in the future, but it's worth thinking through.  I love dancing around the house to Michael Jackson's music now, and I rationalize it by thinking that the radio royalty funds go towards his kids, not him.  

I know this thread was active awhile ago, but I took a break from BA, and am still mulling over this topic, hence this return from the past.  I agree that time winnows out many of the elements that might make a work unacceptable today, both in terms of the subject matter and in terms of the artist themselves.  The further we get from the moment of creation, the more we see something as an example of its time, not necessarily a model for contemporary behavior.  I know people who have not and will never forgive Robbins for his testimony during the McCarthy hearings.  I'm just young enough that those times are history to me, but I have many friends and colleagues who were involved directly.  We're in a transitional period.

But we also need to recognize that some characterizations or interpretations are really beyond acceptable now, unless they're presented in a way that acknowledges their questionable content, and explains the justification for their continued use.  Do I want to lose Fokine's "Petroushka?"  No.  Am I offended by his depiction of the moor?  Yes.  Can I explain why I think it's important to look at the work despite that flaw?  Yes, and it's my responsibility to do so, if I'm going to talk about the worth of the ballet.  I feel the same way about Robbin's "Fancy Free."

RaKU is problematic for me for many reasons, but mostly about cultural appropriation -- the sexual assault is, in my opinion, histrionic, though I can understand why it might be hard for an assault victim to watch.  

On 10/4/2018 at 7:52 AM, kylara7 said:

 I would probably not see it performed live for that reason, although I respect the work and the place it holds in the ballet canon.
 

And here kylara7 says what I was thinking in a much more succinct fashion!

On 3/14/2019 at 6:01 PM, vipa said:

In a Conversations On Dance interview the NYCB Director of Physical Therapy, Marika Molnar says she sometimes applies tape across the backs of knees of dancers with hyper extensions, so that when the are standing around in class, they have a gentle reminder to no push their legs back into their hyper extension.

that technique works with all kind of hyper-mobile joints -- it's a wonderful trick.

I find this really frustrating.  A jukebox musical using Jackson's work could be astonishing (though Wheeldon would be far from my first choice as choreographer) -- whatever period you look at, the music is intensely danceable.  But an evening devoted to his life story is a different event, and even by 202 I don't think the controversy will have faded to the point that you could look past the scandal to anything else.

19 hours ago, sf_herminator said:

Tickets are still available:  https://www.sfballet.org/season/events/2019-Ballet-Talk-Dancer’s-Cut - I've got mine!!!

Come back and tell the rest of us about it!