dancersteven

The verb form of provocative would be "to provoke", and if this piece provoked a generally positive review and some discussion, then it did its job, eh?

As to what is provocative (assuming you mean sexually), men in dancebelts just do not do it for me. In fact I do not remember the reviewer mentioning sexuality at all, although that was inferred. She said something about the men being stripped of societal niceties and desperately trying to communicate. Makes me wonder if maybe what was supposed to be provoked was not a sexual response at all.

This reminds me of a piece I saw a couple of years ago, a duet for two fully clothed men. There were some tender moments, but it was about relationships in general, not about sexuality specifically. It was reviewed as "the requisite homo-erotic duet". :-) I guess it is all in the eye of the beholder.

Thanks for posting this Jeannie, I do not know of anywhere else to get this current of info on he web, and love to keep track. Keep it coming if you can, even just the bare bones. Time enough for analysis later. . .

If you watch "Star Wars, A New Hope" (which is the original, from 197?), in the scene where Luke (Mark Hamill) is knocked unconscious by the sand people, you will see that he is lying on the ground with one leg straight and the other in a passable passe

;-). And both legs are perfectly turned out! That hardly qualifies him, but it is a good start. . .

S.

Unitards have their place, when used appropriately. For example, when the ballet is about purity of line or to show vulnerability (thinking a nude unitard here). The trouble is when someone sets out to make a "unitard" ballet, and ends up with a piece of drivel that isn't really about anything. Unitards are not a good thing to try and make a ballet about;-). . .

S.

RE: Julie Kent's Shoes Pricing:

It could just be a supply and demand thing. Either they do not sell as well (low demand), or Julie uses up more shoes quickly (high supply), or maybe Murphy and Herrera do not give all of their shoes to be sold and Julie does. Just a thought. . .

S.

The thing is that many people come to the ballet thinking that this is Art, and therefore, something to be understood. If they do not think that they "get" it, then they may feel alienated and separated from the work and the emotions therein. Even a few lines communicated to the audience, in a program, in a pre-concert discussion, whatever, helps to create a sense of connection between the audience and the work. It doesn't have to be much, a brief outline of the story, if there is one. If there isn't, even something about what the choreographer was thinking at the time, or even the line "Dance can be defined as human movement through space" can help the audience know where this piece of work is coming from. That goes a long way towards bringing the audience into what is happening on stage, which ought to be the first goal of all performing artists.

[This message has been edited by dancersteven (edited April 06, 2001).]

Just a couple of things;

"However, ballet is SO demanding. . . even a less than gifted dancer in a tiny, local company has sacrificed tears and blood beyond what one can ever fully appreciate"

Sometimes even more. . .

About politics;

I do not know that anyone has made it very much higher than they should have because of politics, if they can't do what they are being askedm it is impossible to hide it. However, many dancers are held back because of all kinds of politics, whether they are married to the wrong person, said the wrong thing to the wrong person, are just to loyal to the last director.

Lucia Lacarra for certain, and then either Irek Mukhamedov or else Jordan Morris (Royal Winnipeg)

Speaking of bowing in character, the best character bows that I ever saw was by the principal in a ballet adaptation of The King and I. He bowed and bowed to his standing ovation, in character, very stiff, formal, and sharp, and just before the applause started to fade, he relaxed and took a bow as himself. The audience went wild all over again. . .

On a different aspect of this thread, audience members, try to keep the dancers from out bowing their applause. Others in the audience will join you if you clap furiously as it starts to die and the dancers are still out there. Dancers and stage managers, bows are important, yes, but please learn when to get off of the stage, or when to drop the curtain.

I think that the "Footnotes" series of ballet videos are a very useful supplement to the actual ballet videos themselves. Each video focuses on one 19th century ballet and contains excerpts of a variety of productions along with principal dancers' insightful commentary on the ballet and their roles. They cover a variety of topics, everything from Odette vs Odile, to the construction of point shoes to how tired Frank was during Act 2 Giselle. It is a very Canadian production, narrated by Frank Augustine (sp?, sorry Frank), and most of the interviews are with Canadian stars (Karen Kain, Evelyn Hart, Veronica Tennant ect.). I am not sure if this is still available in the US, it was at one point, and it was/is broadcast on Bravo from time to time. Usually I have seen them broadcast right before Bravo shows the ballet in its entirety.

Thank you Bridgit, that is exactly what I meant!

I am going to cover all of the bases here;

Of the century; Barishnikov, for what he did for classical ballet in America (even at the expense of ABT's budget. . .)

Of the millenium; Vagonova, for starting us down the road that we are now on

Ballet; Serenade, for being plotless and theatre at the same time. . .