duffster

Only being familiar with the film, I really could not compare it with any other stage production. However I loved the principals, the sets and the quick pace of the whole performance. My father was a WWII vet, and watching this brought back memories to me of his many tales of being stationed overseas. I think that helped me enjoy it too.

Saw it last night on the local PBS channel. Absolutely outstanding.

After scanning down to her feet, looks as though she had quite a good turnout!

I am very sad to hear of his passing. I knew Raymond when he was with the National Ballet of Washington. We danced together a few times in Sleeping Beauty. May he rest in peace.

As a former dancer, most of my experiences with a ballet conductor(connected with a company) were very positive. He knew us all quite well,was very present in the rehearsals learning the tempi with which the ballet was to be performed,and when on stage I could see him watching us (in Concerto Barocco) very intently. We were fortunate to have him as our resident conductor. On the other hand, while on tour in Europe, we would have a different conductor with an orchestra that was connected to that specific theatre. I don't remember disasters but the frustration of dancing a variation(on which you have worked very hard) not being at its best, because of the wrong tempo, lack of rehearsal time, or the conductor just doing what he wants.

I remember while performing a two week season in Barcelona,at the Liceo theatre, every night there were a group of people(about the third balcony) screaming Bravo, clapping very loudly for every single ballet. I think it was a claque because they always were in that same section every night. Perhaps connected to the theatre, I don't really know. It sounds silly to say but it was very encouraging for us to hear the applause, since those tours could be pretty grueling.

Hilarious,- I wonder what he would have done with rap.

My first live Giselle was Svetlana Beriosova with the Royal Ballet. I was very young, but I still remember her otherworldly quality and her serene presence especially in the second act. I believe, but I'm not quite sure, that her Albrecht was Donald Mc Leary. Thinking now of how very fortunate I was to have seen her.

I have always loved the waltz in the middle of Tudor's Lilac Garden, it was very inspiring to dance to it. My other favorites are in Mr. B's Raymonda Variations (at the beginning of the ballet) and the pas des fiancees in Act 3 of Swan Lake.

In a Harkness Ballet performance of Firebird, the huge egg that Koschei was holding fell out of his arms and rolled straight into the orchestra pit.They stopped playing for about a half a minute but resumed the Stravinsky score with no problems.

I enjoyed that too- my other favorite is watching Michael Somes rehearse Symphonic Variations.

Many thanks for this wonderful viewing of the rehearsal of the Dream. I was very fortunate to have seen Sibley and Dowell in Swan Lake, Symphonic Variations, Triad and Enigma Variations, at the Met many years ago. I can still remember those performances to this day, and I also miss the anticipation of going to the theatre, to see these great artists. How sad now that the Ashton era is gone.

Thank you for posting this video. From the premier onwards, I saw every performance of The Dream with this cast for a good number of years. Nostalgia does not get much better than this. It brought tears to my eye seeing Sir Fred's meticulous attention to detail in the rehearsal. I felt he loved the work and this pairing who realised his work so perfectly. It was The Dream that established Sibley and Dowell as a highlly successful star partnership. Hearing his voice and seeing him work momentarily closed a gap in my life and showed how much we had lost. PS Thank you Helene for posting the other videos.

What about the broom in Act 1 in Cinderella, I'm thinking about Ashton's version, the key in Coppelia,( one of Swanhilda's friends finds it) , it opens the door to Dr. Coppelius's workshop. I don't know if this is a prop, but in the prologue scene in Sleeping Beauty,you have a doll to represent the infant Aurora, during the christening scene. One company that I worked for ( which will remain nameless ) used an enormous empty gin bottle (for Aurora) during rehearsals.

Bart, I also tried to find out more info about Les Algues, I wonder if it was ever filmed. In the ballet, there were no sinuous entanglements, the choreography was,as I recall, very simple. Janine Charrat was lovely to work with- extremely patient, very commited to the piece, at times she saw some of the senior members snickering at the choreography, she never showed any sign of temperment. She never covered up her scars from the horrible burning accident that she endured. At rehearsal she wore a typical v-necked leotard, where you could see the burns from her neck all the way down to her chest. As for the ballet, we only learned the first act. The first scene took place in the asylum where you had several characters, who each had a short solo-a thief, a magician, a nympho, young children,and several others who were clearly crazy. I swear I'm not making this up. The lead Lone (Isaksen) had long passages of wandering around the stage and staring at the audience, while Larry(Rhodes)was fighting other creatures in the asylum to get to her. At the end of the first act there was a turning competion between the magician and Rhodes. The turns were a la seconde, (like the fouette competion in Graduation Ball) The way this ballet was rehearsed (especially by Rhodes and Isasken) was with such commitment that was truly impressive. I think in the wrong hands this ballet could have been a quite a comedy.

I'd love to see Le Carnaval, Le Dieu Bleu, Les Papillons, The Three Cornered Hat, La Chatte and also Les Algues by Janine Charrat. We learned it at the Harkness, but never performed it. It was very bizarre, we were all inmates in a lunatic asylum. It was one of the first ballets that I had to learn, after just getting into the company and being a trainee in the school. At the time, I seriously questioned my choice of career.

By a lucky accident,(while channel surfing) I have just finished watching the restored Red Shoes on the Turner classic movie channel. I was completely awed by the magnificent colors, scenery and details not only in the ballet sequence,but also throughout the entire film. In the final scene when Shearer is backing up towards the open terrace, the red shoes (that are pulling her) you can see that they are slightly darned. All of the characters seem to be more defined, I especially enjoyed Massine ( I would loved to have seen him dance live). Shearer too, her beautiful quick clean footwork and her flawless alabaster skin. Lermontov, because of the high definition, becomes more sinister,since you can see the expression in his eyes more clearly. I highly recommend seeing this new restored version.

Yes, the stage makeup is complicated,but more so if you are a character in a ballet. It is also very rough on the skin, especially during long seasons. The worst for me were the matinee and evening performances, some dancers keep it on from the afternoon until they finish in the evening. In the company during long tours we would have contests to see who could put it on the quickest, and still do a good job of it. I could put it on fast, but it took me forever to take it off!

I have always enjoyed Kitri's entrance in Act one in Don Q, I was fortunate to see Maximova perform it . It was so amazing to me at the time- I was only twelve, Ican't forget it. Also the great Margot in Sleeping Beauty, when she finished her entrance, she literally stopped one performance that we did in Chicago- the audience would not stop yelling Bravo. I remember being impressed with Anthony Dowell's entrance as the prince in Act1 of Swan Lake. I wonder,if these entrances become more important because of the artistry of the dancer.

The dancers behind Diana Adams and Arthur Mitchell ( rehearsing Agon ) look like Jonathan Watts and Allegra Kent to me.

I took about three classes with Mme. Swoboda at the old ABT studios. From what I remember most of all was her very devoted following of dancers . Her barre,as I remember was set and not being one of the regulars, I felt quite out of the loop. She had a very soft voice, wore all black and scared me a bit . She reminded me of the nuns that taught me all through school. I heard her say ( High Legs !) at one point during the class. I think the center combinations were done frequently, as everyone seemed to know them perfectly. We did not face the mirror in the center, but did the steps side by side -everything flowed. I remember Roni Mahler leading the combinations quite beautifully. At the end we did a lovely reverence and applauded Mme. for the class and waited for her to depart. I'm glad to have these memories, I know its not much,but I hope it helps to post this.

We were never permitted to wear nailpolish for performances- I guess too much of a distraction. For Swan Lake-(Off Topic) red lipstick was forbidden-you could only wear a warmer tone- as under the blue lights, the red lipstick would turn your lips almost black.

I will agree that the costumes and sets are a bit strange for Swan Lake. I wonder what happened to Kowroski- I did not see this performance. Sometimes lack of rehearsal, nerves and other influences (behind the scenes) can effect your performance. Let's hope she just had a bad night, and will be back dancing as well as before.

I'm reading Georgiana: Duchess of Devonshire by Amanda Foreman. She was related to Diana, Princess of Wales. It's an interesting biography of someone almost as famous as Diana was and how their lives were very similar.

I love these films. I'm guessing that the Harliquin was Adolf Bolm. As for the ballerina I have no clue. It looks as though it was filmed outdoors. Would love to know all.