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Marjolein

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Everything posted by Marjolein

  1. Béjart was even bigger in Belgium than he was in France. Nearly all of my dance teachers and even my pointe shoe fitter danced for him. He was actually in the process of becoming Belgian and he asked for his ashes to be spread in Belgium. Many many people are very sad and shocked here. Everybody knows his name around here, even people who don't like ballet. Btw, I'm usually on the forum for dancers, I rarely post here. Marjolein
  2. The Royal Ballet doesn't receive much government funding, so they don't have to money for an orchestra. I think they're quite a good company, but I can't really compare, as they're the only ballet company in Belgium. They have a couple of very strong principals and very very nice corps de ballet. Unfortunately, they recently got a new director, and their repertory will most likely change a lot, from being a classical company to a contemporary ballet company. That means we'll lose the only classical company in the country. I read part of the thread about men and ballet. My boyfriend took me there for a surprise, and he told me he wasn't nearly as bored as he'd expected to be. He's used to going to the theatre though, he's an actor/singer/director himself. That's why he didn't like the mime. Being an actor, he found it very unnatural, but he did like the dancing and he was very impressed with the male dancers. Now all I have to do is convice him to take classes himself
  3. Here's a little review of the Royal Ballet's Giselle: I went to see the Royal Ballet in Giselle yesterday in Breda (the Netherlands), taken there by my wonderful boyfriend who had never seen a ballet before (and I believe I have a convert now, he really liked it ) I had never seen Giselle before, and I have to say i was quite impressed. Unfortunately, the music was taped, which spoiled the fun a little. The Royal Ballet hardly ever has an orchestra. I don't know who danced Giselle, but i do know it wasn't any of the usual principals, I would have recogised them. The dancer was very expressive in her part, especially in the mad scene. I sat on the balcony so I couldn't see her facial expressions, but seeing her dancing was enough to see the emotions of the part. Only in her variation in the first act, i was a little dissapointed with her technique, as some of the pirouettes were rather sloppy. The dancer in the part of Albrecht, was exquisite, both in technique and expression. I was very impressed with his variations. The Peasant pas de deux was was beautiful, both very young but wonderful dancers. The corps de ballet was really good in both acts. Their dancing was beautiful, very synchronised and really just perfect technique in all the dancers. Costumes were gorgeous, as usual, and the stage but simple but very nice. Did anyone see Giselle in Belgium or the Netherlands?
  4. Here are some Flemish classics: "De leeuw van Vlaanderen" (The Lion of Flanders) by Hendrik Conscience "Pallieter" by Felix Timmermans "Pieter Daens" by Louis Paul Boonis (a true story which will teach you a lot about Flemish history) anything written by Hugo Claus Some more authors: Cyriel Buysse Jef Geeraerts Stijn Streuvels If you like poetry: Guido Gezelle Paul Snoeck Paul Van Ostaijen These are all rather old books and writers, if you want some more recent literature, here's some names: Tom Lanoye Kristien Hemmerechts Pieter Aspe I can't of any other names right now (I read mostly American and English books), but I hope this helps.
  5. I just saw the movie last night, and I absolutely loved. I didn't find it that daark though, but that's probably because i read the book so many times, and i knew what to expect. I really hope hey don't change the cast, i think they're the perfect Harry, Hermione and Ron! Btw, did anyone else notice the chemistry between Ron and Hermione?? I bet they'll end up together by the end of book 7.
  6. I'm not sure yet when I'm going, dpends on both mine and my friends class schedules. It might be this fall, but if we both end up with heavy schedules, it might not be until next summer. Anyway, thanks for the information.
  7. Does anyone know if it is possible to visit the Vaganova Academy? I'm thinking of a trip to Russia to visit a friend of mine, and it would seem wonderful to be able to visit the Vaganova Academy. I'm a journalism student, and I'd love to write an article about the school for my final portfolio. I won't have a press card yet though. Can anyone help me out?
  8. I wish they were a more classical company. We really lack a good classical company here in Belgium. Do you happen to know when they will be performing Giselle?
  9. Anything written by Joost Vondel, is pretty much a classic. Max Havelaar, by Multatuli is good too. The Lion of Flanders, by Conscience is a good Flemish classic. There's lots of medieval stories, like The Fox Reynaerd, that are Flemish classics too, though very hard to read, as they are written in old Dutch. (Btw, Dutch and Flemish are the same language, only the accent is different, like the difference between british and american english). That's all I can think of now, but there's more. I just can't think of any now.
  10. This is such a great thread, thanks for all the suggestions. GWTW, it's true that some books that you refer to as classics might not be classics to us, however I want to read classics from all over the world, not just our good old Flemish and Dutch classics. I went to the US as an exchange student, and took an American Lit class there. We read quite a lot of classics, but I want to read more than we did in that class. I prefer reading books in the original language, so I'm glad most books suggested here are originaly in English. Old Fashioned, Victor Hugo is one of my favorite authors. I'm going to attempt reading his books in French now. Anyway, keep on suggesting, I'm really enjoying this thread.
  11. I never got to read very many classics in high school, so i'm reading as many as i can now. What do you think is a great classic everyone should read?
  12. I'm majoring in communication right now, with the option to specialize in journalism next year. Over here in Europe it isn't possible to get a minor, or major in more than 1 topic. I take dance classes at a studio. I would love to be a dance critic, but there just isn't a market for it here. Belgium only has 1 ballet company, and it rarely gets written about in the press. (I am planning to change that though!!! )
  13. Someone else from Belgium here! I haven't gone to La Bayadere yet. Is it good enough to spend money on going? I'm a student so I don't have a lot of money to spend on ballet performances, so I can only go if it's really worth it. I would love to see it though. I saw RBF in the Nutcracker, in Ghent, and i loved it.
  14. Belgium here!!! I used to live in the US, near Seattle as an exchange student, but now I'm back in Belgium.
  15. Does anyone here know any musical theatre college programs, preferably in Washington, but anywhere else is okay too. Thanks a bunch.
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