Treefrog

I'll bow to Glebb's greater expertise on this, but our family's votes mirror his. My first thought was Maia Wilkins, who seems to carry just about any and every role with thoughtful élan. My husband voted for Willy Shives, arguing that he is consistent and stylish, and he provides a strong foundation off of which others can work. Dolphingirl's mind immediately jumped to Calvin Kitten, "because he's amazing!" I guess this multiplicity reflects Joffrey's rejection of the "star system". In truth, we each had all three of these fine dancers on our short lists. That we each picked a different one speaks to how closely tied they are.

And I suppose sickled feet = what happens when you cut your oats by hand ...and forget to wear shoes ... (OUCH!)

I hope anyone who does that tour en l'air takes a jeté ...

Grace, that heat sounds kind of nice ... but you guys sure have your "sissones" mixed up down under! In my house, it's an "entrechat trois" at bedtime. (I really loved that one, Grace! )

Pirouette = we're tourists; where do we catch the boat? (Okay, this is REALLY fractured!)

Saut de chat = what the vet does after Fluffy's surgery And I thought port de bras = time to buy new undergarments pas de poisson = have the chicken instead sous-sus (also sus-sous) = that really preppie girl in high school

I'm in the middle of Tallchief's book. It IS gossipy, but that's quite fascinating to me. I don't really know my ballet history, and I find it quite useful to hear about all these people whose names I have heard, but I don't quite know who they are.

Let's not forget that, at the ballet, they don't sell beer in the stands, loud belches and belly scratching are frowned upon, the performers never adjust their "packages" (while spitting on the stage), and, most importantly ... there's no outcome upon which to bet! Wait, wait .... what if we set up bookies in the lobbies? Encouraged side-betting on whether she'd actually nail those 32 fouettés? I once attended a ball game where the guys in front of me were betting on absolutely everything! "Five bucks says the pitcher leaves the ball on the mound when the inning's over."

Actually, Paul, those lycra-wearing cyclists have to deal with just the same kind of stereotyping and animosity as tights-clad ballet dancers. Just hang out on the bike bulletin boards for a few days, and a post will turn up about how someone wants to take up biking seriously but just can't imagine venturing out in those revealing garments. Serious racers even shave their legs!!!! And bikers don't wear ANYTHING under their shorts. What are male attitudes toward ballet in other countries, other cultures? We were struck a few years ago, at a water park in Northern Ireland, at the absence of male macho. There was none of the posturing, the horseplay, the maneuvering for alpha status that you see here in the States. I can't help but wonder whether a male in that culture might accept ballet more readily, because he wasn't worrying about what his pals would think. And in any event, his pals might treat him civilly regardless of what they thought.

I just saw today that college students (with ID) can get $10 rush tickets to the Joffrey's Nutcracker. I don't know if this policy holds for the rest of the season. Students younger than college are specifically excluded (gee, I wonder why?). Along these lines, Joffrey also sponspored a "Dancer's Night" at Nutcracker, when ballet students and their parents could get half-price tickets. They also were invited to attend a pre-performance presentation about ballet in general and the Nutcracker in particular. This was scheduled for a Wednesday night, which typically does not sell well, and I heard the house was full. This would be a great tactic for the rest of the season, as well, but I don't know if it's in the works.

I'd still keep Taming of the Shrew on your short list, Grace.

Oh, my, yes, I'll see it. Six or eight times! Opening night, closing matinee, when the in-laws are in town, one trip with daughter to see The Other Cast, and any other performances I feel like dropping in on (but only Act I). Thank goodness parents of the children's cast can get $10 rush tickets. I'm really not a horrible ballet mom But if it's convenient to go, I do. By next year the kid will likely be too tall, so I'm relishing her moment on the big stage while I can. After this, we'll be down to one visit per year, and that for the kids' sake -- I've really had enough Nutcracker to last for quite a while! Gosh, I just reread what I wrote. I do like to watch the rest of the ballet, too!

Scoop, I wanted to send you this info by private message, but you haven't gotten it activated yet. Be sure to stop by the manager's office (just to the right after you enter the lobby) and get that niece of yours a booster cushion. The kids tend to enjoy the spectacle so much more when they can see it! For what performance do you have tickets? If you care, I can try to find out who is dancing. Send me a PM, after you get it activated.

This one's easy! Cranko's The Taming of the Shrew. We were practically rolling in the aisles last fall when the Joffrey staged it. And our seats were in the center of the row!

Here in Chicago, the Joffrey opened it's Nutcracker last night. This is a splendid production, very Victorian. What I appreciate so much is that it is staged at the Auditorium Theatre, which was built in just about the same year that Tchaikovsky wrote the Nutcracker music. It's a grand venue that suits this production to a T. We were sitting quite close to the stage (third row, a little to the right), so it was actually difficult to appreciate the staging, particularly in the party scene and battle scene, which are quite crowded. Besides, my eyes were riveted on one particular party child so I missed quite a lot of what went on. I am happy to report that that child danced exquisitely... ;) I always enjoy the snow scene. The Joffrey has it framed in two rows of "tree angels". These are bouréeing children in skirts that look like snow-covered trees, carrying electric torches. It is a stunning effect. The entrance of the snowflakes is also very effective; they kind of tumble around randomly, and look exactly like the beginning of a snowstorm in the wind. I'm also a sucker for the part where the Cavalier mimes the first act's action for Clara. I know a lot of people think it's silly, but if well done it seems both humorous and triumphant to me. Willy Shives was the Cavalier last night, and he performed it admirably. The real highlight of the evening -- aside from that party child, of course ;) -- was the interplay between the Cavalier (Shives) and the Sugar Plum Fairy (Maia Wilkins). The chemistry between them was palpable. They so clearly enjoyed dancing together. It leant a particular energy to their pas-de-deux, which stirred me in a way that the rest of the production hadn't (perhaps I was too close, too jaded, or too tense). I don't always enjoy the Sugar Plum/Flowers scene, which sometimes can make Nutcracker into one of Manhattnik's ballets that are "more too-long than others". Last night, I didn't want it to end.

On another thread, a Festival of Beautiful Ballet has been proposed. So, what is "beautiful"? What really moves you? Is it the way a movement is executed, an unexpected change in tempo or rhythm or direction, the tilt of a head, the interplay of bodies .... or no single thing? Can it be put into words? Or is it one of those 'I know it when I see it' phenomena? What makes a single moment beautiful? What makes an entire ballet beautiful? Is the whole more than the sum of the parts? Please, don't just cite specific movements in specific ballets -- that would duplicate Glebb's "Single Moment" thread. Also: Is beauty in the eye of the beholder? Does my eye catch the same movement that catches yours? Does my breath catch at the same instant as yours?

Alexandra, many years ago the Natural History Museum at the Smithsonian had an exhibit of objects that the curators considered 'beautiful'. That was the only criterion for exhibit -- the one or two objects in their collection that stirred them. It was fascinating to see what they picked as the most beautiful shell, fossil, rock, human artifact, etc. And why. I think each object was accompanied by the curator's rationale.

Oh, man! Whatever happened to liking the old-fashioned story ballets "because they are so easy to understand compared to those modern dances"? Thank you, Alexandra, for the refresher course on mythology. And for the reminder that things have to be viewed through the lens of their creation. As for misunderstanding Romeo and Juliet -- long ago, I took a date to see the film of Romeo and Juliet. At the end, he turned to me and said, "Wow! I never expected it to end like that!" That was pretty much it for him.

Well, in this production (the Bolshoi) Von Rothbart is called the Evil Genius instead of Von Rothbart, and he very much controls Siegfried. His choreography either anticipates Siegfried's or shadows it.

Having seen both Swan Lake and La Bayadere in the space of two days, I have all kinds of random reflections on my mind. Responses to any and all are welcome. 1) It occurred to me how central a good demi-plié is to ballet. (This won't come as news to anyone who has actually danced, I'm sure.) I spent all last evening watching the men land their jumps. That demi-plié is the key to the "strong-yet-light" phenomenon -- the ability to jump big and land lightly and in perfect control. 2) When, where and why did the classical tutu originate? Was it created for a particular role? How did it fit in with then-current dress and modesty standards? Of what were tutus -- and ballet wear in general -- made before the invention of synthetic fabrics? 3) How come we have book titles like "When Bad Things Happen to Good People", and in the 19th century Good people became Bad when bad things happened to them? It certainly isn't Solor's fault that political and social circumstances required him to marry Gamzatti when he really loved Nikiya. I suppose a truly virtuous hunter would fall on his own sword first? And Siegfried was tricked -- or, as Grigorovich would have it, controlled by the Evil Genius. How was he to know that Odile wasn't, in fact, Odette? 4) Are dream sequences in 19th century ballets merely a convenient plot device for injecting miscellania that can't be readily explained otherwise? Or did dreams have some special significance? After all, Freud's work was contemporaneous.

I saw this production last night in Chicago (but with different principals). I don't have too much to add to BalletNut's thorough review. The corps was lovely -- I especially liked the way the corps' choreography set off the soloists' dances, in the party and wedding scenes, for example. A flyswatter is exactly what that jester needed! I had no quarrel with Denis Medvedev's dancing, except that it was too eyecatching. I mean, he danced the part wonderfully, but the choreography is annoying -- lots of prancing and pointing and quite a few virtuosic (is that a word?) turns and leaps, and he just gets in the way of everything. I really, really liked Maria Alexandrova, who danced both the first scene pas de trois and the Spanish bride-to-be. Talk about "selling" the dance! I was impressed by how uniform the corps seemed to be, not only in their movements, but in their height. A friend told me that they are not as uniform as they look -- I would have said they varied by no more than two inches -- and that it is a staging trick.

It’s really hard to believe that I’m the only BA’er who saw the Bolshoi’s La Bayadère in Chicago. Thursday night, the second of a two-performance run, the house was packed. But if no one else will post, once again you are left with my less-than-tutored impressions. It was apparent immediately that this was an uncommonly high level of dancing. The simple skips of the opening male corps had a uniform lightness that signaled a great depth and precision in the company. Although we thoroughly enjoyed the performance, I had a hard time getting past the bizarreness of the whole concept. Yes, the setting is exotic India – but what are all those classical ballerinas doing there? Shouldn’t an Indian dancer incorporate some aspects of Indian dance into her art? Similarly, the music – which I gather is often pilloried as "inconsequential" or "pleasant" – evokes nothing of the setting. How did all those circuslike carnival tunes find their way to an Indian wedding ceremony? I’m sure I’m missing some nuance of ballet –or cultural -- history here. (Actually, I had a conversation today with someone who Knows About These Things, and she assured me that this is pretty typical of 19th century ballets.) Then, there were the varied dancers in Act II, the engagement feast. There seemed to be some confusion in the costuming department as to whether these were Indians from the sub-continent or Native Americans. My daughters dubbed the female who danced during the drum dance as "The Cheerleader." And there was the clan I came to know as "The Carhops", for their perky little caps, perky little skirts, perky gold slippers, perky little smiles, and perky little choreography. I did like the parrots, though. I was unable to view the drama through a 19th century lens, and through a 21st century lens the conflicts all look pretty weak. Maybe it’s just that we don’t see enough of any one character to care. Solor and Nikiya dance one pas de deux, and from that we are supposed to believe in their undying love? The story gets told, it doesn’t build. But, oh my, the dancing was superb. Once you get past the weirdness of it all and just take it for what it is, it was enthralling. Watching Nikiya (Anna Antonicheva), I finally began to understand the concept of "pretty feet". Dolphingirl, who understands these things much better than I do, thought the boys/men/XYs were having a better night than the girls/women/XXs. Indeed, Solor (Sergei Filin) and the Golden Idol (Morihiro Ivata) were simultaneously powerful and light. The Golden Idol dance was a showstopper, prompting Dolphingirl to wonder, "How did he DO that?" The real showstopper, of course, was the entrance of the Shades. But I liked their dance – both the corps and the three variations -- even better than their entrance. Tonight, we go to see the final performance of Swan Lake. BalletNut, thanks for your review from Berkeley. We’ll be seeing a different cast, but your notes on the production have been a good preparation.

I'm afraid I don't know. I have not seen it before, but that doesn't mean much. There's very little information on the PBS website, just the air date. While I was at the site, I checked on other perfomances. They are rebroadcasting the Royal Ballet's Nutcracker on Dec. 24. A broadcast of Lars Lubovitch's Othello (San Francisco Ballet) is planned, but not yet scheduled.

On Great Performances February 3rd (but, as always, check your local listings): "Born to be Wild: The Men of the ABT."

How can one find out who will be dancing (okay, who is scheduled to dance) on a particular night? I know I have seen people discussing which night to get tickets for, based on who is dancing. My question is a general one, but I am especially interested in the Bolshoi's run in Chicago (La Bayadere on Thursday evening, Nov. 14 and Swan Lake on Saturday evening, Nov. 16). Thanks!