Jayne

This was fun to watch. I thought Obratsova's tutu made her pirouettes look floppier than they would otherwise look with a smaller, stiffer tutu. Chunin looked like he was flinging his head back to get his hair out of his face. Rather distracting. The set decor and corps look sumptuous in their tudor-esque costumes, especially the headgear. Did you notice the dropped / flung tambourine?

About a dozen years ago, I was an assistant buyer for sweaters at Nordstrom in the corporate office. From a worker-bee perspective, what differentiated Nordies from the other department stores was the pay scale for the sales staff. At Macy's, an employee made minimum wage, maybe a little more, but no commission. Nordstrom paid a higher starting hourly wage, plus commission, plus employee stock. About 40% of commission was made during two important events: Day-After-Thanksgiving to Christmas and the Anniversary Sale. All corporate staff was called down to works support for the sales staff. From a customer perspective, the difference was the level of service at Nordstrom, the ambience, the depth of stock, the variety of shoes, the quality of merchandise - and the "no questions asked" return policy. The flagship store (where corporate is located) has an entire floor for their employee cafeteria and lounge. During those intense sales days, you could walk into the lounge and see shifts of sales staff come in, flop down on the floor and just lay there for half an hour, and it was totally silent, you could hear a pin drop, then return without a word to work. On the sales floor, it was chaos, with the staff racing from stockroom to the customers, and back and forth. They worked crazy hours, never lost their smiles for customers, and took it all to the bank in commissions. With the advent of Walmart, Target, Outlet malls, and expansion of Nordstrom Racks, same store sales at the main stores began to fall. When the dot com bust came, Nordstrom really suffered on the west coast. This was right about the time Nordstrom started their misguided "Reinvent Yourself" with lots of neon orange in the stores. This alienated the long time "ladies who lunch" crowd, but did not attract new customers. That marketing plan died a quick death. Since then, there was a coup de etat of some of the Nordstrom execs, including some 4th generation Nordstrom family members, with just 3 remaining in key corporate positions. Nordstrom now focuses on attracting the "Real Housewives" crowd - who can - and do - charge up their credit cards with name brand jeans that cost $170, $800 dresses, $2000 suits, etc. If you're looking for $30 jeans, target is the best place to find them. Nordstrom's is never going to go cheap, because the profit margins are not there, and the competition is very stiff. I have a lot of other stories about working there, honestly, all positive. It was a great place for women to work, the standards of professionalism were top notch, the Nordstrom family members are uniformly nice, and the vendors had decades long relationships with the company, respect the Nordstrom brand, and provide high quality products.

Also, Kirsty's outfit was Horrible with a capital H! Talk about figure un-flattering! Then again, the whole "Americana" theme was way over the top. is there anything under the top in DWTS or professional dancing? Maybe not, but this was beyond gaudy.

I watched the Monday night episode, and while I think Chelsea Kane (sp?) is a ringer (all disney trained child actors take extensive dance classes), the judging is all over the place! I saw a vastly mediocre performance by a wrestler that garnered 9's and Romeo (Master P's son) perform beautifully, and yet receive lower scores. Is there some sort of collusion between the French and Russian judges ???(bad joke going back to the SLC Olympic politics)... Meh, not sure I'll watch this any longer, but I might watch the edited version on youtube, with just the performances, not the judges. Fortunately figure skating championships are coming soon from Moscow...(along with a royal wedding - I'll be watching lots of TV in the near future, maybe this is my "lent" until the 29th - no more TV!)

The video looks like fun. It's nice to see a Russian speaker have a good impression of American ballet, most expats I've met in the US have a distinctly negative view of American companies. I think most grew up in the 1970s and 1980's on the Bolshoi and Kirov-Mariinsky, such a high standard, and so distinctly different than the baby-Balanchine companies around the US (MCB, PNB, SFB, Boston, etc).

I saw Mr. d'Amboise speak last night at Town Hall in Seattle. Unfortunately work and traffic made me miss the first 45 minutes, so I think I missed a lot of discussion about Mr. B. However, Mr. d'Amboise is a fantastic speaker - a true raconteur as has been mentioned. He quotes Shakespeare and other poets and weaves them effortlessly into his stories. His passion for all forms of art is evident, and his love of the humanities. All with a strong brooklyn accent, except when he's quoting Mr. B - then he affects a credible Russian accent. His stories of Lincoln Kirstein's foul mouthed tyrades "Good taste is My taste, you bastards!" is a great example. He also rambles off on tangents about WWII, training small dogs to crawl into japanese fox holes with dynamite strapped to their little backs, or the daily practical jokes and flirting within NYCB and the adolescent division of SAB - all so much fun to listen to. Many New York transplants were in the audience and spoke in the Q&A at the end to tell him how much pleasure he gave them in his performances. Peter Boal hardly had to ask any questions - Mr. D'amboise could have talked another 2 hours straight, on whatever came to mind. He would make a fantastic TED Talks speaker! How do we nominate him? I bought the book afterwards but did not stay to have it signed (the queue was over 100 people long). Reading in snippets last night and tonight, it seems to be a lot of fun gossip, probably embellished over the years, coupled with extraordinary stories of what choreographing with Balanchine was really like (improvitisation). I did read his chapter on the Balanchine muses first - he was very critical of Suzanne Farrell's prima donna behavior. But I think he was fair to show that Balanchine was at fault, because he encouraged it to win her love, and she thought it was the norm. However, I felt this was ironic, because he was something of a primo don as well - he would take off mid season to choreograph a broadway show, or film a movie, or guest star with a regional company. Balanchine clearly loved him as well, and I think he received more leeway than other male dancers. He was extremely generous when describing Allegra Kent and Karin van Arolingen. Both were real troupers in his eyes, in the old fashioned broadway idea of the term.

Rosie Gaynor has an article posted on the website SeattleDances, with more information about the 8 dancers leaving, and stating that PNB plans to audition and fill all 8 positions (so the company is not contracting in size due to the economy). Best wishes to all, and secretly hoping we'll get Sokvannar Sar back from the east coast!

A bit late posting this review, but I've suffered from allergies all week, as spring blooms and winds shifted the pollen around. I saw the Saturday 09 April 2pm show, with Ben Griffiths and Lesley Rausch as Oberon & Titania, Eric Hipolito as Puck and Laura Gilbreath and Karel Cruz debuting in the divertissement. Carrie Imler was Hippolyta. All around, I really enjoyed myself, it didn't feel like a usual 2pm "silver" cast, it felt like we were getting a great PNB show. The corps was well researsed, and as I was in the 3rd row front of the orchestra, I could see all expressions. A few corps members need to work on their expressions, but this was my only complaint. Lesley Rausch was regal as Titania (she really resembles Patricia Barker more and more, although it might just be the honey blonde hair) and Ben Griffiths hit all his beats beautifully. Eric Hipolito was a little timid in the first 10 minutes, but then seemed to hit his form. Plenty of small kids in the audience, many dressed in frills, glitter, and even a few bug costumes. It was a lot of fun. In the second act Laura Gilbreath and Karel Cruz danced a technically well executed pas, but Laura seemed a bit tentative. At one point 2/3 through, she began to smile a bit more and relax. I had forgotten what a minefield this pas de deux is for the dancers, and watching it from such a close perch (usually I am in the balcony) was a different perspective. The remaining dances are something of a blur, but my strongest impression leaving the theater was that my spirits were lifted and that I thoroughly enjoyed myself. Perhaps that is enough. The sets are to die for, as always. Wish I could remember more, but it has been 5 days and my memories are not so fresh. I wish for all of you other posters that PNB could tour more, or find an economical way to go about it, because the company really does shine in the Balanchine - though they rarely perform it when visiting NYC or DC.

Ms. Lane was paid $4000 / day week (edited) for her double work, for a 6 week period, during her break from the ABT season. I am sure it helped soothe the pain and pay the rent. While a few people may be silly enough to call in asking if Natalie Portman will dance in Royal Ballet's "Swan Lake" - those people don't vote for Oscar winners. In fact, most academy members don't vote. Only members with acting credits get to vote. No directors, no cinematographers, etc get to vote for "Best Actor/Actress". Only Ms. Portman's fellow thespians voted, and they liked her best. These thespians - better than anyone - know that doubles are a part of the business - whether for stunts, nudity, dancing, or other feats of daring. These same thespians also voted for Christian Bale for best supporting actor in "The Fighter" (another actor who lost weight and trained relentlessly). And a boxing double was used for some of his scenes. This same boxing double is not whining to the press that an "illusion" has been created that Christian Bale became a professional boxer with a year of training. I've seen pictures of Ms Lane on set, wearing the "spots" (for lack of a better term) on her face, these markings are used later to drop in Ms. Portman's face into the shot. So she knew exactly why she was on set, and what they would do to her face with CGI (or whatever the proper term is). If "best performance by an actress" was based on dancing skills, then surely many amazing performances by principals in the Live Broadcasts of ballet productions would be nominated for "best actress" - correct? After all, Diana Vishneva both dances and acts on stage (which is broadcast around the world). Still, the Academy of Motion Pictures & Sciences chose to recognize Ms. Portman instead. Most of the "dancing" shots in "Black Swan" are shown from the waist up (which probably was Ms. Portman - because most of the criticism by professional dancers of the movie discussed Ms. Portman's amateur neck and posture). Is Ms. Lane claiming those shots of dancing - which were so heavily criticized by her colleagues? The remaining dancing shots are the full body and feet-only shots, which Ms. Portman has openly stated were the dancing double. Tempest in a teapot. But all PR is good PR, and "Black Swan" is freshly minted on DVD. Ms. Lane's whining probably made the production team a few extra dollars in DVD sales. ok - edited for the correction to the pay scale per week. I knew this at the time and simply typed it incorrectly in my haste to get my thoughts typed as quickly as possible. Thanks to those who caught the error!

I am rather surprised ABT would put a corps member into the spotlight in Russia, where the audience is the *most* educated, and critical of American styles of ballet. I would think ABT would show their "gold cast" for T&V. Hallberg is definitely "gold cast", but is Boylston?

What fantastic news, here's hoping Great Performances continues to expand its ballet coverage.

Timbits! Now you're making me hungry! You'll see just about everything under the sun (or grey skies) in Seattle theaters. But I have noticed that the Russian emigres *always* dress up.

I have enjoyed Ms Lallone's performances over the past few years, and have not noticed any slips in performance level. I do think Teatro Zinzanni is a good "home" for her talents, and perhaps less taxing on her body than full time ballet for the reps of the big 5 regional American companies (PNB, Boston, Miami, San Francisco and Houston). If PNB does Prodigal Son in the future, it will strange to see others as Siren. But perhaps she will stage for the Balanchine Trust and coach the next generation of long legged ice queens.

ok, ok, I take it back, we still have two tall male principals, but we need more. Can anyone cite (with links) info for the PNB 2010 budget and going forward? Are they running a deficit? Balanced budget? In the black? It seems to me this will affect whether or not these talented dancers are replaced, or if the company reduces to less than 40 to make numbers work. In other news, my mother's former school district, where she taught elementary music for 25 years, is seriously considering eliminating all elementary music - choral and orchestra - for the 2012 year. The time teachers have for planning while the kids are in music classes would be made up by shortening the school day by 30 minutes (sending them home early). We are living in very difficult times, there really just isn't enough money to go around, and the votes are not there to raise taxes (sin, property, or general sales tax) to make up the difference.

Looking forward to it, and hoping for appearances by the dancers who are not scheduled to perform that night, at least with some parting words.

I am not surprised by the departure of Mr. Wevers, as he just signed a JOA for Whim Whim at a nearby theater. That is his passion and he is clearly pursuing it, which is fantastic. Also not surprised by the departure of Mr. Milov, as he injured his elbow before I left for South America, now I am back, and it doesn't seem he has been able to perform in the interim, he did not perform in the recent mixed bill, and is not listed for the opening weekend of MidSummer. I admire the dancing of both men. Add Stanton, and we're losing all the height of our principal men, with the exception of Mr. Bold. I am more surprised by the departures of Mr. Spell and Mr. Kerollis, although I suppose if they've never been promoted out of the corps after so many years, the writing is on the wall (I still think Mr. Gaines should have been promoted this past September, as he most often performs soloist roles, not corps roles).

Hello balletomanes, I am finally *back* in the Pacific Northwest, after 7 months in South America, and a month in Hellay. On Saturday 19 March, I saw the 2pm matinee of this production. Unfortunately for me, i was stuck in traffic (they closed a highway for earthquake related maintenance). So here are my impressions: Pacific: Did not get to see it (kicking myself in my high heels, ouch), a pox upon you, Seattle Traffic! I might need to return next weekend for a cheap seat, just to see Pacific, as the youtube previews looked like fun. Place a Chill: Arrived at McCaw Hall just as this one started...Cast list is already on this thread, so I won't reiterate. The falling chairs were cool, but I would send the rest of this hot mess back to the kitchen. I didn't sense any musical connection with the choreography, which if I am being kind, reminds me of Wayne McGregor, and if I am being honest, reminds me of a Gollum Appreciation Club writhing around. I read the program notes at intermission, trying to get a better idea of the music and meaning. Written by the choreographer's dramaturg, the notes remind me of the online parody of Werner Herzog interpreting Curious George. Um, ok. I tried to like it, really, I did. But I didn't like Mopey either. Apparently to be new and fresh, it must not utilize ballet steps. The audience gave it a tepid response. Moving on: The Piano Dance: A tall cool glass of water was the best description of Paul Gibson's work, which the audience ate up, and made me long to see more of his work (hint to Doug for the 2013 season, should he read this amateur review). Loved the costumes and the dancers looked comfortable and very sharp. It looks like fun to dance. A pox upon the house of the audience member who's cell phone went off in the middle of the adagio. Fie! Concerto DSCH: Olivier Wevers and Maria Chapman were secure in the pas de deux, she looked so tiny next to the towering Mr. Wevers, who clearly relished the piece. Slightly ragged in parts, but overall, a splendid debut in Seattle for Ratmansky's works. I enjoyed watching the patterns take shape on stage, the little charming details really make the difference. May all the executives who leave the Bolshoi produce such fine work! I can see from this production why the reviews for ABT's Nutcracker were also so strong. Many of the lifts remind me of ice dancing, which is rather funny, because their choreographers always say that they borrow moves from ballet and modern dance! Really looking forward to Don Quixote in 2012. Finally, because we were stuck in traffic for so long, we didn't get to have lunch before the show, and I would like to say a kind word for the on site catering and snacks at McCaw Hall, especially their hot, salted almonds, which were worth every penny, and kept my hungry stomach from making angry noises and disrupting the dancers.

For the youtube link to Swanlake (In the Black Swan with Toto Carreno), I know it's not really "polite" for the crowd to act like figure skating fans, but I *loved it*, because the performances definitely deserved the audience reactions!

I thought that as well, but when she tilts her head sideways, I think of a young Audrey Hepburn (who was also trained in dance)

This is all quite shocking, but then again, who knows if the photos are real or altered. With endemic corruption in Russia, I wouldn't rule out photoshopping images, maybe he didn't pay a bribe? Or maybe he decided to let it all come out and then seek a position in Europe in a year when things have died down (and where this sort of thing isn't so shocking). I spoke to a Moscovite emigre friend, who told me Russians are very conservative about these sorts of things, especially whene they involve national institutions like the Bolshoi. How does someone smuggle a broom into a theatre, and how does one hide it at one's seat without discovery? Faint praise is sufficient to get the message across.

I yearn for the old days of Oprah, where she would interview one subject for the full 45 minutes of the show. Now she shows 13 subjects, providing mere voiceovers and "MC"ing the event with a live studio audience. Jenifer Ringer is a fascinating subject for a full show. Just my two cents on the matter.

The nice thing about London is the wide variety of critics reviewing major performances. Sadly in NYC, there are very few who devote themselves to reviewing dance. Consequently, Macaulay receives far too much attention. If he was one of a dozen reviews of NYCB for every rep, he would not be so influential. Blame the faltering economy, and faltering interest (editors would rather publicize a dancer going on a TV show to try to date a celebrity).

Haven't seen her in person, but based on the comments, I think it is important to keep several things in mind: 1. Somova did not promote herself directly to principal - the Maryiinsky AD is responsible. 2. Once promoted, ballet does not generally "demote" dancers, unless to o them out to character roles, or to guest positions. 3. All (AD, coaches, etc) who inherit the system of promotions, really are not at liberty to dismantle it. At any rate, I am glad to hear she is improving, perhaps by the time I make it to Russia (someday) she will be at her best.

Watched the video of Ms. Rojo before reading the comments. Agree she looks strained on stage, and I didn't care for her balances, or the finale, when she only went twice around on point. Very surprising as the Royal Ballet places a premium on excellent acting.

When I mentioned appreciation of the art, I was responding to the dancer's comment that she is so hyper trained to look for flaws in modern day expectations of technique, that she struggles to simply enjoy watching Margot Fonteyn's artistry. It is so difficult to turn off that "critical voice" in her head that judges so harshly based on 21st century standards of turn out, good feet, posture, etc. If you grew up in the last 10 years, you might think that "good" ice skating means triple axels and the ability to pull your leg over your head in pretzel positions on raggedy Biellman spins. The "critical voice" in your head - educated by modern day TV commentators and the scoring system - would program you to look at Peggy Fleming's performances as lacking in jumps and Somova-style extensions. You would not have the education to appreciate Ms. Fleming's extraordinary edges, the centering on her spins or her lovely posture and gorgeous layback positions, because they are so rarely performed today. Ballet styles are a box of Godiva truffles, each one) is perfect in its own way (Bourbonville, Vaganova, Royal, etc). You wouldn't want to have the exact same chocolate every day. Variety is far more interesting to our tastebuds, but of course we prefer some chocolates over others. The same holds true for dancers, we're really not so interested in watching clones perform each night, we want to see variety and choices. It is pretty exciting when you think about it - tremendous athletes who dance beautifully and when the occasion calls for it - act in character, with classically trained musicians serenading them, all for our enjoyment. I depart for Peru next week and will try to post an update with the Lima Muncipal Ballet's "Coppelia" in mid-late July depending on ticket availability. I'm hoping for a caramel truffle.