Birdsall

It does sometimes hurt the individual artist however.

Maria Callas and Renata Tebaldi had rabid fans (both sides) and many other singers and dancers do. This happens in the arts. People are often very divided on many of the "Greatest" artists. I actually think it is normal and doesn't hurt the art forms.

I had false totally incorrect information published in newspapers and talked about among co-workers when I was fighting against what I felt was a witch hunt at a former employer. I had no control over the misinformation and I can only imagine now with social media it is even harder to control what is said. I never forgot the people who told lies and spread misinformation and accused me wrongly. It was unbelievably hurtful. But there is no time in life to correct every lie that people say about you and you are often adding fuel to the fire if you do. I do not think we should say some dancer is an extreme example of leaking info unless we can cite actual tweets or quotes that can be proven to be from the person.

I don't think any of us should judge a dancer for what fans say or do or what gossip is out there. I also do not think we should accuse a dancer of putting information out there unless we have solid 100% proof that she or he is leaking info. To accuse someone of that seems slanderous to me.

I happen to have thoroughly enjoyed Stepanova's Odette/Odile when I saw her this summer in St. Petersburg. She included so many details to her Odette that much more experienced Odettes sometimes leave out. One example is how her hands and arms flowed when she lifts her leg and falls backward and Siegfried catches her. Another example was how she showed Odette's exhaustion in the third act, but she then proceeded to do excellent high Russian attitudes so I knew it was not that the dancer was exhausted, but the character's exhaustion and momentary defeat she was showing. So I find her a young dancer I will love to see again. But I agree with Volcanohunter. I think there will always be discussion, arguments, etc. about artists. I know opera much more than ballet, and I have to say that the greatest artists divide opinions. I love Maria Callas and Dame Joan Sutherland (two totally different sopranos), but many can not stand the sound of Callas' voice and her sometimes squally high notes and wobbles. I have read on forums so many complaints about Sutherland's diction and how she could be singing in Chinese and nobody would know the difference. All of these complaints are legitimate (you hear it in the recordings), but there is also plenty of evidence in the recordings that they were also amazing. But it is the age old saying, "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder" and in a way nobody is wrong. All great artists divide opinions. I have to say I was in shock that all the opera lovers seemed to be raving about Radvanovsky's Norma the other season. I heard it on a bootleg and thought Bellini was rolling in his grave. I would rather go back and listen to Eaglen who was really a mediocre Norma, but after hearing Radvanovsky, I would take Eagen anyday. But the fact I love Norma and could probably sing it off key in my sleep even though I can't speak Italian (I can however probably quote the entire opera Norma or huge chunks of it b/c I used to sing along to it off key in the shower). I consider myself an arm chair expert on Norma, but someone who adored Radvanovsky in Norma is not wrong (although there is a huge part of me that wants to say he or she is totally wrong). Art is always subjective.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PO_A9wENAk4 I have never seen the dancers that you saw in the past, but I would like you to see the video above of Stepanova's debut as the Lilac fairy approximately two years ago. I do think her Lilac fairy has improved since this debut, but I would like to know which Lilac fairies you saw, who you felt was better and particularly what traits made their Lilac fairy better? What do you find lacking in Stepanova? I would like to know your opinion, so that I can learn more about where she stands in the pecking order, in your opinion, and I can maybe search on YouTube if any of the dancers you saw have videos. I do have the Sleeping Beauty videos that are available on Amazon like the Soviet movie version and the ones with Kolpakova and Lezhnina as Aurora. I will have to go back and view them and see who was the Lilac Fairy in them. Thank you very much.

It must be official then. Many of us had heard the rumor. I wonder where she will go now.

The Taglioni European Ballet Award site gives a nice write up about her: Best Female Young Dancer Yulia Stepanova Yulia Stepanova is a remarkable female dancer from the new generation. She represents the best of the developing Vaganova tradition. She already dances the most prestigious roles in ’Swan Lake’, ’La Bayadère’, and ’Sylvia’. Her lines are gorgeous, and she is a very lyrical dancer. She is a natural classical ballerina.

I just noticed that Victor Lebedev is now a principal at the Mikhailovsky and rightly so. He is an amazing dancer. I think I would personally target his performances if I were going to attend this tour in NY. However, he might not be to everyone's taste. He is to me the exact opposite of Ivan Vasiliev (who is prime red beef and 100% male and a bit on the wild side). Lebedev can do many "tricks" but he is super elegant and refined even while doing the "tricks." He has the elegance and refinement of the Vaganova trained females, and this is actually sort of rare among the males. The male Vaganova grads tend to be less supple and refined in the upper body and arms so that they look more masculine, but Lebedev could care less, and what he does is so jaw droppingly beautiful and elegant. Like I said, this may not be what some of you are looking for in a male dancer (I describe my impressions so you can make an informed choice when buying tickets and not be mad if he is not to your taste), but I think he is so incredible. I have seen him in a gala at the Hermitage Theatre and in the secondary male role in Flames of Paris in person and have also seen his Basilio, Ali, and other short pieces. He is unique and unlike any male dancer today. If you love refinement, elegance and true Vaganova style dancing, RUN to his performance, don't walk.

Zarema is a great idea. She would be great in that role. I think she would also be great in Legend of Love as Mekhmeneh Bahnu with Oksana Marchuk as Shyrin!

Yes, I am sure they did not have the New Wave 1980s experience that the West had. That makes sense, but I do think just looking at some of his other scenery choices for ballets that he really wants to seem like the "cool" ballet guy, although maybe that was in his early stages. Judging from the re-vamped Cinderella excerpts posted above, he might be less obsessed with being "cool" now and more interested in substance. I actually find some of his choreography very nice. I like his Little Humpbacked Horse even though I don't care for the sets and costumes on that one either. I tend to think his comic choreography or action choreography or "happy" choreography to be much better than his "love" duets. There is something sort of boring about his love or serious emotions in his choreography, but that is my personal opinion. I want badly to like his love duets in Cinderella and also Anna Karenina, but I lose interest. Of course, who am I? He has many fans, so he doesn't have to listen to me! LOL I think dancers love having new, modern ballets to dance, even if some members of the audience are skeptical, and since he is creating new story ballets for the repertoire I shouldn't complain too much! But the Australian version of his Cinderella just from the short glimpses does look a lot better!

Here are a few looks at the development of the Australian Ratmansky re-fashioning of his Cinderella, marking a return to the home of his first full-length ballet effort. Thanks for posting that. Already the costumes look better in his revamped version, and from the looks of it he also must have realized the corps choreography needed something more. It looks like that is revamped also.

Yes, the score is dark. So that is probably what he was aiming to depict. I just think the cruelty that is part of the fairy tale can still be depicted without trying so hard to "be cool" which is what I think Ratmansky tends to do with costumes and sets. I lived through the 80s and New Wave and punk rock and green hair and mohawks and all that, so his costuming and hairstyles just seem so dated to me from a fashion standpoint although they never did creep into ballet probably until recently, so the look is probably "new" to ballet. And I notice that the 80s looks are back b/c they are "retro." But if he is looking to shock us old people and jolt us awake from classical tutus I have news for him. We all lived that time period and partied and lived it up, so it is not shocking or avant garde to us anymore! LOL Cinderella's sets are so ugly (but maybe it is to depict the coldness and cruelty of Cinderella's situation....who knows?) and I hated the conga line also. I mean, you have one of the world's most incredible corps de ballet and you have them dance a conga line. That would be fine if it was for a minute and the rest of the corps dancing was exciting or breath-taking in some way. But it is not. It would be interesting to find out what he changes in the Australian version.

The prostitutes (female and male ) or whatever they were are unnecessary. However, the female prostitutes are finally a chance to see the famous Mariinsky upper bodies (several dancers dancing with the famous style ). Cinderella has a lot of upper body dancing too, but it is always nice to see multiple dancers dancing that way together. Ratmansky dropped the ball on this ballet!

I think Batoeva is a terrific dancer but she is relegated to small roles. Cinderella is the only lead role she has done, I believe. I could be wrong. I do not like Ratmansky's Cinderella overall, but there are some interesting moments and someone like Batoeva makes a huge difference, I suspect. You saw one of the best young dancers! The worst part of Conderella is that Ratmansky fails to utilize the famous and glorious Mariinsky corps de ballet (he just gives them silly dancing). I have seen Batoeva as a Big Swan, and she danced the mini-variation that does a lot of Odette-like poses. I think she will one day be a gorgeous Odette. You saw one of the Mariinsky's best dancers, in my opinion. That is the problem at the Mariinsky. The most incredible ones are usually in small roles. Sometimes they take your breath away while the principals cause you to fall asleep.

Not in July. I think she is dancing it in London for the first time (at least with the Mariinsky.....don't know if she's danced it with another company). Lopatkina and Tereshkina got the back-to-back premieres. Lopatkina and Askerov. The next night Tereshkina and Shklyarov. Lopatkina was the better actress. I have seen Tereshkina do an amazing job in other roles, but she was nowhere near as good as Lopatkina. Askerov blended in with the walls. Nothing special at least in that role, so Tereshkina and Shklyarov, in my opinion, was a more balanced cast, and worked well together, so if you like more balanced out casts where both are doing a good job, that was the one to see, but if you wanted a "one for the ages" interpretation by Lopatkina and next to her a "meh" male dancer, then that was the one to see. I am glad I saw both.

Lopatkina danced Marguerite the first night. Tereshkina danced it the next (July 8&9). Lopatkina lived the role. Tereshkina was decent but not as incisive.

Most dvds use a composite of two or more performances to give the best possible performance on a dvd. I know that the Bolshoi's Nutcracker had one dancer fall in the cinema, but there is no fall in the dvd that was released later. So I suspect this might be the case with this. Opera dvds are almost always taken from several nights in the run. This is a holdover from audio recording days when they did several takes to release the best possible studio recording, and I think the live dvd performances have kept some of the tradition alive.

That reviewer uses very interesting imagery "cat in a dairy." Although I agree with his assessment of her Odile, I think he underestimates her Odette with "General Pained Expression." Originally I thought her look may have been nervousness when I first saw, but after watching her Act 1 Scene 2 Odette over and over from an underground recording I actually think it was the pain and interpretation I was watching. And when you view her Act 1 Odette and Act 3 Odette it all comes together b/c in Act 3 she is absolutely crushed and worn out but then after Rothbart is defeated, there is relief and radiant joy. So I think her Odette is an interpretation of great power, but I think many people including myself at first think it is nerves, when it is really her interpretation and it is actually pretty precise and not "general pain".....this is my own opinion, of course. But he is right her Odile is also good, b/c her arms take on a predatory look to me. Her body language totally changes.

Bart, which is the coaches' box? What would it correspond to on this seaing plan? http://tickets.mariinsky.ru/en/performance/7604/ thanks! Sasha The coaches box is inside of loge 1 in Mariinsky stall boxes. Tickets are not for sale in that coaches box (I think the door entrance says loge 0). There is a mini Tsar's box directly next to the stage, which is closer to the stage than the coaches box and also not for sale and not shown in ticket diagram. Alex is right. I like sitting in Box 1 of the stalls' boxes. They are pricey seats compared to others but after spending so much money to get there, I am not going to sit far back! If I lived there and went often I would sit farther back and save money sometimes.

I just watched the Royal Ballet's Swan Lake on video. A friend told me the choreography, especially in Act 1 is closer to Petipa's original. But there was so much walking around and it seemed like forever before any dancing started. For that reason I love how the Mariinsky opens with the young men dancing. My friend would disagree, but I like Sergeyev's additional dancing that he added to the ballet.

Drew, I am glad you wrote what you did. I have been an opera lover for many more years than I have loved ballet (now I seem to be an opera hater LOL), so I can say that I have seen a lot of the big names, and they ALL have their flaws, and they ALL have their good points. Every artist has pros and cons. And if you nitpick at whether Netrebko's trill was good or not in the cabaletta of Anna Bolena (and it is something I have commented....I am guilty of it)....well, it does lose sight sometimes of a bigger picture. I saw a pirated video of Anna Netrebko's Vienna debut as Anna Bolena and thought she was not right for the part. Then, she sang it at the Met and I went to the cinema screening out of curiosity, and she blew my socks off even with weak trilling (although pretty good for her....the ascending trills in that final cabaletta are actually pretty important). Her overall temperament and dramatic portrayal was light years better than her debut in the role. I was astounded, and I went from being a Netrebko naysayer to an actual fan. Then, I went recently to her Eugene Onegin (was it this past year? I actually went to something operatic this year?????) live transmission and loved her in that also. Anyway, what I am getting at is that in the end all of us should be happy if someone has found a little part of ecstasy in art that makes them thrilled. We shouldn't be angry that someone loves and raves over a favorite. And I am not sure naysayers mean to insult anyone personally either, so we shouldn't be angry if someone disagrees. I think anyone who spends anytime on a ballet forum or an opera forum is an art addict. We all come here to discuss our love and new discoveries and wonder. We aren't content to just watch (live and also on video). It is an escape from the hell of life and we want to share it with people. Opera saved me from my sister's death by being my crazy meds. I don't know what I would have done if I had not found opera. I was a frozen zombie until opera. Then, it betrayed me and stopped working when I was out of work for 3 years and ballet saved me. These art forms literally save lives. I mean this: they saved my life! Therefore, they are so meaningful to us, and although I do think it is normal and healthy to disagree, and am not saying everyone should stop, but I also think none of us should take it so personally if others don't love our same divas or divos, and no one should really want to spoil another person's ecstasy. Let's just keep it in perspective. With that said I saw Yulia Stepanova's Swan Lake in St. Petersburg on July 6, and I thought she did a great job especially being a 2nd time! I try to picture the feeling of dancing Swan Lake at the Mariinsky with all its history......it takes a lot of guts to get out there and then do a good job. And then going to London (a very high profile international assignment!) I can't imagine how high pressure that is and then to be composed about it. Frankly, I don't really know how they can get out on the world's stages and do that when it is so easy to fall down! I have been having dreams of slipping on steps and falling due to having been knocked off my feet by dogs and flying and crashing on my back (3 ribs and 2 vertebrae fractured 4 days before I flew 20 hours to Russia, by the way). So you can imagine I am in awe of dancers who seem to not fall (most of the time). It is like magic!!!

Thanks for reporting on this! I have never gone to one of their performances, because it would have to coincide with a visit to my parents' and my ribs and spine are still on the mend! But I appreciate hearing about how it went.

Elena, I was at three Bayaderes that were filmed this summer. On July 12 Kolegova danced Nikiya with Askerov as Solor and Gergiev conducted. On July 13 and 14 both these nights Tereshkina danced Nikiya with Shklarov and Boris Gruzin conducted. All three nights cameras were filming from various angles (cameras placed in various areas around the theatre). My box had most of the seats removed due to needing to put a camera in it, so I assume they knew ahead of time and did not allow anyone to buy the seats that they removed. In Europe the July 14th performance was telecast into movie theaters in some countries, I believe. So maybe all that filming was just for the broadcast and no dvd will emerge. However, it seems very strange to film 3 different nights with two nights with the same exact cast and one night had different lead dancers but same supporting cast. So I have no idea what is going on. Maybe the Kolegova night was filmed in case they needed more footage of the supporting people. I have no idea. Originally Gergiev was slated to conduct on July 12 and 14 but not on the 13th. That was also very confusing. Usually any ballet dvd released by the Mariinsky is conducted by Gergiev. We might get a dvd with Kolegova and Gergiev conducting. Or we might get a dvd of Tereshkina with Gruzin conducting. Or there may never be a dvd released. But if one is released it will probably be with either Tereshkina or Kolegova because they were the two Nikiyas that were being filmed those 3 nights. So don't worry. Skorik was not filmed. I originally assumed Tereshkina was getting a dvd of her Nikiya, but since Gergiev only conducted Kolegova, maybe she will get a dvd. If they do not release a dvd of one of those nights it seems very odd to do all that filming. For opera lovers out there, the cameraman told me that War and Peace was also being filmed at Mariinsky II. Bart

Yes, here it is: The Plisetskaya Head-Kick Cool!!!!! Yudi found it! I remembered reading that but could not remember what main heading it would be under!