Birdsall

By the way, Webb hopes to do Ashton's "Foyer de la Danse" which he says is a "lost" ballet and only exists on film. He wants to do it during their Ashton Festival in May 2014. I don't know anything about the ballet, but I figured I should post this since many here on this forum might know about it and have interest in that being done! I am going to their "La Fille Mal Gardee" tonight!

Iain Webb and Margaret Barbieri (his wife) are probably the main reason for the programming. They are making Sarasota Ballet an Ashton company! It is a small company and only some of the shows are with a live orchestra, but with those two at the helm, I suspect the company will grow.

I have heard good things about Monastryska but never heard her myself. Abigaille is a killer role! I do think Domingo will be remembered as one of the greatest artists in opera. He strikes me as someone who must work or he'll die. He could easily retire and enjoy life, but I don't think he likes to "not work." Just my impression because he is known to sing at the Met and fly on a private plane to make it on time to conduct at LA Opera the same night! Of course, the time difference helps! But what sane person would want to have such a tight schedule like that? LOL

SARASOTA BALLET — 2013-2014 Season Oct. 25-28: "Theatre of Dreams," choreography by company dancers. FSU Center for the Performing Arts. Nov. 22-23: George Balanchine's "Serenade," Frederick Ashton's "Les Illuminations" and Balanchine's "Who Cares?" Sarasota Opera House. Live music by Sarasota Orchestra.[/color] Dec. 20-21: Matthew Hart's "John Ringling's Circus Nutcracker." Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall. Live music by Sarasota Orchestra. ]Jan. 31-Feb. 3, 2014: Balanchine's "Four Temperaments," Will Tuckett world premiere, Ashton's "Sinfonietta." FSU Center for the Performing Arts. Feb. 28-March 3, 2014: World premiere by Ricardo "Graziano, Ashton's "Monotones I & II," and Agnes DeMille's "Rodeo." FSU CEnter for the Performing Arts. Apr. 4-5, 2014: Ashton's "Birthday Offering," Graziano's "Symphony of Sorrows" and Antony Tudor's "Gala Performance." Sarasota Opera House. April 25-26, 2014: Johan Kobborg, Alina Cojocaru & Friends. Sarasota Opera House. Early May 2014: Ashton Festival, commemorating 25th anniversary of the death of Sir Fredick Ashton. With performances, lectures, gala and other events TBD.

I agree with the above. When I was a hardcore opera lover before I became a traitor and turned ballet lover I had absolutely no intention of ever going to the Mariinsky for opera. I have some cds and videos of their rare Russian operas and enjoyed them, but that is the main interest in the Mariinsky for hardcore opera lovers. I don't think most opera lovers would ever plan a trip to Russia to see Turandot, Pelleas et Melisande, or Aida. But they might plan a trip to see several rare Russian operas. I think Gergiev has been trying for years to bring the opera side of the company up to the same level and esteem that the ballet is on, but it simply hasn't happened. I am not saying you can't get a good performance of opera at the Mariinsky. It is just that despite all his effort the Mariinsky is really not in the same league as the Met or La Scala or even Vienna State Opera. Opera lovers dream of going to La Scala or La Fenice or Bayreuth, but not the Mariinsky. Maybe if someone is obsessed with Russian opera he/she would go to the Mariinsky, but basically opera lovers would usually choose another pilgrimage. But ballet is a different story. I think most would want to make a pilgrimage to the Mariinsky for ballet. Gergiev needs to open his eyes and realize he has a diamond (ballet) he is not shining while he is trying to turn bronze into gold (opera).

Both Rebello and Cerdeiro are great!

I will make sure I take your advice in my next programmed vacation to the land of the Tsars, BB! BTW, I love your FB pics...keep posting them! Thanks, Cristian! I meant to respond earlier! I keep posting more pics on FB b/c I took so many. People keep asking if I am still in Russia. I am posting them a few at a time so that my friends see how beautiful it is.

Sometimes these updated productions just seem like an excuse to save money (fewer sets or less elaborate sets, wardrobe bought at Macy's, etc.).....so it can be aggravating, b/c I think most people want to see Grand Opera looking grand. Cheap sets and costumes cause you to feel ripped off. I have seen crazy productions or updated productions that still looked great. But some of them are awful and so cheap looking. As for Domingo, I think he was an amazing tenor and loved him, but as a baritone I find him mediocre (even though he began his career as a baritone supposedly). He always sounds so dark as a tenor which was wonderful, but as a baritone he sounds way too light to me. He and Guleghina are singing Nabucco on May 4 at the Mariinsky (sold out). I heard the tickets were outrageously priced. Well, the audience members are being robbed! Domingo singing a baritone role at the end of his career. Guleghina, who is basically a bull in a china shop and should have never made it out of the opera in Minsk if even there, astounds me. This is like a big name in opera, but she has to be the worst Abigaille ever (despite it being somewhat of a signature role for her) with no clue how to sing the coloratura. All she knows how to do is blast, blast, and keep blasting that voice. I guess it is impressive she's kept her voice as long as she has. It is a force of nature, but zero finesse, zero clue. Anyway, Verdi is going to roll in his grave on May 4. This is a RIDICULOUS cast, in my personal opinion. I don't think I would go, if I were in St. Petersburg and I were walking past the Mariinsky and someone tried to hand me the ticket for free. But it is sold out and they made money on this show. So from a business stand point it was a smart casting decision. For art's sake, it is a horrible cast.

Poor puppy. Are you referring to my dog? LOL She goes to daycare most days to play with other dogs, so it was probably only the weekends that she missed me on my trip. My partner took care of her at night and weekends. This week I am driving down to Sarasota to see La Fille mal Gardee (Ashton) and I chose the Thursday night performance so that I would be back by Friday so I am home with her on the weekend! My friends all say they want to be my dog, because she has a Tsarina's life!!! I don't think she's ever spent an entire day at home by herself. If I keep her home she gets two walks or dog park visits. Otherwise, she goes to daycare. To get back on topic, this is one of the things we consider when taking trips. We want our "babies" (dogs) to be well taken care of.....if I did not have a partner I would need to board her, or ask a friend to take care of her, so this is an extra thing that we have to plan for when traveling, so it would be a HUGE help to actually know which ballets are playing when, so we know what dates to book flights and hotels. I think Helene is right. They can fill the house no matter what so they don't care. But once Mariinsky II is open and you have two houses to fill every night it "might" (maybe not, but maybe) be harder to fill both houses. Then, the tables might turn. They might need to inform us of what is playing before we get on a plane. Maybe not.

I think I can live with late casting info, but not knowing which ballets are being performed in June (if you are someone planning to go in June) for White Nights is crazy. I am glad I decided to go in March and cancelled my plan to go in June b/c I would have absolutely no idea what dates to book my hotel or airfare. I don't like to stay away from my dog for more than a week, so it would be awlful trying to wonder which week to book. Not to mention some people need to ask for the time off from work. So there are so many logistics. A listing of the ballets and operas should be out. We are into the second half of April now, and White Nights starts May 24 (granted, the May ballets are listed but no word about June and July).

Drew posted right while I was typing and said basically the same thing and was more succinct! LOL I mean that as a compliment.

Tiara, I think things have gotten worse and you are absolutely right. Fateyev is a big FLOP as Artistic Director in so many ways, and this is yet another example. It is absolutely ridiculous that the White Nights Festival begins on May 24 and only May ballets are listed. People want to book airfare, hotels, etc. but they have no idea what nights to be in St. Petersburg, because there is no schedule at all for the White Nights Festival. It is unbelievable that people have to basically buy airfare and hotel and hope the dates they chose to visit coincide with ballets and operas they want to see. For some people it is a trip of a lifetime, yet apparently the administration of the Mariinsky could care less. And the White Nights Festival usually showcases some international (non-Mariinsky) stars at least in opera, so some sort of planning must go on, since many famous opera stars are booked up 5 years in advance, so calling them up in May to appear at the White Nights in June would not work, although they do have openings and holes in their schedule sometimes and a big fee for one concert can get them motivated to take on a gig during their vacation, I suspect. But still.....some kind of planning has to happen, so they should know by now and post the information. I suspect the planning for Mariinsky II has made this year especially crazy but it is truly ridiculous. I can give them a pass on casting, but why don't they at least know what ballets they are planning to do? And if they know, then they should list them on the site, so people can make travel plans. I suspect airfare goes up the closer you wait until summer. I have not followed ballet as long as opera, but I remember the White Nights Festival advertised in ads for opera tours in Opera News and the ad would say which ballets, so I think things are really getting bad. There are no tours to the White Nights Festival listed in this May's Opera News (despite it being the issue that announces European Summer Festivals) that just came in the mail, because apparently nobody at the Mariinsky knows what they are doing in June. If any of you subscribe to Opera News check out the listings for Italy. Lots of festivals are listed with operas and dates. I never thought Italy would seem really on the ball!!!!!! But compared to the Mariinsky, the Italian festivals are anal retentive and ultra organized!!!! This is unbelievable!!!

That's what I sort of said above about The Hobbit. I was surprised when I went to the Hobbit (a recent 3D movie). It was very, very different than cheesy 3D of the past where knives or broomsticks stick you in the eye. Nothing stuck you in the eye or came right at you. Like you say, it was more like you are there in person sort of....not quite but as close to being in the movie as you can be.....like you are one of the actors observing. I still think it is a gimmick though for ballet, but I will still go see it to try it out. I will try to keep an open mind.

The latest (May) issue of Opera News has two articles on the Mariinsky II. One is mainly the facts behind the building of it and reasons for building it, and quotes by Gergiev. Gergiev claims it will bring $144 million a year in ticket sales and that the Mariinsky will be able to do more programming for children. It also says it will enable the company to offer more ballet and opera sharing both stages 50/50 (alternating nights, I assume). The second article "Risk and Return" by Philip Kennicott goes into the controversy (the cost, the historical buildings destroyed to make room for it, and the look of it that many St. Peterburg citizens hate) surrounding the new theatre. It discusses how St. Petersburg's cultural scene is interconnected with power (political power) just as in imperial times. The final paragraph is quite interesting. Kennicott surmises that Gergiev (a product of the Soviet Union) frowns upon the pop culture of the West (he doesn't like things like Pussy Riot) and views him and the other power players involved in Russian classical music very much different from "the more egalitarian-minded, studiously (and sometimes fatuously) anti-snobs of the Western opera world." The Mariinsky II is "a monument to the close alliance of cultural and political power that was frayed and severed in liberal democracies after World War II." Comments? By the way, does anyone know which historical buildings were demolished to make room for Mariinsky II? Were they "sights" or were they just simply historic buildings with no sightseeing appeal?

Some promotions of corps to coryphee happened today. A friend alerted me. I guess the most news-worthy item is that Kampa has been promoted to Coryphee. You can go to the Mariinsky's website and see the promotions.

Then I may need to smuggle in some wine to pair with the cheese. My goodness, the MT doesn't need "tricks" to present a gorgeous Swan Lake. I agree with this. I wonder why the Mariinsky seems to want to do their ballets in 3D. They should simply do what the Bolshoi does and do them regular for movie theaters.

I think I agree with you. 3D does seem cheesy. Historically I think it was used to freak audiences out for horror films or other genres that were just "fun" movies. Serious art films were never in 3D. They would make sure to have knives or other things look like they are about to poke us in the eye. I haven't seen ballet in 3D either. I saw the Mariinsky's Nutcracker at the movies that was supposed to be in 3D, but the movie theater I went to presented it without 3D for some reason. My partner did twist my arm to see The Hobbit in 3D and I was shocked there were no things poking me in the eye. It was only used to make you feel like you were there sort of, so I guess they were trying to make it "classy 3D" if that is possible! LOL Maybe that is going to be the new type of 3D....simply making you feel like you are watching a hologram and/or right there with the people you are watching as opposed to gimmicks like knives and fingers poking you in the eye.

I hope this promo ad that looks like it was shot in front of the Winter Palace is just the ad for the performance. I hope the actual performance they filmed is inside on stage at the Mariinsky. If they shoot it in various places around St. Petersburg (some operas have been filmed that way) it might look really cheesy! LOL

Buddy, thanks for your insight into Shirinkina. My initial hesitation with Shirinkina as Raymonda has nothing to do with her artistry. She does have great artistry. I just originally felt that her body type and youth were not right for Raymonda, since it is usually danced by Lopatkina, Tereshkina, Kolegova, Novikova (who might be closer to Shirinkina's body type) and recently Kondaurova. I don't know what the word in ballet is for this, but if it were opera and Raymonda were an opera, I would think Raymonda is a dramatic soprano role that usually goes to a very experienced soprano who has graduated to the most difficult roles in opera. My impression of Raymonda is that it is one of the hardest and longest roles for a ballerina, so I was just surprised that such a young and not quite experienced (fewer high profile major roles) dancer was getting a debut in Raymonda. I suspected she would dance it technically well, but it would be sort of like a soubrette opera singer like Sumi Jo singing Norma (Don't laugh people, she says Karajan wanted to record Norma with her in the title role) which is an eyebrow raiser. Sumi Jo would be able to sing every note correctly but she does not have the voice type that is right for Norma. Shirinkina's youth and body type made me think of her more like a Masha or possibly Aurora, but Raymonda seemed like a big stretch for her personality and type. But, like I said, in the end she must have worked long and hard and she won me over and even had exciting moments. I think she was able to portray the first two acts wonderfully b/c Raymonda is an innocent, young princess. I think her final act variation (the famous clapping variation) was great, but if I can find any fault at all, I tend to like Raymonda to seem like a woman who has experienced danger and is now a woman of the world. So almost diva-like in that variation. I think this attitude might come to Shirinkina with time/experience. This was her debut and it was a wonderful debut. I said above that I think Kondaurova has the opposite problem. She is wonderful in the final variation but she is a woman of the world from the minute she makes her entrance. I don't buy Kondaurova as an innocent young girl actually, but I think she is great at the final variation. Kondaurova's Raymonda would have kicked Abderakhman's butt from here to kingdom come the minute he entered. LOL That is my personal take and opinion.

Bart, I've been doing a bit of traveling myself and I'm just beginning to catch up. Anastasia Kolegova -- I saw her twice in October performing Swan Lake and I have to agree that she 'is' terrific ! Maria Shirinkina -- She continues to surprise me each performance with her artistic growth. I'm very glad that you enjoyed her as much as you did. She has a wonderful gracefulness that is so her own and so beautiful. She is adaptable and she puts her own lovely stamp on everything that she does. I greatly look forward to seeing as much of her as possible. Thanks for your comments. I hope Kolegova gets a Swan Lake when the Mariinsky tours in DC next season. I suspect Shirinkina prepared the role of Raymonda long and hard. Her arms are really great.

I do think that no matter how much we wish that the arts would be divorced from "business," there is always a "business" side to things. So I do think that the PR people at ballet companies are trying hard to fill seats in a pop music culture. It probably is very hard. So they try many different things. I don't always like the ideas, but that doesn't mean they might not work. It sounds like this did gain them lots of publicity, so it may have worked splendidly from a business standpoint. On the other hand I noticed lots of empty seats at Friday night's MCB performance. I don't know if a lot of Palm Beachers returned to NY already or what, but it was much more empty than other shows earlier in the season. I suspect it might have something to do with the repertoire. As lovely as Dances at a Gathering is, it doesn't bring down the house. And Slaughter on 10th Avenue is fun but it is very pop culture oriented. I actually think MCB's strategy of usually ending the season with a full-length story ballet is a better idea, and it looks like they are going back to that strategy next season with Don Quixote. The story ballets seem to always get a pretty good turn out.

I didn't see you on Friday. Glad to know you were there!

Cristian, It sounds like the machine messed up during one of the few good images it created in the Ring. I do think this new Ring production is a big flop. It was supposed to make exciting things possible but ended up just being a weird non-descript set (for the scenes with the Gods, for example), or simply a video screen. You should do as Helene says and go see the Seattle Ring. It might be the only traditional Ring left in the entire world! LOL

I have no problem with anyone coming to the U.S. for a better life for any reason. I have been lucky in life and wish the same for others. Americans should always have competition for our jobs to keep us on our toes!

My mother and I went to MCB's final program last night at the Kravis in West Palm (the program repeats in Ft. Lauderdale and Miami later this month). Overall, we enjoyed it. Very entertaining, but for me it was the weakest show of the season. I don't mean to be negative, because I enjoyed it and the dancers were great, but Dances at a Gathering, as lovely as it is, has a calm even-ness to it, and I personally think it lasts a bit too long. I'm sure others will disagree. Slaughter on 10th is fun but a bit silly. Standouts for me were Jeanette Delgado (as always), Patricia Delgado (a sexy, jazzy stripper), Renan Cerdeiro (who gets better and better each time I see him), and Kleber Rebello (who is going to take Penteado's crown away soon)! Tricia Albertson and Kleber Rebello were both gorgeous in a duo during Dances showing off nice upper body work. Like I said, a fun and enjoyable show but the weakest repertoire pieces of the season in my personal opinion.