kbarber

All the same, I don't think these "sugared plums" are the "sugar plums" of Nutcracker. In German she's the Zuckerfee, and in French the Fee-Dragee; no mention of actual plums. It's just a coincidence that the English translation used the word "plum" because of the hard candies (dragees are sugar-coated almonds) called "sugar plums" that existed at the time.

Glad to oblige, ascballerina! Miyako is such a lovely dancer, isn't she?

If you're interested to know, please check out my "Wordlady" blog:

http://katherinebarber.blogspot.ca/2011/12/of-sugarplums-and-plum-pudding.html

From an article in the Oregonian:

"Harold Goldstein, the board vice chairman, echoed Hick's assertion that no dollar target is on the table. What's being considered, he said, is a business plan no longer built around an annual production budget but instead one that "explains for each ballet how we're going to pay for it. ... Maybe I'm pie in the sky, but I don't think money is going to be our problem."

Suggests to me they want every ballet to pay for itself, which we know never works when you're planning a season. You have to use some ballets to subsidize others.

Meanwhile the same article had this telling caption to a photo

Revered -- but expensive -- ballet classics such as "The Sleepy [sic] Beauty" (which featured Lucas Threefoot in this scene from Christopher Stowell's version in 2010) might be out of OBT's reach if it's [sic] budget is significantly reduced.

a clean sweep for the Royal Danish Ballet entry, with Ida Praetorius and Andreas Kaas winning the best dancer awards and Alessandro Sousa Pereira (of Danish Dance Theatre) winning the choreographic prize for his piece "Traditional" to music by Zoe Keating.

can't think why an artist would find himself at odds with a board that can deliver such felicitous phraseology as

"with the help of key external resources, will determine how Oregon Ballet Theatre will move forward on its long term strategic plans."

Joby Talbot's new score for Christopher Wheeldon's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is quite successful, I would say.

just launched at

http://www.hermancornejo.com/node/80

Herman has just announced on his new website as follows:

• 
  Herman Cornejo returns to dance in Buenos Aires
  12/22/2012
  Herman Cornejo to perform The Nutcracker Prince with Eleonora Cassano for her retirement at the Obelisco Porteño.
  For more information please visit: www.eleonoracassano.com or www.grupomaipo.com.ar
  

I am no fan of Martins' choreography, but I thought he handled the question about the hostile reviews of the McCartney ballet very well. Balanchine got negative reviews for early works that became classics. He had occasional flops later on as well. PAMTGG anybody? Martha Graham liked to tell insecure young choreographers to go to the library and read her early (horrible) reviews.

Choreographers have to take risks and try new things. Sometimes there are flat out failures. Sometimes critics need time to catch up and change their minds. I'm not defending Ocean's Kingdom, but rather Mr. Martins' point that an artist has to be true to himself, regardless of the criticism.

I agree, LiLing!

I am still trying to figure out how Teresina changed from her human to nymph costume and back while onstage.

She has two costumes on and is standing over a trap door. A stagehand reaches up and pulls off the outer of the two costumes. They demonstrated how this works at the costume display at the last Bournonville festival. It has been done that way since forever, apparently. And still is effective! I don't know if they have this effect in Hubbe's latest version of Napoli, where the music and choreography for Act II are completely different.

The injury was a torn calf muscle, according to this interview with him by Marina Harss for Dance Tabs. Torn calf muscles are incapacitating, but not uncommon, and dancers recover well from them.

http://dancetabs.com/2012/11/interview-herman-cornejo-american-ballet-theatre-principal/

NICE twizzles from Davis and White!

On November 4 he posted to his facebook page a pic of him on crutches and the comment:

"Dancing to the extreme has consequences.... a prove that we are humans

Keeping positive. Three more weeks and back to the air!!"

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=397152203690737&set=a.107445515994742.12283.100001878820088&type=1&theater

The clip emphasizes throughout the effort dancers put into dance, a common theme I've noticed in dance promotion. Why do they do that? This seems to me to set people up for what they're not going to see: If the dancers are any good at all, it looks easy. If it looks hard, something's amiss. Anybody think they've got a piece of the explanation?

This behind-the-scenes emphasis on hard work goes back a long way. Think of the rehearsal and company class scenes in The Turning Point and Dancers. But I've always thought that was a good thing, as it shows Americans (especially American boys) how athletic and strenuous ballet is. Not something for sissies!

I agree, California. If anything, it makes it even more amazing to see how effortless they make it look. Something like 60 minutes has such a vast audience of non-balletomanes, who just don't realize what goes into it and indeed think it's something for sissies. Heck, I've seen a lot of ballet (including Apollo many times) and had no idea Apollo was collapsed in the wings!

the title of this thread needs to be changed to August 2013.

BRB are bringing their GORGEOUS Coppelia to Norfolk Virginia next spring.

Coppélia

Birmingham Royal Ballet

Friday, April 19 7:30 PM

Saturday, April 20 7:30 PM

Sunday, April 21 2:30 PM

Chrysler Hall, Norfolk

Tickets $65 Gold Circle, $50, $35, $20

The production is by Peter Wright and quite the best Coppelia I've seen. Eye candy. Beautiful unapologetically classical ballet. If you're anywhere near Norfolk, I highly recommend it!

I remember seeing her rehearse La Sylphide in her graduating year at the National Ballet School and thinking "that girl's going places". Also very beautiful in pure classical roles: she sparkled as one of the solo Shades. One of those people who make you think she's happier standing on pointe than on flat feet!

A friend just emailed me this:

I stayed downtown San Fran, at the Whitcomb Hotel as it was walking distance to the Opera House. Every San Fran native said to stay by Fisherman’s Wharf. I personally wouldn’t stay downtown again. There are a lot of mental health patients out in the day and they do drugs and smoke up right on the grass in front of the government buildings. I am used to this sort of stuff growing up downtown Toronto, but the difference is they are so high they will come so close to you to talk as they have no conception of personal space. On a good note, at night the police is out in full force and there are no homeless people or druggies out, but by the morning they are all there again – it was the oddest thing!

Any comments?

Jillian is a principal dancer with the NBOC. She has recently started her own website:

http://www.jillianvanstone.com/

In her blog she recounts her recent recovery from a dislocated knee (ouch!) which she suffered back in July. I'm glad to report that she will return to the stage next week in the lead role in Wheeldon's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, for which she was first-cast Alice when the NBOC mounted its North American premiere last year.

And, if you've never been to the Opera House I would strongly suggest avoiding the back section of the orchestra unless you're on an end. I have never been able to see over the heads of people in front of me.

I avoid the entire Orchestra section. The seats seem old with worn springs, so you sink way down into the seat - a big problem for short people! If you can swing it, aim for the Grand Tier or Balcony Circle. The front rows of the Dress Circle are also good. Here's a seating chart:

http://sfwmpac.org/o...h_seatchart.pdf

Thank you everyone for your very helpful advice. As for seating, what they currently have available for the performances I'm interested in are rows F-G of the orchestra for one performance and row M back for the other (the two mixed programs in April), or if I don't take orchestra I'd have to go for row C of the Grand Tier. Normally I prefer sitting closer than further away. What do you all think about the orchestra seats that are available?

Also Helene, thanks for the info about Inn at the Opera, which I had been looking at already as it seems it's about 3 minutes walk from the opera house so it seems unlikely something untoward could happen in that space of time and distance, correct?

Hello SFB regulars!

I'm hoping you can advise me.

I'm planning a trip to see SFB in April and am wondering where to stay. Usually I like to stay within 5-10 minutes walking distance of the opera house whenever I go on a ballet trip. I've been checking tripadvisor and seeing some comments that suggest the area near the opera house in San Francisco may be a bit dodgy, with homeless people and druggies around. I've only been to San Francisco once and that was during the daytime. I remember the "tenderloin" was an area to avoid. I'm just wondering how safe a group of mostly older ladies would feel walking back to a hotel within a 10-minute radius of the War Memorial Opera House after an evening performance.

If you wouldn't advise staying near the Opera House, what area would you recommend, and how would one get to and from the performances?

Thank you for your input!

Hello Stage Right, you and I were probably at the RWB School together, though I was in the general rather than the professional division. I too sometimes shared a bench in the changing room with Evelyn. Truly in a class by herself.

Beautiful Dying Swan: