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Sasha De Sola in Robbins' Other Dances https://www.instagram.com/p/BmHEEO7HroR/?taken-by=sashadesola

Daniil Simkin posted this backstage video from the Festival - many familiar faces... https://www.instagram.com/p/Bl_AjnnnmvE/?taken-by=daniil

The forum interface doesn't like the Program B table, so I will have to work on that...

The 15th World Ballet Festival in Tokyo, Japan is happening now - the festival has an impressive lineup of dancers: https://www.nbs.or.jp/english/stages/2018/wbf/program.html Program A　01-05 August 2018 　 Artists Maria Alexandrova Vladislav Lantratov The Pharao's Daughter Pierre Lacotte after Marius Petipa Silvia Azzoni Alexandre Riabko Don Juan John Neumeier Elisa Badenes Daniel Camargo Diana and Actaeon Agrippina Vaganova Léonore Baulac Germain Louvet The Nutcracker Rudolf Nureyev Ashley Bouder Leonid Sarafanov Tarantella George Balanchine Alina Cojocaru Johan Kobborg Scheherazade Pas de deux 　 Liam Scarlett Aurélie Dupont Daniel Proietto ...and Carolyn Alan Lucien Øyen Maria Eichwald Alexandre Riabko Sonata Uwe Scholz Alessandra Ferri Marcelo Gomes After the Rain Christopher Wheeldon Dorothée Gilbert Mathieu Ganio Manon - Pas de deux from Act 1 Kenneth MacMillan Melissa Hamilton Roberto Bolle Caravaggio Mauro Bigonzetti Maria Kochetkova Daniil Simkin Giselle - Pas de deux from Act 2 Jean Coralli, Jules Perrot Sarah Lamb Federico Bonelli Coppélia Arthur Saint-Léon Anna Laudere Edvin Revazov Anna Karenina John Neumeier Olesya Novikova David Hallberg Apollo George Balanchine Myriam Ould-Braham Mathias Heymann Don Quixote Marius Petipa Tamara Rojo Isaac Hernández Carmen Suite Alberto Alonso Elisabet Ros La Luna Maurice Béjart Iana Salenko The Dying Swan Mikhail Fokine Polina Semionova Friedemann Vogel Herman Schmerman William Forsythe Program B　08-12 August 2018 Artists Maria Alexandrova Vladislav Lantratov Nureyev - Pas de deux Yuri Possokhov　　 　　　　　　　 Alicia Amatriain Friedemann Vogel Lady of the Camellias - Pas de deux from Act 2 John Neumeier Silvia Azzoni Alexandre Riabko Orpheus John Neumeier Elisa Badenes Daniel Camargo The Taming of the Shrew　　　 John Cranko Léonore Baulac Germain Louvet Sonatine George Balanchine Ashley Bouder Leonid Sarafanov Swan Lake - Pas de deux from Act 3 Marius Petipa Alina Cojocaru Johan Kobborg Manon - Pas de deux from Act 3 Kenneth MacMillan Alina Cojocaru Cesar Corrales Roland Petit's Coppélia Roland Petit Maria Eichwald Alexandre Riabko Adagietto John Neumeier Alessandra Ferri Marcelo Gomes Onegin - Pas de deux from Act 3 John Cranko Dorothée Gilbert Mathieu Ganio Cinderella Rudolf Nureyev Melissa Hamilton Roberto Bolle Romeo and Juliet - Pas de deux from act 1 Kenneth MacMillan Maria Kochetkova Daniil Simkin Don Quixote Marius Petipa Sarah Lamb Federico Bonelli Apollo George Balanchine Anna Laudere Edvin Revazov Lady of the Camellias - Pas de deux from Act 3 John Neumeier Olesya Novikova David Hallberg The Sleeping Beauty Marius Petipa Myriam Ould-Braham Mathias Heymann Diamonds from Jewels George Balanchine Tamara Rojo Isaac Hernández Two Pieces for HET Hans van Manen Viengsay Valdés Daniel Camargo Muñecos Alberto Méndez

New in Dance Magazine: How This San Francisco Ballet Dancer Became An Instagram Foodie Star — Claudia Bauer https://www.dancemagazine.com/natasha-sheehan-2585833862.html The 2nd image in article (pulled in from Instagram) doesn't always show in the browser, so here it is:

A very good question. ;) Will Diego follow Ruben to Washington, or relatively nearby Atlanta? I definitely wonder about what the school will do to find a replacement. The teacher network is a mysterious thing, but generally dancers know who the really great, effective teachers are.

That's great news. Every time I see his name I wonder what he is up to. 😉 Many of the posting comments are from his students/ex students, which is nice to see. I like that Afternoon of a Faun photo too.

Dores Andre and Joe Walsh performed together at the Sun Valley Festival (curated by Isabella Boylston) Here is a photo sequence: https://www.instagram.com/p/BlmGe-TAtpx/?taken-by=josephwalshsf Meanwhile, Angelo Greco has been partnering Maria Kochetkova with Roberto Bolle and Friends in Verona, Italy:

Thanks to the Internet 'blogosphere', we are living in the age of the self-made expert. 😉 I'm just not sure it's any worse than government, big business and the media presenting us with their chosen 'experts'. Most of the public will not question the opinions of establishment experts - but it's usually worth looking into the details.

SFB has announced: Dana Genshaft Receives Prestigious Princess Grace Award "Beloved SF Ballet School Faculty member—and former SF Ballet Soloist Dana Genshaft—has been awarded a Princess Grace Award in Choreography. Selected by the Princess Grace Foundation, she will receive financial assistance and ongoing support as an emerging choreographer. Dana became a faculty member in 2015 following her retirement from the Company, and since then she has taught contemporary repertory, conditioning, and choreography at SF Ballet School. She has also choreographed for the American Ballet Theatre Studio Company and James Sofranko’s SFDanceworks, among others. The Princess Grace Foundation identifies and assists emerging artists in theater, dance, and film by awarding grants in the form of scholarships, apprenticeships, and fellowships. Since its inception, the Foundation has given awards to nearly 800 recipients. Notable winners in dance and choreography include Robert Battle, Gillian Murphy, Tiler Peck, Kyle Abraham, and Michelle Dorrance, and SF Ballet Principal Joseph Walsh. For more information, visit pgfusa.org."

I guess you could call this a Tarantella teaser - Sasha De Sola rehearsing (with Esteban Hernandez): https://www.instagram.com/p/BlqyIEbHJKC/?taken-by=sashadesola If only it were longer... I'd like to see Angelo Greco trained for this ballet.

The SFB website tour page has some updated information regarding Fall 2018 tour performances: https://www.sfballet.org/season/tour The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts [tickets] October 23–28, 2018 Opera House Program A McIntyre's Your Flesh Shall Be a Great Poem Wheeldon's Bound To© Dawson's Anima Animus Program B Liang's The Infinite Ocean Marston's Snowblind Peck's Hurry Up, We're Dreaming New York City Center Balanchine: The City Center Years October 31–November 4, 2018 Mainstage Balanchine: The City Center Years is a celebration of the choreographer's iconic ballets and definitive style which remains at the pinnacle of modern ballet. The 13 works chosen for this international tribute will be performed by SF Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, Joffrey Ballet, Mariinsky Ballet, Miami City Ballet, New York City Ballet, Paris Opera Ballet, and The Royal Ballet. SF Ballet will perform Divertimento No. 15 in Program II & IV (November 1 at 8 pm & November 3 at 2 pm) and Scotch Symphony in Program III (November 2 at 8 pm).

Thanks for the links, Quiggin. All good articles. The L.A. food scene is as enormous and difficult to contain with words as the city itself.

10 Ballet FAQs And Answers From TippyToeGirl (Natasha) https://tippytoegirl.com/2018/07/10-ballet-faqs-and-answers-from-tippytoegirl/

It was shown on the PBS network a long while ago (I don't remember exactly when).

Dores André is now cast opposite Joe Walsh due to Mathilde getting a bad infection and being hospitalized. I believe things are on the mend, fortunately.

Costumer Terry Dresbach (Outlander) talks about the issues with costume design for historical dramas: https://www.terrydresbach.com/modern-history/ "There is an ongoing discussion about historically accurate Costume Design onscreen and what audience taste is for history. It is VERY interesting to reflect on having just finished doing the French Court for television after creating 18th century Scotland for Season One. There is a reason that until just very recently there were not a lot of period pieces on television, with the exceptions of very small and contained BBC Dramas. It is an enormous endeavour and something that American studios and networks had no real experience with. Hollywood is a town driven by fear. Fear of risk, ultimately. And doing giant period pieces is most definitely a risk." "...So you end up making history look modern. Everyone is in leather, or the latest runway fashion is tweaked into an interpretation of history. Eventually it becomes the norm, and then becomes a source of creative pride for directors and producers, who put out brave statements to the press about how incredibly creative and innovatively they are choosing to interpret history." I'm often rubbed the wrong way by the amount of license taken by film/TV designers when creating clothes that are supposed to be period accurate. They mostly end up looking like they've been reinterpreted to appeal to modern audiences. Which doesn't have much to do with historical accuracy. And it's amazing how all the characters manage to keep their clothing immaculately clean, day after day. 😉 Dresbach's online archive is full of great photos of her many costumes: https://www.terrydresbach.com/category/outlander/costume-design/

Obviously if the company board doesn't trust the A.D.'s vision, there's going to be big trouble. But the weird part here is that Binder seems to have followed the job description and succeeded publicly, but the administrative director, Dirk Hesse, didn't like her decisions. And so they've both been let go. Is that because neither one behaved professionally in their dealings with each other?

Yeah, they really should update the AB website to make it clear about the performance dates. 😉 I know Nedvigin has performed in Balanchine's Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux at SFB. Perhaps that's one of his favorites of the Mr. B. short works (and it doesn't require lots of dancers to perform).

Very nice video. Yes, it is a shame that we aren't able to see nearly as much at-the-performance video here in the West.

Masha dancing the "Lolita" portion of Possokhov's Swimmer with Sebastien Kloborg - music by Tom Waits: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTwPr5FpF8Q

SFB has posted a page titled "The Dancers Are Back" to the SFB website (with info about what the dancers did on their time off): https://www.sfballet.org/explore/articles/The-Dancers-Are-Back

Sounds like you are saying, "that's the way it is done at NYCB, but that's not the ideal approach". And if that is the case, I would agree. I would have to guess that the 'dancers coaching other dancers' approach simply came about due to the enormity of the NYCB repertoire and the number of performances per year, and of course the lack of Ballet Masters and répétiteurs to go around. Regarding the "interim" A.D. staff - I wonder how many changes/ fixes they have in the works? Or are they just coasting along?

Regarding SAB staff, I was thinking only in the larger sense of carrying the legacy forward - not that they would be teaching company members the older ballets. "Dancers have always coached other dancers at NYCB, passing down roles and teaching them to last-minute replacements, right up to curtain. It's part of the Company legacy and is nothing new." - that of course makes Peck's statements unremarkable. What is interesting to me, is how this relates to accusations of "lax standards" during a good part of the Martins era. That would mean company principals should shoulder more of the blame.

I read this article last night, but I came away from it thinking she's sounds very young. ;) Which is fine, and since she's had few things standing in her way, her confidence level is high. This statement seems to pretty much sum up her general state of mind: “I feel like this is my time,” she said. “I had to wait for things and people can wait for things, too.” But I don't think it's necessarily accurate to imply that only the principal dancers are teaching the younger dancers and carrying "these ballet forward". This kind of comment just makes it sound like the vast managerial staff is hibernating in some closet on the 3rd floor until the return of the patriarchal leader. I don't think that's right. What happened to all the Ballet Masters/Mistress? The SAB teachers and guest teachers? Peck's focus seems very narrow to me. And as for running a company - to do that successfully is not an easy task. Enthusiasm alone doesn't guarantee much.