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Both very good interviews. I hadn't heard Dores' story about falling on stage at Lincoln Center, and I laughed at how she chose between ballet and swimming - "I really liked ballet because you talked to people, and you're not under the water the whole time". Hopefully Ferraro and Breeden will be interviewing other festival choreographers that are mostly unknown in the U.S. And people like Alonzo King who should be more recognized.

That's a great question Miliosr. And it makes me wonder what the "grand manner" might look like in this day and age. I get the feeling that someone like Justin Peck probably does wonder about how to approach large scale ballets with more developed costumes and sets, but I don't think he's figured out how to go about it, yet. Contemporary ballets have always skewed towards "pure dance" over involved narratives with characters and mime. Personally, I wouldn't mind seeing a revitalization of character dances, folk dances and mime in ballet, but it's going to take a brilliant choreographer to 'modernize' those styles/skills and make them feel contemporary (it does not have to be about stereotypes!). Then more of the younger audience will tune in to developments in ballet.

Thanks so much for the report, Terez! I'm glad to hear something about the David Dawson ballet - we just don't know his work in the U.S. but as Sofiane Sylve has mentioned in a Q&A, he's been choreographing in Europe for a long while, and I believe he was the first choreographer to create new work on her. Myles Thatcher may be overdue for a stumble - but that's how we learn. He's a very smart guy and I think he will come out of this with a better sense for how to pair things down and simplify the ideas he's trying to get across. Being young, he tries to put everything including the kitchen sink into his ballets. Lizzie Powell had the same multi-fracture foot injury that Vanessa had suffered, and it definitely derailed her progress for a long period. That's why she sort of disappeared from notice. But this season she has been fairly busy again with demi-soloist roles. I think we all miss Joe Walsh's presence - he just adds a dose of charisma and intensity that is always appreciated. This is just total conjecture, but Walsh finely started working with Masha - who has gradually lost most of her favored partners - and then Joe has to withdraw from performances, and I think it played into her decision to move on (along with a number of other things of course). I remember the rehearsal footage of Masha, Walsh, and Wei Wang (I think it was the Dawson piece, actually) and Wang struggles to keep from dropping Masha. If there's one thing Kochetkova doesn't like, it's partners who are unsure or weak in their lifts. She needs to feel totally secure in the air (and really, what female dancer doesn't?). Wei Wang is a real talent when dancing solo, but he is still learning the partnering side of things. I don't think Masha wants anyone to practice on her - not at this stage of her career. She just wants to dance with the most experienced and talented danseurs. And I don't think she has Sylve's natural interest in coaching and teaching. Btw, did you see the Kochetkova and Sylve cast of Anima Animus?

Some thoughts regarding the upcoming symposium "Where Is Ballet Going?"… The symposium trailer video contains little content, but two statements made in the video have stuck with me: "If you think of classical ballet as a style, then it's something ephemeral. If you think of it as a science of movement - it has an eternity to it." —Alonzo King "It's finding a way for ballet to step down from its pedestal, and become something that really speaks to people in a contemporary way about contemporary things - without losing the sense it has to amplify things…" —Cathy Marston I just like King's "big picture" statement, but it's Marston's viewpoint that I've been wrestling with (and it's just one statement and we don't get to hear her flesh the idea out). Dwight Rhoden seems to echo Marston's sentiment when he says, "we have to always be talking about things that are interesting, and that are relevant to the world we live in today." Being "relevant" and "contemporary" is always going to be an issue for people involved in business, or entertainment, or politics. Whereas the world of art, seems to demand something more. Perhaps that's what Marston means when she says, "without losing the sense it [ballet] has to amplify things". I can't say for certain what she she was thinking, but I'm going to assume it has something to do with the universal aspect of art, art that transcends the individual, or is simply an expression of the imagination that surpasses mere utility. The problem I (always) have with talk about art needing to be topical, or contemporary, or relevant, is that a huge percentage of the important artwork created over the centuries does not rely upon those attributes to be effective. Naturally someone is going to say that ballet should be relevant - it sounds hip, it sounds "now", it sounds politically correct (depending on your affiliations), and it sounds responsible. But is any of that actually important to fine art, or ballets? Just how much historically recognized 'great' art was created for the above reasons? Classical ballets based on folk and fairy tales may have had a contemporary aspect to them (and the surrounding culture may have had a fascination for Medieval/Renaissance costume and settings), but the great majority of Petipa, Bournonville, Ballet Russes projects (by Fokine, Nijinksy, Nijinska, Massine and Balanchine), and the later Balanchine (in the U.S.) rarely look to topical or contemporary subjects. Topical results in the forgotten, such as "The Veteran, or the Hospitable House" (Bournonville), the terrible, such as "PAMTGG" (Balanchine), or the cute but forgettable, such as "Le Train Bleu" (Massine) or "Alma Mater" (Balanchine), or occasionally a triumph such as "Slaughter on Tenth Avenue" or "The Seven Deadly Sins" (Balanchine, but thanks goes to the originators: Rodgers and Hart, Weill and Brecht). The best works are more concerned with universal themes such as mortality and unrequited love. Or they involve 'pure dance' in which the forms described by the steps and movements are the real focus of the ballet - the dancing is the message and not a divertissement set within a traditional narrative. "…finding a way for ballet to step down from its pedestal" Ballet has been identified with 'upper class' activities/entertainment for many decades, but that is something of a misrepresentation by people who often don't spend any time with ballet, or never looked into the actual history of the art. Although supported by the aristocracy, dancers and stage artists in France, Russia, and Italy rarely came from the upper classes, and even successful careers were relatively short. Good fortune usually did not last long for the 'artists'. Russian workers during the Russian Revolution quickly came to love ballet performances, even though originally all of the ballets were created specifically to appeal to the aristocracy who bankrolled the Imperial Ballet. Obviously there were many aspects to the ballet that had a universal appeal - and I don't think it was mere escapism, or sentimentality. If ballet is still "on a pedestal", is the pedestal real in any sense, or simply a convenient stereotype to use when ballet companies complain about having to raise money from wealthy donors, or audience members balk at another fairy tale remake, or bemoan ticket prices and lack of access to the best companies? Is ballet always perched on a pedestal? Or does the pedestal only materialize when classical/traditional ballets are performed? Interestingly, the only negative complaints I hear about Unbound Festival ballets, so far, have been targeted at ballet content that referenced the topical, or was "too literal" in its depiction of everyday activities. Is the search for relevance helping or hindering artistic inspiration?

Thanks Josette. ;)

The Fjord Review just published an article about Aaron Robison: Wanderlust by PENELOPE FORD Although Penelope Ford's quip in this quote doesn't come off right: 'Robison originated the role in Liam Scarlett’s “Frankenstein” (incidentally, he and Scarlett were in the same year at the Royal Ballet School), which he recently reprised as a guest artist. The company too, he notes, was not bad. “I’ve been lucky—I loved dancing with Sofiane Sylve, and loved dancing with Sasha de Sola, and Frances Chung.”' The company was not bad? That's a weird summation - and I think that's Ford's doing, not Robison's actual comment. It's interesting that Robison mentions wanting to perform in Onegin, but SFB just performed Onegin at the end of 2016 - wasn't he a part of that?

That's what I figured about Walsh/Warton. I just can't remember if I've ever see Warton dance before. Joe Walsh posted a message to SFB and the public on his Instagram account, summing things up:

Quiggin confirmed that it was Joseph Warton who danced, and not Walsh. Walsh's Intagram post above makes it pretty clear that he'll be sidelined for the season. So he's dealing with the same emotional issues that Froustey, Zahorian and Powell went through not so long ago. Joe will just have to let his body take the time it needs to recover. Hopefully he's able to continue with cross-training and things like yoga or Pilates to stay in shape.

The only review I've seen of the openings is by Alastair Macaulay in the NYT, and he apparently only went to Program A. That link will hopefully appear in our LINKS section soon. But I've not heard anything about Program B which is occurring at the same time. So here are some related Instagram postings: [Rollover image below to see arrows and click through the photos] Note from Ballet Mistress Katita Waldo Statement from Joseph Walsh to the company and Unbound Festival choreographers

Alastair Macaulay [in his April 22, 2018 review] stated that Joseph Walsh danced in Alonzo King's ballet opening night - if so, I'm glad to hear that Walsh has returned. But I wonder if that was an error (given that Macaulay may not know what Walsh looks like). Can anyone confirm or deny this?

"Luck" would have absolutely nothing to do with it. There's no time like the present for POB to implement a much improved human resources department and create rules and procedures and actually enforce them. In the part of the world that I live in, these things have existed for decades, both in civil service, union jobs, and in private industry. But private industry is notorious for cutting corners and not providing adequate assistance to employees and management. That's when everything comes down to people "doing the right thing", and guess what? People don't always do the right thing. That's why companies with real human resources departments that offer seminars and training for employees and management, (some of those trainings being mandatory), tend to be the best places to work, by far. I'm well aware that there are cultures in which 'employees' are little better than slaves in terms of their rights at work, and the work environment is often unhealthy or even lethal. POB is not located in one of those cultures - they don't have any excuses, and neither does NYCB.

[There are something like 12 ballet masters at NYCB. The number of staff people in general is quite large.] I was thinking of both the management staff at NYCB - the people "inside the building", as well as the Board of Directors. The question has been: how many of these people are complicit in what essentially is a cover-up of bad behavior over many years? The notion that Martins was the only person at NYCB who ever demonstrated emotionally or physically abusive behavior is incredibly unlikely. Or NYCB really is a magic kingdom. It's going to be the same situation at POB - there will be various incidents involving different people. Ideally, both the 'victims' and the 'accused' should receive immediate counseling (if it isn't also a legal matter). But the school and the company probably need a clearer set of rules for behavior at POB. And POB members need a clear process for dealing with "abusive" situations that arise.

And for all we know, Dupont and Lissner (and other interviewers) had a talk about such 'situations' arising, and how to avoid them. Of course, if POB senior staff hired Dupont and Millepied simply based on their youthful enthusiasm, and didn't spend any time talking about what the job entails and the kind of pitfalls that exist, then they are likely a very unprofessional management team, from the top down. And that's a much bigger problem than a dancer's faux pas at her farewell. It is easy to use the A.D. as a scapegoat since they are so publicly visible in a large ballet company. But there are always other powers at work behind the A.D. who help maintain the culture. Did Martins' retirement really cure what ails NYCB company culture? The bigger problem there may be that bad behavior was so often tolerated or simply ignored. At POB, the problem may be that they worry too much about whether the A.D. appears exciting and sexy, and staff should be worrying about whether the candidate is truly competent in running a large company of artists. It's style over substance.

Here is an older interview with Mathilde Froustey about dancing Giselle (when she was with POB). Manuel Legris is also seen in the rehearsal footage. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xg4IKfnuC30

I'd be willing to bet that management asked her what she wanted to do for her farewell performance, and she said, "to dance with Roberto Bolle whom I've always admired". And she got to do just that. It was not likely intended to have any more meaning than that. Of course there are always going to be people who read too much into things. ;) I really doubt it was meant to be a slight to the current dancers or former partners like Manuel Legris. Should she have thought it through more? Possibly, but that was her pick. If it was obvious that she meant to slight her compatriots it would be very unlikely that Lissner would have hired her as A.D. Why hire someone who is feuding with her colleagues? I doubt he's that stupid.

Another name to add: Marie Chouinard, dance festival director and choreographer (ultra-contemporary, but she does choreograph for dance in pointe shoes).

Agreed. And she didn't even have her dancers available to her year-round.

Oh, and Alicia Alonso at CNB.

I'm not criticizing - it's an excellent list, and when we look at the organizations surrounding the A.D.s there are many, many women involved filling all manner of roles. But yes, males prevail at the highest ranks, especially in certain cultures. Nina Ananiashvili would be another one to mention: she is A.D. of the State Ballet of Georgia.

Thanks for the lists. The NYCB currently has one woman on its artistic management "team" - that's a first though. And doesn't mean that the mindset has really changed, yet. As KBarber says, "we'll see..."

Yes, I remember hearing about that discussion and wondered if there was any video of the event. That's the kind of discussion that really needs to be made available to the public.

Unfortunately the English translation is not so good, and must distort the original intended meaning. This line could be complete conjecture on the part of the writer: "In responding, they hoped that pinpointing the problems would help move forward". But if the "answers" to the survey are as general as "I have been the victim of psychological harassment or have seen a colleague undergoing such treatment" there is no actual attempt to pinpoint anything. The survey is simply asking some 'leading questions' (as they are known in the legal trade). All the specifics are missing: What were the circumstances of the incident? Who exactly was involved? Fellow students? fellow dancers? guest dancers? building maintenance staff? strangers entering the buildings from the street? Stéphane Lissner? the artistic director? And which one: Lefèvre, Millepied or Dupont? Were their repeated incidents with the same person instigating the harassment? Were their incidents that likely broke French law? Were they previously reported to staff or the police? And on, and on. As for Dupont not having any management skills - the response that comes to mind is: "Well, duh!" She was an étoile, a dancer for most of her life, and schooled and trained by the POB ballet school. That's what she knows. If POB management wants to send their new A.D. to management seminars, they should do that, if it's going to make her job go more smoothly for everyone involved. But expecting Dupont to magically become something she is not is rather dumb. Lissner had to know that his new A.D. would be going about things in the manner of an étoile who knows the POB repertoire well, and has some of her own ideas about how it can be shaped, and that's it. The rest either comes with time and effort, or it goes badly and she leaves after a short period. What management experience did Violette Verdy have? Rudolf Nureyev - was he good in staff meetings, and dealing with the politics of a bureaucracy? And what exactly does this mean? "Men are angry at him for bidding farewell with Roberto Bolle, star playmaker at La Scala, rather than a star or a young girl in the company, with the girls, who were stars at the same time , the climate remains tense."

It's almost time for the Symposium - Unbound: A Conversation on the Future of Ballet https://www.sfballet.org/season/events/unbound-2018/boundless-symposium I love Alonzo King's comment in the video.

SFB jsut hosted a party for the UNBOUND Festival participants, and Froustey posted a series of photos from the event (rollover image and click arrows to see more): And from Angelo Greco and Ana Sophia Scheller (2 photos in each - click arrow to see more):

Agreed. Freelancing is daunting if the dancer has no reputation yet with the public. Kochetkova is already the "gala queen", attending dozens of events each year, so for her, it would not be a struggle to find the necessary amount of work. But as other's have mentioned, that's an awful lot of air travel - does she still want to live like that? I'd love to know what her air miles count looks like. ;) More good news for traditionalists: her Giselle has been excellent in the past. In the West, it has been her dancing in contemporary works that sets her apart from her Russian compatriots: while most Russian dancers have struggled to look believable in modern works, it's now second nature for Masha to dance in these pieces: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XS8hCnmsLA Balanchine works are not usually her strong point, but for many people, she was impressive in Robbins' The Cage. So, you just never know. Her contemporary skills keep improving, and she's always working on her classical technique with people like Marat Daukayev (in Los Angeles). I don't think we've really seen the last of her in California...