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It's definitely a money issue for US companies, but I'm so glad that Tomasson recognized the need to take part in WBD - in lieu of ongoing streaming presentations. SFB and the other companies ARE creating more short videos to advertise performance seasons, artists, new initiatives. NYCB's are the most impressive to me. But it continues to be baby steps because of the great expense needed to produce quality digital presentations. It's hard enough getting the companies to produce DVDs of their work.

I forgot to mention this earlier - in the SFB version of Prodigal Son, there are two points in the ballet when a character moves his/her hands with a kind of flicking motion that would essentially be a precursor to the hand flicks of the 'Three Fates' in La Valse. I happen to love the dance of the Three Fates so my eye was immediately drawn to that motion. I'm sure the Siren performed these flicks, but I'm not sure if it was also the Father who does this briefly as his 3 children are bowed to the floor before him. I went back and looked at the well-known "Choreography by Balanchine" version with Baryshnikov and von Aroldingen, but I'm not even noticing these same movements. I'll have to watch more carefully, but, if this is something presumably taught by the stager (Richard Tanner), what version of the PS does it originate from?

Stravinsky Violin Concerto was great both nights that I went - it was indeed "electrifying and reinforced everything that is exciting about Balanchine". Zahorian is very refined in classical pieces, but she often surprises me in contemporary ballets - like Kochetkova, she gets all the details right. But she's not flamboyant at all, and so doesn't stand out as much as some. Sofiane is more of a commanding presence - that's just her energy. She could become a really great Siren (I'm just surprised she never danced the role at NYCB). If SFB is doing Balanchine, then you want to go on a night when Sofiane is in the cast. I had noticed the same thing about the Robison/Di Lanno pairing in SVC: their physiques/ their "lines" are different enough for it to be distracting when they are dancing similar steps side-by-side. Robison is always going to look more virile and powerful in his movements, while Di Lanno is becoming a danseur noble, much like Tiit Helimets.

I enjoyed the video - thanks Drew. Gennadi comes off well. "Canned" music is definitely a bummer, but the costs for an orchestra are prohibitive for smaller companies. So I guess they need to pick and choose. Firebird has to be performed with a live, good quality orchestra or it just sounds sad. Kind of ruins the whole effect.

Marianela Nunez was so fun to watch - her enthusiasm and happy demeanor made it a delight. The stops for corrections were particularly fun. Sarah Lamb was very thoughtful and well spoken. An informative rehearsal - I only wish all the major companies offered this type of streamed rehearsal/interview format at least once a year.

I'd love to hear how the Gennadi's Choice performances go, and about the Firebird performances (that has been an audience favorite in San Francisco). Possokhov's version of The Firebird has a lot of humor in it.

Thanks for that report, Dreamer. I know that the Garnier is unusual in that there is extra room available to 'expand' it's size - especially the depth of the stage. [That allows for the impressive Défilé du ballet, each year]. But I think the Garnier stage is quite wide too ( or can be made to be wider). As you may know already, Balanchine specifically choreographed Diamonds for a large Corps finale that could be accommodated on their new stage in New York - made to at least match the size of the Mariinsky Theater stage he remembered from his youth. I think I had the same impression when I saw PNB perform Diamonds a few years ago: that the stage appeared awfully crowded with couples, and the geometry of the design gets lost under those conditions. About Davit: I'm so glad to hear that he made an appearance on the stage. That's the first step, but he'll need more opportunities to get his "sea legs", or stage legs, for that matter. He had mentioned online that he was dealing with a back injury, and those can be among the worst types of sports injuries. Some people never come back from a back injury because they can be chronic, and it affects everything about how the body moves and balances itself, as well as the ability to lift weighted objects. That means partnering skills suffer badly. No lifts - no ballet career. The golfer Tiger Woods has been sidelined for a number of years now with chronic back issues, and it is unlikely that he will ever return to his old form. It does seem that some therapies are more helpful than others though. Sara Mearns was out with a back problem, but she's been able to return, and basically look as good as ever. So it just depends. It seems to me that the proscenium of the venerable WMOH was not well designed in relation to the theater boxes. it just doesn't make sense that the sides of the proscenium block a portion of the stage from view - if you are seated on the side. Presumably they were only thinking in terms of opera presentations when the WMOH was built (but even some of those require a lot of stage to work with). If you do try the box seats, I recommend the "D" section (or "W" on the opposite side) - that one is still on the side, but far enough in towards the center boxes that they really don't lose much of the side of the stage. Subscription package ticket holders get a discount on seats, so if you don't have a subscription - make a friend. Or meet Clarence, maybe he can help. ;)

OK theater gods - make this go well! Merde, Davit. Merde, YYT. I would think Davit would want to be part of Swan Lake and Cinderella - those are high profile shows.

I wish had been able to hang around more, to talk with some of the dancers. Thursday afternoon as I was walking by the WMOH, I looked up and saw Joseph Walsh walking towards me, he smiled at me and nodded, so I greeted him and told him I appreciated his performance. And Sofiane Sylve walked past me as I was asking a question of one of the security guards (where was the nearest post office?), but it wasn't an opportunity to chat. I was feeling too sick on Thursday though, to stay for the Program 5 opening as I originally intended. Some times, things just don't work out. I'm thankful to have seen the Balanchine performances, and to have seen Zahorian one last time. How sad that is. And no Karapetyan appearances so far, which is really, really sad - he can't even go out with a glorious last season. May the gods grant him a few good shows.

;) I got the impression that it probably wasn't so strange that Masha remembered him - I think he's probably been able to talk to her at length a few times. Who knows? May Clarence have many more years of ballet-going.

Toi toi toi Esteban! Josette, you will get to see the opening cast for Stravinsky Violin Concerto, too - it should be great. I was able to see the opening two shows of Program 4. For me, the must see was the Stravinsky Violin Concerto, and SFB delivered two strong performances with excellent casts. A plus to these two performances is that they both featured Vanessa Zahorian, in principal roles, and I realized by the 2nd night that I would probably not get to see her dance again before her career ends this spring. Zahorian is dancing with much joy and enthusiasm right now, so now's the time to see her. The Stravinsky Violin Concerto casts were: Tuesday, March 7 Yuan Yuan Tan, Tiit Helimets Sarah Van Patten, Luke Ingham Wednesday, March 8 Sofiane Sylve, Carlo Di Lanno Vanessa Zahorian, Aaron Robison I just read the two available reviews for these shows, and I saw things pretty similarly to Allan Ulrich. S.F. Ballet has the know-how to know how to do Balanchine http://www.sfchronicle.com/performance/article/S-F-Ballet-has-the-know-how-to-know-how-to-do-10986431.php San Francisco Ballet – Stravinsky Violin Concerto, Prodigal Son, Diamonds – By Claudia Bauer http://dancetabs.com/2017/03/san-francisco-ballet-stravinsky-violin-concerto-prodigal-son-diamonds-san-francisco/ Like Ulrich, I found that the dancers "seemed almost hungry for this repertoire", and were completely immersed in their roles, which is what an audience wants to see. Claudia Bauer noted Yuan Yuan's prominent liquid quality in Stravinsky Violin Concerto: "Tiit Helimets partnered Yuan Yuan Tan in Aria II. Her extreme flexibility would seem to be an asset in such an acrobatic ballet; but combined with her boneless lyricism, it blurred the lines between positions." I wasn't as bothered by this, and found her to be (as usual) fascinating to watch. There's always going to be that argument of whether a dancer is a proper "Balanchine dancer". But there are going to be times when it's worth seeing what an excellent artist can do with a role. YYT is still incredibly limber in the "twilight" years of her career, and I didn't get the sense that she was deliberately altering anything so much as being herself, and moving her limbs the way they need to move. Sarah Van Patten was moving like maternity leave never happened - it's almost uncanny how little her physique and energy level has changed. Not for one moment did she appear out-of-sorts, or missing her inner groove. Helimets and Ingham both danced and partnered well, and they were a pretty good pairing visually on the stage. On the second night (Wednesday) Carlo Di Lanno and Aaron Robison were physically more contrastive. Prodigal Son is an intense workout for the male lead, and the Siren is a conspicuous part for the female lead (and only female dancer, as I recall). Joseph Walsh was emotionally and physically up to the task on Tuesday night, though I got the impression that he didn't spend the usual amount of time dragging himself across the stage with the wooden staff. I want to say that he seemed to use the staff very briefly before leaving it on the stage beside the fence/table prop, and that produced a lag in the action. That was my impression, but someone else may have seen things more clearly/differently. Sofiane Sylve was apparently dancing the Siren role for the first time(!), which surprises me. Her movements were, naturally, well executed. I expected her to be a bit more imperious and threatening than she actually played it this first time out. I think I wanted to see more Preying Mantis from her. Perhaps, she was just concentrating on being in the right place at the right time, and will need more opportunities to find her approach for this role. I was excited to see Angelo Greco dance the PS - he was at times explosive, and performed an admirable Villella/Baryshnikov leap at the beginning of the ballet. Greco's technical abilities are jaw dropping at times. His 'acting' was generally believable and appropriate - he gets the primitive energy of the ballet. Where he briefly got into trouble was during the scary lifts - the first in which the PS must lift the Siren (Jennifer Stahl) with his neck, and later push her up while she is seated on his head. Talk about potentially dangerous. From my position, I could see him straining mightily when she sat on his head. Concussions anyone? Greco is a fairly short man (though thankfully not skinny), and Stahl is one of the taller female dancers, so the mismatch in sizes does make a difference with that type of stunt. I should say that Jennifer Stahl was very good in her turn as the Siren, but again, I wanted to see something a bit more threatening. Overall, both performances of PS were intense fun. Walsh strikes me as a dancer that needs to get his head around a role to be able to flesh it out properly, while Greco seems more a creature of pure movement, and not likely to over-think a role. Both are likely to succeed in this role given more time and opportunities. Diamonds also went well in general, both nights. Tuesday, Vanessa Zahorian was completely in her element - she's just lovely - there's no better word for it, and I kept thinking how much Di Lanno's partnering has improved in his short time at SFB. His movements were very quick and precise in relation to Zahorian (and the music was at a fast tempo). He has great lines, and uses his arms and hands particularly well. The unexpected misstep came during his solo turn - of all places - I recall that he went off balance during the first set of turns, and then possibly didn't complete the usual number of turns in the next movement and seemed to finish ahead of the music. Perhaps it was nerves, or dizziness, it was hard to know, because he then went back to being his best self. Wednesday night was the first and only performance of Kochetkova (with Walsh as her partner) in Diamonds. Masha is always very well prepared for any role, and her attention to detail is appreciated. Maybe the film of Suzanne Farrell dancing the PDD with Martins has permanently marked me, but I still like to see a long-limbed woman in the lead, as certain arabesques and slow walks on pointe steps just look better to me with that kind of physique. But Masha is the consummate, caring professional, and its still a treat to see a dancer putting 100% into a role. Walsh is very personable on stage - easy to root for, often smiling, and makes an elegant, steady partner. It was an excellent first outing for the two of them. One of the critics mentioned the Corps not being precise or clean enough. What I notice is how crowded and congested the stage looks, and that alone has to make it hard for the Corps dancers to get a sense of what's happening about them. The WMOH stage just looks too small for the Diamonds finale. Maybe I'm wrong, but the film of the POB dancing Diamonds at the Garnier looked less cramped, and that serves the finale better. I would like to hear back if anyone knows what the dimensions of the Garnier stage are. For the first night, I had purchased a side box seat, just to finally see what that view was like. Well, the view from the boxes is indeed very good (in terms of distance and height from the stage), but if one is in a side box a certain portion of the stage is hidden from view (but you get to see into the wings of the opposite side of the stage, if that means anything). Fortunately, since I sat on the opposite side of the auditorium in the orchestra ring section for the Wednesday night performance, I was able to see what I missed the first time. Prodigal Son and Diamonds both require a central viewpoint to be able to see everything clearly. The downside of the box seats are the "seats" - these are vintage wooden chairs, with fairly uncomfortable seat cushions. They can be moved like any chair to get a better angle on the proceedings, which is a good thing, but I wouldn't call them ergonomic or comfortable. That was a bit of a disappointment. The people in the center boxes are paying a lot of money but they're sitting on the same 'historic' chairs. Maybe they should demand Herman Miller Aeron chairs instead. There were two other men sharing the box that I was in. The first was a senior citizen named Clarence, who was a major Kochetkova fan. Clarence had been an usher at the Opera House for many years, and has known a number of the dancers over the years. His proudest moment seemed to be the time that he was walking through the Performance Arts parking lot and someone tapped him on the shoulder, and said, "Hello Clarence!" and it was Masha - she had recognized him and remembered his name(!). He told me about the time he had extra tickets to the Opera and took Clara Blanco and Madison Keesler. As it turned out, the other 'box mate' was the husband of violinist Cordula Merks who was playing lead violin on Stravinsky Violin Concerto. Clarence plied him (Mike Gamburg) with many questions, and I overheard that the couple was from Seattle. Today I looked for Merks information online, and she is Assistant Concertmaster with the Seattle Symphony, and her husband, Mike Gamburg, is contrabassoonist with the Seattle Symphony. Btw, Merks received a loud ovation for her playing. A couple of other impressions - The lighting seemed unnecessarily harsh for Stravinsky and Diamonds, though there is a more subdued lighting employed for PS (thank you!). The lights were so bright during Diamonds that reflected light from the many bejeweled and sequined(?) costumes were glaring off the Opera House walls. Which brings me to the subject of the Diamonds costumes - on loan from National Ballet of Canada - I don't love them. All the glittery additions struck me as being too chintzy looking, and they just don't seem authentically elegant as the Karinska originals were. Too much of a knock off feel to these. I'll probably be the only viewer who thinks that though. Totally last minute FREE deal: I have a printable PDF ticket for tonight's performance - PM me if interested. Orchestra A 10 - a pretty nice seat.

This relates to my original post in this thread - there's a short Canada Gala video on YouTube, and guess who is shown rehearsing in this video? Di Lanno and Sylve. Not even Lunkina is shown dancing, for some reason. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xh4vBC0O6IU

Hmmmm. I think Walsh and Di Lanno have danced in every program so far - time to give those boys a rest. Ingham is dancing a lot too. Robison and Greco are both dealing with all new repertory so I can understand why they wouldn't be used as much, yet. Still it will be good when things are more balanced.

Just some food for thought: The website menu link reads "articles", which isn't much of a draw. I don't think the term actually conveys all that is necessary, if there will be blog entries and informative blurbs, and videos samples. I'm not really certain which were dancer blog entries originally, but that brings up a technical issue with the page - I'm forced to constantly click "Load More" to see another couple of entries, and it would be nice to have a menu system that could display sub-categories (so users can jump right to a listing of blog entries, or ballet education articles, etc.. The end result of all the clicking is one long unorganized list. The faster the user can get to a particular kind of information, the happier they are likely to be. I used to make my living as a web interface designer and developer, so I'm particularly sensitive about these things, I realize. I used to keep telling people that they needed their website to be viewable on smart devices too, but now that everyone has made the change, most websites suffer from a different set of navigation issues. We've gone from one extreme to another. The new SFB website experience has its issues (not surprising for anything newly developed). The NYCB website uses the term "Discover" for this type of content. That works for me. And their menu link is simply "MENU" rather than a (for many) cryptic stack icon. Not really your area of concern, I know. ;)

SFB has posted a teaser photo for the Salome ballet to their Instagram page - featuring Dores André. Mathilde Froustey was expected to debut in Pita's Salome, but she stated online a couple of days ago that her injured foot is not quite ready to dance, so she may not be seen in Program 5. My prediction is that we are going to get to see the younger dancers in soloist roles for this program. https://www.instagram.com/p/BRHUdESgf54/?taken-by=sfballet Fusion Composers: Graham Fitkin and Rahul Dev Burman Choreographer: Yuri Possokhov Salome Composer: Frank Moon Choreographer: Arthur Pita Fearful Symmetries Composer: John Adams Choreographer: Liam Scarlett

That's sounds very exciting, Apollomuse - congratulations. I'm guessing that means you are organizing the adult ballet classes (Ballet 101, 201, etc.)? And the POV lectures? I do have one request: that the 2017 Pointes of View Lectures and Meet the Artist Interviews podcasts be posted. Having those appear only at the end of a season (or after) isn't really that helpful, and I'm going to guess that SFB website visits go way down in the off season time. Better to strike while the iron is hot. It could be he's going to be part of Program 5 instead. We shall see...

To be sure, these special gala audiences are not always the most knowledgeable about ballet. But obviously it's a mixed crowd. I imagine Sylve can be intimidating for some audience members who are more use to cheering on young dancers with nerves, giving it their best shot - that sort of thing, and here is this WOMAN, completely composed and immersed within the choreography without bobbles, stumbles, wavering, anything. Powerful, but clean, crisp and elegant. And she doesn't dance with a lot of "attitude": she's not trying to be in-your-face, and overwhelm the steps with "personality". Sometimes it's like watching a Shaolin monk dispatch opponents - quickly, and noiselessly. ;)

Just to get things started - I came across this statement in a review of Svetlana Lunkina's Canada All-Star Ballet Gala "Also making a huge impression was San Francisco Ballet's Sofiane Sylve and Carlo Di Lanno, a real-life couple who danced with exquisite control and palpable feeling the "Diamonds" pas de deux from Balanchine's full-length Jewels ballet. Earlier in the evening, the dancers had paired together to perform an excerpt from Ashton's Cinderella, a full-length extolling the crystalline clarity of the English school. They were one of the evening's big discoveries." I think it's pretty likely that this "big discovery" partnership is going to be the opening night cast for Diamonds. Or it will be Sylve and Helimets (as they were shown rehearsing together on World Ballet Day). Chung mentioned online that she would not be appearing in Program 4, which is a shame, but SVP and Kochetkova are rehearsing for Diamonds. But what about the Stravinsky Violin Concerto cast? I've heard/seen nothing. Prodigal Son is also a mystery at present. It would be great if Karapetyan could perform as the PS in his last season. I'd like to see Joseph Walsh with Sylve or Jen Stahl as the Siren.

A very informative and funny interview, broken into a set of videos (I'm linking to a couple of the early sections dealing with Balanchine and NYCB but one can easily find the remaining videos on YouTube) Arthur Mitchell: Performing with Balanchine's Company https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRZwCmmQVPw Arthur talking about the Agon PDD https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=foDSr0_ZBe0y

'"Usually the more you edit, the better a film gets," Mr. Bhargava said, "because as you become more familiar with the dance, you notice details that could be further enhanced or distracting details that should be cut." But he added that there are exceptions, specifically "when a sequence is perfectly shot." He put on a video of "Appalachian Spring," the Graham piece about young settlers on the Western frontier. With Aaron Copland's evocative score setting the mood, the camera followed the main characters to center stage, established their identities and then moved to a wide-angle shot that captured the choreography's overall symmetry. When Graham saw the opening sequence, he recalled, she asked, "O.K., where are the edits?" and much to her surprise Mr. Bhargava replied that there were none. "It's just as important to know when your skills aren't needed," he said.' http://www.nytimes.com/2002/01/20/arts/dance-turning-bits-of-video-into-works-of-art.html I think there will always be a fundamental conflict between what it takes to make cinematic art, and what it takes to choreograph and stage a dance. It's perhaps easier to deal with a traditional full-length story ballet - that type of stage production lends itself somewhat to a cinematic approach. But in a neoclassical, or contemporary ballet, the dance is expected to be a self-contained work, all-of-a-piece, that unfolds in linear time. If the editor obscures or hides portions of the dance, chooses to emphasize certain movements or people over others, and plays with the viewer's impression of time while watching the ballet, then something new is created. But it isn't anything intended by the choreographer, unless she's taking part in the editing process. But again, we end up with a new work - related to the original stage performance, but possessing new attributes and qualities. If the cinematographer could make me feel that I'm sitting in a third row center seat (without coughs, whispers, and cologne odors please), then I would be very pleased. ;)

Hi Diane - I love the image of the woman knitting though the performance. It's too funny to get mad about (unless you happen to be sitting beside her, I suppose). Your comment reminded me of the "little old lady" knitting away in the main illustrations of Hilary Knight's Where's Wallace?

I've been watching a bunch of the Balanchine Foundation interviews which recently became available. If you want to know more about Helgi and Balanchine - I definitely recommend these. Balanchine Foundation Interview: Helgi Tomasson on Le Baiser de la Fée https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6BQGGcfZGk Balanchine Foundation Interview: Violette Verdy and Helgi Tomasson on La Source https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjPjmk9IPqM Vienna Waltzes, Voices of Spring - Heather Watts, Helgi Tomasson https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=132_2mKcQ2U Helgi Tomasson - Two Performances in 1969 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JTNhZXnHPG8 (It's good to be young, eh?) EDIT: I forgot this one (very low resolution video, unfortunately) - Coppelia Act. 3 PDD, Tomasson with Patricia McBride http://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IysxWx631ok

The Balanchine Foundation is (fortunately) posting a few of the interviews with Allegra Kent - they give a good sense of how unique her personality is. Robert Gottlieb interviews Allegra Kent about La Sonnambula https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PC2gUfHZ4oY Allegra Kent on Bugaku https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7eMJcS59iIg Allegra Kent and Todd Bolender - 'The Unanswered Question' from Ivesiana https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=reHotcuMQWY

One thing I've always remembered from photos, and a documentary interview, is that Kent was the dancer in the 1958 Seven Deadly Sins revival: "Although written as a commentary on the decadence of Berlin in the early 1930s, Weill and Brecht decided to set the piece in America, a country they had not yet visited. The ballet was first performed at the Théatre des Champs-Elysées in Paris on June 7, 1933, and was produced, directed and choreographed by George Balanchine. The original production starred Weill’s wife Lotte Lenya as the singer and Tilly Losch as the dancer. In 1958 Balanchine revived the production for New York City Ballet with Lenya recreating her original role and Allegra Kent as the dancer." The 7 Deadly Sins was a big success, but unfortunately, so much of the project was forgotten by the time another revival was considered that it could not be pieced together again - it is essentially a lost work.

In Southern Cal, the first broadcast night of NYCB was followed by: A Ballerina's Tale Explore the rise of Misty Copeland, who made history as the first African-American female principal dancer … The second broadcast of NYCB was followed by: From The Streets to the Stage: The Journey of Fredrick Davis Description: Follow ballet dancer Frederick Davis' personal journey, which began with a broken family and homelessness. His exposure to dance at 11 changed his life - he found inspiration and support from Ballet Tennessee, his church family and a caring community. Why the NYCB in Paris cinematography was mostly good: dancers are shown full-body throughout, and I'd estimate that at least 75% of the stage is displayed in the majority of the footage. However, there is still a certain amount of zoom and crop going on. And nothing makes me grind my teeth like cameras zooming in on the soloists and cutting out the dancing of the Corps towards the sides of the stage, when it is a Balanchine ballet. The choreography for the Corps is as important as that of the soloists in a Balanchine work, so why pretend it's not happening, and doesn't figure into the whole? Argh.