pherank

Can anyone identify the dancer playing the nymph? Is it Vera Nelidova?

Another very interesting interview, Christian - well done. And Joy Womack was an excellent choice. Everyone's background story is different and unique in its own way. I look forward to the next one... I noticed the Sara Mearns interview disappeared - it's worth keeping in the list though.

Love or Ballet
 (Ep. 204)
 Original Air Date: 8.12.13 

Relationship angst. Christiana in rehearsal, Ian hurting while rehearsing. Gratuitous Zach. Gratuitous Ronnie. Gratuitous go-go dancers (can't really call them strippers).

 OK, strictly speaking, Ronnie and Zach footage is not gratuitous as they are part of the company, but there's next to nothing about ballet here - it's about goofy behavior and cheap laughs. Zach does make the statement that (and I'm paraphrasing) 'if you love ballet you don't want to be stuck in the Corps de Ballet'. He doesn't realize how demanding Corps roles can be, especially at the big companies. The very best companies have entire corps largely made up of Christiana Bennetts (not Zachs). The ballet footage is confined to rehearsal shots - this episode is about people's relationship struggles. There is, however, an interesting interview in Adam Sklute's office (and more contract interviews next week, I guess). I couldn't help but notice that Sklute is wearing his winter-weight clothes and a muffler, while his dancers are in their practice clothes. But it's kind of nice that he dresses up.

Somehow, dancers come across differently in the film "Etoiles: Dancers of the Paris Opera Ballet". ;) They did at my public school - though I confess to being particularly bored at that point. It's hard for a kid to care about such things.

Nice review, Paul. It was great to hear some details about the Thatcher ballet. [EDIT] I'm guessing that Messmer and Froustey did not make an appearance at Stern, or was there a suprise appearance?

It means Peter Noone, 60s Girl Groups, and 70s Disco Bands, again and again! The PBS POV website used to have the video online, but I guess it's no longer available. Too bad, as it is one of the best documentaries I've seen in recent years.

Napoleon is responsible for something besides warfare: probably his most lasting contribution to Europe was the Napoleonic Code, which has formed the basis of the legal systems in France, the former French colonies, and in many European countries that were occupied by Napoleon's armies (Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Portugal and Poland, AND their former colonies). Civil codes in Egypt, Canada and South America are supposed to be based upon the Napoleonic Code as well. So, an important European figure for various reasons. But now back to Ronnie Underwood and his bare chest!

I know the music to Pineapple Poll, but have never seen the ballet in any form. The music is mostly lively, with lots of horns, as I recall. Funny that you dozed off. ;)

Napoleon is so famous, he's been known by his first name for some time. In the British world, Napoleon may be 'comical', but I doubt he is a comical figure to the French. ;) It's human nature to try to reduce our enemies in 'stature' - making them less scary, and less attractive. Not to belabor the point, but it sure would be nice if the dance companies learned something about the ballets that they take part in. After all, they will be passing on this knowledge to the younger generations, so better start knowing something.

In defense of Josh, it was actually Zach who didn't know who Napoleon was. Thanks for that catch, love_ballet - I meant to write Zach, and I'll change my original post. For me, it's just strange that the dancers aren't learning about the details of Ashton's ballet. Part of it is a lack of curiosity on the part of the dancers, but part of it is obviously a lack of information from the 'higher-ups'. Somes should be providing the background for the ballet, imo. Napoleon and Wellington are iconic European figures, but that doesn't mean that they naturally belong in Cinderella. Ashton incorporated these characters for a reason, but the company seems to not know any of these details. Of course, we only get to see what the film editors let us see (and hear), so there may be more said on the subject, but that information gets dropped from the final cut of the TV show.

Sorry, what is the program for Dec. 15 or 22?

Agreed. ;)

SFB posted these Vine animated clips: Entering Stern Grove: https://vine.co/v/hAFQ2uK0tvB The audience: https://vine.co/v/hAUluBrEKxg Waiting for Suite en Blanc to begin... Crowd on the hillside 2013 SF Ballet performing at Stern Grove Festival in 1952

A related article (mostly photos but some text) Backstage with SFB’s Staff Photographer By Erik Tomasson http://www.sfballetblog.org/2012/04/backstage-with-sfbs-staff-photographer/

For fans of SFB, and choreographer Edwaard Liang ... very rare, complete footage. And nicely shot. Possibly coming from the company's archive of ballets. Symphonic Dances (world-premiere) Principals: Yuan Yuan Tan, Sofiane Sylve, Maria Kochetkova, Vito Mazzeo, Tiit Helimets, Victor Luiz Soloists: Courtney Elizabeth, Dana Genshaft, Daniel Deivison and Issac Hernandez Corps: Dores Andre, Nicole Ciapponi, Charlene Cohen, Jennifer Stahl, Sean Orza, Gaetano Amico, Luke Willis, Quinn Wharton http://vimeo.com/channels/478037/52047073 Distant Cries with Yuan Yuan Tan and Damian Smith (footage is a bit blurry, but still very nice to see) http://vimeo.com/channels/478037/41249613 From the NYCB website: Somewhere in Time with Yuan Yuan Tan and Damian Smith (the aspect ratio of the video is incorrect, so we get a squashed version) http://vimeo.com/channels/478037/54972880

Has anyone else seen the documentary Last Train Home by Lixin Fan? I just watched it on PBS last night (the POV program) and was really impressed. Very intense, and multi-layered. POV: In your own words, what is Last Train Home about? Lixin Fan: Last Train Home is a family story about Chinese migrant workers. It's a story about hundreds of millions, who work day and night in the production lines that make consumer goods for the rest of the world, coming home for New Year celebrations. It's also about the world's largest human migration. A preview: http://www.fandor.com/films/last_train_home The film is available as an Amazon Instant Video rental, but I'm not seeing any free access yet. I would recommend seeing it on a large screen though.

Unexpectedly (to myself), for this particular role, I found Sklute's reasoning made sense. It would be different if the company had several African-American dancers or maybe even if Josh was already well-known to Ballet West audiences. In the meanwhile there are other short-ish boy roles he could easily be cast in that wouldn't raise the same problems ... I thought it was a mistake for Sklute to lay that cumbersome excuse on Josh Whitehead - what is the young dancer supposed to do with that? And Whitehead was right in saying (I think it was outside the talk with Skulte) that he couldn't believe the company wasn't past all that. The only real excuse that Skulte has is that he thinks Zach was a stronger Napoleon character than Josh. Period. Which would be doubly remarkable considering that Zach doesn't know who Napoleon Bonaparte was - and apparently no one is going to educate him on that point. I don't think Ballet West is in danger of becoming the top ballet company in America any time soon. Although a significant rise in ocean levels, submerging the coastal regions of the Americas could truly make Salt Lake City the promised land. And the only land - but I digress.

Maria Kochetkova & Daniil Simkin in Le Corsaire Pas de Deux

I personally prefer Masha in contemporary ballets such as: Yuri Possokhov's Diving into the Lilacs Pas de Deux (with Gennadi Nedvigin at Gala in St Petersburg) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-hGrkGjP1Q Don Quixote PDD - Maria Kochetkova & Pedro Lapetra (ENB) Maria Kochetkova - Don Quixote Dream Scene

Some actual footage to look at!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8r35zCQorZM Interesting contrast of manner and styles in this one. Vasiliev is a real powerhouse, not what I would think of as a 'danseur noble' here. The crowd loves his energy though. Masha's speed is impressive too, but she's more about articulation and 'the details', IMO. And another view:

The "info" popup gives the official website URL as a ".com" - it is not (and you will be sent to nowhereville). The official website URL is : http://www.anaheimballet.org Masha has become Queen of All Galas. I just hope she learns to rest her body too.

A humorous side-note to the discussion of what makes an 'American Ballerina' and for that matter, American ballet ... http://www.nytimes.com/2001/11/20/arts/balanchine.s.all-american-dedication.html

Now THAT I would want to see - and it thoughtfully occurs between two SFB programs, so no interference there.

Currently available online here: http://video.pbs.org/video/2365049205