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Nikisha Fogo is on the cover of Dance Magazine (there's an accompanying story): https://www.instagram.com/p/CWoiHwZhezw/ https://www.dancemagazine.com/nikisha-fogo-2655543570.html

Making statements such as "his behaviour appears to have been egregious and exploitative" is reckless, in my opinion, if the writer can't offer any evidence to substantiate the claim. Scarlett worked with a number of international dance companies (aside from the RB) and I've yet to hear any corroborative evidence from those organizations. Something or someone raised a red flag at the Royal Ballet, and other companies seemed to just follow along with the boycott on Scarlett's ballets, and yet we continue to get no actual details about these allegations. It's hard to be trusting when there's no transparency whatsoever. We all get that 'something' transpired that the RB felt was going to get them into trouble, but the withdrawal/cancellation of Scarlett's ballets was truly wrong-headed, by me. I don't like banning or burning books, and I don't see why companies would need to remove his existing ballets from the program/repertoire until there is a solid case against Scarlett. Otherwise they're just giving in to social media insinuations.

Danielle St.Germain-Gordon was recently appointed Interim Executive Director at San Francisco Ballet following the departure of Kelly Tweeddale: https://www.sfballet.org/the-company/artists/danielle-st-germain-gordon/

Another photo of Cy Willa Strongin-Walsh and father: https://www.instagram.com/p/CV8xtR-vTNJ/

Yes, people who are currently subscribers, or who give donations over a certain amount, get special privileges such as a discount on ticket prices. ($200 is the Contributor level). If you log in to your sfballet.org account it should tell you something about your membership level. The lack of communication is an issue though. I think you should contact SFB and tell them your concerns. https://www.sfballet.org/discover/contact-us/

San Francisco Dance Film Festival 2021 - and the winners are: https://sfdancefilmfest.org/2021-award-winners/ Sebastian Kloborg's Diorama, starring Maria Kochetkova and Daniil Simkin, won in the "Under 10 minutes" category. https://sfdancefilmfest.org/festival-films-2021/short/screendance/ballet/diorama/

Thanks for the link, Nanushka

It's great that PNB is making these performances available in digital form.

Christopher Marney Takes Over as the New Head of Studio Company and Trainee Program https://joffrey.org/behind-the-scenes/joffrey-academy-of-dance-names-new-head-of-studio-company-and-trainee-program/

Cy Willa Strongin-Walsh was born 10-10-21. Congratulations to Lauren and Joseph. https://www.instagram.com/p/CVVxkV7PI3A/

Thanks so much, AR!

More free steaming from San Francisco Symphony on the SFSymphony+ platform: https://www.sfsymphonyplus.org I like the Jean Yves-Thibaudet program and the modern koto/flute piece, titled "Rainbow": https://www.sfsymphonyplus.org/niji-rainbow/videos/niji-rainbow The video production quality on these freebies remains high.

I see the San Francisco Ballet has made the strategic decision to...do nothing. Which doesn't seem very strategic. Why not create a pre-recorded video of a rehearsal or ballet creation, at the very least? It's public relations, people. The Mariinsky Ballet is at least taking this all seriously - they've lined up a series of videos to watch leading up to WBD: Mariinsky Ballet Morning Class at the Historic Stage (Teatralnaya Sq 1, Saint Petersburg, Russia) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEK38SoI_bs Ballet future: public talk with Mariinsky aspiring dancers (presented and moderated by Yuri Fateev) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dW8WQY3yzQQ Mariinsky Ballet Stars (Diana Vishneva, Victoria Tereshkina, Ekaterina Kondaurova, Kimin Kim) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GiVcZafQO_I

BALLET INSIGHTS This year San Francisco Ballet’s Audience Engagement program Ballet Insights examines a small selection of 20th Century Greats. We take an in-depth look into famous innovators and star artists and ask who they are, why they are celebrated (or not), and what contributions they made to dance and ballet. Join us for one or all three sessions of Ballet Insights which includes a lecture followed by a panel discussion. All sessions are on zoom and end with Q&A so you will have a chance to ask your questions. Session 1, October 17: Great Pop Stars of Ballet: Rudolph Nureyev and Mikhail Baryshnikov Panelists include SF Ballet Artistic Director and Principal Choreographer Helgi Tomasson, Ballet Master & Assistant to the Artistic Director Ricardo Bustamante, and former SFB Principal Dancer Karin Averty Lecture by Dance Educator Claire Sheridan Session 2, October 24: Who gets to be great? Bronislava Nijinska, Ruth Page, Josephine Baker, and other pioneering artists who met obstacles related to gender and race. Panelists include Dance Historian and Author Lynn Garafola, Dance Researcher on Equity and Diversity in Ballet Brandye Lee, and Choreographer Claudia Schreier. Lecture by Dance Historian and Author Jennifer Fisher Session 3, October 31: Great American ballet dancer and teacher: Arthur Mitchell and his legacy Panelists include Dance Theatre of Harlem's Artistic Director Virginia Johnson and former Resident Choreographer and Principal Dancer Robert Garland. Lecture by Dance Historian and Author James Steichen Look for the orange "Buy Tickets" button on this page: https://www.sfballet.org/productions/ballet-insights/

Helgi Tomasson will be presented with the San Francisco Arts Medallion Thursday, Oct. 21 at Saint Joseph’s Arts Society: https://www.instagram.com/p/CVB7m3arLBF/ "The event celebrating Tomasson will feature performances of three of Tomasson’s works by SF Ballet and music by SF Ballet Orchestra; proceeds will go toward the preservation and educational programs at MP+D."

Thanks for posting this, California. I too was waiting to see the e-mail reminder, but I've received nothing yet.

Madison Keesler's photos from the recent Buena Vista Winery fundraising event for SFB - present are Julian MacKay, Nikisha Fogo, Madison Keesler and Ben Freemantle: https://www.instagram.com/p/CU0nSn0vvay/

That is very much the crux of the matter with new choreography - even a B level ballet can be quite entertaining to view if it focuses specifically on the strengths (and personalities) of the participating dancers. A ballet that ignores the attributes of the company isn't likely to impress.

I was looking online to see if Lauren Strongin has given birth yet (it must be any day now). There's no update yet aside from this post from husband Joe Walsh: https://www.instagram.com/p/CUDi8e1vKXd/ But I noticed that Strongin's IG page now states "Stanford University 2023". I was assuming that she was working on a post-graduate degree but apparently she actually transferred from City College San Francisco. She was in the LEAP program at St. Mary’s College too as far as I know. Strongin is an undergraduate in Anthropology but may be trying to get into Medicine: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlzvQHzGppM

Yeah, it's a shame - things remain in flux.

From the New York Times: After a Choreographer’s Suicide, Ballet Confronts Tough Questions Liam Scarlett killed himself after he was accused of misconduct. Now the dance world is grappling with the aftermath. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/24/arts/dance/Liam-Scarlett-suicide-ballet.html

PNB A.D. Peter Boal on working with Helgi Tomasson: In Service to Others, In Service to the Art Form https://www.sfballet.org/in-service-to-others-in-service-to-the-art-form/ "Peter Boal was an SAB student when Tomasson choreographed Giuliani: Variations on a Theme, then joined New York City Ballet in time to dance [Tomasson's] Ballet d’Isoline and Menuetto with the company."

How I JOINED the MARIINSKY BALLET (Maria Khoreva) part 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0S_nGCQ_Jk Part 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-gi4jS-Z6I Khoreva's conversational English is excellent. She's ready to be a diplomat. 😉

Fun and interesting, thanks. I like the little look he gives during the "Bolshoi Male" bows. The "Bow to Tokyo Audiences" with all the hand waving instantly reminded me of the YouTube drum prodigy Yoyoko, who begins and ends most videos with a wave of her drum stick. I suppose that is a thing in Japan. "Bow After Dancing Poorly" - I think we've all seen that one.

They really should keep to a rotating host schedule. Adds an element of the unexpected.