pherank

Gala and gala performance photos from Sasha De Sola: https://www.instagram.com/p/CnxUvtTSsJk/ and Sasha Mukhamedov: https://www.instagram.com/p/CnpUJrnPXzW/ and Joe Walsh: https://www.instagram.com/p/Cnqn4zsOwoB/ Dores Andre celebrating her 20th year with the company! https://www.instagram.com/p/CnqLnSSLfRw/

I'm a mixed bill person, so if it were me, I'd lose one of the full-length ballets if money was an issue. I'm curious how Thatcher's COLORFORMS will look on stage. Looked great on film, but how will it be changed to fit a single stage environment? And Blake Works is kind of a must see for this company. It's a shame there's no overlap of programs, but I get why with the full-lengths.

Thanks so much for the report, Terez. For those of us sidelined and unable to attend, it brightens up the day. ;)

😉

If Mukhamdov is feeling up to it now, then great. She skipped Nutcracker in hopes of being able to dance the regular season (that was talked about in an Instagram video). Expect to see a lot of the Hernandez brothers though. 😉

Some of this is due to injury (Mukhamdov and Sheehan for example), and Barkman gets lucky with the world premiere choices, but some of the absences are just big question marks.

The Russian government's admiration for Nazi conquest techniques is "fascinating". They learned a big lesson from WWII, but it apparently was the wrong lesson, imo.

Rachel Howard interviewed Tamara Rojo for the Fjord Review: https://fjordreview.com/tamara-rojo-san-francisco-ballet/

Apparently Tiit is 45 years old(!), so it makes sense to move on. But I had a dream that he might be able to dance with his daughter once she joined the Corps at SFB. He should be teaching a master class in lifts/partnering at the school.

Well now we know what happened: "Caniparoli’s experience proved consequential and invaluable when Benjamin Millepied, who was originally designated one of next@90’s choreographers, dropped out in late August due to a scheduling conflict"

A real smorgasbord. Shinji Eshima's music for Possokhov has been great in the past - I wish I could see/hear that piece.

Yes, it is sad when the big day finally occurs. He will be greatly missed, being one one of the most dependable partners in SFB history. I wonder if he's having some physical issues that necessitated the early departure. Seems probable. Great to hear that Tiit will become a Principal Character Dancer, so more Drosselmeyers to come. ;)

30% off this week on Next@90 Festival seats: https://www.instagram.com/p/CnCvdhXMqpR/

I don't think she's received the VISA yet. Well it IS a broken immigration system. And there are a lot of Americans who don't want to see any immigration at all.

Dores Andre and Diego Cruz wishing you all a Happy New Year (as only they can): https://www.instagram.com/p/Cmjhx4gjukQ/

Sasha Mukhamedov and Naira Avganean (HET Nationale) talk about dealing with injures: https://www.instagram.com/p/CmhWDHHBpkY/

Misty Copeland appeared on tonight's Firing Line with Margaret Hoover https://www.pbs.org/wnet/firing-line/video/misty-copeland-qmtgh6/

I have a feeling that she's been 'detoxifying' herself from social media exposure. But she may well have run into some kind of physical issue. I really hope that isn't the case with Mukhamedov as well. She was taking part in the new ballet rehearsals - that much I know.

Is Sasha Mukhamedov performing this month?

Wish I could be there, SF Herminator. Joe Walsh posted some photos on Instagram mentioning the different partners he's had. I wouldn't have thought of him as a partner with Kuranaga (but then, why not?): https://www.instagram.com/p/CmFgU6KPUUE/ Seeing Powell and Weeks listed together as Snow Queen and King made me smile. And Nikisha Fogo and Aaron Robison in the Grand Pas should be great. Julia Rowe and Esteban Hernández should be good, and Yuan Yuan with Henry Sidford is also an interesting choice. Sasha De Sola and Isaac Hernández will be a star turn. Norika Matsuyama and Jasmine Jimison as the Sugar Plum Fairy - yeah! But Jimison with Angelo Greco in the Grand Pas is a great idea. Toi toi toi. One name that seems to be absent from the lists: Natasha Sheehan.

The A.D. at Atlanta Ballet is Gennadi Nedvigin, ex SFB principal. Claudia Schreier is the Choreographer in Residence at Atlanta Ballet. She's actually creating on SFB for the first time now. Should be interesting.

As I remember, "Future Paper" was part of the SFB digital season (pandemic lock-down) presentations. I enjoyed that one too. I liked the space they were working in as well. I don't remember who was doing the cinematography, though. Sometimes ex-SFB people create videos for the company or individual company members. There have been dancers with varied talents passing through the SFB doors. I was looking for a list of Genshaft's dance pieces, but I haven't found one yet. She did commissions for Washington Ballet, and Cincinnati Ballet. And something for the SF Dance Festival, SFDanceworks.

The team of Misa Kuranaga and Angelo Greco have become major fan favorites. Dana Genshaft is an interesting case: She was born in Moscow and later trained at the Kirov Academy of Ballet, SAB, and Paris Opera Ballet School before coming to SFB. She was a long time soloist for SFB, before retiring and then becoming a teacher of Contemporary Dance at the SFB school. She is also a choreographer, and she won a choreography fellowship in 2018 from the Princess Grace Foundation. Former principal Sofiane Sylve was teaching advanced classes at the SFB school as well during her performance period, and former principal Pascal Molat is now Associate Director of the Trainee Program. So there has been a strong connection between the company and the school. Although I was hoping that Sofiane Sylve might be chosen as the new A.D., she has gone on to become A.D. of Ballet San Antonio, and director of their school.

You are absolutely right, AG, and I've made an edit to my original message. It's a shame we've been given very little warning. AT SFB, Wheeldon's Cinderella is in some ways passing on to a younger generation, since former Cinderellas are no longer available (such as Sarah Van Patten and Frances Chung), or moving on to other roles. In the Giselle rehearsal Katherine Barkman (new to SFB) is fortunately getting some coaching time with Tomasson before he heads on out the door into retirement. Max Cauthorn has a lot of basic ability, but the funny thing is, he's no bun head. And often sounds like he'd rather be in a different career all together. SFB lost their other super talented up-and-comer, Benjamin Freemantle - he decided to go to New York with his long-time friend Madison Keesler and freelance rather than live the company life. That was a blow. And I wonder if Cauthorn will actually stick around. These young dancers look at life differently from former generations. [In the Barkman rehearsal I confess my eye kept going to Jasmine Jimison dancing behind her in the room. Jimison is a lovely dancer.]

SFB's World Ballet 2022 footage comes down in 5 days (Dec. 5th). It contains various rehearsal footage for the new season, including Wheeldon coaching Cinderella (there's a number of duet/solo variations included.) Download now. 😉 EDIT: Actually, December 1st is the last day!!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g22G7od_HWY