ascballerina

I would call them temps levés in attitude devant The little jumps look like a series of demi contretemps and assemblés.

That's so cool, thanks for sharing!

Hear, hear! We homeschoolers still have to pay taxes to help the school board....(hey, maybe we should ask to redirect them--to places we want to support)

The recording can now be found here: http://www.kennedy-center.org/explorer/videos/?id=M5205

Let's just say the only thing I know about David H. Koch is that he's rich. Publicity and egocentricity aside, he does give money to ballet companies. He does give money to the PBS show NOVA (and I know this, 'cause his name's at the beginning of every show! Oops, wasn't going to talk about visibility). Basically, he's doing the right thing, even if it's for the wrong reasons. He'll die and be forgotten, or perhaps remembered through rose-coloured glasses, as California above pointed out, but the donations he made will help worthy endevours grow and prosper into the future, regardless of his original intent.

He will be one of thirty-eight recipients of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal "...for their significant contribution to Canadian life" http://www.cata.ca/_pvw522C275E/Media_and_Events/Press_Releases/cata_pr10191201.html http://www.balletjor...epath=&id=10017

Perhaps not...in this day and age of short attention spans and instant gratification, I can see how some people wouldn't have the patience to sit through something like this that is pretty much the same in every version you will ever see (Bolshoi version mentioned above excepted). That said, the original poster almost seems to be missing the point of the whole scene...

I found it--in a very pixel-y video on YouTube, but the effect was ethereal, nonetheless. (why was there a Justin Beiber video listed underneath? I very clearly typed "Bolshoi Entrance of the Shades"!) I can see why you love it! Oh, I hope they keep it the same way for the new Bayadere! I'll be able to see it via Ballet in Cinema, and to see the three levels of ramps with the shades clearly would be incredible.

I confess to having the Entrance of the Shades on my screensaver, so I can watch it over and over again. It is one of the loveliest moments in ballet, IMHO. Taking some of the shades out would be like removing stanzas from Edgar Allan Poe's The Raven, on the grounds that it is repetitive, and some of the stanzas don't relate to the story, as it's just the narrator describing what he sees.

Just to note: The list found at Emerging Pictures for what's in a theatre near you is incomplete, at least for my city. It's showing only about half the ballets that I found for my theatre at Cineplex.com. So strange....

You're welcome.

As no one's responded yet, I'll do my best to help you out. What does it mean when a topic is designated 'hot'? Some topics are really old but still have the 'hot' icon next to them. This means that a lot of people are still viewing the topic, even if there are no new replies. An example might be a topic called "A Very Young Dancer". Even if the last post was in 2000, people are still searching this on Google, or on here, and accessing the topic for various reasons. What does it mean when a topic is 'pinned'? This means that a topic will remain at the top of the forum, regardless of when the last post was, or how the forum is otherwise sorted. They're usually rules. Why does a board member 'lock' a topic? A mod might better answer this, but I can think of several reasons based on my own experience. If the topic is a rule, there is no discussing it. Therefore, it will be locked. If the topic is old and has no credence anymore (such as, say, a topic on a performance in 2006), then there is no point in leaving it open. If the topic contains an issue that members feel so strongly about that there is almost a fight going on, then the topic would certainly be locked, if attempts to restore order don't succeed. And if the topic is just plain against the rules, then it will be locked as well.

Reading through this thread, I had two immediate thoughts: Little Women and Oliver Twist. (although I liked the Harry Potter and Star Wars ideas mentioned earlier. ) For a long time, though, I've had a fantasy about doing a ballet loosely based on the creation of the universe and solar system (or perhaps just a tour of the solar system) to Holst's The Planets and (at the beginning) Strauss's Also Sprach Zarathrusta. I can see a corps of dancers recreating the idea of orbits and chaos; the sun and Saturn's rings.....along with some comet and meteor solos!

Such a wonderful story. Thanks, Natalia!

This is beautiful; I'd never heard of it before! Thank you, everyone who posted the Youtube videos! One question (please help the little ignorant person here)...what is the story?

Wonderful blog post, kbarber, thanks for sharing it! I had the pleasure of attending Ballet Jorgen's Nutcracker two years ago. It was wonderful. I am very much looking forward to their Swan Lake!

Just wanted to introduce myself. I'm ASC, nice to meet you all! I like going to performances streamed by Ballet in Cinema, as there aren't many performances I can go to that don't involve a border crossing. I am excited about Ballet Jorgen's Swan Lake, which is coming to my city in the new year! Can't wait to see it.