leonid17

Of course, I was thinking of Irina Kolpakhova at 28 years of age. You are right that there are moments of Alonso's performance on the film in question that are difficult to witness, in fact I was less than happy when I saw her dance Giselle in the 1980's and only stayed to applaud the legend and the moments that were still telling.

I'm sure she's a very lovely person, but I really do feel that describing her as "great" is stretching it. I don't argue that she has a sure, solid technique, excellent turnout - qualities which in themselves are unusual for British British trained dancers of the past few years - but I see her as a talented first soloist, elevated perhaps prematurely or just politically to principal rank as there hasn't been a British female principal since Darcey Bussell. If you go to Youtube, there's two versions of the waltz of the flowers from the RB production of Nutcracker one danced by Cuthbertson, the other by Zenaida Yanowsky. cuthbertson is firm, sure, charming, solid and assured, all lovely qualities in a dancer, but when you see Yanowsky, she just knocks it out of the ballpark. In terms of plasticity, amplitude of movement, technique - Yanowsky is a principal doing a first soloist role; Cuthbertson very much a first soloist. Cuthbertson is part of that triad along with Watson & Pennefather, Brits at principal level to counter the criticisms that the RB has no British principals, well now they do. Of the three Cuthbertson is by far the best equipped to tackle the classical rep, no arguments there, but for me, she is a first soloist. When you see her against the foreign principals the disparity and difference is obvious. She's a lovely dancer, I'd never take that away from her, but "great"? not for me. Hear, hear!

I think a lovely example of this is Kolpakova's Sleeping Beauty film. She dances on a somewhat small scale but she is wonderful within that scale. There may be a bit of adjustment here and there but I find the overall effect to be beautiful. In the theatre Irina Kolpakhova was never in my opinion small scale. For most critics of the day she was generally considered the most complete classicist. You are right when you say the overall effect was beautiful and for me it was the epitome of what academic classical ballet should be, free of unwanted accents and technique for the sake of technique and the essence of a crystalline, refined performing style, absolutely suitable for the role of Aurora. richard53dog, when you say, " But a camera doesn't record details that aren't there.", you are correct in one way, but the only place to genuinely experience the very act of a balletic performance is in a theatre where one's responses are naturally somewhat different to that of a film. Whilst Irina Kolpakhova was considered to remote for some, for others she remains the bench mark for Aurora's classicism although I would record that Alla Sizova( a truly great dancer) whose career overlapped her senior colleague was extraordinary in another manner, ie more expressive, but somehow less academically classical. You mention Dame Margot Fonteyn's "Giselle" as also somewhat small scale and I wonder not only why you would consider this to be a case and how you measure what is the appropriate scale for a Romantic ballet and "The Sleeping Beauty", a ballet of 19th century classicism.

A filmed version of any ballet is not to be compared to the physical experience of a live performance and therefore comparisons are of a limited measure. I generally avoid watching films of live performances I have admired, less my memory become clouded by the later experience. I saw Madame Alonso in Giselle when she was 59 years of age and it was a revelatory experience not to be compared, but to be savoured. It was the act of a becoming a role, perfectly attuned to a traditional reading and sensitive to living the music and revealing great theatrical art which entirely diminished the problems of her failed eyesight. There was always something about her presence off-stage that was arresting, whether dressed casually teaching class at the Varna Ballet competition in 1968 or some years later when being guided up the stairs in the old Royal Opera House. On the latter occasion you were aware of an extraordinary aura not just from the sense of her historical perspective, but also in the physical presence. Madame Alonso like a number of great dancers has that quality of being quite extraordinarily different from not just other dancers, but most other people, in fact a rara avis.

Bart did Quentin Crisp dictate it through automatic writing to Clement Crisp? Ps (Hope you can cope with a leg pull?)

I also remember this remarkable woman in this role.

I am glad to see you mention Ambra Vallo as I also admire her. A few years ago I saw her in "The Lady and the Fool", in which she gave a performance coming close to that of the remarkable ballerina Svetlana Beriosova in the same role.

Phillip Gammon is the pianist, who worked with the Royal Ballet for 40 years and is now retired. A few years ago, he gave a recital playing all the music used in "Dances at a Gathering." There is some background information at:- http://www.balletassociation.co.uk/Reports...5/Gammon05.html

It is a most interesting question and it is to me an attack on Ashton's aesthetic as if there are no rules implicit in casting a dancer for particular roles. You cannot recreate a choreographers intentions when you cast against emploi and if you do so, the ballet becomes less than what was intended. Miss Guillem despite her undoubted talents for certain roles should neither have been let near either "Month..." or "Marguerite and Armand." Having a strong technique and the ability to act does not make a classical ballet dancer. It may be the beginning of becoming but it is not the end.

Edited to add: I just saw this from 4rmrdncr: "I do think most of the major companies could do it, but would like to see ABT (if Dowell ever lets them. He did let them do The Dream, so why not this?) And can think of many casts there." So is there likelihood Dowell would let ABT do it. Is anybody else allowed to do it? Obviously, if not, that does present some problems too. It depends very much on what importance you cast on the subtleties of the Ashton style which relies much more on accuracy of, choreography, technique and dramatic expression as Royal Ballet revivals of this work has confirmed. It is the subtle perfume of the ballets of Ashton that lingers in the air, which is so difficult to recreate.

Month in the country was staged in 1976 and this film with the exception of the sorely missed Alexander Grant as her husband and Wayne Sleep as Kolia, is of the original cast. It was the last of Ashton’s great works and in Lynn Seymour’s role we can see an evocation of Ashton's life long inspiration, Anna Pavlova. Ashton also created two other great successes for Seymour in, "The Two Pigeon's" and "Five Brahms Waltzes in the manner of Isadora Duncan". Seymour was both an inspired and inspirational performer who absolutely becomes the role and a complete one off. In her best roles, no other dancer in my opinion has ever come up to her intensity in performances. I watched the film when Simon posted it in December and watching it again today, Seymour’s performance comes up as fresh and real as before, in spite of my aversion to filmed ballet.

I am inclined to agree with everything you have stated.

Is a current principal(s) leaving? I would have thought they had enough male principal dancers. No offence intended to Nehemiah Kish.

For Driftwood See: http://barbra-archives.com/live/60s/driftwood_garrett.html For early stage career see: http://barbra-archives.com/live/index.html

Music to my ears. Thank you for posting.

I hope not, it is appalling.

I find it a difficult project myself into that future with much optimism, when the general level of ballet criticism today, is often somewhat disappointing. Where would the stimulus for your, "good writing", "good criticism" and "good journalism", come from? Living in London, I have in the last twenty years, witnessed a hiatus in the continuity of literary ballet criticism that had existed in the previous sixty years. This is in spite of the considerable growth in the number of critics being published. Today I feel I am often reading a publicist’s blurb desperately trying to disguise itself as criticism supported by middle aged writers trying to be what was once called “hip.” In this I reiterate both sandik’s, “We are trading some of the more considered phrase-making for the zest of immediacy.” and bart’s, “Personally, I'm all for zest in writing. I am also for thoughtfulness, clarity of expression, accuracy.” Alistair Macaulay may be the despair of some of our friends across the sea, but I find in many of his reviews, the tone of a distinguished critic which is sorely missed in London.

Thank you.

Thank you for posting. The pictures brought tears to my eyes. Such fond memories.

I understand that she left the RB on 23 January with the intention of freelancing. As the Empress, Miss Jourdain was widely admired as giving an outstanding performance.

Much depends, of course, on what you mean by ugly. Dancers tend to be on the pretty side, so uggos trying to horn in on Juliet aren’t a major issue in my experience, but even dancers, male and female, who are downright tright plain (I won’t name names for obvious reasons) can make themselves beautiful through theatrical skill and and wonderful dancing. Quite so. Absolutely agree.

So how did we get from that to this...? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-pGGrCgZ2c I am sorry I viewed this recording. Both dancers are mannered in a style that I thought disappeared more than 40 years ago. Where was Karsavina's "flow of movement" ?

I believe I know the photograph you are referring to. Photographs only record a split second of an event. Another split second and Villela probably looked entirely different. But you are right that Balanchine's arms are beautiful and together with his stance is a reflection on his early schooling.

How often is it really the fault of the dancer? If any negativity is deserved, most of its force should principally be aimed at the company director for casting the dancer. This can then be followed by an analysis of why and where the dancer failed to meet the expected technical and interpretative demands of the role. Added 29.3.10: “If you are a performer onstage, putting yourself in the public eye, then it is a legitimate area of comment,” says John Rockwell..." Rockwell is right and wrong. The problem for me, is there is as point when leading dancers have little choice in the roles they perform and most want to dance roles as it is their raison d'etre, I can only reiterate my above first sentence. How often do critics emphatically say that a certain dancer should not have been cast in a particular role?