Hans

I once dreamed that I could pirouette as much as I liked. When I ran out of force, I'd just turn my head quickly and off I'd go again! Eventually I stopped out of respect for the pianist.

Does NYCB's orchestra also play for New York City Opera? Is it employed by the NYST? If not, maybe the opera orchestra could accompany the ballet (if it's better). Then we'd have better music and the musicians would get more weeks of work. I haven't been employed as one, but it seems to me that being a ballet class pianist must be a rather thankless job. One must have endless pieces of music memorized and be able to alter them and improvise at the drop of a hat, not to mention play music for an art form one is totally unacquainted with, and the pianist must do all this at the direction of someone with, at best, little music training, and I'm sure it's just as painful for the pianist as it is for me when the students dance at their own tempi anyway. That said, I couldn't agree more with papeetepatrick that playing bad music badly helps neither the music nor the dancers and musicians, and much ballet music is quite good (and plenty of opera and concert music isn't). I remember reading on this board a while ago (maybe Alexandra wrote it?) that the Kirov orchestra played Adam's score for Giselle as if it were Tchaikovsky, and it made all the difference. Final thought: Musique dansante is just not the same as concert music, and that doesn't necessarily make it bad. I wouldn't want to listen to "Giselle" without the dancing, but it is perfect for the choreography and action. Music that is illustrating a plot doesn't have to sound like a choir of angels or be a deep study in complexity (the dancing is why we're there, after all) and if one recognizes that such music fulfills the purpose for which it is written and should therefore not be compared to more pretentious music, it does not seem unharmonious (pardon the pun).

Can't say the spoon hands are my favorite either, but I think when they are done properly (not held stiffly with the fingers glued together but with the fingers softly lengthened with a little space between them) they can look very natural and unpretentious. What gets me is the when the hands are "placed" in a position that suits the textbook rather than the dancer, but that goes for any method or style.

Are the palms up or down?

No, training for the classics is not emphasized at SAB. Victoria Leigh made a good point quite some time ago when she explained the situation of company dancers, though. When a dancer is a student, she has pointe class every day, so she is given lots of practice as far as things like fouettés, balancing, &c go. However, in a company, dancers don't have formal pointe class--the most they get is if they decide to do all or part of the company class with pointe shoes on. So it is more difficult to keep up the technique required to do such steps, especially if the ballets requiring them are not frequently performed (and therefore not often rehearsed). There is a documentary of the Kirov where it appears that the ladies do have pointe class there; they are shown practicing fouettés and various other turns, so it would be interesting to know how different companies handle this. Is the lack of pointe class an American thing, or is it typical for pro dancers everywhere not to have daily pointe class?

Well, Tchaikovsky didn't write the music for Pierina Legnani and her fouettés, so maybe he envisioned a subtler "enchantment" scene. Also, he was writing music that matched a pas de deux Minkus had written, measure for measure, and maybe Minkus's music had a similar quality. (OT: Does anyone know what happened to the Minkus music?)

Well, that is a good point Estelle.

This was used to killing effect in one French review I read lambasting ABT in Paris: Each blasted dancer was identified by her/his owner. Considering the much more scandalous history of the Paris Opéra, that seems like the pot calling the kettle black to me.

I do think the fouettés are important to Swan Lake's tradition, and hopefully there will always be ballerinas who can do them well. However, I don't mind substitutions, as long as whatever step the ballerina chooses is executed brilliantly. As far as the type of fouettés goes, I do have to say I find the Cecchetti way boring, as the type of movement it produces is too slow. I like a smaller rond de jambe that emphasizes second (but I don't like going directly to second). And I would prefer some restraint in Swan Lake as opposed to Don Q, Kitri, &c. A double on every 8th turn looks nice, anything much beyond that strikes me as vulgar.

Well, I think that some plots take you into an exotic realm of fantasy (Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty) whereas others are merely implausible. I Puritani is, for me, in the latter category, with Elvira asking (right after Arturo leaves with the queen) "She was wearing my veil, he called her Elvira--am I no longer Elvira?" Not exactly a logical conclusion to reach, especially when five minutes ago she had put the veil on the queen herself.

Paolo, Rasta Thomas is a graduate of the Kirov Academy who guested with the Kirov Ballet for a while, but now as far as I know he mostly does free-lance work.

It was fun to get to see a Met opera in suburban Maryland. I agree that Netrebko is not as agile in the coloratura passages as she once was, but I don't really mind, as she still gets all the notes in, and her gorgeous tone and acting help make up for it. The acting is especially helpful because of the utterly ridiculous plot (I found it less plausible than Le Corsaire)--it really needs strong acting to hold it together. Very much enjoyed Vassallo as Arturo--nice voice, good singing, good acting. Well done. Unfortunately, I can't say the same about either Cutler or Relyea, especially the latter. Also thought Fleming did a great job interviewing Netrebko, keeping the focus off herself even though she is extremely famous, but Sills...well, I found that Sills went on rather self-indulgently about how things were when she sang Elvira without adding much insight (not that Elvira presents rich dramatic opportunities). It was lovely to see the beautiful costumes and sets up close--thank goodness they weren't dressed in a historically accurate manner or the entire opera would have been black and gray. I also really liked the staging, many very picturesque moments there, including Elvira with the roses during Act I. And when she started singing the da capo section of Vien, diletto while hanging into the orchestra pit, well, my jaw almost hit the floor! Unfortunately I will not be able to see The First Emperor tomorrow, so I look forward to everyone's reports.

I'm not sure I'd rule out this particular body type from ballet, period, as they generally have rather lovely lines (also, if we considered them unsuitable for ballet, we would never have had Lynn Seymour, Alessandra Ferri, or perhaps even Marie Taglioni). They must simply be taught taste and appropriateness.

One of my friends recommended that I not attend--he called it a children's version--and I did not have time anyway, but I am definitely attending I Puritani this Saturday.

In Zakharova's defense, some people really do have legs that "just go up there." In my opinion, this is a talent that must be trained, but it rarely is. While teachers always specify that the legs must be at 25, 45, or 90 degrees, everything above that is "as high as you can," whereas people with Zakharova's talent ought to be taught to give shading to their high extensions, specifying that the leg be at 120, 135, or even 160 degrees.

Volcanohunter, regarding your take on Zakharova's modern dance comment, I could not agree with you more! Ballet dancers so often screw up modern works (just as they screw up the classics :rolleyes: ) yet think they're doing it "better" because their legs are higher. It's great that Zakharova wants to master her body, but while she is working on it, could she please give us some expression in the meantime? Even Sylvie Guillem has an intensely focused energy about her and a very strong command of the stage.

I imagine one would have to perhaps use a soloist and small corps or something like that.

I was pretty amazed at the cohesive male corps of the POB in the "Jewels" DVD, not least because of what you mention, Ray, which I've both seen onstage and experienced firsthand.

Did anyone else happen to see this last night? I believe it was on around 10pm. I happened upon it in the middle of Swanilda (Leanne Benjamin) dancing with her friends in Act I, and I was extremely impressed, although I couldn't figure out who it was at first. Thought it might have been the Paris Opéra Ballet, but it didn't look like their production (the stage appeared quite small for some reason and there weren't very many dancers). Anyway, the footwork was extremely clean and precise with graceful, detailed port de bras and épaulement. The corps was perfectly synchronized. I am looking for the DVD on Amazon to add to my wish list!

I dare say NYCB dancers would find the Kirov classes difficult as well. Ballet just isn't easy.

I would think the most well-known ballet dancers in LA are Ethan Stiefel and Sascha Radetsky.

Since "The Red Shoes" (and probably before) popular culture has displayed the message that Ballet Is Difficult. Sweaty, panting dancers remove tight, uncomfortable shoes to reveal bloody, blistering toes, and tyrannical teachers and artistic directors treat students as if they're soldiers and company members as if they're children. The ballet world has, apparently, come to believe in this mutilated vision of itself. As with so many things, one can lay neither all of the credit nor all of the blame at Balanchine's feet, but he bears some responsibility. The emphasis on athleticism, giving 110% all the time, taking risks, not being "safe" or "polite" onstage created an incredible new era in ballet and gave us a treasure trove of beautiful, exciting works. However, the all-or-nothing mentality has spilled over into the classroom and classical repertoire, and now we have teachers who are not satisfied with their students unless they see perspiration and choreographers who create aerobic workouts and acrobatic contortions en pointe. What happened to "everything is beautiful at the ballet?" What happened to "effort must be invisible?" What happened to grace, beauty, courtesy, and mutual respect? Some of it is due to a lack of such concepts in society. When life was difficult for the masses, people wanted to escape to a world of exotic enchantment where fragile sylphs flew through the air and Turkish pirates stole beautiful harem girls from lecherous sultans. These days one barely has to lift a finger to change from watching America's Next Top Model to Survivor, anyone can pick up a fully prepared gourmet dinner at the supermarket that barely even needs to be microwaved, "sir" and "madam" have all but been replaced by "pimp" and "ho." Is it really any wonder, then, that when the majority of people live lives of comparative ease and luxury, they crave the opposite: watching others eat rats on deserted islands, "ordinary" people becoming overnight celebrities, and faceless, nameless people contorting instead of princes graciously offering their hands to refined ladies? And since ballet must change with the times, why bother with reverance, port de bras, expressing any emotion other than, "Goodness, these steps are HARD!" Why bother teaching students manners and discretion (or exhibiting those qualities oneself) when it's "cool" to "keep it real" and be as refined and polite as a street urchin? Because otherwise, "classical" ballet will continue down its present path of being relegated to the competition circuit, with high extensions, elaborate jumps, and dizzying pirouettes done for their own sake, and épaulement and port de bras performed meaninglessly, merely for "artistry points," with no relation to plot, character, or emotion. Exciting energy or empty perfection--we need not choose between the two. Let's put the blood, sweat, and tears behind the scenes, where they belong, so that they fulfill their true function--to fuel a fire under the ice of dull perfectionism, to give meaning to the courtly deferences and elaborate etiquette of the dance. Let's make beauty exciting for what it hints at, not for what it throws in one's face. And as the saying goes, "make the audience gasp with joy, not relief."

I saw the Pavlova film a long time ago and would indeed put her at the top of my list. Plisetskaya is a very close second.

We do?! Could someone please mention that to various choreographers and artistic directors who shall not be named? I am not sure why ballet traditions need to be considered a burden, as not every new work is expected to be as good as Giselle or as groundbreaking as Agon, and other art forms have even weightier traditions--think of the number of musical masterpieces that exist preserved by notation in their original form compared to the relatively small number of classic ballets, most of which have been altered considerably.

Part of the answer may be in a comment I heard once after a student ballet performance: "Well, we've had our culture now." Apparently, some people think art is like going to the dentist--something you know you should do once or twice a year but really don't enjoy.