Hans

Good points--I did not realise there was a charge.

Does the theater still have a coat check? I realise waiting in line for that is a pain, but perhaps in unusually cold weather it could be a solution.

Ian, there appears to have been a misunderstanding. My list of ballets was not intended to be exhaustive; I was merely naming some of the most well-known ones that require large amounts of un-balleticised character dancing. Obviously there are many more examples even beyond those you have listed, but there is no need to point out every single ballet that requires a few character steps or we would be picking at each other for years. My point is, and has been from the beginning, that although character dance is a necessary skill for ballet dancers to have, many of them do not have the training needed to do it well.

All right, as far as character dance goes, Sleeping Beauty has a mazurka danced by the French-style court at the very end of the ballet. But are you serious that Bayadère, Corsaire, Don Q, and Coppélia are in the repertoire of every major ballet company in the US? ABT does all of them, SFB has a Don Q, NYCB does Coppélia occasionally (and PNB will start this summer). Doubtless there are a few more (and of course everyone does Swan Lake and Nutcracker) but as far as those ballets being in the regular repertoire of every major ballet company in the country...I'm afraid that just isn't true. By saying that, I do not mean that character dance is irrelevant. Quite the contrary: it is essential for any ballet dancer's education, if only because they are going to have to do it at some point, and it really can't be faked. Ballet companies should probably hold character classes, at least when they are performing a ballet that requires it, and frankly I think ballet schools should replace jazz with character.

I've never seen a ballet written out that way before, although as carbro notes, it could be used to indicate patterns. Most of the time, steps are written using the French terminology, although dance notation is (slowly) becoming more widely used. The thing is, ballet steps are taught in person, directly from teacher to student, rather than being written down. Written notes are used more as an aide-mémoire for a teacher to remember exercises or for a dancer learning choreography, so frequently they aren't intended to be legible to anyone else.

My experience has been that the state of character dancing today is very bad. Not many schools offer character dance classes, and those that do generally do not require it for very many years, and even then the classes are held about once a week, so although it is fun to do, it's difficult for students to take it seriously. Part of the problem, I think, is that relatively few ballets really require character dance. The most widely performed are Swan Lake and The Nutcracker (but Nutcracker's character dances are frequently balleticised). Otherwise, there is Coppélia, particularly Act I, and how many companies perform a full-length Don Quixote, Le Corsaire, or La Bayadère? The worst character dancing I've seen lately was in ABT's Swan Lake. Bland and boring. I understand the dancers are performing for nobility in a ballroom, but the dancing still must have weight and power. It was much too light and delicate. I believe the Bolshoi's character dancers are usually quite excellent, with a stirring dramatic fire and expressive upper bodies. It's a bit difficult to find videos, but I'll search some more.

Lately I have been trying to challenge myself during class, so for the last two classes I've taken, I made a rule that I would use the barre as little as possible. That doesn't sound so difficult, but I soon found out just how much I rely on the barre, even when I think I don't. A simple battement tendu exercise in first suddenly required quite a bit more effort, and it only became more difficult from there. If I truly need the barre (for a very fast exercise, or one entirely on demi-pointe, for example) I use it, but otherwise try to do without. While I'm sure it isn't as pretty to look at, I've noticed one important benefit: the less I use the barre, the better my balance is in the center, particularly during pirouettes, because there's no "adjustment" period of trying to figure out how to get to demi-pointe without support. I'm certain I'm not the only one who has experienced this, but I think it's an idea that could be used more often in ballet classes. Even when one is doing everything right, the barre ends up providing more support than it should simply because one's hand is on it, so the dancer ends up using it more than s/he is aware. There is also a great temptation to make the barre work as clean and neat as possible, which is an appropriate goal, but not when it comes at the expense of gaining strength and balance. Barre work is a tool, not an end in itself, and if the concepts one practises there do not transfer to the center, what's the point? Ballet class--especially barre--is always a work in progress. One isn't there to present a perfectly polished performance but to challenge oneself and grow. When creating art, one frequently has to make a mess in order to make something beautiful, and ballet is no different. So make a mistake, lose your balance, miss a pirouette, yet always with the finished product in mind. That's how you get better.

Aurora's father is Florestan XIV.

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Very jealous of everyone who lives in Toronto right now! I hope some BT members are able to review her Nutcracker and Giselle performances.

I think you are referring to the "Florestan" pas de trois in which Aurora's brother "Florimund" and her two sisters dance to the music of the Fairies of the Precious Stones and Metals. I *think* this originated with the Royal Ballet & was choreographed by Ashton, but I could be wrong.

I agree with rg--Vaganova's Basic Principles of Classical Ballet shows the differences quite clearly.

I believe it is wisdom, as the lilac represents wisdom in Russian folklore.

I would say yes, it is definitely worth it. Kolpakova's technique is immaculate, and while one can only imagine what she would have been like 20 years earlier, we are fortunate to have her beautiful and charming portrayal captured on film.

Yes indeed!

I don't find it so surprising considering that dancers are used to performing as if the audience isn't there.

The ladies of the Paris Opera Ballet do not always have unusually high extensions, but they do generally have extremely fast, tidy footwork and clean lines. The current ladies of the Mariinsky have consistently high extensions, but unfortunately their footwork and lines generally leave something to be desired, to the point where I wonder what is going on at the Vaganova Academy.

That's what I'm saying. It's much easier to keep a phone with you than a large textbook.

In preparation for auditions for dance pedagogy programs, I have started taking classes again, mostly at the American Dance Institute in Rockville, MD. So far I have had two classes, each taught by a dancer with Washington Ballet: Runqiao Du and Elizabeth Gaither. Both classes involved a long barre--45 minutes to an hour. Normally this is not my cup of tea, but as I am still pretty weak, it was nice to have the support. There were many combinations focusing on battements tendus and dégagés. Very good for precise footwork. By contrast, we did not do much in the way of jumps, which was also fine with me as by that point in the class I was running out of energy! I've noticed that I seem to have a lot of trouble with combinations involving lots of battements fondus as I'm finding it difficult to plié on one leg with control. Not sure why that is, maybe I just need to get strength back. Pirouettes are also not working well, and I have trouble using good épaulement at the barre. On to the positives: My foot articulation is still good, perhaps even better than before now that I've had to teach students to do it for several years. I can pick up combinations easily in my head, even if it doesn't yet always translate to my body. And I still have some flexibility, although it needs work. I'm basically doing a complete overhaul on my arabesque, as I don't think it's ever been placed quite right. The important part, though, is that class is still fun, even after all these years!

There is also Gretchen Ward Warren's "Classical Ballet Technique" which, while it does not have videos, has very clear step-by-step photos of professional dancers performing all kinds of steps. It is about $30 and fairly large, so having all that on one's mobile would certainly be convenient.

I'm quite interested in hearing what you think, Natalia. The review mostly mentions Valdes' balancing, which we already know she's good at, but what about the characterisation?

I would say my the most beautiful however many minutes are when Alfredo Kraus is singing.

That is a very interesting idea, Richard--I'd never thought of doing it with projections. I doubt they'd want to bring back the Chagall right now, as Julie Taymor is a big name, but it's nice to know that it might, in one way or another, be possible. Chagall was, after all, a major artist, and just tossing out his sets seems quite short-sighted.

I wonder if the Chagall sets could be recreated...it would certainly be better than the 70's acid trip nightmare Magic Flute they have now.

Peggy, I think that is what appeals to me about that aria. The singer can't just rely on a pretty voice and nice technique. She has to be committed to the performance.