Richka

ABT ll did it probably in the mid to late 70's and it was popular in regional companies for a while around that time. Does anyone know WHO does the stagings of this ballet? William Dollar has long since passed away. I would assume people who have danced it in the past. Kansas City Ballet does not list who staged it. I only know Paul Sutherland staged in for NYTB but does he do them all?

Dance Perspectives #6 by Selma Jeanne Cohen lists all ballets performed by ABT (then Ballet Theater) from 1949-1960. The Nijinska version of Fille mal gardee was performed in their opening season at the Center Theater (then part of Rockefeller Center). Mother Simone was Edward Caton. Lisette: Patricia Bowman; Alain: Kosloff; Colin; Shabelevsky (but a cast change shows Dimitri Romanoff as Colin.) It could very well be Romanoff in the photo. I only knew him during his later years (in his 60s) but his features are recognizable in the photo. It is likely Lisette in the photo is Baronova, but not in that first season. It was also done during seasons of 41-32 and 48-56 so could have been during those runs. This Dance Perspective doesn't go beyond 1960. Of course when I saw a performance of the ABT/Nijinska Fille it was during the 1970s with Makarova, Paredes, and possibly Nage. Waren Conover was Alain. I'd have to look back for a program. It was delightful. Anatole Chujoy at the 1940 performances called it "one of the finest ballets given this season" He found Bowman "superb, Shabelevsky and Romanoff "excellent", Caton "amusing" and Kosloff "unsurpassed". This is from February issue of "Dance" ... I assume 1940.

I saw Nijinska's Fille with ABT possibly early 1970s. Though I am very familiar with the Asthon version having even danced in it, this Nijinsky version I remember as very charming. Warren Conover as Alain used a kite instead of the unbrella in Ashton's. I have the conductor's orchestra score of the first act but no opportunity to use it. I have asked Rochelle Zide for information about this Nijinska version which she has often staged, having learned it from Fernand Nault. Perhaps I shall ask her again as I'm very curious about it.

Thanks for this information. And your corrections. You seem to know lots about the U.K. policies regarding foreigners. I read Secret Muses when it first came out around early 90s I believe. so must have forgotten many details about Dick Beard. In the mid 1960s I joined a small touring ballet company in London and had to, as American, go to the Home Office for a work permit as a 'foreign artist'. That was the title though I was little more than a youngster with experience only in Summer stock. It was quite easy to get at that time and I had no trouble for nearly a year until British Equity kept after me to join. As this would have cost a fortune (I was making 15 pounds a week, girls made 5) I decided to quit. Actually I had planned on going to the Soviet Union anyway for study, and did.

If I knew that I would be Grigorovitch himself. Thanx for your short reply. Richka

I only know about Dick Beard from the Secret Muses book which is mostly about Sir Frederic Ashton's relationship and obsession with him. The correspondence between them is fascinating as anyone who read the book knows. Sir Fred wanted to bring him in to the Royal Ballet company but at that time it would have been impossible in England for a foreigner (as an American, Beard would have been a foreigner) to join. He possibly could have gotten a work permit from the Home Office as a 'foreign artist'. Now of course it's entirely different and RB is in fact made up of mostly non-British. Does anyone know how old Dick Beard was when he died, and from what cause. He must have been fairly old if he was a Principal with ABT during the 1940s.

Hello Richka, If you have time could you write more about how you react to this ballet? What you think of the choreography... Grigorovich as a choreographer... Memories of seeing the original casts... Of course, I will be glad to. I saw Sparticus with this original cast first, and I am going way back now, in 1976 at the Met. The Bolshoi came, both opera and ballet, for two months to help us celebrate 200th anniversary of American Revolution. First month was the Ballet. I booked Box 14 for every performance. Same for the 2nd month of Opera, but you want to hear about the ballet. They danced Spartacus many times, always with the same cast except V. Gordeyev danced the role a few times. As I am Russian speaking, I met many of the dancers. I showed Gordeyev around Manhattan and helped him buy sound equipment. Later Grigorovitch joined us as he wanted to buy a video recorder. So I took them to a video store I know. I can tell you I really struggled with my Russian language trying to explain technical things. Anyway, they company left for Moscow, loaded with all kinds of recorders and sound equipment. Gordeyev later sent me a video of he and N. Pavlova in Giselle rehearsal from the Bolshoi stage. OK, the Soviet Gov't had a center in the U.N. Building that they called a 'book club'. I often went there to see their films, always followed by a mad rush upstairs to a U.N lounge where they had free vodka and zakuski (snaks). Several years later they showed the film of Spartacus with original cast in the U.N. movie theater. I sat beside the Soviet Ambassador in the front row! Now, First, briefly, here is my opinion of this ballet. Spartacus is one of, if not the most loved ballet I know. The Khataturian music is magnificent. Every time I saw it back in 1976 was like new. Griegorovitch in my opinion is the greatest living choreographer. Next is Ashton. I later saw it in Moscow with Mukamedov who danced it powerfully but not the same as Vasiliev. The film is magnificent. It surely is available. Have you tried Amazon? Hope this is enough for now. Richka .

I was referring to Sydney Leonard, not V. Williams who I know had died some time ago. Sydney lives in Cambridge, MA, so I am told by Rochelle Zide, who was with Boston Ballet long ago and now lives here in Tucson as well. The disc or rather two discs, is released, with Sydney speaking about the beginnings of BB. Very interesting and she tells a lot about E. Virginia Williams. I forgot who sent it to me but no doubt one of the former BB members. I did write to Sydney (not Ms Williams) for information about early teachers in Boston who she might have known, as I'm writing a book about history of dance in Boston. But she never answered. Too old or forgetful I imagine.

I don't think Baryshnikov is 5'8" because when I talked with him, and being a former member of ABT I often did, he seemed a bit shorter and I'm only 5' 7" and I always thought 'Oh, at last, someone is shorter than me'. Cynthia Gregory always had to worry about partners because of her height. That's why she was relieved when Godunov joined the company. Remember him? Ivan Nage was also OK for her but felt better with Makarova. I forgot who partnered Cynthia in Firebird but possibly Nage. I'm going back here to the Golden Years of ABT.

Hello Snowbound. I am also new to this wonderful site. I am also from the Boston area (Braintree) but now live in Tucson, Arizona. It would be a great pleasure to hear about E. Virginia Williams and your connection to her and the Boston Ballet. I saw them several years ago at the Wang Center while visiting my sister, but I'm afraid I did not enjoy the performance. I think because it was a wrong choice of a ballet that they did on that Saturday matinee, yet the theater was full. I wished they had done one of their full length ballets instead, that I know would have been much more enjoyed. I have a CD disc of a discussion about Virginia by Sydney Leanard who I was a long time teacher with Virginia in the early days of Boston Ballet. She is very old now and I wrote to her but she never answered.

Here it is a year later and I'm responding to your post. By now I'm sure you've seen Spartacus by the Bolshoi. I have seen this ballet many times and with original casts; Vasiliev, Maximova, Timofeeva and the great Marius Liepa. There definately is a complete film of it with this original cast, and in fact I own a copy. Grigorovitch, the choreographer, when he left the Bolshoi, formed his own company and toured all over the world, even here to Tucson, Arizona where I live. It was a reduced version, leaving out the Shepherd's dance, obviously because he did not have the boys capable of it. THere is another production of it done in Australia, with different choreography available on DVD, but it pales beside the Bolshoi version.

Even though Ashton, in my view, (and I know this is heresy) was a far better choreographer than Balanchine, I must say Mr. B has given us what I feel is a more dramatically intense version of Ravel's magnificent score. I can remember as a young ballet student at George Chaffee's studio, sitting in the first row in the balcony of City Center (and I could barely afford that) watching Tanny LeClerque and Franciscio Moncion dancing "Valse". Being new to New York City, I felt the 3 ladies in the opening with the long gloves, symbolized to me all the glamour and chic of Manhattan. Then Moncion's upstage entrance, so dark and mysterious. To me he was so clearly the figure of death. I saw it many times at City Center during the early 1950s and each time I left the theater with an ominous feeling. When I lived in London, The Ashton version I've seen many times at Covent Garden and it is delightful to watch, full of movement and color, and so musical. But Balanchine added the drama which was rare for him. Of course "Serenade" has a touch of it when the unknown dancer falls down, and "Prodigal Son" naturally is full of drama. But these are Balanchine's earlier works. In latter years his work became far less interesting, to me at least.

Very interesting what you said about Merriem Lanova. I taught a summer workshop for her school in San Francisco, I think around in 1974, and also staged a "La Bayadere" for her student group. I remember she wanted me to stay on as a regular teacher but I had other committments. She was very nice to me. I've often wondered what became of her and her company. I assume she has died but don't know under what circumstances. If you know about her latter years I would like very much to know. Thanx.

September/October 1970. I remember Walter Gore vividly as one of the kindest persons I have ever known. I just read one of the postings here that he and his wife Paula really loved birds. This fits with my memories of Walter, when he found an injured pidgeon in Central Park and brought it to Harkness House and set it on the piano where it stayed all through his rehearsal. I'm sure he took it back to his hotel and nursed it until it was well. That was Walter. Eaters Of Darkness was not easy to notate. The actual dancing was easy but the pile ups of the corps dancers was really impossible. I took pictures of them instead. I don't think there was any pattern to it, just a heap of dancers. In revivals it would be the same. At first rehearsals Walter only set the principle dance parts and not knowing the ballet I wondered what was in store. Then he began with the actual inmates of the insane asylum. Basically staggering around and acting crazy but definately choreographed as far as one can do with that kind of thing. Walter was very fussy about the very start when the lead is pushed through a door upstage into the asylum. It had to be right on musical cue. When Walter left I rehearsed it before we left for the European tour. Vincente had not paid much attention to it at the beginning rehearsals so he was grateful I had his part notated. I don't know how many here have ever seen this ballet but it a highly dramatic and powerful story taken from real life. It has to have a perfect cast. Along with Eaters, Walter also staged at the same time something called "The Light Fantastic" which we did on that tour. Mrs. Harkness did not like it so it was pulled after a few performances. When Paula left, Linda DeBona danced her role in Eaters. There was a film made of it in Germany with that cast; Linda, Zane Wilson and Vincente. Walter and Paula invited me to dine with them one evening in Lisbon, Portugal. They basically wanted me to leave Harkness and stay in Lisbon with them but I refused. Perhaps this was a wrong choice as I could have possibly gone on to stage his works all over the world for many years after. Walter was to die in 1979. I still have the notated score and the Britten musical score. There was a video of it at Harkness House but of course when the company folded, who knows what happened to all those videos. I should have made copies while I was there. Ah, the things we SHOULD have done! I took some pictures of Walter rehearsing Eaters but being a newbie here on this wonderful ballet forum, I don't know if pictures can be uploaded to it. Probably not. I have other memories of Eaters and Walter and Paula for another time. Vincente and Zane went on to Caracas where he had a company. They played Tucson, Arizona. where I live, several years ago with Vincente's breathtaking choreography. More later.

80 ballets !!! ".... why have they disappeared ... ? This is always an interesting question in the arts. It has particular poignancy with ballets of previous generations, where so much depends on memory of the participants who are now gone. I had a similar feeling when reading the very long list of Fokine's forgotten pre-Diaghilev ballets in Lynn Garafola's book, and when thinking about Alexandra's post (on another thread) of an article she wrote about Camargo and the ephemeral quality of long lost dance performances. There's a sadness here. Ballet has no museum buildings in which to display living, moving ballets on the wall. It's not possible to present them frozen under spotlights. Are there any reliable sources for Gore's ballets, or other lost ballets of tihs period in Britain? Any agencies that are devoted to preserving and reconstructing them? I am new to this forum so don't yet know if I am doing this right. We shall see, but I did want to comment on this subject of Walter Gore and his ballets. I worked with Walter in 1970 while he was staging his Eaters of Darkness for Harkness Ballet. I notated it in Benesh notation and rehearsed it after Walter had left. We premiered it in Barcelona, Spain and later on in Lisbon, Portugal, where Walter and his wife Paula Hinton joined us. Paula danced the lead, with Zane Wilson and Vincente Nebrada. I have much to say about Walter and Paula, but I must wait to find out if this posting or reply has gone through and is of any importance. Remember, I am new at this forum and I could be doing it all wrong. We shall see.