MadameP

Drew, you don't remember the sets in LHBH because they are barely there!!!! LOL

True - but at least they are better than the horrible scaffolding in the Cinderella sets.

You might want to add one of the Vaganova Academy graduation concerts. Eleonora Sevenard, who is quite special and being touted as possible future star, will be graduating either this year or next. Regardless, she'll likely be featured in the concerts.

Eleanora graduates next year, and, given Fateev's track record for allowing wonderfully talented dancers to go elsewhere, I would say her chances of ending up in Mariinsky Theatre are extremely thin - the way he likes his ballerinas.

Any performance with Lopatkina at Mariinsky is to be treasured these days - she so rarely gets a scheduled performance. Her Diamonds is THE Diamond of all diamonds for me!

I will post this also in the Mariinsky section, but I felt there are many people on this forum who love the Mariinsky ballet, but who could never go to St Petersburg, and for them Galina Mochkina was their link to that ballet world. She had many friends and many online friends, who knew her through her many video uploads. All of these ballet videos were of Mariinsky performances she had seen and filmed herself, posted publicly and of great historical value.

Galina died unexpectedly yesterday, in hospital. For years, she had attended Mariinsky ballet performances and she had filmed many performances. Her uploads on YouTube, and more recently, on FaceBook, enabled millions of people worldwide to see ballets and dancers they would never have seen otherwise. She will be very greatly missed.

Not only that though, Galina was a lovely, sweet person, and I know she was part of going to St Petersburg for me. She was always ready to help buy tickets, she was responsible on so many occasions for getting bouquets of flowers to Mariinsky dancers. She was just a lovely, kind person. I am honoured to have known her, and I know all her friends will miss her greatly.

I would like to say thank you, Galina, for all your videos, for your friendship and of course, I send prayers and good wishes to all Galina's family and friends at this very sad time.

YouTube has a video up with already many comments:

I will post this also in the obituary section, but I felt there are many people on this forum who love the Mariinsky ballet, but who could never go to St Petersburg, and for them Galina Mochkina was their link to that ballet world. She had many friends and many online friends, who knew her through her many video uploads. All of these were public videos of Mariinsky performances she had seen and filmed herself, and of great historical value.

Galina died unexpectedly yesterday, in hospital. For years, she had attended Mariinsky ballet performances and she had filmed many performances. Her uploads on YouTube, and more recently, on FaceBook, enabled millions of people worldwide to see ballets and dancers they would never have seen otherwise. She will be very greatly missed.

Not only that though, Galina was a lovely, sweet person, and I know she was part of going to St Petersburg for me. She was always ready to help buy tickets, she was responsible on so many occasions for getting bouquets of flowers to Mariinsky dancers. She was just a lovely, kind person. I am honoured to have known her, and I know all her friends will miss her greatly.

I would like to say thank you, Galina, for all your videos, for your friendship and of course, I send prayers and good wishes to all Galina's family and friends at this very sad time.

YouTube has a video up with already many comments:

Yesterday was holiday in Russia, so probably box office staff just ran out of time when updating the website?

Great news because finally Ksenia has her first major role at Bolshoi! On this Friday, 22nd April, she is to be Gulnare in Corsaire - Krysanova/Tsvirko are Medora/Conrad! I think this is a perfect role for her - she has such natural charm. Best wishes and congratulations to Ksenia!

I wish they would show some of the actual ballets on this channel. For those of us who do not live in America, it is very difficult to see Balanchine choreography. The Royal Ballet does have , and has had, SOME Balanchine in its repertoire, but only a fraction of what is available. Yes, there is some on video but I would love to be able to see more.

She has a wonderful partner in Ovcharenko!

ROH site does list Yulia among the principal dancers for the tour, but I can't find anywhere which role she will be dancing.

Thank you. I suppose this is a debut for Belyakov as well?

Yes, debuts for Stepanova, Marchenkova and Belyakov in this one performance.

Wish I could be in Moscow to see this! What do we know about Belyakov? About Marchenkova, who will be Gamzatti in this performance?

Belyakov was promoted to leading soloist recently, jumping two ranks, and is a very tall, strong dancer with a spectacular jump. He is 24 or 25, I think. He has already partnered Yulia recently in Frank Bridge Variationsi, and he dances several leading roles. Marchenkova is a corps ballerina who dances many small solo roles, so Gamzatti is a great debut for her.

Yulia will make her debut as Nikiya in La Bayadere opposite Artemy Belyakov on 16th April - wonderful news!

Completely agree, Kathleen! I have seen so many ballerinas struggle when they would have been much better not even attempting to lift both arms in 5th. It is such a shame. What is the point of teetering en pointe, forcing the conductor to wait a ludicrous length of time only to snatch the arm back down again the moment it is raised? None at all. It is not beautiful, not musical and only makes the ballerina herself look technically deficient, attempting to do what she cannot do. Just ..... DON'T!

Following on from the TWO PROMOTIONS theme, today there are two new coryphees - Tatiana Tiliguzova and Roman Belyakov are both on the roster as coryphees as of today.

Skorik has been replaced by Osmolkina as Aurora.

Somova gets a bad rap. The biggest complaint seems to be her past high extensions, but she no longer does 6 o'clock from what I have seen. I think she has tempered what most people used to view as her extreme quirks. I know there are some who disagree, and they will always see the glass half empty, but I personally think they are missing out. Her greatest asset is her acting. I actually love her acting. To me she always seems to be living each emotion the character is going through as if she is really experiencing those emotions. Her Tsar Maiden is very nice and I have seen a video of her one and only Raymonda and her acting when Jean de Brienne and Abderakhman are fighting is terrific. This is a moment when most people will be focused on the fight, so many would be ignoring Raymonda at that moment, yet she gives her all to "living" the moment despite attention not really on her.

I agree with everything you say about Somova. She rarely does those extreme extensions now, but uses her flexibility entirely appropriately to each role, but that flexibility gives her such an ease of movement - especially in her glorious grands jetes. Her acting is always unforced and natural and I saw that Raymonda debut, and she was a wonderful Raymonda. It's really a crime that America could not see this great Raymonda. Beautiful arms too! Even though I really do not like this version of LHBH, it does have a few nice moments, notably the PDD. I think she is the best Tsar Maiden so I do hope she will open the LHBH run next year!

LHBH is not danced by either Korsuntsev or Ivanchenko so at least it means you will get the chance to see some of the younger, more virtuoso male dancers.

Although I hate the sets I actually like Ratmansky's Little Humpbacked Horse. I "like" it.....I don't "love" it.

Personally I think it is the most successful Ratmansky ballet at the Mariinsky. I find his Cinderella and Anna Karenina boring for the most part, but his Little Humpbacked Horse choreography keeps me entertained. But Natalia is correct about the sets. However, I am so used to crazy opera productions, so it bothers me less than other people probably. The Tsar Maiden is quite a nice role for a ballerina and there are some interesting corps moments. Ivan the Fool is a decent role for a male. I have seen this a couple of times in St. Petersburg (Osmolkina and Kolegova) and have really enjoyed it.

However, it is not "swoon worthy" the way Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, and Raymonda are.

I will probably only fly up for 2-3 shows (weekend trip). Madame P. is correct that it is not a ballet that deserves a whole, long run. It really should be alternated with one other ballet on tour. However, Ratmansky is a draw for many people, so it may do well (ticket sales). No idea.

If Baden-Baden's schedule looks good I might skip DC and go to Baden-Baden. I lived in Germany and speak the language and have friends not too far away from Baden-Baden that I could also visit. I am having to think up alternatives, because I foolishly promised my partner to take a break from Russia for a "few years" and already regretting I said those words! Ugh!

I saw Uliana Lopatkina's debut as Tsar Maiden in LHBH at MT2. Strange role for her, but actually she was excellent and very funny, but still it is a DIRE ballet in my opinion! The sets are terrible, and so is much of the music. I wish MT would DUMP all their Ratmansky, although, to be fair, at least LHBH is not as awful as Anna Karenina...

Little Humpbacked Horse? Seriously? Mariinsky thinks this is worthy of showing to American audiences for a whole run of performances ? I despair. Really I do.

Here is the Mariinsky's "official" take on their American season, as reported on their website:

http://www.mariinsky.ru/en/news1/

Ooops - wrong place!

LOL!!!

BT for dancers has I think a separate registration.

OK, thank you!

Amy,

I have always wondered why the Mariinsky dancers choose changements or entrechats. I always wondered why it was okay to change things for that moment but not other moments, and you explained why! Thank you for saying this, because it has always been a mystery. I wondered if changements were correct or if entrechats were correct or if both are correct. It sounds like both are correct b/c one is notated, the other was done by Legnani, who originated the role. So one was done in practice. The other is actually notated. That explains why Mariinsky ballerinas are allowed to choose one or the other to do at that moment.

Thank you for this information!

Agree. Tereshkina does the changements, for example, and she has very strong pointework, so I am sure she COULD do the entrechats4 - yet she doesn't.