Solor

Here are some glorious old photos - Dudinskaya, Kitri/Dulcinea in the coda from the "Kingdom of the Dryads" from "Don Quixote" (If anyone knows who the other ballerina is let me know) http://img226.imageshack.us/img226/8892/945686ra.th.jpg Kschessinskay, not sure what ballet (I have seen a picture of Karsavina as Medora wearing this exact same costume) - Look at how awful her foot looks on pointe! - http://img226.imageshack.us/img226/5831/745214tc.th.jpg Anna Pavlova, Aspicia in "The Pharaoh's Daughter" (looking radiantly beautiful) - http://img226.imageshack.us/img226/2248/793571hy.th.jpg Kurgapkina as either Moyna or Zulma in "Giselle" - http://img466.imageshack.us/img466/7058/885746wi.th.jpg Kschessinskaya, Mlada in "Mlada" - http://img446.imageshack.us/img446/2340/331b3zf.th.jpg Virginia Zucchi, Esmeralda in "La Esmeralda" - http://img446.imageshack.us/img446/1494/926258wg.th.jpg A nice "JC Penny" Photo of Pierre Vladimirov - http://img446.imageshack.us/img446/9278/939902mm.th.jpg Pierina Legnani - http://img398.imageshack.us/img398/7439/202160nt.th.jpg Olga Preobrajenskaya, what ballet I do not know. Look at those legs! - http://img398.imageshack.us/img398/2148/679091mp.th.jpg Anna Pavlova, "La Sylphide" or maybe "Giselle" - http://img380.imageshack.us/img380/4465/270441vj.th.jpg Preobrajenskaya, not sure what ballet http://img493.imageshack.us/img493/152/481443jb.th.jpg The following 2 photos - Kschessinkaya, Niriti in "The Talisman" (I have seen this photo many times in different books, etc., and it is always said to be her in either "Paquita" or "The Awakening of Flora") - 1 - http://img493.imageshack.us/img493/7952/6f1b6bw.th.jpg 2 - http://img493.imageshack.us/img493/3994/351b8lz.th.jpg Spessivtseva, the 'danse du voile' from "La Esmeralda" - http://img493.imageshack.us/img493/3167/691309do.th.jpg The following 2 photos - Kschessinskaya, Esmeralda in "La Esmeralda" - 1 - http://img493.imageshack.us/img493/5404/291435kg.th.jpg 2 - http://img493.imageshack.us/img493/6416/282763ww.th.jpg Anna Pavlova - http://img493.imageshack.us/img493/7609/679080fp.th.jpg Dudinskaya, Nikiya in "La Bayadere" - http://img493.imageshack.us/img493/338/706074wk.th.jpg Karsavina (I think she is costumed for "Le Sperctre de la Rose") - http://img493.imageshack.us/img493/8288/678636io.th.jpg Soloviev, with a ballerina I do not know in "The Kingdom of the Shades " from "La Bayadere" http://img493.imageshack.us/img493/8809/718333ub.th.jpg The following 2 photos - Dudinskaya in "Raymonda" (first one with Sergeyev, I am not sure who is Abderakhman in the 2nd one however) - 1 - http://img493.imageshack.us/img493/8885/955035sx.th.jpg 2 - http://img493.imageshack.us/img493/9599/821477va.th.jpg I have no idea who this ballerina is. Shes obviously dancing Odette. A very lovely photo, and a classically correct attitude as well! http://img97.imageshack.us/img97/2109/972209cy.th.jpg I think this is Alla Shelest in "La Esmeralda" - http://img97.imageshack.us/img97/3009/913216zh.th.jpg Anna Pavlova I think. I dont read Russian - Can anyone tell me what this photo says? - http://img97.imageshack.us/img97/7249/282738po.th.jpg I think this is Preobrajenskaya, though I am not sure - http://img97.imageshack.us/img97/2790/190849li.th.jpg The not so lovely Marie Petipa, about to pull out a dollar from her (in the words of Pavel Gerdt) 'Luxuriant Busom' to give to the dove so it wont fly away - http://img397.imageshack.us/img397/9877/6115wf.th.jpg Ulanova and someone I do not know in "Giselle". What gorgeous feet she has! - Hope you all like! If I have made any errors in describing the pics please let me know! - Solor

Farukh Rouzimitov and Tatiana Terekhova dancing the "Le Corsaire" pas de deux in the film "The Magic of the Kirov" - It is the best performance I have ever seen of this pas, on film or otherwise......after I watched this film on TV when I was 11 I decided to take my 1st ballet class! Tatiana Terekhova dancing the variation of Dulcinea in the Dream sequence from the film of the Kirov's "Don Quixote" - the best I have ever seen, as well as Makhalina's variation, with her wondrous extensions and perfect placing. Larissa Lezhnina and her 2 clown suitors (not sure who they are) in the film "The Maryinsky Ballet" aka "Kirov Classics" dancing the pas de trois from "The Fairy Doll" (its really from Drigo's "Harlequinade") - It is some of the best beautiful, classically perfect dancing I have ever seen on film.

What a tragedy! I was absolutly SHOCKED when I heard the news! This really sucks. I am very very very sad, I took class from him many times, and he taught me the Grand Pas from "La Bayadere". My heart goes out to his family.

I just purchased through the Orchestra Victoria web page a marvelous CD of "don q" as re-orchestrated/revised by John Lanchbery for Nureyev's stagings. It is only available in Australia, through thier site (Im not sure if its available commercialy down-under in the stores, etc.) Heres the link - http://www.stateorchestra.com.au/recording...rding.asp?id=11 I know many people are not all that big of fans of Lanchbery's re-dos of Minkus's scores, but In my opinion his work on "don q" is one of his best (the absolute best being "La Fille Mall Gardee" of course). It is not of the entire ballet - there are quite a few numbers that are not included unfortunatly, but for the most part all of the 'biggest'/most important sections are there, making the listening experience seem complete. The conducting is first rate, exaclty as it would be for the stage. Lanchbery's orchestrations give the Minkus score a much more spanish feel, and sound beautiful on disc. The instrumentation is much improved, and very interesting. There are two numbers - Kitri's entrance, and her variation in the Grand pas where Lanchbery's arrangements are over-kill - Kitri's entrance music - very distinct rhythmically in the original Minkus - is over-done with very behemoth orchestration sounding like Wagner-gone-spanish, and the rhythm is completely lost underneath all of that - there is no loud 1-2-3 beneath the melody a la Minkus for dancing. The other is Kitri's varition in the Grand pas. Lanchbery ruins the music. The original Minkus has a beautiful solo for harp, but Lanchbery has the harp accompanied by flutes, pizzicati, piccolos, and clarinet making the music sound goofy - it makes me think of hopping pink bunnys. But as far as as improvments go - the entire dream sequence is fabulously arranged by Lanchbery, particularly the opening number. In the original Minkus the orchestration is very dull and plain, Lanchbery imporves this a great deal. The grand pas is wonderfully arranged (except for Kitris variation) - the adagio is given to a solo violin, and Basil's variation sounds great accompanied by castanets and strings. I hope that one day Lanchbery's arrangements for "Giselle" are recorded by someone. I am not sure why Adam's score was re-orchestrated by Lanchbery in the first place, as it was not necessary - but no less Lanchbery's work on the score is fabulous (watch the "Live from Lincoln Center" "Giselle" with Makarova and Baryshnikov to hear them).

I have a film I was lucky enough to get a hold of that is of the May 2000 premiere of "Pharaoh's Daughter" with Ananishvili as Aspicia, Filin as Taor, and Alexandrova as Ramzea. I noticed that there were alot of differences between the commercially available DVD with Zakharova dancing Aspicia and this film I have of the premiere. I had posted a topic before about some musial differences I had noticed between the two, but after having become more familiar with both films I must say that there are ALOT of differences - there are not only musical differences between both films but there are also many numbers omitted from the Zakharova DVD. In the film I have of the premiere the introduction at the beginning of the ballet has a different, less spectacular musical structure than that of the introduction at the start of the ballet used in the DVD performance. They both have the same melodic theme, but again, they differ in musical structure and orchestration - for example the DVD intro. has big tympani cresendo at the start, with crashing cymbols, etc. whereas the premiere film has a very simple - almost "little" introduction. In my own opinion the introduction played by the orchestra in the film of the premiere sounds more along the lines of something Pugni would have created than the one played in the DVD performance. In the DVD with Zakharova the prologue goes right into the first scene, but in the film I have of the premiere there is a sort of miniature enter'acte before Act I begins, a little introduction of sorts that builds into the first number of Act I. The adagio that occurs at the first meeting of Aspicia and Taor is very simple as far as musical structure and orchestration goes in the premiere film - there are no colorful touches to the music, but in the DVD it is alot more elaboratly arranged - it is the same with the orchestration of the opening number of Act I - the 2 part 'Pas de Fleche' - in the premiere film the arrangements are very dull and simple but in the DVD they are very colorful and elaborate. Another interesting difference between the two performances is the decor for the 1st Act. On the DVD the backcloth has a big gray hill-looking-thing behind the mounds that covers half of the sky, but in the premiere film its not there, and the backcloth just resembles the blue sky, with only a few mounds at the bottom (where Aspicia runs up to almost get attacked by a lion). There is a little introduction at the start of Act II in the premiere film that is not in the DVD, another abcense of an intro before a scene. In the DVD, after the grand coda of the Grand Pas d'Action, there follows the scene where Aspicia is taken away by woman with a long scarf, and then the Nubian King and the Pharaoh trade scrolls. In the performance I have of the premiere there is a dance that comes right after the grand coda of the Grand Pas d'Action where 3 woman dressed in white perform a little dance to the music of a solo trumpet - this number is omitted from the DVD. After that comes the number for the corps de ballet and the children dressed in white, which is in both the DVD and the premiere film. Interestingly, that number with the children and corps de ballet dressed in white is the exact same music used for the coda of the Riccardo Drigo Pas de Deux from "La Esmeralda". As well, the variation danced by Taor in the Grand Pas d'Action is the male variation from the Pas de Deux from Drigo's "Le Talisman". In the premiere film there is a little introduction before the opening of Act III, followed by a dance for the fisherman. After that Aspicia, Taor, and Passifont make their entrance on the boat. That number leads into a little pas d'action where Aspicia mimes to the fishermen/& woman about her love for Taor, and asks if her Taor and Passifont can 'hang' there, and then that number leads into the little allegro dance with Aspicia, Taor, and the fishermen/& woman. In the DVD, the introduction is omitted. The fisherman's dance is edited to be just a little passage that leads into the music that was used in the premiere film for Aspicia's little mime scene - in the DVD that same music is used to accompany the entrance of Aspicia, Taor and Passifont on the boat, thus omiting the pas de deux (so basically the music for the mime sequence and pas de deux is used for the entrance on the boat in the DVD). Everything else is the same, up to the part when Taor and Passifont decide to go fishing with the fishermen/& woman - on the premiere film the scene is longer: after Taor and Passifont decide to go fishing and leave Aspicia by herself, 2 fisherwoman come back looking for Passifont, who has managed to come back unseen and is now hiding behind a basket munching on grapes. There follows a little number where Aspicia tries to hide Passifont from the fisherwoman (a really charming little number I might add). They end up finding him, and they go off to go fish. Everything is the same untill the under water scene. There is another miniature enter-acte that is omitted on the DVD. In the film of the premiere there are harp arpeggios that accompany Aspica's descent to the bottom of the Nile - in the DVD the music goes right from the opening number of the underwater scene to the fanfares that preceed the first variation, skipping right over the harp section that is in the premiere film. They should have left that harp section intact, its very effective! Again, in the premiere film there is a little intro for the 3rd scene of Act III that isnt in the DVD. In this scene (where the Pharaoh wants to kill Taor, Passifont, and Ramzea via the snake with the red eyes in the big boquet of flowers - oh yeah and guy costumed like hes about to perform a 1920s black-faced minstrel) there is the part where Aspicia returns. In the film of the premiere there is a very long mime sequence where Aspicia tells the Pharoah about everything that has happened since her and Taor ran away. In this mime sequence there is even a reprise of the dance that her and Taor did during the fisherman scene. Ananiashvili REALLY gets into this mime section in the film of the premiere, so much so that her hair began to fall out of its bun! In the DVD this mime scene is very brief. It could very well be that all of the introductions for each scene that were left out of the DVD could have been left on the cutting room floor - edited out for the sake of the DVD. As well, the ballet could have been edited especially for the DVD filming. For most of the music throughout the film I have of the premiere, the orchestration is very simple and plain, where as in the DVD it is alot more elaborate and colorful. I know that Alexander Sotnikov gave the score a "face-lift" to use his own words. Perhaps it didnt happen untill after the ballet's premiere, as the music used in the premiere performance sounds alot more like something Pugni would have scored.

I dont know.....it very well could be. I have everything Delibes ever wrote for the ballet on CD in a few recordings - including the ballet sections from his operas - and that variation doesnt turn up anywhere. Maybe Delibes wrote a few supplemental variations, etc. for various works during his lifetime, and that is where this variation had its orgins - but I have never heard of anything, aside from "Le Jardin Anime", that was an interpolation of his into another ballet.

I just find it really tragic................Now, mind you I LOVE Lacotte's staging of "Pharaoh's Daughter", and I think he did an excellent job with the work. But when it comes to authenticity, he had the opportunity to stage this ballet with actual bonafied original Petipa dances, AND HE OMITS THEM! I find it interesting that in the documentary about the ballet Lacotte does not mention this omition of the river variations. He does mention Doug's help with the notation (you Rock Doug). He says that he (Lacotte is reffering to himself not Doug) salvaged 2 passages from the notation, and I quote - "Firstly Pas d'Action, and a waltz." - (HUH?) what hes reffering to I have no clue, maybe its just the way his french was translated, but that sounds very vague........there is a waltz in the Grand Pas d'action of Act II, right after the Grand Adagio (#12 on the DVD) for 2 girls, one boy, and 12 corps de ballet girls in white tutus. Perhaps its this? Doug stated in a earlier post that- quote - "I reconstructed 5 of the 6 river variations for Lacotte for his Daughter of Pharaoh, but he didn't use any of them (in the versions I provided). He did use three (I think, maybe it was two with the first being longer - it's been a while now - I should buy the DVD and check!) variations in one of the court scenes. One is for two women and the other is for a man (Lacotte added a double tour at the end)." There is a double tour performed by the man at the end of this waltz......... Now as far as the River variations goes, what a tragedy that Doug did this great work, actual bonafied Petipa (at least most of it) and Lacotte didnt make use of it! He crated his own choreography, and then he only used 3 of the variations instead of 6. Doug stated - quote - "I reconstructed 5 of the 6 river variations for Lacotte for his Daughter of Pharaoh, but he didn't use any of them (in the versions I provided). He did use three (I think, maybe it was two with the first being longer - it's been a while now - I should buy the DVD and check!) variations in one of the court scenes." Perhaps hes reffering to the 3 variations (#10 on the DVD - 2 for 2 girls, and 1 for 1 boy) in the Grand Pas d'Action of Act II (in the court of the Pharaoh) that comes after the entree of the Grand Pas d'Action. Lacotte says in the documentary on the DVD that he learned the variation for the boy from Volonine, one of Anna Pavlova's partners. Now it has to be the variation that comes before the Grand Adagio of Aspicia and her hand-held mirror (#11 on the DVD) and after the 2 variations for the 2 girls, as the variation for Taor toward the end of the Grand Pas d'Action (the ony other solo for a boy in this section of the ballet) is from "The Talisman" pas de deux (the music at least).

I just checked Rolan Wiley's book "A Century of Russian Ballet (1810-1910)". In it is the orignal 1862 libretto for "The Pharaoh's Daughter"......the rivers represented were the Guadalaquivir, the Thames, the Rhine, the Congo, the Neva, and the Tiber. That is 6 variations.......as well the libretto says that there were dances for the naiads and undines (water nymphs). All of this was perfomed as a Grand Ballabile, sort of in the context of a Grand pas de Six with dances for corphees. Why on earth did Lacotte make it merely 3 variatons and a coda?

What rivers are being represented in Lacotte's revival of "Pharaoh's Daughter"? I know in the original Petipa there were 6 variations but in newer version there are only 3 - which rivers do they represent?

I have a film I was lucky enough to get a hold of that is of the May 2000 premiere of "Pharaoh's Daughter" with Ananishvili as Aspicia, Filin as Taor, and Alexandrova as Ramzea. I noticed that there were alot of differences between the commercially available DVD with Zakharova dancing Aspicia and this film I have of the premiere. I had posted a topic before about some musial differences I had noticed between the two, but after having become more familiar with both films I must say that there are ALOT of differences - there are not only musical differences between both films but there are also a few numbers that are omitted from the Zakharova DVD. In the film I have of the premiere the introduction at the beginning of the ballet has a different, less spectacular musical structure than that of the introduction at the start of the ballet used in the DVD performance. They both have the same melodic theme, but again, they differ in musical structure and orchestration. In my own opinion the introduction played by the orchestra in the film of the premiere sounds more along the lines of something Pugni would have created than the one played in the DVD performance. In the DVD with Zakharova the prologue goes right into the first scene, but in the film I have of the premiere there is a sort of miniature enter'acte before Act I begins, a little introduction of sorts that builds into the first number of Act I. The adagio that occurs at the first meeting of Aspicia and Taor is very simple as far as musical structure and orchestration, but in the DVD it is alot more elaborate - it is the same with the orchestration of the opening number of Act I - the 'Pas de Fleche' - in the premiere film the arrangements are very dull and simple but in the DVD they are very colorful and elaborate. Another interesting difference between the two performances is the decor for the 1st Act. On the DVD the backcloth has a big gray hill-looking-thing behind the mounds that covers half of the sky, but in the premiere film its not there, and the backcloth just resembles the blue sky, with only a few mounds at the bottom (where Aspicia runs up to almost get attacked by a lion). There is a little introduction st the start of Act II in the premiere film that is not in the DVD, another abcense of an intro before a scene. After the Pas d'Action is over, there is a dance for 3 woman with the corps de ballet dressed in white to the music of a solo trumpet (it comes right before the scene where the Nubian King and the Pharaoh trade the scrolls). This number is omitted on the DVD. After that comes the number for the corps de ballet and the children dressed in white, which is in both the DVD and the premiere film. Interestingly, that number with the children and corps de ballet dressed in white is the same music that occurs in the coda of the Drigo Pas de Deux from "La Esmeralda". As well, the variation danced by Taor in the Grand Pas d'Action is the male variation from the Pas de Deux from Drigo's "Le Talisman". In the premiere film there is a little introduction before the opening of Act III, followed by a dance for the fisherman. After that Aspicia, Taor, and Passifont make their entrance on the boat. That number leads into a little pas d'action where Aspicia mimes to the fishermen/& woman about her love for Taor, and asks if her Taor and Passifont can 'hang' there, that number leads into the little allegro dance with Aspicia, Taor, and the fishermen/& woman. In the DVD, the introduction is omitted. The fisherman's dance is edited to be just a little passage that leads into the music that was used at the premiere for Aspicia's little mime scene - in the DVD that same music is used to accompany the entrance of Aspicia, Taor and Passifont on the boat, thus omiting the pas de deux (so basically the music for the mime sequence of Aspicia is used for the entrance on the boat in the DVD). Everything else is the same, up to the part when Taor and Passifont decide to go fishing with the fishermen/& woman - on the premiere film the scene is longer: after Taor and Passifont decide to go fishing and leave Aspicia by herself, 2 fisherwoman come back looking for Passifont, who has managed to come back unseen and is now hiding behind a basket munching on grapes. There follows a little number where Aspicia tries to hide Passifont from the fisherwoman (a really charming little number I might add). They end up finding him, and they go off to go fish. Everything is the same untill the under water scene. There is another miniature enter-acte before the scene that is omitted on the DVD. In the film of the premiere there are harp arpeggios that accompany Aspica's descent to the bottom of the Nile - in the DVD the music goes right from the opening number of the underwater scene to the fanfares that preceed the first variation, skipping right over the harp section that is in the premiere film. They should have left that harp section intact, its very effective! Again, in the premiere film is a little intro for the 3rd scene of Act III that isnt in the DVD. In this scene (where the Pharaoh wants to kill Taor, Passifont, and Ramzea via the snake with the red eyes in the big boquet of flowers - oh yeah and guy costumed like hes about to perform a black-face minstrel) there is the part where Aspicia returns. In the film of the premiere there is a very long mime sequence where Aspicia tells the Pharoah about everything that has happened since her and Taor ran away. In this mime sequence there is even a reprise of the dance that her and Taor did during the fisherman scene. Ananiashvili REALLY gets into this mime section in the film of the premiere, so much so that her hair began to fall out of its bun! In the DVD this mime scene is very brief. It could very well be that all of introductions to each scene that were left out of the DVD could have been left on the cutting room floor, and edited out for the sake of the DVD. As well, th ballet could have been shortened especially for the DVD filming. For most of the music throughout the film I have of the premiere, the orchestration is very simple and plain, where as in the DVD it is alot more elaborate. I know that Alexander Sotnikov gave the score a "face-lift" to use his own words. Perhaps it didnt happen untill after the ballet's premiere.

I have read that the Bolshoi pulled Lacottes revival of 'Daughter' from being eligable to recieve a golden mask award.....why? What is this award?

ITS A GREAT PERFORMANCE..............I WATCH IT ALL THE TIME! The performance is filmed very well, everything is 100% clear. I only wish that the corps de ballet was shown more in the Grand Pas d'Action of Act II, as well as the really cool pattern that the hunters make with thier spears at the end of the Pas de Fleche of Act I. Svetlana Zkharova is absolutly phenominal, with wonderul technique, as is Alexander Filin. He is an extraordinary dancer, with perfect, very easy technique that doesnt make a spectacle of itself (if you know what I mean), and instead his performance is what is at the forfront. The best parts of the whole ballet is without a doubt the totaly elaborate Grand Pas d'Action, and the adagio followed by variations in Act I. It is the Grand Pas that contains the variations of Petipa, among them the one danced by Ramzea. There is an absolutly gorgeous adagio that takes place when Aspicia and Taor meet, followed 3 very entertaining variations for Taor, Ramzea, and Aspicia. The music of Pungi is a ton of fun. Ive heard some pretty scathing things about it, but as a ballet dancer I must say that the music completly shows of the movements of ballet 100%. It is tuneful and exciting. I really hope someone records the socre. Alexandrova dances Ramzea. She is divine. She has a sort of "2nd ballerina" role in the ballet though she is not in every single scene of the ballet. Her jumps are amazing, particularly her saut de chats in the Act I opening 'Pas de Fleche' and in her variations - I believe that Alexandrova won the Golden Mask award for the role. Svetlana Zakharova is so amazing its hard to imagine one being better technically, her point work is astounding when one watches it up close.

WOW! Where can one get a hold of that?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!? Id love to get a hold of that - is it a video set???? DVD?

OH GOD, here we go why in the **** does ballet always have to be this big ole thing that is filled with all this meaning? If a ballet has foutees and big jumps in one section and then petite allegro in another, why is it all of the sudden 2 different styles? Why cant it all just be BALLET....end of story? DAUGHTER is a GREAT ballet.....the Act I opening dances of the Huntresses are Grrrrrrr8 to the schmoltzy music of Pugni.......the adagio when Taor 1st meets Aspicia as well as the 3 variations that follow, again to that rum-ti-tum music of Pugni. I LOVE the Act II Grand Pas - I think its the best part of the whole ballet - a true Danse d'ecole, and of course the underwater scene. And lets not leave out the scene of the slave getting condemed by the snake....100% politically incorrect! Cant we just have fun? What would you rather have....Giselle? Some viliage girl who goes postal when she finds out her boyfriend is really a prince betrothed to some snotty royal lady? Hey if he didnt really like her he wouldnt have been there in the 1st place, Im pretty sure that he wasnt using her for.................Compared to that the plot of DAUGHTER is equally ridiculous.......BUT, who cares?

I wish someone would do an in-depth documentary on the Imperial Ballet during Petipa's reign. Or has someone?

I did a serarch here on Ballet Talk for anything on "La Fille mal Gardee" and there were slim pickins. It hasnt been talked about on here much in an in-depth way (at least that I know of......), and Ive got alot of questions regarding the ballet that I thought could start a good discussion of it..... I was wondering if anyone knows, where did Ashton/Lanchbery get the music for the Royal Ballet version from? Is the score Lanchbery adapted from Imperial Russia? I know Petipa staged "La Fille Mal Gardee" in 1885 for the Imperial Ballet to the music of Hertel....was this a brand new score or was it an adaptation of Herold's score or even of the music used for Dauberval's orignal version? When/Why did the Kirov stop performing Petipa's/Ivanov's "Fille Mal Gardee"? I know many of the great ballerinas of old at the Imperial Ballet danced the role of Lise (Preobrajenska, Kschessinska, etc). Does any part of this staging survive? Are there any elements of this version in Ashton's version? QuestionsQuestionsQuestionsQuestionsQuestionsQuestionsQuestionsQuestions......

I would love to read that article Doug! Can one access it via the internet? Some had to have re-orchestrated the music for 'Jardin Anime' for Petipa's revival, as that is what came down to us. MinkusPugni - Yes the Entree of the Odalisques is by Adam, and the rest of the pas is by, well, whoever composed it. But the arrangements of this number are far more beautiful than those of ABT (re-arranged by Kevin Galie) or the Mariinksy, which are really dull. The ending of this number in the Binynge recording is far more elaborate. This recording turns up every once in a while on Ebay, but rarely. When I got mine I got it via Amazon.com and it cost me $70!!! It turns up on Amazon.com even less often that it does on Ebay.

Bonynge's recording of "Le Corsaire" (Decca 430 286-2 out-of-print) is not of the music as it was first performed in 1856, but of the revival of 1867 as re-staged by Mazilier for the ballerina Adele Grantzow. Included is the Leo Delibes additions for 'Jardin Anime' from the 1867 score. When compared to the version used at the Mariinksy (& ABT, etc.) today of 'Jardin Anime' there are differences. I know Petipa mounted the ballet in 1899 for the Imperial Ballet and after hearing this recording it seems someone (Drigo more than likely) re-orchestrated the music very heavily for Petipa's revival. What is recorded here is - Track 6- Valse de Naila (the opening Waltz) Track 7- Andante (Medora's adagio with the Corps de Ballet) followed by a reprise of the Waltz and and introduction to the following Varaition Track 8- Variation for Mme Fioretti (not the traditional harp solo varaition for Gulnare). Next is the introduction of Medora's solo, but in this case its the music used today as the opening of the Coda (the slower music that starts the coda before the music gets fast) Track 9- Variation for Mme Grantzow (Medora's Variation - not the tradtional one used today) Track 10- Finale (this is the familiar coda used today but without the slow opening) followed by a reprise of the Waltz The music for the waltz, adagio, and coda is the same but the orchestrations are far more simple, though no less beautiful. It is obvious that when Petipa had the music revised for his 1899 staging he had the intro to Medora's variation used as an intro to the coda. The Variations themselves were ommited and replaced with other variations and the music for the scene was heavily re-orchestarted. Was it Drigo? It had to have been, because he also added in the Pas de Deux a Trois, and he was the one guy that would have done such a job. The re-orchestarted smaterial used today is basically an expantion of Delibes orignally arranged. The Bonynge recording sounds way more like something Delibes would have done as far as orchestrations - they are very simple, adequate, and beautiful, where as the Mariinksy version is far more eleborate - as many of Drigo's orchestrations are (in his own ballets, etc). But, I am not 100% certain that it was Drigo that re-orchestrated the score of 'Jardin Anime', but like I said, who else would have re-arranged it? Another interesting addition in Bonynge's recording of "Le Corsaire" is that of the Pas des Odalisques - it is not the entire pas de trois as came to us through Petipa but just the entree, and it was Adolphe Adam that composed it. It is much more beautifully arranged and has a far more elaborate ending than that of the Russian version. I found this to be and interesting addition to this recording. Another interesting addition is that of the 3rd variation from the 'Pas des Odalisques'. It is included on track 4 of CD 2 of the Bonynge recording (This is Act II of the ballet). The Track is simply titled 'Action' in the booklet. It consists of many little numbers and is 16 minutes and 34 seconds long. Among the numbers included is what is now known as 'Variation 3' of the Trio of the Odalisques. This number is very elaboratly orchestrated, and the ending leads into the next number. So, it was Adam that composed this variation.

So anyway, back to my original post, doesnt anyone know who the coaches I asked about are?

Cygnet said - "(Vinogradov Said at the end of a performance of "Swan Lake" act I/scene 2). . . ALL OF THE ENDINGS IN THE ADAGIO WERE LATE!" All of them? Uh no, not so. On the contrary, Mezentseva took the pdd at tortoise pace. They had to follow her, therefore this really wasn't the corps' or Fedotov's fault. They had to wait forever for her to shape the next phrase. It's a testimony to their professionalism and training that no one overbalanced." I dont think that the scene of Vinogradov scolding the Corps de Ballet actually took place after the performance that is shown. It seems to me that the performance footage was filmed seperatly, most likely especially for those making the documentary, and the footage of after-performance/backstage-while-during-performance footage was filmed while a real live performance was taking place, but not during the performance that is shown in the documentary. Alot of the camera work, particularly during the "Entrance of the Swans", and the scene where the 'Petite Cygnets' take their places for their pas is done right on stage with the dancers. If you look closely at the performance footage shown of Act II (or in the Kirov's case Act I scene 2) youll notice that you never see the conductor conducting in the pit - usually during filmed live performance you get glimpses of the conductor's baton, arms and hands going up and down, etc.

to bad I dont live in NYC!

I just watched the Mezentseva/Terekhova/Zaklinksy film of "Giselle". I marvel everytime Ive watched how PERFECT (I dont use that word lightly when speaking of ballet) the corps is in the "Dance of the Wilis" -(for those who dont know - the pas that comes right before Giselle makes here entrance as a Wili). Also, the incredible precision and Icey-ness of Terekhova as Myrha. Mezentseva is great, as well as Zaklinksy. Of all the "Giselle's" Ive seen live or otherwise this has to be, BY FAR, the best staging of the dances as well as the overall production. The quality of this film is great, the cinematography, etc., and the orchestra is well recorded. I just read RG's and Nina Alovert's articles in response to Gabriella Komleva's "Why Petipa is loosing at competitions" article from Dance Mag. 1994. In Alovert's part of the article, when discussing the changes that the ballets of Petipa have gone through at the Kirov/Mariinksy, she says - "The only ballet (Petipa choreographed) (in the current Mariinksy Repertory) that has experienced almost no changes is Petipa's 1884 version of Giselle, after Coralli and Perrot." Is this true? Why are the stagings of ABT so different from that of the Kirov? For example, I remember seeing "Giselle" in NY and in the waltz section of the "Wilis Pas" Myrtha stands in the middle, where as in the Mariinksy staging shes not even on stage - the Wilis are grouped around Myrtha in the ABT staging (as well as other western stagings) but since shes nowhere to be found in this part, the dancers are in rows. The choreagraphy for this pas is the same I guess as far as the foundation goes, but the details differ greatly to that of the Mariinksy staging. It is the same with the 'Entrance of Myrtha' - completely different movements. These differences showed up everywhere when I saw "Giselle" performed by ABT. How accurate to the 1884 Petipa staging is the current "Giselle" at the Mariinksy? Was the 1884 staging of Petipa the last time he revised "Giselle"? Is this where the Minkus additions to the score come from? Lots of Questions.......................

where can one find this book? There are 0 listings on B&N.com

Just wondering who some of the coaches are in "Backstage @ the Kirov". In the beginning of the documentary, there is a very fiery lady wanting nothing less than perfection from the ballerinas. She is rehearsing them in the 'Swan's Waltz' from Act II of "Swan Lake" (or in the Kirov's case, Act 1 scene 2). Later in the film she is also rehearsing the 'Dance of little swans'. There is another coach. In this case he is rehearsing the 'waltz of the prospective fiancees' from the ballroom scene of "Swan Lake", and a little later a modern number. He has a very big mole on his nose. The other coach Im wondering about is rehearsing two dancers in a modern number, and the movements arent turning out quite right. He is a great big burly man with a beard. The dancers names are, from the conversation I picked up, are Petya (sounds more like a nickname) and Tatiana. Who are these people?

I have a recording of the music for the "Diane & Acteon Pas de Deux" by Drigo (unnecessarily re-orchestrated by Peter March - Drigo's arrangments are great!) via Richard Bonynge and the English Concert Orchestra in a 2 CD set called "Ballet Gala" (London 421 819-2, out-of-print). In the booklet it says - "The "Diane & Acteon Pas de Deux" was added to diversify Petipa's 1886 revision of "La Esmeralda"." Is this true? Or is it a later creation to music that was used in "La Esmeralda"? I have the film of "La Esmeralda" danced by the Mussorgsky Ballet and the "Diane & Acteon Pas de Deux" shows up nowhere in the film, nor does any of the music from it. Neither does the "La Esmeralda Pas de Deux" by Drigo. Where does the "Diane & Acteon Pas de Deux" fit in the ballet as a whole? What about the Pas de Deux? For what dancers were these pieces created? After Petipa, who revised the choreography? Also - I have a film called "Essential Ballet" of the Kirov/Mariinksy at the Royal Opera House and at a Red Square Gala - it contains a performance by Lezhnina & Ruzimitov of the "Diane & Acteon Pas de Deux". This is the only performance I have ever seen live or on film where a corps de ballet is part of the Pas. Along with dressing up the Entree and Adagio, they have a dance right after it to music that matches the rest of Pas; they do not participate in the coda however. I have danced in this Pas myself quite a few times, and there was never a corps de ballet in it (Marat Daukeyev taught me this pas, a former Kirov dancer, and he never staged a part for a corps nor did he ever mention a corps being part of the way it is danced in Russia. He was very fond of throwing lots of Ballet History trivia at us dancers, in class and rehearsal, and I think he would have mentioned at least once a corps being part of the "real thing"). Is this performance the "true" way to dance this Pas? Or is it something that the Kirov/Mariinksy Ballet made for this performance?