Dreamer

I would be curious to see Maria VInogradova as Giselle. Marianna Ryzhkina would be my dream but the chance of it is 0%. She is considered as having reached the retirement age and too old for such roles.

The appearance of Sergei Polunin in "Sleeping Beauty" at La Scala on Septmeber 26, October 2 and 6 was cancelled due to "a neck disease". I wonder if this is going to affect his announced performance at the Bolshoi on October 11. It would be quite disappointing if he were to withdraw from the Giselle broadcast as well. To me he is one of the ultimate Albrechts of his generation of dancers and I was looking forward to seeing him. http://www.teatroallascala.org/en/season/opera-ballet/2014-2015/sleeping-beauty.html

The Bolshoi posted on its website (Russian version only) that the broadcasted performance of Giselle on October 11 will star Svetlana Zakharova and Sergei Polunin. http://bolshoi.ru/about/press/articles/2015/3425/

Thank you for compiling the list, volcanohunter. So happy to see multiple theaters and different dates for my area.

I am actually thinking about flying to LA for CInderella instead of seeing it at Berkeley. Not only tickets are less expensive, which would partially compensate the cost of airfare, but the stage and acoustics at the Dorothy Chandler pavilion are much better suited for ballet than the Zelerbach Hall.

I may be in minority here but I don't find the idea on Ferri coming from retirement to perform in R&J all that exciting. Throughout my ballet going years I admired many dancers and later saw them retire but I wouldn't like any of them to come back for a full length old classic. I'd prefer to see my favorite ballerinas in pieces choreographed specifically on them (Sylvie Guillem, Wendy Whelan, Muriel Maffre). It is has nothing to do with the inevitable loss of technique, I simply believe that moving forward is a much smarter choice than tyring to recapture the past. Besides, I want to see younger dancers being given an opportunity to develop their skills and artistry. With only 7 or 8 performances of each ballet during the Met season, what are the chances for this?

Thank you for sharing this. Unfortunately, I got all my tickets on the first day of sale to non-subscribers at a full price I rushed to buy as I expected tickets to sell fast. But suprisingly the sale at SCFTA has been very sluggish. CInderella at Zellerbach Hall in Berkeley is selling much better, although ticket prices are higher, even in the balcony section ($45-$75).

I looked through the available vieos of SFB on youtube and this time spotted all the mentioned principals (Tan, Kochetkova, Zahorian, Feijoo, Chung, Karapetyan, Nedvigin, Garcia Castilla) whom I failed noticing during the live stream. I guess after 12 hours of nonstop watching my brain stopped paying attention.

I enjoyed Akimov's class, rehearsals of The Legend of Love and discussions around A Hero of Our Time between Possokhov and Serebrennikov. The hostess was annoying at times and the overall presentation could've been less discursive. But other than that I can't think of anything that can be characterized as nauseating. And yes, sparsely attended morning classes are not uncommon. The class at SFB was also far from full; among the principals I only saw Yuan Yuan Tan. But I might be mistaken.

Four out of the five ballet companies represented in WBD are from English speaking countries. Conversations conducted in a foreign language might sometimes come across as unfriendly, unauthentic or staged if one doesn't understand it. Besides a lot of details get lost in translation.

Best wishes to Clara Blanco. I was hoping to see more of her in the coming season since I always enjoyed her dancing - elegant, effortless, musical - but can understand that this was a career opportunity she didn't want to miss.

I would love to see Stella Abrera and Maria Kochetkova. No Osipova, please.

I am sure there are plenty of us who avoid certain artists because we find them incapable of the interpretation we expect to see. Does it mean their thoughts or opinions are devoid of weight?

Copeland is not less notable on social media than Kochetkova; both use the standart set of services (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter) and have approximately the same amount of followers. Kochetkova might have a wider outreach simply because she, unlike Copeland, has connections to the dance scene in Europe and Japan.

Thank you, volcanohunter, for posting the link to Paloma's interview. I didn't know much about her childhood or adolescence years so I thoroughly enjoyed reading this interview. Paloma is not only a gracious dancer but also a genial and genuine individual who has great love and respect for her art. There was a tint of sorrow in her words and many on this board found her lament condescending but to me she epitomizes a true artist.

Casting for Raymonda at SCFTA in Costa Mesa has been announced. Victoria Tereshkina, Oxana Skorik and Anastasia Matvienko will dance the part of Raymonda. http://www.scfta.org/events/detail.aspx?id=13142

Although I am disspointed over the absence of the Royal Ballet at Fathom Events but I am not crying buckets. Last year they programmed too much of Osipova whose dancing I never enjoyed. But I nevertheless supported them by diligently attending every broadcast. Sadly, the attendance of RB performances was very poor in contrast to the Bolshoi that always drew a substantial crowd. The reason for this could've been a less convenient screening time (Wednesday nights as opposed to Sunday matinees) but also a lack of interest. The very few people turning up for the Royals were die-hard ballet fans while the Bolshoi audiences were more diverse. Additional factor playing in favor of Boshoi was the possibility of buying a series package at 30% discount that was not offered for RB. Apparently, the Bolshoi did very well as this season the screening in the Bay Area has expanded from two theaters to seven.

Thank you for the reminder. I got my tickets as soon as the website opened the sale to email subscribers. Since the cast is always a big uncertainty with Mariinsky I bought tickets to three shows (Thu, Fri and Sat eve) and might add one more. I am not planning to see CInderella so might as well go on a splurge for Raymonda. Praying for Lopatkina to join the SoCal tour.

I like the High LIne Hotel on 10th & W20th but it's expensive. Last year I got a great deal when I booked it in a package with airfare. http://thehighlinehotel.com/

I don't know much about the fundraising business at ABT so I judge someone's fundraising skills by the numbers I can find in the newspapers. And these numbers do not convince me that Moore is an extremely susseessful fundraiser. The last year gala (Spring 2014) raised $1.7 million. For comparison, at SFB the number was $2.4 million. Edited to add: Now that I've learned about Ms. Moore's potential salary package I will not be taking calls from LA's Music Center asking for donations.

This is the ballet news of the year. Congratulations to Ms. Messmer. May she find professional satisfaction at MCB.

Thank you for the update. Glad to hear that Kristina hasn't quit ballet and is just switching companies.

Kristina Lind and Dana Genshaft were removed from the roster. I will miss these two dancers whose dancing I always enjoyed but saw so little of. I believe Dana has retired from ballet but hope that Kristina continues dancing somewhere else. I wish both of them success in their plans for the future. And thank you for many great moments. Lauren Strongin from Houston Ballet joins as a soloist.

She doesn't need to fly back as she will be in the US on tour with RB. She is scheduled to dance Don Quixote on June 13 in Washington and June 21 in Chicago.

Best of luck to Maria Kochetkova for next week performances of La Bayedere. I wish I could be there.