canbelto

I agree that Tiler Peck simply sparkled in Donizetti Variations. I love her ability to seem like she's never really touching the ground, just skimming it. She's by far my favorite dancer currently in the NYCB. I thought the three ladies who made their debuts last night in Tchai Suite #3 were all fantastic -- Reichlen was glamorous and enticing, Rebecca Krohn lyrical with a very soft, pliant back, and Erica Pereira very fine as well. Bouder and Veyette were great in T&V. Bouder was so good at the balances, so solid, so confident. Veyette was a good partner, but looked somewhat tired. Understandable, considering he's been dancing almost every night since the winter season began.

Flames of Paris has been released on DVD, and the Nutcracker is available in Europe. I understand the Giselle is going to be released in Europe as well.

I found this http://www.dancemagazine.com/issues/January-2012/Temple-of-Technique. Nice article about Vaganova Academy, enjoy folks!

This is what I wrote at the time: I feel as if today's performance was generally well-danced, but fell below magical. Part of the problem may be the Bolshoi production. It's very pretty visually, but there are some odd artistic choices. There is a weird reshuffling of some of Act One. All the critical mime is cut, from Berthe's warning about the Wilis to the conversation between Giselle and Bathilde. Albrecht did not scoot immediately when he heard the nobleman hunting party horn, but rather seemed to wander offstage without the audience noticing. For some reason the Spessivtseva variation is placed before the peasant pas de deux. Traditionally the peasant pas de deux is danced in front of the hunting party, and then as they leave and Albrecht returns, the Spessivtseva variation is danced. That ordering makes more dramatic sense because Giselle is dancing in front of her "man," and I've seen Giselles who look directly at Albrecht the whole time as she hops across the stage. The dance becomes one of love. But in the Bolshoi production, Giselle dances the Spessivtseva variation to no one in particular, and the peasant pas de deux is also danced for no one in particular. A lot of the drama of Act One is diffused by this odd artistic choice. In the peasant pas de deux, I looked up a new name -- Chinara Alizade, who was a total delight. She's still in the corps de ballet, and is definitely a name to watch out for in the future. Andrei Bolotin's variation had some moments which could have been cleaner. In Act Two, a lot of Myrtha's mime is also cut, so as a result she is no longer as terrifying or authoritative. And for some reason the Wilis are not as aggressive in this production as they are in others -- they don't pull of Giselle's veil, they don't really furiously push Hilarion down their diagonal line and to his death. He just kind of travels down the diagonal line of Wilis and jumps into the lake, without much of a push from Myrtha's captains. I suspect a lot of these choices might have to do with the Russian antipathy for mime, and love of pure-dancing. But the story, as I said, is weakened by these choices. The Giselle was Svetlana Lunkina, who was the pupil of one of the most legendary Giselles of all time, Ekaterina Maximova. Lunkina like her late, great teacher is dark-haired and fragile looking. But she's also much more serious and reserved as a dancer, and lacks that kind of radiance that Maximova had even in old age. Her Spessivtseva variation was extremely well-danced -- she made it across the stage effortlessly. Her interpretation of Giselle is that of a serious, shy girl, and very understated. Her Mad Scene was quiet and introverted. No hysterical tears, pulling her hair, laughing maniacally, running frantically across the stage. It's pretty, but the reckless passion for dancing and for Albrecht that some of the most famous Giselles conveyed are not in Lunkina's portrayal. I found Lunkina more disappointing in the second act. I do feel as if in Act 2 the great Giselles will exude a sense of abandon, or a sense of deep spiritual love and forgiveness. Many of them use stage tricks, like extra layers in their tulle tutus, or dark eyeshadow, to make the experience more otherworldly. Lunkina is still the shy, reserved girl of Act One. She went through the act in a rather A-B-C fashion, without either flying across the stage as an ethereal spirit or holding poses long enough to make a striking image. She doesn't have that much elevation in her jumps, or expansiveness in her movements. In the grand pas de deux she had moments of definite shakiness, and did not hold the exposed developpes and arabesques for a long time. Her face was passive and immobile. It was professional, but it wasn't transcendent. Her Albrecht, Dmitry Gudanov, I thought was somewhat callow in Act One. Didn't really portray a very vivid character. But in Act 2, he exhibited an absolutely beautiful classical line, and didn't seem to tire at all. As Lunkina's Giselle became more reserved, I felt as if Gudanov turned up the heat and provided the performance with the necessary sense of abandon. I loved how at the very end of the ballet, he walked across the stage backwards, dropping flower petals as he walked, and finally sunk to the stage in grief. Maria Allash at Myrtha didn't make as much of an impact as desired. She's a tall, stern-looking woman but for some reason doesn't exude the absolute authority and imperiousness of the best Myrthas. I noticed that instead of entering the stage with a series of bourrees she kind of bounded onstage, then stepped backwards and started boureeing. Weird. Her jumps were a bit workmanlike. The Wilis moved with a lot of unison, and a wonderfully severe line. They're travelling arabesques had their legs all at a perfect 90 degree angle, their torsos and heads upright, without any softening of the line that many Wilis will do to give a more Romantic look.

I think if anyone attempted this Spessivtseva solo the way Alonso did in this video it'd certainly be applauded to the rafters: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMyYsjm278Y As for ballet that does NOT hold up well, I think all those dram-ballet films made in the 1950's by the Soviets look funny today. All that melodramatic stomping, the poor turnout, the exaggerated acting, the hammer-and-sickel storylines ...

This definitely holds up over time. Soloviev's entrechats, Komleva's speed and precision, both just breathtaking. In terms of elevation, height, speed, and dynamic dancing, Plisetskaya's Kitri: And this is still the most moving rendition I've ever seen:

I highly suggest people run, don't walk to see Ashley Bouder's Firebird. Absolutely stunning performance from her tonight. Her jumps, her speed, even her habit of turning her face extremely forward to the audience, all fit the role to a T. She was simply spectacular. Jonathan Stafford was disappointingly bland as the Prince. But this was Bouder's triumph.

I actually don't like sitting in center orchestra. The first and second ring offers a much better view of the formation of the corps de ballet, very important in Balanchine. Moreover, the stage from the orchestra seats often seems shallow and overly wide, while from the rings the whole stage looks better proportioned.

I'm saying I don't know the insides and outsides of the marriage nearly enough to condemn anyone, but even if all you say is true, I don't think it's that big of a deal. People get married. People get divorced. People have affairs. Romances that start out as heaven often end up in icy recriminations. All very sad for some of the parties involved, but it happens, and it's part of life. Even societies with the most puritanical standards of adultery, divorce, and sexual freedom are rife with cases of exactly that: adultery, divorce, and issues of sexual freedom.

Mearns got the Karin role, and Reichlen got the Morris role.

I knew what pusillanimous means, thank you very much. I am a teacher. I too consider some things sacred. But since I don't know the story besides the bare-bones facts, I'll hesitate before "delicately" condemning this "transgressive" young woman to the Magdalene laundries.

I too thought Mearns was miscast. She's a much better adagio dancer than allegro, and seemed to overcompensate with an overly aggressive attack that bordered on unattractive. I would have loved to see her try the Reichlen role actually and Reichlen try the Mearns role.

I've always enjoyed the Golden Globes precisely beecause it seems as if no one takes them seriously. The stars are more candid and funnier than they are during the Academy Awards, which often turns into a laundry list of thank yous and/or some dull pontificating. During the Golden Globes the stars are slightly tipsy and there to have fun. I realize Michelle Williams is the new indiie-film darling but I just can't get onboard the love train. In every role I've seen her in she projects a weird sulkiness that prevents her from being lovable. I realize a lot of this is her choice of films, but film after film shows that sullen pout.

I would like to think that we live in a time that has moved beyond chastising "young women" for "transgressive actions." There are a lot of break-ups, divorces, affairs, and whatnot in modern society. There were a lot way back when too, even in the most "correct" and "polite" of societies. The only difference nowadays is a lack of Puritanical judgment for the most part about what should be a private matter between three people.

This video proves that with the right Golden Slave, Lopatkina CAN be a sizzling Zobeide too:

This seems to be more of a mixed-bill to bring along with a full-length, or another mixed-bill, rather than a week's worth of programming. Are all the performances selling well?

Vishneva I remember wore this ridiculous curly wig that reminded me of the silent movies, and I was like "You've got to be kidding me." But then she and Kolb started dancing and the two of them just sizzled. Natalia, here is a video of Kolb as Golden Slave with Jiyeon Ryu. HOT! I also would have been curious to see what Vladimir Shklyarov could have done with the role. He might be too short to partner Lopatkina but he does have this kind of boyish, almost Adonis-like persona that would have made a great foil for Lopatkina's glacial reserve. It could have been like a cougar in heat.

Great review, Natalia! I'm discouraged to read your review of Scheherazade because I have fond memories of Diana Vishneva and Igor Kolb tearing up the stage together when the Mariinsky visited City Center in 2008. It was kitschy, but hot! Sounds like last night's performance really needed some of that heat. I'm also discouraged to hear about Yana Selina as Waltz girl in Chopiniana because, again, I remember her being exquisite at the City Center performances.

Was anyone else there? The combo of Tiler Peck and Robert Fairchild in Who Cares? was absolutely magical. "The Man I Love" was gorgeous. Teresa Reichlen was also beautiful in "Embraceable You" although she's a little too tall for Fairchild to partner comfortably. Ashley Bouder fell at the beginning of her variation in Tchai Pdd but recovered nicely and the flying fish dives were spectacular. Le Tombeau de Couperin was a piece I was seeing for the first time, but it was lovely.

I definitely prefer live performances of dance, even with the drawbacks of mistakes, poor camera angle shots, etc. I thought the Arpino film did have a slightly artificial feel to it. The Nutcracker with Baryshnikov and Kirkland suffers from the same effect.

Ardolino was also the director of "Dirty Dancing" which also was masterful in filming dance sequences. More thoughts on the broadcast: I thought that the NY State Theater stage looked very shallow with the close-up cameras. I know the shallowness of the stage has been a problem but I could really see it when I saw how cramped the Snowflakes were. I agree Fairchild is a good dancer with good technique, but to me she lacks that extra bit of mystery and/or charm that is part of the SPF. In recent years, the best SPF's I've seen have been Sara Mearns and Tiler Peck, but Wendy Whelan back in the day was also very beautiful in the part. Fairchild, however, is an excellent Dewdrop. I might have switched casting and given Bouder the SPF and Fairchild Dewdrop.

In all fairness last night's performance was NOT a representative of the NYCB on its best night. I'm puzzled why Peter Martins did not choose to have Tiler Peck or Sara Mearns in the SPF -- both of them exude way more charm and graciousness than Fairchild. The corps was a bit raggedy compared to how I have seen them. When Peck danced the Marzipan part of me wondered why she wasn't dancing the SPF instead.

I saw Nutcracker last night, Tiler Peck was an amazing SPF. Very beautiful, gracious, everything you could ask for. If you have a chance to see her as SPF grab it.

One other thing I was thinking: Osipova and Vasiliev are very "Bolshoi" dancers. They are what many ballet audiences associate with the company -- big, bold style, not the most beautiful classical line, but energy and charisma for days. I've met many balletomanes who've said that they like them because they're a reminder of the "good old" Bolshoi days. This is a real loss for the company.

Here's an interview, translated from Russian: http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=ru&tl=en&u=http://www.fontanka.ru/2011/11/14/149/