su-lian

I suppose the Swan Lake by the Berlin Opera House is the one by Patrice Bart and it's with Steffi Scherzer and Oliver Matz if it helps.

I wouldn't say it is the norm, but I prefer to watch dancers I know, because then I'm not trying to see who it is and can focus on the dancing, but still say at the end what I thought of which dancer (which you can't really if you don't know them well, because even if you try to remember, it's difficult). I still very much like watching ballets, even if I only know a few soloists or even if I don't know any of them, but it's not the same. I also think that with dancers you know and see a lot, when they dance, you can recognise their style, and it is quite pleasant, if you see what I mean. There is a sort of satisfaction, but it's perfectly possible to fully enjoy a ballet even if you don't know or recognise any dancer (I have a friend who also loves ballet, and enjoys a lot going to see some, but she never recognises the dancers, and I always have to tell her after the performance!). But, once again, that's only my opinion, so it's not the norm.

Thank you! Just in case you want to know, in french, it's "la portée" (not le porté!). Su-lian.

Has no one else seen the paris Opera Ballet School's performance? I was waiting to see what people had to say about it, but since no one has yet, I'll start! The first ballet was Péchés de Jeunesse, which was created for the School in 2000 by Jean-Guillaume Bart on music by Rossini. It has two main couples (Béryl de Saint-Sauveur with Axel Ibot and Marie-Astrid Casinelli with Maxime Thomas), two soloists (Noëllie Conjeaud and Marion Arizzi), three other couples for a pas de six and six corps de ballet couples. It is quite a nice ballet, with a light and fresh atmosphere. The dancers were very good, but they sometimes had problems to put themselves into lines. The portés were maybe a little bit difficult and the choreography was sometimes a bit repetitive, but that might be so that all the dancers get to do the same thing in the end. I liked the second pas de deux and Marie-Astrid Casinelli. One of the dancers didn't have very nice arms, and the wrists were too bent (I don't know how to say it in english, in french, we say they are "cassés", which means "broken"!), but apart from small details like that, it was quite enjoyable, and the dancers did a very good work. The second ballet was Jeu de Cartes by Janine Charrat on Stravinsky's well known music. It has just entered the School's repertory. The costumes weren't very nice and we couldn't see the dancers lines and bodies properly, which is a pity. The Joker was dances by the wonderful Médhi Angot who has an excellent technique and who really is the Joker, he doesn't just dance, he has something more than just his dance and technique. He was by far the most applauded of the whole evening(s I went twice!). Tonight, he also did four pirouettes quite a few times, and they were all neatly finished, and globally, his whole dancing was very neat and always in the right position. He is incredible! Béryl de Saint-Sauveur as the Queen of Diamonds, Marie-Astrid Casinelli as the Queen of Spades and Marion Arizzi as the Queen of Hearts were also all very good, and some had very high extensions. The synchronisation was good, they all danced exactly together. The choreography was quite interesting and unusual, but sometimes a bit too technical (I'm not saying too difficult, but sometimes it seemed like it was a bit "look how many turns he can do" or "look how high she can lift her leg" because it seemed to insist on it because they did it a lot, so after a while, it seems like it's done on purpose to show what the dancers can do, but maybe that's just an impression, and the way it was danced rather than the choreography, and sometimes even "look how imaginative I am" because it repeated too much the things which were original, so once again, it seemed to insist on it). The last ballet was Mouvements by Bessy on Prokofiev's "Classical" Symphony. It started showing only the legs (the dancers were lying on the floor with a black thing on their bodies and the lights came from the sides so that they only showed the legs which were up). It was quite amusing, but one doesn't really see the point. Then, the arms. The dancers had long black skirts, an orange top and white gloves on once again to emphasize the amrs' work. The problem was that they were on roller skates, so quite uncomfortable on a raked stage, so they weren't as graceful as usually. On Monday, some also had problems to stop when they were coming down towards the audience, and we could hear them trying to stop with loud braking noises. However, it seemed a bit better today, but they still looked uncomfortable. Then there was a shorter sequence which was meant to be funny I think, and the finale had most of the dancers of the school. One dancer fell tonight doing a cabriole battue, I hope she didn't injure herself. It ends with all the dancers coming in from the back in a snake shape holding one another, smallest in front! This was really cute! Basically, all the dancers were very good and have worked a lot. However, two questions arose as I was watching: -How do the musicians in the orchestra feel? After having studied music for a long time, having worked a lot, they end up accompanying what they might just consider as kids! Don't they find it frustrating? I always considered it was normal for the orchestra to play for the Ballet School, but during one of the solos, it just came into my head that maybe they didn't find it normal to work so much so hard just for a kid to dance! -How do they choose the ones who will dance? I'm not talking about who gets the main roles. I noticed that most of the dancers danced, but some didn't, and that just seemed unfair. The ones who don't dance don't get to participate either during rehearsals, they must really feel rejected, excluded... It must be hard, especially since the majority dances (I think only about ten didn't dance). Anyway, I'd better stop now, because it's getting really too long! Su-lian.

I've just been to the opera, and they don't have anything else that I haven't mentionned, except documentaries with extracts of ballets, rehearsals...but that wouldn't be interesting if you can't understand them (that's why I didn't mention them earlier. However, if you are still interested, I could give you the details). Good luck sorting out these format problems! Su-lian.

I'm sorry to ask this, and I probably ought to know it, but what is a "stave" (I do music, but in french...so I don't know what it is)? Thank you! Su-lian.

Estelle, I think they're both in between: not really blond, but nott really brown either. I suppose some sort of light brown.

I think it's just the lighting and the way the hair is tied with gel etc, because Agnès Letestu is blonde, so are Maurin, Pujol, Abbagnato and Riqué. For men, there are bart, Delanoe and paquette who are also blond.

Yes, there is on video quite a bit of Nureyev: -Cinderella with Guillem, Jude, Nureyev, Loudières, Guérin and others (the date is 1989 I think, or not too far from it), -Romeo and Juliet with Loudières, Legris, Delanoe, Romoli, Averty and others (1995) and it is on DVD, -La Bayadère with Guérin, Platel, Hilaire, Delanoe and others (1994,+DVD), -Don Quichotte with Dupont, Legris, Gillot, Bart, Moussin, Osta(2002, +DVD), -Sleeping Beauty with Dupont, Legris, Gillot, Bart, Pech, Moussin (1999, +DVD), -Nutcracker with Hilaire, Maurin (1988/1989), but no Raymonda or Swan Lake by him. -Swan Lake by Bourmeister with Pietragalla and Dupond also exists, I think, around 1994, but I'm not sure -the one with Soir de fête and L'Arlésienne is from 1997. -Paris dances Diaghilev is not that recent, maybe 1992, I really don't know -Le Parc has been filmed with Hilaire and Guérin in 1999 and got the Grand Prix International de Vidéo Danse, but I don't know if it is sold to the public -I think Hurlevent has also been filmed last year, but I don't think it's for sale for the moment -Clavigo has been filmed with Leriche, Osta, Bridard, Gillot in 1999, but once again, I don't think it's available -Air by Teshigawara and Appartement by Ek has been filmed this year, it's not for sale (probably in a few years) -I haven't heard of Notre-Dame-de Paris or Symphonie Fantastique on video -Last year's Spectacle de L'Ecole de Danse (Coppélia) has been filmed and is on video and DVD That' all I know about and remember for the moment. Su-lian.

Then they should have shown only the film, if that's what everyone was watching, and especially since the people watching the film must have been a bit frustrated by the fact that it was silent. Or shown them separately. In Paris, there was the Grand Défilé, then there was a (short) movie (with comments by Laurent Hilaire) about Nureyev, showing interviews, extracts from ballets...and then the dancers danced. But this was only a short movie (about ten minutes), so I don't suppose it could have been done with a longer film like the one in London. It seems a pity.

I was just wondering, how did they do for th music? Because apparently (I only read some articles about it), there were bits of interviews of Nureyev in the background too, so were the dancers dancing to the music and the background film silent (which I suppose), or were the dancers dancing to silence and the film was not silent (which seems strange, but it's pointless showing interviews if they're going to be silent), or what? It just seems very strange to me, and even more since you can't watch a film and dancing at the same time, so what are you supposed to watch?

In the movie of Stefan Zweig's Schachnovelle, there is a ballet dancer (in the plot, I don't think the actress was a ballet dancer). We only see her dance once I think (I haven't seen the whole movie, but most of it) and it looks horrible. It was so bad I nearly screamed! It is during the Nazi period and she has an affair with a nazi officer in order to have a be a prima ballerina, but then falls in love with someone he has to interrogate, and helps him. It is a black and white german movie, and I don't know who the actors are.

You're welcome! I just hope it's fast enough for you!

I'm a bit late here, but actually, La Dame Aux Camélias is not based on the opera La Traviata, but on the novel by Alexandre Dumas (the son of the Alexandre Dumas who wrote The Three Musketeers etc) called La Dame aux Camélias, which he then turened into a play, and Verdi was touched by it and then wrote La Traviata. So ballets called La Dame aux Camélias and La Traviata (and the movie Moulin Rouge with Nicole Kidman ) are (theoretically) all based on this novel (which is one of my favorites!).

I'm glad you sent this, because I had seen something about it on TV, but it was too late to get tickets. However, I think they're doing the same thing again in Poissy aren't they? I'll try to see it then.

Hi! There's a CD with the whole of La Bayadère by the English Chamber Orchestra directed by Richard Bonynge but I don't know if you want to buy the whole of the ballet for just one variation. It's faster than what Platel does. I can't remember how fast Bussell's is. It's 1min10. If you want the reference, it's by Decca, no.436 917-2. Su-lian.

I'm not quite sure about this, but I think Béjart did a (modern) ballet to it, but it wasn't a success, and it wasn't classical, that's for sure, so not really what you're looking for.

I hadn't heard of them before, but I've just been on it and it has some superb photos!

I remember seeing in a magasine a photo of a chinese dancer doing a développé in front at 180° and bending backwards at a festival in Monte-Carlo, but I can't remember if the name was there.I'll have to check later, I don't have much time now. There's also going to be a special show at the Paris Opera next year with various artists from China, and the Photo on the ad for it is of a dancer doing an arabesque on her partner's shoulder. I don't know if the two photos are from the same dancer and if any is the one you're talking about. I'll have a look later. Su-lian.

I don't know that much about this sort of thing, but I think it depends on what they have to dance: they would avoid having different partners for Swan Lake for example, but if it's for shorter ballets, why not? The Paris Opera has given Jewels recently, and quite a few times, some dancer danced several times the same part but with different partners. But I think sometimes also, especially if there are guests, some dancers dance twice the same role but with different partners in longer ballets. This is not really relevant, but it's quite amazing: once, Aurélie Dupont was meant to dance The Nutcracker with Nicolas Leriche and rehearsed with him, but then he had to go to Japan because he had to dance there too, so a couple of days before the performance, she had to start repeating with Laurent Hilaire. She was quite scared, especially since it was the first time she was dancing the Nutcracker. Then, during the performance, Laurent Hilaire injured himself while doing the variation in the third act and had to stop. So she finally had to finish with Jose Martinez with whom she had never rehearsed!

It was first given at the Théâtre des Champs Elysées on the 12th november 1949 with Yvette Chauviré and Wladimir Skouratoff.

I totally agree about everything! I mean the opera seems to be giving more and more modern and contemporary ballets and lass classical or neoclassical ballets. It's such a pity! Some companies can't really afford (technically and artisticly) to put up these great classics and don't have all that precious repertory (not only Nureyev, but also Lifar, Balanchine, Robbins...). The Opera can, but seems to be wasting it! Why don't they use more (or rather in a more satisfying way) their magnificent dancers and their such rarely wide repertoire?

I fI understand correctly what you mean, I remember Laurent Hilaire once explained that in Nureyev's version of Raymonda, the manège of Abderam in his second variation in Act II (which Nureyev added, to the music of the oriental dance) has this "not quite with the music" thing. The music does four times six beats and the dancer does three times the same sequence which lasts eight beats (unless it's the opposite, I'm not quite sure now, but I think that's it) so at the end of the manège they've both done 24 beats and the dancer is back with the music. Each movement is on a beat, but it's just that the music's phrase has six beats and the dancer's phrase has eight. I hope that's what you meant. Su-lian.

Apparently, there's also going to be an evening "étoiles de Chine" with dancers, musicians and other artists from China because there's a special celebration in China's honour next year. This season sounds quite interesting, especially all that Balanchine. I'm surprised that there's only one Nureyev ballet. Is the Opera slowly going to "eliminate" his ballets from the repertoire and we'll only see one of his ballets once in a while? Some people will say it would be good because his choreographies are too heavy and too complicated, but I can't help loving to go to see them. And for most of them, they're the only versions of the great classics the opera has at its repertoire (there are other versions, but which are probably quite forgotten as they haven't been danced for a while). I'm also very impatient to see the Bolshoi!

You're certainly right Doug, it's exactly what I read (except I don't have "she is triumphant"), except I interpreted it as 'he is at her feet, so he is not with her and isn't coming up' instead of 'he is at her feet following her'. But then how would he have been able to join her in the Kingdom of shades if he betrayed her (he was going to marry Gamzatti), unless the marriage isn't considered as a betrayal because he truly loves Nikiya and only was going to marry Gamzatti because he was forced to (but then why kill him and destroy everything?). I'm a bit confused now.