Ann

Marc If it is really true that Asylmuratova will not be in London to appear in 'Manon' as advertised in the printed programme for the Kirov season, then it is extremely irresponsible of Victor Hochauser (who is presenting the Kirov season)not to announce this fact, given the popularity of both the ballet and the ballerina. Many people (tho' not me) will have booked for this particular performance purely to see Asylmuratova.

Interestingly, Alexandra, Deborah Bull wrote an article in Saturday's Daily Telegraph on her appearance in the recent Hodson reconstruction of Nijinsky's 'Rite of Spring' in Rome. Here it is: http://www.deborahbull.com/Telegraph%20Col...atTelgApr01.htm

Don't be so hard on us, Salome! I assume you are referring to my posting in your final para. so I'd have to say I have never actually seen 'Narcissus' and I actually love 'Spectre' so maybe I was a bit unfair in saying what I did, but I hope you understood what I meant; that obviously the Kirov's programme of full-length ballets is more asttractive than the Bolshoi's programme of short pieces. The important thing was my final point; that like every serious ballet lover I would be seeing both companies. I can't explain the British media's obssession with creating a 'feud' between the two companies' promoters; I think it's some sort of journalistic laziness - a useful tie-up between the two companies which saves the necessity to write separately about each company, perhaps?

But the problem is, Cargill, that we won't be seeing 'Symphony in C'. The Bolshoi are presenting a tired old rag-bag of gala pieces which is really disappointing, and does no favours to its dancers. I will be going, of course, because I do want to see those Bolshi dancers, but you have to admit that the Kirov's programme is far jucier - another chance to see their wonderful dancers in 'Jewels', and the thrilling prospect of seeing what they'll make of MacMillan's 'Manon'. It's no contest, I fear, but I expect that, like me, the real balletomanes will be seeing both these great Russian companies.

"In England, for example, it was considered a good idea for a country couple to have a bun in the oven by the time the wedding day rolled around." Dirac - I'm curious. Where did you read this?

Warmest congratulations, Leigh - I'm really thrilled for you, and I love your grandma's reaction! (and if the Duncan Hines people are looking in here they might even consider establishing an annual Duncan Hines award...)

I know he wasn't a ballet dancer, but he was certainly American and arguably the greatest dancer (male or female) of all time: Fred Astaire. Every time I see Astaire on TV in one of those wonderful old Hollywood black & white movies, I am moved almost to tears at his brilliance. I can't imagine that even Nijinsky could have been greater.

Estelle - Sadly, I'd have to agree with Ms Boccadoro's conclusions on Jean-Guillaume Bart. I saw his des Grieux in POB's 'Manon' last Friday 9 March and was almost shocked by his lack of passion and sexuality in this role, which by definition demands a great deal of both qualities. Worse, at least in the crucial Act I, he appeared to be dancing for his own rather than the audience's benefit. I thought his dancing was pure and clean but, devoid of emotional input, it made little impact (on me at least).

Estelle/Marc: Where is this interview with Isabel Guerin? She's one of my favourite dancers and I'm going to Paris especially to see her 'Manon' on 9 March. So I'd love to read the interview.

Sonja Thank you for the information about 'Manon'. I looked up the interview with Roert Tewsley which you mentioned, but the the Altavista translation service 'Babelfish' does not seem to work on this board. Alexandra, would you have any information on about this? It may of course be something I'm not doing right.

Oh Felursus, how I love that "Ye Hotte Poker Inne" idea! Why no-one so far has had the 'poor taste' to open one I can't imagine..

Alexandra I don't think that any of the dancers themselves are actually 'lewd', nor do I think that they deliberately set out to make this particular step look lewd. I don't believe that the way Agon is danced today can be that far away from how Balanchine choreographed the step originally; at some point, he must have said 'lie on your back, dear, and open your legs wide'. It is difficult to imagine how any dancer could have made the resultant vulgarity look respectable. The best they can do is to perform the movement as rapidly as the music permits while maintaining a bland facial expression. But Leigh, I would love to have seen what Diana Adams made of Agon - wasn't it choreographed on her? Is the tape commercially available? Certainly I didn't see it in the shop at the Lincoln Centre when I was there last year.

Again, very quickly - I've just remembered that I was the one who accused poor Ed of suspected 'prudery' and I realise that the above message is going me make me a prime suspect of the very same sin. Hmm... make allowances for me.

Leigh Very quickly - I have visitors downstairs - don't get me started on the Agon pas de deux! Alexandra knows, because I've raised this before, how I feel about Balanchine's requirement for the ballerina, in the briefest of costumes, to lie on her back and split her legs open as though for a gynaecological examination. If that isn't lewd, or vulgar, I truly don't know what is. And no-one says a word. Don't get me wrong - I still think Agon is Balanchine's greatest achievement, a work of astonishing genius, and I'll go on watching it every chance I can. But I just wish someone had spoken strongly to Mr B at the time he created it.

Ed, are you not taking 'Manon' rather too seriously? McMillan surely only intended his ballet as a piece of dance theatre/entertainment rather than the deeply serious classical ballet suggested by the lengthy comparisons you make with the music of Massenet and Puccini. Also, I cannot agree that any of it is 'simply bad taste' because taste is such a subjective thing, and your view of bad taste seems to me to hint at prudery (I mean no offence). The particular piece you refer to in this context, the pas-de-trois between Manon, Lescaut and GM is one of the most brilliantly effective set-pieces in the ballet. A writer could take a whole page to describe how the dissolute Lescaut 'sells' his sister to GM; McMillan does it in the choreographic equivalent of half a paragraph. The same economy applies to the big pas d'action in the brothel, where Manon is passed from man to man like a plate of cakes and we are left in do doubt whatsoever as to what is really going on. I won't try anyone's patience further, but I do want to say that I think McMillan is a hugely underrated choreographer, despite my agreement with many of the criticisms made here. If I ever had any doubts, they were dispelled when I saw his much-criticised 'Different Drummer' his dance interpretation of Alban Berg's 'Wozzeck'. It was deeply flawed, but I cried, not because it was sad (though it was) but at the sheer courage and ambition of the piece; he was trying to move ballet into the future. Only time will tell if he succeeds.

JerryB I'm glad you brought up the Peter Martins question. I have long been worried about the hostility displayed on this board towards him. His excellent work as both administrator and effective guardian of the Balanchine inheritance doesn't seem to count with his detractors. The problem seems to be that he isn't Balanchine, who must surely be the hardest act in history to follow.

Estelle Sorry - I thought my e-mail address was up. It is Ann@sweetpea.screaming.net. Hope to hear from you.

I duly saw the RB School's matinee performance at the Opera House today and it proved to be a highly enjoyable experience. I normally see the School's performance in the open air at Holland Park, and I have to say that I prefer the outdoor experience - grass, sunlight and the possibility that, as I once saw, a pigeon might land on the stage and get everyone giggling. But today was fun. The proceedings opened with a Grand Defile to familiar Tchaikovsky music - all the students from the smallest to the most senior moved onto the stage in a series of simple dances and tableaux. It was very impressive, in particular the discipline and concentration shown by the smallest children. They already looked professional. Ernst Meisner and Jenny Murphy next made what they could of a piece by Stephen Greenston to a Spanish-sounding sung score, but it was difficult to judge their actual dancing since it was mostly a series of lifts. Jenny Murphy looked promising and has considerable presence. A Hornpipe for the boys showed their excellent footwork and beautifully synchronised jumps and turns. Most impressive. I loved the Irish reel, with a real Irish fiddler on stage and I just wish I could identify the first two girls - the ones with the lovely springy jumps, but they were all good. Likewise the boys and girls in the Scottish dancing (bagpipe player on stage this time). The girls' footwork really mesmerised me. As to the advertised (by someone on this board) 'Pas de Six', I could not understand why there were five couples on stage and it was only when the lights came up that I realised in was actually a Pas de Dix (Petipa) Doh! This was quite beautifully danced, in particular by James Wilkie who posts to this board. He has a wonderfully expansive style and looked as if he was actually enjoying himself, plus he has an unflustered air which will stand him in good stead in his professional career. I thought all five girls were excellent and I just found their professionalism, at the age of - what, 16? was outstanding. It wasn't all perfect, of course - the occasional wobbly arabesque showed that these are still students, but these things happen even to fully-fleged professional dancers. The last dance in the first half was Stanton Welch's 'A Time to Dance' to a familiar Dvorak piece (I'm not good on identifying music). This went on. And on. I began to pray for the interval, but at least the piece gave some of the dancers a chance to shine, and shine Hitomi Kuhara, Anita Hutchins and Kosuke Yamamoto duly did in the pas-de-trois. They were dazzling, in fact, three real stars in the making. Yamamoto is a dynamo of spin and jump in the Kumakawa mode, plus he has the added advantage of charm and warmth. Hitomi Kuhara is a dream of a dancer with a gorgeous, clean jump and Anita Hutchins has a wonderfully lyrical quality to her dancing. Satsuki Sejima, too, was lovely in the girl's solo, but all the dancers in Welsh's unremarkable piece were remarkable. After the longed-for interval things got decidedly better with 'Don Quixote' (the programme stated that it was 'staged' by Anatole Grigoriev but gave no mention of a choreographer). Leanne Cope as Armour, Lauren Cutherbertson as Dulcinea and Grace Poole as Queen of the Dryads were all polished diamonds of confidence and near-perfection; it's hard to believe that they are so young. What I loved about their performances was that there was no striving for glitzy but unnecessary over-the-head extensions. They danced with simple, natural authority and are a credit to their teachers. Finally, came Ashton's utterly sublime and magical 'La Valse' to Ravel's equally sublime score. This is my third viewing of this ballet, and every time I see it, I see more mystery and magic in it. Women in exaggerated evening dress and men in tails swirl, dip and eddy to the increasing urgency of Ravel's music The women are swept into rapid lifts, the men jump in turning lines, their black jackets swirling behind them. At one memorable moment the entire cast face the audience and merely swing their arms back and forth to surf the waves of the music, and the piece ends with the dancers in full flight as the curtain falls. I can only hope that the dancers felt as intoxicated as the audience did. All congratulations to everyone concerned.

I'll be there tomorrow, Guy, and I'll post my thoughts both here and on Ballet.co (nice to be asked. I often wonder if it isn't a bit cheeky posting unsolicited opinions...)

Estelle I'm going to be there for the performance on 18 Aug. and two performances on 19 Aug. Could you e-mail me?

At yesterday's Kirov matinee of Bayadere at the ROH mobile phones went off three times! I cannot understand why a very firm 'request' for mobile phones to be switched off is not made before the performance starts. This is common practice in other theatres. Also, horrors, some of the audience started clapping while dancers were still finishing their more showy steps, as if at an ice show or a circus. Why do they let these people in? Why do these people want to go to a ballet in the first place? Have they no taste, no manners, no CLASS, dammit? Sorry, just going to lie down with a wet towel on my head.....

Marc I'm sorry if my reference to 'Soviet-influenced' choreography was a little off the mark. I love the Kirov's 'Bayadere' and 'Corsair' as much as anyone, but the fact remains that they simply cannot afford to ignore Balanchine and it is worrying that their dancers seem to have a problem with his work. It is quite beside the point that they are 'as attuned to Balanchine as NYCB is to Yakobson or Zakharov', since NYCB hardly needs the latters'work while the Kirov, in the absence of any choreographer of anything like the significance of Balanchine, or indeed Ashton, Tudor or McMillan, are desperately in need of Balanchine. If the Kirov wants to keep its status as one of the greatest ballet companies in the world, it needs new works, and they are incredibly lucky that Balanchine is 'new' to them. They shold stop whining and get on with it.

But isn't it depressing that they are rebelling against 'too much Balanchine'? Is that because it is difficult to dance? It's surprising that they do not appear to have grasped the fact that the west is permanently hungry for Balanchine and will not be satisfied with a diet of the old Soviet-influenced choreography.

Estelle All three Buckle books are absolute gems - his meticulous research and his passion for Diaghilev and Balanchine alone would recommend them, but added to this is his wonderfully spare and witty prose. Even if you aren't particularly interested in the subjects, his books are excellently entertaining to read. And I can testify to this. Years ago when I was young and not the slightest bit interested in ballet (had never even seen one, in fact) I couldn't wait to read his ballet reviews in the 'Sunday Times' and later the 'Observer' because they made me laugh out loud. I think that says it all about his qualities as a writer.

Manhattnik I'm knocked sideways by this review. Oh, if only any of the professional reviewers were half as brilliant as this! Er....you aren't a professional reviewer, are you, Manhattnik? Your profile says you are a 'Mackintosh geek' but I don't believe it. Can you let us know, at least, if you are a professional writer?