Alexandra

The Kennedy Center Honors Awards have been announced....once again, there's no one from dance. Granted, there aren't as many dancers and choreographers as there are pop stars, but who out there hasn't yet been nominated who should be? [Amy first posted this question yesterday on Links]: I do not understand why there were 3 honorees from Music but not one from Dance.

This just in: NISSINEN ANNOUNCES DANCER ROSTER FOR BOSTON BALLET'S 40TH ANNIVERSARY SEASON Boston Ballet enters its 40th Anniversary Season presenting a Company of dancers from around the world (BOSTON, MA)-Boston Ballet's Artistic Director Mikko Nissinen has announced the roster of Company dancers for the 2003-2004, 40th Anniversary Season, including four new principal dancers, six new soloists, 11 new corps de ballet dancers, and 11 new BBII members. Fifty-five full-time dancers make up the roster-nine principal dancers, a senior artist, nine soloists, 24 corps de ballet members, and 13 apprentices. "I am delighted to bring these accomplished, talented, motivated dancers to Boston Ballet. Each artist is an extraordinary addition to an existing group of beautiful dancers. The incoming dancers are representatives of the commitment to excellence and dedication that exemplifies the new Boston Ballet, as we move into our exciting 40th Anniversary Season," said Artistic Director Mikko Nissinen. Nissinen announces Artistic Associate Trinidad Vives and ballet masters Raymond Lukens and Anthony Randazzo will be joined by acclaimed former New York City Ballet dancer, Merrill Ashley, as a guest teacher during the 2003-2004 season. Last spring Nissinen announced five promotions from within the Company. Soloist Sarah Lamb has been promoted to principal dancer; corps de ballet members Jared Redick and Romi Beppu have been promoted to soloists; and Boston Ballet II apprentices Benjamin Griffiths, Luke Luzicka, and James Whiteside have been promoted to corps de ballet members. The Company Lorna Feijoo, a native of Cuba, joins the Company as a principal dancer. Feijoo, who was principal dancer with Ballet Nacional de Cuba, comes to Boston Ballet from Cincinnati Ballet where she has held the rank of principal dancer since 2001. She has received many awards including: the Grand Prix and the Plaque of the City at the International Trujillo Ballet Contest in Peru in 1991; the Gold medal and the prize Le Galli D'Oro at both the Vignali-Danza Contest and Positano Contest of Young Talents in Italy in 1992; and the Silver Medal at Japan's Osaka International Ballet Contest in 1995. "I worked with Lorna at Zurich Ballet when I was a guest ballet master with the company. She is a superb dancer, with great integrity and poise," said Artistic Director Mikko Nissinen. Rolando Sarabia, joining the Company in November as a principal dancer, is also a native of Cuba. He has danced with Ballet Nacional de Cuba since 1999, and holds numerous prestigious medals including: the Grand Prix in the First International Academies of Ballet in Cuba in 1995 and 1998; and the Gold Medal in the USA International Ballet Competition in Jackson, Mississippi, 1998. The addition of principal dancer Roman Rykine is long awaited. Rykine, who was scheduled to join Boston Ballet last year, was sidelined by an injury in July 2002. Rykine was a principal dancer with San Francisco Ballet from 1996 to 2002. Principal dancers next season are: Lorna Feijoo, Sarah Lamb, Larissa Ponomarenko, Pollyana Ribeiro, Adriana Suárez, Rolando Sarabia, Roman Rykine and Yury Yanowsky. Principal dancer Jennifer Gelfand will retire from Boston Ballet after her farewell performance of Don Quixote. Principal dancer Viktor Plotnikov returns for the 2003-2004 season as a senior artist. Four new soloists will make their debut this season: Barbora Kohoutkova, a native of the Czech Republic, has been a principal dancer with Finnish National Ballet and a soloist with Bayerisches Staatsballet, Munich. She holds many prestigious awards including: the Gold Medal in the USA International Ballet Competition in Brno 1994; the Gold Medal and Grand Prix in the USA International Ballet Competition in Helsinki, Finland 1995; and the Gold Medal and Grand Prix in the USA International Ballet Competition in New York 1996. Kohoutkova appears as a regular guest artist at La Scala di Milano, and performs as a guest artist around the world. Pavel Gurevich, born in Minsk in the republic of Belarus, is a former principal dancer at Milwaukee Ballet; Michael Cusumano, from Long Island, New York, previously danced with Alabama Ballet and American Ballet Theatre; Nelson Madrigal, joined Cincinnati Ballet in 2002 as a principal dancer, and was a member of Ballet Nacional de Cuba. Soloists next season are: Melanie Atkins, Romi Beppu, Christopher Budzynski, Michael Cusumano, Pavel Gurevich, Barbora Kohoutkova, Nelson Madrigal, Jared Redick, and Miao Zong. Joining Boston Ballet's corps de ballet are: Kathleen Breen Combes of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, former member of Washington Ballet; Sarah Edery of Millerplace, New York, former member of Pennsylvania Ballet; Whitney Herr of Tucson, Arizona, former apprentice with San Francisco Ballet; Misa Kuranaga of Osaka, Japan, recent graduate of School of American Ballet; Kelley Potter of North Carolina, former member of American Ballet Theatre Studio Company; Luis Ribagorda of Madrid, Spain, graduate of the Real Conservatorio Profesional de Danza de Madrid; Sarah Wroth of Poolesville, Maryland, graduate of Indiana University where she received a Bachelors Degree in Education; and Seh Yun Kim (joining in January) of Korea, currently a principal dancer with Seoul's Universal Ballet. Corps de ballet members next season are: Kathleen Breen Combes, Gianni Di Marco, Sarah Edery, Benjamin Griffiths, Whitney Herr, Rie Ichikawa, Michael Johnson, Alexandra Kochis, Misa Kuranaga, Nao Kusuzaki, Erika Lambe, Luke Luzicka, Robert Moore, Heather Myers, Shannon Parsley (joining in January 04), Kelley Potter, Joel Prouty, Luis Ribagorda, Raul Salamanca, Josey Silva (leaving in January 04), Patrick Thornberry, James Whiteside, Sarah Wroth, and Sabi Varga. Promotions from Within Sarah Lamb advances from soloist to principal dancer with the Company for the 2003-2004 season. Lamb, a native of Boston, Massachusetts, trained at Boston Ballet School on full scholarship from 1993-1998. Since joining BB II in 1998, Lamb was promoted to corps de ballet in 1999, and to soloist in 2001. Lamb was awarded a Level 1 Award from the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts, and was a Presidential Scholar in the Arts in 1998. She holds a silver medal from each of the following competitions: the Third International Ballet Competition in Nagoya, Japan 1999; the Sixth USA International Ballet Competition in New York City 2000; and the USA International Ballet Competition in Jackson, Mississippi 2002. Romi Beppu was promoted from corps de ballet to soloist for the 2003-2004 season. Beppu, of Honolulu, Hawaii, joined Boston Ballet's apprentice company in 1996, and was promoted to corps de ballet in 1998. Beppu's repertoire with Boston Ballet includes: the pas de trois and Song Bird Fairy in Sleeping Beauty; the pas de trois in La Bayadere; one of Kitri's friends in Don Quixote; the Sugar Plum Fairy, Snow Queen, and Dew Drop Fairy in The Nutcracker. Jared Redick, was promoted from corps de ballet to soloist for the 2003-2004 season. Redick, of Reston, Virginia, joined Boston Ballet in 2002. Redick danced with both San Francisco Ballet, and Texas Ballet Theater (formerly Fort Worth Dallas Ballet) before joining Miami City Ballet as a soloist in 1996. He has danced many leading roles including those in Balanchine's Paquita, Divertimento #15, Agon, Swan Lake, and Theme and Variations. Redick's repertoire also includes D Symphonies, Carmen, Company B, Funny Paper, and Miami City Ballet's premier of Sir Frederick Ashton's Les Patineurs. Current Boston Ballet II apprentice dancers Benjamin Griffiths of Boise, Idaho, Luke Luzicka of Gladstone, Missouri, and James Whiteside of Milford, Connecticut, have been promoted to the corps de ballet. Balanchine Coach Internationally acclaimed artists Trinidad Vives, artistic associate, Raymond Lukens, ballet master and director of Boston Ballet II, and Anthony Randazzo, ballet master, will be joined by Guest Teacher Merrill Ashley. Nissinen welcomes the return of former New York City Ballet dancer Merrill Ashley to Boston Ballet as a guest teacher during the 2003-2004 season. Ashley came to Boston last year to stage Balanchine's Ballo della Regina for Boston Ballet's All Balanchine production. "I am thrilled that Merrill Ashley will be working with the Company," said Nissinen. "Merrill was a fantastic dancer and is one of the foremost Balanchine teachers in the world. I have an immense respect for her as an accomplished artist, stager, and coach." New Recruits to Apprentice Company New Boston Ballet II recruits include Lia Cirio, from Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet; Brandon Conger, from the Joffrey Ballet School; Elysia Fridkin, from the Washington School of Ballet; Melissa Hough, a former BalletMet Columbus apprentice; Andrew Kaminsky, who studied at both the School of American Ballet and Pacific Northwest Ballet School; John Lam, from The National Ballet School of Canada; Samantha Mednick, from San Francisco Ballet School; Kristin Ottestad, a former apprentice with Milwaukee Ballet; April Taylor, from School of American Ballet; Emily Tedesco, a former San Francisco Ballet apprentice; and Zachary Hackstock, from the North Carolina School of the Arts. Returning Boston Ballet II members are: Tiffany Hedman of Sanger, California and Kimberly Uphoff of Silver Spring, Maryland.

From the New York Observer (three articles in one, all about NY publishing; the Moss part is first) Moss Tossed Up, Gets Vast Turf in Keller Move

We've mentioned the idea that donors/sponsors et al. should recognize that the arts are good for business. But now they're actually catching on! Art for Art's Sake? No, the Economy's

Another piece from spiked (www.spiked-online.com) They Shock Too Much Not new thoughts, but well-expressed: True? Not? (There's more to the article, of course.)

This is from www.spiked-online.com, a U.K. site that deals with cultural and political issues. Lots of interesting articles here -- I'm going to put up two today. The first deals with history, and the problems of teaching it at university level. Not only are children not reading history, and expecting history to be taught the way it is on television, but the sugar on the medicine is currently "make it relevant to today." The article explores those problems. Stuck in the present Is this a trend, or a pendulum swing (meaning it wil be back, or mutate into another form)? Obviously, I don't mean to discuss the Holocaust except as an example; I'd like to get at the larger cultural/educational question, for those interested.

I think there was a reconstruction of the Nijinsky Til Eulenspiegel -- in Europe (Paris?) A friend of mine saw it, but I can't remember details. I think it was POB -- someone else will know, I'm sure. I think the main interest was in the sets, which could be reconstructed. The Tli Eulenspiegel for NYCB was by Balanchine, with Robbins as Til. It disappeared early, and I've never heard of plans to revive it, but I'd be very interested to see it as well.

Thanks for that, kfw. Tobi Tobias has a blog with ArtsJournal, too (www.artsjournal.com)

Thanks for that, Jorgen. If you go, I hope you'll tell us about it. I could imagine the RDB would be quite good in Manon.

That's it! Ms. Ultima Fusion!

Here's the Original Dead Russian Composers Thread! Which Dead Russian Composer Are You?

Gosh, carbro, what does that tell you? I sense you're aesthetically conflicted I had no trouble rating (gave it a 5, Hans

Here at BALLET ALERT we anticipate your every desire Watch for a Living Choreographers Quiz coming up next week.....

There will be a press release on the full touring schedule in "about a week or so." Watch this space.

Very nice, G Perhaps we could hold on posting all the possibles until more people have taken it, so as not to spoil it for them? If everyone hasn't been "outed" within a day or two, then maybe Hans could post those as yet undiscovered

Actually, I'm abstaining from taking the poll. It was much more fun reading it and figuring out who you meant for each answer! Editing to add: I couldn't resist. I ended up being Fokine, I think because my very favorite answer option is "put them back into repertory!"

Hans, we were posting at the same time. I've moved your Which Dead Choreographer Are You? poll to this thread: http://balletalert.ipbhost.com/index.php?a...t=0#entry102167 on Anything Goes.

Hans, that is absolutely brilliant -- it deserves its own thread. Hang on a minute, and I'll give it one. Bravo!!!! Editing to add: You took it down when I was moving the topic -- put it back fast! It was PERFECT I laughed out loud at least a dozen times.

I can't think of an interview I've read, since she came back from that long, long break because of the injured foot, where Kistler does talk about her injuries and how they've affected her. And perhaps that's very telling about her personality and how she views her career. I wouldn't expect her to discuss the political aspects of her career and marriage, though, especially in an interview in a foreign capital.

I just checked the ballet-tanz web site. They used to have a WONDERFUL calendar of every dance company in Europe and what they were doing, but it doesn't seem to be there any more. They do, however, have a message board. There are several other "I'm going to be traveling to Germany, could you recommend classes," etc. posts, where people have posted an email address. I don't know if you'd get a response, but it might be worth a try. http://www.ballet-tanz.de/en/base/f_kont.html

Thank you for that, Olivier. I know several people in Denmark who share that opinion (Ratmansky has danced with the RDB for several years, and choreographed for them as well).

Sadly, we seem to be not well-travelled, koshka Bumping this up to see if anyone can help!

Mary, that thread still SHOULD be here, on Anything Goes. (Meaning, it wasn't deliberately deleted, but there were times when we mysteriously lost posts on the old server.)

I agree with your comments on statistics. One of the famous ballet stats that was thrown around about a decade ago was that more people went to the ballet than to NFL games. Well. They counted as 'ballet" student recitals and civic company Nutcrackers. (To balance that, you'd have to include high school and minor league football.) I was struck by the 2% classical music figure, because I remember reading the exact same percentage in the mid-1970s and being shocked by it then. (And that was a time when Washington, DC still had three classical music record stores.) I think another variable is that, in the mid-1970s, 2 percent was a viable market. Now, when companies are miffed if they don't make a million dollars a second, 2 percent isn't worth spitting on.

It's the first London performance, and perhaps the first time Ms. Brown has had the chance to weigh in -- but even if she'd written about it before, it is the first London performance, and so reviewing it as if it's a new ballet (or new recosntruction) is kosher. I do agree with you on "Les Noces." I know it's not fair to compare brother and sister, because we don't have any idea what Nijinsky's choreography looked like, but I've always felt that the delight in "Sacre" was all about how they rioted and then how they lost the ballet. It became a legend.