Alexandra

I didn't mean to imply anything sinister about the difference in the poll response from what one might guess from reading the board. There could be a lot of reasons, including the fact that the ABT voters are shy about posting, or don't have a lot of time to post, or don't live in New York, but have caught the company on tour (and so won't be posting about the Met season). But if there are ABT fans reading this who don't post regularly about what you're seeing -- please do!

There's also a Volta in Shakespeare in Love, glebb, that makes it look like something young people did for fun.

Janet Collins, America's first black prima ballerina has died. I never saw her -- I wonder if any other Ballet Alertniks had, and if you had any memories of her to share. I've copied over the obituary from Links: Janet Collins, Ballerina Who Was First Black Artist at Met Opera, Dies at 86

Thanks to both of you, Amanda, for bumping this up, and Leigh, for your observation. Since we try to play by journalistic rules here, and since newspapers are covering this workshop, I'll go along with that, but please remember the things we've talked about in the past -- these aren't professionals, it's not intended to be a professional performance but a student WORKSHOP performance, being spotted and crowned the Next Ballerina can be as harmful to a career as being slammed -- best Aunt Nellie's come to tea manners, please.

Doris, I think a support group is in order....

It is interesting that Giselle hasn't gone through as many "enhancements" as poor, dear old "Swan Lake"... I'll be anxious to hear about this one.

Thank you all for such reasoned, thoughtful posts -- these have been more interesting to read than the performances I've attended lately (not at NYCB or ABT). More please! (And a small whine: if there are so many people who think ABT is THE company, how come we don't have more people posting about ABT performances????? Put your reviews where your vote is!!!!)

Yes, please take Other to mean Other Option as well as Other Company, e.g.: Neither, Both, None of the Above, The mere idea of ranking companies is repugnant to me, It Depends, etc.

I'm never shy of thoughts, but I wanted someone else to go first I'll throw this out: I think that often when this topic is discussed, we get diverted to content -- that ballet must be relevant in literal terms (real life, etc) and not the centuries old aesthetic principle that art reflects an ideal. I think art -- true art, real art, high art, that kind of art -- should reflect each society's, each era's, each generation's ideal of what life can be, not in a utopian sense, but in more abstract terms.

I think it's the speed -- Balanchine once said he liked a "speedy leg" and Danish training certainly breeds speed There is one new Danish dancer, Ask LaCour, who's said to be quite talented, but until him, there hadn't been a Danish-trained recruit to NYCB since Hubbe joined in '92. The others -- Martins, Luders, Schaufuss, later Ib Andersen -- were trained in the '60s and '70s, and that was a different world.

There was always the hope that it could go back -- there have been periods of extreme dancing and then a return to more harmonious dancing for centuries. And maybe it can some day, but the past 10, 15 years, even though they've done Bournonville classes, everything else in the repertory today (not just there, but just about everywhere) is almost anti-Bournonville. BIG jumps, lots of turns, kick, lunge -- no small footwork, the things that his style emphasizes, even the very steps, aren't used in choreography today. As an aside, odd that in our enlightened, modern times, there's MORE of everything except steps. It seems that the vocabulary has been reduced to a fraction of its possibilities.

Well, let's put it to a vote! Voting on the issue raised by Tobi Tobias and being discussed on another thread. Which is America's top, number one, flagship classical ballet company? (I'm limiting the choices to American Ballet Theatre and New York City Ballet, because that's what was in the article, and what the debate has been about. There's our favorite company, though, Other, for those who have anOther idea.)

Thank you -- that is good news. Even for someone who's never seen her

Hi, b1! If there are people interested in Ballet Met we'd be glad to have a forum, but we haven't had any posts on that company and, as the first post on this thread says, we don't put up a forum unless and until there are at least three or four people who see the company and post about performances. If you want to start a thread about the company, fine -- we'll see who comments. If there are several Ballet Metters here, then we'll do a forum. REMINDER TO EVERYONE OUT THERE -- we haven't had many reports at all about spring seasons. They're dancing! Please tell us what you're seeing!!

Think of the possibilities of a porcupine doing multiple pirouettes

I agree it's difficult to compare the two companies because they have such different natures. I don't think NYCB has deteriorated enough, though, to say it's no longer at international standard. I haven't seen the company often enough in the past five years to say that; I think its structure is still there, there are still good dancers, and the Balanchine ballets that I have seen have been recognizable. (The Diamond Project rep is another matter. Although I think the principle of commissioning new choreography has to be defended, sitting through these season after season must be dispiriting, not to mention dancing them.) But I don't think ABT is dancing the classics at Kirov or Paris level -- and I think many of their full-length classics are second-rate versions. But that's nothing new. Callilope, your comments show how much ABT has changed. For decades, it was noted for performances in its home grown contemporary choreography -- Tudor, Robbins, DeMille, Loring, even earliy Feld. They kept ballets like "Billy the Kid" credible long after that kind of ballet was out of fashion. But, despite some wonderful stars and excellent soloists, one went elsewhere to see a first-rate "Swan Lake" or "Sleeping Beauty."

Thanks for posting this Michael (and the NYCB review, too). OT of Fille, but relevant to the sid issue you rasied. It is interesting to watch a production from season to season. I remember watching "Push Comes to Shove" change. Some changes were Tharp's; she actually changed choreography, omitted sections, fiddled with structure as well as steps. And some changes were from casting. It wasn't all a Long Downhill Slide, either -- it was just interesting. What is the dance? I think you're right -- the tendency is to broaden comedy. And people have always complained that Ashton ballets -- even when he was alive, and he was being danced by The Saints -- got coarse over time. Sometimes if a joke is too subtle, they'll have to play it a bit broader to get a laugh, etc. And sometimes it's just that the dancers want to add their own touches, and sometimes it's because new people come in and weren't taught by the choreographer or original stager, and sometimes I don't think it's intentional at all.

Here's Tobi Tobias's review in the Village Voice. What say you? And Tobi Tobias on ABT's and NYCB's new opi, also in the Village Voice: Dancing Saves the Day With the provocative subhead: The Balance of Power Shifts Between America's Top Two Ballet Troupes

I think that their careers once lasted longer simply because they had roles for middle-aged dancers in the repertory, but that's changed now. The retirement age was 50 for a long time, then 46, I believe. But that changed in 1992. They have to retire at 40 now. It's the same for women as men. Perhaps, long ago, the training, and the repertory, prevented injuries -- Bournonville technique is a balanced style, permitting no extremes. But they dance everything now. Aside from the fact that they have a few Bournonville ballets every year, they're like every other company in the world now -- many dancers not trained in the school, a repertory from all over the place, etc.

Ah! You've hit upon ballet's great secret. Many of ballet's heroes and heroines have only one parent, especially those in Romantic ballets. I have a New! Improved! lilbretto for Folk Tale that begins, "Muri, a single mother who struggles to raise her two rambunctious sons, Viderik and Diderik...."

Myrthe would have exciting, fluffy forest animals to play with And they would tear Ken (a/k/a Count Daniel) to pieces if you buy the batteries.

I agree -- except they don't wear overskirts, much less underskirts Perhaps shackles. The new fashion accessory.

Cargilll, you should write crossword puzzles

Thanks, Colleen -- always good to read you. I hope others have seen it as well and will post. (Leigh put up an alert last night, reminding people that there were only a few performances left.) I've been curious to know how the ballet is holding up -- Ashton ballets often look very good their first season, but get soggy thereafter. Sounds like this Fille, though is holding its own.

Before we put Bobbi under oath, brokenwing, I don't think she was tlaking about existing MacMillanesque ballets, but the possibilty of future ones created by Wheeldon. (Bobbi, forgive me if I've misinterpreted you, and fell free to correct.)