Alexandra

There's a conference coming up at Hunter College that looks absolutely fascinating -- lots of early modern dance stuff, technique classes, performance (some ballet, a Balanchine class, some Tudor excerpts). The technique classes would be of special interest to me -- the chance to see a Graham, then a Hawkins, a Cunningham, etc. class is very rare these days. And Katherine Dunham is scheduled to appear! If anyone goes to this, PLEASE post about it. Here's the program: The Hunter College Dance Program In Association with The Harkness Foundation for Dance Presents SHARING THE LEGACY DANCE MASTERWORKS OF THE 20TH CENTURY MAY 3-5, 2002 CONCERT MAY 3, 2002 HISTORIC CONCERT May 3, 2002 The Kaye Playhouse at Hunter College (69th St. between Lexington and Park Avenues) for reservations call: (212) 772-4448 students/seniors $12 general $20 Concert Program Martha Graham: Lamentation performed by guest artist Katherine Crockett member of the Graham Dance Company Alvin Ailey: Hidden Rites Trisha Brown: Line Up Hanya Holm: Kindertotenleider José Limón: A Choreographic Offering Alwin Nikolais: Tensile Involvement Helen Tamiris: Women's Song Antony Tudor: The Planets Charles Weidman: Lynchtown; Bargain Counter These works will be performed by college students from: Duke University, Hofstra College, Hunter College, Philadelphia College of Performing Arts, University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the University of Utah Conference Presenters include: Sandra Aberkalns, Carolyn Adams, Katherine Crockett, Christine Dakin, Claudia Gitelman, Meg Harper, Bill Hastings, Lourdes Lopez, Murray Louis, Gloria McLean, Milton Myers, Madeleine M. Nichols, Mark Jones, Carla Maxwell, Gerald Otte, Norton Owen, Wendy Perron, Adam Pinsker, Peggy Schwartz, Vicky Shick, Deirdre Towers, Ann Vachon, Sylvia Waters, and the renowned Katherine Dunham Conference Schedule of Events Friday May 3, 2002 8:00-9:00 Registration 9:15-10:45 Cunningham Technique Class (studio A) - Meg Harper Balanchine Ballet Class (studio B) 11:00-11:45 Welcome: President of Hunter College Jennifer J. Raab Keynote Address Murray Louis 12:00-1:30 Horton Technique Class (studio A) - Milton Myers Trisha Brown Repertory Class (studio B) - Vicky Shick 1:45-2:30 Lunch 2:45-4:00 Lecture and Video Presentation, "A Different Slant: Personality vs. Philosophy in Dance Video Documentaries." (studio C) - Diedre Towers and Ann Vachon Hawkins Technique Class (studio A) - Gloria McLean 8:00 HISTORIC CONCERT - KAYE PLAYHOUSE AT HUNTER COLLEGE SATURDAY MAY 4, 2002 9:00-10:30 Limón Technique Class (studio A) - Carla Maxwell Nikolais Technique Class (studio B) - Gerald Otte 10:45-12:30 Panel: "Preserving the Legacy" moderator: Wendy Perron panelists: Sandra Alberkalns-Dance Notation Bureau Lourdes Lopez-Board Member, Balanchine Trust Madeleine M. Nichols-Curator of the Dance Collection Performing Arts Library, New York Norton Owen-Director of Preservation, Jacob's Pillow Sylvia Waters-Artistic Director, Ailey II 12:45-1:45 Lunch 2:00-3:30 Dance Workshop and Lecture on Bushasche (war dance) as staged by Pearl Primus (studio A) - Peggy Schwartz 3:45-5:15 Fosse Jazz Technique Class (studio B) - Bill Hastings Sunday May 5, 2002 8:45-9:45 Pilates Mat Class (studio A) - Johanna S. Meyer 10:00-11:30 Conversation and Dance Workshop with the renowned Katherine Dunham 11:45-1:30 Panel: "Passing on the Legacy" moderator: Mark Jones panelists: Carolyn Adams-Curator of American Dance Legacy Institute at Brown University, former dancer for Paul Taylor, Julliard faculty Christine Dakin-Principle Dancer with the Martha Graham Dance Company Claudia Gitelman-Dance Historian, Teacher, Choreographer Adam Pinsker-Arts Writer and Consultant 1:30-200 Concluding Remarks (Schedule subject to change) Conference Registration Full Conference Panel Package Individual Sessions: $20 students/seniors $120 students/seniors $50 general $150 general $65 Concert Only: Box Office Reservations -classes -concert tickets (212) 772-4448 -concert tickets -keynote -keynote address -two panels -panel discussions -video presentation REGISTRATION e-mail pre-registration to: cgr@hunter.cuny.edu or call (212) 772-5010 Please include your name, address, telephone #, and e-mail address Make checks payable to: Hunter College Dance Program Send to: Hunter College Dance Program, 695 Park Ave., Room 614 TH New York, New York 10021 Registration will also be accepted at the door. Please note that class participation is subject to space availability. Conference and Concert Presented by the Hunter College Dance Program In Association with The Harkness Foundation for Dance Conference Planning Committee: Jana Feinman, Chair Kimberley Bierley Julia Gleich Catherine Green Jodi Kaplan Logistics Committee: Mary Burns Mariana Marquez Kathleen Turner

I'm behind in posting this, but better late than never TITLE: BALLET UNDER NAPOLEON ISBN: 1 85273 082 X PRICE: GBP35.00 PUBLISHER: Dance Books Ltd PUBLICATION DATE: April 2002 CATEGORY: Ballet history SPECIFICATIONS: Hardback 584 pages 234 x 156mm Full colour cover, 40 monochrome plates. DESCRIPTION: With the publication of this title, Dr. Guest completes his massive survey of ballet in France from 1770 to 1870. The present volume covers the period from 1793 to 1819, the time of such luminaries as Gardel, Milon, Vestris, Duport, and Bigottini. This period has often been dismissed as an interlude of decadence before the flowering of the romantic ballet, but as Dr. Guest reveals in this vivid and definitive account, it was in fact a period of great significance in the development of ballet as a major theatre art. As always, Ivor Guest is incapable of dullness, but writes with the devotion and excitement of the true enthusiast, and has added a major new item to his already extensive bibliography. You will find details of this and other new releases at: http://www.dancebooks.co.uk/new.shtml or you may send orders by email to orders@dancebooks.co.uk, by telephone to (44) (0) 1420 86138, by fax to (44) (0) 1420 86142, or by post to Dance Books Ltd., The Old Bakery, 4 Lenten Street, Alton, Hampshire GU34 1HG, UK. (Trade orders to Vine House Distribution, telephone 01825 723398 within the UK, 44 1825 723398 from overseas.) David Leonard dl@dancebooks.co.uk www.dancebooks.co.uk

Ari posted this on Links -- a piece from the Boston Globe about a program of new choreography in Boston (new ballet choreography, is sounds like!) Did any of our Bostonians go? (I'm especially curious because Margot Parsons is a long-time DanceView subscriber. I didn't even know she was a choreographer!) Here's the link to the article: Some dancers from the Boston Ballet participated in a concert of new choreography by New England choreographers.

ABTKids Presents Sleeping Beauty and Her Fairy Tale Friends Saturday, May 18 at 11:30 a.m. at the Metropolitan Opera House ABTKids, a special performance featuring Sleeping Beauty and Her Fairy Tale Friends, is scheduled for Saturday, May 18 at 11:30 a.m. at the Metropolitan Opera House. Designed for children and families, ABTKids gives children an opportunity to expand their understanding of ballet in an enjoyable atmosphere. Sleeping Beauty and Her Fairy Tale Friends, an hour-long program, incorporates timeless characters from classic storybook ballets performed by ABT's renowned dancers and accompanied by a full orchestra. The program will include Princess Aurora's 16th birthday party and appearances by Puss-in-Boots, the White Cat, Princess Florine, the Bluebird, the Lilac Fairy and Carabosse. Tickets for ABTKids are priced at $12 for children and $18 for adults and may be purchased at the Metropolitan Opera House box office by calling 212-362-6000. The Metropolitan Opera House is located at Lincoln Center at Broadway and 65th Street. ABTKids is sponsored by The Heidtke Foundation and the MetLife Foundation.

CASTING ANNOUNCED FOR FIRST TWO WEEKS OF AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE'S 2002 SPRING SEASON AT METROPOLITAN OPERA HOUSE (I'd note, for those who may not know it, that "Walk This Way" was Clark Tippet's first work for ABT -- very funny when new, with Van Hamel and Tippet. It's a Victorian couple trying to communicate. I'd also note that there's a question mark in nearly every line of this casting. It's either a living reminder that "Programs and Casting subject to change" or a typing glitch. I doubt that it means the company is really wondering who will be dancing which night. The full press release follows, for those interested.) FIRST WEEK Mon. Eve., May 13, 6:30 P.M. GALA SWAN LAKE, Act II Waltz THE DREAM Pas de Deux ? Ferri, Stiefel LA FILLE MAL GARDÉE, Variation ? Reyes ONEGIN, Olga/Lensky Pas de Deux - Tuttle, Malakhov TCHAIKOVSKY PAS DE DEUX ? Dvorovenko, Belotserkovsky GISELLE, Excerpt from Act II ? McKerrow, Corella, Abrera LE CORSAIRE, Act II Bedroom Pas de Deux ? Ananiashvili, Bocca WALK THIS WAY ? Jaffe**, Graffin** MANON, Act I Pas de Deux ? Kent, Hill LE CORSAIRE, Act II Pas de Deux à Trois ? Herrera, Acosta, Carreño SYMPHONY IN C, Fourth Movement ? Murphy, Belotserkovsky, Dvorovenko, Gomes, Reyes, De Luz, Wiles, Torres Tue. Eve., May 14, 8 P.M. ONEGIN ? Kent, Hill, Malakhov, Riccetto Wed. Mat., May 15, 2 P.M. ONEGIN ? Dvorovenko, Graffin, Corella, Tuttle Wed. Eve., May 15, 8 P.M. ONEGIN ? Jaffe, Molina, Belotserkovsky, Reyes Thurs. Eve., May 16, 8 P.M. ONEGIN ? Kent, Hill, Malakhov, Riccetto Fri. Eve., May 17, 8 P.M. ONEGIN ? Dvorovenko, Graffin, Corella, Tuttle Sat. Mat., May 18, 2 P.M. ONEGIN ? Jaffe, Molina, Belotserkovsky, Reyes Sat. Eve., May 18, 8 P.M. ONEGIN ? Ferri**, Graffin, Stiefel, Tuttle SECOND WEEK Mon. Eve., May 20, 8 P.M. TCHAIKOVSKY SPECTACULAR THEME AND VARIATIONS ? Murphy, Stiefel TCHAIKOVSKY PAS DE DEUX ? McKerrow, Malakhov THE NUTCRACKER Pas de Deux ? Kent, Carreño ROSE ADAGIO ? Dvorovenko THE SLEEPING BEAUTY, Act III ? Jaffe, Acosta** Tue. Eve., May 21, 8 P.M. TCHAIKOVSKY SPECTACULAR THEME AND VARIATIONS ? Tuttle, Carreño WALK THIS WAY ? Jaffe, Hill* TCHAIKOVSKY PAS DE DEUX ? Herrera, Gomes THE SLEEPING BEAUTY, Act III ? Ananiashvili, Bocca Wed. Mat., May 22, 2 P.M. TCHAIKOVSKY SPECTACULAR THEME AND VARIATIONS ? Murphy, Stiefel THE NUTCRACKER Pas de Deux ? Jaffe, Malakhov SWAN LAKE, Act II Pas de Deux ? Herrera, Gomes ROSE ADAGIO ? Dvorovenko THE SLEEPING BEAUTY, Act III ? Kent, Corella Wed. Eve., May 22, 8 P.M. TCHAIKOVSKY SPECTACULAR THEME AND VARIATIONS ? Tuttle, Belotserkovsky TCHAIKOVSKY PAS DE DEUX ? Ananiashvili, Carreño SWAN LAKE, Act II Pas de Deux ? Kent, Corella THE SLEEPING BEAUTY, Act III ? Jaffe, Acosta Thurs. Eve, May 23, 8 P.M. TCHAIKOVSKY SPECTACULAR THEME AND VARIATIONS ? Herrera, Gomes TCHAIKOVSKY PAS DE DEUX ? McKerrow, Malakhov SWAN LAKE, Act III Pas de Deux ? Dvorovenko, Bocca THE SLEEPING BEAUTY, Act III ? Tuttle, Corella Fri. Eve., May 24, 8 P.M. THE DREAM (Company Premiere) ? Ferri, Stiefel, H. Cornejo SYMPHONY IN C ? Dvorovenko, Belotserkovsky, Ananiashvili, Carreño, Tuttle, Corella, Wiles, Torres Sat. Mat., May 25, 2 P.M. THE DREAM ? Kent*, Acosta**, De Luz* SYMPHONY IN C ? Murphy, Stiefel, Jaffe, Molina, Reyes, De Luz, Liceica, Stewart Sat. Eve., May 25, 8 P.M. TCHAIKOVSKY SPECTACULAR THEME AND VARIATIONS ? Herrera, Gomes WALK THIS WAY ? Jaffe, Hill TCHAIKOVSKY PAS DE DEUX ? Tuttle, Corella THE SLEEPING BEAUTY, Act III ? Ananiashvili, Bocca -30- *Editors please note: first time in a role: Tues. Eve., 5/21 ? Hill in Walk This Way Sat. Mat., 5/25 ? Kent, De Luz in The Dream **Editors please note: first time in role with ABT: Mon. Eve., 5/13 ? Jaffe, Graffin in Walk This Way Sat. Eve., 5/18 ? Ferri in Onegin Mon. Eve., 5/20 ? Acosta in The Sleeping Beauty, Act III Sat. Mat., 5/25 ? Acosta in The Dream Company Premiere of Sir Frederick Ashton's The Dream to Highlight Opening Weeks Carlos Acosta to Make ABT Debut at Opening Night Gala Casting for the first two weeks of American Ballet Theatre's 2002 Metropolitan Opera House season was announced today by Kevin McKenzie, Artistic Director. American Ballet Theatre's Spring Season opens May 13 with a one-time-only Opening Night Gala beginning at 6:30pm. President George W. Bush and Mrs. Laura Bush will serve as Honorary Chairmen of the event. The program will feature excerpts from the 2002 season including ABT's Company Premieres of La Fille mal gardée and The Dream choreographed by Sir Frederick Ashton. Carlos Acosta, a Principal Dancer with Houston Ballet and guest artist with The Royal Ballet, will make his ABT debut on opening night dancing the role of Conrad in the "pas de deux à trios" for Medora, Conrad and Ali from Le Corsaire. Following the Opening Night Gala, American Ballet Theatre will present seven performances of John Cranko's Onegin beginning Tuesday, May 14 with Julie Kent as Tatiana, Robert Hill as Eugene Onegin, Vladimir Malakhov as Lensky and Maria Riccetto as Olga. The Saturday evening, May 18 performance will feature the ABT debut of Alessandra Ferri in the role of Tatiana. Set to music by Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky, arranged and orchestrated by Kurt-Heinz Stolze, Onegin received its Company Premiere by American Ballet Theatre during the 2001 Metropolitan Opera House season. Originally created for the Stuttgart Ballet in 1965, Onegin was staged for ABT by Reid Anderson and Jane Bourne. The ballet features costumes by Jürgen Rose and lighting by Sholem Dolgoy. A Tchaikovsky Spectacular, celebrating the music of ballet's favoritecomposer, will highlight the second week of American Ballet Theatre's 2002 season. With performances scheduled for Monday evening, May 20 through Thursday evening, May 23 and for Saturday evening, May 25, a Tchaikovsky Spectacular includes classical pas de deux and excerpts from The Nutcracker, The Sleeping Beauty and Swan Lake. The programs also include performances of George Balanchine's Theme and Variations and Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux and David Parsons' Walk This Way. The week will also feature the ABT debut of Carlos Acosta as Prince Désiré in The Sleeping Beauty Act III. As part of its Modern Master's program, American Ballet Theatre will present the Company Premiere of Sir Frederick Ashton's The Dream on Friday, May 24 with Alessandra Ferri as Titania, Ethan Stiefel as Oberon and Herman Cornejo as Puck. The Dream, set to music by Felix Mendelssohn with sets and costumes by David Walker and lighting by John B. Reed, received its World Premiere by The Royal Ballet in 1964. The Dream is being staged for ABT by Anthony Dowell, with the assistance of Christopher Carr. Julie Kent, Carlos Acosta and Joaquin De Luz wil take over the leading roles in the ballet at the Saturday, May 25 matinee. George Balanchine's Symphony In C, which received its ABT Company Premiere in 2001, will complete the Modern Masters program on May 24 and Saturday May 25 matinee. Tickets for American Ballet Theatre's 2002 Metropolitan Opera House season are on sale now at the Met box office or by calling 212-362-6000. American Ballet Theatre's 2002 season at The Metropolitan Opera House is sponsored by the Movado Watch Company. For the past 16 years, Movado Watch Company has been a principal benefactor of American Ballet Theatre. The 2002 Metropolitan Opera House season is made possible with public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts, a State Agency. Complete casting follows:

Oh, Mel, save the ticket. The Royal Swedish Ballet brought its H&A reconstructions of the greatest hits of the Ballet Suedois. It was a thrill to see the backcloths I'd only seen in books, yes, but that lasted only a half a minute. The rest were, well, regional. Very derivative. Even allowing for the fact that reconstructions are often rather dull, these were dull.

Oh, Mel, save the ticket. The Royal Swedish Ballet brought its H&A reconstructions of the greatest hits of the Ballet Suedois. It was a thrill to see the backcloths I'd only seen in books, yes, but that lasted only a half a minute. The rest were, well, regional. Very derivative. Even allowing for the fact that reconstructions are often rather dull, these were dull.

Welcome, Rubies. Thanks for jumping right in on your first day! I hope we'll hear more from you And thanks for the information. Green for grass, or maybe jumping grass!

Thank you, BW -- sometimes we have to be like "beaters" on a hunt: flush out those reluctant posters and urge, wheedle, whatever them to tell us what they saw.

What a lovely review! Thank you for posting that, Susan. This makes two hits for Possokhov. It would be nice to think we had another choreographer on the horizon Did anyone else see this program? Comments?

Thanks for poseting this, Ed. I'm sure what we see on screen will be a kilometer or two away from the original, but with good actors, it might be interesting! Alexandra A Dostoyevsky Fan -- or, pooh on Tolstoy!

I think the throughline on the company style/company individuality question is that a corps often LOOKS more uniform than it is, while soloists and principals who emerge from the corps dance in a more individual style. (Often they were quite capable of dancing more individually from day one, but when dancing in a corps, the goal is usually NOT to stand out.) When the company has a ballerina, she sets the company style (or ballerino; Dowell set the Royal's style after Fonteyn, Baryshnikov was a very different Mr. Ballet Theatre from John Kriza.) During the 1960s, the perception was that the Royal Ballet was a collection of Fonteyn clones, during the 1970s, City Ballet was filled with Farrell imitators. Partly this is perception, I think; we see the ballerina reflected in the corps. And partly there IS imitation. If I want to be a star, I'll dance like her. But, as is often pointed out, Farrell is only ONE of Balanchine's Muses, and very different in body type from Von Aroldingen or McBride, as Nerina and Grey were very different from Fonteyn. I think Leigh's happenstance point is a good one, too. If there are suddenly 6 new short men, or tall women, dancers will be recruited to fit the needs of the company at that moment. It would be interesting to get people's impressions of what the company body types are at the moment, company by company.

I think the throughline on the company style/company individuality question is that a corps often LOOKS more uniform than it is, while soloists and principals who emerge from the corps dance in a more individual style. (Often they were quite capable of dancing more individually from day one, but when dancing in a corps, the goal is usually NOT to stand out.) When the company has a ballerina, she sets the company style (or ballerino; Dowell set the Royal's style after Fonteyn, Baryshnikov was a very different Mr. Ballet Theatre from John Kriza.) During the 1960s, the perception was that the Royal Ballet was a collection of Fonteyn clones, during the 1970s, City Ballet was filled with Farrell imitators. Partly this is perception, I think; we see the ballerina reflected in the corps. And partly there IS imitation. If I want to be a star, I'll dance like her. But, as is often pointed out, Farrell is only ONE of Balanchine's Muses, and very different in body type from Von Aroldingen or McBride, as Nerina and Grey were very different from Fonteyn. I think Leigh's happenstance point is a good one, too. If there are suddenly 6 new short men, or tall women, dancers will be recruited to fit the needs of the company at that moment. It would be interesting to get people's impressions of what the company body types are at the moment, company by company.

Ah, Ed, this was in the 1980s. We were more civilized then! (I've been to dance performances where people talked on their cell phones and ate cheeseburgers!) His analogy to driving was based on fun on the autobahn, where there are no speed limits. American tourists ruined the whole driving experience by insisting on sticking to 70 or 80 mph and freaking out at hairpin turns.

Ah, Ed, this was in the 1980s. We were more civilized then! (I've been to dance performances where people talked on their cell phones and ate cheeseburgers!) His analogy to driving was based on fun on the autobahn, where there are no speed limits. American tourists ruined the whole driving experience by insisting on sticking to 70 or 80 mph and freaking out at hairpin turns.

Good question. I'd say the differences aren't nearly as stark as before. Think of the difference between the Royal Ballet and NYCB as late as the 1970s! And it was much starker (by photographs) the decades before. Once you could tell where a dancer was from -- not only where s/he danced but where s/he had been trained -- in an instant. I couldn't do that now. This is part of the national distinctiveness being broken down, as well as the mish-mashing of all styles of classical ballet into globalglot as more "contemporary dance" replaces ballet in the repertories of ballet companies.

Good question. I'd say the differences aren't nearly as stark as before. Think of the difference between the Royal Ballet and NYCB as late as the 1970s! And it was much starker (by photographs) the decades before. Once you could tell where a dancer was from -- not only where s/he danced but where s/he had been trained -- in an instant. I couldn't do that now. This is part of the national distinctiveness being broken down, as well as the mish-mashing of all styles of classical ballet into globalglot as more "contemporary dance" replaces ballet in the repertories of ballet companies.

Clive Barnes, on a panel in DC last spring when the Royal did it's Ashton week, asked if it ever had occurred to anyone that the reason Balanchine and Ashton didn't have more men in their ballets was because there WEREN'T enough men and if they were choreographing now, they might do some very different works. Re Paul's comments about Robbins, there are good roles for men in his works, of course, and your comment made me think of (surprise) the Danish way of collecting ballets. This was the last male-centric company in the world (that's gone too now) and Larsen, Flindt and Kronstam, when they were choosing repertory, all seemed to look at ballets from that view -- were there good parts for men? Only those ballets chosen by Volkova in the 1950s (Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, a revival of Chopiniana) were what we generally think of as ballet -- with one, or, at most, a few leading men and a corps of women. The critics pointed out how foreign these were to the repertory. Why do we have one man surrounded by all those girls in white skirts when we are used to seeing lots of men on stage? they'd ask. Massine and Fokine ballets had good roles for men, too -- just not good in the same way that we think of good roles. They were character, rather than strictly dancing parts.

Thank you for that story, Rick! I've never heard of a dancer booing the audience I wonder how much of this varies from country to country? I had a German friend once whom I took to a local modern dance performance which he loathed. After the first number, he stood up and enthusiastically booed. It was a very small crowd, maybe 40, so people noticed. He complained later that Americans watched dance the way they drove -- asleep. What was the fun of going if you couldn't boo? He claimed that German audiences booed all the time. Sonja, is that true? Or perhaps the Stuttgart and Munich audiences are different from Cologne and Hamburg!

Thank you for that story, Rick! I've never heard of a dancer booing the audience I wonder how much of this varies from country to country? I had a German friend once whom I took to a local modern dance performance which he loathed. After the first number, he stood up and enthusiastically booed. It was a very small crowd, maybe 40, so people noticed. He complained later that Americans watched dance the way they drove -- asleep. What was the fun of going if you couldn't boo? He claimed that German audiences booed all the time. Sonja, is that true? Or perhaps the Stuttgart and Munich audiences are different from Cologne and Hamburg!

Welcome to Ballet Alert!, obbligato, and thank you very much for posting that. I hope someone else here has seen it and will chime in. You might be interested in reading this thread: http://www.balletalert.com/forum/showthrea...=&threadid=4758 A few posts down, the choreographer of Sleepy Hollow wrote about how he structured the libretto for this ballet.

Thank you for taking the time and trouble to post that, David

Thanks, Kevin.

Merde indeed THE single most disturbing trend in ballet today is the notion that modern dance is new ballet. (I had a long conversation with a Washington modern dancer about this a couple of weeks ago and was delighted to find that she was just as upset about it as I was!) There's very little classical experimentation going on -- Paul's Bugakuesque example is a good one. I can't remember the reference -- someone who's memorized Croce will be able to come up with it -- but she addressed this in writing about an early Son of Balanchine piece, that Balanchine, when he did Serenade was working from within a tradition of Romanticism. His imitators were merely imitating baying at the moon. Paul, I loved your comment on Massine's method of staging. The very idea of setting head and torso before feet -- now THAT's revolutionary. The pre-1993 way of setting a ballet in Denmark was holistic: steps, gesture, phrasing, head/arms all taught at once so that the dancer didn't have a chance to separate them, or drop the part s/he didn't like. I also agree with what you wrote about TV. I think part of it, too, is the observation by Marshall McLuhan? -- I've blanked on his name -- that there are "hot" media and "cool" media. Stage and movies are hot, TV is cool.

I think people here are well aware of the ephemeral nature of ballet, which was why the topic was raised in the first place. It's a bit off topic to suggest that the exercise is either futile or not particularly bright I certainly hope no one feels discouraged from either voting or sharing their reasons for the vote. Tancos, in an earlier post you wrote: Perhaps this would be too complicated for a poll, but it would make an interesting thread -- why not start one?