Alexandra

They're definitely provacateurs, but I do think the young and sassy should have a voice. I'm not familiar with all the artists they skewer, but I have read accounts of Siobhan Davies, for example, that make me want to see her work. I was more taken by their comments that the NEW stuff from the young and hungry isn't new, young or hungry but old stuff in new clothes.

It's Andrei :hyper: :hyper: :hyper: It's so good to read you again, and what great stories! I think sometimes we forget how good dancers are at improvising! Your Onegin story reminded me of one (not recent, alas, as the thread requested, but good anyway). The Prince in Nureyev's Sleeping Beauty (the Canadian production) sweeps in and immediately shoots a bow and arrow at a target. He always misses, of course, and so there's an arrow that pops out so that the court can applaud. Well, once Nureyev actually hit a bulls-eye. And the fake arrow popped out anyway. (Not surprisingly, he seemed to take full credit for both.)

Dewdrop, this topic has been discussed many times here in various threads, including some quite recent ones, in the NYCB forum. Generally, and very briefly, there are several accounts of what Balanchine's intentions were, what he said, who said what to whom and when, etc. about who would succeed Balanchine.

I haven't seen them -- we get very little European dance in DC, especially the smaller companies. Here's a link to their page (English version) http://www.staatstheater-mainz.de/html/Akt...allgem_eng.html It describes the repertory as mainly neoclassical and contemporary. It's a small company, 20 dancers.

You'd like the Trocks version, then, GeorgeB Fan. Albrecht pleads, Giselle looks at him and shrugs, as if saying, "So what do you expect ME to do about it?"

Good question. Since the companies are technically "private" and not state supported, I don't think there's as general rule. There have been some companies where the board establishes a search committee (composition to be determined by the board; it could be the general director, current artistic director and some board members, perhaps even a few dancers) and they adverrtise the position. Some hire search firms -- not necessarily artistic search firms. The same firm you'd go to if you needed a chief financial officer. Depending on the current AD's relationship witih the board, he or she may have some input or may even say, "I'm retiring. I strongly recommend Joe to take over." As you can imagine, the rumor mill for these jobs is quite active, and people apply before a position is announced, upon hearing that the current AD is retiring. What the specific procedure will be for NYCB I think is not known. There are still conflicting reports on what happened the last time! Anyone have other insights?

liebs, I agree with you. Everything -- everything -- I've seen that's labeled as "new" or "pushing the envelope" is recycled from the 1960s and '70s.

Thank you very much for delurking and for that review, Clare! I haven't seen Ballet West's productions, but Tudor is had to get right.

Sorry, Boots. I don't know, and I did a quick search and couldn't find anything specific on the music as it relates to Parsons' piece. I hope someone else can help!

perky, I love all your programs, but the Sleeping Beauty is priceless!

Thanks for that, Lynette -- it makes sense. It's interesting, too, for a city to have more art than it has critics!! Yes, it is interesting -- but the other critics I've read do seem to know who Tudor is They just don't like it. I would love to hear some comments from those who've seen the performances.

Oh, lordy, you could have a madness week. The "mad" act of "Anastasia" should be mentioned. There could be a whole Death is Sad week too (with apologies to Jane -- I wouldn't have wanted to see that one the day after a funeral). AND there could be an evening of Albioni's Adagio -- only those with purple, black or brown costumes need apply.

Amazon has several international sites, too; you'll find them at the bottom of the www.amazon.com home page (or click the link at the top of the site). I don't think they have one in South Africa, but they do have U.K., France and Germany, and shipping might be cheaper there. It's worth a try. (I think Amazon will ship anywhere, but haven't tried it.)

Has he done "The Brothers Karamazov" yet?

On the "Summer Silliness" thread, Mme. Hermine asked if Petipa might be the subject for the next Eifman ballet. What other possibilities are there?

Now you've hit on it -- I'll post this as a separate topic.

Good thought, mussel! We're nearly guaranteed to see all these programs for real within the next few years. We could add "Carmen" (Petit's) to your Seductress program. And how about Criminals at the Ballet! Ballet's Big Bad Boys: Billy the Kid (Loring) Undertow (Tudor) Slaughter on 10th Avenue (Balanchine)

Jacques d'Amboise used to mug outrageously in the curtain calls for the final movement of "Brahms Schoenberg" (great miming: AW, shucks. You want ME to come out AGAIN and bow?) But it seemed so much a part of the piece, I never minded it. I think I'm only bothered if I think the dancer is brave to come out even once for a call, yet comes out again and again. I think, too, that if you like the dancer, you might think the "milking" is adorable, but if you're immune to his or her charms, you'll think it's awful -- as cygnet said above, in a different way. I don't know about the Raymonda Variations choreographed-in call -- I hope someone does. It does seem un-Balanchine. The one Fokinian reform he seems to have followed is "no curtain calls mid-ballet" (Fokine phrased it much more elegantly.)

But criticism is supposed to be a factor of JUDGEMENT not of taste. If a dance critic who was ignorant of theater found him/herself in the position of writing about an unfamiliar playwright, would he/she be able to get away with writing, "Gosh, that Shakespeare sure used fancy language. They must have had l-o-n-g attention spans back then!"

I think the amount of detail in a book of history -- biography, history of a company, etc. -- is really one of those things that are very much a factor of reader backgrounda and interest. I know when I first read Buckle's biography of "Nijinsky" I was bored to tears -- and very disappointed, because I had enjoyed Buckle's criticism and expected the biography to be like it. I read it again last winter and what had seemed tedious to me 25 years ago, because I hadn't seen those ballets and found it hard to keep them apart, was fascinating now. If I read a book about something that doesn't interest me in the particular, but does in the general, I'll become impatient with the details, but if it's in a field of interest, then I want MORE details and complain if there isn't a lot of specific information.

Alas, not. Some people who write long posts, especially reviews, will write it in Word or another word processing program, spell check it, and then copy and paste it in a post. If you write something and realize you've made an error, you can always go back in and edit it later, though. We're very nice to bad spellers

I think the idea of curtain calls and dancers playing to the gallery deserved a thread of its own, so I made one here That way, we can continue the discussion [click the link above to get to the thread], but leave this thread for discussion of the Bolshoi's recent performances in London.

This is a spin off of a comment made on the Bolshoi in London thread about dancers playing to the gallery -- I thought that was worth a thread of its own. It's another take on our past debates of whether we like mid-performance applause, long curtain calls, and the like. Do you like it when dancers "sell" a performance or play to the gallery? Is this something that's appropriate in some cases and not in others? Any favorite over the top moments you'd like to share?

Well, do feel free! This is a site for do-it-yourselfers

What I like about the articles at www.article19.co.uk is that they pull no punches -- just come right out and say what they think. This piece complains about the state of contemporary dance in Britain, but much of what they write applies to modern dance -- and ballet, with a tiny bit of detail-tweaking -- in this country as well. They also tackle the question of "why don't audiences like it"; I'd argue that the avant garde, if it's truly avant garde, will never attract a mainstream audience and one wouldn't want it to. But others seem to live in hope. Anyway, the more interesting points are that NOTHING IS HAPPENING, everything "new" is recycled from the past, and, well, boring. Dance Goes Insane I'd urge you to read the whole article; I think it's worth it. And then....what do you think?