drb
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Posts posted by drb
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I remember a great pairing: Makarova in Voluntaries (Shibata in the pas de trois), followed by Kirkland in Giselle.
That was a memorable pairing, and it was apt, as this quote from choreographer Glen Tetley suggests: “although there is a fall into gravity or into death,” there also is “a continual lifting, a continual trying to soar, like angels, in what is almost a constellation of light.”
But as you also point out, Baryshnikov had excised the PPD, so that Giselle wasn't "whole." One wonders why Tetley, and especially Voluntaries, has vanished from ABT. It was certainly a hit. Perhaps the problem is that it requires an organ? In any case, I'd like it back into the rep, even though I don't feel ABT's current version of Giselle needs an intro piece.
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From the point of view of the direction, a compelling reason to pair Giselle with another ballet is the absence of male roles. Violin Concerto has 12 men in it and kept them active. In companies with block instead of repertory proramming where only one ballet occupies a long stretch of performance and the rehearsal period before that's a consideration. It did pair nicely with Giselle. If I programmed a curtain raiser with Giselle it would be something with a male corps such as that or Allegro Brillante.
Another that might work is Kammermusik II, which has both a male corps and the advantage of brevity (20 minutes). Interesting, how so many suggestions have been Balanchines, given his supposed dislike of Giselle (does anyone know why?).
I can see, especially, that a regional company travelling to a major venue with a really fine Giselle might wish to have a varied curtain-raiser, in order to display more of its talent to a new audience. Still, for companies with world class principals, I don't really need anything else on the bill. Certainly not for any of the recent ABT Giselles at the Met.
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ABT's 2006 calendar is out.
January: Abrera, February: Riccetto, March: Parkinson/Murphy
April: Paris/Kajiya, May: Herrera, June: Cornejo
July: Ferri, August: Ananiashvili (!), September: Gomes
October: Kent/Herrera, November: Reyes, December: McKerrow/Stiefel.
December's is another photo of their Giselle, complementing July 2005.
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Although I am grateful for the chance to see more pictures of Obraztsova, especially ones of this quality, it is a shame that they must all be defaced with printing. One can understand the legalities, I suppose, but other sources of dance photos don't do this.
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If you click Amazon at the top of this page you will find The Russian Ark available in both DVD (I think three are left) and VHS.
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How about six via three programs, two companies?
Program 1.
"Schumann"
NYCB: Liang ("Luders"), Sylve (wife), Kowroski (muse)
ABT: Hallberg, Murphy, Part
After the Rain
NYCB: Soto (guest)/Whelan, Sylve, Reichlen, Liang, la Cour
ABT: Gomes/Fang, Wiles, Dvorovenko, Beloserkovsky, Malakhov
Symphony in C
NYCB: Bouder/Ramasar, Kowroski/la Cour, Peck/Carmena, Scheller/Evans
ABT: Vishneva/Corella, Part/Acosta, Lane/Cornejo, Bystrova/Tidwell
Program 2.
Giselle
ABT: Fang/Hallberg, Gomes, Lane/Tidwell, Part, Bystrova/Copeland
NYCB: Bouder/Woetzle, Evans, Fairchild/Ramasar, Reichlen, Scheller/Hyltin
Program 3.
Ballo della Regina
NYCB: Bouder/Millepied
ABT: Vishneva/Corella
Pillar of Fire
NYCB: Sylve/J. Angle, T. Angle, Kistler, Peck
ABT: McKerrow (guest)/Gomes, Hallberg, Meunier, Fang
Mr. B's Swan Lake
NYCB: Kowroski/la Cour
ABT: Lane/Cornejo
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.... in New York at the Met.
And it was deadly dull. Imagine working all day and then have to sit three hours before seeing any substantial "ballet!" Sure, it would make a very worthy "scholar's matinee," no kids allowed, of course.
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The speculation in the Times article as to the company to which she's applied says something about the state of journalism at the Times. 1. If the speculation is true, making it public could apply pressure to both sides, perhaps damaging negotiations, or otherwise creating grief for one party or the other. 2. If it were not true, then its public appearance could discourage the "real" company from making an offer. Journalism, criticism, what else has the Times to lose?
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It sounds like it was her decision to leave.
It was her decision. She wishes to dance the classics. Future company unknown, but the report in today's Times offers a speculation.
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I was up in standing room at NY State Theater in 1979. I saw a Spartacus performance w/ Alexander Godenuv, a day or two before he defected!!!! He was a powerhouse!!!!!! Does anyone remember???? Ludmilla Semeneyka also danced that run. She and Nina are 2 of my favorites
The Bolshoi also did the Stone Flower , I think.
That rings a bell. Wasn't that the season that also featured the Nadezhda Pavlova/Gordeyev duo? They, of the most perfectly in-synch grandes jetes... There's no way I'd ever forget this duo--from the time when they were still happy. I remember they also had a photo signing at a wonderful little ballet shop that used to be a block from the State Theater. Ahhh! The long-lamented final days of the "ballet boom."
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...but after the truly dreary and oddly colored designs for the NYCB Swan Lake, I am totally fascinated to find out that the Sleeping Beauty is beautiful to look at. Anyone have specifics?
And how about the casting? Do you have a dream cast for this production?
I guess one could say Swanless Dessert is a more mature and creative work of Mr. Martins. But somehow, his Sleeping Beauty has a Tres Riches Heures du Duc de Berry look about it, and is much truer to the real thing (which, I suppose, would be the Old Royal, with or sans Ashton's ammendations) than one could possibly suspect from that later creation. Yes, I wish he'd let it breathe at some places, and mini-"improvements" hurt, but its pace seems mostly natural for the company. I was too young and stupid to see Fonteyn's interpretation, but I have seen one transcendent Aurora.
Ashley Bouder's second performance in February 2004. This performance avoided the bobble that occured in the Rose Adagio of her first, but the Adagio still lacked the complexity (making each suitor seem as different from the others for example) one would expect from a mature-and sublime-artist. Total magic struck in the Vision Scene. With profound artistry, she presented a princess just as desperate as Odette, seeking in this case freedom from the prison of perpetual sleep, instead of a swan's body. From then, to the end, she, Damien Woetzle and Maria Kowroski were glorious. A production that can frame a performance like that can't be all that bad.
So far in the new century this, plus Alina Cojocaru's Cendrillon, are at the top of my list for full-length ballets. Close, the Bayaderes of Cojocaru and Zakharova.(The Veronika Part Swan Lake on July 4, Diana Vishneva's Giselle, and Alexandra Ansanelli's Harliquinade all require a few month's contemplation before possibly leaping them into that company.)
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As I recall, only one act of Spartacus was performed in NY the last time the Bolshoi was here; it was on a triple bill with the Shades scene and Symphony in C. I have seen the Bolshoi each visit since the mid-1980's, and this is the first time I have seen the full-length version, so in this case, I think the NYTimes is right!
A Bolshoi mixed bill which included the Appian Way section of Spartacus was performed at the New York State Theater in July, 2000. Surely too recent for Irek.
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No real mystery, then. Sometimes costume parts aren't all ready or there at dress rehearsal.
Of course, Jane, you're right. Unless one considers the blue leg-warmers also mysterious for "Ballet Imperial" :blush: . No jewelry, no makeup. These shots were done at the "dress rehearsal".
Ahhh! The crucial clue...the blue leg warmers! Thanks! It is like getting a free episode of Monk! So now Jane, please tell us what you thought of the dancing, both Diana's and Igor's.
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From Nina Ananiashvili's website:
http://ananiashvili.com/whatsnew.htm
"Latest News! For personal reasons, Nina has decided to cancel all her performances for the rest of 2005. She wants to reassure her friends and fans that she is in good health and working hard as artistic director of State Ballet of Georgia (we apologize for the error in calling the company the National Ballet of Georgia). She expects to return to the stage in 2006. We will report on possible tour dates with the SBG on these pages as soon as details are confirmed."
News and photos of her company's Balanchine program(s) may be found in the Calegari/Cook topic in Ballet News. The productions look good, let's hope we may have a chance to see them!
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Vishneva did actually wear a crown - or at least a very large tiara - in last night's performance! (And it looked completely incongruous with the chiffon skirt.)
Hmmmm... Looks like we have a real mystery here. No crown in the first performance (see pix seven posts up) but the crown is back the next night! I would suggest the Mariinsky have it checked by a reputable diamond expert poste haste; some heads are going to roll if the Tsar's Crown Jewels...
Sorry! I guess I've been watching too much Monk lately.
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John Rockwell's review, from the Times.Monday's cast (the principals will be shuffled for the last two performances) was lovely. Svetlana Lunkina, promoted to principal in a short ceremony during the curtain calls, made a sweet Zina, with a pure classical line and plenty of self-effacing charm. Even better - more commanding, funnier, more buoyant in her jumps - was Maria Alexandrova as the visiting ballerina. She and her partner, Yan Godovsky, were also delightful in their travesty passages; the Trocaderos have stiff competition from Mr. Godovsky when it comes to male toe dancing.
Didn't anyone see Tsiskaridze Tuesday night? Please post something: it isn't fair, being stuck in this thread with only the august New York Times Ballet Historian as company...
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I saw her Juliet on Saturday and her Forsythe yesterday. All I can say is that she is gorgeous, definitely one to watch in the years to come.
She's extremely beautiful in the photo accompanying this rave review of her La Sylphide. Can this be the next great Romantic ballerina?
http://www.ballet.co.uk/magazines/yr_05/ju..._kirov_0405.htm
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Interesting that Kirov-Maryinksky does Ballet Imperial in the chiffon dresses we associate with Tchai Piano Cto! Since they are predisposed to present BI with restrained (indeed, imperial) classicism of BI (the very thing Balanchine sought to minimize in recostuming the work), I wonder how their dancing looks in this!
Me too. After her ABT Ballet Imperial in the standard tutu, I have trouble visualizing the same performance in chiffon. But maybe the performance was altered to fit in with the setting.
Richard
Even though Ballet Imperial entered the Mariinsky rep recently, April 2004, they have changed the look already, seemingly even more toward Balanchine's later vision. The lead ballerina now no longer wears the crown, viz this photo of Diana from last year:
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Here's an interview with former NYCB favorites Bart Cook and Maria Calegari on staging Balanchine ballets for Nina Ballerina's company in Georgia. With photos.
Click on each Photo for many more.
http://ananiashvili.com/georgia/bringing%2...o%20georgia.htm
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Those wonderful individuals, the cast of The Bright Stream:
Svetlana Lunkina, Zina, the Bright Stream Collective's morale officer
Vladimir Neporozhny, Z's husband
Maria Alexandrova, The Ballerina (listed for Tuesday; what an apt role title for Masha!)
Yan Godovsky. her partner (listed for Wednesday, Tsiskaridze for Tuesday)
Gennady Yanin, Accordian Player
Ksenia Pchelkina, Galya (a pure delight)
Alexey Loparevitch, Old Dacha Dweller (what a great character dancer, the best Don Q I've ever seen, save Mr. B)
Irina Zibrova, His-anxious-to-appear-younger-than-she-is wife (don't trust her with a rifle)
Anna Antropova, The Milkmaid (what a season she is having!)
Alexander Petukhov, The Tractor Driver (and Dog! Also a fabulous Sancho Panza)
Egor Simachev, Old Farmer
Alexander Vorobiev (with Tselishchev, Savin, Simachev, Savichev), Men from Caucasus
Batyr Annadurdyev (with Baranov, Minakov, Rybakov, Kuznetsov), Men from Kuban
and Zina's friends, Sorokina, Rebetskaya, V. Osipova, Gurevitch, Krysanova, I. Yatsenko
Bravi!!!
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After her great season with ABT, Diana Vishneva is with the Mariinsky in London. Her great Juliet last weekend was just followed with Balanchine's Ballet Imperial. John Ross, that remarkably prolific and generous photographer, includes five photos of Diana (with Igor Zelensky!) in his Balanchine Program coverage (and six more of Lopatkina's La Valse):
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First, I'd like to know if Nicolai Fedeyechev is coaching on this tour, or otherwise present in the company.
Second, I am wondering if anyone knows if conductor Alexander Kopylov is conducting the orchestra for any of the performances? If so, which performances?
witchava
Their program listings in NYC are very detailed and "seem" tour-specific: Ballet Mistresses are Kontratieva, Krasina, Semenyaka; Ballet Masters are Nikonov, Sitnikov. Conductors are Klinichev, Sorokin (in four perfs I've seen, each has conducted twice. If Kopylov were here it is hard to imagine that he wouldn't have had opening night.).
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I didn't want any comments about the performance to get in the way of announcing Svetlana's promotion, but I found the ballet to be quite a change of pace, a comedy that never flagged.
Masha Alexandrova was fabulous in this, her Golden Mask-winning performance as the ballerina. Magnificent jetes, and such personality and presence! Her partner Yan Godovsky was, in Act 2, worthy of HIS partner (I'm not sure I should give away the joke--but it is in the program notes...). Svetlana Lunkina looks very Giselle-like, especially when sitting on that bench.... Suggesting an obvious wish-list entry for the next Bolshoi visit.
Just reading the cast-of-characters list is fun, and Ratmansky does not let us down.
This company is loaded with dancers who not only can act, but each projects an individual persona as well. Thus, even with so many parts, the action is easy to follow: once you've met a character, you don't lose track of who's who. Bravi!, to the Bolshoi Collective!
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At the end of tonight's performance of his ballet, The Bright Stream, Artistic Director Alexei Ratmansky addressed the audience in English, then turned and addressed the Company in Russian. The collective's Morale Officer Svetlana Lunkina was promoted to the company's first rank, Principal.
Thank you Mr. Ratmansky for honoring New York with this presentation. And thanks, also, for a pretty cool ballet as well!
And most of all, congratulations to this wonderful ballerina!
The Bolshoi also did the Stone Flower , I think.
A Sleeping Beauty for NYCB -- Should
in Everything Else Ballet
Posted
Perhaps a view of the "real" Beauty, Mariinsky, courtesy of the Kennedy Center (two and a half minutes), will help give (us) NYCB version fans some food for thought:
http://www.kennedy-center.org/calendar/ind...8&source_type=O
Click on Sleeping Beauty.