cargill

It is a combination--Sleeping Beauty in practice costume would certainly not be as effective as the complete production. Costumes are important for the overall look and effect of a piece--City Ballet did "Les Sylphides" in practice costumes for a while--it is certainly great choreography but it just looked flat.

Last year, I went to an interview with Ratmansky and Cassandra Trenary, and he talked about "Whipped Cream" as a ballet feerie. At the question time, I asked him if working on Sleeping Beauty had influenced his thinking and he said "Most definitely". Here is the quote from my writeup. "There are a number of processions in the ballet presenting these, [fantistic creatures] which he said are based on the ballet féerie idea. (Petipa's "The Sleeping Beauty" is also a ballet féerie and in answer to a question at the end of the interview, Ratmansky said emphatically that his work on "The Sleeping Beauty" was a great influence on "Whipped Cream".)

I remember her performance in "Symphonic Variations". She was one of the side girls, and It was the first time I had heard of her. She was absolutely stunning. I saw a ballet acquaintance on the subway later and we both just said "Fang!". There was such a serenity about her and absolute authority. She used to do the nocturne in "Les Sylphides" too, which was so lyrical, and again, had such quiet authority.

I think you meant Apparitions, not Illuminations, though it would be fascinating to see him in that one! Sarasota has done Illuminations, so we can hope.

Maybe she changed for the curtain calls! I definitely remember a dress with colorful splotches at the beginning of Act II.

It looks like they are using the first act Bonne Fee costume now for the finale--I saw it the first two nights and she had changed for the second act into something more colorful, though I didn't think it was quite as elegant as the first act one.

Everyone had hats and they were gorgeous! Especially Boylston's in Act I. I loved that the hats were part of the choreography, bobbing around.

As I recall from the Maryinsky reconstruction, Nikiya was certainly in character shoes in the first scene, and point shoes in the shades. I actually don't remember if she was in character shoes other times, but I do remember she did the sad little dance before the poison flower trick carrying a vina (a sort of a guitar). There are some vestigal gestures sometimes now in that solo , but I guess carrying something would make the modern show-off balances too tricky,

I do so love the variety of those older dances. Nikiya was in character shoes in Bayadere's first act too, so there was so much more contrast between it and the shades scene.

I think that the Sergeyev notations have Lilac in a tutu for the Prologue (there are notated dances for her) and then in heeled shoes and a longer gown in the vision scene.

I don't necessarily agree that the Shades solos should be corps roles. When the Royal Ballet first did the Nureyev Shades version, often principals danced the shades (at that time, they also often danced the Sleeping Beauty fairies, too). Roles like that are as big or as small as a dancer can make them.

In some Coppelias, the Doctor is present at the wedding and Swanhilda apologizes to him, which I think works very well, as it includes him and shows that Swanhilda has changed. ABT does it that way, as I recall, and they use a version set by Freddie Franklin, who knew an older version. I have never seen the Royal Ballet's version, which was based one set by Sergeyev, so I don't know if that happens, but it should!

I find the ending more gratuitous than shocking. I would feel the same way about the piece if Ferri and Cornejo and the two little girls walked off into the sunset petting bunnies. For the me choreography was so unmusical, jerky, and overwrought, making the dancers look ugly for no apparent reason than to signify "this is not your mother's ballet", like a boy writing naughty words on a wall, just to feel important.

For me, the issue isn't the topic so much, it is the way it was treated. Ballets like Echoing of Trumpets and Les Noces (Nijinska's version, please!) are certainly bleak and uncompromising, but the subjects weren't used gratuitously, and the choreography used form and shapes expressively. AfterRite and certainly some of MacMillan use violence as a decoration, and seem to revel in it.