Helene

Not every dancer is going to be everyone's cup of tea.

Many thanks, jsmu! It's always wonderful to hear about a company not many of us have seen live.

From the time of the onset of symptoms when she was 21, the medical, professional, and personal were bound together. As a result, the medical aspect is prominent.

Karz speaks very highly of Farrell in the book. Since Karz is sugarless in more ways than one, I never got the sense that she would ever exaggerate her respect or admiration. I think you'll be pleased.

I just finished Zippora Karz's memoir "The Sugarless Plum". She opens with the premiere of Peter Martins' "Les Petits Riens" and her subsequent diagnosis of diabetes. Misdiagnosis, actually, as she is told that she has Type 2, which can be treated with diet and exercise, rather than Type 1, which must be treated with insulin, and that diagnosis was switched twice afterward. The book covers her childhood, training, and subsequent careers, as well as her medical struggles and the formidable challenge of regulating insulin and sugar levels while dancing, a daunting feat, since the right action had to be taken before taking on any number of combinations of programs, each combination with its own demands. It's also a great story of company transition: while chosen by Balanchine just before he fell ill, Karz and several other SAB students were told there was no guarantee that Balanchine's successor would take them into the company. Once Martins chose her, there was the pressure to prove to the Balanchine company that she belonged. I recommend this book highly, especially because of her directness.

One of my grandfathers was 5'1" -- to me, 5'6" is tall Wilcox can really dance tall.

It is true that I was mesmerized by Zavarov's Apollo, and I am at not remembering that Hartley was his Terpsichore. (I do remember being sad not to have seen her in "Les Sylphides", but that was the Master of Movement program.) After I read your post, I figured I must have written something about her performance in the All-Balanchine program, and when I looked for it, realized that while I had written the review, I never posted it. It's pretty late in the day, but I did post the review in the Mother's Day program thread.

I thought I had posted this back in May when I wrote it, and I apologize for the lateness of it: I traveled to Phoenix to see the Saturday matinee and evening and Sunday matinee performances of the Mother's Day program. In an All-Balanchine rep in which dancer after dancer claimed a role and left his or her stamp on it, there were three extraordinary performances that were among the most vivid I've ever seen: Roman Zavarov as Apollo, and Natalia Magnicaballi as The Woman and Ian Poulis as Death in "La Valse". The young Roman Zavarov is that contemporary anomaly: a dark-haired Apollo of medium height, not one of the tall blond gods. His physical beauty is much like the role's originator's, Serge Lifar's. From his birth through the final ascent -- this is the full version -- every moment and movement had a purpose, and the contractions rippled through his body to his eyes and head. He was arrogant like Brunnhilde in "Die Walkure" -- certain he knows everything, and a bit rough and dismissive of the muses; not much was going to impress him. His saving grace, after his initial surprise that sound and music came from the instrument gifted to him, was that he was in love with music, the instrument, and the sounds he made, which may have explained Terpsichore's patience. Zavarov had a point of view, and his portrayal showed growth, wonder, and experimentation, all backed by power, not always gentle or benevolent. Zavarov's Apollo still needed a lesson, and, in the role of Terpsichore, Paola Hartley's were humor and the ability to act in harmony with another being. There was a point in the pas de deux where his face lit up, showing vulnerability for the first time, and even better, the williingness to collaborate. I saw this program from the fifth row, two-thirds back in the orchestra, and from the balcony, and each time, what he did with his eyes and face registered. The real glory of Zavarov's performance was that he repeatedly showed the power of gesture. I love the full version, and it was a joy to see Kenna Draxton's Leto, with her long, glorious legs and her reach to the skies before jabbing herself sharply in the abdomen. In the last performances of her career, Karen Wojtowicz brought a wonderful lightness to the role of Polyhymnia in the matinee casts, not the usual amazonian casting. Jillian Barrell in the evening cast took a more juicy approach, and it was a fine contrast. Michelle Mahowald's Calliope was structural and vivid; Tzu-Chia Huang danced the role with elegance. In the evening performance, the starburst was perfect! In the evening performance of "La Valse" Sergei Perkovskii was a classic Death, but in the matinee performances, Ian Poulis was more than Death -- he was Mephistophelean, and it wasn't just the facial hair: he entered the stage and stopped with full intensity, and tilted his head, his eyes locked on his victim. Not for a moment did he lose that intense glower. So much of this performance done with his eyes -- again carrying to the back of the house -- and it was almost cinematic: had this been a thriller, the audience would have had its collective heart in its throat. Poulis' waltz with Natalia Magnicaballi melted the stage with intensity. He didn't skulk off after her death: he gave a look upwards, mission accomplished, soul owned, before heading to the next one. It was a knockout performance. In the opening waltz, Chelsea Saari, danced with rhythmic surety, arms up and full, and responding to the woodwinds and horns. Magnicaballi was part of this sisterhood. She embraced experience with deep breaths, completely willing; her waltz with Ilir Shtylla was intensely passionate. He wasn't enough for her, though: she wanted more, and in Poulis' Death, she found what she was looking for. As she put on the necklace, she might as well have consumed it. This was the first role in which I've seen Magnicaballi shed her elusiveness and be inflamed. I hope that Magnicaballi and Poulis will be cast together again, because their chemistry was unmistakeable. In the evening performance as the leads, Ginger Smith was inexperienced rather than naive, and happy to gain that experience; Ross Clarke was her ardent partner, in over his head. In the other waltzes, there were so many wonderful performances in both casts: Astrit Zejnati's hands were made for white gloves as the precipitator in the Seventh Waltz. Jillian Barrell's beautiful feet in the Third Waltz were a highlight, and she was beautifully partnered by Slavomir Wozniak in the matinees, with Chelsea Wilcox and Daniel Marshalsay excellent in the evening. Heather Haar, with her beautiful light jumps gave a dynamic performance, solo and with her partner Nathan Vander Stoep. Tzu-Chia Huang and Michelle Mahowald, who, when cast together, can look like stylistic sisters, gave very different personas to the Fifth and Sixth Waltzes, Mahowald's impassioned and Huang's elegant but dramatic. The recording of the first movement for the opening ballet, "Stravinsky Violin Concerto", was a bit slow, causing the men, particularly in the first performance, to look like they were moving through a viscous liquid: they never quite got off the ground, even in the flying conclusion. The women, though, were dead on in all three movements, and the energy in the fourth movement was explosive. At the end of the ballet, the entire cast does a quick jump in unison, and they came down precisely together and for a split second stopped, before resuming full throttle, and that moment was magical. The slowness of the recording may have been the reason that the elegant Huang and the athletic Chelsea Wilcox looked similar in their two opening solos in the matinee cast. The upsides were that every movement and transition by Huang and Wilcox was crystal clear and that their feet were so soft, not the impression I usually take away from this work. Watching Huang gently corkscrew onto point was especially lovely. Unlike her tentative beginnings in "Les Sylphides" in the earlier spring program, in the von Aroldingen role Chelsea Wilcox took ownership, with an athletic, strong, gripping performance. It's not the only way to dance the role -- in the evening, Natalia Magnicaballi gave a cool, inscrutable reading that was equally fascinating -- but watching it would be easy to leave the theater thinking it was. Her upper body was lovely, her arms curved. The matinee cast was a group of equals, and the chemistry was palpable. In the evening cast, Natalia Magnicaballi, cast against type in the von Aroldingen role, and Ginger Smith brought different colors to their roles. Smith and Astrit Zejnati portrayed a deep, complex relationship through tension and release, a pas de deux of communicators; Zejnati showed that he was willing to listen. For such a young dancer, Smith is an old soul. Ross Clarke, partnering Tzu-Chia Huang was ardent, showing a vulnerability that the part's originator, Peter Martins, never did. It wasn't an easy relationship -- there were hurtful misses in their communication -- but it was very moving. Repetiteur Bark Cook's influence on both of the leading men in each cast -- Cavanaugh and Shtylla in his role, and Ross Clarke (especially) and Astrit Zejnati in the Martins role -- was evident. Clarke and Zejnati made the movement ripple through them without any of Martins' stiffness or self-consciousness. There were retirements celebrated with flowers after the Sunday matinee, the season closer: Ross Clarke and Karen Wojtowicz. Clarke was featured in many roles, and it seemed like this season he really hit his stride. Wojtowicz's brilliant Amor in "Don Quixote" a few seasons ago was a real highlight, and I was hoping to see her for many years in the classical repertory. It is very sad to see them go.

Bill Gates' parents were philanthropists long before he as a college freshman borrowed $75K from his father to start Microsoft, and it should come as no surprise that he followed in their footsteps. Long before he became mega-wealthy, Gates started a corporate matching program for any 501-c-3 organizations to encourage all employees who gained wealth through stock options to give back to their communities, knowing that in general it takes three generations for charitable giving to take hold and that many of his employees did not come from families that had a history of giving. Through the company program, he encouraged them to start. It wasn't just the Porsche dealers and general contractors who benefited from the Microsoft millionaires and thousands of Microsoft employees who never came close to being millionaires.

Thank you so much for the review, Krystin! I was hoping a Ballet Talker was there tonight. Chelsea Wilcox is tall -- I would never have expected her to be one of the four cygnets! Roman Zavarov's Apollo was a highlight of last season. I think he's on his way. I'm glad to hear about Hartley: I didn't see her in the season-ending Balanchine program, and I don't think she danced the one performance I didn't see. Fingers crossed that the rest of the run sells as well or better!

I got an email today from PNB, I think from being a donor. In it are Peter Boal's notes about the upcoming program, and I was delighted to see this one: Congratulations to Cardea

I'm there second weekend, Saturday night and Sunday afternoon.

Many thanks for the link, clara56, and welcome to Ballet Talk! I know that Jodie Thomas, who was a soloist at Pacific Northwest Ballet until this season, when she joined Royal Danish Ballet, was from Moscow, Idaho. I wonder if she ever studied with Mofid. Sadly, he didn't accept PNB's offer. That would have been wonderful for us. It sounds like he found something he loves to do in a place he loves to be.

Doug Fullington will speak about the Directors Choice program at Seattle Public Library Main Branch on Tuesday, 3 November, from noon-1pm in the Microsoft Auditorium (1st Level). The presentation will include video clips. http://www.spl.org/default.asp?pageID=bran...ntid%3D85970378

In the US, the federal government has an interest in estates through the IRS -- i.e., the value of the estate and whether any portion is taxable -- and the state of residency has an interest both in terms of taxes (if there is a state estate tax) and in the way it is distributed, i.e., the state can have mandatory minimum distributions to spouses and/or children, regardless of the terms of the will, as well as define spouse (i.e. whether a spouse under a formal separation agreement is considered a spouse.) Each of the 50 states has its own set of estate law. There is no one federal set of laws.

I'm so glad the full interview has been published. It was a great read in the print form, and the full version is even richer. Wheeldon gives very thoughtful answers to very thoughtful questions, not just the usual ones. As a Jersey girl and one-time commuter to NYC from NJ and Long Island (before I moved to Manhattan), I particularly appreciated this Q&A: Many thanks, Michael!

I couldn't remember off the top of my head, but I posted on it when Russell made the comment in 2004: http://ballettalk.invisionzone.com/index.p...taras++symphony Re-reading Russell's description, I am that I did not remember it was Cage. When I heard Russell describe this, I wished that Cage had just given Taras the royalties for life, not the rights.

Many dancers, regardless of rank, guest elsewhere -- often for benefits for the local company or as thanks to the schools that nurtured them early -- in the pre-Christmas lead-up. Often, there are advance newspaper articles announcing the performances, many of which are listed in Links each December.

According to Francia Russell, Balanchine willed the rights to "Symphony in C" to a woman with whom he worked closely -- I can't remember who, but it wasn't Barbara Horgan -- who gave them to Taras. Russell had to get special permission to stage the version of the finale of "Symphony in C" that she knew for a PNB gala, because Taras had a single version that he insisted on until he died.

Part 2, where Russell speaks extensively about the music, is here: There are about 10 seconds of Casey Herd at about 45 seconds in. (His practice clothes are, well, creative.) Russell looks like she could step onstage now -- she's as slender as any of the dancers.

In this video from the Dutch National Ballet, Francia Russell rehearses the company in "Concerto Barocco", and puts it in historical context. Casey Herd makes an appearance in the last few seconds.

Apart from the case of Hallberg, whom to bypass would be like not being able to see Mt. Rainier when the sun is out, I wouldn't bet the mortgage on what Mr. Mackenzie is thinking at any time.

Many thanks, olddude! It's the piece I most looked forward to seeing in this program, and I'm happy to hear good things about it.

It depends on whom you ask. The reason I went to see Paris Opera Ballet at the Met in 1986 is because it was well publicized at the time that George Balanchine had been impressed with Guillem when she was a teenager still in the school. I saw her in the Second Movement of "Le palais de cristal", and was underwhelmed. (I did love Elisabeth Platel the next day in the same role.)

Congratulations to them