Helene

It certainly is cheaper to tour with recorded music. It took Michael Kaiser to negotiate the return of NYCB to Kennedy Center, with an agreement to swap orchestras every other visit.

I just got the following email from National Ballet of Canada, a member of the Canadian Arts Coalition: The website has a lot of information, and urges Canadians to write to party leaders to urge them to support the initiative.

Thank you so much, vagansmom, for such wonderful, descriptive comments on the US Nationals, especially about Savoie. I am over the moon that he finally got the recognition he deserves; after a promising start, including a Grand Prix Final bronze medal at the beginning of his career, he was languishing, with middling transitions marks from the international judges and little respect from national judges. I was in Ottawa for a long weekend attending the Canadian Nationals, and after returning home late last night, am just about to start watching the TiVo files. I can't wait!

[ADMIN BEANIE ON] Ballet Talk's mission is the discussion of ballet issues and performances. We are not a fan site. While we always welcome posts that describe the virtues of performers, our purpose and goal is not to publish unabashed praise, particularly in the hopes that the dancers will read it. We do not want to create an environment in which posters are afraid to make well-reasoned, respectful criticisms, including negative ones. If she reads Ballet Talk, Miss Vishneva, like any other dancer, will find that not all reviews are uniformly positive, and I hope she, or any other dancer, does not expect otherwise. [/ADMIN BEANIE OFF]

It's a relevant question because Ballet Talk policy is that if someone is directly involved with a subject raised on the board or a performer, they must state their interest/relationship in their post. Which is why Mel, a board Administrator, raised it.

It had the opposite affect on me. I didn't think it was meant to be a feel-good tie-up in the plot line. (That was saved for the locksmith; I almost expected the soundtrack of Rent to start playing for him.) Newton's character was facing death, and she was in the stage of panic, physical and psychological, that Malcolm Gladwell describes so clearly at the beginning of Blink. I thought the scene showed that no matter what we think we are or believe, when it comes to a situation of pure panic, how we react may be the polar opposite. Dillon's reaction to Newton wasn't a "start playing the strings because this is so beautiful" moment: he seemed to be shocked by her reaction, expecting her to feel repulsion.

It's been rare times when the pound to dollar exchange rate was as little as 1.25.

I think that quality is the reason that from the film of La Source with Verdy and Villella, the ballet looked like a small masterwork, but it's generally dismissed as a minor work now.

On Fresh Air today, classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz reviewed a new DVD release on Criterion of Michael Powell (The Red Shoes) and Emeric Pressberger's film version of The Tales of Hoffmann. In it, dancers (mainly) and actors lip-synch and portray the main characters. The cast includes: Moira Schearer: Olympia, Stella, and Antonia Ludmilla Tcherina: Giulietta Robert Helpmann: the four villains Leonide Massine: Spalanzani, Schlemil and Franz Robert Rounseville: Hoffmann with Frederick Ashton, the choreographer, performing several comic roles. Thomas Beecham conducted. It's available through amazon.com.

There's no problem with calling dancers by their first names, but we ask that their full names be mentioned once, so that our out-of-town posters know whom you're writing about.

I don't care what the movie's like -- I have to see it

I liked Holland's tribute. Instead of re-hashing the Corelli story and her more racy comments, it invoked a warm person and ended with a very sweet quote from Nilsson.

Birgit Nilsson is my all-time favorite soprano, and her Isolde in 1971, when I was too inexperienced a listener to really appreciate it, is one performance I will never forgot nonetheless. Pace, Birgit Nilsson.

This year is the first year that the NJS (New Judging System, which is universally known by it's test name, "CoP") will be used at US Nationals. The USFS (governing body of figure skating in the US) had to be dragged kicking and screaming into using it. The top competitors have been designing programs around it for international competitions, and chances are that almost all of the programs that will be televised will be influenced by CoP. What this means in terms of aesthetics are more complex spins, which will include changes of edge, multiple positions, and lots of legs overhead among the ladies; lots of turns and steps in the step sequences, which used to be pretty bare; and extended spirals. Whether they are in time and tune with the music depends on the skaters. The days of the single-position layback spin in attitude and scratch spins are gone from eligible skating, but can be found in Stars on Ice. Each of the disciplines is going to be tense, because spots to the Olympics are on the line. The most complicated will be Ladies. Michelle Kwan has requested a bye; she will be tested by USFS doctors before the Ladies team is announced on 14 January. The only skater/team who is guaranteed a spot on the Olympic team is the highest-placed eligible one, based on age, citizenship, and whether the skater/team is a member of USFS. After that, the USFS gets to decide if byes will be granted and to choose the team, taking the results from current Nationals and five competitions in 2005 into consideration. Even if Kwan receives a bye, the alternate could end up skating, if Kwan isn't completely ready for Torino. Among the Ladies, the title is considered by most to be Sasha Cohen's to lose. She's kept her short program (SP) to "Dark Eyes," from last year, and has recently worked with choreographer David Wilson to improve her Nino Rota's Romeo and Juliet long program (LP). She has some technical flaws, including a "flutz", which is a lutz taken off from the inside (flip) edge, and her edges aren't always deep. This doesn't seem to be reflected in either her technical scores (TES) or skating skills scores. She has excellent extension on her spirals and spins, and, generally, quite beautiful and clean positions in her spins. She also knows how to present a program. Alissa Czisny struggled in past years with her jumps and nerves. This year, she switched to the new hinged boots, and as a last-minute substitute in Skate America, she took home silver and won the LP. The next week, in a similarly weakish field, she won Skate Canada. Nerves seemed to have gotten the better of her at Grand Prix Final, where she came in last (6th) with a weak performance. She has excellent spins, and deep edges and great extension on her spirals. She's one of the faster US women. I believe her SP is a Latin number, and her LP is to music from La Bayadere. Kimmy Meissner has been hyped as the Next One since last year's Nationals, where she landed a triple Axel in the warm-up, and an underrotated attempt in the competition. She won bronze, but was too young to compete at Senior Worlds. ESPN brought her to Moscow, where she did some commentating and a lot of fluff pieces. She faltered a bit during 2005 Junior Worlds in Kitchener, where she came in 4th behind Emily Hughes, who placed a surprise 3rd. Her SP is to Rachmaninoff's "Symphonic Dances," and her LP is to "Queen of Sheba." While she had problems this year with underrotation on a few combinations, her skating tends to be clean and very plain. I mean this in a good sense. She had two 5th place finishes in Grand Prix events this year -- in stronger fields than Czisny has -- which was very respectable for a first year Senior skater. Two skaters who could be competitive for top spots are Bebe Liang and Emily Hughes. Hughes had meningitis early in the season, and didn't hit her stride during the Grand Prix season. She make come out fighting at Nationals. Her technique is, in many ways, stronger than her sister Sarah's; she does a clean lutz instead of a flutz, and has better overall jump technique. She seems a bit heavier on her feet; she's more muscular than any of the front-runners, and being ill didn't help. I think her skating has a lot of strength to it, and I like watching proper technique. Her SP is to music by Gershwin, and her LP is to Glazunov's "Seasons." Liang was sidelined for quite a while with a sore hip caused by a growth spurt. When she came back, she was more muscular, which means a lot more work in creating line. Last year at Nationals, she was stymied by the jumps that put pressure on her hip. Had the competition been scored with CoP, she might have gotten her due, which was 4th place and a trip to Moscow. Her programs by last year by Sarah Kawahara were superb; I'm not sure if she's kept either of them this season. She's quick, powerful, and is extremely accomplished. Dark horses include Katy Taylor, Danielle Kahle, and, possibly Erica Archambault. I don't think any of the other US Ladies have the technical content to be competitive at the highest levels. Among the Men, Johnny Weir is considered the top contender, but not a shoe-in to repeat his title. He has a beautiful, lyrical style, and some of the finest jumping technique in Men's skating when he's on and focused. He had a very hard year after skating injured at Moscow, including another injury, a program change in his LP, and pressure to alter the programs choreographed by his mentor Tatiana Tarasova in order to increase levels. His SP to "The Swan" is really beautiful. For the LP he chose pieces by the Russian composer Maksim Mrvica, the last of which Irina Slutskaya used in her LP from last year. If his jumps are on, his technique is impeccable and they sing, and he doesn't have a weakness. Evan Lysacek is considered the most likely challenger for the title, having beaten an injured Weir in Moscow and earned a bronze medal there. He's very tall, and he uses his long legs to great effect. He's got a theatrical streak, which he displays in his Latin programs. This year, his SP is to "Vamos a Bailar", and his LP is "Carmen," to excerpts from the Suite by Shchedrin. He's an excellent all-around skater, too. There are three men who are dark horses to win the title. Michael Weiss has two excellent programs, a SP to music from Semiramide and "La Donna e Mobile", and a LP to selections from Beethoven's 6th and 9th Symphonies and the Moonlight Sonata. He has some of the best basic skating skills I've seen in the last five years, which isn't always obvious from television, but his jumping technique isn't always clean, and at Trophee Eric Bompard, he looked deflated after several mistakes. Timothy Goebel lost his trademark quadruple jumps last year, and it's been a struggle for him since. While he's tried to fix the posture in his spins, he has the weakest form among the Men. His SP is to "Sing, Sing, Sing," and his LP to "Night on a Bald Mountain." In his ISU biography, Lori Nichol is listed as his choreographer, but he said in an interview that Tarasova choreographed his LP, which I love: it's quirky and witty, and it has some fantastic footwork. Last, and I'm afraid from the judges' point of view, least, is Matthew Savoie, who gets zero respect. Partway through the season, he scrapped his SP to "Windmills of Your Mind," and brought back his Barber's "Adagio" SP from last year, which, in my opinion, was the highlight of last year' Nationals. His programs, which are choregraphed by Tom Dickson, are full of difficult and unusual transitions, and are extremely musical. Long shots for the podium are Shaun Rogers, Ryan Jahnke, and Parker Pennington. Plus Rohene Ward, a gorgeous skater whose jumps have abandoned him at prior years' qualifiers and last year's Nationals. Among the pairs, Inoue/Baldwin are the closest thing to a lock. While there are other women in pairs skating who are her equals, I don't think there's anyone better in eligible competition. They are planning to try a throw triple axel, which has never been landed in pairs, and side-by-side triple lutzes, which may have been ratified once or twice before. Their SP is to Albinoni's "Adagio," and their LP to music by Shostakovitch, with a piece I don't recognize sandwiched between the 5th Symphony. The fight for silver and the other Olympic spot -- the US has two -- is likely to be between Orscher/Lucash, who have struggled this year with injuries, and Hinzmann/Parchem, who were 3rd at last year's Nationals. Their SP is to "The Mission" soundtrack, and their LP is to selections by M. Rodriguez, including "Once Upon A Time in Mexico." This is their second year together, and they are really fine considering how short a time they've been together. Their choreographer is Parchem's wife, Zuzanna Szwed, who does lovely work for the pair. Dark horses are Evora/Ladwig, who were very impressive last year -- I thought they deserved bronze -- and Castile/Okolski, who are remarkably mature for a young pair. Vise/Kole are also a very nice young pair, but they skate like a young team, albeit on their way up. Now that Belbin is a US citizen, conventional wisdom is that they and Gregory/Petukhov are a lock for gold and silver. Agosto, though, had a groin injury which caused Belbin/Agosto to pull out of NHK Trophy. They've only competed twice so far this year, once beating Drobiazko/Vanagas, who are returning to eligible competition for European Championships and Olympic bids, and winning Skate America. Their Free Dance is, if I remember correctly, a Flamenco program. They are fast, with intricate step sequences and lifts. Gregory/Petukhov's free dance is to Romeo and Juliet, Prokofiev's version. It's very lyrical, and they've performed it beautifully this year. Her line may be better than Belbin's, but they don't have the speed or difficulty that Belbin/Agosto do. Expected to duke it out for the last Olympic spot are Junior World Champions Matthews/Zavozin and Silverstein/O'Meara. Silverstein is back after taking several years off; with former partner Pekarek, she placed 12th at her first Senior Worlds. O'Meara was last year's bronze medallist with former partner Lydia Manon. They are amazing for a first year team, even counting in their experience. She has, by far, the finest form and line of the US women. They perform a tango as their free dance. Matthews/Zavozin are eligible because Zavozin became a citizen by the same legislation that Belbin did. They have the advantage of exposure to international judges, tremendous energy, experience with CoP as Juniors, and longevity as a couple. Their free dance is to "Tango de Roxane" from the Moulin Rouge soundtrack. Not only is it a great program, but they have the ability to skate it brilliantly. I think this is going to be an amazing contest. I don't think anyone can break into the top four, but long shots are Navarro/Bommentre. I think they have a chance of beating Galler-Rabinowitz/Mitchell. Stiegler/Magerovski, who made a splash last year, probably don't have much of a chance this year. The Compulsory Dance this year for Nationals is Yankee Polka, which is generally considered a horrible and difficult dance for tall skaters, particularly the men, and it is possible to get mired badly in the standings after the CD.