Helene

This is a link to an interview with Peter Boal for the School of American Ballet Newletter. I think it will be fascinating to see how he develops the school that Russell built. And, maybe he can complete his BA through the Seattle University program that has a program with PNB.

Google isn't helping, and there's no other news I can find on Maira Barriga, Jan Burkhard, and Masahiro Suehara on the SAB site. Are Wien winners always graduating students? Is it possible that any of these three will be at SAB next year?

In the commercially released American Ballet Theater Now!, Amanda McKerrow performs the central pas de deux from Tudor's The Leaves Are Fading with her husband, John Gardner. She was coached by Tudor in the role. It's available on DVD from amazon.com. (If you are tempted to order, using this link will earn a small commission to support Ballet Talk.)

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So do I, but if anyone knew, iPods would become unfashionable very quickly

When deepdiscountdvd had it's recent sale, I remembered that Gedeminas Taranda was praised on several threads in the past couple of years. I bought the Bolshoi and Kirov versions of Raymonda, both with Taranda as Abderakham. I've only been able to watch the Bolshoi version since the DVD's arrived, but I was simply blown away by Taranda, both as a dancer and actor, especially in the way he made a flesh-and-blood character out of a role that could easily become a very bad caricature.

Was the music chosen for them? If that's the case, then no wonder some of the dances didn't look in the right genre. The music indicated another type of dance. I had thought the pros in the couple chose the music.

We can't modify the rule, but you've given her enough information that she should be able to find you.

As a marketing ploy to bring in younger fans, there would be The iPod Fairy The "Whatever" Fairy The Master of Ceremonies would be renamed, "Talk to the Hand."

I can't believe I forgot the broadcast performance of Mozartiana. It's impossible for me to choose from among Farrell's "Pregheria," Castelli's "Gigue," and Farrell and Andersen's Theme and Variations.

The underlying emotional response of the author, Lauritsen, and a single cited source to the contrary don't convince me to question the diagnosis of Nureyev's attending physicians.

Mine is Bart Cook in "Melancholic" in the Four Temperaments "Dance in America" video. Honorable mentions (in no particular order) to: Suzanne Farrell in the first Chaconne pas de deux ("Dance in America") Jillana and Conrad Ludlow in one of the Part One Liebeslieder Walzer pas de deux (from the Balanchine biography) Vladimir Vasiliev in the slow-mo jumps in Spartacus Diana Adams and Arthur Mitchell in the Agon pas de deux kinescope* Allegra Kent and Conrad Ludlow in the second movement of Symphony in C (the version in color) (Edited to change "excerpt from the Balanchine biography" to "excerpt from Dancing for Mr. B")* Violette Verdy and Edward Villella in La Source* Darci Kistler in the "Balanchine Celebration" Theme and Variations pas de deux. She was one of the few dancers that afternoon/evening that I thought was dancing for Mr. B., and every time I see that tape, I'm reminded of this sense. Ib Andersen's Oberon in A Midsummer Night's Dream* *Not released commercially.

I also agree with Paul that a set of Forsythe ballets will last. Even if there's no potential "master" that I can see now -- and I may be blind to some -- I could see individual or a handful of ballets by various people choreographing now staying in the rep. I loved Paul Gibson's new piece for PNB, The Piano Dance, and I have my hopes that he will emerge as one of those masters. I think Kent Stowell's The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet is well worth other companies performing; in my opinion, the score, which drives the dramatic arc of the ballet, is much more suited to the story than the Prokofiev score, and I'd much rather see his Seasons variations from Cinderella, which were performed by four dancers in the PNB school performance last month, than most gala fare. Like orchestral suites that provide excerpts of longer works, the entire Seasons section of Stowell's ballet would make a great one-acter, or part of a pair of shorter works. I saw a performance of the triple bill "Red, Hot, and New" by The Australian Ballet last December, which put me in a bad mood for several months. There was much brilliant dancing, particularly by Lucinda Dunn, Marc Cassidy, and Madeleine Eastoe, but the program consisted of Wheeldon's Continuum, Nicolo Fonte's Almost Tango, and Adrian Burnett's Aesthetic Arrest. Wheeldon's ballet was the most accomplished. Fonte removed the emotional resonance of sex, violence, and desperation from tango and left only the bare-bones mechanics, which reminded me of the day I walked into a friend's living room in mid-afternoon and mistook a close-up in the porn film on TV for The Surgery Channel. The most interesting part of Aesthetic Arrest, another work to John Adams' Fearful Symmetries, was the set. But it wasn't even the uneven quality of the choreography that had me in a deep funk; it was the sameness of the three: 8-14 dancers, lifting pas de deux, lifting pas de deux, corp members doing their own thing, lifting pas de deux... I didn't see steps. I didn't see development. I didn't see structure. The anti-hierarchical nature of the approach of all three choreographers didn't lead anywhere, in my opinion. The last PNB choreographers workshop gave me hope. Even though by its very nature -- i.e., begging, borrowing, and stealing dancers from rehearsals for the next program -- the small groups of dancers numbered the same as the in the AB works, none of the ballets looked alike. Olivier Wevers choreographed the first part of a work in progress, called One's Symphony to music by Christopher Rouse for two couples, a featured woman, and eight corps women. Wevers has a voice, and a very strong one. Using inverted gestures and steps, he created an insect-like world that was very accomplished. Porretta choreographed a good-natured spoof of a classical ballet -- very Symphony in C, down to the costumes -- to music by Karl Perkins (the "Diamond commercial" music) and Bond's take on the same music, and it was clever, energetic, and engaging. Christophe Maraval's O to music by Satie was the most conventional, with lifting pas de deux -- quite Robbins-like -- but because it was a short ballet, there was enough movement to fill the music. And, it showcased beautifully two couples who rarely dance together -- Nakamura and Porretta, and Maraval's frequent partner Louise Nadeau and Batkhurel Bold, who's often cast with Carrie Imler. Kiyon Gaines' blitz...Fantasy, for a main couple, three men, and eight corps women, was one of the better responses to the music of Adams and Glass, and was far more interesting and developed than the Burnett piece, which was presented on the stage of the Sydney Opera House. I have two hopes: the first is that the choreographic workshops that many companies sponsor give enough opportunities to classically trained dancers to develop into, if not master choreographers, choreographers who will feed and nurture ballet companies. The second is that the good, solid, to great classical ballets by these classical dancers who are dedicated to classical ballet are given exposure by multiple companies, so that like Lamberena, The Moor's Pavane, and in the Middle, Somewhat Elevated, they have a chance to be seen multiple times, by multiple companies and casts. It would be a great irony if a mini-masterpiece was lost in the modern age of video tape and the Internet.

i think the cell-phone fairy is the modern day personification of Carabosse.

I agree that there are no "master" ballet choreographers today. I do think that specific ballets will make it on the list, and that it is a sad state of ballet choreograpers when three ballets by modern choreographers -- Maelstrom and Sylvia by Morris and Push Comes to Shove by Tharp -- could make the it to top of the post-Balanchine list, the latter because of its importance to Baryshnikov at the beginning of his American career.

The Spartacus with Vasiliev is amazing. If you had to buy one version, that is the best, in my opinion.

Maybe the end of Swan Lake is like the end of Ring of the Nibelungen: the best you can hope for is a do-over.

Oh, Farrell Fan, you

In a recent thread on the Paris Opera Ballet on new corps de ballet members, the term "surnuméraires." I'd appreciate it very much if someone could tell me what this means. http://ballettalk.invisionzone.com/index.php?showtopic=19988

I wish you had been able to see Jordan Pacitti perform the big male solo with PNB this spring. He was a dream in the role.

Thank you for the info, its the mom, and congratulations to your daughter on her performance in the Swan Lake pas de deux. You must be very proud.

There hasn't been a change to the software or an upgrade. Is anyone else seeing the same behavior? If you have, please reply, and maybe we can get to the bottom of this. I know I've had what seemed like strange behavior with PMs when I've had multiple browser sessions open.

We are indeed blessed in Seattle to have all three women. Did Kara Zimmerman dance in the tribute? She is a beautiful dancer, equally fluent in adagio and allegro.

On the ABT Swan Lake July 1-9 thread, FauxPas asked, To return to the ABT Swan Lake July 1-9 performance reviews, please click here.

Bravo, zerbinetta!