Helene

Many thanks, BalletNut for your review! I saw Lamberena in Seattle this afternoon, and I really wanted to steal those dresses. They are gorgeous. And I agree with you about the Bach; I wished it had been dropped. One thing I did find distracting during the ballet was thinking intermittently that Ice Dancers' Denkova and Staviyski's "Bach to Africa" program would have been a lot more successful had they used other cuts of the music. I wonder if the ponytails on the men were hair extensions; Wevers and Herd had them, too. I tried to find reasonable flights to get to San Francisco for one of the two weekends of Programs 6&7, and although I would have loved to see the Ashton, I have to admit I'm glad that the flights were over-priced, because from everything I've read about Dybbuk, it sounded like seeing it would be more of duty or obligation and pretty much devoid of pleasure.

I saw the "American Choreographers" program this afternoon. It opened with Christopher Stowell's Quick Time, set to a piano sonata by Camille Saint-Saens, based on a theme by Beethoven. For me, therein lies the rub: I found the music to be quite static rhythmically, until the very end; it was like stakes in a garden -- da, da, da, da -- with frenzied steps like vines run amok. The ballet was beautifully costumed by Mark Zappone, with the women in sleeveless bright blue and green jumpsuits with flowing bellbottomed pants and "inlays" on the bodice that offset the 60's decorations on the pianos. It was beautifully danced, and there were some lovely passages: a very short pas de deux for Kylee Kitchens and Lucien Postlewaite, a lovely series of low lifts in a late pas de deux between Noelani Pantastico and Jonathan Porretta, and Porretta's second solo. It was the softness and fluidity with which Porretta embued the long opening solo to such thankless music that made it possible to watch. His ample gifts and technical acumen were better served by his fellow dancers in the Choreographer's Showcase a few weeks ago. Of the supporting corps couples, Rachel Foster was particularly vivid. After a pause, The Moor's Pavane followed on the program. In another form of thanklessness, the Moor's confidence is poisoned by His Friend very soon into the piece, and he must maintain a jealous rage for the duration of the dance, while his Friend has the luxury of personality shape-changing. To his great credit Jeffrey Stanton maintained and built that intensity believably in what is, in many ways, a mime role, as his limbs are covered by a floor-length robe. By contrast His Friend, in his short tunic and tights, performs signature moves that emphasize turnout: grand plie in second, demi plie in what looked like passe with the working foot in demi point, and b-plus. Christophe Maraval danced and acted brilliantly in the role, playing each incarnation of Iago -- the spoiler, the fool, the punching bag, Machiavelli -- convincingly. Jodie Thomas danced The Moor's Wife, and gave an even more deeply moving rendition than she did in 2002: womanly, gracious, loving, and with wifely pride. In a signature move, where she stands facing the wing and bends back from the waist with her arms outstretched, she embodied trust, and the irony in the tragedy lay in how ill-founded that trust was. Paul Gibson's Piano Dance followed, to short piano works by Cage (Opening Dance), Ligeti (Musica Ricercata), Chopin (Raindrop Prelude?), Bartok (Chromatic Invention & Ostinato), and Ginastera (Criollas) -- every single piece music to dance to. Gibson has a strand of Balanchine DNA: while there are overtones in this ballet to specific Balanchine pieces, there are more palpable resemblances in the logic and placement, the unending inventiveness, the movement and energy that burns from the sternum, and choreography that makes the dancers look newly born. But even more, the ballet was infused with humor and a joie de vivre that Robbins tried to hard to achieve in pieces like Interplay, but that appeared to flow naturally and in abundance. I saw the second cast, comprised of Soloists and Corps; in the first cast, half the roles were performed by Principals, and I will be curious to see if the dynamic shifts when I see that cast next week. The central couple was danced by Lesley Rausch and Casey Herd. I'm not sure if the role was made primarily on Louise Nadeau or if it was a fusion of the strengths of Nadeau and Rausch, but if the former, it is even more remarkable that the role could look like a perfect fit and be such a triumph for Rausch. It would be so easy for her, with her long legs and preternatural extension and feet, to exaggerate her flexibility, but her dancing came from the center, which made the extension part of the whole phrase and shape. One of the pas de deux for Couple 1 (Rausch/Herd) had the feel of a cross between the first two themes of Four Temperaments and "Five Pieces, Op. 10" from Episodes. (And, like often in that piece, the audience had a fit of the giggles.) Another resemblance in tone was a short part danced by Jordan Pacitti, which made me immediately wanted to see him in "Gigue" in Mozartiana, a role I would not have imagined him in before. (A decided lack of imagination on my part, having typecast him mentally in other genres in which he excels.) It was a strength of this piece -- and the casting -- that it revealed so many "hidden" strengths and treasures in its cast. Rausch and Herd, Thomas and Moore, Foster and Pacitti, Eames and Spell -- it was like being in a huge garden, where around every corner there was another gorgeous type of flower in full splendor. And kudos to Dianne Chilgren; it's so easy to take it for granted that a concert pianist performs for the ballet. The women were dressed in red, with the body in the shape of a lycra leotard, with velour "boning" fanning out off the vertical axis, and short velour "skirts" in the back. (Mark Zappone also did the designs for this ballet.) Lisa J. Pinkham's lighting enhanced the overall feel of each piece. The only disconcerting element was the men's pants, which had wide horizontal stripes at the bottom of one pant leg, and the other pant leg cropped at the knee. It is ultimately the inevitability of Gibson's response to danceable music that made this the best contempory ballet I've seen since NYCB revived Danses Concertantes in 1989. I think that ballet companies should beg, borrow, and steal this ballet for their repertoire. The last ballet on the program was Lambarena. Carrie Imler danced the lead among a trio of women, including Noelani Pantastico and Mara Vinson. Imler was fascinating to watch, because she dances with a fluency and self-confidence that doesn't scream "I AM GREAT" (even though she is, in my opinion), but states, "This Is What I Am." She hasn't boxed herself into any other persona but "dancer," and her dancing has both a richness and directness that I find so appealing. Mara Vinson danced with a sense of fullness, and amidst Vinson and Imler, Pantastico looked a bit formal, until her pas de deux with Batkhurel Bold, when her crispness and precision fit the choreography beautifully. Another standout in a demi role was Pacitti, who caught the undulating quality of the movement so well, that when he shimmied with his shoulders, the reverberations could be seen in his ribs, waist, and hips. His dancing has a grounded, virile quality of movement. During the intermission after The Piano Dance, I ran to the box office to buy tickets for two more performances next weekend, but, alas it was closed. (I later ordered off the website.) I'm really looking forward to seeing the alternate casts.

Following is the schedule for Ballet Arizona's 2005-6 20th Anniversary season: Romeo and Juliet (3-6 Nov, Symphony Hall with Phoenix Symphony) Andersen/Prokofiev Nutcracker (9-27 Dec, Symphony Hall with Phoenix Symphony) Mosaik (17-19 Feb, Symphony Hall) Andersen/Many Composers Adaptations (24-26 Mar, Orpheum Theatre) Raymonda Variations, Excerpts from Petipa, staged by Olga Evreinoff World Premiere, Julia Adam World Premiere, Ib Andersen Balanchine Festival (8-11 Jun, Symphony Hall with Phoenix Symphony) Program A: Agon Apollo Rubies Program B: Divertimento No. 15 La Sonnambula Theme and Variations Three of five with live music -- the Balanchine in particular looks to be splendid!

Thank you, TinkerBeLLe31190!

TinkerBeLLe31190, We'd love to hear what you liked about Jimenez' performance, and what made Harley's and Palau's stand out.

Merrill Ashley, in Dancing for Balanchine, also speaks about d'Amboise's influences on her career and development, first for including her in the demonstration/touring groups of young dancers that he arranged for a number of years, and second, by casting her in one of his ballets (IIRC Saltarelli?). Ashley said that Balanchine looked at her differently after she danced the lead in that ballet. Ashley was roughly ten years behind Farrell at NYCB.

OBT's new subscription brochure has some really great photos, with listings of the photographers, but no dancer identifications. I don't know the dancers well enough to pick them out from the photos But the cover has an Odette in mid-jete, with a background of the river and city center lit up at night. Inside, there are two dancers prancing around a tree in Julia Adam's Angelo, a couple in Who Cares? posing on what seems to be the base of a street lamp, with a city street behind, a couple from Concerto Six Twenty-two on the balcony landing of one of the theaters, and Odette and a group of swans posing in front of a lake. The idea is the same as some of the first "artsy" NYCB brochures, but they aren't as self-conscious as the latest iterations. The 2005-6 season is as follows: Fall Program (7-16 Oct, Newmark Theater): World Premiere, Christopher Stowell (first piece for Newmark Theatre) In the Night (Robbins) Angelo (Adam) Nutcracker 9-24 Dec, Keller Auditorium) (Balanchine) Winter Program (18-25 Feb, Keller Auditorium) World Premiere, Trey McIntyre Saint-Saens Piano Ballet for PNB by C. Stowell (company premiere) Who Cares? (Balanchine, company premiere) Spring Program (22-29 Apr, Keller Auditorium) Divertimento No. 15 (Balanchine*) World Premiere, Kudelka Concerto Six Twenty-Two (Lubovitch*) Swan Lake (9-11 Jun, Keller Auditorium) (C. Stowell after Petipa) *I don't know whether these are company premieres. The Spring Program is part of the 250th Birthday Celebration for Mozart, and the brochure publicizes three other performances that are part of "Portland's Month of Mozart."

The cover of the 2005-6 PNB subscription brochure has a close-up of Peter Boal standing behind Kylee Kitchens at the barre and using his fingers to stretch the length between her waist and ribs, along with the headline, "Introducing Peter Boal." (He will be "introduced" again at the Company's opening gala on 17 September.) Inside the brochure are a very short bio and quotes about Boal, including praise from Town and Country, Louise Nadeau, who had befriended him as a student at SAB, and Jonathan Porretta, who was taught by Boal at SAB. (The back cover is a fantastic picture of Porretta from The Rite of Spring, in which he is mid-air in a leap and parallel to the ground.) The season is as follows: Director's Choice (22 Sep-2 Oct): In the Night (Robbins, company premiere) Artifact II (Forsythe) Duo Concertant (Balanchine, company premiere) Symphony in Three Movements (Balanchine, company premiere) Past, Present, and Future (3-13 Nov): Concerto Barocco (Balanchine) Jardi Tancat (Duato) World Premiere, Marco Goecke (first ballet for PNB) Hail to the Conquering Hero (K. Stowell) Valentine (2-12 Feb): Ancient Airs and Dances (Tanner, company premiere) Kiss (Marshall, company premiere) Red Angels (Dove, company premiere) Nine Sinatra Songs (Tharp, company premiere) Points of View (16-26 Mar): The Bridge (Caniparoli) World Premiere, Dominique Dumais (second ballet for PNB) La Valse The Sleeping Beauty (13-23 Apr): (Hynd after Petipa) Jewels (1-11 Jun): (Balanchine, company Premiere) plus Nutcracker (K. Stowell) from 25 Nov-28 Dec.

Welcome to Ballet Talk, danceintheblood! I hope that you will write about the performances you do see with your daughter, and give us your impressions (and hers too).

In Seattle to save money some arts organizations put fundraising and other inserts in every other program, on the theory that the world is coupled or at least accompanied, and at least one half will get the message/envelope/entreaty.

[ADMIN BEANIE ON] This discussion could go downhill as fast as saying "Ice Dance Costumes." Please keep the anatomical descriptions in the range of dignified. [ADMIN BEANIE OFF]

The Mariinsky Theater will be shut down for a couple of years after next season for extensive renovations. The Kirov-Mariinsky ballet will tour and perform in a theater in Helsinki. I don't know if the Company is going to perform its Mariinsky Festival there, but if you haven't seen Natalia's thread on 2005 Mariinsky Festival, I'd encourage you to read it, as the Festival is a repertory festival by one of the great companies in the world. It would be great if it would fit into your schedule. Also, the Bolshoi tours extensively, and you might be able to catch a performance by the Company in Europe. If you add Helsinki to your list, you might want to check out the Estonia National Ballet. Tallinn is less than 2 hours by fast ferry (perhaps hydrofoil?), and both the theater and the city, particularly the old medieval city, are beautiful. If you are lucky, the medieval musical group Hortus Musicus will also be playing in a small church in the medieval city. (Wear strong shoes, though -- the cobblestones almost did me in after three days of non-stop walking!)

What's more common is to have both partners removed from a performance. In this case, Angel Corella, who was scheduled to open with Ferri, will dance with Kent on opening night, 19 April, but she will dance with Jose Manuel Carreno on 21 April. Towards the end of NYCB seasons or during virulent bouts of the flu, the program insert listing substitutions sometimes seems longer than the original casts

I'm a clapper. "Woof" never felt right, but "woo hoo" works for sporting events

Welcome to Ballet Talk, KuKa. I've never been to Stern Grove. Would you describe what makes it a great place to perform I travel sometimes to the Bay Area to see performances, and am open to new temptations (Sounds of whimpering credit card in background...)

Welcome to Ballet Talk, koskoff! We hope you'll post about MCB performances you see and any other topics on the board that strike a chord.

We don't have critical mass for Lyons Opera Ballet or Prague National Theatre forums, however, when Lyons Opera ballet toured the US last fall, we did have a thread under: Ballet Companies/European Ballet Companies/French Ballet Companies: http://ballettalk.invisionzone.com/index.php?showtopic=17677 Welcome to Ballet Talk, and we hope that you write about the performances you do see.

Fleming skated when double axel was the hardest jump for women, and IIRC, Dorothy Hamill didn't perform triples. (Or if she did, the easier triples.) Denise Biellman was the first woman to perform a triple Lutz, a little less than a decade after Hamill won her Olympic gold. If you compare competitive programs from the 70's and prior to the "Triple Era" that began generally in the 80's and the "Quad Era" from the 90's, they were full of a lot more of the elements that make figure skating expressive or "artistic": footwork, small jumps (singles and halfs), turns and twizzles in both directions, and changes of edges linking the jumps. The triples and quads, as well as the big triple throws and to a lesser extent, the twist lifts, require a lot more preparation and speed than the doubles and singles. As a result, much of the transitional work was lost in cross-overs and jumps preparations were simplified. Code of Points, the new scoring system, is trying to reward and incent skaters to add these back in. Among the Men, this is really starting to take. Another issue through the 90's is that the best "artistic" skaters were not competitive at the Worlds level because of school figures. It was the rare skater like Fleming who combined both and excelled at the World level. The ballet equivalent would be that if a dancer couldn't pass "barre," s/he wouldn't be allowed to dance "center." In classical dance with a traditional structure, the technical preparation needed to do a 180 degree extension vs. a 90 degree extension, or six vs. three pirouettes, doesn't have the same relative visual impact on a program. The dancer still has to do the small steps up to big jumps or extension; I've rarely seen, for example, a dancer run across the stage to get enough speed to hurl herself into a partnerless penchee, which is the type of preparation required to do a quad jump. (Once or twice this was part of the choreography.) The place were this is most evident is when, like in Balanchine's Nutcracker pas de deux, the woman runs and jumps up and on the man's shoulder. On the other hand, in more contemporary choreography, where there aren't very many steps, there's more a run and jump and thrust and hurl into lifts and jumps. One similarity, is the balance between the big "tricks" and the small, intricate work. As jumps get higher and more complex, they can overwhelm the smaller work that can be so effective artistically, both in ballet and skating. That said, I think that Yuka Sato and Shizuka Arakawa have, at their best, artistry equivalent to Peggy Fleming and Janet Lynn. I don't know if anyone will ever match John Curry, because I can't morph Jeffrey Buttle and Johnny Weir

I've never seen Fonteyn live, and from the films I've seen, I've never "gotten" her. I've been told my several Fonteyn lovers that there is no film that captures even a quarter of the qualities that made her appealing. (Although, there may be archival films that hadn't been available that may give a better sense of her dancing.) As a fan of figure skating, this is especially believable, as there are skaters who are so different -- both better and worse -- on videotape than live, and others who are similar live and on video. There is something about the quality of movement, speed, and acceleration of some dancers and skaters that isn't capturable on video or film and must be seen live and in three dimensions. I'm afraid Fonteyn may have been a case of "you just had to be there."

Ever since PNB abandoned the experiment of adding multi-week stint by a visiting company to the subscription season -- NYCB and Australian Ballet are the two I know about -- the two organizations that present dance are the Seattle Theatre Group and the University of Washington, both through their World Dance Series. Both series are dedicated to all kinds of dancing. Last week's performance by Savion Glover produced by STG was one of the highlights of the dance season, although it was as much about his being a jazz instrument as it was about his dancing. (Both were spectacular. ) Sadly the sold-out performance was at the smaller Moore Theater instead of the larger Paramount, leaving a crowd of rain-soaked potential buyers disappointed. UW and STG have presented a couple of actual ballet companies each year, and one or two more with "ballet" in their name. STG has presented a major company every three years or so, while UW tends to book smaller companies for its smaller stage. One of the frustrations of living in Seattle is watching the most of the major Companies -- as well as singers and instrumentalists -- visit California repeatedly and refuse to venture North to Seattle and/or Vancouver. If they didn't cross the Rockies, it wouldn't be quite as painful, but it's a "so close, yet so far" situation. Most happily, STG was able to present the Bolshoi in Seattle last fall, in three (or four?) performances of Don Quixote and one of the new Romeo and Juliet. I admit to being a total whiner when I say I had to travel to all the way Berkeley to see Raymonda, which was worth four Don Q's. I have no idea why the ballets were distributed this way; perhaps it had to do with the logistics of the sets and costumes. However, if the Bolshoi showed up every year with Don Q, I would probably go four of five years, just to see the dancers, even though it's not on my list of favorites. I even went to see Giselle when ABT brought it, because it was my only chance to see the Company. While I'd love to see them bring a Two-Tudor/Mozartiana triple bill, that would never happen. Smaller companies, like Lyons Opera Ballet, tend to bring triple bills, although Eifman has brought his full-lengths to Meany Hall through UW.

Daniil, you are in a no-win situation here: the only way to tell whether you've changed your aesthetic over time is for it to be many years in the future, with you looking back and making the comparison. Having watched your videos, your clear style and technique and understated (i.e., not overly emotional) presentation match your aesthetic. Not many young dancers have the ability to do this.

From the Guggenheim site: "Balanchine Continued…at Pacific Northwest Ballet SUN and MON, MAY 8 and 9 @ 8 PM Since 1977, Artistic Directors Francia Russell and Kent Stowell have worked to pass George Balanchine's style onto the Pacific Northwest Ballet. Principal Patricia Barker leads a cast of dancers performing seminal Balanchine works along with Stowell's choreography, which is rich in the tradition of the master choreographer." http://www.guggenheim.org/education/worksa...s/schedule.html

Sadly for us, the Balanchine Centennial is over. However, happily for us, Balanchine's extended family continues to present to the public. I've created a new forum for this, called "Children of Balanchine on The Road," where we can post about the presentations that continue Balanchine's legacy.

Natalia, That was a great post with a wealth of information. I've created a separate "sticky" in the forum with a link to it.

Natalia wrote a wonderful post about attending the Maryinski Festival. We're re-posting it here. Please note that this information was originally intended for American (US citizen) travelers. Not all 'steps' may apply to citizens of other countries. In particular, you should check with the Russian Consulate in your country about specific requirements for a Tourist Visa. *** HOTEL: Travel to Moscow or St Pete without an agency has become a lot simpler during the past 3-4 years, due to the proliferation of reliable on-line local discount-hotel agencies which supply visa documents & airport pick-up as part of their services. Two of the more reliable, which my friends have used without problems, include: www.hotelsrussia.net and www.hotelsrussia.com [i've used this one if my destination is outside of Moscow or St Pete...they're super-fast & reliable, faxing your documents within 24 hrs of hotel reservation] There are others but I have good personal experience on the above two. *Their daily lodging rates are SUBTANTIALLY LOWER than those of Orbitz, Travelocity or other major travel agents. For example, there are a number of good B&B-type properties at the $75 - 80 range per night, in walking distance from the Mariinsky Theater (between the theater and lower Nevsky Prospekt...an address lower than the number 50). AIRLINE: I'd use Orbitz/Expedia/Travelocity just for the airline ticket....which should not cost more than $700 r/trip from eastern US during Festival time (late winter/early spring). DOCUMENTS FROM HOTEL: Once you make your on-line hotel reservations (must be purchased in total with credit card), then you'll receive your faxed 'Voucher' (payment confirmation) & 'Visa Support Letter', which you must include in your application for a Russian Tourist Visa. VISA: You then apply for Russian Tourist Visa at Russian Consultate (in DC, NY, Houston, Seattle and...1 other place I've forgotten). You can download the Visa Application & instructions -- with payment schedule...$100 for 2-week turn-around is cheapest, if memory serves...at the following website: www.russianembassy.org THEATER TIX: The good news is that folks can now easily purchase tix online, via the Mariinsky Website www.mariinsky.ru (English or Russian options; a quick registration is necessary). If it's your first time in St P, I'd suggest you do that...although there are usually tix available to purchase on the street, outside the theater, CASH only...but there's an ATM in the Mariinsky Lobby for Cash-from-Credit-Cards! By no means should you use a hotel or tourist agent for theater tix, as the mark-up is outrageous; you can buy tix at the base price for foreigners on the Mariinsky website. BALLET SCHEDULE: The initial posting of the Mariinsky Schedule happens around December. I would book as soon as I have the dates of the Festival. Those do not change...but, as we all know, the actual ballets are never set into stone...not even on the day of the performance. However, you are pretty well assured of a great performance on any day during the Festival period. During other periods you run the risk of a ballet evening being substituted for an opera or orchestral concert (or a different ballet than that announced). FINALLY - Next year's Festival would be a GREAT time to go, as that will be the last one that happens in the old theater, as it currently looks. The Mariinsky shuts down for 2-3 years of renovation following the 2005/2006 season. Yes - it's officially announced as a two-year shutdown but those of us who've spent any time in Russia know what really happens during "ремонт" of buildings... Even after the theater reopens, certain sections will be 'jazzed up.' Those of us who are nostalgic types want to breathe-in that 'Petipa Dust' one last time! Natalia Nabatova