Helene

Yesterday's t was a non-subscription 50% off performance, and lots of families took advantage of it. It ended at 4pm, which did mean the fans at the performance missed the fastest score in Super Bowl history and that rare event, the safety. I was a little worried when they didn't announce the score after the final curtain, and the people who had gone to the lobby to check the score on their cell phones looked neither excited nor bummed, and I figured the score was 7-7. I was pretty shocked when I heard the mid-game score on the way home. Apparently, most people waited until it was almost over to celebrate. I've got to find Fleming on YouTube.

I knew you'd be pleased.

There's no one formula. Under Russell and Stowell, dancers were brought in from other companies as Soloists and promoted to Principal within a year or two: Stanton, Gibson, Nadeau, Nakamura, Wevers, Maraval, for example. Seth Orza, Karel Cruz and Carrie Imler made it from Soloist to Principal in two seasons, Korbes in one, (Cruz and Imler spent more years in the corps before their promotion to Soloist than Orza.) Elizabeth Murphy and Leta Biasucci came into PNB the same time. Both have been featured. After yesterday, Biasucci has carried two full length ballets; I don't remember what other corps woman has done the same in the last 20 years at least. (I don't think Imler did, because Barker and Derieux were featured a lot at the time. Pantastico? She was a Soloist after being in the corps for three years. I'm not sure if she had enough time.) Murphy was promoted to Soloist; Biasucci was not. After yesterday afternoon, Jerome Tisserand had performed the leads in "Swan Lake," "Sleeping Beauty," "Romeo et Juliette," and "Coppelia," That would mean Principal status in many of the world's ballet companies. Many promotions at PNB have been delayed because of money. There's no one formula. Barry Kerollis just posted a great entry on his blog, "Life of a Freelance Dancer" that, I think, address some of the smoke signals: http://lifeofafreelancedancer.blogspot.com/2014/02/emotional-training-in-ballet.html

Today's cast insert had a "12" in the upper left corner. The orchestra musicians had "12" placards hanging from their music stands. Conductor Allan Dameron held one up before taking a bow from the podium. I spotted a number of jerseys, but my favorite was two young girls in Seahawks jerseys and blue and green tulle tutu skirts.

The Peter Wright version is available on DVD (with Dutch National Ballet. (Sylve, the Aurora, went to New York City Ballet and then San Francisco Ballet, where she dances now). There are a number of clips of the ballet from the DVD (a recording of a live performance) and other live performances on YouTube.

I hope that there's a lurker here who is familiar with the company and will post. We haven't had many posts over the years about the company's performances. Have a wonderful time in Vienna!

Lesley Rausch was just stunning tonight with Karel Cruz and Carrie Imler's spectacular Lilac Fairy.

After seeing two casts, I'm in an advanced stage of verklemptitude. Rachel Foster and Batkhurel Bold are a wonderful pairing. They are cast for the student performance next Friday at 11:30am. The kids who see it, many of them seeing ballet for the first time, couldn't be in better hands. They also perform the ballet next Saturday night at 7:30pm.

Heads up from sandik -- we're between Saturday performances: If you are in the theayer, make sure you pick up a copy of Sheila Dietrich's essay in the lobby. She's got an exhibit about Kaori Nakamura, and the essay goes with it. Sadly, it's not available online. There's also a two-page spread about Nakamura in the "Sleeping Beauty" program, including photos and quotes from colleagues, choreographers, and staff.

Sadly, the Anchorage Ballet Kickstarter campaign ended ~$2500 short.

Here is the press release; the actual order of presentation was Margaret Mullin, Elizabeth Murphy (in costume as Fairy of Purity), William Lin-Yee (in costume as Lilac Fairy Cavalier), Laura Tisserand (in costume as Lilac Fairy), and Lindi Dec. : Pacific Northwest Ballet Artistic Director Peter Boal Announces Five Promotions at “The Sleeping Beauty” Opening Night Seattle, WA – Before the start of this evening’s opening night performance of The Sleeping Beauty, Pacific Northwest Ballet Artistic Director Peter Boal stepped out in front of the curtains to make a special announcement. “It gives me great pleasure to announce five well-deserved promotions.” To hearty rounds of applause, Mr. Boal informed the audience that soloists Lindsi Dec and Laura Tisserand have been promoted to principal dancers, and William Lin-Yee, Margaret Mullin, and Elizabeth Murphy are moving from the corps de ballet to the rank of soloists. “Lindsi Dec has been an audience favorite since she entered her first dance competition as a kid,” continued Mr. Boal. “Lindsi’s stage presence is as enveloping as her spirit. Her growth as a dancer and as an artist has been a lesson in how talent, dedication and passion can triumph. Red Angels, Lady Capulet, everything Kiyon Gaines ever choreographed, and tonight, Silver in Act III of The Sleeping Beauty: Lindsi is a creature of the stage and we are all fortunate to be part of her audience. Brava, Lindsi and our warmest congratulations on your promotion to principal dancer.” Lindsi Dec is from Fairfax, Virginia and trained at Washington School of Ballet, and on scholarship at Pacific Northwest Ballet School. She joined the Company as an apprentice in 2001, was promoted to the corps de ballet in 2002, and soloist in 2009. Ms. Dec has performed as a guest artist with Ballet Hawaii, California Ballet, Corpus Christi Ballet, Dance Arts Theatre, Grand Rapids Ballet, Lafayette Ballet, and Mid-Columbia Ballet. “I had the pleasure of teaching Laura Tisserand as a student. By the time I arrived in Seattle, Francia Russell had already pegged Laura as a future ballerina. Watching her command the stage with keen focus, pristine technique, and record-breaking legs, has been a true joy. She is elegance personified in Diamonds, fire and steel as the Siren in The Prodigal Son, geometric precision in The Four Temperaments, and wickedly funny as the demanding diva in Christopher Wheeldon’s Variations Sérieuses. Tonight, Laura will bring her signature warmth and generosity to the stage as the Lilac Fairy. Laura, congratulations on your promotion to principal dancer.” Laura Tisserand is a native of Hammond, Louisiana, and trained with Phoebe Brantley in Baton Rouge, Joseph Giacobbe and Richard Rholdon in New Orleans, and on scholarship at the School of American Ballet (SAB) and PNB School. She joined the Company as an apprentice in 2003, was promoted to corps de ballet in 2004, and soloist in 2010. Ms. Tisserand has performed as a guest artist with Lafayette Ballet Theatre. “William Lin-Yee was also a student of mine 13 years ago on the other side of the country. Even in his student days, he offered clean technique, reliable partnering skills, and a dangerous sense of humor. Of late, perhaps starting with a star turn as Friar Laurence in Jean-Christophe Maillot’s Roméo et Juliette, he’s taking his artistry to new heights. Please join me in congratulating Will on his well-deserved promotion to soloist.” William Lin-Yee is from San Francisco, California, and trained at the Contra Costa Ballet Centre, San Francisco Ballet School, and SAB. In 2004 he became an apprentice with New York City Ballet and was also a Mae L. Wien Award recipient. Mr. Lin-Yee joined PNB as a member of the corps de ballet in 2008. “Margaret Mullin attended five summer courses at our School before becoming a Professional Division student. Since joining the Company, she has captured our eye with her signature ability to devour space. She also possesses a refined musicality and a refreshingly genuine stage presence. Unfortunately, due to a short-term injury, Maggie’s not able to perform tonight, but please join me in congratulating her on her promotion to soloist.” Margaret Mullin is from Tucson, Arizona, and studied on scholarship at Ballet Arts Tucson and at PNB School. Ms. Mullin joined PNB as an apprentice in 2008, and was promoted to corps de ballet in 2009. She has choreographed works for PNB’s mainstage and Next Step choreographers’ showcase. Ms. Mullin is a recipient of the 2011 Princess Grace Award. “From her first moments on stage with the Company in 2011, people started asking me who the new girl was. They were talking about Elizabeth Murphy. It’s not just her gravity-defying jumps, held balances and elegant pirouettes, it’s a winsome stage presence and a rare vulnerability. It’s no longer ‘Who’s that girl?’ It’s ‘When’s she going to get promoted to soloist?’ Well the answer is, right now.” Elizabeth Murphy is from Chelmsford, Massachusetts. She studied at Academy of Ballet Arts and the Rock School for Dance Education, and on scholarship at PNB School and Chautauqua Summer Program. She was an apprentice with North Carolina Dance Theater and also danced with Pennsylvania Ballet before joining Ballet West II in 2006 and Ballet West in 2007. Ms. Murphy joined PNB as a member of the corps de ballet in 2011. PNB congratulates all five of our newly promoted dancers!

Laura Tisserand and Lindsi Dec to Principal. Margaret Mullin, Eliizabeth Murphy, and Wiliam Liin-Yee to Soloist. Congratulations to them all!!!!!!

Thank you for posting the news, volcanohunter. Rest in peace, M. Babilee.

Welcome to Ballet Alert!, Iliona! I read your blog posts avidly, and I'm sure others here do, too. It is wonderful that we can read your insights about companies many of us don't get to see (or see often) and are on our bucket lists. You also give us the context we need to place what you describe.

I can't answer your question about Thursday dresses in general, but go to see Leta Biasucci and Jerome Tisserand this Sunday. The Super Bowl doesn't start until 3:30pm Pacific Time, and by the time the ballet is out, ~ 4pm, all of the sports fans will be holed up in bars or parties at their friends, and the streets should be quiet and safe for a get-away. And welcome to Ballet Alert!

Congratulations to Ms. Keesler

That is horrible news I hope she heals quickly and completely. It looks like SFB blog does not show when the site was updated. The casts must have changed and the schedule shifted after the gala.

I think there is one dancer who is the most overdue, but I think I'll wait it out another couple of days to find out if Peter Boal agrees. In general, I know who I'd pick, but that doesn't shed much light on the question. There's such a backlog of dancers who deserve promotions that few go to dancers at the time they show great promise, which I used to see at NYCB all the time.

Tonight Peter Boal tweeted: I'll be announcing five well-deserved promotions this Friday night @McCawHall I can't remember the last time there were five promotions -- does anyone remember such a time? Edited to add: Digging up info from older threads. January 2013: James Moore to Principal. November 2011: Kylee Kitchens, Kiyon Gaines, and Jerome Tisserand to Soloist. September 2011: Rachel Foster and Leslie Rausch to Principal. July 2010: Seth Orza to Principal; Laura Gilbreath (Tisserand) and Sarah Ricard Orza to Soloist. September 2009: Maria Chapman and Karel Cruz to Principal; Lindsi Dec to Soloist. September 2008: Benjamin Griffiths, Rachel Foster, James Moore, and Seth Orza to Soloist; Lucien Postlewaite to Principal. January 2007: Karel Cruz, Lesley Rausch, and Chalnessa Eames to Soloist. September 2006: Carla Korbes and Casey Herd to Principal. March 2005: Maria Chapman to Soloist; Jonathan Porretta to Principal. May 2004: Batkhurel Bold and Noelani Pantastico to Principal; Mara Vinson to Soloist. (This doesn't include apprentices hired as corps, which are all but the six corps members who came from other companies and Brittany Reid, who went from the school to corps, according to her bio.)

The Chinese choreographers may have recognized the Plisetskaya head-kick from their own Peking Opera roots. They may not have thought of it in ballet terms until then.

Korbes's injury was from the last rep of last season, and she spoke about it last fall in a long interview on the Ballet Initiative podcast. I'm sure when Boal scheduled "The Sleeping Beauty" last spring, Korbes was one of his choices for Aurora, but they wouldn't have started rehearsals last season, and Biasucci couldn't have been her understudy. Biasucci joined PNB in 2011. In her second rep, she danced "Divertimento from 'Baiser de la fee'" and Little Red Riding Hood in the "Sleeping Beauty" Wedding Act in the "Love Stories" program (Nov 2011). Korbes was cast in "Afternoon of a Faun" and "Romeo et Juliette PDD," with Chapman, Ricard Orza, and Rausch dancing Aurora, but Korbes withdrew first from weekend one, and then, finally from week two, and missed the rep. If Biasucci understudied Aurora at the time, not a given with everything else she was doing, which might have included learning multiple corps roles from scratch in "Nutcracker"by then, she didn't dance it. I don't think PNB has understudies or fourth/fifth casts for specific Principals: if she were understudying Aurora, it would have been for all other casts, and often, the understudies/last casts for full-lengths, at least, are in separate partnerships. I'm looking forward to seeing Rausch and Cruz together: they both have such long lines. With Chapman doing a run of Queens, and Ricard Orza dancing Lilac, the other Auroras are on the short side -- Nakamura, Foster, Biasucci -- and would look out-of-proportion with Cruz. I'm glad to see Rausch and Bold with other partners, too, because he tends to focus on partnering her and lose his own character, and I think he and Foster could have a great dynamic together, as well as having good proportions. I don't know what would have happened had Chapman, a radiant Aurora in "Love Stories," and Korbes been able to do the role. If he had five casts, that would mean one cast with one performance, which is rare to assign to a Principal. I suspect there would have been four casts, with Biasucci an understudy in this round. She was given great opportunities up front her first season, but she also understudied a number of roles that year and ended up being featured in every, or almost every rep that year. She's been given wonderful opportunities since, but in some reps last season, hadn't been cast prominently. I'm glad she's being featured again.

In her book Merrill Ashley said she did the same jump in "Ballo della Regina," inspired by Plisetskaya. I know in skating, the Chinese reverse engineered tapes of Soviet figure skaters captured from TV. I don't know how much of the reverse was true, but the move has a longer history in China than it does in the ballet that evolved when Plisetskaya was dancing. Ironically, "The Red Detachment of Women" was one of the models of the Cultural Revolution, when Peking Opera was being denounced, but they didn't throw out all of the babies with the bathwater.

What a wonderful post, giving so much context around Lo Sardo's comments.

Oh, no: he was supposed to live to be 1,000. Rest in peace, Mr. Seeger.

Absolutely. I was just describing my impressions and disappointment from a personal point of view, not trying to demonise her or assign blame. I hope I did not come across this way and/or go against forum rules (?). You did not at all. You expressed your opinion, and your disappointment about that performance is completely valid to express here. It's always a privilege when a major company visits, but in return for the respect we give the companies, we expect a minimum standard, and, to an extent, to not have to worry about who is cast. Sadly, our expectations aren't always met, especially when a dancer proves to be polarizing (or, at the other end of the spectrum, relatively dull). I hope you will tell us about what you see in Moscow. (If you're an opera fan, too, and get to see one while you are there, we'd love to hear about it in our "Other Performing Arts" forum.