Helene

Michael Popkin interviewed Dorothee Gilbert and among the topics were what she will dance at the YAGP gala and her thoughts about her partner, Marcelo Gomes: http://danceviewtimes.typepad.com/michael_popkin/2013/04/a-conversation-with-doroth%C3%A9e-gilbert-danseuse-%C3%A9toile-paris-opera-ballet.html It's a great read.

Here is the full text of the program: “Stars of Today Meet the Stars of Tomorrow”: YAGP 2013 Gala David H. Koch Theater, Lincoln Center – April 18, 2013 at 7:00pm ACT I: STARS OF TOMORROW Ellie Choi (Violin, Musical Protégé Series) Accompanied by: Carlos Avila (piano) “Carmen Fantasy” Music: Pablo de Sarasate The Finalists of Youth America Grand Prix 2013 international student ballet competition. Entries will be announced during the performance. ACT II: STARS OF TODAY Clifton Brown Live music accompaniment: Braxton Cook (Saxophone) James MacBride (Drums) Luke Sellick (Bass) Samora Pinderhughes (Piano) “Take 5” Choreography: Fredrick Earl Mosley Music: Paul Desmond ---------------------------------------------------------- Svetlana Lunkina (Bolshoi Ballet) “La Bayadere” – Nikiya Monologue from Act I Choreography: Marius Petipa Music: Ludwig Minkus ---------------------------------------------------------- Viengsay Valdés and Osiel Gouneo (National Ballet of Cuba) “Double Bounce” – U.S. PREMIERE Choreography: Peter Quanz Music: David Lang ---------------------------------------------------------- Teresa Reichlen and Tyler Angle (New York City Ballet) Live music accompaniment: Vassily Primakov (Piano) “Partita No. 2 in C Minor” – WORLD PREMIERE Choreography: Emery LeCrone Music: J.S. Bach ---------------------------------------------------------- Chase Finlay (New York City Ballet) Live music accompaniment: Emiko Edwards (Piano) Jingyi Zhang (Piano) “Tous les Jours” – U.S. PREMIERE Choreography: Marcelo Gomes Music: Karen LeFrak Tous les Jours is a co-production of YAGP and the Mariinsky Ballet. It had its world premiere on March 10, 2013 in St. Petersburg, Russia as part of the Mariinsky Festival. ---------------------------------------------------------- Dorothée Gilbert (Paris Opera) Marcelo Gomes (American Ballet Theatre) “Romeo and Juliet” – Balcony Pas de Deux Choreography: Kenneth MacMillan Music: Sergey Prokofiev ---------------------------------------------------------- Maria Kochetkova (San Francisco Ballet) Lonnie Weeks (YAGP Alumnus, San Francisco Ballet) “Borderlands” Choreography: Wayne McGregor Music: Joel Cadbury and Paul Stoney ---------------------------------------------------------- Nina Ananiashvilli (Georgia State Ballet) Lil Buck Live music accompaniment: Nina Kotova (Cello) Vassily Primakov (Piano) “Swan” (Pièce d’occasion) Choreography: Mikhail Fokine and Lil Buck Music: Camille Saint-Saëns ---------------------------------------------------------- Misa Kuranaga (Boston Ballet) Herman Cornejo (American Ballet Theatre) Alejandro Virelles (YAGP Alumnus, Boston Ballet) “Le Corsaire” – Pas de Trois Choreography: Marius Pepita Music: Adolphe Adam, arranged by Ricardo Drigo

And here is the montage:

Congratulations to Mr. Rebello and Mr. Cerdeiro on their promotions

When I added to my LP collection in college, I spent every extra dime on Davis's Mozart and Berlioz opera recordings.

Is the website's Russian version any better? Not about casting or scheduling, which could be run against a machine translator, but the bios and other info? Can anyone shed light on the economics of the opera vs. the ballet? The ballet was a touring cash cow, especially after the breakup of the Soviet Union, and kept the company afloat long enough to be rescued. The opera tours, but not nearly as much as the ballet, and the top singers at the Mariinsky are much more likely to spend extended periods outside Russia, at the Met, Paris Opera, Covent Garden, etc. Gergiev courts ballet donors actively: are they that taken by Gergiev that they don't care if the ballet is neglected, or do they not realize the ballet is neglected because the brand is so strong?

I'm on the same page as you, Drew, and if I chose randomly, I know I'd end up with "Carmen."

I wouldn't prefer to go in blind, especially if I knew that something I wanted to see was going to be presented sometime, and by choosing randomly, I could miss it. On the other hand, if my goal was to attend the Festival, I might just pick a time and go, much like people do for Bayreuth: a ticket, any ticket. What I think the shopfront to the world is "Come to the Mariinsky, and no matter what you are privileged to see, it will be excellent." As long as the theaters are filled with locals and visitors, it's working as well as they want it to, however perverse that is for people who discriminate. It's certainly easier logistically.

NYCB announces casting a week ahead of time, but the programs, published months in advance, don't change very often. PNB has a fixed program. For.each two-week rep, and I don't remember much changing after the summer, once the budget is finalized. They announce most casting ten days in advance of the first performance of the week in general, but sometimes announce Principal casting for both weeks ten days before the first week. How far in advance does POB announce casting? I've never followed their website: I've always planned visits around rep, rather than casting. I'm guessing the Mariinsky does this because it can: if there was a shortage of people buying tickets, they might change their policy. I always wondered about thr Royal Ballet season announcement press rele!ses with casting. 1. How do they know dancers will be healthy enough 14 months in advance and 2. It really solidifies a hierarchy, since a dancer who's having a great season either has to sit out ballets for which they'd be cast in a company that finalizes decisions later or has to bump someone who's been announced.

Case in point, from 11 minutes ago: I'll be dancing Flames of Paris and @ WayneMcGregor's @ BorderlandsOST for @ YAGPtweets Gala this Thursday in NY I don't know how I missed that one, but .

I know "Swan Lake" isn't over yet, but PNB just published the trailer for the "Director's Choice" program, the last rep of the season, which runs from 31 May-1 June and second weekend 6 June-9 June. The three ballets on the program are: "Agon" (Balanchine/Stravinsky) New Christopher Wheeldon Ballet with music by Jody Talbot "Diamonds" (Balanchine/Tchaikovsky) Here is the video: The "Diamonds" clips feature Carla Korbes and Stanko Milov. I'm not sure who the man is in the first Pas de trois from "Agon"; the women are Maria Chapman and Lesley Rausch. In the second Pas de trois, I'm fairly certain it's Mara Vinson with Batkhurel Bold and Karel Cruz. In the "After the Rain 'Pas de deux'" shots, Wheeldon works with Maria Chapman and Karel Cruz, with Kaori Nakamura in the background to the left and Paul Gibson taking notes on the right. The still at the end is Batkhurel Bold and Lesley Rausch in the "Agon" Pas de deux.

He did leave a substantial amount out, though. What he published was a broad look at just about all of the workings of a ballet company, taking each aspect as seriously as the rest, and giving equal due to the business, artistic, Board, and backstage elements.

The manuscript was cut down substantially before it was published.

Reviews by members only are properly posted in the company forums as you did, once. The only places for duplicate posts on the board are in Links and then in an appropriate forum to discuss what's written in the linked article. (The place to discuss professional reviewers and critics is "Writings on Ballet.")

Vocal Arts DC has released its 2013-14 schedule, and I am dying of envy: Lawrence Brownlee Michael Fabiano Iestyn Davies for countertenor fans Ana Maria Martinez Hei-Kyung Hong Luca Pisaroni Brandon Cedel "Real" Washington wuzrobbed!

Kochetkova is a workhorse in general: she's danced in Russia in the last year and has been a SFB representative in galas. She'll be in NYC to perform an excerpt from Wheeldon's "Cinderella" in the Dance Against Cancer Benefit on May 6. Her tweets and Facebook posts document a schedule that exhausts me just reading it. She is the reason I got on a plane at the last minute to see "Coppelia" a few years ago. I think she's an exquisite dancer, and I've loved every performance I've seen her in.

Many thanks for the review, Terez! I wish I had been able to travel for this program.

The third Dance Against Cancer, produced by Erin Fogarty and Daniel Ulbricht, will be held on 6 May at 7pm at the AXA Equity Theater. VIP tickets include a pre-event reception with swag that starts at 6pm. https://acsmnhtn.ejoinme.org/?tabid=433894 From the website, which includes links to some short videos: JUST ANNOUNCED! Repertoire to include a special SNEAK PEEK of Christopher Wheeldon’s Cinderella performed by Maria Kochetkova and Joan Boada of San Francisco Ballet as well as world premieres by both Herman Cornejo and Charles 'Lil Buck'; Riley among other exciting works. and Performers to include NYCB's Ashley Bouder, Maria Kowroski, Wendy Whelan, Tiler Peck, Lauren Lovette, Robert Fairchild, Tyler Angle, Gonzalo Garcia and Daniel Ulbricht, American Ballet Theatre's Misty Copeland and Herman Cornejo, Alvin Ailey's Alicia Graf Mack and Matthew Rushing, San Francisco Ballet's Maria Kochetkova and Joan Boada, Lar Lubovitch Dance Company's Clifton Brown and Attila Csiki as well Memphis Jookin' Sensation Charles "Lil Buck" Riley.

Michael Popkin reviews Bill T. Jones Arnie Zane Dance Company in “Ravel: Landscape or Portrait?,” and “Story/” for danceviewtimes.

As Tallchief herself explained: The first minute here: From about a minute in here: As far as how Tallchief should be known, the dance world might think of her centrality to Balanchine, but the general public who saw her on TV -- back in the day when dancers were shown on TV and far more people saw her that way than at City Center -- would more likely remember her as the dancer in "Swan Lake," "Les Sylphides," and "Don Quixote" than in "Pas de Dix" or "Scotch Symphony."

Everything for which she was coached at ABT was realized on stage: they got immediate returns on their investment, even if she never appears with the company again, which is not her plan. I meant her school training, not coaching. The Mariinsky or Bolshoi academies, the RDB school, and POB school choose children at a young age and pay their expenses, as well as teaching them academic subjects, for the sole purpose of creating a crop of dancers from which they can cherry pick. They invest in training: if they choose a dancer for their company, and that dancer leaves voluntarily -- I don't mean reassigned to Moscow because Stalin or Khruschev liked them -- they have a right to be crabby about it.

I don't know what the relative pay is between ABT and NYCB, only that NYC and London are among the most expensive places to live. Were she guesting at Royal Ballet and living in NYC, the exchange rate would be meaningful, but it's not relevant if she's living in London. I don't think taking opportunities always mean financial opportunities;I believe opportunities in this case are primarily artistic. I suspect she could go to Japan and do fewer guest performances and make more money. Osipova sells tickets in London as well as NYC, and it would be an intelligent move for the Royal Ballet to revive works for her, especially shorter ballets, since there's an excellent chance she can put people in seats for the triple/mixed bills by being in one of them. If that's a way for the Royal Ballet to reclaim its heritage, I think that's a win/win. She hasn't left ABT, and NY audiences will still see her.

As long as she doesn't phone in her performances, I don't think she owes anything more to anyone except her partners. ABT is full of itinerant dancers, and there have been Principals whose performances have dwindled over the years. She's taking advantage of opportunities offered, and I don't see an issue with this. If she were to leave ABT after her current contract ends, that's her choice. ABT invested nothing in her training.