Helene

I was flipping through the SFB program for " Coppelia" and a photo popped out: it was a picture if Doug Fullington who was in SF and delivered two presentations: March 23, on the history of "Coppelia" March 24, "Passing petipa's Ballets from Generation to Generation" Did any go to either or both?

From today's email, the rest if the cast is set: With 5 world class guest principal dancers: - Tyler Angle (NYCB), Misa Kuranaga (Boston Ballet), Carla Korbes, Seth Orza (PNB) and Sofiane Sylve (SFB). And 5 guest soloists: - Craig Salstein (ABT), Joseph Gatti (Boston Ballet), Francis Veyette (PA Ballet), Savannah Lowery and Ana Sophia Scheller (NYCB) and, Lauren Fadeley (PA Ballet) Nicole Graniero (ABT). freelance dancers: Deborah Wingert, Joel Prouty, Laura Feig, Elizabeth Claire Walker, Chaz Meszaros, Peter Snow, Lauren Stewart, Nancy Richer, Jennifer Goodman, Madeline Davenport, Monica Stephenson, Victoria North, Kelsey Coventry, and children from Manhattan Youth Ballet. Pianists David LaMarche and Benjamin Bradham, costumes by Janie Taylor, David Quinn and Reid Bartelme, with lighting by Seth Bernstein.

I just received the following email blast from Oregon Ballet Theatre: ----------------------- It is with a mixture of sadness and excitement that I let you know that our upcoming production of Song & Dance will be Anne Mueller’s final performances with Oregon Ballet Theatre before she retires in May. Sadness, because Anne has been a truly distinctive artist who has brought beauty, humour and impeccable discipline to her work with OBT over the last 15 years. Excitement, because her retirement from the stage allows her to increase her role within the core artistic staff of the company - allowing us to continue to benefit from her artistry and intelligence at the heart of what we do. A career as extraordinary as Anne’s really deserves a celebration! I cordially invite you to help us celebrate Anne at Song & Dance in April. Below you’ll find 5 ways you can participate in the celebration - whether you join us for her final performance or share your own memories of Anne on our Facebook page, I hope you will take a moment to reflect on the impact this fiercely talented artist has had on your own experience of the ballet. Thank you and I look forward to seeing you at Song & Dance. Christopher Stowell Artistic Director Oregon Ballet Theatre 5 WAYS TO CELEBRATE ANNE 1. Celebrate and SAVE $15 per ticket! $15 Ticket: We commemorate Anne’s 15 year career with OBT by offering $15 off* select opening weekend performances to Song & Dance! Choose from the following: APRIL 23RD @ 2pm APRIL 24TH @ 2pm APRIL 24TH @ 7:30pm Use the Promo Code “ANNE” to get this special offer when you order online or by phone (503.2.BALLET) Offer expires this Friday March 25th, so get your tickets today! *Areas 1 through 4, limit 4, not available on previously purchased tickets or combinable with other offers 2. Explore the LIFE AND TIMES of Anne Mueller. Life and Times of Anne Mueller: Check out some great stories from Anne’s career and share your own memories of Anne on our FACEBOOK PAGE or our BLOG 3. JOIN US for a special Anne-themed Dance Talks. SUNDAY, APRIL 17TH AT 4PM / AT CONDUIT Anne and Christopher will share photos, video and stories from Anne’s career at this FREE to the public event at Conduit Dance, Inc. (918 SW Yamhill Avenue, Suite 401). LEARN MORE ABOUT DANCE TALKS 4. Make a CONTRIBUTION in Honor of Anne to OBT’s New Works Fund. New Works Fund / Petrouchka/Carmen dress rehearsal: Your contribution in support of New Works will support a cause near and dear to Anne’s heart- creating the future of ballet performance. It also garners you an exclusive invitation to the dress rehearsal for our world premiere season opening performance of Nicolo Fonte’s Petrouchka and Christopher Stowell’s Carmen. All gifts in honor of Anne will be recognized as partial sponsors of Petrouchka/Carmen under the description “Friends and Family of Anne Mueller.” To make a gift of any amount in honor of Anne to the New Works Fund, email Emily at emily.tucker@obt.org or call 503.227.0977 ext. 225. 5. SEND HER OFF with Applause (and a special surprise)! Send her off with applause! SUNDAY, MAY 1 AT 2PM Don’t miss Anne’s final performance of Christopher Stowell’s Eyes on You, Trey McIntyre’s Speak and Nicolo Fonte’s Left Unsaid at Song & Dance. Our special “Celebrate Anne” final performance package includes best available center seating for the performance, a donation in honor of Anne to the New Works Fund, and a limited edition signed performance photo of Anne (plus the chance to participate in a special surprise curtain call celebration of Anne at the show!) As a contributor to the New Works Fund, you’ll receive an exclusive invitation to the invited dress rehearsal of Carmen/Petrouchka in the fall. Get the details HERE.

Here are the pairings: http://abc.go.com/shows/dancing-with-the-stars/bios Chelsea Kane, actress, and Mark Ballas, perkster Team Kanenball Chris Jericho, former professional wrestler, and Cheryl Burke Team Jericho Hines Ward, Pittsburgh Steeler, and Kym Johnson Team HineKym Kendra Wilkinson, reality star, and Louis van Amstel Kendra n' Louis Kirstie Alley, actress, and Maksim Chmerkovskiy Team G-Mak Mike Catherwood, radio host, and Lacey Schwimmer Team Schwimmerwood Petra Nemcova, supermodel, and Dmitry Chaplin Team Dmitra Ralph Macchio, actor, and Karina Smirnoff Team Kamacchio Romeo, singer/actor, and Chelsie Hightower Team RomeTower Sugar Ray Leonard, former boxer, and Anna Trebunsakaya Team Sugar & Spice Wendy Williams, talk show host, and Tony Dovolani Team MY TONY how you dancing I wish they'd shut up about Romeo's father, who was difficult, but saddled with an inexperienced pro who sold him down the river. That was shame on the show, and the last thing the hosts should be doing is bringing it up.

I now have basic cable and just watched the Season 12 opener I had recorded on the PVR. Zipping through the commercials is such a better way to watch, but I have to remember to set an alarm each week to vote for Louis van Amstel and his partner. I don't care how she or they dances: I just want to watch him for as long as possible. First, Ralph Macchio is 48? Sugar Ray Leonard is 55? Kirstie Alley is 60? I think the statute of limitations for denial is now at an end... I know little about the technical aspects of ballroom dancing, just what I find impressive and/or pleasing. In the opener I was again kvelling listening to the athletes talk about how hard it is to dance, and these are people who were paid mega-bucks to know precisely where their head, hands, feet, core, legs, and back were for every move they made in relation to at least one other person, and in the case of Chris Jericho, the World Wrestling Federation champion, to not know could be debilitating. For me Ralph Macchio was a surprise and a delight, performing with great charm. I especially loved how NFL football star Hines Ward focused his attention on his partner Kym Johnson and appeared to be partnering her in the non-hold sections. I was really impressed with Kirstie Alley, who found her feet. She's also very funny, and I expect her to gather a lot of the at-home vote. While they've all been put through the crash course ringer, and must all have 1000 instructions churning in their heads, for some performers musicality shone through, particularly in their ability to change speed and attack in response to the phrase. Sometimes this recedes after the relatively open first couple of shows when they start to try to gain and hone technique, but it's fun to watch at the beginning. I also love it when someone gets a phrase or a move or is light on their toes for part of the dance, and I can hear Marv Albert in my head with his "Yes!"

A new video where they show sections of the ballet with a freeze frame of the photos Angela Sterling took: "Pacific" First clip: Front row l-r: Laura Gilbreath, Ariana Lallone. Back row l-r: Kylee Kitchens, Leslie Rausch Second clip: Carla Korbes, Olivier Wevers Third clip: Ariana Lallone, Lucien Postlewaite "Place a Chill" First clip: Jonathan Porretta Second clip: Chelsea Adomaitis, James Moore? "The Piano Dance" First clip: Front: Laura Gilbreath, Karel Cruz. Back row l-r: Rachel Foster and Benjamin Griffiths. Chalnessa Eames and Josh Spell. Margaret Mullin and Jerome Tisserand. Second clip: Laura Gilbreath, Karel Cruz. Third clip: Rachel Foster

The obituary from the Los Angeles Times: Elizabeth Taylor, legendary actress, dies at 79

Nijinsky? Baryshnikov? The Bolshoi? Really?

A new video of Alexei Ratmansky rehearsing "Concerto DSCH", primarily with Carla Korbes and Karel Cruz, but later you can see Maria Chapman and Olivier Wevers in the mirror and background later in the video. For some reason it's set to Mendelssohn. Alan Dameron is the pianist playing the actual music.

Yes. No. Since there is no commercial release of this video, the only answers that do not violate our tape-trading policy are: 1. There is a library or org closer to puppytreats than Manhattan, and since puppytreats' profile city is "New York" -- it's perfectly legit to note the closest city in the profile -- there's not much we can suggest without knowing where closer is. 2. There is a way to borrow the tape from an organization or library to watch it at home 3. It will be shown on TV in the NYC area and can be taped/PVR'ed We all want to avoid more commuting, however, asking for a tape trade through the back door by setting conditions where there is less than 1% chance of fulfilling them without a tape trade is not kosher.

Kathleen O'Connell!!!!

Thank you for the correction. It explains why a search for "Iksanova" wasn't getting many good results.

I don't speak or read Russian, so this is through Microsoft Translator, which translates the ITAR-TASS quote as: which means that as of the time Iksanova made the statement, Vaziev was the front-runner in according to Iksanova. According to the translation of the Rossiyskaya Gazeta article, Vaziev was also Iksanova's preferred candidate: There is no announcement of an appointment or contract offer to Vaziev or any other candidate in these statements. In translation, the second implies that Vaziev decided not to try to break his contract with La Scala, but not that he did this before or after an offer. There might be nuances in Russian, either through the expression used or a verb type or tense that has meaning or implications that the translation does not express. While a candidate may be the preference of one person at a point in time, that does not mean that there aren't other people who have input into the process or that preferences change over time as more and new information becomes available to the people making the decision.

Jacques d'Amboise will appear in conversation with Peter Boal at Town Hall (Eighth and Seneca) on Tuesday, 12 April at 7:30pm to discuss his new book, "I Was a Dancer". Admission is $5, with doors opening at 6:30pm. http://www.elliottbaybook.com/node/events/apr11/dambroise Now if I could figure out a way to get down and back for this... From the Introduction of d'Amboise's self-described collection of anecdotes and episodes culled over 50 years,

None whatsoever. I believe that Angelique was using the words 'press releases' in a more general sense, to cover a statement in the press (an article in a newspaper) rather than formal press releases from the Bolshoi, so I continued her train of thought on 'press releases' but, no, there were none. The only formal press release appeared when Filin was named. To be clear for our members for whom English is not their first language, the single definition of a press release is a stand-alone statement released by or by a surrogate of a company or person, usually to the press, who may print and edit it. It is not a sound bite or part of an interview with company officials or members on a topic. There may be an unauthorized press release, where someone jumps the gun and releases a spoken or written statement that was not agreed on by the company or person. There may be rogue statements that are made to appear like official press releases, where the medial is fooled. There is no such thing as an "unofficial" press release. The distinction is important, because Dancer A or Associate Direct B or Arts Official C may have given an interview and/or have been quoted as saying "We wanted to hire Vaziev to run the Bolshoi". This is not a press release. This is a statement to the press. The rules on Ballet Alert! are similar in both cases: there must be a citation substantiating the assertion. For example a statement like "the position of Artistic Director of the Bolshoi had been offered to Makher Vaziev first and foremost, fact which is supported by numerous press releases of the day [or was widely reported]." must be substantiated by citations to actual press release(s) or press statements. It is fine to say that the official press release/press statement was published in "Newspaper A", "Magazine B", and discussed on TV Station C, and was picked up by numerous other media outlets. "Numerous" alone is unsubstantiated.

Are there any official press releases from the Bolshoi that announced Vaziev as head of the Bolshoi? If there were, I would expect them to be on the Bolshoi website and widely reported in the legitimate press, including press in Europe and NA. Links to these press releases from mainstream press or official company websites, please. Fan sites are not official sources.

Michael Popkin reviews Paul Taylor Dance Company for his blog in danceviewtimes: aul Taylor in New York Considered

I'd quote Mashinka's post to reply, but my iPhone won't let me get to the bottom of the post. While a claque may be the most vociferous and visible part of an audience, it is hardly representative of an audience. Perhaps the question should have been "Would the Moscow claque have allowed a Somova performance to go on interrupted?" The criticism of dancers, choreographers, and artistic directors here is a lot more polite than on other forums which have different rules, but it can be as stinging. However, the way people criticize behind the relative anonymity of the Internet, and how they behave in public are two very different things. How many people here would walk up to Alina Somova on the street, in a hotel lobby, or at the stage door and say to her face what they've posted here, using the same language? Or throw something at her in performance or at a curtain call.

What is "quite a number", though? Flashers get quite a lot of publicity, but not that many people run around naked in public.

Nilsson, who created the awarding organization before she died, hand-picked Domingo as the first recipient, but the prize wasn't awarded until after she died. General Director of Seattle Opera, Speight Jenkins, was on the selection committee. The announcement and a video of the press conference is on the Birgit Nilsson Prize website: http://www.birgitnilssonprize.org/ to Mr. Muti on this great honor.

Beginning March 28, users who have neither a print subscription or a digital subscription to the New York Times or The International Herald Tribune will be allowed up to 20 articles a month free of charge for accessing the site directly, after which they will be prompted to purchase one of the three digital subscription options. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/18/business/media/18times.html?_r=1&hp

I have to wonder how such superb productions and dancing that I saw on tour, aside from the Kennedy Center-driven abridged edition of "Le Corsaire" and the development of so many young, wonderful dancers happens under these circumstances.

Sara Mearns, Megan Fairchild, Abi Stafford, Charles Askegard, Jared Angle, and Tyler Angle will perform with members of the USC Dance Company and Columbia City Ballet in "Allegro Brillante", "In the Night", and "Western Symphony". Cameron Grant will be the piano soloist. The performance is this Saturday, 19 March, at 7pm in the Koger Center. Tickets can be ordered online (capitoltickets.com) or by phone 251-2222. According to this article, Columbia is home for Sara Mearns. The program is presented by former NYCB soloist Stacy Calvert, who is a faculty member in the Department of Theatre and Dance and University of Southern California.

Helen Wilkins, who along with her late husband John, founded Olympic Ballet Theatre and has been Artistic Director of Olympic Ballet Theatre in Edmonds, WA (a little north of Seattle), is retiring at the end of June, and former Pacific Northwest Ballet dancers and husband-and-wife Mara Vinson and Oleg Gorboulev will become the new co-directors of the company: http://heraldnet.com/article/20110316/ETP15/703169913/-1/NEWS01 Vinson and Gorboulev have choreographed and staged Olympic Ballet Theatre's production of "Coppelia" to be performed next month. Vinson is on the poster. In this preview, Gorboulev coaches the dancer playing Dr. Coppelius. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yAfTf_HippE Gorboulev also danced with Moscow Classical Ballet, Ballet International, and, after PNB, with Los Angeles Ballet and Julie Tobiason's Seattle Dance Project. According to the Emerald Ballet Theatre website (Bellevue, WA, close to Microsoft-land), he is currently the Assistant Artistic Director there as well as a teacher. He also has been teaching at Olympic Ballet Theatre, the PNB school, and Spectrum Dance Theatre. This page has a small photo of him dancing in "Apollo" with Corina Gill at a 2006 benefit. Since leaving PNB, Mara Vinson has danced with Le Yin in several productions for International Ballet Theatre, also in Bellevue, including "Don Quixote" and "Giselle". Gorboulev also danced in the same production of "Don Quixote", as well as in "Dracula" and as Drosselmeier in "The Nutcracker".

The caveat about the music is that Balanchine switched the third and fourth movements for the ballet. If you're used to the music in the order of the score, you may get a jolt when the fourth movement starts before the third. Since I didn't know the music before I saw the ballet, I get a jolt in the concert hall when they start the (real) third movement "too early".