leibling

Thank you, Estelle, for those threads. They were very, very interesting. I find that I have already been sensitive to the way people are cast... because while there are those who can dance everything, there are also those dancers who really onl;y look their best in certain roles. Anyway, sorry to go off- topic...

And for women ? What are the acknowledged characteristics of a "classical" ballerina versus a "romantic" ballerina ? What is a "soubrette", exactly ? What type of dancer is best in Giselle, and who is more suited to Sleeping Beauty ? How would you classify ( if it is possible) Gelsey Kirkland, Natalia Makarova, Suzanne Farrell or Margot Fonteyn ? I am curious to know if my definitions are the same as anyone elses.

Is there a list of definitions, somewhere ? I've always wondered why some are classified as "demi-character", etc. etc. ...- is it a "height" criteria ?

I have one piece to name... Empyrean Dances. This was choreographed for Joffrey by Eddie Stierle before he passed away. I saw it in rehearsal... but the reviews were unaminously approving when it opened. He lasted until about three days after the premiere. Anyway, images from this work have stuck in my head for almost ten years now.

Miami City Ballet leaves the scherzo in.

Back to the convoluted family theme- someone mentioned Myrtha as Albrecht's mother... well if his father was a philanderer, perhaps he had an affair with Giselle's mother, therefore making Giselle Albrecht's half sister !!!

Back to the convoluted family theme- someone mentioned Myrtha as Albrecht's mother... well if his father was a philanderer, perhaps he had an affair with Giselle's mother, therefore making Giselle Albrecht's half sister !!!

Thanks, Drew- that was a great story... any more?

or Wilis on Wall St. ...

or Wilis on Wall St. ...

OK- I was inspired by Steve Keeley's response about Riolama in the "who do you miss the most thread ?" ... quite an impression she left on him. Does anyone have similar stories of someone you noticed for the first time that you always returned to look for, and how did their career progress- or how does it continue to progress ? [This message has been edited by leibling (edited February 24, 2001).]

Edward Stierle- not only as a dancer ( he danced with Joffrey for several years before his death in 1991 (?)...) , but as a choreographer as well. I had a chance to work with him before I graduated high school- and he has inspired my career. I often wonder what he would be doing if he were still here.

My opinion on funding is that ANY funding is welcome ! Seriously, though, is there any issue that is stickier than that of funding ballet ? Sometimes I feel that ballet companies are seen as being wealthy- or at least comfortable. They are able to provide nice sounding amenities- health and dental insurance for instance- things that I'm not sure too many modern dance companies could afford. However, from a "buisness" point of view, modern dance companies and ballet companies function differently, and fulfill different needs. To make a long story short, I feel that ballet companies don't receive their share, alot of the time. Maybe this is because I am a ballet dancer and feel the affects of being in a company with a large financial burden. Not only is the portion of public funding a small percetage relative to the total budget, but their are those in the local government and press that begrudge us the little bit of funding we do receive. Here in Miami, the building of the new performing arts center has been delayed repeatedly... but there are plenty of new sports facilities around. Both have been "supported" by public tax dollars. Anyway- I digress. I guess funding officials at local and state levels want to be "fair"- making sure that all entities have equal chances. Therefore the more obvious cultural institutions (ie. ballet companies) may be passed over for funding because they are producing- or seem to be producing. For instance- here in Miami, we produce four programs a year, plus Nutcracker. We perform in several large theaters and work in a large,brand new building a block from the beach. We go on national and international tours. The picture of wonderful economic health, right ? Well, under the surface, we have to perform in those theaters as we do have large audiences, but we also have to pay rent at those theaters, and pay for crews, royalties, etc. The building has to be maintained, protected, and many things are not quite finished, yet. People do the work of two and sometimes three positions for a normal salary. Touring, as those involved will know, does not make money- though usually we break even.I guess, though, that this "picture" of health fools a lot of people. I don't know if I have made a clear point- I think I've forgotten what that point is. Most of our funding comes from private sources- even if the government wanted to give us more funding, I don't think that the arts get that much money to begin with.

Is there anyone that saw Noella Pontois as Giselle ? I have a video of a performance that she danced with Baryshnikov- I really love her in it- but I am curious to hear what people may have thought who saw her live.- I am sorry if I have misspelled her name ...I'm not sure if it is Noella or Noelle- or some version of that...

When I was a little girl in Richmond, Va. , she would make guest appearances as the Sugar Plum Fairy in Nutcracker, but I don't have a clear memory of her dancing- I just remember her as very outgoing, and her partner was always signing someone else's name when we asked for his autograph ! But I think she was the first Sugar Plum I ever saw.

I just realized- after reading the not Bambi thread- why not have a ballet for and about Barbie ???!!!!???? I can only imagine... [This message has been edited by leibling (edited February 09, 2001).]

I've been wondering about this lately, actually. There are stories that tell you that Fonteyn was so obviously a ballerina from the very beginning- that to jjust look at her you wanted to cry because of her natural gifts. I guess she just had a very natural vulnerability, radiance or other such quality to her personality. You begin to wonder if you can spot a "ballerina" from the start. Having just seen ABT, I can say that there are a lot of good dancers there, but only a couple of them struck me as ballerina types- and those were not necessarily the ones dancing the larger roles. It is very subjective, though- except in the cases of an honor being bestowed (Fonteyn). One person's ideal ballerina may appear as a dancer with two left feet to someone else.

I can't wait to see what will be next... a line of Barbie dolls for Giselle ? And will they sell ALL of the Wilis for the second act together, or will you have to buy each one seperately ? I don't know if I like this idea of a Barbie doll Nutcracker or not- but it is pretty funny.

Thanks, all- Iremember watching that episode of L.A.Law... how funny. I guess I will just have to get to New York to visit the library.

Do any videos exist of Gelsey in Giselle? If so, where are they? I went through the video list at Amazon.com, but while they had several Giselle's, none were of Gelsey. Any ideas, please?

CygneDanois- I agree. SAB has very few students that progressed through the entire school and continued on to professional careers- though there are a few I have met. You know- you made an interesting point ( no pun intended) about the permanent pointe work. I had never thought to associate a loss of articulation with the constant pointe work, but that makes perfect sense. If you don't work through the joints in your foot regularly, you can loose some of the range of motion there. Also, I find that for myself, I need to work in flat shoes to understand the muscles in my legs, and how they aid me to releve. Being on pointe is easier for me than to work on demi, so the flat shoes force me to use the muscles on the back of my leg. From there, pointe becomes an extension of the toes. ABT is coming next week to Miami. I can't wait to see Theme and Variations- to see if I notice a big difference in the way it is performed there, as opposed to a more Balanchine company (such as Miami City Ballet- I haven't seen NYCB in several years).

I think it is important to note that the "Balanchine" training HAS changed over the years. When SAB first opened, ( and correct me if I am wrong), the teachers were russian- ( I apologize in advance for spelling)- Doubrovska, Tumkovsky, Danilova- if not these teachers exactly, then other russians. Anyway, they taught basic russian technique to the students. It is only when the dancers entered the company that they took Balanchine's two hour class. This, I presume, is where the style was taught. In these classes, pirouettes were executed with a straight back knee, legs were lifted, wrists overcrossed, speed emphasized, all those traits indicative of the Balanchine style. But these dancers had already learned a basic, solid ballet technique. Today, it seems, all of those embellishments are being taught AS technique. The dancer who has a solid training before attending SAB for a year or two is much better off than the one who has spent his or her entire lifetime at that school. Balanchine did have a tremendous range in his ballets- from the romantic Emeralds to the grandness of Theme and Variations, to the inventive "narratives" of Apollo and Prodigal Son. And able to choreograph so quickly. Throughout his repetoire, I find so much wit- wry comments on the music, a style, or maybe even ballet itself. And sometimes, I find so much of it the same. After years of learning his ballets, I begin to feel that there is a formula to learning them. Someone once told me that his works are easy to learn- they always follow a certain logic. This is the truth. It's not a bad thing- it probably happens to anybody who spends so much time immersed in the choreography of one person. I admit that I have sometime wondered if Balanchine was just a man with great charisma who knew how to keep people around him happy. While I have no doubt that he was a genius choreographer, leaving behind many great ballets, he was also just plain lucky to have been in the right place at the right time.

I have often had thoughts on such a topic- the image of "the suffering artist" has a great deal of truth in it. There seem to be many dancers who find themselves drawn to difficult situations. Is it a personality trait? Is it an unconscious seach for a complete range of emotion? Is it lack of will power? (I guess I am speaking of seemingly self-inflicted difficulties) Is it the need to express a passion for life- living as fully as possible? Regardless of the reason, the dance/arts world is relatively small, therefore every tragedy is magnified. There are not many headlines that specify that a dancer has been killed, so to see such is a reminder that one has been lost where there are already few.