Mireille

Thank you both for posting such detailed and well-informed reviews of the performance, I can almost see it. I wished we could read such reviews in newspapers, I bet it would attract more people to ballet.

On the Russian Ballet Glorious Tradition tapes, there is an excerpt from Chopiniana (waltz) dated 1965 with Makarova and Onoshko wherein she dances in just the most dreamy fashion that I have ever seen, like she has all the time in the world and it will never end. She stretches the time so much, you feel she will never make it on time but she does or she catches up in an ever more dreamier way. I was completely mesmerized by her, I would watch it every day. Just dreamy.

What excerpt would you not live without?

I was recently watching a few versions of the Dying Swan and noticed that they die either in a "swan" pose (as Lopatkina performs it) or in a "maiden" pose, laying down on one side (Ulanova and a few others). I find that the choreography works better for me in version 1 and was wondering how Fokine's original choreography ended (I think that Pavloval ends it layind down on the side as well) and how the choreography has evolved with time. Any thoughts?

Paul, I believe that the video mentioned by Carbro also features the pas de dix with Kolpakova, and at the beginning of the variation, one of the dancers forgets to allongé his arms in third. I have not seen it on other videos. It's called "Russian Ballet, a Glorious Tradition" (3 vol.) and it might be on vol. 3.

Mine Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet too, and Tchaikovsky's, the adagio and PDD in Nutcracker.

I wonder why the choreography was changed for the swans; I found entering with pas suivi ridiculous and unnecessary (is the stage small?) and I find nothing in the music to support this step. And changing the swans' nice port de bras à l'envers that is so swanly with the aristocratic pose effacée en allongé got me screaming. The first act carousel borrowed from la fille mal gardée made me fear for a clog dance, it is completely unnecessary.

I agree for having seen her perform in Swan Lake and Firebird, she should avoid "bird" roles as they are not her emploi, but she performed well in Dryad scene.

And apart from the Grand Pas in Raymonda a few weeks ago (Nioradze was Raymonda), he has been in the corps since he graduated five years ago. I have never seen Fountain's first act, but I hope that Vaslav's role will suit his looks and show his abilities.

The casting for the Fountain of Bachisarai tomorrow includes Sergei Popov as Vaslav alongside Daria Sokhorukova as Maria. I found him quite noticeable in the in the perfomances that I attended, not only due to his height but also for his manner and lines, and felt he did not belong in the corps. I was wondering if he had danced other principal roles and if other balletomanes had noticed him as well. Is anyone planning on attending tomorrow?

Maybe this DVD would do (you can copy the music on CD):

http://www.arkivmusic.com/classical/album....?album_id=86174

Has anyone seen this ballet? I was trying to find information on their Dangerous Liaisons as it is presented in Montreal tonight. Does anyone know what music is used? Debating whether to attend...

Sorry for not posting before, busy having a magical time in St-Petersburg! A quick post:Everybody wondered whether our dancers would show up this week-end at the Mariinsky: Zelinsky Friday due to his back, Lopatkina Saturday and Ruzimatov Sunday (rumors that he had come back from Japan the previous week injured)... Zelinsky did dance Friday (with the help of Fadeev for lifts above shoulders) in the Corsaire, and indeed, Lopatkina did dance on Saturday, security increased at the theater due to the Prime Minister attending, but what a performance it was. Lopatkina divine. I personally liked Shishov but people that have seen him dance this role 5 times say that he has not improved. This ballet should be presented more often, it is a masterpiece. And Ruzimatov perfomed on Sunday as annouced and again, the public who have seen him perform here for several years see a decline in his capabilites but for me, he was the summum of expressiveness on stage: Sheherazade was pure delight on Sunday. Cast not strong for Chopiniana but still, the most beautiful ballet.

Thank you Natalia for reporting this - I'm leaving in a few hours!

Natalia, thank you so much for the information and the link, I might be able to catch more performances during my stay - and console myself that I changed dates and won't see Lopatkina's benefit March 30 (Raymonda, Le Jeune Homme et la Mort & Diamonds? Wow!)...

Yes, indeed, Thalictum, I remember your review of the Sleeping Beauty... How shocking it must have been for the public that evening, and I can only hope it will not happen this time as well. With your review and Legris' last minute replacement on January 31 (Giselle w/Vishneva), another performance I would have travelled to catch, I am already mentally prepared for this eventuality. I will be going mainly to see this beautiful ballet live and performed by the Kirov (they wouldn't cancel the whole ballet?), and if Lopatkina appears on stage, the better it will be!

Natalia, would you know if a program for the Conservatory' ballet performances is posted on the web? I'll be going to St-Petersburg next week and was wondering if I could catch a performance and saw the Vishneva benefit only posted on her website.

I will be travelling to St-Petersbourg to catch this performance (February 26). I believe that she performed in that ballet in the summer last year. Has anyboday seen that performance or read about it?

Marius Petipa wrote his memoires after being fired in 1904, which were translated into Russian. The French version was eventually lost and a new French version was translated into French from the available Russian translation. It is published by Actes Sud, translated by Galia Ackerman and Pierre Lorrain and is entitled "Memoires".

Thank you for your comments, Natalia, and hopefully this won't happen until a new theater is built for the Company.

A few weeks ago, the Minister of culture would have mentioned in an interview that the Mariinsky (and the Bolshoi) would close for renovations... Would anyone have further information on this, and would this affect the current season or the next one?

Is the schedule on Ballet lovers official? I was wondering what happened with Romeo & Juliet on the 25th (will the program be the same as the 24th?), the Fokine ballets on the 27th, and the Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty ballets. Would anyone know?

Russian television broadcast a Ballet Gala on Maya Plissetskaya's anniversary that was held I believe two years ago, featuring among others Igor Yebra performing his own version of The Swan... I was very pleased with his performance and I believe the presentator mentioned that he choreographed it as well... he seems to be a very fine dancer. His Swan starts in complete silence, performing some of the movements of Fokine and his own addings, then a series a grands jetés in a manège accompanied by the sound of a storm, and then his interpretation on Saint Saens' music... A fine performance. This Gala also featured Kilian's Clouds, some of Bejart's works and Russian classics (Don Q, Corsair, Esmeralda, Diana & Acteon).

Thank you for putting Mr. Bregvadze's postcards on the web. I was looking for pictures of him and information, at he was my teacher's teacher at the Vaganova's school.