EvilNinjaX

I'm not positive, but I think that Moulton shows up on a PBS show that's got Christopher Kimball (??), editor of Cook's Illustrated (or, as a friend puts it, "the magazine for anal-retentive cooks") That would be AMERICA'S TEST KITCHEN, basically Cooks Ill's tv show. I guess I'm anal-retentive b/c i LOVE both Cooks Illustrated and the tv show. Havent' watched it in a while, so haven't noticed if Sara Moulton was on, but it really doesn't seem a fit for her, imho. -goro-

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but i thought ORIGINALLY the black swan and the white swan were danced by different ballerinas? Also, btw, add K-Ballet to the companies that have a different Odette and Odile. And they also use the Tchaikovsky Pdd music for the black swan (or at least they do in the DVD). -goro-

First of all there was the live performance. Somehow this was captured by camera and microphone and then stored on vhs or cd or whatever. Now you want to stabilize it, give it longevity, and make it look and sound better. Just what are you doing when you "remaster" something? Are you essentially reproducing in purer form what was originally captured, which vhs or other older technologies could not do? Or are you somehow enhancing what you find in the existing format in order to approximate more closely, you think, what the performance was actually like? If the first, remastering is indeed a miracle. If the second, wouldn't there be a danger of manufacturing a video performance that was not true to the original? i presumed that the original camera stored not on commercial VHS form, but in a professional video form and then converted to VHS when recorded for commercial distribution. If it's true that the original master is truly the same as the final VHS form, then there's little to be done, i suppose. -goro-

i think also a problem is the VHS itself is not really up to the job of being an archival medium. Low res, bleeding colors, shaky and degrading picture, and the tape medium is also not archival as it degrades over time. Of course, when analog tape goes bad, it's still watchable whereas when digital media goes bad, it isn't. Archiving and preserving VHS is really pretty awful; it's sort of like having a $1000 camera and taking a photograph of the Mona Lisa that is being shown on a b&w television. What is really needed is the remastering of the originals and release to DVD. One thing mentioned in the OP is that grabbed, compressed video is not suitable for HD; of course neither is VHS. Different grabbing software/hardware use different codecs and so you don't HAVE to store as MPEG2; or at least you could store at a much higher bitrate than you might be otherwise inclined to encode a DVD+R at. And if you are archiving, it is a fact that the DVD recordable media has a very finite lifetime (i think most only guarantee ~5 yrs?) and so it behooves you to have some redundancy systems in place (store on a HD, backup on tape drive, etc. etc.). -goro-

Here's a link i read this morning http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/6921960.stm?wp_ml=0 *sigh* but i suppose Death comes for us all at some time and at age 89... well that's not a bad life; i'm sure that there'll be a special tribute to him this year at the Oscars. I loved WILD STRAWBERRIES, but the movie that stayed with me the most was FANNY AND ALEXANDER. RIP -goro-

you really need to buy something like this ( http://www.plextor.com/english/products/ConvertX2.htm ) and convert it yourself. Then you can have it archived! I would not hold out hope for a commercial dvd anytime soon (if ever) -goro-

I'm ready to take the plunge. Despite just spending $700 on 4 Royal Ballet performances and outlaying a ton of cash for my StPetersburg trip (with a couple days in Moscow), I'm ready to buy the VIP tix to Opening Night if only to see and meet these wonderful dancers. I'll try to get less unreasonable tix to some other shows, but since i'll be coming up from Arizona, i'll end up with a limited selection, i expect. Anyway, I'm looking at the Ardani website and it shows quite a few of the tix available for opening night. Orch A-J center and Grand Tier A (all). So, what should i get? Is Grand Tier preferable to Orch? Grand Tier A 107-108? or Orch J 108-109? how close is too close for the Orchestra? thx -goro- (I'm seeing JEWELS and CHOPINIANA/FIREBIRD/SCHEHEREZADE at Maryiinski and DON Q at Bolshoi, so i'm most excited about the Petipa program!)

I wanted to also mention that the people in San Antonio (and the neighboring areas) were wonderful. Each night, one of the ladies next to me engaged me in conversation and was just so friendly and pleasant. I met people from Ft Worth, Austin, Kerrville, Houston, and a few other places that i can't remember, as well as many local residents. They were all just so nice and open that i definitley feel like i want to go back! Is this "Texan hospitality"? So for any Texans reading this, a big "Thank You" from a couple of guys from Arizona. -goro-

A quick post as i've got to get to back to work soon Ansanelli was a revelation. My favorite of the 4 Auroras. Her performance, her musicality, her beauty and charm. Wow. She had a couple of mishaps, though. On her entrance in Act1, she had to stop and ADJUST HER SHOE. *shudder* and then during the 4x pique arabesque with the princes, she inexplicably slipped while trying to pique. Her presence was so joyful and had that wonderful youthful sweetness that i was smiling the entire time i was watchign her (except during the aforementioned mishaps, natch). Sarah Lamb was quite beautiful, dancing the role with quite a bit more confidence and refinement in act1 than the others; she gave the presentatoin of nobility more strongly than the others at the expense of a bit of that childish "giddiness". I found it quite wonderful, but on balance (and due to personal taste), preferred Ansanelli's take just a touch more. Was equally entranced by Lamb, though. She absolutley commanded the stage from the moment she stepped on it and it was difficult to ever take your eyes off her. But i did feel like she might have been just a touch "off" that night. Nothing major, nothing even substantial, but just that last bit that turns "Wonderful" into "Sublime." Her mishap was during the Act 3 fishes. These were very awkward (Putrov) and at times i was afeared of a face-plant. Yuhui Choe (whom i had previously seen during the Erik Bruhn compeition doing BlueBird pdd) was splendid doing Bluebird pdd. She has a very palpable charm and lights the stage. Even in th ecorps, i was hard pressed to stop watching her. I was afraid that 4 Beauties in 3 days might be a bit much and that i'd be "Beautied out" by sat eve, but i found that the OPPOSITE happened. Parts that i didn't particularly enjoy on Thursday night started to come alive more on Sat matinee. I fell into the story more as the days passed. I was able to be more at ease and take things in wihtout my eyes rushing to take everything in (especially as the set and costumes were so beautiful). The sat performances, in partiuclar, flew by and didnot feel like 3 1/2 hrs each. (more later if i have time before my St Petersburg trip) -goro-

thanks for the info. The jetees in the coda were wonderful and i really did enjoy the coda, with the intricate steps by the 2nd woman. Is this typically in BEAUTY as i don't ever recall seeing it. The beginnign that was so much like SWAN LAKE just put me off. Now i'm off to the last show and i'll pay closer attention to it. -goro-

Is anyone else here? I made the trip from Phoenix area to see the Royal Ballet's SLEEPING BEAUTY. Since i was making the long trip, i decided that i might as well gets tickets to all the shows. At the time, i saw the cast list and wanted to see Tamara Rojo, Alina Cojocaru, and Sarah Lamb and then got the Roberta Marquez to finish it all off. With the Cojocaru's injury, they shuffled the lineup but it still looks wonderful, though i will be forever saddened that i didn't get to see Kobborg/Cojocaru . Thursday Nite: Tamara Rojo and Frederico Bonelli Isabel McMeekan as Lilac Fairy Sarah Lamb and Yohei Sasaki in Bluebird PDD Friday Nite: Roberta Marquez and Johan Kobborg Marianella Nunez as Lilac Laura Morera and Jose Martin in Bluebird Found Rojo to be wonderful. She seemed so strong, her balances were rock solid, as were he 4 pirouettes in the act1 variation. But preferred Nunez for her expressiveness and performance. I lost myself in her 16yo-ness, so coy, flirty, playfull. Her chemistry on stage with Kobborg was excellent also, lots of eye contact and she just exuded confidence in the GPDD. Sarah Lamb was sublime in bluebird and was the highlight of thursday evening, evne with a big problem during the finger pirouettes (she went way to her right and back, to the point i thought she might fall. And whenshe came off pointe, i was afraid she broke her shoe, but she finished off just fine). She commanded the stage and the energy was electric, which was good b/c her partner Yohei Sasaki was a personality vacuum on stage. Great technique and nice jumps, but nearly unwatchable. He also lacked that "lightness" for the bird quality. Though his jumps were nice, he didn't seem to hang in the air as you might expect/want. Laura Morera and Jose Martin were excellent in Bluebird. Martin made me very happy; he seemed to be verymuch a bird in his performance and he looked to be an excellent partner as Morera was always right on her leg and just always so stable (much props to her as well). There was a nice chemistry here as well with nice eye contact. There was also a Pas de Trois in the 3rd act labelled "Florestan and his Sisters" which was very SWAN LAKE-ish. Or at least the opening moments felt that way. I wasn't very fond of it, which wasn't helped by the male dancers who were not so strong (friday better than thursday, natch). Th: Bennett Gartside, Deirdre Chapman, Laura Morera Fr: Martin Harvey, Lauren Cuthbertson, Samantha Raine Morera was the standout and i just now realized that she was the Florine in Bluebird. I didn't like the costumes for Puss In Boots nor the Wolf as they were so big and seemingly cumbersome. I prefer a bit more slimmer, trimmer look. The Wolf on Thursday was a bit on the spastic side for my taste. The cats were nice though and more feline and fun, playful. Loved the sets and the costumes. So beautiful and elegant, but the stage seemed a bit small for it. At times in act1, it felt VERY cramped. The corps seemed a bit off on Thursday, most noticeably the men during prologue. In act 2, it seemed much better. Friday night was much better though there were still little bits off, including a girl who inexplicably dropped her arabesque leg and a girl who rose from her penchee well before everyone else. But still, overall the dancing was so beautiful and enjoyable. Had a great time and am looking forward to today's performances. Ansanelli this afternoon and Sarah Lamb tonite. -goro-

thanks. I'm planning 2 days in Moscow (alone!) and am working on getting the ticket to the fri night show. not sure what else... -goro-

A friend of mine invited me to come visit here in St Petersburg and so after a bit of thinking i decided to go. She persuaded me to go by getting us tickets to Jewels (July 14) and The Stars of the White Nights Closing Night (Scheherazade, Firebird, Chopiniana). My friend will be showing me around a bit and perhaps even arranging for some class, but i was just wondering if anyone had any suggestions for me about things to see/go to. I'm also looking at going to Moscow for a couple of days and to try to catch Don Q at Bolshoi (the Osipova show is sold out but i'm thinking of buying tix to Maria Alexandrova's show). thx -goro-

The Los Angeles performances were cancelled and there was little publicity other than a small ad in the L.A. Times. Is the company performing anywhere else in California? the U.S.? Does anyone know what happened? They performed here in Phoenix last nite, though the second night was cancelled. The turnout was fairly minimal and there really was no publicity around here; i only know b/c my ballet teacher (a friend of the Artistic Director) told me about it. The performance was quite beautiful and a nice change of pace departure from the classic ballets, but i really should have read the story beforehand. Costumes and sets were wonderful and the dancign was very good, though the corps seemed very off at times. Overall, i really enjoyed it and am glad i went. -goro-

The cast list says: The Royal Ballet principals include Alina Cojocaru (July 6th), Mara Galeazzi, Sarah Lamb (July 7th Mat), Viacheslav Samodurov (July 7th Mat), Roberta Marquez (July 7th Eve), Marianela Nuñez, Tamara Rojo (July 5th), Federico Bonelli (July 5th), Johan Kobborg (July 6th), Ivan Putrov (July 7th Eve), Thiago Soares and Edward Watson. -- I'm guessing that Marianela Nunez will be Lilac fairy since she's not designated a particular night. -goro-

I just bought my tickets and I'll be driving down from Arizona (wiht a nice stop-over at my Parent's home in Abq, NM). I got tix for 3 shows: Th, Fri, Sa (matinee) and will decide later if i want to pick up the Sat evening also. I got orch center, row L on thursday, N on Fri/Sat. Looking at the seating chart, those seemed like very good seats. I wasn't sure if i wanted that or to go up to the mezannine. I do like being a bit closer as it's nice to be able to see the dancers' faces and expressions, plus it's nice to be in more of a "sweet spot" for the orchestra. So any recommendations on (a) place to stay and (b) things to do while not watchign the ballet? thx -goro-

I'm thinking about making the trip. Not too bad a jaunt from here (Phx, AZ). So what's a nice hotel that's nearby? thx -goro-

I've recently gotten my tickets for ABT in LA on 7/12 and 7/13; but i wonder if anyone knew what the casts for the various night are going to be. How far in advance will they announce the casting? Most interested in who will be dancing Symphony Concertante thx -goro-

i wanted to also add that the acoustics in the new Opera House are absolutley amazing. My friend (who is a bit of an architecture nut) told me that they used brand new software to model the acoustics of the stage and notably in VOLUNTARIES, there were a few moments when the orchestra stopped playing that we could HEAR THE DANCERS BREATHING! phenomenal... almost TOO good acoustically! and (not to brag), but the seats I got, Row N, 19,20,21 were absolutely incredible. The seat 20 was the center seat, apparently, and row N was perfect as our eyes were very nearly at Dancer's Eye-level. For (say) SWAN LAKE it might not be perfect, but for the PDD's i can't imagine a better seat. Being able to see the expressions on the dancer's faces (sans binoculars) and yet being able to take in the whole stage was sublime. So take note, for the next erik Bruhn Prize, if you can get Row N seat 20, do it! -goro-

my impressions: ABT: The Beauty Pdd was ok but felt very flat to me. Misty seemed to be holding back or not really committing herself; at times (eg., chainee turns) she even seemed tentative. I felt like Aurora wasn't really a good role for her. Jared felt almost totally flat until his jetees en manege when he suddenly came to life. The Le Petit Mort was unbelievable, though. On Pdd's, I generally watch the male dancer, but in this case, Misty just totally entranced me and i totally lost track of Jared. I'll agree that it was the highlight of the evening. NBoC: Pereira looked very good and Hirano was amazing. From the moment when he ran on, saut de chat'd, and took his position, he took control of the stage. Huge jumps, but jumps with an ethereal quality and a such undeniable beauty. He was poised to win this but for theinjury. One thing i did note, htough, was that in hs variation, when he did his double saut de bas, it seemed like he pulled back on them; then on the final chainees (prior to the ending double tour), i noticed that he was chainee-ing in place instead of travelling. Just foudn that bit odd. It was amazing how good the Romeo and Juliet was all things considered. I assume that Guillaume Cote and Tina Pereira had danced this together before but still... Royal: Bluebird pdd looked and felt (to me) like they were not really interested in it. Yuhei Choe was good though the Swan Lake arms affectation (which i hadn't seen before in Bluebird) seemed out of place. While Fernando was powerful with beautiful feet and legs, he lacked the lightness that i like in Bluebird. His beats felt a bit more muscular and less "bird-ish" for my taste. I don't know if it was my angle or him, but during the brisee voles, i couldn't really see a distinct beat in the volees. He seemed like a totally different dancer in the ROmeo and Juliet, though, and that was much more engaging and beautiful. Still, it seemed like the two lacked a touch of chemistry. Very nice. Danish: Flower Festival of Genzano was a delight. Most notable was the stage chemistry of the two. the performance part (as opposed to just the technical) really brightened the theatre and i caught myself smiling often. I found myself watching Yao Wei with delight. Such a gorgeous dancer. they really depicted young love perfectly. Opus' biggest challenge was in following the tremendous Le Petit Mort. It was in stark contrast as it played FAR more intimiate with the single pianist (on stage) with the pdd. A few moments where the choreography felt awkward to me, but mostly, i really enjoyed it. Note that Opus was a premiere of a new choreography (as was to be the Hirano/Pereira piece). IMO, Yao Wei deserved the Prize for the women. I understand that the circumstances were quite difficult for Tina Pereira but still i felt that overall, Yao Wei was more polished and had better presence. The men's side is much harder. If Hirano had finished i think he likely would've won. But i probably would have given it to Ulrik Birkkjaer also. Wonderful evening overall and i'm still in a great mood because of it. -goro-

Well, I went to Dance Teq on Sat morning 11-1230. It was a wonderful class and i enjoyed it very much. Thanks for the recommendation. -goro-

Well I'm Row Q, seat 8 so you are just a few rows in front of me and to the right. I have a left aisle seat and my view of the stage is perfect. Good luck with yours......and I echo Moms2 request, bring some warm weather - please! I'm so excited. And my current teacher's first partner Mavis is the director of the school. I've been told to seek her out :blush: I'm also supposed to try n find Glen Gilmore (i think) adn thank him for my teacher. My friend Sabrina is going to show me aroudn the School; I've read on Project Grand Jetee and have seen that it has won some US Architectural awards so i'm really intrigued in seeing it. Btw, does anyone know about Dance Teq? I'd like to take a class while i'm up there... http://www3.sympatico.ca/danceteq/sched.html thx -goro-

Heh, I'm heading up from the warm weather here in Phoenix, AZ! I'll be seeing my friend who's about to graduate from the School. I've got Orch Row N 19,20. How good are those seats? I've heard so much about Zehr that i was looking so much to seeing her, but i'm sure that Pereira is a wonderful dancer and i'll enjoy it, surely! Side ntoe: This is the 2nd time such a thign has happened "to" me. I got tix a couple of years back for ABT Giselle. I picked the night that Alessandra Ferri was to be dancing; unfortunatley she was injured and Julie Kent subbed. it was still gorgeous, but I did have my heart set on Ferri's Giselle. -goro-

I just wanted to mention that this is only PART of the full LES ENFANTS DE LA DANSE and that the full (4ep?) spans 2 dvds. (no, not avail in US) -goro-

The Alicia Alonso, Carla Fracci, Ghislaine Thesmar, and one other. It was once available on vhs and not sure if it's made it to dvd on any region. VHS ok, DVD preferable, xvid/divx alright also. Does anyone know where i could find it? note, the ALICIA ALONSO PRIMA BALLERINA ASSOLUTO by VAI has 2 PD4s, but neither have this cast. Thx. tia -goro-