Amy Reusch

By the way, did anyone else blink at the grammatical trompe l'oeil when they read the following sentence in the NYer's "Briefly Noted" review of the book?

They highlight the significance of factors as significant as government funding and as small as the depth of Baryshnikov's demi-plie.

Thanks, Mel for moving the 'fascist' thing to cross-talk. I thought this part still belonged under No Fixed Points. It might no longer make sense after the subsequent posts from Drew & Nanatchka, but here it is:

Okay, back to the how/what/why of influence... am I alone in thinking there are only a few influential choreographers in ballet and that because of the cultural structure of ballet their influence is stronger within ballet than the influence of the multitude of choreographers in post 1950s modern? Or is influence related to the age of the choreographer... Balanchine's influence on the world around him was less in 1930 than it was in 1970? Did the Judson Church creative circle have more influence on the next generation of modern choreographers than their counterparts in ballet? Because of the quantitative difference in choreographer populations between the two fields, and the difference in the respective cultures, can they even be said to have counterparts in ballet?

Paragraph two of the preface says

Theatrical dance is a collaborative endeavor, primarily a combination of music, visual art and movement.  If our book had been written fifty years ago -- or fifty years hence -- singling out choreograhy might well be inappropriate, but at the present moment (the dawn of the twenty-first century), it is not too much to say that the rise of dance as an autonomous art form and of choreography wthin that art form as a means of expression in itself together comprise the defining story of twentieth-century dance.  In the belief that this is so, we have taken innovative choreography as the force that guides our tale.

[typos all mine]

Although Kenneth King and Judson may not be names writ large upon the minds of the general dance audience ... the number of modern choreographers who make use "pedestrian movement" and other introductions of Judson are legion, I believe.

 

The Judsonites rejected codified dance techniques and period symbolism in favor of spontaneity and natural syntaxes; interest in every kind of movementreplaced preconceptions about beauty and grace.  This new clinical approach quickly nullified what Yvonne Rainer called the "preening" look of virtuoso dancing.  Vernacular gesture, presented without falsification, and events in which untrained performers simply exhibited normal behavior, made it clear that any kind of activity could be perceived as dance simply by the viewer's deciding to look at it that way."

Although Plisetskaya may only get one sentence devoted to her, she does get 4 index listings, including a photo...

Perhaps what I need are some reading suggestions about the influence of Plisetskaya's philosophy on the art form.

It would be very difficult to write a book about theatrical dance in the 20th century and not devote a chapter to post-modern dance and it's "parents" in Judson. And it would be very difficult to write about Judson without giving mention to Kenneth King.

Performer advocates, take heart, paragraph in the preface following the one about choreography states:

 

But choreography lives only in performance; thus, the outstanding dance interpreters of our time will also appear throught these pages.  The twentieth century did not witness the first dance superstars, but it was the first to have so many.  In addition, the technical level of even the most modest dancer increased beyond recognition as dance came more and more to be seen as a serious artistic endeavor.  Its expressive range grew, and its performers learned to project strain and ugliness and evil in addition to beauty, grace, and goodness.  They also learned that everyday movement could play a role.  It is the dancers who embody the art of danc as fantasy, entertainment, virtuosity, expression, and emotion.  (Indeed, our original title fort his book was "Choreography and Performance in Twentieth-Century Dance.")  We also touch on the impact of visual artists, impressarios, composers, critics, and audiences as well as related cultural educational, and social currents.

[typos mine]

I like the new title, but wonder how they could have lived up to the original title? It's herculean enough to try to evaluate a century's worth of choreography... how could one write fairly about performances one hadn't seen? and how could one have seen every significant performance?

I recommend checking with the Dance Films Association. They have a searchable database.

The database is the most comprehensive list of dance films and videos in current distribution in the U.S., and includes videos in circulation around the world.

Dance On Camera database

I checked, but unfortunately came up with nothing. I still suggest contacting them, if it's available, they might have a clue. I can't imagine it doesn't exist in the NYPL's Dance Division collection... in fact, here it is: NYPL catalog search for Swan Lake Minnesota Interesting, it was produced by the late Joseph Papp! If all else fails, perhaps someone at teh Public Theater or NY Sheakespeare Festival would have some leads on how to contact his wife who presumably would have the rights?

I'll have to write to Tom, a very thorough soul if there ever was one. I did some digging and I believe it premiered with Les Ballets 1933. There are photos with Tamara Toumanova and Roman Jasinsky from 1933... but... perhaps it was just the Preghiera? It's been one of the Balanchine Foundation projects but I'm afraid my memory is just too mirky (murky + quirky).

And moldy and rusty... it looks like Danilova danced it with Frederic Franklin in 1945. She didn't come over with Balanchine, did she?... I used to have her autobiography, but it was borrowed and not returned... When did she arrive here to stay?

Firstly a dancer's eye is trained to technique, they spot things, which a normal putner wouldn't.

What is a "putner"? Is it a typo, slang or an occupation?

Yes, arabesque does get old after awhile. I can't say I enjoy the prospect of three acts of nothing but arabesque.

No, but The Shades opening is kind of nice... if we're talking about repetitive..

Well, I do rather thinks thats the point... the influence... whereas did Pavlova's choreography leave much influence? I remember de Mille saying she was most impressed by Pavlova's bows.

The problem with Judson is that there wasn't one single choreographer pushing a unified idea... it was more of a group movement... and so even though one can single out this choreographer or that, it's not like having Fokine or Duncan spreading his influence... and considering the size of the relative venues (how many seats do you think Judson Church sat?), the influence was surprising. Kind of like Louis Horst's influence, somehow... in himself, he never reached Martha Graham's fame, and the average ticketmaster patron has never heard of him... but I don't think his influece should be discounted for that reason.

Tell me again about Mozartiana? My memory is slipping, I should know this.. but I thought the first Mozartiana was performed with Ballets 1933 with Roman Jasinsky and Danilova? Honest, my memory is a terrible muddle. I tried to look it up figuring it would be in Ballinche's complete stories of the Great Ballets, but apparently it didn't make the book!

Nonetheless, Fisher reveals the cultural impact of Lincoln Kirstein and Edward M. M. Warburg, two recent college graduates in 1933 who devoted immense energy and most of their personal resources to bringing Balanchine to the United States and starting a national ballet school and company. The first ballet Kirstein and Warburg got Balanchine to produce for the American public, in 1934, was a lively spoof of a Harvard-Yale football game. The dream from the start was popular entertainment that could be enjoyed by a large audience. That superb short ballet, for which Warburg wrote the libretto (his own raccoon coat was used as a costume) and Kay Swift composed the lively music -- complete with a snake dance and ''rah-rah bacchanal'' -- has long since disappeared from public awareness.

And here I thought it was "Serenade"... or was this Football ballet the first produced for the public as opposed to subscribers?

I wonder if sometimes promotional material isn't done with donated graphic services. Dance Connecticut's fall brochure was just dreadful... you'd almost think they despised ballet... the other dance forms seem relatively well presented... it's so poor that I can't imagine any of the directors of the school actually vetted the images. It must have something to do with not wanting to look a gift horse in the mouth for fear of offending a sponsor.

One of the guiding principles of ''No Fixed Points'' is stated up front: ''We have taken innovative choreography as the force that guides our tale.'' Although the authors don't ignore the role of performers in the history of 20th-century dance, for me there is an overemphasis on the choreographer. The most famous and influential ballet dancer of all time, Anna Pavlova, may have been retrogressive in her tastes, but it can be argued that she had more immediate impact on the world than any choreographer has ever had; she got it to look at ballet. The same is true of Nijinsky and Nureyev.

Here is all the authors have to say about one larger-than-life ballerina: ''John Martin wrote that Maya Plisetskaya 'drenched the stage with movement.' Many considered her the most individual major classical dancer of the century.'' This, as opposed to the more than a full page devoted to Kenneth King, ''who is identified with the second wave of postmodern experimentation at Judson Church beginning in 1966.'' In case you've never heard of King, his ''M-o-o-n-b-r-a-i-nwithSuperLecture'' included ''a film of a flower growing out of a dead rat and a snake devouring another rat. Disguised as a grubby old man, King played with a cloth rat stuffed with balloons and hung a collection of unusual props, as well as his own leg, on a clothesline.'' The authors' approach is comparable to the auteur theory of film. And, yes -- Griffith and Ozu transcend their actors. But didn't Garbo and Valentino transcend their directors?

- Robert Gottlieb in the New York Times, 12/7/03

'No Fixed Points': The Story of Dance

I don't know... in 2075, who will be deemed more significant, the author or a long dead interpreter? We tend to think of Beethoven as more significant than the musicians who played his work... but then there was no way of recording the interpretation back then... Still, from history's vantage point (and this is after all a history), I believe the choreography will prove more lasting than any one particular interpretation (Even if I do wish I was there at the premiere of Afternoon of a Faun and Rite of Spring).

But then again, I've heard of Kennith King. I think it's possible the Judson Church movement had more influence on the direction of dance than Maya Plisetskaya's beautiful dancing. Is the avant garde always considered insignificant compared to boxoffice blockbusters? I think the avant garde is sort of like the navigator of a ship while the box office stars are it's payload. Didn't Baryshnikov recently present a Judson Church program?

They should have made it snow... and had giant rats scurrying about... that wouldn't have hurt anyone, would it? And the children ripping the nutcracker apart... hmmm....

Da Bears - Da Bulls - Da Ballet!

That was Ballet Chicago's marketing ploy. Did Joffrey recycle the idea?

Interesting... thanks!

My current Vaganova teacher is at my estimation within 5 years of 40 (though I couldn't tell you on which side), but she was primarily trained as a character dancer... so perhaps that would account for the generational delay (is character training akin to being "off in the provinces"?)? She always calls what I would call a "saute arabesque", a "sisson"... so I'm often confused until she demonstrates... we asked her about it early on, and she swore she double checked with Alla Osipenko who was teaching there at the same time, so we just ignore and deal... but it is confusing.

My apologies for the spellings... I wish there were constantly available button that would launch your wonderful glossary in a seperate window!

Lyon has run an event- and party-planning company since 2000. She planned her own wedding to William H. Lyon, director of corporate affairs for William Lyon Homes Inc., one of the county's leading homebuilders.

from OC Register: Ballet Pacifica Puts Lyon in First Position

Is this what one calls "damning with faint praise"? Just curious. Weddings are productions, but they don't usually make resumes, do they?

Russian tire-bouchon position, where the point of the toe just touches the notch at the back of the perfectly-turned-out knee

My current Vaganova teacher uses tire-bouchon to refer to the sort of attitude front one might use before whipping a fouette... or one of those whipped rondes de jambe (the ones that go sort of from demi attitude front sort of through both ecartes and back down to demi attitude back -- or the reverse) (yes my technique includes mostly "sort of" positions these days! But honestly I don't know how to clearly describe the path of the leg in those high whipped rondes de jambe)... she very clearly doesn't use it to mean anything that could be confused with retire... and it's apparently something different from attitude front... she only uses the expression when the attitude is followed by some form of ronde de jambe... using "attitude" at all other times.

I remember one teacher (alas, his name escapes me... Peter something, I believe he danced with ABT around about the time Victoria was there, or else was in teh original cast of Carousel, can't quite remember) used to give retire back as a clearly wrapped position, like a very high sur le cou de pied... I've never encountered anyone else asking for this, but it did really work our muscles... Have you seen this?

But the reason I came back to this post is the "how high" question... I understand there was a time when it was thought very vulgar to raise the leg above 90 degrees... and so, it seems like a reasonable question to ask about performing works choreographed under those morays... I wonder if performing a work using old fashioned extensions would force one to focus one's interpretation differently... perhaps emphasizing upper body carriage more? Would the piece just look boring, or would it bring out a different charm?

Well, I guess too many decades have passed since I had the 8 drilled into me, after all... seeing as I blanked on Quatrième ... perhaps because the only time I ever heard it used was during the 8 position drill... whereas one encounters the others (with the exception of epaule) quite regularly... it's been so long that got me to thinking...

What is the translation of "Quatrième"? Fourth? I'd always assumed it referred to the front & back "corner" but that obviously doesn't make any sense... the corners aren't in front and back, normally, are they? at least not in a room, if one is facing

the mirror in the Quatrième positions... unless one is considering the en crois positions to define corners of a square?

Mel, have you spent much time studying fencing? I swear I'd read that many ballet positions have their roots in fencing positions, but I've not seen that ever laid out neatly.

There's a very short Joan Acocella column on planned Balanchine centenial events but a gorgeous Cecil Beaton photo of Balanchine (1952) from Sotheby's Picture Library in this week's New Yorker magazine (December 8, 2003). Just his face.

Page 102.

Thought some of you might enjoy the "heads up". Wish I could provide a link!

Regarding 2 act ballets (or hour-long 1 acts), it seems very difficult for artistic directors to decide what else to present alongside them.... always a sort of an off-balanced evening... I'd almost rather have the third act filled with lecture demo or panel discussion than another piece.

Amy, Cecchetti use "épaulé" for the position that is like a second arabesque, or arabesque effacé with epaulement. However, he seriously goofed when he left out one of the positions of the body......there are 9! (He forgot écarté derrière!)

Thanks... "élongé" kept popping up in my mind and bocking the memory!...

I always wondered what happen to écarté derrière as well as éffacé derrière... but I figured the 8 were just because it fit evenly into the music as a tendu combination... By the way, I'm eternally grateful to your old friend Joe C., Victoria, for drilling those into us. 3 decades later and they're still riveted into my memory. Actually, come to think of it, as the class advanced, he had us putting the combination forward and inverted together back to back (ie: tendu croise devant, croise derriere; en face devant, enface derriere)... alas, my memory grays out on what how the inversion of the ecarte and epaule was handled.

And of course you're right about the Vaganova school... my vaganova teachers seem excessive about all those head positions and cambré positions at the barre... but yet they don't spiral the epaulment in croise, etc... could just be the local vaganova variant.

Mel, I'd love you to go on about use of the back. I'm sick of hearing modern dance people claim they never learned to use their backs in ballet. It's true ballet doesn't do contractions, but if it's done properly there is a tremendous amount going on in the back... it's not just stiff and upright as if in a corset (even if it once was)... it's just that most teachers these days seem to ignore the torso and concentrate on the extremities... and I'm not even going to get in to the breathing...

Mel,

When I was taught the 8 position tendues ... don' t have my Gail Grant handy so please over look the clumsy misspellings: croise devant; en face devant; efface devant; ecarte; a la seconde; drat.. what was the 2nd arabesque one?; en face derriere; croise derriere... there were epaulment that went with them.. and extra spiral of the back to the front in croise devant, for instance... However, in subsequent years and schools, most people seem to focus only on the hips and legs... oh sure, the arm positions are there, but the epaulment aren't. Is it Cechetti that emphasizes the epaulment? (or in other words, if I'm hunting for a teacher who works on back & shoulder inclinations, what "school" of ballet should I be looking for?)

If it were the same show, performance after performance, wouldn't it be profitable? I understand for Broadway, the show has to sell out for a year before it becomes profitable. Is Moving Out still selling well? Is there a difference between a theoretical Disney Ballet and Moving Out? I'm assuming we aren't talking a traditional ballet company model with a varied repertory, but just one work that's shipped around. It seems like they could do a version of Cinderella. My guess, though, is that they would want to do a recently marketed film to cash in on the already built up PR. Is there a recently released Disney animated film that would lend itself readily to ballet?

Is there some connection here to the Barbie ballet videos?

I'm reading too... please do elaborate...

I'm assuming House Right is opposite of Director's Left?

Opposite Prompt... hmm.... I'm invisioning the prompter box... does it mean just upstage of that?

But Proper Down Left Center.... what does that mean?

I tend to hear people refer to being on quarter.... and even to refering to which panel of marley...

more more!

Have any Ballet Alert readers familiar with culturefinder.com found a good website that serves the same purpose?

Tudor considered a career in the Church before he decided he belonged in the theater instead.