doug

I've enjoyed reading all the input. I like the structure of COPPELIA Act III. It seems unique among the other full-lengths we have. Interesting that Petipa's one-act THE SEASONS (1900, music by Glazunov), also dealt with the passage of time, but with regard to nature and the seasons and the span of a year. The COPPELIA divert seems to run deeper by dealing with a day and a life span combined. As is often the case, in my opinion, Balanchine comes to closest to preserving the concept of the original COPPELIA Act III (he does the same in THE NUTCRACKER and his one-act SWAN LAKE). He includes children as well as a character-type dance (set to Discord and War). I'd like to see the old Russian version restaged - does the Royal Ballet have it in their current production? I know there is notation . . .

I'll try and respond to all the points based on things I've found/noticed: Re SLEEPING BEAUTY - There are notations for two Lilac Fairy variations - one is headed "M. Petipa." It involves pointe work, but is pretty basic. The other variant is the one we know from the Royal Ballet's BEAUTY. PNB in Seattle just got Ronald Hynd's version and the Lilac variation matches the notation very closely, even more closely than what the Royal does now. The Lilac variation the Kirov includes in their new BEAUTY is neither of these - !. I've gone over Nijinska's comments about Nijinsky's Bluebird. Nothing seems to diverge much in description from the steps included in the notated version, which is pretty close to what we see today. She seems to state that he didn't change the steps but danced them in a freer way, more or less. In the final act, some of the fairies are guests at the wedding. I think it is Canari that comes in a cage with cupids in Shirley Temple wigs sitting on the edges. Maybe this is what Balanchine was refering to. There also are other cupids in that act. By the time Balanchine was dancing BEAUTY at the Maryinsky, the sets and costumes were no longer the original ones, but those designed by Konstantin Korovin. They may have included the fountains and the rest that he mentions. James - I did write the article on Marc's site - thanks. I really like the Kirov's BEAUTY. There are some things I would have done differently, but the big picture is that they are the first company (that I know of) to try and do a full-scale reconstruction of a Petipa ballet, using original set and costume designs, along with period notations of the steps (though they also used a number of video sources of a number of more recent productions). It was an eye-opener for many folks. My opinion is that the public is more open to projects like these than they were in the not-so-distant past. The general feeling of "newer is better" seems finally to be wearing off, so that new and old can be embraced and appreciated for their different attributes. This notion certainly has worn off in other areas of the arts, particularly music. Re DAUGHTER OF PHARAOH. Lacotte's production for the Bolshoi can't really be called a reconstruction. Nearly all of the choreography is his own (although I had hoped he would use the Stepanov notations). I provided a few variations for the production based on notations dating from around 1905 but they don't amount to much in the final production. The River variations, in their notated form, are great examples of ballet character dances. Another point I've been thinking about is the notion that a particular step/pose is the signature step of a given ballet. For example, attitude as the signature pose of SLEEPING BEAUTY and arabesque as the signature pose of GISELLE. I don't agree with this in regard to BEAUTY. The notated "attitude" in the Rose Adagio is really a 90-degree arabesque with the knee bent slightly (about 45 degrees) - more like a relaxed arabesque than the tighter attitude we often see today. I also don't buy most of the modern philosophical/psychological arguments about the meanings of the various ballets and the inference that Petipa and his collaborators were trying to infuse ballets with psychological ideas, most of which were not introduced until long after the ballets were created. Just my opinion. [ 06-02-2001: Message edited by: doug ]

I'll try and respond to all the points based on things I've found/noticed: Re SLEEPING BEAUTY - There are notations for two Lilac Fairy variations - one is headed "M. Petipa." It involves pointe work, but is pretty basic. The other variant is the one we know from the Royal Ballet's BEAUTY. PNB in Seattle just got Ronald Hynd's version and the Lilac variation matches the notation very closely, even more closely than what the Royal does now. The Lilac variation the Kirov includes in their new BEAUTY is neither of these - !. I've gone over Nijinska's comments about Nijinsky's Bluebird. Nothing seems to diverge much in description from the steps included in the notated version, which is pretty close to what we see today. She seems to state that he didn't change the steps but danced them in a freer way, more or less. In the final act, some of the fairies are guests at the wedding. I think it is Canari that comes in a cage with cupids in Shirley Temple wigs sitting on the edges. Maybe this is what Balanchine was refering to. There also are other cupids in that act. By the time Balanchine was dancing BEAUTY at the Maryinsky, the sets and costumes were no longer the original ones, but those designed by Konstantin Korovin. They may have included the fountains and the rest that he mentions. James - I did write the article on Marc's site - thanks. I really like the Kirov's BEAUTY. There are some things I would have done differently, but the big picture is that they are the first company (that I know of) to try and do a full-scale reconstruction of a Petipa ballet, using original set and costume designs, along with period notations of the steps (though they also used a number of video sources of a number of more recent productions). It was an eye-opener for many folks. My opinion is that the public is more open to projects like these than they were in the not-so-distant past. The general feeling of "newer is better" seems finally to be wearing off, so that new and old can be embraced and appreciated for their different attributes. This notion certainly has worn off in other areas of the arts, particularly music. Re DAUGHTER OF PHARAOH. Lacotte's production for the Bolshoi can't really be called a reconstruction. Nearly all of the choreography is his own (although I had hoped he would use the Stepanov notations). I provided a few variations for the production based on notations dating from around 1905 but they don't amount to much in the final production. The River variations, in their notated form, are great examples of ballet character dances. Another point I've been thinking about is the notion that a particular step/pose is the signature step of a given ballet. For example, attitude as the signature pose of SLEEPING BEAUTY and arabesque as the signature pose of GISELLE. I don't agree with this in regard to BEAUTY. The notated "attitude" in the Rose Adagio is really a 90-degree arabesque with the knee bent slightly (about 45 degrees) - more like a relaxed arabesque than the tighter attitude we often see today. I also don't buy most of the modern philosophical/psychological arguments about the meanings of the various ballets and the inference that Petipa and his collaborators were trying to infuse ballets with psychological ideas, most of which were not introduced until long after the ballets were created. Just my opinion. [ 06-02-2001: Message edited by: doug ]

This is a thread, begun at Alexandra's prompting, to discuss differences between and within Petipa's ballets (also, Ivanov's and other those by other 19th-century choreographers, if we wish). I'll start with a few examples of my observations. The point, I think, is to try and look back to the original intent of the creators and see what the differences were within and among the ballets. Over time, obviously, things have changed - deliberate changes/practical changes/forgotten steps, etc. A full-length ballet by Petipa was constructed to entertain on many levels and with a variety of dance styles and character types. His ballets included classical dances, character dances, children's dances, mime scenes and pas d'actions (danced scene which carried the action forward), among other elements, that I'm sure others can provide. RAYMONDA is a good example. The opening of the first act included a lot of mime to set up the story of Raymonda and Jean d'Brienne, as well as the story of the White Lady, who protected the House of Doris. The many details of this opening scene have long been absent from productions of RAYMONDA. The scene includes dances as well, but not in suite form as they occur later in the ballet. The second scene includes a classical suite: pas de deux, waltz, 3 variations and coda, followed by a children's dance (not classical - they are bugs, like in Midsummer) and a lengthy mime scene between Raymonda and the saracen knight, Abderrakhman. The second act includes another classical suite, this time a pas d'action, in which Abderrakhman tries to woo Raymonda: adagio, 4 variations and coda, followed by a character suite, including a massed dance, a dance for little boys, a dance for a couple, then a Spanish dance for a lead couple and corps. A coda follows in which the character dancers return to dance, but it also functions as another pas d'action - Abderrakhman tries to kidnapy Raymonda. Jean d'Brienne arrives in the nick of time and kills Abderrakhman in a duel. Act III is the wedding, beginning with a procession, followed by a czardas (Petipa also added a mazurka shortly before the premiere), a formal children's dance, and a suite that can be characterized as a hybrid of classical and character dance: entree, adagio, 4 variations (no variation for Jeam d'Brienne - instead he dances a pas de quatre with three other men), coda. The apotheosis, depicted a tournament - yes, a medieval tournament (go figure), complete with papier mache figures! I love the variety of these long ballets. I believe ballet was a broader form of entertainment in late 19th-century Russia than it is now. Perhaps less serious on a philosophical level? As far as differences between the ballets, my comments stem from my work with notations of the ballets made in the 1890s and early 1900s. In the River variations of THE DAUGHTER OF PHARAOH, the most common steps were precipite and arabesque voyagee (we call them 'chugs' here in the States). Also single saut de basques. Very little pointe work. On the other hand, the Fairy variations of SLEEPING BEAUTY are almost all on pointe. The difference could be the time span between the creation of the ballets (1862 vs. 1890) or the fact that the River variations were essentially character dances and the Fairy variations are essentially classical. In the BAYADERE Shades scene from 1900, hardly a step is repeated throughout the scene - such amazing invention - the corps choreography is more demanding than we see now. I've found that steps and nuances that further distinguish the three Shade variations have disappeared over time - changed or forgotten. The most striking changes are Nikiya's steps in the coda. NOTHING like what we see today - the notated steps remind me of TCHAIKOVSKY PAS DE DEUX and SYMPHONY IN C, first movement (sissonne onto pointe, double rond du jambe, repeated on alternating legs - hops in fifth on pointe alternating with echappe onto flat feet). The manege of tour jetes was originally much more complicated - saut de basque, petit jete en tournant, grand jete, all repeated three times - beautiful! One last example - Le jardin anime from CORSAIRE - no precipite, no arabesque voyagee - all balance, ballonne, waltz turns, emboite. The variation include small and large jumps and lots of pointe work. That's a start.

This is a thread, begun at Alexandra's prompting, to discuss differences between and within Petipa's ballets (also, Ivanov's and other those by other 19th-century choreographers, if we wish). I'll start with a few examples of my observations. The point, I think, is to try and look back to the original intent of the creators and see what the differences were within and among the ballets. Over time, obviously, things have changed - deliberate changes/practical changes/forgotten steps, etc. A full-length ballet by Petipa was constructed to entertain on many levels and with a variety of dance styles and character types. His ballets included classical dances, character dances, children's dances, mime scenes and pas d'actions (danced scene which carried the action forward), among other elements, that I'm sure others can provide. RAYMONDA is a good example. The opening of the first act included a lot of mime to set up the story of Raymonda and Jean d'Brienne, as well as the story of the White Lady, who protected the House of Doris. The many details of this opening scene have long been absent from productions of RAYMONDA. The scene includes dances as well, but not in suite form as they occur later in the ballet. The second scene includes a classical suite: pas de deux, waltz, 3 variations and coda, followed by a children's dance (not classical - they are bugs, like in Midsummer) and a lengthy mime scene between Raymonda and the saracen knight, Abderrakhman. The second act includes another classical suite, this time a pas d'action, in which Abderrakhman tries to woo Raymonda: adagio, 4 variations and coda, followed by a character suite, including a massed dance, a dance for little boys, a dance for a couple, then a Spanish dance for a lead couple and corps. A coda follows in which the character dancers return to dance, but it also functions as another pas d'action - Abderrakhman tries to kidnapy Raymonda. Jean d'Brienne arrives in the nick of time and kills Abderrakhman in a duel. Act III is the wedding, beginning with a procession, followed by a czardas (Petipa also added a mazurka shortly before the premiere), a formal children's dance, and a suite that can be characterized as a hybrid of classical and character dance: entree, adagio, 4 variations (no variation for Jeam d'Brienne - instead he dances a pas de quatre with three other men), coda. The apotheosis, depicted a tournament - yes, a medieval tournament (go figure), complete with papier mache figures! I love the variety of these long ballets. I believe ballet was a broader form of entertainment in late 19th-century Russia than it is now. Perhaps less serious on a philosophical level? As far as differences between the ballets, my comments stem from my work with notations of the ballets made in the 1890s and early 1900s. In the River variations of THE DAUGHTER OF PHARAOH, the most common steps were precipite and arabesque voyagee (we call them 'chugs' here in the States). Also single saut de basques. Very little pointe work. On the other hand, the Fairy variations of SLEEPING BEAUTY are almost all on pointe. The difference could be the time span between the creation of the ballets (1862 vs. 1890) or the fact that the River variations were essentially character dances and the Fairy variations are essentially classical. In the BAYADERE Shades scene from 1900, hardly a step is repeated throughout the scene - such amazing invention - the corps choreography is more demanding than we see now. I've found that steps and nuances that further distinguish the three Shade variations have disappeared over time - changed or forgotten. The most striking changes are Nikiya's steps in the coda. NOTHING like what we see today - the notated steps remind me of TCHAIKOVSKY PAS DE DEUX and SYMPHONY IN C, first movement (sissonne onto pointe, double rond du jambe, repeated on alternating legs - hops in fifth on pointe alternating with echappe onto flat feet). The manege of tour jetes was originally much more complicated - saut de basque, petit jete en tournant, grand jete, all repeated three times - beautiful! One last example - Le jardin anime from CORSAIRE - no precipite, no arabesque voyagee - all balance, ballonne, waltz turns, emboite. The variation include small and large jumps and lots of pointe work. That's a start.

XENA! Thank you, thank you! You're brilliant. I really appreciate your help (and everyone else's too)! Yours sincerely,

Alexandra, you are so right about the "old" ballets starting to look the same but that they needn't. I see this over and over in my work with old notations of ballets. They each had a certain character and, in my opinion, Petipa's choreography, for example, was much, MUCH more creative than we might now think.

Thanks, mussel! but I'm afraid that's not it. I wish it was because it's still available commercially. Thanks again,

Thanks, Victoria! I'm really in need of a CD, though. But I will take you up on your offer if I can't find one. Thanks again - Doug

This isn't a video request, but I am searching for a CD called "Homage to Pavlova" which is part of Decca's BALLET GALA series, with the London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Richard Bonynge. The CD is Decca 433 863-2 and it seems to be out of print. I'd be very happy to pay shipping costs for anyone who has access to this CD or a spare copy (!). Many thanks,

I hope my topics aren't too technical . . . this topic is broader than Coppelia itself but seems to relate. I am interested in the three-scene or three-act format of 19th century (French?) ballets. Paquita, Coppelia and Sylvia share a similar format of three scenes (or acts), in which the middle scene/act is one that is generally shorter than the others, involves mainly the principal ballerina plus only a few other characters, and includes the culmination of the action (or at least most of it). In Paquita, Paquita escapes from Inigo and discovers she is of noble birth; in Sylvia, Sylvia escapes from Orion; in Coppelia, Swanilda escapes from Coppelius. Are there other ballets that follow this format? Do we know when this format became standard, if indeed it was standard? The later full-lengths if Petipa, et al, in Russia do not seem to follow this format. [ 05-20-2001: Message edited by: doug ] [ 06-03-2001: Message edited by: doug ]

Coppelia includes a number of national dances: czardas and mazurka in Act II, Spanish and Scottish in Act II. Am I missing some? Is there traditional choreography for these dances and, if so, from where does it derive - Paris or St. Petersburg? Is it possible to trace its authorship? The Stepanov notations of Coppelia include what was intended to be very elaborate documentation of the Act I mazurka but, sadly, the notation was not completed. I believe the mazurka called for 20 corps couples and 2 soloist couples (I'd have to check my notes). [ 05-20-2001: Message edited by: doug ]

I think Coppelia deserves much more discussion that she is getting. Come on folks, there is a lot to discuss in this work! I really am interested in various productions of Act III. What was the take - a wedding, a festival, a pageant, just another Act III divertissement? I find that with many full-lengths, what were once a unique final celebratory acts with much individual flavor have been restaged according to a catch-all formula of pas de deux and variation after variation. Please share your experiences with Coppelia Act III - there must be some interesting versions out there, historic and contemporary. [ 05-20-2001: Message edited by: doug ]

Maybe this could be an individual topic: I'm interested to know different takes on the Act III Festival of the Bell. It seems to be a sort of pageant about life and a day at the same time, plus the dedication of the town bell. I believe French productions omit most of Act III. On another topic, I'd like to bring to everyone's attention the CD recording of Coppelia with the Orchestre de L'Opera de Lyon, conducted by Kent Nagano, on ERATO 4509-91730-2. I feel this is the best Delibes recording, by a long shot. It's amazingly suave and well-timed, with great ensemble. If you like ballet music but generally don't favor Delibes, I'd say give this one a try. If you like Delibes, you'll really appreciate this recording. Another benefit is the complete Act III, with some of the sorties and other bits of music that aren't even in the re-issued piano score.

Kent Stowell, Artistic Director of Pacific Northwest Ballet, has a letter in his office from President Johnson (dating from Kent's years with NYCB) thanking him for his performance at the White House. It is very short but it is signed by Johnson.

Poor Guerin injured a rib at rehearsals in San Francisco. She turned 40 while on the tour.

Tallchief has done parts of Pas de Dix for the Balanchine Foundation. The piano variation would make a good study of how Balanchine revised Petipa's choreography. Pas de Dix was essentially superceded by Cortege Hongrois in 1973, which is most of Raymonda Act III plus some portions of Acts I and II. Balanchine choreographed nearly all of the dance music from Raymonda in his three Raymonda ballets (not including the nearly full-length Raymonda of 1946). I've always felt Raymonda is a ballet that CAN be successful, although everyone knocks the story. The original libretto is not as confusing as one might think from reading about it or from seeing revised versions.

In that interview, she told me she felt the "classics" needed to be updated and compared them to documentaries that were often too long! She suggested presenting various scenes from Raymonda as one-act ballets. She also said she remembered some of the ballet very clearly from when she danced children's roles at the Maryinsky. She is on video teaching the Act III piano variation to Zippora Karz. Frederic Franklin has recently restaged a few solos from the 1946 Raymonda for the Balanchine Foundation. I don't think it's possible to completely restage the 1946 Raymonda accurately, but I believe some of the dances, in addition to those that Franklin has restaged, could be revived, at least now. Maybe not in a few years . . .

Alexandra, re: Symphony in C staging. Here is my understanding: the Balanchine Trust does not control rights to Symphony in C. John Taras does (he got them from Betty Cage to whom Balanchine left the ballet in his will). Steps have been changed and he won't allow the ballet to be performed unless the changes are made by one of his stagers. The rights are also very expensive compared to Balanchine ballets held by the Trust. For this reason, Symphony in C has gone out of the rep of a number of companies, including PNB. Francia Russell taught Symphony in C to John T. and now he wants someone else to come make changes. It's really too bad. [ 04-25-2001: Message edited by: doug ]

The Kent Stowell piece is called "Poeme Saint-Saens" (forgive the lack of accents, etc.) and is a 7-minute work for a ballerina and 3 men. I saw Jodie Thomas and Julie Tobiason. I doubt that the programmers considered that both Poeme and Violin have walkovers! The walkover in Poeme comes at the end when the ballerina is tired, so maybe it looked as though she collapsed, maybe she did collapse, maybe her back was tight, etc. That's the joy of live performance. They looked okay to me, but I'm generally not keen on walkovers in the first place, so I'm a bad judge of execution. I know I'm biased toward PNB, but I feel they have a great way with the black and white Balanchine ballets in their rep. I have to say I was SO disappointed with NYCB's Four Temperaments this past January. I was expecting something great and thought most of it was really underdone and some of it just plain badly danced (or set? - also very dully played by Richard Moredock). Most everyone else thought it was a highlight of the season, so I think we are seeing and expecting different things in these ballets and dancers.

Bart Cook staged Violin for PNB. He was back a few weeks ago to restage it this time around, as well. Bart was a member of the second cast in 1972 but joined the first cast shortly after the premiere. Dianne Chilgren played for rehearsals. She was there in 1972 also and has her score full of notes and counts. My thoughts are that at the end of Aria II, any emotion that may seem to well up might come as a result of the dancers standing still, facing the audience. The man is behind the woman and reaches out. Their heads tilt as his hand moves. The audience has a chance to really look at the dancers, particularly their faces, and the music may reinforce the emotional effect. Does that make sense? At PNB, Jeff Stanton danced Aria II with Patricia Barker. Louise Nadeau also danced the Kay Mazzo role - she is tiny like Mazzo. Others danced these roles as well, but I can't remember who at the moment As far as humor (and fun), I think there is a LOT in Violin Concerto. Balanchine put in Russian character steps and steps one might think stemmed from his years in Hollywood and on Broadway. The final Capriccio is a real party. I've always loved watching it. I enjoy this ballet as much as Four Ts and Agon. These comments are also very interesting to me in light of PNB's performances. PNB is known for its rather dry interpretation of Balanchine ballets, particularly the black and white rep. The dancers tend not to be the sort that would layer on an interpretation of "put on" emotion just for its own sake. At the same time, I can't really see Bart Cook asking for that sort of thing either. The rehearsals I saw were very straightforward. Steps set to music. I would guess that anything "extra" resulting from it would spring from the combination of movement and music perceived by the individual. Gee, does that sound TOO dry?!

Sorry to join in so late in the game - forgive any repetitions. The libretto, at the beginning of Act II, also mentions birch trees, aspens and weeping willows. Myrtha leaps around from willow branches to flowers (unspecified!). Albrecht hide behind a weeping willow while Hilarion is killed. Re the daisy/daisies in Act I: not to confuse the issue further, but the libretto states, "She [Giselle] picks some daisies [Elle cueille des marguerites], and strips away the petals, to assure herself of Loys's love.--The test succeeds, and she falls into her beloved's arms." The libretto also states that, at the end of the ballet, Albrecht "carries her in his arms far from her tomb and puts her down on a knoll, amidst a clump of [again unspecified ] flowers." The Stepanov notations of Giselle, which date from probably 1903-5ish, also indicate this action.

I'm currently reading Marian Smith's new translation of the original published libretto (which she gives both in original French and English translation), and see that Giselle does not stab herself: "... [Giselle] is about to let herself fall on its [the sword's] sharp point, when her mother hurries toward her and grabs it away." Giselle continues her mad dance and then dies: "So many sudden sorrows, so many cruel blows, together with this latest effort, have finally exhausted her dwindling resources ... Life seems to abandon her ... her mother takes her in her arms ... A last sigh escapes from the heart of poor Giselle ... She glances sadly at Albrecht in despair, [italicized from hereon] and her eyes close forever! Bathilde, kind and generous, melts in tears ..." The libretto is very rich in detail and very illuminating. [ 04-21-2001: Message edited by: doug ] [ 04-21-2001: Message edited by: doug ]

My understanding is that Balanchine left his ballets to 14 different individuals (this was made possible by the ability to copyright choreography, granted by Congress in 1976). Several of the major rights holders deposited their rights into the newly-formed Balanchine Trust. Tanaquil LeClerq retained her rights but the administration of the rights/ballets left to her was handled by the Trust. She, therefore, received the royalties for performances of the ballets for which she held rights (which, I believe, were the American performing rights to most of Balanchine's ballets). I'm shooting from the hip here (Taper's addition re Balanchine's will was also published in Ballet Review in two separate issues, but I'm too lazy to dig them out), so correct me where I'm wrong. If we get into nitty gritty, I'll dig them out.

According to the original libretto, Albrecht and Bathilde are reconciled at the end of the ballet: "[Giselle] points Albrecht toward the trembling Bathilde, on her knees a few steps away and stretching out her hand in a gesture of entreaty. Giselle seems to tell her lover to give his heart and soul to this sweet young girl." And at the very end: "Weak and staggering, he [Albrecht] falls into the arms of those who surround him, and reaches out his hand to Bathilde!!!" The exclamation points are original, too!!!