FauxPas

I was blown away by Olivier's "Henry V" when I saw it at age thirteen. Oddly enough, Kenneth Branagh's film nearly matched it and I was much older at the time. I would recommend a DVD of a TV adaptation of "Macbeth" done by the RSC in the 1970's with Ian McKellen and Judi Dench. It is available at Amazon and www.deepdiscountdvd.com The Burton/Taylor "Taming of the Shrew" I think is a very fun, well-acted version of one of my least favorite Shakespearean comedies. I also was blown away by the RSC movie of Peter Hall's "A Midsummers Night Dream" with Helen Mirren, Judi Dench, Diana Rigg, David Warner, Ian Holm and Ian Richardson. The Hollywood 1953 "Julius Caesar" has a mixed-bag cast but they are all good in their own ways - James Mason is a bit too coldly intellectual as Brutus but John Gielgud is superb as Cassius and Marlon Brando does some very interesting work as Mark Antony outside of the big forum speech. It is a tight, well-directed faithful screen adaptation by Mankiewicz.

Masina was frankly a little old for the part in "La Strada" when she did it. Also she was directed to be Chaplinesque. If you want to see Masina at her very best, check her out in "The Nights of Cabiria" where she is much more spontaneous and less studied. I was also distracted that Anthony Quinn was dubbed by an Italian actor - Quinn has such a distinctive voice I missed it when I heard someone else talking through his face.

I suspect that the Kirov/Mariinsky has been pushing Somova as the "new" or "replacement" Zakharova. Therefore, they have been allowing her to show off her extreme extensions and flamboyance to show the world that they've got more where Zakharova came from. Zakharova (whom I like in the right roles) is a controversial artist and has her detractors as well. Zakharova is a genuine star, like her or not, and is very much her own creation. If Somova was developed to be a little more herself and less like Zakharova, she might shine or demonstrate better the tradition which she was trained in.

A friend who went to the Kirov in NYC in the sixties thought that the then blonde Irina Kolpakova was a double for Yvette Mimieux. I always thought that Jenifer Ringer looked like a young Vivien Leigh, Dvorovenko has a different shape face but more of the "minx" quality Leigh had. Jenifer is a Melanie whereas Irina definitely is a Scarlett. Julie Kent resembles Jessica Lange in my opinion.

I also attended on Saturday night. I agree with all of the beautiful descriptions of Acosta's Apollo (especially SZ's). However, re: the comments above, while I felt that everyone did superbly in their solos - the group dancing was in places tentative and looked underrehearsed. There were tiny glitches throughout. There were two new Apollos this season and the experienced Apollos were dancing with different Muses, so I think that everything will gel better in their second performances. It was Riccetto who spoiled the "starburst" effect by not getting her leg high enough on Saturday night. This is the kind of thing that can be fixed in rehearsals and probably will go off without a hitch on Wednesday when they repeat it. As for "Jeu de Cartes" the piece is cleverly designed and has a witty conception. I am curious to know if Balanchine's original choreography has survived - I think the version in NYCB has different choreography by Peter Martins. Also, didn't John Selya choreograph a piece to this music at City Center about four or five years ago? Julio Bocca I cannot imagine bettered in the role of the Joker - he just exuded manic comic energy and bravado. Though I am sure Herman Cornejo danced it thrillingly and acted it charmingly on opening night (I didn't go), he could not at this point project as much personality and dominate the stage as Bocca did on Saturday. The piece needs star turns as it is rather flimsy. The second deal, the flush of diamonds was an interesting pas de six for five male soloists and the Joker. Interesting solos for all the men who included David Hallberg, Jesus Pastor, Sascha Radetsky, Eric Underwood and Craig Salstein. This is a nice moment but the bits with the women are just slapstick and I don't need to see the ballet a second time since I am unlikely to see Bocca matched in the pivotal role. The "Petrouchka" on Saturday night was in general a fine performance. Angel Corella has a better line on the pathos of the Petrouchka doll than Bocca did last year (Bocca was manic, angry and mischievous). Angel was more of a sad sack who was doomed to bad luck which is more appropriate. The dancing, such as it is, was excellent. I was particularly impressed by the footwork of Erica Cornejo who had incredible strength and delicacy combined and acted very well as the Ballerina Doll. Roman Zhurbin strongly characterized the Moor and interacted well with his partners. Since I saw "Petrouchka" and "Apollo" several times in the past with ABT and found "Jeu de Cartes" a once only experience, I will not attend a second "Stravinsky Triple Bill". I was hoping ABT would finally revive "Firebird" and that would have spiced up the bill considerably. I know that ABT had a version of the original Fokine that it last revived around 1993 with Susan Jaffe as the Firebird. I missed it but I believe the settings and costumes were from original designs. I also know that they were considering acquiring a Kudelka version. Hopefully, we may see that at City Center soon since ABT has recently gotten so much funding.

But as an artist, what could ABT offer him to compare with his Royal partnership with Tamara Rojo? Especially from a company that has a random partner policy. I believe he is now listed as having joined the company in 2005 as a principal. Therefore, he is no longer a guest artist. As for money and staying, the Royal Ballet is currently on tour in Boston and D.C. and on June 15th he is dancing "Manon" with Tamara Rojo. So he is shuttling between two companies this summer and can't commit as much time to ABT as he did last year. Like Vishneva, Bocca, Ferri, Malakhov and Ananiashvili he is in demand as a guest worldwide so he can't make the City Center season always and can't appear in the tours. However, we have had him once at City Center and regularly during the Met Spring season. I expect we will be seeing a lot more of him next Spring.

I saw Wednesday night's program as well but had only seen "Liebeslieder Waltzes" before and that was some years ago. "Baiser de la Fée" is a weird ballet starting with the music. The music is full of Tchaikovsky sketches including "None but the Lonely Heart" that are lush and lyrical but then it veers towards Stravinsky spareness and dissonance. The corps is all in "Giselle" or "Coppelia" village girl get-ups in pastel colors and we think we are in for a happy romp. Then something (we don't know exactly what) goes awry and something takes a turn for the tragic with some kind of unresolved passion leading to ruined lives. We don't know exactly what is happening but we feel it. I love Megan Fairchild's crisp focus and precise energy - she never throws anything away and every step is given full value. Very different from the kind of offhanded delivery or skimming over the steps we have gotten from some dancers in the past. Fairchild is not the ethereal type despite her delicate build and her intense physical energy would keep her from "levitating". I liked the fact that I felt the choreography was getting her full attention. Joaquin de Luz was very involved and impassioned. "Liebeslieder Waltzes" is a very long ballet and some of it can seem repetitive. This was a wonderful opportunity to see the senior ladies in the company - Darci partnered by Askegard, Kyra Nichols partnered by Nilas Martins, Miranda Weese partnered by an eager young Tyler Angle and Wendy Whelan partnered by a silky Nikolaj Hubbe. Nichols was something of a wonder - in no way technically overshadowed or shown up by the younger ladies surrounding her whether in character shoes or on pointe at nearly 50 years of age. Her posture and gestures when not dancing were a lesson in stagecraft. Darci was lovely but seemed a bit studied as if all the movements had to be carefully wrought - she lacked spontaneity. The vocal quartet included some fine voices from New York City Opera - mezzo Jennifer Rivera stood out but Nancy Allen Lundy, Jan Opalach and Ryan MacPherson were close behind. "An American in Paris" to my eyes had gorgeous sets by Adrianne Lobel - real cubist eye poppers painted on scrims that I thought wouldn't look out of place hanging on a wall at the Guggenheim. The costumes reminded me of the films "American in Paris" and "Funny Face". You expected Cyd Charisse, Gene Kelly, Oscar Levant and Kay Thompson to stroll in at any moment. The piece is clearly created to be immediately accessible and entertaining and none of the steps or combinations are novel. Wheeldon doesn't ignore Gene Kelly or MGM in the 1950's but co-opts it. I didn't see clichés but an affectionate tribute to the last century's music and styles. The mixture of classicism and pop in the choreography mirrored Gershwin's musical vocabulary - French impressionism mixed with American Tin-Pan Alley and jazz. Damian Woetzel as a Gene Kelly figure in tight white pants and shirtjac, looked in great form with Jennifer Ringer as his dream girl in pink and Ellen Bar as the Juliette Greco existential beat chick in black sweater and red beret. This ballet clearly aims to be an audience-pleaser and the enthusiastic cheers at the end showed that it hit the spot with most of the crowd.

"Noche Latina" May 23rd tribute to Latin dancers at ABT Last night's "Le Corsaire" was a special event "Noche Latina" honoring the Latin (Spanish and South American) dancers at ABT. There were many Latin society and business eminences in the house and Oscar de la Renta was one of the honorary co-chairmen and spoke before the curtain at the beginning of the show. This was a remarkable evening of dance by a stellar group of dancers with remarkable star turns even in the smaller roles. Julio Bocca danced his last Conrad and he is in fine shape. Much of his familiar animal intensity, physical abandon and daring were present last night - he was not holding back. Bocca also is a passionate and focused actor at this point in his career as manifested in his love scenes with Paloma Herrera and fights with Cornejo. The Odalisques were Maria Riccetto (feathery light), Stella Abrera (quick and sharp) and Veronika Part (in a class of her own as the turning odalisque). Part is in fine physical shape - her bare midriff showed firm abdominal muscles and she didn't bobble during her grueling solo with the multiple pirouettes. She didn't do them as quickly as Gillian used to do them but was solid and unfazed technically. Her uniqueness showed in the sections she danced with the other two girls. Her gestures and movements seemed to have more air around them - she elongated steps so that they seemed momentarily suspended and floating while the other two girls were efficiently and accurately doing the movements with nothing extra. Your eye went to Part automatically. Herman Cornejo and his sister Erica were Birbanto and his Pirate Maid partner. Cornejo added flourishes to his solos that made the role the equal of the other men and threw himself into his villainous plotting with gusto. Erica is wasted in character shoes but showed form and style anyway. Lankendem was Jose Manuel Carreno in an uncharacteristic demi-caractere role. He is a naturally modest and reserved stage presence, so I was delighted and surprised by his sharp and energetic portrayal of the slave dealer. No one has matched the sly wit of Malakhov or has attempted the deep plié landings from jumps that he did in his solos, but Carreno was excellent in his own way. All that was missing was a sense of fun in his characterization though he was exuberant as a dancer. Xiomara Reyes was delightful and virtuosic as Gulnare showing a flair for characterization and speed and control in her many pirouettes and pique turns. Her spoiled houri in the last act was delightfully impish when teasing the eunuchs or the Pasha, played by Victor Barbee. Paloma had a fine night as Medora and she has a special rapport with Julio which was evident in their pas de deux and mime scenes together. She had a winning characterization of a spunky and free-spirited young woman and her dancing was technically brilliant especially in her turns. Angel Corella was Ali and I have seen him many times in the role but still am amazed by his dancing. He did the bent corkscrew twist on the stationary leg in his turns a la seconde that were astonishing. He also had great elevation on his jumps. The Pas de Trois in the second act was a real dancing competition with Julio throwing in a few bravura licks after Angel and Paloma stunned with their fouettes and spins. In many ways this was as much a gala event as the opening night. Carlos Acosta was in the audience in a white sleeveless shirt and cap and was very social with his many Spanish-speaking admirers.

For those curious about what constituted the "Le Corsaire Suite" I will give you the precis: Gillian Murphy as Medora, Marcelo Gomes as Conrad and a barechested Jose Manuel Carreno as Ali entered into the Pirate Grotto set and danced the Pas de Trois adagio section. Then Xiomara Reyes entered and danced Gulnare's first act solo in the "Pas D'Esclave". Then Herman Cornejo entered as Birbanto and did an embellished version of that solo. Then Carreno, Murphy and Gomes did their usual "Pas de Trois" solos. The PdT Coda went as usual (Murphy astounding with triples and Carreno and Gomes solid) with the addition of Xiomara Reyes doing supersonic piques alternating with fouettes on a diagonal and Herman astounding the audience with corkscrew aerial barrel turns. Meanwhile, in the Black Swan PDD Max and Irina did the Pas de Deux and the Coda but were denied their solos. Since we had lost the Shadow Song bit, I would have liked the solos restored. Irina continues in great shape after her pregnancy with fouettes that were nailed on the spot with no traveling. Bocca had the right combination of flamenco passion and classical restraint in his Limon solo and seemed comfortable in the idiom.

My suggestion would be for someone to persuade Natalie Dessay (I am sure she knows the "Dinorah" aria) who sang "La Sonnambula" at the Volpe Gala on Saturday to stay in town or fly back if she has left and save the day by replacing Swenson.

I don't have any written sources to back me up and Greskovic and Doug Fullington are better qualified to answer this definitively but I always thought that it was for Pierina Legnani, Pavel Gerdt and Enrico Cecchetti. Maybe Cecchetti had already left the Imperial Ballet by 1899 though...

Another factor is sophistication. Certain ballerinas project a worldly, knowing quality which is antithetical to what Giselle is. Susan Jaffe initially was too sophisticated for Giselle and was a better Myrtha but in her last performance with ABT she had grown into an actress who could disappear into her roles. She was very, innocent, coltish and fragile and she was over forty at the time. I think some of the French ballerinas probably project too much sophistication and urban polish to play Giselle Act I convincingly. Vishneva's initial Giselle with the Kirov in NYC was also too sophisticated and generalized in interpretation but she has now worked out a very individual and convincing Act I characterization - a little wild and rebellious but also trusting and vulnerable. One factor is that if a dancer is tall but long limbed and willowy thin, she can suggest a coltish delicate girl and then a wraith in the second act. One dancer is Galina Mezentseva who appears close to death already in Act I of the Kirov "Giselle" video (no DVD transfer yet) from the 1980's with Konstantin Zaklinsky as Albrecht. She probably by nature and physicality would have been a Myrtha but obviously was working against her natural emploi. Maya Plisetskaya was also a Giselle but earlier on had been a definitive Myrtha. I am sure Maya was very dramatic and big-scaled in the mad scene. I saw Svetlana Zakharova's Giselle with the Kirov around 1998 or so and she was quite young and lovely in it. I hadn't liked her Aurora but her long legs, floating high extensions (better for Romantic ballet than for pure classicism), long arms and delicate beauty made her a very convincing and appropriate Giselle in both acts. One thing is that some of these Giselle's who are miscast in Act I which depends a lot on acting and interpretation can do very well in Act II which is pure dance that projects a dramatic message through choreography and images. I am sure that Plisetskaya was very exciting when she whipped around after being revived by Myrtha and her jetés were out of this world.

Oh, my god I think there are a lot of changes in the Gorsky version. Cyril Beaumont's "Book of the Ballets" has a synopsis/scenario for the original Moscow staging by Petipa in the 1860's with Lev Ivanov as Basil and Anna Sobeschanskaya as Kitri. There are whole scenes and characters and plot elements in the scenario that are missing from any modern version. There must have been more changes again when this production transferred to St. Petersburg with Ivanov and Alexandra Vergina as Kitri. One element that must have been in the original is the series of turns that Kitri does and then leaps into Basil's arms on her side (tavern scene?). Evidently Vergina wasn't very musical and jumped the beat on her jeté. Ivanov was practically blind and very musical and he was waiting for the orchestral beat and didn't see her to catch her in time. Vergina hit the floor hard and badly injured her arm and the performance ended there. Astute balletomanes knew that Ivanov was a scrupulous partner and blamed Vergina who was lacking in other ways as Kitri. Also Ivanov was famous as a caractere dancer of national dances but was not a technical virtuoso in the mold of a Vasiliev or Nureyev. The emphasis on male dancing probably came much later with the Gorsky version and later restagings. The Don Quixote character has whole mime scenes taken from Cervantes that would not be notated anywhere. The Don Quixote character is more of a dramatic protagonist rather than a cameo walk-on. Most of the versions of the Petipa ballets that exist today come from turn of the century original productions of late Petipa masterpieces like "Raymonda" or revivals or restaging by Petipa, Ivanov or Gorsky of older works like "Le Corsaire" or "Le Bayadere". I don't know how late Petipa revived his "Don Quixote" but I would agree that to my thoughts only the the Dream Scene with the Dryads and Cupid and the final PDD is pure Petipa.

The question of height with Cornejo is a matter of finding an appropriate female partner since disparity of height can affect partnering. Now Xiomara Reyes matched up well with Cornejo in "Coppelia" and countless "Peasant PDD"s and "Swan Lake Pas de Trois". She dances Kitri with Corella and Bocca but dances Gulnare in "Le Corsaire". Now I don't think that in the Pas de Trois with Medora, Conrad and Ali requires that much partnering since Conrad handles most of the lifts. A petite Medora could be used but I think Cornejo could handle Kent or Reyes as Medora.

Darcey Bussell auditioned and was considered for the lead role in the remake of "Sabrina" with Harrison Ford but lost the role to ice cube Julia Ormond. Meanwhile, arthritis made the Royal Ballet dancer Christopher Gable (1940 - 1998) turn to acting in "The Slipper and the Rose" and "Lair of the White Worm" - he also played a sensitive complicated alien in "Doctor Who"

I went to Saturday night's mixed program - I went mainly to see Sofiane Sylve's much praised Firebird but enjoyed the entire program. The evening started with "Fancy Free". Damian Woetzel played the confident sailor who danced the Pas de Deux and the Rhumba solo. He was in terrific shape and had lots of personality. Doesn't work the buns like Jose Manuel Carreno did at ABT (or reportedly Bujones before him) but was all-around terrific with lots of personality. Joaquin de Luz was the short funny sailor with the acrobatic solo and he was funny and manic. He didn't manage the aerial splits too well in his solo but otherwise was quite virtuosic in his turns and spins. Also lots of personality. My favorite, however, was Seth Orza as the sweet, naive, slightly dopey sailor who was the butt of the other two's pranks. He had just the right wide-eyed ingenuousness and eagerness and was so period in look and manner. Amanda Edge had a kind of urban princess hauteur as the girl with the red handbag. Jenifer Ringer has such a wonderful period look - like Jeanne Crain or Gene Tierney in an old 40's movie - and she has natural unforced charm. Neither girl had to use all her dance technique in these parts but they also had dramatic presence and detailed acting. It was a delightful romp and they worked well together. The second piece was "Songs of the Auvergne" with Darci Kistler in radiant, energetic form. I saw this years ago in a revival with Heather Watts (one of her last roles before retirement). The whole piece seemed more energized and lovelier. Martins seems to respond well to choreographed lyric vocal pieces - I also have enjoyed "Morgen" a great deal. Lucy Schaufer was a smooth, creamy toned vocal soloist and interacted well with the dancers. Darci here or there showed a little weakness in one hip that seems to be damaged (tiny unnoticeable little slips in unimportant places). However her legs and feet were in great shape. She dazzled with a series of very fast whiplash pique turns in one sequence. Her best quality was a kind of radiant lyricism and glowing innocence that was very right for the piece. Philip Neal was a smooth, unobtrusively strong partner in Jock Soto's old role. Seth Orza caught my eye again in a group dance partnering several ballerinas - he is really a fine and versatile dancer. Megan Fairchild had what amounted to a second ballerina role and she has a kind of sparkling fresh clarity about all her movements. Everything she does is sharp and bright and firmly in place and put together with such energy you can't take your eyes off of her. It was a very nice season premiere performance of a piece that might be getting better with age. "Firebird" seemed better lit and the costumes more striking than when I last saw the ballet with Lourdes Lopez. Sofiane Sylve has the kind of prima ballerina presence and physical attack and hauteur that is so essential for this part. The clarity and control of her movements let you know that this is a supernatural creature, a bird of paradise just visiting earth. Jonathan Stafford did well in his physically undemanding role as the Tsarevitch. Rachel Rutherford was lovely to look at as the Tsar-Maiden or Princess. The strength of the NYCB orchestra was displayed in the excellent playing of the score. I thought it was a very fine evening even though I have seen all these ballets before. Faux Pas

The story about the repetiteur being missing from the Kirov Museum archives was in Doug Fullington's six part article on the reconstruction of the 1890 "Sleeping Beauty": http://www.for-ballet-lovers-only.com/Beauty1.html This states in the sixth paragraph that sometime in the 1980's the repetiteur disappeared from the archives. Evidently Roland John Wiley had examined the document and noted several handwritten directions and emendations that were not available elsewhere. However, it is not known if Vikharev used Wiley's writings in reproducing the Stepanov notations. Also, I didn't say that I thought that the Sergeyev Collection should be returned to Russia. What I said was that high-quality copies should be made and given to both the Bolshoi and Kirov-Maryinsky theaters - hell, give Perm a copy too. Then Russia would have them and if they get lost or stolen then the originals are still safe in the Harvard Collection.

I must mention here that I have read on this site that the violin repetiteur from "Sleeping Beauty" went missing from the archives of the Theatre Museum in St. Petersburg. Therefore, historical documents have disappeared from the Maryinsky archives in Russia. Harvard will allow scholars to review and study the notations. The theater museum staff in St. Petersburg I have been told is not helpful in sharing scores or documents to foreigners or even the Bolshoi Theater - i.e. the Bolshoi Theater's request for the "Pharoah's Daughter" orchestral score. However, the notations are less useful without the original scores and the repetiteurs. I think that copies should be given to the archives of the Maryinsky Theater.

The National Ballet of Cuba performed a version of the Strauss "Cinderella" or "Aschenbrodel" at City Center in January/February 1998. The sets and costumes were unbelievably amateurish, cartoonish and cheap. Anna Kisselgoff called the choreography "inept". The dancing was another matter - I saw Alihaydee Carreno and Osmay Molina as the leads with Ivette Regueiro as the Fairy Godmother. All were excellent classical stylists. It was choreographed by one Pedro Consuegra who seemed to be a very interesting polymath but only an indifferent if professional choreographer. He expanded the score by adding more Strauss waltzes. The music was taped and may have been from the Bonynge recording. Some people felt hearing a whole evening of Strauss waltzes was like have a three-course dinner of just schlag with sugar. Too much the same and too rich and sweet! :blush: I believe the original Vienna version was updated to be contemporary to the period (1890's) and was set in a department store!

There was also a book by Serge Lifar (who could dish with the best of them) called "The Three Graces: Anna Pavlova, Tamara Karsavina, Olga Spessivtzeva: the legends and the truth" published by Cassell (London) in 1959. I have never heard of this book and am quite interested in what Mr. Lifar has to say - he danced with the last two ladies I believe and has some first hand information. It seems that Spessivtzeva herself wrote a book called "Technique for the Ballet Artiste" published by London Muller in 1967. This would interest you too, Silvy.

There was a biography of her, quite subjective and personal and mostly dealing with her Western career and its tragic end, by Anton Dolin called "The Sleeping Ballerina". It is likely out of print but might be found through second hand dealers and Amazon. There is also a long chapter on her in Gennady Smakov's "The Great Russian Dancers". These are all in English.

I attended Sofiane Sylve's debut on Saturday evening. She was magnificent and I have seen a lot of Swan Queens in my not so long life (Asylmuratova, Ayupova, Ananiashvili, Gregory's 2nd Act, Guillem, Meunier, Gillian Murphy, Part, Zakharova, Vishneva and more). I thought that Sylve ranked very high. The production is another matter... The sets are drops that are dully unatmospheric, a court without a court, a lake scene without a lake... The colors on the backdrops are muted and dull but the costumes are neon and loud in their brightness except for Siegfried who always clashes with the backdrops and fades into obscurity. The lighting this time around isn't as good or my memory was rose-tinting my impressions of the first season of this production (Jock Soto and Monique Meunier as the leads). The problems have been discussed before but they were baldly evident on Saturday night. The corps was not up to its highest standard until the 4th act. The soloists all tried to inject some juice into the proceedings. Kudos to the kinetic and dazzling Daniel Ulbricht as the Jester. He had some charm and made one grateful for the energy and wit he brought to the proceedings on top of his stunning technique. The first act pas de trois had Megan le Crone, Kristin Sloan and Sean Suozzi and they did a nice job. The Pas de Quatre had fine work from Tiler Peck, Megan Fairchild and Anna Sophia Scheller with a hard-working Jonathan Stafford. However the lack of dramatic connective tissue and the fractured style impaired visuals just made it feel very piecemeal and fragmented. The choreography mixing bits of Balanchine, Martins, Ivanov and Petipa didn't help matters. The second act corps formations in the original Ivanov version cannot be improved upon. Balanchine in his one act version kind of struck out on new territory and his work is good Balanchine but doesn't look well in the full-length context. I didn't like the allegro finish to the pas de deux and I missed the big swans. The fourth act is better. Luckily most of the heart of Odette's role is preserved in the Ivanov version, especially her entrance, pas de deux and solo in the second act. The Black Swan PDD is the original Petipa and the fourth act has some attractive and effective things in it. So with a fine Odette/Odile, the disaster can be averted. Sofiane Sylve is an experienced classical ballerina who has done full-length story ballets before and knows how to build a character through dance over four acts. She was mesmerizing to watch. She is a firm, athletic diamantine classicist with sculptured movements that never lose flow or elasticity. Everything in her Odette was smooth but had an undertow of nervous tension - her fluttering movements as she was cornered by Siegfried were superbly realized. So there was this tension between smooth flowing fluid movements and the sharp, perfectly controlled sculptural perfection of her steps, port de bras and footwork. Everything was suffused with energy and had stunning clarity but nothing was broken up into jagged lines or individual steps. Her Odette was not a weeping willow but a creature well aware of her situation and torn between resignation and fighting against her fate. She knew she was in trouble and she didn't want to drag Siegfried into her cursed fate. She had great authority and you knew that this was a Swan Queen and not just another swan. The Odile drew upon this same diamantine brilliance and control. She was a cool calculating temptress who didn't give much away - was only sensual or seductive when she had to be but let her own beauty and charisma draw Siegfried like a moth to a flame. She never went over the top or spelled out her intentions too clearly. The fouettes, including several doubles and triples, were also fully within her control and never veered from the center line of the stage and were completed without much strain or seeming effort. Charles Askegard is also experienced and has some background in story ballets as a soloist with ABT in the 1990's. He was hampered by costumes that didn't differentiate him from the soloist men and blended colorwise with the sets. His height and dignified bearing did set him apart and he showed good but not thrilling classical form in his solos. He seemed stiff and wooden initially but responded well to Sylve and Albert Evans as Rothbart who each gave him something to work off of. He also had great control and support as a partner in the crucial pas de deux with Odette and Odile. The evening was ultimately a triumph for Sylve who made the evening memorable and all the disparate elements come together. I wouldn't want to see this production with a lesser performer. Faux Pas

One dancer whose body sings, especially her arms is Veronika Part. In Glazunov's "Raymonda" she created a dreamy almost narcotized figure and her arms were almost like hearing Monserrat Caballe sing an long aria pianissimo. The gestures just floated into the air like perfume. You forgot about one or two slips in fast pique turns or some flubs in a pas de deux and just came away dreaming about what you saw and heard. She seemed to inspire the conductor - the orchestra never sounded better.

The synopsis of the original production of "The Golden Age" (not the Grigorivich) is included in Cyril Beaumont's "Book of the Ballets". There are notable differences in plot and characterization. Faux Pas

There was a big contretemps in the early eighties (c. 1983) when Grigorivich wanted to premiere his own choreography to the Prokofiev "Romeo and Juliet". Mikhail Lavrovsky (son of the original choreographer), Vasiliev, Maximova, Plisetskaya and others were concerned that the Leonid Lavrovsky choreography would be dropped from the repertoire. They wanted it to at least alternate with the new version. The fight turned ugly and Grigorivich made a new rule that all dancers over 49 had to retire, thus getting rid of the old guard who were standing in his way. However, his wife Bessmertnova was exempted from this rule...