Buddy

It's summer, so outdoors seems like a logical way to go. Here's some excerpts from -- 'Companies Are Rethinking Live Performance—and Coming Up With Many Creative Solutions' We all know it's safer to be outside and socially distanced, but that doesn't mean we are confined to an outdoor stage with chairs placed six feet apart. EPISODE #1: REVERBERATION, choreographed by Scott, for an audience of bicyclists and pedestrians, sprawled out over three blocks on a balmy June 13 Florida morning with 24 dancers spaced 20 feet apart on the shaded sidewalks of an artsy St. Petersburg neighborhood. Subsequent pop ups will take place in urban and park settings that provide a safe environment for audiences and performers. Wevers is being especially diligent on taking temperatures, asking questions and even researching a more breathable mask for dancing. Now for the tricky part: to keep the performers safe. "Climbing all over each other is our physical language, so we can't really do what we do," she says. "The challenge is to maintain our language in a safe way. https://www.dancemagazine.com/live-dance-performances-during-covid-2646226290.html?rebelltitem=8#rebelltitem8 (Thanks to Jan McNulty at BalletcoForum)

“The Swan” is Annette Buvoli of the Royal Ballet. (Thanks to Balletfanp at BalletcoForum) https://www.instagram.com/p/CCx2lnxgLcU/?igshid=otf56n83qs62

Anna Pavlova ? 😊

"The Swan" So lovely ! Anyone know who she is ? https://www.classicfm.com/discover-music/periods-genres/ballet/mystery-dancer-on-london-canalside-audience-passing-canoes/ (Thanks to Jan McNulty at BalletcoForum)

This was a typical Mariinsky “gala” performance, Pherank. You can judge what the length might be. I would say one and a half to two hours, but all the ‘Stars’ are there. PROGRAMME: July 11 I. Pas de deux from Act III of the ballet The Sleeping Beauty Performed by Maria Khoreva and Vladimir Shklyarov II. Highlight from the ballet Carmen-Suite Performed by Ekaterina Kondaurova and Yevgeny Ivanchenko III. Pas de deux from Act II of the ballet Giselle Performed by Olesya Novikova and Philipp Stepin IV. Adagio from the scene The Dream from Act I of the ballet Raymonda Performed by Alina Somova and Xander Parish V. Duet from the ballet Le Parc Performed by Nadezhda Batoeva and Konstantin Zverev VI. The Dying Swan Performed by Anastasia Matvienko VII. Pas de deux from Act III of the ballet Don Quixote Performed by Viktoria Tereshkina and Kimin Kim The last ballet for the season, August 5, will be the first regular one, La Sylphide, which runs 1 hour 40 minutes with one interval. I don’t recall it requiring a large corps de ballet. The article also states that the audience is very cooperative about keeping assigned seats. It’s common practice at the Mariinsky for folks with less expensive seats to try to move up to better ones, so this is good to hear. Also the article describes extensive surface cleaning for the first training classes anyway. The importance of this has been lowered in my reading from face to face contact, but it’s probably better to do more of something than less.

Here are some excerpts from an article (in russian, Google translation) in Tass about how the Mariinsky reopening is happening. “The theater was empty, because only the soloists were rehearsing. At first there were two people in the hall, it was a condition of the Federal Service for Supervision of Consumer Rights Protection and Human Welfare. Then they began to add one more person to the class, and three artists, a teacher and a pianist met in the hall, "says the prima ballerina of the Mariinsky Theater, People's Artist of Russia Viktoria Tereshkina." We come to the theater - they take our temperature, after each lesson in the hall is disinfected, the floors, machines are washed, disinfected with an ultraviolet lamp, only then you can enter the hall and rehearse. " The announcement of the first concert after the quarantine, even a few weeks after returning to rehearsals, came as a surprise to the artists. "We didn’t believe in it until the last. It was so amazing to go on stage, and to be honest, there was little time for preparation. It's one thing to do a lesson and quite another to rehearse and dance (on stage - TASS comment). But we survived. this is a test, and now such a practice has developed, in principle, very convenient for us: every weekend we go on stage, "Tereshkina said. Everyone's [audience] temperature is measured and the presence of protective equipment is checked. If the mask was not with you, it will be given out at the entrance. There are no intermissions yet. The auditorium has an unusually large number of empty seats: everyone sits in a checkerboard pattern - from the stalls to the upper tier. You cannot change, and the attendants are closely watching this. In general, according to employees, the audience is quite responsible about visiting the theater in the new conditions and trying to maintain discipline. The performances themselves are not going on as before. The distance is kept not only by the audience, but also, for example, by musicians, therefore the orchestra is presented in a reduced composition. It is the same on stage: in some mise-en-scènes that involve a large number of artists involved, their number is now also smaller. https://tass.ru/kultura/9043453 (Thanks to Elena C at Balletfriends) To translate you can use this. https://translate.google.com

From the United Kingdom…. “….the Prime Minister announced that indoor shows for socially distanced live audiences are allowed from August.” “We [Birmingham Royal Ballet] have created a 'safe back to work' plan for the dancers based on the process tested by professional sports.” This is from an announcement sent out by the Birmingham Royal Ballet. (Thanks to Alison at BalletcoForum)

The current Mariinsky season has be extended about two weeks to August 6 in the new theater and the smaller concert hall. The old theater reopens next Saturday, August 1, with an opera. A ballet gala will be held there Sunday, August 2. Two more online live orchestra broadcasts are scheduled for today and tomorrow. For now, the next ballet season will begin the same, September 17. http://www.mariinsky.ru/en/playbill/playbill/?year=2020&month=7 The small Palladium Theatre in London had a trial performance this week. All viewers are being monitored for their health afterwards. Seems like a good idea for all theaters that are reopening.

"There’s No Social Distancing for Dancers. How Can the Show Go On?" The New York Times "They talk about testing. Daily testing....Apart from a vaccine, daily testing — from home, before leaving for the studio — seems like the only feasible solution for safe rehearsal. Even though paper-strip tests are less sensitive than nasal swab tests, their speed and ease would be a game changer. "But before any consistent testing happens — and how long will that be? — there is an opportunity for dance to morph into something else as it finds a life off the stage." https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/24/arts/dance/safety-protocols-dance-coronavirus.html “Miami City Ballet is transforming an empty Lincoln Road store into a pop-up theater” https://www.timeout.com/miami/news/miami-city-ballet-is-transforming-an-empty-lincoln-road-store-into-a-pop-up-theater-072420 (Thanks to Ian Macmillan at BalletcoForum for these)

London gives it a go. " 'We are not a risk': London Palladium hosts an audience for live performance safety trial " “Beverley Knight – who Lloyd Webber thanked for being brave – then performed an hour-plus set, the first time anyone has performed on a London stage to a live audience since March.” https://www.standard.co.uk/go/london/theatre/london-palladium-safety-trials-andrew-lloyd-webber-beverley-knight-a4506961.html (thanks to Ian Macmillan at BalletcoForum)

Finally ! Someone I can look up to. 😊 Thanks, YouOverThere. They're his granddaughters, by the way, according to a follow-up video.

Here's part of the description of what the Mariinsky has in mind. It's worth noting that there will be no events from July 27 until September 14, which I believe is the normal vacation time anyway. A new feature will be the broadcasting of live events. The wisdom of reopening at this time can be debated and probably will be for a long time. I would have to attribute much of it to the indomitable resolve of Valerie Gergiev. ("....the Mariinsky Theatre is the first to have resolved to present a ballet gala for its audiences after such a lengthy break.") The allowing of almost two months between the approximately two weeks of reopening and the resumption of normal programming seems like a very good idea. It has given the artists a chance to get their feet back on the ground and will allow time to assess the outcome and plan for the future. I wish them much success. "Choreographic miniatures, scenes from ballet classics and contemporary works will be performed by Ekaterina Kondaurova, Oxana Skorik, Alina Somova, Viktoria Tereshkina, Olesya Novikova, Maria Khoreva, Maria Ilyushkina, Timur Askerov, Anderi Yermakov, Kimin Kim, Xander Parish, Vladimir Shklyarov, Konstantin Zverev and Alexander Sergeyev among others. For the company, these performances will be of particular importance as the dancers have not appeared on the stage for more than three months, and the Mariinsky Theatre is the first to have resolved to present a ballet gala for its audiences after such a lengthy break. "All events are to be held at the Mariinsky II, where particular health and safety measures will be employed; these have been developed in collaboration with Russia's Consumer Protection Association. Moreover, the number of seats available is limited to 1,000, with patrons being seated in a chessboard pattern and the use of means of individual protection will be a prerequisite throughout the audience being present in the building. "In returning to performances on the stage, the Mariinsky Theatre plans gradually to reduce the number of online screenings of recordings, which since 19 March have received almost a hundred million hits, and to broadcast live events. Today at 19.00 Moscow Time on mariinsky.tv and via the theatre's social networking sites it will be possible to see a live broadcast of Iolanta. http://www.mariinsky.ru/en/news1/2020/7/07_1/ (thank to Sophia at Dansomanie)

Good news for Maria fans. She’ll be doing the third Swan Lake (with Nikita Korneyev) of the ballet reopening, October 18, replacing her cancelled May 1 performance. (Oct 17 Oxana Skorik, Oct. 18 matinee, Yekaterina Osmolkina) July 12, she was the first to do anything from Swan Lake since the reopening, July 11. During the opening series of Galas she danced the Act II White Swan Duet with Nikita Korneyev. She will also do the Grand pas classique with Timur Askerov July 26 (a debut?).

The Mariinsky II (the new theatre) and the much smaller Concert Hall are being used. The seating arrangement is every other seat. All Events July 11-26 https://www.mariinsky.ru/en/playbill/playbill/?w=0&year=2020&month=7 Nothing in August. Ballet Sept-Feb. https://www.mariinsky.ru/en/playbill/nextplaybill/?type=ballet Here’s Maria Khoreva & Vladimir Shklyarov. Welcome back ! -- Although they look like they've never left. “Sleeping Beauty - for the FIRST TIME in the world, after almost four months of quarantine, the Mariinsky Theater is giving a ballet concert. It is not yet a full-size performance, but a concert of separate fragments from different ballet performances, including my favourite Sleeping Beauty. The Adagio from Sleeping Beauty is not the easiest thing to dance at the first ballet concert, but Vladimir Shklyarov and I were given this wonderful opportunity and it's super.”

Thanks, Maps. I've posted performances and casts through February at “Companies/Organizations with Specific Plans for Reopening”. The Mariinsky II and the much smaller Concert Hall are being used for July with seating being every other seat. https://balletalert.invisionzone.com/topic/45700-companiesorganizations-with-specific-plans-for-reopening/?tab=comments#comment-428530