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Buddy

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  1. These are a few things from Catherine Pawlick's interview that catch my attention. "Kovalyova, a 2016 Vaganova Academy graduate who was immediately accepted to the Bolshoi, was not offered the most obvious position, one in the Academy's neighbouring theatre, the Mariinsky. The director apparently had concerns about her height. In discussing the selection process with Makhar Vasiev, now artistic director of the Bolshoi Ballet but the man who held the same post at the Mariinsky for over a decade, Vasiev said incredulously, "How could one not accept her?" "About halfway through the rehearsal, Vasiev enters the stage area to observe part of the rehearsal and provide his own input...He is stern but there is an underlying sense of care in his words. "The Mariinsky Ballet, the obvious troupe for you, didn't accept you after graduation? " No, I understood during my last year of studies that they probably wouldn't, they said I was too tall." In regard to differences between the Mariinsky and Bolshoi style, what she says is interesting. " Technically speaking, no. It's possible there are nuances that differentiate the Moscow style, the expansiveness of gestures or arm positions maybe, but not technically." "Expansiveness" is perhaps a key word. I've a tendency to feel that Bolshoi dancers often try to create a strongly defined character while Mariinsky dancers try to create a dream state. Which do I like better? I'm very partial to 'dream state' but am extremely impressed by Bolshoi 'expressionism.' Bolshoi artists such as Svetlana Zakharova and Olga Smirnova (both from 'Vaganova/Mariinsky' beginnings) seem to excel at both. Svetlana Zakharova appeared to achieve her mastery of expression after the birth of her child. Olga Smirnova seems to be gravitating more to 'expressionism' for the moment, but must certainly still be capable of remarkable dreaminess, the result of Vaganova/Mariinsky grace and fineness. "What advice would you give to aspiring dancers? "….And remain yourself. There is an individuality and something special in each person, not just in artists, that is attractive and unique. " As I've suggested before, Alyona Kovalyova, for me, is the epitome of 'dream state,' Mariinsky-like beauty. I hope she always remains so.
  2. Thanks very much, Drew. I do have to admit, and was going to post, that my feelings about an Odette/Diamonds connection do come more from watching Olga Smirnova than Suzanne Farrell. I simply mentioned that my opinion is from my own uninfluenced by discussion viewing to show that there might be some uninfluenced merit to this idea. Added: By the way, I return the compliment.
  3. I don't recall reading any comments linking Odette/Diamonds before our discussion, although it's possible. My feeling that Diamonds is the more related is from my own viewing, even if the dance elements in Symphony in C seem more so.
  4. I still like this idea very much. I did write that I felt that Odette's Swan Lake (the White Swan duet) and Diamonds (the duet) have a great deal in common. I would also include Symphony in C. I asked if anyone saw similarities in physical details. I've done a very quick perusal and feel that the duets from Swan Lake and from Symphony in C may be the most structurally related -- overhead, reclining lifts and the final dramatic layback in both being the most noteworthy. Also my perceived longing for love by at least one of the famous Symphony in C ballerinas has a great deal in common with Swan Lake. On the other hand, I still feel that the Diamonds and Swan Lake duets may be more soulmates. Why? Not totally sure. There's an aura, for me, to the Diamonds duet that makes it special in the same way that Swan Lake is special to all of ballet. Also the Diamonds music seems more definitive, more of a statement, and the choreography responds. The music to Symphony in C is more a uniform flow. If anyone would like to add their thoughts, please do.
  5. The "fascination and enchantment" for me, Mnacenani, was the way that a brilliant sort of surrealism and Mozart were blended together so seamlessly by the ethereal beauty of the Mariinsky dancers and the creative 'genius,' in this particular work, of Angelin Preljocaj. The swooning scene of the gowned women comes to mind as one of the instances of traveling through a myriad of artistic and descriptive dimensions. Now back to Polina .
  6. I saw the movie last week in Philadelphia and agree with Charlie's quote. Anastasia Shevtsova is lovely looking and loveable. It's more of a general public movie than a study of the dance world. It reminds me somewhat of Keenan Kampa's movie. If you want a more focussed and real look at the ballet world for a young women in Russia I would recommend Bertrand Normand's sympathetic and feeling documentary, "Ballerina," from about ten years ago. It can be seen in its entirety here. https://vimeo.com/39818153 I loved Angelin Preljocaj's "Le Parc" as interpreted by the Mariinsky. I found it to be fascinating and enchanting. I believe that some of his choreography can be seen here. Charlie also wrote, "Thoroughly enjoyed it, especially after I made the connection between the reindeer in the forest and the tough male pedagogue at the ballet academy." I remembered to watch for the "reindeer" but forgot Charlie's exact analogy. I viewed it more as a symbol of the power and the survival of the arts. The pedagogue was perhaps the most interesting character for me along with Polina. He starts out as a very stern characterisation, but then changes into a much more sympathetic representation of someone really searching for meaning and love in his art. He represents a connection between the classical and a longing to expand. I was hoping that Polina, with her new found vision, would reconnect with him. In a way the presentation does this for her and I found this to be the most touching part of the movie. I won't give exact details for those who have yet to see the movie.
  7. I've been traveling and just read this. Nothing to add to what Drew has written, except that many rallied to her support and it seems that even large institutions were assuring her continued treatment. I hope that it was of some comfort for her and her family to know that many do care.
  8. Videos are very interesting things, Mnacenani. I find that in general that they never convey as well as the actual performance. For one thing, they are a copy and very seldom is a copy better than the original -- but ! You've stated something very interesting. I believe that Drew covered this ground a long time ago. Detail. Yes, indeed you can study detail probably much better than you can at a one shot performance. So being at a performance is probably the best thing, but ! To actually evaluate the inherent, overall quality, that which goes beyond one performance, videos may offer that. Which road you take in making an evaluation, I guess, is a totally personal thing. In any case I'm very glad that you feel better about what she did. I think that she's a beautiful talent whom I would personally liken more to Ulyana Lopatkina artistically than Svetlana Zakharova at the moment. Still I totally agree with you that she has many of the qualities of Svetlana Zakharova. I keep saying that I think that she's the ideal Mariinsky ballerina and I really hope that she stays that way as much as possible no matter where she's at. In regard to this performance, I really want to stand back in my comments, not having been there. I'd rather leave that to you. I will say that she may have been a little 'hesitant' at times, based on these few clips, but that she also shows wonderful, inherent grace and beauty of stature and motion. She also seemed very secure in both her entrance sequences as Odette and Odile showing fine theatrical control and confidence. My hope is that as she 'matures' that she also retains as much as possible of her youthful freshness and her Mariinsky-like fineness and dreaminess. I'm very sorry that you lost all your posting material at the airport. If I can offer a suggestion, I always enter what I'm writing in another memory file as I go along, which I just did with this one. Again, thanks so much for all your efforts in relating what you saw and your enthusiasm.
  9. Do they represent well what you saw, Mnacenani ? Perhaps you could point out some things that the videos might not show.
  10. Just some very first glance opinions. I like the idea of a Balanchine tribute very much. I'm not particularly good on ballet details unless I see one about thirty times. I tend to go for the enchantment. Yet, I was wondering today about physical comparisons between Odette's Swan Lake and Diamonds. I 'feel' a great deal in common, especially since the Bolshoi's Alyona Kovalyova (formerly Vaganova) has recently performed both of them. By the way, I still wouldn't mind at all seeing her back at the Mariinsky (Vaganova-Mariinsky). Maybe you could give me some thoughts about Swan Lake/Diamonds. I sense that they might be soulmates. Bob Dylan's name isn't as off the wall as it might seem. I'd really wouldn't mind a 'from somewheres far away' take on all this (rock'n'roll, Chinese classical....).
  11. I tend to get pretty emotionally immersed in these Festivals so I decided to give it a half-year head start. "Music is the mediator between the spiritual and the sensual life." - Ludwig van Beethoven I think that something similar could be said about the ballet.
  12. I read what Laura Cappelle wrote and if you'd like to discuss it and other critics' opinions the "Writings on Ballet" topic might be a fine place to do that. I'm sure that a lot of us would like to read this and your opinions together. Also in regard to what I mentioned above about seeing more than one performance in a series, at certain prices and availability this isn't always an easy thing to do. Yes, let's see how she does.
  13. Mnacenani, I've seen dancers that I liked very much and travelled great distances principally to see who didn't do what I was really hoping for. Still I've hung in there with them. Some have done great and some, well, I'm still hoping. (Something that I try to do is book for more than one performance, especially when travelling long distances, because if the one that I was there mainly to see wasn't what I was hoping for, sometimes someone else does great. Sometimes it's a big surprise and a very pleasant one.) As I've expressed before, we wouldn't be discussing any of these artists if a lot of folks didn't think that they were special. From only very limited video clip viewing 'Alyona Kovalyova' (your chosen spelling for the moment) seems to have some exceptionally beautiful qualities. Hopefully she'll show these for the appreciation of everyone, especially some of us who've really been excited about her and in your case actually travelled all the way to Russia just to see. Thanks, anyway, for sharing what you saw with us and I'm very glad that there were parts of the performance that you really enjoyed.
  14. What kind of audience response did 'She' get, Mnacenani ?
  15. This is an interesting idea, Charlie. Can you suggest any choreographers or works ? The Mariinsky's Yuri Smekalov is a possibility, but he works in 'historic recreations' so he would have big shoes to fill. Forsythe ? Bob Dylan ? I happen to have a few of my major works that might be interesting, ranging from two to five minutes.
  16. Мне кажется, что вы очень хорошо говорите по-русски. (It seems to me that you are speaking Russian very well). Speaking of pretensions, my Russian is a google translation, but from my very limited vocabulary it seems ok. Hope that you see a really great performance and certainly look forward to hearing you and your 'expert's' comments. Wish I could be there, but I'm hanging on to the hope the she'll be at next year's Mariinsky Festival because such things have happened. She'll be opening the season in the company of Svetlana Zakharova, Olga Smirnova and Anna Nikulina. Not bad for a newly arrived 18 year-old. Will you be seeing any of the others ? Added: Funny anecdote. Makhar Vaziev, Artistic Director, said in an interview that Alyona Kovalyova (Alena Kovaleva) will now have the chance to learn from great established artists such as Olga Smirnova (25 years-old !?)
  17. The timing would certainly imply a connection. What form it will take is another matter. It'll be interesting to see, although, as I wrote above, the programming format hasn't really changed much from year to year. I'd be fine with a heavy dose of the classics. This is pretty much where the Mariinsky shines like no other, although I think that the dancers do very well with Balanchine and do fine with the more sensitive modern and seem to have fun with some of the more entertaining modern (i.e. the works of their own, young Maxim Petrov).
  18. I didn't know about the Petipa Bicentennial, Charlie. I'm not sure what to make of it except that the Festival has generally been at the end of March the last few years. Is there more than a seminar planned for the Vaganova/Mariinsky ? Since much of each Festival is Petipa material, there's not a lot that would have to be change. The Festival programs have been fairly alike except for the one when six Swan Lakes were performed about 10 years ago. The Festival has never really been about a theme or inventive programming. The attraction is the remarkable quality of performance.
  19. Thanks, Charlie, for your thoughts. I'm glad that you enjoyed it. I hope to see it in about a week. I'll try to keep the reindeer connection in mind. Anastasia Shevtsova is not a current member of the Mariinsky as far as I can see from the company list. I've read many of the reviews and they are generally favorable. One idea that appears in several is the theme of escaping from the constraints of the ballet world. Even Mikhail Baryshnikov said that this was his reason for leaving Russia. Here's another point of view from Olga Smirnova, Bolshoi Principal ballerina, shared by many. "One and the same performance can not be performed in the same way: new nuances appear, in some places a new understanding and understanding appears, and this process is endless, just as we change without end: we grow up, learn, discover ourselves and others. It's life, and exactly the same life is hidden inside the images and heroes that I'm performing." http://www.elle.ru/celebrities/interview/olga-smirnova-tolko-kogda-balet-stanovitsya-smyislom-jizni-v-nem-mojno-chego-to-dobitsya/
  20. Looking over the schedule for 2018 the only time slot available in late February-early April, the normal Festival season, is March 4-17. https://www.mariinsky.ru/en/playbill/nextplaybill?type=ballet
  21. Alina Cojocaru, former Royal Ballet star, I have to mention once again, was featured in six(!?) Mariinsky Festival full length classics. She may well be the all-time star of these remarkable festivals.
  22. I have a funny/not so funny story, Charlie. Before 2014 she returned to the Mariinsky to perform Swan Lake. I was in London at the time and decided that I would do anything to see this. I bought a ticket and reserved a flight as the perfomance was only ten days away. Then things fell through. The consulates in London and Paris said I had to get my visa in the US and Geneva, where I usually could get one with no problem was on vacation. Much of the money was recovered but I was not a happy camper. Fortunately about a week later the Bolshoi was performing Giselle in Lausanne, Switzerland, close to where I live, and I had tickets. They were fantastic. Svetlana Lunkina had a very good night and Nina Kaptsova was an absolute dream. This was a once in a lifetime adventure in impulsive behavior, but that's how strongly I feel about Veronika Part, especially about seeing her do something at the Mariinsky. They did invite her back for a divertissement at their Festival, which I saw, and she did just fine. I spoke to her very briefly at the reception and told her that I thought that she was great and that if she comes back she should insist on doing another Swan Lake. In regard to the one that I couldn't get to, the only review that I could find was by a poster in Russia who said that she was excellent. For me, Charlie, and for many others from what I've read and heard, she has a streak of enchantment running through her, that radiates even in her weakest performances, of which I've seen very few. I'm sorry that her Giselle seemed like a dud, but I'm sure that I would have found something to reassure me of her 'magic.' I always do. And I think that if given the time she could make the Giselle work just fine. It's a role that I don't think that she's had much experience with. Swan Lake seems to be her strong card, but I've also seen her do two remarkable Sleeping Beauties, which many felt wasn't the best role for her. I think that she is an artist that should be tailored to if necessary, because she's that special. I have seen her given some very questionable (for anyone) material. Glad that you liked her ABT Swan Lake. I've seen about six of them, loved them all, and one, after one by Ulyana Lopatkina, was probably the finest that I've ever seen. I think that the Mariinsky, which is loaded with so much talent that it can let the likes of Olga Smirnova, Yevgenia Obraztsova, and Alena Kovaleva seemingly slip away and yet shine like the sun, still would shine all the brighter if it could fine a place for Veronika Part. In my mind she's always been a Mariinsky ballerina, who in addition is a remarkable one of a kind that belongs to the world. Even if her 'magic' were to show for only a moment (never the case) it's greatly worth seeing. For me, she's that special.
  23. Please delete. Duplicate response.
  24. It would appear that she has at least taken classes recently at the Royal Ballet. http://balletalert.invisionzone.com/topic/42745-veronika-part-leaving-abt/?page=17&tab=comments#comment-387345 She is such an amazing talent. Her artistry is an Enchantment. Hopefully some company will fully recognise and feature this, as I don't think that it's happened yet. With this ability she could perform for years. The Royal Ballet, which I don't get a chance to see very often, seems to have a theatrical strength, perhaps coming from that part of the world's great literary and theatrical traditions. I see it strongly in Xander Parish (now a Mariinsky Principal) and in such current dancers as Marianela Nunez. I think that this could be a very good fit for Veronika Part. Hopefully she can at least be given a guest status. Marcelo Gomes had this at one time. If not given more, maybe the Mariinsky could also offer her something similar and she could do some exciting freelancing. She is one of several exceptional ballerinas today, whom I don't think have ever been fully featured. They all may be at slightly outside their company's box, which may account for this. I would hope that the Royal Ballet would give her a chance. It's a decision that it might well cherish someday.
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