Buddy

I first saw Olga Esina several years ago at a benefit gala. I thought that she was absolutely Lovely. Last year she was invited to perform at the Mariinsky Festival Gala. She is a graduate of the Vaganova School (Mariinsky) and danced with the company for two years before leaving. Once again I really enjoyed her Airy Loveliness. I was becoming a true fan. This year she was invited to perform "Swan Lake" at the Festival, possibly the most important role. I've written here that although Svetlana Zakharova as Giselle gave possibly the best performance of Anything that I've ever seen, Olga Esina's was perhaps the Festival's Most Beautiful. There were two elements that stood out. One consisted of the Quiet, Gently Beautiful Passages of her White Swan, Odette. Contained within these was a wealth of intricate detail, elegant and brilliant, yet never imposing itself on the total sense of calm and undisturbed flow. The other element was her exciting and technically brilliant Expressiveness of Motion and Transitioning. (I do want to say that I've seen an internet video clip and, at least for me right now, it doesn't capture this extremely fine performance as well as it could). Since she was named Guest Principal at the Mariinsky I've watched a video clip (over and over) of the dance for three from Le Corsaire and I've recently seen her perform "Swan Lake" twice in Naples, Italy. Something new has caught my attention…. * Elegance * It's probably this, that sets her apart and makes her so special. Also appearing were Ulyana Lopatkina and Oxana Skorik. Ulyana Lopatkina has to be one of the all-time greats. Catching my attention in the younger two was a subtle contrast. Oxana Skorik, for me, has a 'Purity' of Fineness, of Flow. Olga Esina, within her Beautifully Uniform adagio (slow and gentle) passages, has a more noticeable 'punctuation' of her phrasing, extremely elegant in its beauty. In these two "Swan Lake"s, besides being a dream of elegance and character, Olga Esina was sensitive, warm and youthful. She was embraceably lovely. She danced twice in three days and was equally Vibrant and 'Delightful' both times. I hope that she's made a permanent Mariinsky Principal as soon as possible. She's certainly worthy of it. Her Beauty Is A Step Beyond.

This is a review that I posted elsewhere of Oxana Skorik's two "Swan Lake" performances two weeks ago in Naples, Italy. This is from the only press review (GBOPERA Magazine) that I've seen of the performances. "An Odette / Odile technically flawless, beautiful long lines, sustained, even more deserving of praise for having been danced with delicate lyricism suited to the role, especially in the "White" Pas de deux, the end of which unleashed a veritable ovation, supported even by the members of the orchestra! The most difficult parts were carried out smoothly and with poetic ease, thanks to the fine use of the arms, real swan wings. Refined and sober, she appeared perfect in the role of Odette…." (translated from italian. thanks to NEOPHYTE at Dansomanie for posting this) http://www.gbopera.it/2013/09/il-lago-d ... di-napoli/ " ….[an ovation] supported even by the members of the orchestra! " If this is true than I'm indeed impressed. I saw both of her performances and they were outstanding. I agree with what this reviewer has written. I do have to add one fact. In neither performance of the Act II White Swan duet were the two overhead lifts performed. This possibly was a partnering issue. Oxana Skorik, at least on point, is taller than Vladimir Shklyarov (her partner in both performances), and someone may have chosen not to include them, because of difficulty. (I did once see an entire series of Mariinsky Swan Lakes where almost everyone omitted these lifts, although this is not usually done) In an internet video of Swan Lake, danced with Timur Askerov, she performs all the lifts in the entire ballet with confidence and immense beauty. These two lifts were the only elements in both performances that she omitted that I noticed. Although there was at times a sign of tenseness, all the other technical challenges were handled flawlessly. I continue to feel that she has the ability to be one of the finest ballerinas of our times. Perhaps she already is. Correction made: Vladimir Shklyarov was her partner.

"Ballet is a living art, it can never be a museum piece because it's made by individuals who are alive, who have emotions and profound energy. Body language is universal. Even today, as in the past. The public has a sense of participation, of immersing itself in the story. It is something vital, not a movie." This is a quote by Oxana Skorik in a very brief interview in italian. http://www.azzurroservice.net/biglietteria/newsDetail.php?id=3293 (thanks to "maps" for posting this at another topic) Any thoughts about this ? For instance, is there an interaction that goes on ? Is the audience actually part of the performance ?

Gia Kourlas in the "New York Times" says that she really misses "Bunheads" (so do I) and tells why. She asks this question and ends with this touch of optimism. "Can nothing be done to extend its life? Netflix? HBO? I’d take Lifetime. "But what if Ms. Sherman-Palladino’s characters could really come to life? I can’t stop imagining “Bunheads” as a musical. The dances are already choreographed. The stellar cast, after all, featured the Broadway veterans Ms. Foster and Ms. Bishop. The farewell dance could be the encore. Maybe all we need is a bigger sandbox." http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/02/arts/dance/bunheads-is-gone-breaking-pointe-endures.html?ref=dance&_r=1& I'm quite fine as well with the original "sandbox" put back right where it was. Not an impossible idea for a 'not only of dance interest' *Very Entertaining TV Series*.

Male dancers are flashier, Birdsall, which I think generates more audience response anywhere. Confessions of A Loving Fan: I try to compensate for that when I'm in St. Petersburg. Years ago one of our favorite posters here must have heard me and accused me of being a claque at this forum. If so I'm the least financially compensated claque that there is. My 'claquing' costs me a near fortune. Added thought: More often these days, I would rather remain stone silent after a great performance, so as not to break the spell, but human nature doesn't always work that way and artists, even ones casting 'ethereal spells', do seem to love applause, although I think that I might have jolted Viktoria Tereshkina once at a curtain call with my burst of enthusiasm. Added added comment: I was sitting next to an English gentleman once, Birdsall, who fit the exact description of the folks sitting behind you until the show really started rolling and then he was 'howling' louder than anyone. Stereotypes ain't always what they're supposed to be. Once again Viktoria Tereshkina was the culprit.

In regard to ballet audiences in Russia, Tala Lee-Turton (ninth UK student to be accepted to the Bolshoi school) has this to say in a very interesting and pleasant article. “The atmosphere is incredible and Russian audiences [bolshoi] are much less reserved than they are over here [uK]. They are pretty raucous [including claque?, the very few that I've experienced are quite loud] and they leave their seats in the stalls to go right up close to the stage to applaud the principle dancers." http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/yorkshire-living/arts/tala-lee-turton-a-leap-into-the-unknown-1-5969208 (thanks to BalletcoForum for posting this) Mariinsky audiences are also very enthusiastic, with almost no claque ever, but not 'raucous'. They will go to the front of the stage at the final curtain call to applaud. Also a phenomenon that I've only seen at the Mariinsky. With only a handful of applauding spectators left in the theatre, even the greatest of the stars will return again and again for a curtain call to show their appreciation. [smiley added later as to be in compliance with Truth In Reporting Codes]

As a contrast to this series I recall episodes posted here about the New Zealand ballet. They seemed to have a relaxed feeling in regard to personal matters and company attitude with a lot of emphasis on the dancing, which I really enjoyed.

The thing that I like about the program is that whatever their personal situations, and some of that is quite touching, the minute they start to dance they look like goddesses (Christiana in particular) and gods. That's ballet I guess.

Thanks, Bart, and keep the imagination 'dancing'. Chinese landscape art has a dance quality for me. http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwhitehotmagazine.com%2Farticles%2Fpainting-art-the-graphic-novel%2F1618&h=0&w=0&sz=1&tbnid=fp9_41rcTPoWWM&tbnh=149&tbnw=338&zoom=1&docid=dUr3Y14To5h-oM&ei=8VcaUuGpI8ycigKzoYHgCw&ved=0CAEQsCU#imgdii=_ Added: The sixth painting on the right feels like "Swan Lake". (Am I 'obsessed' with "Swan Lake"? Yes. ) http://www.zen-garden.org/img/misc/RPDcj001b.jpg

Haven't had a chance to read the articles but, she is such a *Remarkable Lovely* artist, I truly hope that she finds a place where she is really comfortable and appreciated.

I'm still very much following the parallel development of Oxana Skorik and Olga Smirnova (now at the Bolshoi). Above is posted a video clip of Oxana Skorik's Act IV Odette from Swan Lake (starting at about 22:00). For me, it's as fine a video statement of her beauty as I've yet found. Here is one of Olga Smirnova which, from what I've viewed on the internet, shows her at her Vaganova finest with qualities that I cherish.

In the above scenario the transition that the actor/dancers make from the "Birth of Venus" tableau vivant to the centerpiece, the *Odette* duet from Swan Lake, could be very wonderful. Here is another very interesting work of art for dancers to interact with. http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap130819.html "Dancing Painting" -- indeed.

Why Include the *Odette* duet from Swan Lake in my preceding scenario ? Because it could be a consummate expression of the ideal of Venus, goddess of love and beauty. Also the painting is considered one of the finest in the world and certainly one of the most wonderful expressions of female beauty. The *Odette* duet is perhaps the finest work of dance and is also an exaltation of female love and beauty.

"Right from the start, Diaghilev was concerned with the total artwork, what he called the gesamtkunstwerk," Garafola said. "That all the pieces [of a performance] should somehow meld -- that the whole should be bigger than the individual parts…." So how about something like this, Bart (you've graduated to a capital "B" here). I'll try not to let it get too busy. We place Sandro Botticelli's "Birth of Venus" (it's a Big painting) or a copy in the lobby. We also project a huge background image on the stage. Then a darkened part of the stage lights up and there are dancer/actors in a tableau vivant. They pantomime, dance, act and sing ---- Venus in a leotard of course. A Mariinsky couple then performs the *Odette* White Swan Duet from "Swan Lake". The actor/dancers return to the stage and to the original tableau.The lights go off with only the huge projected image of Sandro Botticelli's "Birth of Venus" remaining. It's a start. If you like the idea, Bart, we can get to work on the libretto. [last sentence in second to last paragraph corrected]

Here's a different way of looking at this. Not Visual Art <--> Dance, but Both Combined. "Under the direction and mentorship of Diaghilev, the visual artists, composers and choreographers who worked with the Ballets Russes transformed ballet…. "Right from the start, Diaghilev was concerned with the total artwork, what he called the gesamtkunstwerk," Garafola said. "That all the pieces [of a performance] should somehow meld -- that the whole should be bigger than the individual parts…." http://www.pbs.org/newshour/art/blog/2013/08/ballets-russes.html Bart, related to your comments about "The Birth of Venus" by Sandro Botticelli this is a quote from the first post. "In this work, as was Botticelli's desire , the essential element of the composition is the line….He sought through the values ​​of a musical line dancing and sinuous, melodic harmony of the composition…." http://en.wikipedia....ct_-_edited.jpg This applies very much to the central figure, Venus, who, for me, although being perfectly still, conveys a sense of dancing.

Not tepid at all at the performances that I've been to, Drew.

I've not followed this topic, but having been to nine Mariinsky Festivals in a row I'll offer some quick observations. First I've hardly noticed any of it. One Mariinsky 'secondary' soloist (?) artist does seem to have a claque 'supporter', which for me really detracts from the artist's superior performances. Another absolutely brilliant guest artist from the Bolshoi always has a 'claque' in toe, once again detracting considerably from the performance. (This could be an effort by a claque to detract from the performance, but this artist at least once voiced approval of claque support, so I don't think so.) Again, I've noticed very little of it at the Mariinsky.

Dirac, for the moment I'm talking about the Swan Lake that was essentially created in Russia. What's Russian about it ? Birdsall, also a very good point. There isn't just one Russian way in ballet of doing the same thing.

Ballet is almost a religion today in Russia. Yet if you think about Russia in general, would you really make a connection ? The Essence of Russia -- The Essence of A 'Classical' Russian Ballet ? What's Russian about Swan Lake for instance ? Added thought: The most famous paintings in St. Petersburg world famous Hermitage Museum, the Rembrandts, da Vinci's, Matisse's….can be so different from so much that you'll see in St. Petersburg's National Museum. (I'll qualify on the Rembrandt's though. For me they do have a lot of remarkable soul, which is also so very 'Russian'.) Yet much in the Hermitage feels like 'Russian' 'classical' ballet to me. Does 'Russian' 'Classical' Ballet have 'Russian Soul' ?

No, sandik, we haven't. Would you like to tell us some more ? I love to think Rembrandt when I think about Russia -- so beautifully Soulful. The Hermitage in St. Petersburg has some of his finest. I don't see him in the Russian classic ballets for the moment. The Prodigal Son is probably the most famous. Would George Balanchine have seen this. The Hermitage was the Tsar's private domain at the time. Also he apparently wasn't that interested in art before Diaghilev, but I can certainly relate this work to a video clip of him rehearsing Mikhail Baryshnikov in the role. Also this scene is perhaps the most powerful in the Mariinsky's interpretation with the amazing Vladimir Ponomarev playing the father. http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://danhoran.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/rembrandt-return-of-the-prodigal-son11.jpg&imgrefurl=http://datinggod.org/2013/03/10/we-the-not-so-prodigal-sons/&h=3198&w=2536&sz=713&tbnid=cU05pn4Hc3tElM:&tbnh=90&tbnw=71&zoom=1&usg=__vX7WT86g4T8wQY-sgXTBQ3FbquE=&docid=9LGR7xcwbCofRM&sa=X&ei=qMYLUumhBoKVygGrrIC4Ag&ved=0CGkQ9QEwAQ&dur=116 I don't see any direct Rembrandt connections in the classics, such as Swan Lake. Although they were neo-gothic in theme they seem very French classical in feel because of their delicacy. The white swan acts attributed to Lev Ivanov might be the best example. I can't think of a particular work of art, but French and Italian influenced decorative art was probably all over the place. St. Petersburg architecture is a very interesting mixture of this with Russian 'flamboyance'. Here's a one of a kind jewel box of a church in St. Petersburg that I love for its exterior design -- The Chesme Church. It's even unusually Gothic in its delicacy. I can feel Swan Lake all over the place in this one. https://www.google.com/search?q=The+Chesme+Church&client=safari&rls=en&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=SssLUp3LNLLlyAGLx4GwDA&ved=0CEMQsAQ&biw=1180&bih=731#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=AM-WIpmZ2GvWHM%3A%3BCp0OmAzIwlHLnM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fupload.wikimedia.org%252Fwikipedia%252Fcommons%252Fthumb%252F7%252F72%252FChesme_Church.jpg%252F220px-Chesme_Church.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fen.wikipedia.org%252Fwiki%252FChesme_Church%3B220%3B294

Hi, bart. It's always great to have your goodwill, sense of moderation and intelligence nearby. Really ! Bart's possible reply -- " Ah, gosh ! " I'd like to reply to some of the things that you've written at another time. The Caravaggio ballet sounds very interesting, especially the casting, Paolina Semionova, and Vladimir Malakhov (Beatrice Knop I'm not familiar with). Something that I'm still searching for is a famous ballet that relates directly to a work of art in its essence. I don't know the works of George Balanchine nearly as well as others here, but he might be a likely candidate. Dirac, forgive me.

Here is one brief description of Michelangelo's Rondanini Pietà just mentioned. "When Michelangelo began this final pietà in 1556, he chose to work from a piece he had begun but abandoned nearly ten years earlier. In the early stages of the Rondanini Pietà, Mary was holding up the slender Christ with her outstretched arms as if offering his spirit, but with time and through nearly three different stages, Christ sank down, now emerging from Mary's breast and exaggerated in his slender form. Finally, Michelangelo drew the heads of the two figures closer and closer together, dissolving the barrier between mother and son." http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/arts/artwork/michelangelo-sculptures22.htm This is a work that I've chosen because of its immediately visible sensitivity compared to his many immensely powerful figures with their subtle gentleness. This work is fascinating in that it's creation marked a voyage, almost a lifetime in a little more than ten years. This can be strongly felt in the statue. A static work of art actually moves through time and realities. These two figures are so expressively powerful in their abstraction, so otherworldly in their flow and so soulfully human in their realism, that I would think that they could have a wonderful influence of someone in dance. And back to George Balanchine. He seemed to be fascinated by the great natural beauty of animals. He told Suzanne Farrell that she should buy a cat and watch it carefully. She did. This could be a largely different thing than the study of art. Dirac, if you read this, do you think that this was an important influence in George Balanchine's works ?

Thanks, dirac. I would again offer these two quotes from above. "One of the things for which he was always grateful to Diaghilev was that the latter took some pains to develop Balanchine's knowledge and appreciation of painting….. (page 77, "Balanchine: A Biography" by Bernard Taper) http://books.google....ainting&f=false This is one that Edward Villella tells a lot about George Balanchine. "One time in particular, when I was having trouble with the pas de deux [Prodigal Son?], he said, “no, not right, not right, Byzantine icons, dear.” So I went back and looked at some Byzantine icons and right there I understood the whole port de bras." http://dancetabs.com...mi-city-ballet/ Another thing that makes the visual arts interesting to those in dance might be obvious. No words are used, either spoken or ,in most cases, written. And back to Michelangelo for a moment. This is a work that I would like to offer just for viewing for now. Any thoughts or feelings anyone ? The Rondanini Pieta by Michelangelo https://www.google.com/search?q=La+Piet%C3%A0+Rondanini&client=safari&rls=en&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=ErAJUv2aDOm6yAGYsoCwDg&ved=0CC8QsAQ&biw=1180&bih=713#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=nlz0htxKFwugmM%3A%3B-H72rY2-73VtGM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Frobedachiodi.associazionetestori.it%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2009%252F04%252F2154247703_8aedaba176.jpg%253Fw%253D72%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Frobedachiodi.associazionetestori.it%252Ftag%252Fpieta-rondanini%252F%3B375%3B500 https://www.google.com/search?q=La+Piet%C3%A0+Rondanini&client=safari&rls=en&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=ErAJUv2aDOm6yAGYsoCwDg&ved=0CC8QsAQ&biw=1180&bih=713#facrc=_&imgdii=2mrvS2vdm9_EIM%3A%3B60eceZyHNDjegM%3B2mrvS2vdm9_EIM%3A&imgrc=2mrvS2vdm9_EIM%3A%3BBl8IPf9CnrFukM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fupload.wikimedia.org%252Fwikipedia%252Fcommons%252F4%252F44%252FMichelangelo_piet%2525C3%2525A0_rondanini.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fcommons.wikimedia.org%252Fwiki%252FFile%253AMichelangelo_piet%2525C3%2525A0_rondanini.jpg%3B1536%3B2048 https://www.google.com/search?q=La+Piet%C3%A0+Rondanini&client=safari&rls=en&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=ErAJUv2aDOm6yAGYsoCwDg&ved=0CC8QsAQ&biw=1180&bih=713#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=POiQQR7-4FdTAM%3A%3BpMNqqRb0d1uuxM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fupload.wikimedia.org%252Fwikipedia%252Fcommons%252Fe%252Fef%252FMilano_-_Castello_sforzesco_-_Michelangelo%252C_Piet%2525C3%2525A0_Rondanini_by_Michelangelo_(1564)_-_Foto_Giovanni_Dall'Orto%252C_6-jan-2006_-_09.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fcommons.wikimedia.org%252Fwiki%252FFile%253AMilano_-_Castello_sforzesco_-_Michelangelo%252C_Piet%2525C3%2525A0_Rondanini_by_Michelangelo_(1564)_-_Foto_Giovanni_Dall'Orto%252C_6-jan-2006_-_09.jpg%3B2048%3B3072 https://www.google.com/search?q=La+Piet%C3%A0+Rondanini&client=safari&rls=en&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=ErAJUv2aDOm6yAGYsoCwDg&ved=0CC8QsAQ&biw=1180&bih=713#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=UoKUYi8fFCX82M%3A%3BQX7VacFqJvdyiM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.vivereilpalazzo.it%252Fimg%252Fincontriarte%252Fpietarondanini02.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.vivereilpalazzo.it%252Findex.php%253Furl%253D.%252Fincontriarte_milano_rondanini.php%3B378%3B480 As a comparison The David by Michelangelo https://www.google.com/search?q=david+michelangelo+image&client=safari&rls=en&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=M7QJUou1M-KYyAGXkIHgDQ&ved=0CC8QsAQ&biw=1180&bih=713#facrc=_&imgrc=jUSKzoTwMSmzUM%3A%3BU4_Qf3V3T8u4TM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.econ.ohio-state.edu%252Fjhm%252Farch%252Fdavid%252FDavid_von_Michelangelo.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.econ.ohio-state.edu%252Fjhm%252Farch%252Fdavid%252FDavid.htm%3B1071%3B2046 [one of the posted images was changed]

Thank you very much, dirac, for this information. Last year I spent several hours with this painting and the same with Michelangelo's "David" and 'friends'. I hope to do the same again in about a month. Michelangelo is another very interesting possibility for this discussion. I think that he might not have effected George Balanchine as much, because he was so male oriented. Still he's a fascinating artist if you want to consider motion/emotion, even dance. I wonder what other artists were particularly interesting to George Balanchine and why he apparently felt that paintings were so important along with Sergei Diaghilev. I'd like to explore more why Perugino seemed to be his early favorite. Sandro Botticelli's "Birth of Venus" is perhaps my favorite female work of art. Michelangelo's "David" being the male counterpart. Both, as guidebooks are quick to point, reside in Florence, Italy and are the pride of the city. I wonder what he saw in "The Birth of Venus" that resembled Suzanne Farrell. Maybe the resemblance was the Suzanne Farrell 'Experience' as well a portrait similarity. I'd like to think so. When you told me, dirac, that my choice of titles for this topic, "The Dancing Painting", was a good one, I think it showed that you may understand this title better than I do. Thanks so much for your continued interest. " Lovely aside: Several days after seeing "The Birth of Venus" I took a bus into the Tuscany countryside near Florence. Sitting next to me was a teenage blond student on her way back to her village. She was a beauty. I made a joke to the folks sitting next to me after she got off the bus, that she had told me that she was "Botticelli's Venus." She was lovely to talk to as well as beautiful. She made the six weeks that I spent trying to learn some Italian for a four day visit totally worthwhile. Not only that, but she told me that she spent each summer in India. (In fascinating retrospect, your 'ballet may have originated in India' connection, Katharine Kantner?) Not your typical girl from the Italian countryside. I wont forget her. And: A partial answer to my question of why George Balanchine and Sergei Diaghilev considered painting so important, related to dance. From the quote in the first paragraph of this topic: * "Diaghilev understood that the principles of composing bodies and space in art were closely allied to those of dance." * I'm very interested at the moment in works of art that have a dance Feeling to them, that can be seen as actually dancing, i.e. "The Birth of Venus" (also those of Michelangelo and more abstractly , Picasso or Chinese landscape scrolls). This may not speak to how a particular work has directly influenced dance, but if famous dance 'creators' such as George Balanchine and Sergei Diaghilev studied them so carefully, maybe there is even more than "composing bodies and space," such as implied motion, expression and events in life, although these may be implied in the quote. "Composing" can imply motion and how a static work of art can accomplish this and relate it to those focussing on dance can be very interesting.

Their "luckiness", elianam, is perhaps that they were born able to do something slightly better than the rest of us. We all have something special to contribute and their's is balletic beauty. Still they are just extensions of all of us. I would love to see the name of every member of the company somehow displayed in bright lights on top of the theater. Added: (for a change) I do tend to find that 'Principal' dancers are 'Principals' for a good reason and they usually command all my attention during a performance. I wouldn't mind seeing more works where the entire cast is more prominent. This is possibly more of a Balanchine point of view. Added added: "Paquita" or "Etudes" come to mind immediately. [major spelling correction made]