Buddy

Since this is probably the first "Classical' ballet that I have seen in this style it might be interesting to share a few impressions. I have focused mostly on dancers from Russia, either as lead dancers or as an entire company. I have seen a few performances before by ABT, but the ones last week were much more pronounced in style. I felt that ballet dancers from Russia may move with more fluidity and have a more delicate atmosphere. A company like the Kirov-Mariinsky is also very famous for the unity of it's group dancing. One of the first things that I sensed at last week's performances was that even if the dancers weren't totally uniform in their moves, although often they were, there was an intangible unity to their dancing. It seemed like there was a strong inner force connecting them. They appeared to 'know' that they were connected. It seemed to come more from the center of their body perhaps, rather than from their feet, their legs or their arms. It seemed more like something I that I sensed rather than saw. The corps de ballet of White Swans danced at a much higher velocity and energy level than I had ever seen before in a classical ballet, especially a Swan Lake. Even in other American 'classical' performances, ABT, ect., I have never seen this kind of energetic corps de ballet dancing before. Gillian Murphy was the Odette/Odile, who came closest to this of the lead ballerinas. I have to say that I am only minimally familiar with the Balanchine style, but quickness and energy are some of the things that I have heard that Balanchine is famous for. I have always associated delicacy, subtlety and precision with Swan Lake. The ABT performances extended these boundaries. Somehow for me it worked extremely well, although I am not quite sure why because I love most the 'delicacy' of Swan Lake and of classical ballet in general. 'Drama' was a key element now, but here it didn't somehow overwhelm the sensitivity of the dancing. I recalled almost immediately a recent quote by Alina Cojocaru saying how concerned she was at first to get her Odette/Odile just right and to later decide that there really is no one way or 'right' way to dance this part. Still I felt a subtlety to what the ABT dancers were doing, that came more from restraint. The moves might not have been as expressive, expansive or fluid as I have seen in dancers from Russia, but it was in this constraint that the subtlety seemed to exist. The expression was there, but it was being held back, and from this came a sense of compressed energy. You could maybe feel what might happen, and it was almost as tangible as actually seeing it happen. The fast velocity of the White Swans dancers, that built dramatically in what I mentioned before seemed like a wonderful Symphonic Progression, worked very well for me. As much as they might have appeared to be charging around the stage there once again was a hard to define sensitivety to it. The sense of femininity was always dominant. There was one element that I would call "Almost Russian", and that was the facial expression of the White Swans that was very commited and compelling. A very fine quality, I thought. There was also a 'characterization' at times by the entire cast that was very commited and compelling , yet different from what I would call "Russian". It too seemed to work just fine, although I am still unable to describe it very well. This wasn't a purist Swan Lake, but it certainly wasn't a radical one either. It seemed to me to be one where the obvious delicacy was replaced by a much more subtle one that for me was just as wonderful.

Thank you for telling me this, carbro. If she is coching Odette/Odiles I would say that she is doing an extremely good job. chiapuris, did you see her there Friday ?

Were You the Friend who told me that Irina Kolpakova was in the audience ? (clickable 'Smiling' Smiley). [format later edited]

chiapuris, thank you very much for your very fine review. I definitely agree with the good things that you say about Paloma Herrera. I saw her a few years ago performing Giselle. I said to myself at the time, " I guess you don't have to be from Russia to be a great dancer (but it helps !) ". Your statement "Her Odile reminded me of an enchanted enchantress" seems like a very fine description--even more so on Sunday. Thanks, Dale, for the information. Does Irina Kolpakova 'coach' anyone in particular ?

Does anyone know specifically what Irina Kolpakova does at ABT these days ? A friend pointed her out to me. She was in the audience watching Paloma Herrera's performance Sunday and appparently would go backstage immediately at the intermission. Also the dancing of the corps de ballet swans seems to be speeded up since the video was released. I find this to be very effective, but that is just my opinion. Does anyone know who might be responsible for this and also who does some of the 'acting' coaching, which also to me seemed very fine at times ?

May I just say most briefly that for me All the ABT performances this week in Detroit were Outstanding !! Michele Wiles was an overwhelming surprise in how beautifully she did. Paloma Herrera added a wonderful layer of character portrayal in her second performance to her exceptional display of grace and technique the first night. Gillian Murphy was a dramatic megaforce. And on and on it goes. A simply wonderful week !!

I understand perfectly. I try to see as many as I possibly can. They are never the same even with the same artists reappearing. The ABT site has just announced that Gilliam Murphy will be scheduled for a second appearance. She is great ! Last night Paloma Herrera danced with beautiful dreamlike lyricism and Gennadi Saveliev as Siegfried also danced very gracefully with wonderful suspended in mid air jumps. sz, the pas de trois on night one was danced by Maria Riccetto, Stella Abrera and Jared Mattthews and on night two by Melissa Thomson, Hee Seo and probably Jared Matthews again (there was a cast change announcement that I missed, but he looked the same).

This is a posting that I have made elsewhere on the internet, but I hope that because of the wonderful nature of this exceptional performance you will allow be to post it here as well. Some more quick thoughts. Gillian Murphy's dancing last night was generally excellent, but what was wonderful to me was the 'Drama That She Sustained' throughout the entire evening. If the evening had stopped after her performance of Odile, I would have no idea how she could go on living with herself as a normal person. Her Odile was the Woman who Could Collapse Empires. She knocked over a few of mine in regard to my views of who's who in the world of ballet. It was definitely more a portrayal of seductive power than malice. I would like to also add that I have the video of this performance and last night Gillian Murphy and the ABT in general carried it beyond to a new level of excellence. I have to say something else as well. She is one of the healthiest and most wholesome principal ballerinas that I have seen in a long time. The ABT female dancers as well as the female dancers at the Pennsylvania Ballet (the only two American companies that I have seen a few times) generally have a very healthy (to be direct, "normal weight condition") appearance. All for the Good, this !!!! What last night's performance of the entire company showed me was that in addition to technical prowess the ABT has the emotional depth to equal any of the world's great ballet companies. The scenery was magnificent as were the costumes. The director of the Detroit Opera House, who announced the ABT's new designation by the US Congress as the National Ballet Company also informed us that the ABT arrived with " 'Ten' semi's [very large trucks] full of stage scenery ! ". Description of the Corps de Ballet could easily fill another posting. The Swans moved along dramatically, emotionally and expressively in a wonderful manner. They sustained what to me was an absolutely 'Symphonic Progression' of the entire evening. The men were a constant source of highlight and more importantly an underpinning of security. There was no worry (there was a 'secondary' slight mishap that passed quickly) about any ballerinas being dropped here. The ending was a bit ambiguous, but brilliant to me. Odette and Sigfried seem to jump off the face of the earth, but then reappear at the very end in a 'Wondrously Dramatic Final Affirmation Of The Triumph Of Love And Beauty'. This particular ending allowed Tchaikovsky's remarkable music to keep building to a magnificently dramatic conclusion. When I said in my first posting that I had tears in my eyes at the end of the evening, these were not because of any sadness in the story, but because of the Absolute Beauty Of It All. !

Haglund's, do I have any regrets ?? Absolutely Not !! http://ballettalk.invisionzone.com/index.p...pic=22733&st=45 Last Night's ABT Performance Of Swan Lake Featuring Gillian Murphy Was 'Off The Scale' As Was The Audience Response !! She Was Absolutely Wonderful !! Hopefully I can tell you some more about it at another time. Right now I am 'euphoricly' exhausted !

One of the french language ballet forums refers you to this description at the wikipedia information source in english. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Awakening_of_Flora

All tickets now are available at the Mariinsky site, but still no casting information. The 20th is now to be Don Quixote instead of Swan Lake. Swan Lake is out. The 14th which was Don Quixote is now Romeo and Juliet. The 19th has just been added as a Forsythe evening. PS I would personally climb a mountain to see Alina Cojocaru and Johan Kobborg dance most anything.

Tickets are now on sale for all the performances except Swan Lake (??). Another thing of interest is that the La Bayadere performance is priced higher than any of the other performances except the final Gala. The might imply a 'star' dancer is scheduled for that night. Still no casting information. Ostrich, my understanding is that the old theater will stay open (restoration will not be started) until the new second theater is completed.

Thanks for the information anyway. I saw Herrera once in Giselle and she was wonderful. I will look forward to seeing her in Detroit--but maybe, maybe....another partner for Veronika Part....last minute....maybe, maybe ?

Tickets for April 12-15 went on sale today for the Festival at the Mariinsky Theater. Tickets can be purchased fairly easily on the internet directly from the theater at perhaps 30% less than from a hotel or ticket agent. To see schedule.... http://www.mariinsky.ru/en/playbill?pbmy=200704 To register (touch "english" first, upper right).... http://www.tickets.mariinsky.ru/index.php

Hi again Hagland, Following your important instructions I have rescheduled travel plans and will be sitting in the second row March 18. I hope to tell you all about it. Best Wishes, Buddy

Understood ! Will do my best. Thank You !

Hi Haglund, You may have been aware that I live in the Detroit area. If so thank you. I may not be in Detroit at the time, but will really try to be. If so I will definitely try and tell Ballet Talk all about the performance. Would you hazard a guess as to the probability of Veronika Part actually appearing that day ? (spelling error later corrected)

Clement Crisp has rediscoverd Veronika Part and what a rediscovery it is ! "Symphonie concertante....it was the presence of Veronika Part (as the viola’s representative) who brought the piece, and the evening, to glory. "We remember her as a young divinity with the Mariinsky Ballet – her Lilac Fairy sublime – and the dignity and amplitude of her St Petersburg style, the voluptuous, luscious grace of her every action, pouring some noble and heady wine for us, breathed life, meaning, into her role. " http://www.ft.com/cms/s/dcfa7342-bd0a-11db...00779e2340.html Welcome back, Veronika Part ! (PS Please don't forget to read about Tamara Rojo as just mentioned in this topic ("Dancers") by leonid)

Thanks leonid. I've found Alina Cojocaru to be a lovely, straightforward and unassuming person as well as an amazing talent. Whenever I travel to Europe from the US, which is about once a year, I always check to see if she is performing at that time. If so I try to schedule a stopover in London to see her performance. The first time I ever saw her, I was in the director's box. This is a partially blocked view seating area so I was able to get a seat at the last moment. I was almost close enough to touch her. She performed Giselle. About a year later she did an excerpt from Giselle at the Lausanne competition as a guest performer. She seemed to have already added another dimension to the role. She has a gentle, ethereal presence along with her virtuoso capabilities--a wonderful combination. She seems to grow and amaze each time I see her. [more comments added later]

Thanks volcanohunter for your comments and reference. I did find John Mauceri's movements not to be artistically refined, but still powerfully expressive and 'handsomely' done. Also interesting is could this be some kind of distinct dance form with all the elements considered--both the leading and the responding to the music and the musicians. There could be some relation here to the New Orleans marching jazz band leaders or the Philadelphia Mummer band leaders, but I see John Mauceri's efforts here as being much more 'refined'. I also asked myself if I could visualize him doing this solo as a pure dance. I think that I could in the same manner that I could visualize a solo flamenco dancer or a drama oriented dancer. [some spelling errors later corrected]

I just returned from a very fine performance of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. One thing that really got my attention was the conducting of John Mauceri. Toward the end of a full length performance of Ravel's Bolero (about 18 minutes long), I looked over at John Mauceri and was really enjoying the way that he was moving himself around. I would call it 'Dancing'. I attend very few symphonic performances and am not really familiar with different conductor's physical styles. I have seen a bit of Bernstein and Gergiev, who I guess are considered two of the more colorful conductors, but I haven't viewed much more. They seem to have a lot of facial expression, arm and head movement. John Mauceri carried it a step beyond. I would say he was dancing. He was almost strutting around the platform in the manner of a flamenco dancer. Bolero is supposed to be based on Cuban motifs, but the flamenco look here seemed to work. I wouldn't know what kind of dance to describe it as, but possibly because of the turning and use of his entire body, with some kind of flamenco like foot gestures, I would be inclined to call it dance. His entire body moved to the music and expressed in very definite body gestures his involvement with the music. His gestures I would describe as being as being very expressive with a kind of powerful restraint. His arm movements were charged with energy as was the rest of his body, but the range of movements was constrained. Again I would call it dancing and very expressive dancing, probably falling more into the category of modern expressive dance than anything else. I thought it was thoroughly enjoyable and not over the top. It was direct and pure expression of what he was intensely feeling. In addition he was directing a nearly 100 piece orchestra communicating with the musicians by using his entire body including footwork. If anyone else has seen conductors do similar things I would love to hear about them.

Hi leonid, I haven't read the article yet. but I will. What I did do was take out my Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean video at 2 AM that I haven't seen in several years. It was a real pleasure to watch it again. I seem to be a perpetual beginner figure skater, but I did take some lessons once from a former Olympic level Soviet pairs skating coach. He told me that he still can't figure out how Christopher Dean was able to do some of the things that he did. Also there is the story about how the Parliament in London stopped their session so that everyone could go see Torvill and Dean do their Olympic Gold Medal performance. They were amazing !

I just saw the Moscow Festival Ballet perform Sleeping Beauty in the Detroit area last night and I have to say that I was very pleasantly surprised. They were not the same as the Kirov-Mariinsky or the Bolshoi, but for me they had a very nice quality to their dancing. The dancing was well performed with a fresh wholesome feeling and the Russian fineness of style was there as well. There was a lovely airiness to their dancing. They just seemed to float along barely touching the ground. When they performed their spins and such there was a very nice smoothness to it along with beautifully balanced moves. There was no casting information in the program. I was particularly impressed with the woman, who danced the Lilac Fairy. She was Very Elegant and danced with lovely long lines. I am try to find out her name. Another thing of interest was the presence of lead dancers of Oriental background who had fine Russian style facial expression, etc. The Prince was danced by a man who appeared to be from Japan or Korea and definitely resembled Leonid Sarafanov in his style and ability. The women dancing the White Cat and Little Red Riding Hood were delightfully sensual. Princess Florine was danced with elegance. The scaled down in size female corps de ballet danced with harmonious beauty in the vision scene. The men performed their lifts well allowing the women to present beautiful poses. Ticket prices were 1/2 to 1/4 of what I have paid to see the exceptional Kirov-Mariinsky and Bolshoi companies. This may be just the beginning of the Moscow Festival Ballet's North American touring this season. They will be doing their second and final performance in the Detroit area next Saturday evening and I certainly hope that I can be there. [some typo errors corrected later]

From Marc's website comes this information. "LONDON, Coliseum Theatre, 31 July - 18 August 2007. Programme to include: Le Corsaire (new production), La Bayadère, Spartacus, Don Quixote, The Bright Stream, new Wheeldon ballet, Les Présages (Massine)." http://www.for-ballet-lovers-only.com/Burning3.html

volcanohunter, Spasiba !!!!