fandango

Right, but it is available through Royal Opera Gift Shop

Am I missing the reviews of this wonderful piece? I saw Frances Chung at Saturday matinee. She was very good, as was Davit K. The performance was splendid--costumes, scenery, lighting, staging, choreography, and libretto (from Grimm). I thoroughly enjoyed it and will probably try and see it again.

I only saw Osipova and Hallberg on June 14. In Act III I liked her best in the limp scene--I thought she overacted a bit (but did not have Vishneva with whom to compare). I called that performance "Romeo and Osipova"-- Acts I and II were fine, though she appealed to me more as Kitri than Juliet.

Right, the topic is ballet. So, what ELSE is there to see re:ballet in St. Petersburg? How far ahead might I discover the ballet/Vaganova schedule? Any way to watch a class?

I have been thinking about a trip to St. Petersburg for a few years, and it is seeming more imminent for a number of reasons. Some friends have told me that it is very difficult to navigate hotels, restaurants, and transportation without a guided tour. However the guided tours include non-ballet parts of the country, and I would rather have more ballet nights and fewer nights elsewhere. Is what I am hearing correct? Or are there travel services that make St. Petersburg American-user friendly? Is May-June the best time to go?

Thank you. I checked too early in the morning, I guess.

Thank you. Is the schedule for early October out?

Is the calendar for next season available?

Thanks! Any tips on ordering by internet (for Paquita)?

When do these go on sale? When/how are the best ways to order?

Mozart operas (late 1700s) often included someone "on the side", especially if there were a Lord of the Manor. Then again, the Romantic Age was a bit later. One of the beautiful facts about stories true to human nature is that there are often a number of possible interpretations, so we can learn more about ourselves by discussing and re-viewing them.

Is it pose turn followed by assemble?

I agree with the above reviews. Nina and Angel took my breath away with the supported hops, and with the angel lift. I will forgive any of her lapses in technique because I think she more than made up with those with her arms, face, timing (a little behind the music sometimes, for the sake of poignancy). Angel's cabrioles (only 4 to cover the whole diagonal of the stage) were stunning. I loved the two of them together. Gillian Murphy as Myrthe was the best I have seen. My favorite gesture of hers is when she slumps a little as Giselle is protecting Albrecht at the cross. It was subtle and very fleeting. It seemed as though the power of Giselle's love for Albrecht confused Myrthe for an instant. Julia and Ethan were splendid as well. I would not have wanted to dance the night after Nina and Angel; they certainly rose to the occasion. I liked Misty Copeland and Carlos Lopez in the PPdD. The dancing was crisp and easy. Michele Wiles is also a great Myrthe, but once I had seen that gesture of Gillian's, I wanted Michele to do it too. Sascha is a beautiful dancer and did Hilarion well. Because of David Hallberg's being injured, Herman Cornejo replaced him. Giselle was Xiomara Reyes. I may be wrong but I think this was Herman's debut as Albrecht. He did an admirable job especially in his solos; she gave him the whole bouquet during the bows. He then pulled out a red rose and gave it to her. I am not so experienced but wondered if he was having a bit of trouble partnering in the Grand Pas in act 2. I agree with one thing in the Times review: the innumerable rewritings of the score by Lanchberry have taken away from the beauty of the music in Act 2. Albrecht's entrance should be to an oboe solo, and a different melody, than ABT's orchestra uses. And in the final PdD, once again the melody has been changed and not for the better. I understand that there are many versions of Giselle, and have yet to see the "original" score (which I believe is at the museum of Opera Garnier in Paris). Why ABT uses this Lanchberry version (cheaper?) is anybody's guess.

I booked tickets for Romeo and Juliet on Tuesday October 16 specifically to see Alina Cojocaru and Johann Kobborg. To my disappointment (and I am sure his) Mr. Kobborg had injured his ankle and was unable to perform. Instead, Stephen McRae had been casted. He was simply splendid! I am sure he didn't have long to learn the part (I heard 10 days). Technically he was beautiful, which is always good. But he acted very well and gave us that extra special gift from his heart. I will look forward to seeing him dance in the future.

The Worldwide Company Debut of Morphoses The Wheeldon Company was last Friday. It was simply splendid! All eight pieces were choreographed by Wheeldon. It opened with Polyphonia, not my favorite but still beautifully done. Maybe it is the music that does not soothe my soul (Gyorgy Ligeti is the composer, and the music is dissonant to my ear). Thiswas followed by Vicissitude with Maria Kowroski and Tyler angle (music by Schubert), a New Wheeldon "work in progress" with Aesha Ash, Wendy Whelan, Gonzalo Garcia, and Craig Hall; and then Prokofiev Pas de Deux with Helene Bouchet and Thiago Bordin. My favorites were Dance of the Hours and After the Rain. In Dance of the Hours, the principals were Letizia Biuliani and Gonzalo Garcia, and there were 8 dancers from Colorado Ballet. The music was by Amilcare Ponchielli. Colorado Ballet dancers were Casey Dalton, SHelby Dyer, Crystal Hartford, Makino Hayashi, Chloe McKenna, Asuka Sasaki, Caitlin Valentine, and Alyssa Velasques, and they danced with inspiration and heart. After the Rain (composer Arvo Part) was my favorite. The dancers were Wendy Whelan and Craig Hall, Teresa Reichlen and Edwaard Liang, and Maria Kowroski and Adrian Danching-Waring. Wendy Whelan was simply lovely. I have read reviews that criticized her movement a bit harshly and have never seen her dance. Perhaps she needed Wheeldon's choreography to express herself best. It doesn't happen very often to me, but sometimes I get transported to another place during a ballet, and that happened with Wendy and Craig in After the Rain. There are no permanent members of the company, but the premiere met and exceeded my expectations.

Whether intended or not, this struck me as a slam on Martin Fredmann. I think there are other possible interpretations. Everyone knows how much Martin Fredmann gave to the Company. It would not be the company it is today had he not been there. The goal now is, at the very least, to keep the Company performing; the "reach for the stars goal" is to be the "best ballet company between the coasts". As the current, and new, Artistic Director, Gil is the one on whom that hope is based. I am sure Gil knows that, as Martin's successor, he stands on the shoulders of those before him. Why would anyone not want Gil, and the Company, to be successful? I wish them all the best of luck.

I took a ballet student who had never been to a professional ballet to see Ms. Rojo in Swan Lake on Feb. 17. I told her that the only bad thing I could say was that she might never, ever have a ballet measure up to the expectation that this performance might have set. Thanks for the link to the interview.

which version of Othello is ABT using for their spring performance?

From the ROH Newsletter: Look out for performances by The Royal Ballet and The Royal Opera on television and radio over Christmas and the New Year. On Christmas Day at 10.05pm on BBC2 there will be an hour-long documentary, 'Dreams to Reality' about The Royal Ballet School and Company. On Boxing Day on BBC2, there will be another chance to see the documentary at 1.45pm, followed by The Royal Ballet's production of Giselle at 2.45pm. The cast includes Alina Cojocaru as Giselle, Johan Kobborg as Albrecht, Marianela Nuñez as Myrtha, Sandra Conley as Berthe and Martin Harvey as Hilarion. Oh how I would love a recording of that particular Giselle!!!

Help me out here, you who love Dracula. I saw it once a few years ago and did not go back this year. I was put off by dissonant music, sharp movements, and violence and seem to be missing something from others' comments. What is it that you like so much? Music? Acting? Story? What?

Will Alessandra Ferri be dancing Titania? The brochure only mentions Xiomara Reyes on opening night.

oops I misspoke. The "original" oboe melody is not a half step between the first 2 notes, but a 6th or 7th. The "alternate" melody is the half step. There is also a variation in the final pdd melody I have noted in some productions, including the Colorado Ballet Giselle.

The original Busser score has what I call the oboe melody (half step between the first two notes) for Albrecht's entrance. In St. Martin of the Fields, the "alternate" melody is played with an oboe. Colorado Ballet recently had a rendition in which the oboe was used for Albrecht's entrance, but it was the "alternate" melody. I do not know the origin of the orchestra score. My thought is that it is a copyright issue, and thanks to all for your informative comments.

I think Colorado Ballet recently had this variation--who choreographed it?

I agree that those are very thoughtful and mature responses. It speaks to the difficulty of the transformation between being and not being a performer--a change not everyone finds graceful. I cannot speak from experience, but there seems to be something very compelling and fulfilling about being on stage. There is no detectable bitterness on his part about what must have been very disappointing experience with Ballet Pacifica. That is good--bitterness just weighs on the owner. And it has given him perspective about the complexities of running a Company. I always loved him as a dancer; but this shows him to be a pretty special man as well.