Lovebird

I'm Stravinsky!

I'm Stravinsky!

Estelle,I saw the Ballet of Kiev,also called the Ukrainian National Ballet,in Spain.They did the Sleeping Beauty.The dancing was rather good,although,like many European companies,they emphasize high extensions to the point of it geting monotonous.The company is rather small and they performed in a venue unsuited to a classical ballet that requires such stage designs as the Sleeping Beauty.They performed to taped music but it sounded alright.

Morgen by Peter Martins and Alles Walzer by Renato Zanella.

Estelle,Anissa Curbelo is a principal soloist of the Cuban National Ballet and she is a wonderful dancer.I saw her in Coppelia and the Swan Lake pas de trois.I have seen all of these dancers perform except for Marnee Morris and Liliana Cosi,who I know because she wrote a children's book on ballet which Itook out of the library.I know about Morris from Merrill Ashley's autobiography "Dancing for Balanchine"I believe she was known as a good turning person,she was also tall and given tall girl roles.She created roles in Who Cares? and quite a few other Balanchine ballets.By the way,Tatyana Goumba is not from the Bolshoi.

[ January 02, 2002: Message edited by: Lovebird ]

Estelle,thank you for the beautiful pictures.

I have always been an admirer of less than well known dancers and I am curious if anyone else knows the following dancers :

Irina Tchistyakova

Tatyana Goumba

Steffi Scherzer

Liliana Cosi

Marnee Morris

Claire Motte

Anissa Curbelo

Kevin,she does write about working with Galina Ulanova in her book. She had a very high opinion of her as a person as well as a dancer.Of her technique, she writes that Galina never "fudged" a single step and that she danced very lightly.As a person she tells an anecdote with the moral being that Galina knew that silence was worth more than words.By the way,I have seen Laurencia and Shurale on video,the name of which is The Glory of the Bolshoi.Laurencia is in the style of Act one of Don Q. Spanish style ballet.

[ January 02, 2002: Message edited by: Lovebird ]

My favorite ballet video is Don Quixote danced by the Kirov ballet with Tatiana Terekhova and Faroukh Ruzimatov in the proncipal roles.This is a wonderful video,very entertaining and excellent dancing.Altynai Asylmuratova and Yulia Makhalina dance the parts of Street Dancer and Dryad Queen.

Xinxin,you saw them when they were past their prime and their technique was probably not as good as when they were younger.I do agree with you,though,that they should noy have put Bessmertnova in so many performances when other,younger talents could have been put in some of them.

One of my biggest peeves is when I hear the dancers pointe shoes clattering and chattering onstage.I have been seeing this in every major company recently.It distracts so much not only from the music but also from the illusion they are supposed to be creating.If you are a wilis or a swan or a sylph you do not make a huge racket the minute you come out onstage.This was something George Balanchine also hated and always made his ballerinas wear soft or already broken in shoes.Mostly the corps de ballet is guilty of this sin but also the soloists and principals,although with them it does not sound as much because it is only one pair of shoes

Estelle,Arantxa Arguelles is a wonderful dancer.She directed the Zaragoza Ballet a few years ago.She and Trinidad Sevillano belong to a different generation of spanish dancers than Lacarra and Rojo.I don't know why the Zaragoza ballet is'nt as famous as Ullate's it has a more classical repertory and its dancers are good.

Mr.Ng,it was your interview I was refering to.Another question:did Nadezhda Pavlova found a school in China? In an interview with A.B.T soloist Yan Chen it said that the first ballet school in Beijing was founded by two russians,one of them named Pavlova.

Terry,it is true that the technical level of A.B.T is good.In the performances I have seen everyone was excellent.The corps de ballet in particular has improved a lot.So it is difficult to say that any particular dancer is out of the ordinary.There is another Cuban ballerina who has danced with the Royal Ballet of Flanders,Lorena Feijoo.Xiomara is pronounced with an S sound to the X.I did not notice that she has a large head.

Drew, the second female lead in The Merry Widow is called Valenciennes.It is a good role for her right now. Ferri is appearing less and less at A.B.T.Is she injured or planning to retire? It is a shame since I have never seen her dance live.

Mr.Ng,how nice to hear of a fellow alumni in Gil-Ortega.I studied in the summer at the Liceo school.Ms. Salgado has danced a principal role in La Fille Mal Gardee but mostly does small roles.Another is Sebnem Gulseker.I think Lendvai is better suited as a dancer and actress in the role of Tatiana than Kate.As for Sue Jin Kang,she seems good in everything Cranko.

Xiomara Reyes is the newest soloist at A.B.T.She is from Cuba,where she danced with the Cuban National Ballet.She is petite,dark-haired,and has a very fine jump,as was seen when she recently danced the Peasant Pas de Deux at the Metropolitan Opera House.What are the opinions on her? Has she made any impressions?

Mr.Ng,thank you for your information.Elena Tentschkowa is a wonderful dancer.I did not know Gil-Ortega was spanish.Do you know where he trained? Hong Kong seems to have a very rich ballet scene.Have you seen Patricia Salgado dance?

What happened to Margaret Illman is she no longer dancing with the Stuttgart? Who is Ivan Gil Ortega I have never heard about him?

Forgive me,I meant Phrygia,of course,not Aegina.I was thinking of an interview I read with Svetlana Lunkina that said Aegina was an emotional role.Phrygia is the lyrical role.About Mr.Grigorovich,in an article I once read in a Spanish newspaper it said that it was no secret that many dancers had left the Bolshoi,angry,not amicable partings,because of Grigorovich and the way he ran the company.Changing topics,I think it is remarkable how the Bolshoi hands down its traditions, from Ulanova to Maximova to Lunkina,right now the Bolshoi's brightest star.Jane,perhaps she did perfect her acting,a true artist always overcomes those sort of limitations.I believe Maximova liked Cranko's choreography,she also danced The Taming of the Shrew to much acclaim.Did she ever dance with the Stuttgart ballet?

[ 05-26-2001: Message edited by: Lovebird ]

If I were to dance Lise and Swanhilda in the same season I would first of all show their stylistic differences.By this I mean that with Lise I emphasize the Ashton style:light,a bit jumpy,no dramatic overkill.With Coppelia I suppose I would dance it in a much earthier way than Lise,more paesant like.Coppelia is hungarian and as a hungarian she is more emotional,more csardas,very witty,almost latin.Lise is more naive,more clog dance,very light and a decidedly very english countrygirl.Asshton had Devon in mind when he recreated this ballet.

Marc,you are right when you say that Maximova's stage persona was not suited to the Bolshoi under Grigorovich period.I remember reading in a book from the library that her Giselle was not the best because that sort of suffering and dramatic acting was not suited to her.She was,or could have been with the right repertoire,a supreme comic-soubrette ballerina.When I say that Nadezhda Pavlova is a virtousa I mean that she is good in roles like Nikiya,Legend of Love and many others that require perfect technique.She is wonderful as Giselle but in a different way than Bessmertnova,who was very romantic and lyrical.Bessmertnova is also my ideal Aegina in Spartacus.

Terry:

Almost all of the dancers listed above have all said in their respective interviews that after their retirement from the stage they would like to direct and found a company in their homeland strictly for classical ballet.Right now,though,their is no such goings-on in spain.I know that Alicia Alonso has also made efforts toward this cause.Ullate has recently introduced many classical ballets in the repertoire and his company is the closest thing to a classical ballet company right now.Another company is the Zaragoza ballet.

I often find many similarities between Coppelia and La Fille Mal Gardee.Both Lise and Swanhilda are witty,funny countrygirls and both are roles for soubrettes.Colas and Franz are both jaunty peasant yokels.Both ballets are heavily influenced by character dancing.Both are comic ballets.Even Dr.Coppelius and Coppelia have counterparts in clumsy Alain and Widow Simone.

For me,the best Coppelia was Alicia Alonso.She had a wry sense of humor that fitted the role well and was very in keeping with the style of the ballet.I only saw her on video.I think that both Lesley Collier and Yekaterina Maximova should have been given the chance to interpret this ballet.Their styles were perfectly suited to this role:short,soubrettes,and with a comic flair.It is a pity they never danced it.