volcanohunter
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Ovation TV has announced the lineup for the next "Battle of the Nutcrackers," hosted this year by Susan Jaffe.
Mark Morris's Hard Nut - Monday, December 7, 8 p.m. ET/PTThe two-year reigning champ in "The Battle of the Nutcrackers" takes on the challenge once again, leading the pack of worthy contenders. Mr. Morris's "Hard Nut" is a funky, irreverent rendition, filled with farce and laughs.
Royal Ballet: The Nutcracker - Tuesday, December 8, 8 p.m. ET/PT
From London's beautiful Covent Garden Opera House comes this elegant production choreographed by Sir Peter and featuring an acclaimed cast, including Ivan Putrov as the Nutcracker, Alina Cojocaru as Clara, Miyako Yoshida as the Sugar Plum Fairy, and Sir Anthony Dowell as the toy- and clockmaker Herr Drosselmeyer. Conductor Evgenii Svetlanov leads the Royal Opera Orchestra through some of Tchaikovsky's most beloved music.
Casse Noisette Circus - Wednesday, December 9, 8 p.m. ET/PT
With music performed by the Philharmonic Orchestra of Monte-Carlo, this production from Belgium [sic] is choreographed by Jean-Christophe Maillot, who provides an innovative interpretation of the Nutcracker which transports the ballet to the world of circus.
Bolshoi Ballet: The Nutcracker - Thursday, December 10, 8 p.m. ET/PT
The legendary holiday ballet is performed by the magnificent Bolshoi Ballet. Featuring Natalya Arkhipova and Irek Mukhamedov. Choreographed by Yuri Grigorovich.
Bejart's Nutcracker - Friday, December 11, 8 p.m. ET/PT
A radically innovative re-imagining of The Nutcracker, this staging by acclaimed choreographer Maurice Bejart departs from the traditional Nutcracker story in virtually every way but the music. And even the score is adjusted to include French popular music, which is performed onstage by accordion legend Yvette Horner. Bejart, who passed away just before Christmas two years ago, uses the Nutcracker as a vehicle to explore his personal story.
Viewers will be able to see clips of Nutcracker performances online at www.OvationTV.com before they cast their final votes. The Viewers' Choice will be aired on Christmas Eve, Thursday, December 24 at 8 p.m. ET/PT and a Christmas Day marathon featuring all five Nutcrackers will kick off at 8 a.m. ET/PT.
Can't say I'm thrilled by the lineup, but at least Bourne's not back this year. (Come to think of it, Béjart is no improvement.)
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ov...s-70271282.html
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A whirlwind look at a working day in the life of Isabelle Ciaravola, in class, rehearsing Nicholas Paul's new ballet Répliques, visiting the wardrobe department and on stage.
http://culturebox.france3.fr/all/16954/Isa...p%E9ra_de_Paris
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If anyone's interesting in acquiring Heinz Spoerli's staging of Pulcinella for the Basel Ballet, the DVD is on sale at the Berkshire Record Outlet.
http://www.berkshirerecordoutlet.com/searc...&filter=all
http://www2.deutschegrammophon.com/webseri...amp;objRank=149
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I have not seen this production and would never see it, but it recalls other tampering of major ballets which always to me, might be interpreted as narcissistic symbolic acts associated with inadequate choreographers. It also appears that this is a another suicidal event in yet another great ballet company, that has undermined its heritage by not respecting the significance of original productions which speak as clearly and loudly to present day audiences as they did when first produced.
Hear, hear.
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I'm basically inclined to agree with Watkins about the trio from Act 3 of Der Rosenkavalier. Helene also makes a very strong case for the love duet from Otello.
Though it usually clocks in at around three minutes, I could also argue for "La Vergine degli angeli" from the end of Act 2 of La forza del destino, which is so exquisitely constructed. The low monks' chorus with the pizzicato accompaniment on the low strings giving way to the same melody sung one octave higher by Leonora while the accompaniment switches to the harp, followed by the contrast between low and high when the men's chorus and soprano come together. And then Verdi's heart-stopping melody rises to its climax. But the kicker comes in the orchestration at the end, with the broken descending chords so full of foreboding. I hate to post a You Tube clip because the sound is inevitably poor, but here it goes.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQKeVQe7ArU
I also love the last three minutes of Rossin's William Tell, when the harps begin to play and Tell sings "Tutto cangia, il ciel si abella," or its French equivalent. (I prefer it in Italian.) Suddenly all the strife and violence of the preceding hours seems to wash away. The music grows and swells until soloists, chorus and orchestra are all going at full tilt, culminating in the sopranos' high C as the cymbal crashes grow louder and louder. To me it's the most exhilarating crescendo in opera and an exultant but not triumphalist hymn to liberty, and audiences inevitably respond accordingly. It's definitely worth spending four hours plus in the opera house to get to this scene. Apologies for the sound quality, but this is a really loud piece.
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In Nils Tavernier documentary "L'étoile" I remember it was said that retirement age for dancers at POB was 40 for women and 45 for men.
Hasn't this since been changed to 42.5 years for both men and women? Manuel Legris and Wilfried Romoli retired under the old scheme because they were still entitled to do so.
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Coinciding with a revival of his Amoveo by the Paris Opera Ballet, Benjamin Millepied is profiled on French television.
http://videos.tf1.fr/jt-we/benjamin-millep...he-5529809.html
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For Francophones, Ciaravola and Heymann answer viewer questions on French midday news.
http://info.francetelevisions.fr/video-inf...RNIERES_MINUTES
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The Bravo site describes the film this way.
"Nureyev" is a dance drama created especially for television exploring the life of the great Russian dancer, Rudolph Nureyev who defected to the West in 1961. Integrating original choreography created for the screen, dramatic scenes and archival footage, the film presents a multi-faceted portrait of one of the seminal performing arts figures of our time. -
The CBC will re-air its "Life and Times" episode about Evelyn Hart on Monday, November 16. The program airs on CBC stations at 1:00 p.m. local time.
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Giselle is now listed on the Kultur web site. It will be released on DVD and Blu-Ray on January 26, 2010 (surely not 2009, as stated on the site).
http://estore.websitepros.com/1652646/-str...r%2C/Detail.bok
http://estore.websitepros.com/1652646/-str...r%2C/Detail.bok
Edited to add: Amazon.com is taking pre-orders.
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I wonder whether anyone is familiar with live recordings of Maya Plisetskaya's The Seagull. On November 10 VAI is scheduled to release it on DVD, and Arthaus Musik is set to release its own DVD a week later. Supposedly the VAI version was filmed in 1982, while the Arthaus version was filmed in 1980. However, since both performances star Plisetskaya and Alexander Bogatyrev, and both were conducted by Alexander Lazarev, I'm inclined to think it's actually the same performance. I've known Arthaus Musik to be a little sloppy with its jackets, booklets and sometimes even its subtitles, though I haven't had reason to complain about their video quality. Any clues?
I'm actually surpised that Amazon.com has the Arthaus version listed. Presumably VAI would have secured the North American rights to the video rather than compete directly against a less expensive rival.
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Artv will air Uwe Scholz's two versions of Le Sacre du printemps as performed by the Leipzig Ballet: the creepy solo set to the two-piano version of the score and the ensemble version to the orchestral score.
Monday, November 16 at 9:00 p.m. ET
Tuesday, November 17 at 2:00 p.m. ET
Friday, November 20 at 9:00 a.m. ET
Sunday, November 22 at 8:00 a.m. ET
http://artv.ca/emissions/grands-spectacles.html
http://www.medici-dvd.com/artikel/dvd/?id=...pher_uwe_scholz
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According to Amazon, the Royal Ballet's Manon, filmed a year ago, will be released on DVD on November 17.
Manon: Tamara Rojo
Des Grieux: Carlos Acosta
Lescaut: José Martín
Lescaut’s Mistress: Laura Morera
Monsieur G.M.: Christopher Saunders
I couldn't find a Blu-Ray listing, but perhaps someone else will have better luck.
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Actually, I would be grateful for the reviews of our French posters as well.
Quite recently I had cancelled Artv because it hadn't shown anything of interest to me in what seemed like an age. Now I'm debating whether to reconfigure my TV package again in order to watch the program.
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Canadian Bravo, or the network we can see in the US?
Canadian Bravo. Sorry for being imprecise.
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Bravo will replay the program this Monday, October 19, at 7:00 p.m. ET/4:00 p.m. PT.
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For Francophone Canadians out there, Artv will be airing Sonia Paramo's film Noureev: L'attraction céleste this week.
Sunday, October 18 at 7:00 p.m. ET
Tuesday, October 20 at 8:00 a.m. ET
Wednesday, October 21 at 12:00 a.m. ET
Friday, October 23 at 7:00 a.m. ET
Saturday, October 24 at 7:00 a.m. ET
http://artv.ca/emissions/portraits.html
Here is a blurb in English about the film:
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There's no word yet on when this DVD will be available in North America, but here is a link to a web site dedicated to Sylvie Guillem: On the Edge. I'm posting it on the board because the track list includes an unidentified 10-minute excerpt from Swan Lake, perhaps the White Swan adagio.
http://www2.deutschegrammophon.com/special/?ID=sylvieguillem
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I thought I'd heard the Met did not trash the Chagall Flute, but put it into storage with the idea they might trot it out occasionally for special occasions. Can anybody here remember or confirm?
I hadn't heard that but it would certainly be nice if that was the case.
A problem though is that none of these theatrical properties last forever. They are subject to hard use being trucked in and out of the theater.
And all kinds of things seem to happen in the warehouses. As I had mentioned, the Met revived Adriana Lecouvrer last season but when they
took the sets out of storage some of them were deteriorated beyond the point of refurbishing/repainting. They usesd the ones that were able to be salvaged and used projections for the rest.
Still, it would be great if they still had the Chagall. It's really something a bit beyond a typical group of theatrical sets.
When I went to the movies to see the Liceu's Aida, the production's big selling point was the restoration of Mestres Cabanes' trompe-l'oeil paper (!) sets, originally painted in 1945. I have to say that the sets were pretty astonishing, very beautiful and looked terrific on a big screen in HD. That Aida gave me hope that the Chagall Flute could be revived in similar fashion.
http://www.opusarte.com/productGallery_ima...92407/aida2.jpg
http://www.musicweb-international.com/sand.../aida2_1024.jpg
http://www.musicweb-international.com/sand.../aida1_1024.jpg
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In his opening Venetian act, I think Shakespeare was aiming to stress Othello's different (and, I suppose, inferior background) The idea is that Desdemona is making a non traditional marriage and this is supposed to add to Othello's feelings of inferiority which the later plot elements add to.
Venice was simply not his world however much a name he had made for himself .Even Cyprus is a low rent district compared to Venice.
Oh, certainly. This continues into act 2 prior to Othello's arrival, where it's pretty obvious that he would never engage in the sort of witty banter that goes on between Desdemona and Iago. There are lots subtleties lost in the opera. I'm sorry to lose Emilia's cynicism, too, but these elements aren't terribly operatic, so Boito was completely right to drop them and pare the story down to its violent emotions. These, I think, register more powerfully in the opera than they do in the play. Not to mention the fact that "Ah, sangue, sangue, sangue!" sounds so much better than "O, blood, blood, blood!", especially with cymbals crashing in the background.
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("Venice is resplendant")
Venus, no?
I agree that it's a brilliant condensation. Makes me wonder why Shakespeare bothered with an entire act. Opening with the storm is so much more dramatic.
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I agree with the article. The last couple of times that I went to the symphony, the conductor didn't even have music for the last piece.
Wouldn't this just mean that the conductor has the score memorized? It's not at all unusual in my experience.
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I believe that was Jean-Baptiste Lully who accidentally stabbed himself in the foot. Very unfortunate.
A number of years ago when I went to see the film Le roi danse, about Louis XIV, Lully and Molière, I sat in my seat dreading the arrival of this moment. Fortunately, director Gérard Corbiau decided to get it over with right at the beginning and turn the rest of the film into a flashback.
A number of years ago when I went to see the film Le roi danse, about Louis XIV, Lully and Molière, I sat in my seat dreading the arrival of this moment. Fortunately, director Gérard Corbiau decided to get it over with right at the beginning and turn the rest of the film into a flashback.
Royal Ballet's Nutcracker
in Ballet Videos, Films, Broadcast Performances, Photos, and Interviews
Posted
The Royal Ballet's Nutcracker, filmed on December 28, 2008, will be screened at cinemas in the U.S. and Canada starting on Friday, December 4. Apparently this is the performance that was beamed live into U.K. cinemas at year ago.
Clara - Iohna Loots
Nutcracker - Ricardo Cervera
Sugarplum Fairy - Alexandra Ansanelli
Cavalier - Valeri Hristov
Drosselmeyer - Gary Avis
In the U.S. it will begin screening at Cobb Theaters in Jupiter and Tampa, FL, beginning on Saturday, December 5.
Most U.S. screenings will take place at Carmike Cinemas on Thursday, December 17, Sunday, December 20, and, on a smaller scale, Sunday, December 28. It will also screen at Emagine cinemas in Michigan on Thursday, December 17.
In Canada screenings will begin on Friday, December 4, at Landmark Cinemas and several other locations. Most of the country will get to see it at Cineplex theatres on December 12 & 23.
The link below will take you to the trailer on the distributor site. Select your country in the upper left-hand corner and the date just below the video screen to find relevant show times.
http://centralsystem.digiscreen.ca/ShowPag...resentation=257