volcanohunter

Of all places, in John Neumeier's Illusions like Swan Lake. It's a revisionist production, but since he was aiming for a 'period' look in act 2, he had Alexandra Danilova stage it, complete with huntsmen, Odette's mime and a Benno figure in the adagio.

Additional Canadian dates: Sunday, April 19, at 4:00 p.m. Paradise Cinemas in Williams Lake, BC Saturday, April 25, at 3:00 p.m. Fox Theatre, Toronto, ON Sunday, May 3, at 2:00 p.m. Coast Capital Playhouse in White Rock, BC

Helene's comments about Cranko and Neumeier made me go back to the documentary M. for Marcia for Marcia Haydee's very brief observations on the creation of the ballet. My German is poor, so I'll rely on the subtitle translation. I don't think it's surprising that the ballet is vaguely Cranko-esque, given that Neumeier had done his dancing in Stuttgart and was making this ballet for the Stuttgart Ballet as a vehicle for Haydee. (The ballet is subtitled 'For Marcia.') His notes to the ballet suggest that it is something like a tribute to Cranko. (Here you'll have to pardon my lousy translation from German.) http://www.hamburgballett.de/d/rep/kameliendame.htm On the other hand, Cranko (and MacMillan) did things I don't think Neumeier would consider, such as using orchestrations of various and sundry pieces to cobble together a score. Neumeier will certainly use multiple composers in a single piece, but he usually uses their music as written. He may have only used the second movement of Choping's First Piano Concerto, but I was happy to get the Second Piano Concerto in its entirety. Hats off to the pianists for coping with the difficult assignment. It's interesting that what to many of us appears to be Letestu's upper-body stiffness strikes others as fragility and vulnerability. This was certainly the reaction of my (non-dancing) companion, who thought she was perfect for the part. But Helene's observation that Letestu lacks "the sensuality or charm to become a top courtesan" is a very interesting one. Do choreographers simply take it for granted that audiences know who Marguerite is supposed to be? Like Helene, I had difficulty getting a fix on Bullion's solo dancing because of his dark costume. But it does seem to me that several of the Hamburg Ballet's Armands dance it with greater virtuosity. I would be tempted to blame Bullion's greater height, except that from a technical standpoint Martinez eclipsed Hamburg's significantly shorter Des Grieuxs. Nevertheless, I found Bullion extremely affecting, and the fact that he's nearly a decade younger than Letestu helped put his character across on screen. By the end I was having the good cry I failed to have at a screening of the Royal Ballet's Manon a month earlier. I suppose it's also worth mentioning that when it came to the reaction of the screening audience at the final credits, the loudest applause by far was reserved for Neumeier himself.

This program will air on a number of CBC affiliates tomorrow, Saturday, March 28, at 12:00 p.m. ET/9:00 a.m. PT under the title "Bold Presents."

The Paris Opera Ballet's production of John Neumeier's The Lady of the Camellias will be shown at Canadian cinemas on Saturday, March 28. Marguerite Gautier: Agnès Letestu Armand Duval: Stéphane Bullion Monsieur Duval: Michaël Denard Manon Lescaut: Delphine Moussin Des Grieux: José Martinez Prudence Duvernoy: Dorothée Gilbert Gaston Rieux: Karl Paquette Olympia: Eve Grinsztajn Le Duc: Laurent Novis Nanine: Béatrice Martel Le Comte de N.: Simon Valastro Screenings will take place at Empire Theatres at 1:00 p.m. local time. Participating cities: St. John's, Halifax, Sydney, Fredericton, Saint John, Moncton, Charlottetown, St. Catharines, North York, Mississauga, Ottawa, London, Kitchener, Kingston, Richmond Hill, Burlington, Bolton, Winnipeg, Edmonton, Calgary, Vancouver, North Vancouver and Victoria. www.empiretheatres.com/opusArte Screenings will also take place at Landmark Cinemas in Winnipeg, Calgary, Kelowna and Nanaimo at 11:00 a.m. local time. www.landmarkcinemas.com/index.asp?pageID=42 It's also showing at the Princess Twin in Waterloo at 1:00 p.m.: www.princesscinemas.com and the Ridge Theatre in Vancouver, www.festivalcinemas.ca, at 10:00 am PT. I'd post a link to the trailer, but it's too pokey, so here's the DVD preview from the Opus Arte instead. http://www.opusarte.com/pages/productVideo...VariationID=332

Yes, you're right, the seats at the State Theater never struck me as particularly luxurious, so I wouldn't expect too many changes on that score. At least their stuffing will be new.

My previous experience with the installation of acoustically friendly seats is that they usually have a great deal less padding. In the case of a renovation I'm familiar with, it also meant seats that were upholstered only on the seat and the back support, the rest--legs, arm rests, the part that faces the person behind you--being all wood. I can't say that I noticed a great deal more noise coming from patrons fidgeting in their pared-down seats, but such seats are a good deal less comfortable, and the acoustics are definitely improved.

Removing the carpets did a great deal to improve the notoriously dry acoustics at La Scala. Meaning, they're less comforatable.

On April 28 Arthaus Musik will be reissuing a Kylián triple bill featuring the Nederlands Dans Theater in Svadebka (Les Noces), Symphony of Psalms and Torso. The Amazon product number is B001U1L9LC.

Apparently Neumeier insisted it must be Letestu and no one else, even though her original partner had been injured and replaced by another who hadn't danced the role earlier. http://www.culturekiosque.com/dance/news/n...mellias232.html I believe Dupont was on maternity leave at the time. For what it's worth, the DVD does feature two other female etoiles.

You'll probably have to wait at least until after the ballet has been screened at cinemas by Emerging Pictures. And if the DVD is being released on Decca, then I wouldn't expect especially speedy turnover. Future screening dates: April 26 & 30 in Beverly Hills, Encino, and Pasadena, CA May 9 in Napa, CA May 20 in Lake Worth, FL May 24 & 26 in Rochester, NY May 26 & 30 in Fort Lauderdale, FL http://www.emergingpictures.com/opera_dates.htm

According to the Digiscreen web site, Giselle will be screened at five UltraStar locations in California and Arizona. Sunday, April 5 at 10:00 a.m. Wednesday, April 8 at 11:00 a.m. Thursday, April 9 at 7:00 p.m. The participating UltraStar cinemas are located in San Diego, CA; Carlsbad, CA; Apple Valley, CA; Surprise, AZ; and Lake Havasu City, AZ. Here is the Digiscreen trailer: http://centralsystem.digiscreen.ca/ShowPag...resentation=230

Opus Arte wil be releasing the POB production of John Neumeier's La Dame aux camélias in the U.K. on May 1. Marguerite Gautier: Agnès Letestu Armand Duval: Stéphane Bullion Monsieur Duval: Michaël Denard Manon Lescaut: Delphine Moussin Des Grieux: José Martinez Prudence Duvernoy: Dorothée Gilbert Olympia: Eve Grinsztajn Gaston Rieux: Karl Paquette Le Duc: Laurent Novis Nanine: Béatrice Martel Le Comte de N.: Simon Valastro http://www.opusarte.com/pages/product.asp?ProductID=285 http://www.opusarte.com/pages/product.asp?ProductID=286 (Blu-Ray)

Opus Arte has announced that it will release the Royal Ballet's Swan Lake, with Marianela Nuñez and Thiago Soares, on September 1, 2009. The U.S. release usually follows two months later. http://www.opusarte.com/pages/product.asp?ProductID=290

If my satellite guide is to be believed, a number of CBC affiliates will air the program on Saturday, March 14, at 12:00 pm ET/9:00 am PT.

This performance will be showing at three cinemas in Michigan on Sunday, March 15, at 12 pm and 7 pm. Cinema Hollywood in Birch Run Emagine Canton in Canton Emagine Novi in Novi http://www.emagine-entertainment.com/visMo...omeo+and+Juliet

I believe this refers to the grand pas, led by Makhalina and Zelensky, which is included on the Kirov Classics DVD. The Amazon product number is B00006G8HI. http://estore.websitepros.com/1652646/Detail.bok?no=578

Yes, those are the pirates, and I expect their quality can vary greatly.

Then perhaps this isn't the best time to mention that the DVDs of Roland Petit's Proust [140747] and Pique Dame [140746], and the Mariinsky New Year's gala that features the third act of the reconstructed Sleeping Beauty [140748] are available through BRO as well. Bel Air Classiques really ought to reconsider their sky-high prices to prevent their disks from ending up among the overstocks, especially, as richard53dog points out, in this day and age.

On Amazon this DVD costs nearly $50, which, perhaps, is why it hasn't been selling particularly well. However, at Berkshire Record Outlet it's available for $14. If you're interested, search for 'Don Quixote' under DVDs or enter product number 140741 under BRO code. This appears to be the actual Bel Air Classiques DVD rather than a pirate thereof.

The Hamburg Ballet's blog reports that ballet mistress Niurka Moredo and her husband, principal dancer Lloyd Riggins, welcomed their son Oliver Lloyd Moredo-Riggins into the world yesterday. Congratulations to them! http://www.hamburgballett-blog.de/hamburg_...ar-is-born.html

This is sad news indeed. I never saw him dance, but just the other day I was watching a video of La Scala's Guglielmo Tell, for which he choreographed two charming ballet sequences. Requiescat in pace.

That's very true. Many, perhaps most, dancers have poor speaking voices. I have to remind myself that they're discouraged from "belly breathing" from early childhood. With dancers the voice is frequently stuck in the throat without much "support" from below. Even low-pitched voices are often the result of smoking and have little resonance. It would be interesting to compare the speaking styles of ballet dancers with their brethren on Broadway, who have to reconcile seemingly incompatible breathing techniques for dancing and singing.

If I were to sum up my reaction in one sentence, I'd say it's a nice performance that in no way eclipses the earlier film with Jennifer Penney and Anthony Dowell. I found much to admire in Rojo's performance, less in Acosta's. Overall I was happiest with Laura Morera's Mistress and Paul Kay's Beggar Chief. Among the others I'd note Hikaru Kobayashi among the Courtesans and Valeri Hristov among the Gentlemen. The most damning thing I can say is that I wasn't brought to tears, and I'm the sort of viewer who cries readily and willingly. This is not entirely the performers' fault since this ballet usually loses me midway through the second act, and I truly dislike Leighton Lucas' ham-fisted arrangements. Poor Massenet. Still, I'm glad I went if only because I'm not likely to buy the future DVD. (Oh dear, talk about a backhanded compliment.)

If it's any help, here are the Bolshoi's corps. I'll admit that I haven't counted them all, but it looks like about 100 women and 65 men. http://www.bolshoi.ru/en/theatre/ballet_troupe/cdballet/ http://www.bolshoi.ru/en/theatre/ballet_tr...ex.php?from26=2