volcanohunter
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Posts posted by volcanohunter
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As a dual citizen he can also travel to Russia more easily than most.
I honestly don't expect an explanation on Fugue from him or the company. For him to speak in black-and-white terms would bar him access to the Bolshoi for the foreseeable future. And the Bolshoi sure isn't going to give dissident views a platform, not as "the country's main stage," with all that implies. But people will draw their own conclusions from timing and laconic social media posts.
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Yes, Gergiev is essentially Putin's official conductor, and Matsuev is basically his official pianist. If someone's going to perform classical music on Red Square on a national holiday, it's them.
Apparently Gergiev was booed yesterday at La Scala, and Milan's mayor is demanding he distance himself from Putin or be fired.
(The article was posted before the Carnegie Hall decision.)
https://operawire.com/valery-gergiev-under-fire-at-the-teatro-alla-scala/
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Today the Bolshoi suspended sales for the premiere of Ratmansky's The Art of the Fugue, which is scheduled for the end of March. An announcement about the fate of the ballet hasn't yet been made, about whether Ratmansky is abandoning the project, and whether this is in response to the events of today. He is open about his pro-Ukrainian views.
A performance of The Bright Stream went ahead as scheduled today.
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1 hour ago, pherank said:
I'm not sure it matters that they are friends with Facebook executive Nick Clegg (or, Sir Nicholas Clegg). But I guess that's supposed to demonstrate that Rojo and Hernandez are in with the movers and shakers of the Bay Area, and London.
I suspect that British readers still think of Clegg primarily as the former leader of the Liberal Democrats and former Deputy Prime Minister in David Cameron's cabinet. Journalists bring up associations with people currently or previously in power almost as a matter of course, because yes, it does imply access to the movers and shakers.
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I hope Camargo's engagement will be a sort of "test drive" leading to a more permanent engagement and not a return to ABT's revolving door of guest stars, even if right now there is a pressing need to work around Whiteside's injury.
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As the dance boom began to fade, the Joffrey Ballet tried a dual New York/Los Angeles residency, but ultimately it didn't stick.
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A Resilient Man, a documentary film about how the Royal Ballet's Steven McRae came back from a snapped Achilles, has until Friday to reach its fundraising goal on Kickstarter.
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/a-resilient-man-film/a-resilient-man
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The National Ballet of Japan has been forced to cancel a mixed bill.
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Unfortunately, performances are still being canceled because of infections.
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Antoinette Sibley and Anthony Dowell performing the pas de deux from Ashton's The Dream on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1965.
Happy 79th birthday to Anthony Dowell!
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2 hours ago, vipa said:
I also heard Tara Lipinski say that when she was a kid, if she had a cold, her mother called the authorities before giving her cold medications to make sure all the ingredients were OK for her to have. It seems young athletes and their families develop a super awareness, as they should.
Sure, because taking the wrong medication could have severe consequences, which is how the rower Silken Laumann lost the gold medal she won at the 1995 Pan-Am Games. Ultimately she was able to evade long-term suspension by convincing the world rowing federation that she had been given bad advice by team doctors, and in 1996 she competed in Atlanta and won the silver medal.
https://archive.macleans.ca/article/1995/4/3/laumanns-lament
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The National Ballet of Canada will be able to go ahead with full houses after all, although "full capacity" seems to exclude the nightmarish fifth ring of the Four Seasons Centre. (Just as well.) I am glad that Sonia Rodriguez and Jillian Vanstone will have more-or-less full houses for their retirement performances.
Proof of vaccination and masks are still required.
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11 hours ago, Drew said:
(Will I watch the ladies competition? Haven't decided, but quite possibly. Mr. Drew on the other hand--who loved Valieva in the team competition--definitely will not.)
I went cold turkey on the Olympics more than 20 years ago because of this kind of thing: the endless doping, cheating, corruption, hypocrisy. The time has long since passed to put an end to the IOC and their filthy colossus.
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A truly remarkable person. May he rest in peace.
2 hours ago, Fraildove said:(Wikipedia gets his date of death incorrect. He died Feb 9, not Feb 10).
P.S. You could correct that. Click on the pencil icon/edit button in the relevant section.
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The National Ballet of Canada has posted a video of Jillian Vanstone reflecting on her career as she prepares to retire next month. A member of the company since 1999, she is a luminous interpreter of the classics and a particularly fine performer of Christopher Wheeldon’s works. She will dance his After the Rain as her final performance.
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A Royal Ballet tour to Japan has been postponed by a year, although gala concerts will go ahead this summer in lieu of the entire company performing.
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56 minutes ago, abatt said:
The cast members are there to perform their roles. It's not their job to attempt to answer questions about Michael Jackson's behavior.
But surely they have to expect the issue to come up. Artists are constantly asked questions about how they square performing the works of misogynists, anti-Semites or sexual predators, or what it's like to portray controversial figures, or how they judge the actions of artists who lived under totalitarianism or occupation.
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All the more reason to hope they lose their tainted profits in court.
"The representative revealed that the show’s principal cast members weren’t prepared to answer questions about controversies surrounding the late musician."
What?
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The Vienna State Opera is eliminating the booster and PCR test requirement as of February 5th. However, since full vaccination status is valid for six months after the second dose, a booster will be required for all intents and purposes. Also, full immunization with the J&J vaccine now requires two doses. People who have recovered from Covid also have access for six months. People who cannot be vaccinated must provide a medical certificate and a negative PCR test.
https://www.wiener-staatsoper.at/en/service/ticket-sales/covid-19-information-from-february-5/
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On 1/21/2022 at 5:44 PM, California said:
SF Ballet requires all patrons to wear a N95, KN95, or KF94 face mask to enter the venue. We will supply a free KN95 or equivalent mask upon entry if you do not have one. You will be denied entry if you do not wear a N95, KN95, or KF94 face mask.
I am glad this list includes the KF94, which is my preferred mask, and which has served me very well. Last year a Canadian consumer protection program lab tested a number of KN95 and KF94 masks sold by major retailers, and many KN95s flunked, some with filtration rates as low as 20%, while the KF94s exceeded their advertised filtration efficiency.
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Theater designer Ezio Frigerio, particularly famous for designing Giorgio Strehler's productions of Mozart's Da Ponte operas and some of Rudolf Nureyev's most opulent productions (as well as Nureyev's very glitzy grave, about which Frigerio was vaguely embarrassed), has died at the age of 91. He is survived by his wife and frequent collaborator, costume designer Franca Squarciapino.
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The National Ballet of Canada has posted a video with Sonia Rodriguez reflecting on her 32 years with the company. Sadly, because of current capacity restrictions, the hall will be only 50% full for her final performance of A Streetcar Named Desire in early March.
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Girls' class with Élisabeth Platel, boys' class with Yannick Boquin.
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Federico Bonelli will succeed David Nixon as artistic director of Northern Ballet on May 1. This also means that Bonelli's performing career with the Royal Ballet is coming to an end.
Bolshoi 2021/2022 Season
in Bolshoi Ballet
Posted · Edited by volcanohunter
Gergiev has been such a loyal and effective apologist for the regime for so long, no matter what the issue, that I'm going to assume he agrees with the party line entirely. And his career hasn't just flourished, he has become by far the most powerful figure in the Russian arts. Want a dedicated concert hall? No problem. A second theater? Sure. Appropriate a couple of opera houses in other cities? Okay. So no sympathy over his rock and hard place. The man is ruthless.
As for Ratmansky, if the political atmosphere is so uncomfortable, perhaps he'd be better off not working with Russian companies. There's plenty of work for him elsewhere, and he'd probably never feel pressure to make moral compromises.