cubanmiamiboy

I wish this thread would had included a little more than ABT... (I hope I'm not "discussing the discussion" by saying this... )

It is indeed wonderful that Villella's company even being quite a small one compared to some ultra Principal-populated ones like the Mariinsky or City Ballet is able to have such variety of personalities onstage. The dual presentation of Delgado/Rebello in Tarantella and Kronenberg/Guerra in Faun just epitomizes the word "perfect casting". Both couples are completely different , and among the four dancers some of them are definitely technically stronger than others, but the way they were casted shows them in their brightest lights, hence masking to their advantage other weaknesses they might have. re: J. Delgado. Since day 1 I made a note to myself to watch her, and I'm glad I've been proved right. Would she be casted in the company's upcoming run of Giselle then that will definitely prove a challenge to her, and here's someone who can't wait to see her dancing out of that left wing cottage...

Oh, wait...I know only of the passing of Yuyi and Mirta...am I unaware of another death among the four...?

And maybe one or two promotions...?

I'm feeling proud...

Wow...I noticed how scanty her performance schedule has been lately... http://www.michelewiles.com/michele-wiles-calendar.html Just as I have always said..right at the very top of any ballet dancer list of items to be aware of and try to get rid off ASAP-(at least in my eyes)-is that issue of being an uninteresting one...

One time I was in a conference in which Alonso talked about Aleko, Capricio Espagnol and Le Tricorne. She said she loved dancing on them... http://www.corbisimages.com/images/HU005719.jpg?size=67&uid=ddb998c9-f4b4-434f-8e6b-a44656d552ee&uniqID=add6eec2-6846-4b20-8b1b-d713aa91d86d

Nice to have you back, Nanarina, and I hope you were well taken for by the nurses while in the hospital.

Great pic...! I wish someone would have started working at some point to preserve Massine's ballets. The majority of them seem to be lost by now...

Cox and Baker were both MAJOR losses to MCB. Both have something that's getting more and more difficult to find onstage nowadays...and it's called CHARISMA, PERSONALITY. I would take Baker's Sigfried or Albrecht over many Principals AT ANY POINT, and he was the only partner that really reminded me the kind of partnership and lifts the Cuban men used to do back in the days...strong and secure. Then Cox was just wonderful while dancing Balanchine. He always looked as if he was flirting with the choreography, the music, the audience and his peers onstage the whole time. He really knows how to hold a performance and make it interesting. Yes...let's keep crossing our fingers so they could be back full time after the tour.

Really...? Why not...?

Natasha Misha

Loved her Lizzie Borden shot..! (quite a soft, unusual faced one...not very common on her...on the other side, the other ultra-expressionist, heavily made up face on the black swan shot is definitely 150 % Alonso). Thanks rg..! (and wondering how much more you have in store for me... )

Isn't he Chase Swatosh..? First from left http://media.vcstar.com/media/img/photos/2007/06/22/SwatoshChase_t300.jpg

Let's keep the "smoking-nostalgia" going on...! . One of my favorite things as a kid was while in bed and ready to sleep, lights off, to ask my father-(who was an avid smoker all his life until he suddenly stopped after more than 50 years of puffing)-to stop by my room with a cigarette, seat at the bedside and start swinging it very fast in circular motions in front of me. The effect of the whole thing was a lit up red dot dancing and swirling and forming all kinds of cirles and forms in the middle of the darkness..! When eventually I started smoking at the age of 14 I sometimes used to lock myself in darkness and repeat the childhood game. It was-(is)-very hypnotic. I still do it.

Very interesting when she speaks-(briefly)-about Graham's greatness in her beginnings compared to her ending...she clearly says "Martha Graham se acabo..."-("Martha Graham is finished")...don't know if she was referring to the artist herself or her legacy-(Graham's reticence to walked out the stage resembles very much that of Alonso). Also at the end when she becomes sort of emotional when talking about her upcoming Bolshoi tribute and her past MET gala and her remembering of her first time she danced in the Moscow theater-(1958). She looked very proud when talking about the spreading out of the Cuban Ballet via teachers and dancers around the world and specifically in Latin America.

Beautiful. That sums all up. The other day I was having a discussion that somehow borders this subject-(the Weiner scandal). Now, I know that this is sort of a different animal, but the person I was having the conversation with seemed to be very offended by his personal life actions. Sometimes things that are meant to be personal surface intentional or unintentionally, but I don't think it is our business to judge them. At the end this is just their private life-(which is getting more and more hard to stay private with the whole online siren songs)-, and I don't feel any of us are "pure" enough to put our finger our those. The discussion ended up when I asked the person if she was unhappy with Weiner's professional career or if she didn't feel that he had been doing a good job as a congressman, which she was unable to respond. Then I reminded her of the Clinton scandal and how great was that public pressure and pseudo-moralist notions hadn't been strong enough to destroy the Presidential couple's professional and personal career, which for me was a great response to those who were trying to flash their "role model" agenda to all of us. Good for Hillary, and good for Bill...and time for the moral squad to move on to another offending perpetrator story. As for the original OP's question of "why do they..." the answer is just as simple as "because they choose to as the adults they are". Period.

Sorry...

Lovely!

Krassovska looks so beautiful! Re: The snowflakes photo. Was this the original design of the headpieces...? If so..when did they become crowns..? http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/kindle/merch/rh/Nutcracker-Snowflakes--Photo-by-Costas_420.jpg Those headpieces really pay a great deal of tribute to Vsevolozhsky's designs...

Loved Smirnova! Very elegant , perfect lines and quite an unorthodox beauty. Asylmuratova looks like she doesn't want anything but PERFECTION from her kids..!!

Very pleasant ballet night tonight. It was one of those Gala/PDD nights, but I'm always very happy to be able to attend them, given that this is the only chance I have to see my favorite classical duets down here. Tonight's programme included Paquita Grand Pas, La Vivandiere Pas de Six, Diane&Acteon PDD, Satanella PDD, Don Quijote PDD, Spring Waters PDD and s PDD from Bournonville's Sylphide. Very happy, for which Vivandiere PDS was always a favorite of mine, often performed by the Cuban company in Havana. Highlights of the night...the AMAZING Adeline Pastor-(currently a Principal of Aalto Ballet Theater-(Germany) and Jordan Elizabeth Long, currently with the Royal Swedish Ballet in Stockholm. Miss Long was tonight's beautiful Diane-(wonderful line, this is a tall ballerina with veeeeery long limbs)-, and Miss Pastor danced Kitri. About Pastor, NEVER in my entire life have I seen such PERFECT amount of pirouettes-(and with that quantity..at one point she did like 9 or 10 in a row with her fouettes...!). I was thinking what kind of ballerina would be if we could clone Pastor's turning skills with Valdes' balances, Osipova's jumps and Zakharova's extensions all in Veronika Part's body...

Miss Magaly Suarez, ex founder and AD of CCBM will debugt tonight her own company:Florida Classical Ballet at the charming downtown Olympia Theater. I will be there. The program will include Paquita's Grand Pas and La Vivandiere PDS. I really wish the best to Miss Suarez in her last balletic adventure. http://www.gusmancenter.org/events/