cubanmiamiboy

The other way around...

I'm just finishing Rudolf Vrba's "I escaped from Auschwitz", the author's dramatic first-hand account of how he managed to escape from the notorious death camp, and helping save more than 120,000 Jews from slaughter. On a lighter side, I'm indulging in one of my guilty pleasures: John Grisham's "The Partner"... . I know...I know...but still...yummy as hell...

Perhaps the mistake having some factual roots...? I recall reading in one of my ballet autobiographies-(was it Baronova's...?)-the inclusion of DS in an abridged version of SL Act II...

...this video vs. live performances issue somehow made me remember something a poster said a while ago-(can't remember who),...something like "one doesn't has to go to the Sahara to know that it is hot there..."

Ditto

That Rose Adagio is painful to watch.

I'm about to watch this, my latest DVD purchase, encouraged by EricMontreal's advice. I will report back once I'm done with it. Will I like it...?

Thanks canbelto for the tip. I will get to it, when I'm done with my very latest purchases...the Soviet Cinderellas. I just searched a bit online about Durante, and was surprised to learn about her whole drama with the RB, and also to learn that she had guested with ABT right after her departure... Any memories from Miss Durante during that time...?

Viva Cher! I went to her "Farewell Tour" a few years ago and it was OUT OF THIS WORLD...so glamorous... Did you guys see the VMA's last week...? She presented the "Album of the Year" award to Lady Gaga wearing her "If I could turn back time" outfit...!

Well, perhaps they should get their files ready. Wiles is very well schooled but I find her a very dull, leaden dancer. To me she has a good technique for this type of rep but it doesn't add up to much. I've seen her several times in T&V partnered by Hallberg and I just don't have particularly good memories of this. (ducking) I really wish Murphy would have done the honors here...

I can almost see my friends the sharks X-raying Wiles during the famous first super fast variation in T&V... She better delivers her 150 %...!!

From the documentary "Four Jewels". Loipa Araujo-(I-II)

My memories of Miss Bosch are a little fussy...but what I DO remember is her Odile...God...was she EVIL!!! On the contrary, she struggled to deliver Odette...Also, her looooooong, long legs.

From the documentary "Four Jewels". Mirta Pla (I-II)

I'm glad you like the clip, bart. There's a segment on an interview of her from the documentary "Four Jewels" where Mme. Mendez says mischievously that every time she went onstage she felt compelled to bring all sort of tricks, because she felt that by doing that she could contribute with a tiny bit of happiness "to all that marvelous audience who would struggle in long lines, sometimes all night long outside the theater to get tickets to see us..." Yuyi was a beautiful woman and sensitive human being, the epitome of lady manners and elegance, on and offstage. She NEVER declined to sign a programme or pose for a pic with her fans, always with so much warm.... I miss those characters nowadays. The next clips are from that documentary..."Four Jewels". Enjoy it!

According to her Facebook page, Lorna had a beautiful baby girl on September 15. Her name is Lucia. Felicidades querida!!!!

Tribute to Josefina Mendez http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWJSQ9qh8fU&feature=feedrec

...you see, you made it again, Helene...now I WANT that Raymonda too...!! Will work on that...pronto! Taranda is great in both, but his ardent Abderakhman has more potent chemistry with the soulful, vulnerable Bessmertnova, IMHO. Soulful...that's just the exact term to describe Miss Bessmertnova's Raymonda...

...you see, you made it again, Helene...now I WANT that Raymonda too...!! Will work on that...pronto!

...which is one of the reasons I like Grigorovitch here. Having DeBrienne appear in the very beginning makes the whole thing way more understandable, aside from Bessmertnova's footwork and characterization, which are both mesmerizing. To top all this, there is Taranda's Abderakhman...just PERFECTION!!.

Go for Komleva's Bayadere and Bessmertnova's Raymonda. They're both glorious.

Searching for old Nutcracker threads for the new sub-forum, I've found some great ones. This one is HILARIOUS!!

I appreciate it...

I currently own three SB's: Sizova's, Kolpakova's and now my latest purchase...Durante's. I must say I'm fascinated with this production. I know about the general consensus on the disliking of the costume/sets design, but I confess I found them fabulous. Never have I experienced a true sense of "fairy tale" as much as here. The opulence of the whole thing could be a bit overwhelming, true , but it is done tastefully. I watched the DVD with my friend, the one I've been introducing to ballet, and at some point he told me how well explained he felt the story in terms of mime. This is true. The mime sequences were beautiful and more extended than many other stagings, included the Russians. One of the best ones was right after the Panorama, when Lilac and Desiree-(Florimund)-get to Aurora's chamber. It was funny, because Desire looks a little confused, and he mimes that "I know I should do something, but I can't remember..." to Lilac, to which she smiles and mimes back something like..."Ah, silly boy...you've got to KISS HER!", to which Desiree them mimes "Oh, God...yes, that's true...the kiss!"...very cute. Lilac's role is also spiced up a bit. One of my favorite passages is right when Desiree gets to Aurora's dormant palace, gets grabbed by Carabosse's minions and then collapses on the floor. Lilac then gets there and saves the day, sweeping away the evil forces. When Desiree wakes up, all he has to do is the kissing, for which brave Lilac has taken care of the dirty work. I liked that, the sense of ownership of Lilac during the entire course of the ballet. Desiree doesn't look here as the super-hero of the Soviet productions, a la Soloviev. The Queen. Oh my...(and I know Patrick will agree with me if he reads this). Elizabeth McGorian is absolutely MARVELOUS! She takes the character to a whole different level, with such intensity that at times she really threatens to take the spotlight out of Durante-(a tough cookie herself). I mean...what a beautiful woman, and what a superb, smart design of the role. She's all about the real suffering of a mother when seeing her child in danger. When Aurora collapses unconscious after hurting herself with the spindle, McGorian gets into a painful, desperate dance, which she does with so much anguish and suffering that I really got goosebumps while watching. I kept thinking..."OMG...poor woman...!" After watching so many cartoonish, unconvincing, manequin-look-like Mom-Queens, McGorian was THE REAL DEAL. Also, she truly acted as if she could be part of a real Royal Family, looking very comfortable in her baroque dress, capes and wigs. Another sequence where McGorian shines is at the beginning of the Spell part, when she steps forward to plead to the King, asking him to have mercy on the lives of the old women who just got caught with spindles, or in the other part when she make desperate efforts to convince Carabosse not to cast her horrible spell over her daughter. Watching her kneeling and begging, leaving all her regal pride behind gave her character some human accents I hadn't seen in other productions. And then, there is Viviana Durante. Youthful and grand, shy and flirtatious, confident and vulnerable...all at once. Durante is the perfect example of a ballerina who even lacking perfect lines still manages to take your eyes off the absences to focus on the good stuff. Having less than perfect physique-(long face/head, longer torso than lower limbs, short segment from her knees down)-she delivers a powerful performance, with flawless technique and strong characterization. Her Rose Adagio was sublime. She knew when to glance at the audience, when to acknowledge her suitors and when to just indulge in her own self. When she danced her wedding PDD solo, it was one of the most sensual dances I've ever seen. Brava Durante! Anthony Dowell's Carabosse was also a master class in mime and acting skills and the wedding act divertissements were delightful-(loved particularly the usually diminished Red Riding Hood/Wolf, as well as the playful cats). I didn't quite get Zoltan Solymosi's Desiree-(at times too much infatuated with himself)-but he was great while partnering Durante. Benazyr Hussein's Lilac was very elegant. Loved her mime scenes, but not as much her dancing. The Precious Stones Pas was a little confusing...who was that male character...? For me, even loving Sizova's version, this is THE Sleeping Beauty .

Due to the specification on the thread's title-(Balanchine)-, the range of dancers to pick from I have is quite narrow, but I do remember very well when Deanna Seay danced it. She was very regal, and radiated a serene sense of command over her kingdom. Jennifer Kronemberg has been also beautiful to watch in the role, very feminine and delicate. Moving a little beyond Mr. B's domains, then I have to mention Lorna Feijoo-(Boston Ballet) as my all time Sugar Plum. She was just PERFECTION.