cubanmiamiboy

A larger G-String.

but... pasmaroo, it is possible that you were digging here and there about the different variations of the score from 1876 to 1895 and got things mixed up. Originally, there was indeed a Pas de Six in Act III-(four acts design)-, for the 6 Princesses/potential girlfriends in the 1876 Tchaikovsky/Reisinger ballet, which was to be replaced by a Grand PDD in 1877 to the request of a ballerina-(the now so-called Tchaikovsky PDD, which was eventually dropped by Petipa and didn't make it to the '95 score). So in 1894, Drigo arranged a former Act I PDD and inserted it in the Ballroom Act for Odile and Siegfried, hence suppressing the '76 Pas de Six and the '77 Pas de Deux. They all have Codas, but the 32 fouetees that have survived 'till today are those that were performed for the first time in this ballet by Pierina Legnani in a special performance presented in 1894 to Drigo's arrangement. About the Pas de Six, there are some companies that have rescued the Princesses and some of their music, while some others have sticked to the Petipa/Drigo 95 design. I, for once, never saw anything from this former Pas performed live until I came to US.

Thanks rg for the clarification. I too Googled the name and nothing came out, so I edited it on the original post.

Thanks to the amazing link posted by Leonid-( British Pathe )-, I was able to watch a couple of clips from Mme. Alonso's performance at the Bolshoi Theatre on January 30, 1958, while being a Principal with Ballet Theatre. The performance is Giselle, and the clips are her Act I Entrance and Spessivtseva's Solo. Her Loys is Russian Vladilen Semyonov. According to some accounts, this was the first time a western ballerina was invited to dance with the Bolshoi, although from other sources, it was the British Beryl Grey who took the honors. In any case, this is a wonderful opportunity to see a glimpse a younger Alonso's Giselle, while still at her best-(she was 38 at the time). Enjoy. http://www.britishpathe.com/record.php?id=60389

Thank you thank you thank you Leonid for this hint...! You just made my day.

I guess this is not a forbidden topic, and I'm sure we all have seen some examples of the issue. Without naming names, I must say I was a little surprised at seeing a ballerina from a top company exhibiting a VERY generous chest a while ago during a guest appearance here in Miami. The look was even more awkward because she is NOT a full figure girl at all... If this is just a matter of mother nature, well...fine...not the most typical form in a female dancer, but it is what it is. Now, if the assets are a result pf surgical procedures, then something is wrong. I read in a book-(I think in that "Unmaking of a dancer")-that the author used to see one of the girls in class having a lot of trouble with the same issue, and she used to wrap herself over and over and very tight with elastic wraps in order to diminish the visual effect. And that she was NOT happy at all about it...

Miss Long has officially joined Het Nationale Ballet-(Holland)-as a coryphée as per its official roster. Congrats Jordan!! http://www.het-nationale-ballet.nl/index.p...sm=〈=uk

...maybe the arranging of Odile's fouettes to the Princesses Pas de Six Coda...? (a la Fonteyn in the video with Rudi...? ) I think the OP meant the PDD Coda...

...

And even if one is pretty used to certain ballets, having seen them many times live, we're still get amazed at some videos that we find here and there. Just look at the many responses the short clip of Kirkland in Giselle generated. And BTW, linking the clip to that other thread of which variations does one pay close attention, Gelsey's clip would be an EXCELLENT choice to watch a beautiful Spesivtseva's solo-(sans the diagonal).

Yeah... "On stage, Ansanelli takes her bows to a divided audience..."

...but it would be the only way to start enjoying them if facing the highly probable possibility of lacking access to live performances.

"The return of the Firebird" -(that triple DVD set that also includes Petrushka and Sheherazade). Nina is beautiful as the Firebird !.

Beautiful article. I wish I could have been there to see them...

I want to reinforce the importance of the geographical position from which one will start studying the ballets, and this has to do with the specific versions that will be seen and the ones that will be recommended by others. For example, when I suggested "Fille", I knew that many of the posters here-(probably the most of them, if not ALL)-would be recommending Ashton's. Fact is that I do not know ANYTHING about Ashton's version-(I've never even seen it once)-which doesn't mean that I'm not familiar with "Fille"...(Balachova/Nijinska-Gorsky/Hertel in this case), so is almost as if we're talking about two different ballets. I remember an older popular thread about "Fille" in which I popped in and mentioned something, to which I got a response stating that the version in discussion was that of Ashton, so that was the end of my two cents on the thread. Same with Sylphide, and that's why both versions need to be seen. (I must confess I only own Lacotte's reconstruction, and I know that for many, it is Bournonville's the standart...).

The list also depends on the ultimate goal the viewer has. That of plain inner pleasure vs. wanting to be involved in regular public discussions about the art. If that's the case, then the selected works need to be considered also from those that are popular within the circle of discussion. I'm talking from my own experience. When I started posting in this board, my Balanchine knowledge was pretty scarce, so I felt kind of lost facing the huge amount of Balanchine-related topics around. Then I decided to get more involved with the subject. Of course, I've had the GREAT opportunity to have live access via Eddie's Balanchinean troupe-(and here is where bart's observation goes about live vs. recorded performances). I guess the OP also will get many of our answers based in particular taste, which is OK too, for which it gives a wider range from where to choose from. If anything, it looks like we all convey in the idea that Giselle needs to be the started point... so far...so I guess the OP has some homework to do already...

Start with the "warhorses" first...and then take into consideration Peggy's great additions: FIRST, go to the GRANDEST Romantic... -Giselle and then ... -La Sylphide-(both Lacotte's revival and Bournonville's) ...then, watch ALL with the Tchaikovsky/Petipa duo... -Sleeping Beauty -The Nutcracker -Swan Lake ...keep going with more Petipa... -Raymonda -La Bayadere -Don Quijote -Paquita-(at least the Grand Pas) -Edited to add Le Corsaire-(thanks Hans for the reminder!!). The reason for the omission: partial personal unfamiliarity with a full length production) ...add some Delibes... -Coppelia -Sylvia ...and don't forget the delicious... -La Fille Mal Gardee-(try to catch a "Balachova-(or Nijinska)- after Gorsky/Hertel" revival of the ballet, although I'm sure you will get different approaches about this issue...ALL worth to consider, IMO) Oops...that makes 13!!..

Hey, I finally got my Makarova-Misha "Giselle" thanks to you, rg!!

Not pointless at all, rg. There ought to be people out there who, like me, not only owns a PAL VCR, but even a records player, and I've been able to watch and listen to a LOT of rarities this way...(like a 1904 74 rpm recording of Caruso I caught the other day for $1.50 at a thrift store)...so there, you never know.

Wow...that was impressive...

There's this little thing that I love of Kirkland's ending, and it is the way that she, after all those crazy pique turns,simply goes down on her mum's feet, in such a humility gesture, almost as if the previous craziness had been something that had happened beyond her own comprehension...I don't know...like if she wasn't even aware of that sudden display of energy...like if her mind was kind of "divided" in between two worlds, the real one and the one that she is just about to enter...that of madness. This is the first time I see this. All the ballerinas usually opt for the "Ta-daah!/look-at-how-great-did-I-just-danced!" BRAVA GELSEY!!!