cubanmiamiboy

Note that these readers were actually paid for by the workers themselves. This is true. Actually during the XIX Century, our National Hero, Jose Marti, went to Tampa to organize and instigate the war against Spain. He saw the tobacco workers as potential allies, and so he went to preach his ideals, by reading or otherwise giving political speeches.

On December 29 1991 an extraordinary event happened in La Habana. Mme. Alonso decided to celebrate the 150 anniversary of the premiere of Giselle, and for the occasion, a one time only performance was presented at the Grand Theater. That performance had the excitement and novelty of having all the then current Principals, men and women, dancing the roles of Giselle, Albertch and Myrtha simultaneously. This was done by making a special staging of the choreography, which was shared by all those wonderful stars of the 60's, 70's and 80's-(Josefina Mendez-RIP-, Loipa Araujo, Aurora Bosh, Rosario Suarez, Amparo Brito, Ofelia Gonzalez, Maria Elena Llorente and many others, as well as Mme. Alonso herself who, at 71, still danced many fragments, including an unforgettable mad scene). The Albretch was also shared by Principals: Gili, Vega, Salgado, etc…, It really was a truly magical night, and the crowd was so eager to get into the theater, even though it had been oversold, that a riot was created at the entrance, and the masses actually forced, broke off and opened the doors to just run to every single corner of space available inside. The police was called in to tried to stop this out of control situation, and efforts were made to get people out, but of course nobody moved. The performance was delayed until they realized that we were all staying.-(yes, I was among the instigators lacking a ticket). Finally the curtains went up, and magic was made. I remember the whole thing vividly, because it has been one of the most beautiful spectacles that I've ever seen in my entire life. Didn't matter that there was almost nothing to eat around those years, being the early 90's one of the worst chapters in the economical history of the island. We were transported to another world, that of charm and beauty. A film was made of this performance, and hasn't been released commercially. I just found many fragments of it on Youtube., and I feel that I have to share this magnetic performance. (This is the first clip in a list of a dozen. Just keep clicking on the 1-12 order from the right side)

Snowflakes. (If they don't dance all that well, just toss more confetti!) The Mice in Nutcracker or Kastchei's monsters in Firebird? The Mice! (More charm, more strategy!) Flying birds - Bluebird or Firebird? bluebird, if assuming that Florine stays as a princess, so yes, the male character. Veronika Part, Solist caliber or Principal material...?

Interesting

Last night was the opening of the XIII International Ballet Festival of Miami, under the resilient direction of Pedro Pablo Pena and his unwavering Assistant Director Heriberto Jimenez. This took place at the Manuel Artime Theater, where the International Young Ballet Medal Winners Performance was presented. This program was assembled by Larissa Saveliev, Artistic Director of Youth America Grand Prix, drawing on YAGP’s international network of dance talent in collaboration with the International Ballet Festival of Miami. The program consisted in the usual display of works that are common in the competition circuit, plus some contemporary/modern renderings. The dancers were very young, ages ranging from 11 to 22. The public was very enthusiastic, and they had a persistent ovation at the end. This was the program. Part I Mirletons Variation from Nutcracker. Petipa/Tchaikowsky Shania Rasmussen (12)/Colton West (11) National Ballet Academy of Denver, Co. USA “Let me Fall”. Canterna/Groban Derek Dunn (13) Edna Lee Dance Studio, Md. USA “Reflections”. Reeder/Sakamoto Megan Yamashita (15) Southland Ballet Academy, Ca. USA “Spring Waters”. Messerer/Rachmaninoff Skylar Lubin (16).The Rock Center for Dance Education, PA, USA/Richard Hankes (22)Miami City Ballet School, FL,USA “Action and Command”. Dos Santos/”The Truman Show” soundtrack Carolina Neves (18) Centro de Danza, Rio, Brazil “Grand Pas Classique” Variation. Gsovsky/Auber Tamako Miyazaki (19) La Scala Ballet Academy, Italy/Kaneta Kouno Ballet Academy, Japan “Cardiac Arrest”. Plotnikov/Huelsmann Jeffrey Cirio (17) Orlando Ballet School, Fl, USA “Maydow”. Tregarthen/Warsaw Village Band Kirsten Wicklund (18) Goh Ballet Academy, Canada/Washington Ballet Studio Company, DC, USA “Talisman” Variation. Petipa/Drigo Emily Kadow (15). Ellison Ballet Professional Training Program, NY, USA “10 Spiritus Spiral”. Cara/Corrad Irlan dos Santos (18). Centro de Danza Rio, Brazil/American Ballet Studio company, NY, USA “Don Quixote PDD” Adagio and Coda. Petipa/Minkus Hannah Schiller (15)/Adam Hartley (18) -Kitri’s Variation- Anna Lorena Boyd (12) V/T Dance Academy, CA, USA/Pointe Dance Academy, Panama INTERMISSION Part II “Bluebird PDD” Adagio. Petipa/Tchaikowsky Kira Anderson (12) JKO at ABT, NY, USA/Derek Dunn (13) Edna Lee Dance Studio, MD, USA “Notre Dame de Paris” Petit/Jarre Hanna Schiller (15) V/T Dance Academy, CA, USA “Esmeralda” variation . Petipa/Pugni Tamako Miyazaki (19) La Scala Ballet Academy, Italy/Kaneta Kouno Ballet Academy, Japan “Lacrimosa”. Lannin-Comelin/Mozart Sally Schweitzer (15)/Steven Loch (17). Ballet Conservatory of Texas, TX, USA. “Complicated Game”. Dwyer/Davies Jasmin Dwyer (18). National College of Dance, Australia/Washington Ballet studio company, DC, USA “Coppelia”. Franz variation. St. Leon/Delibes Jeffrey Cirio (17). Orlando Ballet School, Fl, USA “The Hill”. Loud.Irglova Kirsten Wicklund (18) Goh Ballet Academy, Canada/Washington Ballet Studio, DC, USA “Gopak” Zakharov/Solovyov-Sedoi Adam Hartley (18) V/T Dance Academy, Ca, USA “Plentitudo” Bianco/Bach Savina Belloto (19)/Federico Veratti (19). Il Balletto, Italy “Satanella PDD” Petipa/Pugni Carolina Neves (18)/Irlan dos Santon (18) Centro de Danza, Rio, Brasil/American Ballet Studio Company, NY, USA. At the end, all the dancers took their turns to dance in a common extended offering of the Corsaire PDD Coda music. It was very cute, and they were very happy when taking bows. Among all the dancers I want to mention two of them that really caught my eye. Tamako Miyazaki (19) La Scala Ballet Academy, Italy/Kaneta Kouno Ballet Academy, Japan and Irlan dos Santos (18). Centro de Danza Rio, Brazil/American Ballet Studio company, NY, USA. Great dancing. Bravo!

When I was a teen I participated in an interesting activity that involved listening to readings. In Cuba there's a tradition within tobacco factories that involves having a reader the whole time in front of the huge rooms of workers who hand make the tobacco all day long. These readers are usually poets or writers who go and volunteer to read their own works, or otherwise regular people or whoever wants to go and read for them, according to a previously generated reader's schedule. I offered myself one summer and read fragments of a novel for 3 hours, by the time someone else took over. The workers listened attentively and glanced at me from time to time. The smell of tobacco was intense though, and i was exhausted by the end. It was an interesting experience anyway.

Here's a pic with Fernando and Alicia in Giselle. http://www.danzaballet.com/UserFiles/Image...00Scan10002.jpg

Here's an update of the 2009 Season. Program I. The Fillmore Theater, Miami Beach Le Corsaire. Petipa/Drigo 02/28/09. 8:00 P.M. 03/01/00. 5:00 P.M. Lorena Feijoo/Hayna Gutierrez Miguel Angel Blanco/Taras Domitro Program II Dade County Auditorium Theater, Miami Le Corsaire. Petipa/Drigo 03/14/09. 8:00 P.M 03/15/09. 5:00 P.M Lorena Feijoo/Hayna Gutierrez Miguel Angel Blanco/Taras Domitro Program III Olympia Theater, Miami Carmen. Alberto Alonso/Rodion Schedrin 03/28/09. 8:00 P.M 03/29/09. 5:00 P.M Lorena Feijoo/Miguel Angel Blanco/Taras Domitro Program IV Dade County Auditorium Theater, Miami Gala Performance: "The Best of Classical Repertoire" 04/25/09. 8:00 P.M 04/26/09. 5:00 P.M Program V Broward Center for the Performing Arts, Fort Lauderdale Giselle Act II Gala Performance: "The Best of Classical Repertoire" 05/08/09 8:00 P.M Program VI Dade County Auditorium, Miami Gala Performance: "The Best of Classical Repertoire" 05/23/09 8:00 P.M 05/24/09 5:00 P.M Program VII Dade County Auditorium, Miami The Nutcracker. Petipa/Tchaikowsky 12/19/09 8:00 P.M 12/20/09 5:00 P.M

Apparently, some viewers were not very satisfied with the results... "The Life and Career of Alberto Alonso" by Vivian Villalón, At 90 years of age, Alberto Alonso, Cuban ballet master and choreographer, has been honored with a documentary about his professional trajectory. The ambitious proposal was set in motion in 2005, with the sponsorship of donors, by Alora Haynes, actual Chair of the Visual Performing Arts Department at Santa Fe Community College, in Gainesville, Florida, where Alberto (whom I will address by his first name, to avoid confusion with the other Alonsos of the ballet world) teaches dance since the early 90s. Unfortunately, to the detriment of the much anticipated project, many factors have contributed to its disappointing result. At the outset, under the direction of Steve Robitaille, English Professor at SFCC, and with Daphney Stacey as producer – she remained as such to the end – the biopic was to be titled “Dancing in Freedom’s Shoes”. However, although the concept was changed and the finished work renamed “Dance of my Heart: The Life and Career of Alberto Alonso”, it was surprising that it still includes material that was to be used in the original version. As the film unfolds, it becomes evident that the final product could have, just as well, been called “A Love Story”, since not only the discussion of freedom (a very crucial issue to those who have lived under oppression) within the context is practically ignored, but many of the highlights of Alberto’s career and personal life are amazingly omitted, obviously with his approval. Ricardo Acosta, the new director who took over the development of the film, in 2006, is an Afro-Cuban émigré, residing in Toronto, Canada since 1993. The credentials listed on the internet are impressive: Film editor, working in Cuba as president of Cuba’s Young Filmmakers Association, and director of an alternative Cuban Film Festival. For “Dance of My Heart”, Acosta assumed not only the task of editing, but also directing as well as writing the script.. The documentary was previewed on September 7th and 8th, at SFCC Auditorium, in what could be referred to as a “Red Carpet” affair. Later, on September 25th, it was shown at the Edmonton International Film Festival, in Canada. Many other showings are expected, but to my knowledge, none have thus far materialized. The new focus of the film seems to be the promotion of the Dance Department of SFCC, to coincide with the building of a new Fine Arts Hall on campus. Alberto appears on screen on several occasions, conducting a class and teaching the “tricks of the trade” to a group of adult students that don’t seem to have a clue as to who Michel Fokine was. Sonia Calero, Alberto´s present and third wife, suddenly appears and incites her husband to play Afro-Cuban rhythms on the “tumbadora”, so she can wiggle her hips, while trying to teach some salsa steps to a student. If the extensive exposure to ballet classes -- together with this uninspired salsa lesson -- was meant to attract new students to the college, the effort might have been counterproductive, because after a while, the scenes become too repetitious and boring. As the film continues, Alberto, in both English and Spanish, narrates what is supposed to be his life’s story and career, beginning as a student at the School of Ballet of Pro-Arte Musical in Havana, Cuba, until his departure to join the famous Ballet Russe de Montecarlo, and later to become a member of De Basil’s Original Ballet Ruses. However, he does not offer any insights into what it meant for him to work during those Ballet Ruses years, in close contact with two of the most notable choreographers of the 20th century, Michel Fokine and Leonide Massine, or how remarkable it was for him to be the original interpreter of some of the roles in the masterpieces produced in those years. Furthermore, there is a gap after his BR and OBR experiences when Alberto, shortchanging himself on a prolific career, fails to recollect his return to his homeland in 1941, with his first wife Alexandra Denisova (nee Patricia Denise Meyers), an outstanding Canadian dancer who adopted this professional name, as was customary during the era of prominent Russian dancers. In addition, lamentably, Alberto’s tenure as director of the Pro-Arte Ballet School (1941-1959) which followed was also excluded, as well as his creations of classical works for the School, and the introduction of stylized Afro-Cuban dances, during the early stages of television, with Elena Del Cueto, his second wife, dancing the principal roles on the small screen, in shows such as "Cabaret Regalías" and "Casino de la Alegría". Undoubtedly, if Acosta, as the script writer, had provided Alberto with his own lines to read, instead of ad-libing, his comments would have sounded more fluid and compelling, even aiding in certain instances to jolt his memory. The telephone conversation between Alberto, in the United States, and his older brother Fernando (soon to be 93), in Cuba, shows the latter to be quite eloquent and in sharp state of mind, reminiscing about “Fancy Free”, a ballet Alberto performed a few months after its successful premiere in New York, during his short stint with Ballet Theatre, in the fall of 1944. In that ballet, a timeless piece by Jerome Robbins, to the music of Leonard Bernstein, Alberto, as the Latin sailor, danced the role inspired by the Cuban danzon “Almendra”. Fernando not only remembers the music, but the lyrics as well. The personal accounts of Maya Plisetskaya, a highlight indeed, reveal that she became intrigued by Alberto’s work, upon seeing one of his most applauded vignettes of Cuban folklore, “El Solar”, staged as a musical in Moscow in the early 60s, with Calero, in total command of a broom as dancing partner. That experience prompted Plisetskaya to approach the choreographer and request that he create a new Carmen, the ultimate rebel, especially for her. Rodion Shchedrin, her husband, arranged the Bizet score and also appears on the footage, offering his memories of the occasion, as does Azari Plisetski ( Plisetskaya’s brother) one of the early Don José in the Ballet Nacional de Cuba’s stagings , who in fluent Spanish, elucidates on the freedom message the ballet was intended to convey. Alberto’s trip to Moscow in November 2005, to stage “Carmen Suite” for the new generation of Bolshoi dancers (with Svetlana Zakharova in the title role) following Plisetskaya’s invitation to celebrate her 80th birthday, is the center piece of the second half of the film, as it very well should be. The great diva’s presence on the screen is truly overwhelming, as her performance of “Carmen” is juxtaposed with that of Zakharova’s, and her appearance on the Bolshoi stage to take a bow with the company and the choreographer at the end of the performance leads to a standing ovation. Nevertheless, there is a scene towards the end of the film that seems preposterous, when Calero, well into her 70s, appears on a small dark stage, with a reddish spotlight on her, dressed in black, wearing heels, and with a long slit on her skirt to show her legs, tries to evoke the seductive and unbending personality of Merrimee’s cigar wrapper. – an unflattering misdirection that detracts from Alberto´s own merits and achievements. The unsatisfactory result of this ambitious project might very well be due to director Acosta’s misguided adventure, for Alberto was led through a shortened path, leaving by the wayside many of his most remarkable career accomplishments, as well as the people that shared the spotlight with him. Finally, as a member of the Alonso family, I, for one, was very disturbed that only one son (who defected to the U.S. by raft in 1992, and by the way, the only other participant, besides Plisetski, who refers to the meaning of “freedom”) and one grandson were acknowledged in the film. Alberto has two other daughters (who sought asylum with their mother in 1962) and two other grandsons, and this insensitive oversight can only further divide a family already irreparably torn apart. The legacy of Alberto Alonso would have been better served for the balletomanes, but more importantly, for those who have loved and respected him, had this documentary been more faithful to the facts.

Last night I went to see Ricardo Acosta's "Dance of my heart", a beautifully made documentary on the artistic career of Alberto Alonso, one of the three creators of the so named “Cuban style” in ballet, along with brother Fernando Alonso and ex sister in low Alicia Alonso. This tasteful work was done basically based on Alonso's own recounting of his amazing artistic and personal life, from his early beginnings in Havana during the 30’s, where he first studied with Nikolai Yavorsky, to his years in Europe where he studied with Tchernicheva, Preobrajenska and Idzikovsky among others, to his debut in 1935 with Colonel de Basil’s Ballet Russe, to his memories as a leading soloist with American Ballet Theatre, where his roles included the title part in "Petrushka" and the First Sailor in "Fancy Free". Precious were some class footage with Alonso at the School of Dance of the Santa Fe Community College, Florida, where he taught until the end of his life. Particularly great are the moments where he’s trying-(with his thick Cuban accent)-to make himself clear about a given step, and his frustration at one moment when, referring to the way Mikhail Fokine “took me under his wings” to dance Petrouchka, he realizes that not all of his students knew who Fokine was. There is also his recollections of back when he danced Robbins “Fancy free”, and its connection with the early “Americana” phenomenon within the ballet world in the States. Very moving were the moments where he and his wife Sonia Calero-(also an ex dancer) decided to defect from Mexico after knowing that their son Albertico had came to the States in a raft during the 90's rafters crisis. Alberto Alonso’s battle against lung cancer is also discussed, a battle that he lost last year. One of the best moments was an extensive covering of the creation of his masterwork “Carmen” for Maya Plisetskaya, with interviews of the ballerina herself, her brother Azari Plisetsky and composer Rodion Schedrin, Plisetskaya’s husband. Plisetskaya talked about when she asked Alonso to do her “Carmen”. As it went, Plisetskaya’s mother took her to a guest performance in Moscow by the National Ballet of Cuba , where she saw a ballet by Alberto Alonso that seemed exactly in the manner she wanted. She went straight backstage and to her question: “Would you like to do Carmen for me?”, received the answer: “That is my dream.” To get permission for him to work at the Bolshoi she had to pull rank, helped by the Lenin Prize she had just received. Alonso had his own concept of the heroine, which Plisetskaya saw as “a fatal confrontation of a willful person-born free-and a totalitarian system”. Plisetskaya recalls that she had long wanted to dance the character of Carmen. She had devised a scenario, following the pattern of Bizet’s opera, and had tried to persuade Shostakovich to write a score and , when he refused afraid of comparison with Bizet, turned to Khachaturian, again with no success. Finally her husband said he would write something, but was first busy with other projects. The only way to get it on within the limited time allowed was to choose bits of Bizet which Shchedrin, night by night, arranged and supplemented. The result was this masterpiece of a ballet, which created a commotion in the politically invaded artistic circles, resulting in its banning from some scheduled shows in Europe. Even Plisetskaya was called upon the premiere by the Minister of Culture, and was told, among other things that she was a “traitor to the classical ballet”, that she has “made a prostitute of the heroine of the novel” and that “Carmen will not survive, for it’s condemned to die”, for which Plisetskaya laughs and recalls that then she answered back with “Carmen will die the day that I die”, just to now corrects herself to say that “I will die, but Carmen will still live”. She also said that even the early performances of 1967 were censored because politicians thought Carmen’s skirtless costume and erotic duet were inappropriate. But the ballet, devised for a small cast and named Carmen Suite, survived as Plisetskaya predicted. She herself danced it about 350 times, restoring what had been deleted (the full version of the duet was first seen during a tour to London); and Alonso further staged it for other companies worldwide. Among them was the National Ballet of Cuba, where Carmen became one of the most noted roles of Mme. Alonso. The most moving part of the documentary was at the end, in which Alonso confesses that there is something that he’s never told anybody, which is that he always wanted Sonia-(his wive)-to be his Carmen, but because of she was never allowed to dance it, “she’s always danced it in my heart”. He died of heart failure in the North Florida Regional Medical Center last year, and is survived by his wife, Sonia, their son and two daughters.

...and here's a clip of the current production-(exactly the same). Swanilda is Lorna Feijoo pre-defection. Enjoy it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4pFXtCoD3k

I think people will still be referring to the Company as "Kirov" when it's related to the years in which the name was the officially appointed one. And let's not forget that certain feeling of vintage/glamour has being forming for a while around the soviet era and its items. Would Misha or Natasha will ever switch names when talking about their former Company...? I would say no.

Finally.

No, actually it is not all of the above, so i'll correct myself. Paquita was just..not right. Details , if given , can be really detrimental, so i'll skip them. Let's just say that i really had a hard time getting used to the Corps.

Well, Martinez was just Fille's stager for the Ballet Etudes performance, and as i could tell, he left the choreography intact just as Alonso has it. Moradillos, on the other side, came from the Cuban company, where she also got to dance the role of Lissette back on the days. It's interesting thought that is Nijinska/Alonso the only version that I've ever seen. Ashton's is a complete stranger to me.

Uuuh...let's see, perhaps all of the above...?

"La Fille Mal Gardee" has been the object of some discussions in this board recently, but mainly referring to Ashton's version. As being used to watch this ballet in the past as part of the Ballet Nacional de Cuba active repertoire, I am amazed at the oblivion this beautiful piece has been subjected to. The choreography that Alicia Alonso staged in Cuba has one act and three scenes, and was released by Alonso's Company in 1952, Havana. Mme Alonso. always emphasizes the fact that the origins of her version lies on those unforgettable years when she assumed the roll of Lisette within Ballet Theatre. I found some words in one of my old Havana programs that talks a little bit about her vision of this work, one that has been, in my opinion, way too neglected. "Lissette is a graceful character, and back then it was very different from those I had interpreted . It contained an aura of romantic old style, but with flirt and a very natural vividness. I immediately did fall in love with the character. In 1952, when Ballet Theatre was on hiatus between seasons, I decided to bring it and to stage it with the Cuban company, among other things because the ballet enchanted me and I was sure that the Cuban public was going to love it too. For the occasion I carefully revised it and revamped it, but I did not change it. La Fille Mal Gardee had been created already by Mme. Nijinska when I wasn't still dancing with Ballet Theatre, and that had to be respected. After that I never stopped re-staging this ballet, and has been a constant matter of improving everything that is possible, because like in all works, this is about constantly discovering new edges, both choreographically and musically. Music in ballet is very important, particularly for pantomime works like "Fille". The value of the gesture is extremely important to tell the story and it is also essential to look for the musical accents, the musical phrases, because that is what gives the rate to the body work. Although it is certain that in Fille we find powerful elements that usually move the public to a true outburst of laughter-(just remember the shades of the Mme. Simone character), the laughter also can make the audience think about the wide range of human attitudes. In this ballet the personal interest of each of the characters is fully exposed. It is almost like opening a Pandora's box, presenting the crude vision of certain bizarre human behaviors that makes an essential part of this world; mainly the interest of one's own well-being, our own egoism, and we all know that nothing can be more terrible than our human nature's egoism, and hence that sometimes nothing can be sadder, funnier, ridiculous or more terrible than those roles that a human being is able to play moved by egoism". I'm also curious about Nijinska's staging. Where else does it gets performed nowadays…?

Hey Nanarina! Check this out...a similar thread-(way long by now, BTW) http://ballettalk.invisionzone.com/index.p...=26795&st=0 cheers!

It’s never too late for a compliment. And I owe one, along to a review, to Ballet Etudes’s recent performance in South Beach. So here it goes. The program went as follows: Part I Sylvia PDD Choreography after original-(Trust purposes, you know…) Dagmar Moradillos/Jose Rodriguez Grand Pas from Paquita Minkus/Petipa Jessica Tome/Will Hoppe and Corps INTERMISSION Part II“La Fille Mal Gardee” Hertel/Dauverbal. Staged by Rodolfo Rodriguez after Alicia Alonso after Bronislava Nijinska after Dauverbal. Sylvia PDD had a double pleasant significance. For one, getting to see this beautiful PDD, which I hadn’t seen it live ever since I left the island. Second, the surprise to see again Dagmar Moradillos, a dancer who started a fast rising within Cuban National Ballet during the early 90’s, defecting soon , and was never heard of afterward. The PDD went smooth, without Moradillos taking many risks. She still maintains that aura that made her very popular back then and there, but time has taken a stroll, and this is obvious. Great job done by dancer Jose Rodriguez partnering her. This is a very young dancer whose clean lines, stage presence and killer smile won me since the beginnings. Paquita I’ll skip… And then “Fille”. This was certainly the highlight of the night. This ballet has been currently under some discussions on this board, but mostly referring to Ashton’s version. In this case, choreographer Rodolfo Rodriguez chose to keep the version that is currently presented in Havana, which is the condensed one act Mme. Alonso staged in 1952 taken from Nijinska’s during her years with BT. Brittany O’Dell was the expected flirtatious and vivacious Lissette. Jose Rodriguez, as Colin, won us all over again, keeping the love game very credible-(and I think this is always very important)-as the object of desire of Lissette. Pol Paelinck was a hilarious Alain, carefully interpreted without overdoing it, and finally great Peter La Fox as Mme. Simone, whose characterization kept the audience laughing and in high spirits the whole time. Overall, this was a very pleasant and enjoyable performance, with-of course-the usual limitations of a small struggling company. I still must say that Iliana Prieto, its Artistic Director, did a great job. Thanks Prieto for keeping this lovely work alive.

The Miami Beach Cinematheque will be presenting a short International Ballet Film Festival in collaboration with Dance Films Association & Miami Dade College from Sept 4 thru Sept 7. The program will be as follows: PROGRAMME Th. 9/4/2008 at 8:00 PM. ''Dance of My Heart'' by Ricardo Acosta. 60min. A story of passion and longevity in the life of the great artist, choreographer and creator of the Cuban School of Ballet Alberto Alonso. http://mbcinema.tix.com/Event.asp?Event=153693 Fri. 9/5/2008 at 6:00 PM. ''Water Flowing Together'' by Gwendolen Cates , USA, 2007, 77min. Winner of the 2008 Dance Film Jury Prize. A compelling cinematic portrait of former NYCB Principal Dancer Jock Soto. The film will be introduced by the director and star Jock Soto. http://mbcinema.tix.com/Event.asp?Event=153694 Sat.9/6/2008 at 6:00 PM. ''Felia Doubrowska Remembered'' by Virginia Brooks, USA, 2008 37 min. An affectionate memorial and a tribute to Mme. Doubrowska, an artist who made a great contribution to preserving the ballet tradition at SAB. http://mbcinema.tix.com/Event.asp?Event=153695 Sat. 9/6/2008 ''Pina Bausch'' by Anne Linsel, Germany, 2006, 44min.. An insight of choreographer Pina Bausch and her Tanz-theater Wuppertal . Sun. 9/7/2008 at 2:00 PM. ''Maria Tallchief'' by Sandy and Yasu Osawa, USA, 2007, 57min. The story of America’s first prima ballerina is told by Maria herself, her sister Marjorie and Yvonne Chouteau. http://mbcinema.tix.com/Event.asp?Event=153698. Miami Beach Cinematheque 512 Espanola Way Miami Beach, FL 33139 http://www.mbcinema.com/ info@mbcinema.com

I hate this kind of news, specially when right around my corner an obscene concrete abomination made to serve the cult of food over consumption-(aka Publix)- twice the size of the Met is under construction...

The XIII International Ballet Festival of Miami presented by Miami Hispanic Ballet, American Airlines and Miami-Dade College will launch with a cocktail reception to celebrate the unveiling of the official poster, an original artwork created by Cuban artist Luis Miguel Rodriguez along with “Vision of Dance” a dance-inspired art exhibit by the artist. The cocktail reception will take place on Friday, August 29th from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. at the Tower Theater located at 1508 S.W. 8th Street in Miami. The poster unveiling and dance-inspired art exhibit will be accompanied by the presentation and book signing of “Después de Giselle” by Cuban author Isis Wirth, a resident of Germany and followed by the Dance Film Series Kick-Off in collaboration with Miami-Dade College, Dance Films Association, Inc. and Miami Beach Cinematheque. The Dance Film Series will premier with “Dance of My Heart” based on the life of renowned Cuban choreographer Alberto Alonso. The International Ballet Festival of Miami founded and directed by Pedro Pablo Peña is one of the most acclaimed ballet festivals in the United States and presents the opportunity for audiences to see some of the world’s leading companies represented by their stars. This year’s participating ballet companies are from the United States, Canada, England, Austria, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Spain, Slovenia, Argentina, Mexico, Brazil and Dominican Republic. For additional information please visit http://www.intballet.org/. The International Ballet Festival of Miami was founded in 1995 with the main objective of showcasing international ballet stars in South Florida. The Miami Hispanic Ballet is the umbrella for the International Ballet Festival of Miami, and is a non-profit 501©3 organization. For additional information, please visit http://www.miamihispanicballet.com/

I'm withholding judgment on the casting of Fergie, myself. We'll see. Chicago wasn’t bad by any means, it just wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. Dreamgirls, for all its faults, had a goddess-in-waiting in Beyoncé, who looked and sounded gorgeous. Oh, Beyonce...yeah, well..sure...pretty girl...true. (Movie still boring, thought..)

Good, good, good...I was already wondering what was up with the delay on Delgado and Isanusi's promotions. These two are just fire...specially Delgado. (Mmm... can taste her Kitri already, yum..) As for Quenedit in the Corps, I'm truly happy that he chose to stay here. The more Alonso's expatriates around the better...that's my saying. Well, it's time to do some dream casting. (I think there's a thread about it open somewhere already, right bart...?) Thanks for the update!

Straight to the point: "Chicago": baaaaaad, "Dreamgirls", "Mamma Mia"-(finally saw it)...boooooooooring, and now Fergie...(he,he, let me laugh, as it HAS to be a joke, isn't it...?) Otherwise...