emilienne

In any case I misspoke, I'd heard the skirt referred to somewhere else as a 'heraldic' skirt (though I can't remember where now), as the scalloped bottom of mediaeval tunics. For example, the tunic for this gentleman on the left. emi

Certainly ballets require certain colored toe shoes (think Western Symphony, etc), so I should think that color stipulations on tights also exist. However, how much of this depend on the ballet and not just the person performing? I have never seen an Apollonian Baryshnikov with white tights (due age and stupidity), but my impression has been that the black tights, along with appearing slimming, make the performer seem more grounded on the stage. Also, in Ballet with E Villella, EV dances Apollo's second solo in a white top and what seems to be grey or lavender tights. It could just be discoloration from the age of the tape, but they were definitely not white. emi

Speaking as someone who did marching band (Imagine Dante's Divine Comedy on a football field...) - while settings are different, there are certain commonalities among stages or fields: footlights, side partitions, tape marks or yard markers on a field, the scenery, each other. Other dancers/performers are in particular very important. You may be off but then the performers behind you can subtly adjust themselves to even out irregularities provided that they have some forewarning. As for blind pass throughs, in my case it seemed to be mostly experience in using senses to judge spatial relations, after rigorous rehearsal in knowing your 'correct' place. During one particularly grueling practice, I was marching backward about 20 feet, passing through the sousaphones (who were also marching backward) when I must have stepped off mark. I used my peripheral vision to stay in formation, and used the noises emanating from the sousaphones to judge where my gap would most likely be. I missed colliding with the sousaphone, but unfortunately my hair didn't. emi

Along with the discussion on Apollo's tights, I wonder when the women in Rubies stopped using the puffy white skirts and began to use the red herald skirts. In A Man Who Dances (or one of the televised performances), McBride is clearly wearing the white puffs, but by her performance in Ballet with Edward Villella, she, M Morris, and the corp, looks to have switched over to a red generic overskirt. However, if you look at the Life pictures, the corp was already wearing the pointy herald skirts in 1967. Were there multiple versions of the costume? Can BTers think to when the costuming change was made, and why? Do any companies use the white puff dresses anymore? Happens to like the white cotton puffs quite a lot emi

Baryshnikov in "Baryshnikov Dances Balanchine" also wore black tights for the revised version, so his godliness is also inconsistent. I wonder how much this also has to do with personal preference as well as stipulations from tradition or the coaching staff. emi

I was informed by her brother that Elena Bivona, popularlibrary here on BalletTalk, has recently passed away. She wrote for Ballet Review and for many years was the director of the Popular Library in midtown Manhattan. emi

Believe it or not, someone's put the infamous tomb scene on Youtube. It was extraordinarily acted, only with sweats , though perhaps the knowledge of the presence of those warm-up pants made his acting better. Mr McKenzie did look suitably chagrined when he came out for curtain calls, sans trousers. emi

Green Willi toe shoes, now wouldn't that be interesting? Thanks, popularlibrary, for clarifying the issue when as usual I'd made a hash of my earlier words. I am indeed interested in oral histories of dancers and those who had 'made history', as it were, but the question was originally directed at the existence of 'fan' histories. I've done smaller oral history projects (but not in dance) and it's always interesting to hear stories retold by several different voices to hear what sort of details the teller considers important. While dancers may be great sources of reminiscences, I think that the viewers themselves are often overlooked as viable keepers of lore (ha). I think Farrell once said that there were choreographic details that she had never noticed in 'Concerto Barocco' until she had become an observer herself (she was specifically referring to the staging of the two soloists, like the entwining bows by the violin soloists). Sometimes we may remember things that the dancers have forgotten. But then again, are these recollections any more credible? In any case there is a great dearth of histories from dancers and viewers alike. Gathering up all the stories before the tellers are gone will be a daunting, but I suspect rich, adventure. emi

leonid, Thanks for replying to my question. What I had in mind were more publicly available and more easily searchable resources. For example, there are invaluable resources here at BT, but it often requires that a person knows exactly what details they are looking for. Or, on the boards, knowing the identities of the best person when ask for reminiscences of, as an example, the Ballet Russes? Among regulars it's more obvious, but it's much harder for beginners when it's not apparently that the resource even exists. I for one would love to catalogue the older BT posts to make the more informative among them more easily accessible. emi ps - I am all for finding an alternate term if a better one exists; but speaking as a member of a younger generation for whom the term 'fan' has long lost its pejorative connotations, it has served its purpose for the lack of something better. Otherwise I shudder to think of being forced to rely on deeply unhelpful sentences such as "I attend the ballet quite a lot, yes" or "Mr Balanchine was a fine choreographer" or even "hm, I think that last soviet lift in Corsaire may be verging on excess" in order to convey a depth of judgment or sentiment.

I lurked for quite a while before deciding to register and to chatter incessantly on BT. One aspect that I particularly enjoyed were various fans sharing their reminiscences of old theatre-going experiences. For example, from one thread - which I've asked about before - I found out that there may have been mime in front of the diamonds pas de deux. Jack told me about something showstopping at the Ravennia Festival on Firebird (was it?) that Balanchine later took out. I think various people have mentioned partnering disasters (Bonnefous dropping McBride but got the girl anyways, thanks popularlibrary!). Stories about the NYCB alone would fill several volumes. I know that various foundations have produced oral histories by dancers, but what about from the fans' perspective? Have there been an attempt to gather stories from the fans? Granted, ballet fans comprise somewhat of a specialized population, but such a volume would be fascinating! Where are they hiding? emi (in her imaginary successful secret hero life _before_ she became a graduate student, emi had aspirations to being something of a hack writer)

Looking at the archive (with every waking hour...), I see that a ton of images are unlabeled, either with dancers' names or the ballets that they're in. As an example, there are supposedly no shots of Villella and McBride together in Rubies, but looking under 'saratoga ballet' will produce a bunch. Looking under Ballet Theatre will produce standard pictures of 'ballerina' even though the woman is recognizably Markova. I don't suppose we can contribute our own labels? emi

Hi there - Just wanted to add that you may also want to try the Megabus service. It was a low-cost Scottish carrier, but I guess they have a branch in the US. The company operates all over the Midwest and Northeast (I go to Chicago from Urbana on the service sometimes). They have a service running from 11th St NW and G St NW to Penn Station everyday, with the last one leaving at 11:15 pm (it gets in at 3:45 AM). You can order these tickets online, and if you order them ahead of time (you can do so for three months ahead), often you can find tickets for under ten dollars. Looking at it right now, a 11:15 PM bus for DC-NY on 11 January (the last date available) is 5 dollars. emi

I apologise for the lateness of my report but the commitments of an academic-in-training is never done. Also food poisoning killed whatever was left of me for three days and that is never fun. I went to both programs on Sunday 12 October, the matinee of Liebeslieder Walzer/Ragtime/Episodes, and the night time curated performance of Balanchine's pas de deux. I don't have very much to say about the second program, so I've combined impressions from both into one post. For those people looking for seating information, I've posted about it in this thread a few messages back. (http://ballettalk.invisionzone.com/index.php?showtopic=27990&view=findpost&p=234758) Liebeslieder Walzer/Ragtime/Episodes Sunday 12 October 2008 2:30 PM Eisenhower Theater, Kennedy Center Row C 23 (Left Balcony, four seats from the left end) All three pieces on the afternoon program were new to me. I've seen Liebeslieder Walzer on video (including Karin von Aroldingen coaching pieces of it on Balanchine Lives!) but never from a stationary perspective. From a first outing perspective I think I would have preferred to see no other company. While the dancers seemed tentative at first they settled into the dances soon enough, especially in the pointe section. There were some lovely movements - the couple who danced the 'pushing' duet in a later segment lost themselves to the delirium of the dance. The woman spun away, reaching for something out of the confines of this particular ballroom. The man grabbed her hand at the last moment as if anchoring her to reality, it looked as if he reminded himself as well. All in all, the steps and the moods were there, but aside from flashes of insight the dancers were not yet comfortable enough to delineate distinct personalities among them. With Liebeslieder I wonder whether the dancers are distinct couples trying out different moods and fates while they associate, or whether they are anonymous projections of relationships, viewed at a remove. With the SFB I currently lean toward the latter. Part of it, I think, is simply dancers needing more time with this particular ballet. They do not yet look comfortable, as if waltzing was not yet firmly ingrained in their bodies. All of that being said, here are my caveats, as have been mentioned by several posters and reviews already. It may have been a function of where I sat, but the male singers were overpowered by the women, especially at first. They sorted themselves out and performed admirably, but it was to the audience. The acoustics may be off but I wanted them to remain within that diegetic space, to preserve the illusion of unity between music and dance. Second, Jack's right about the chandelier - the sparkliness was even more distracting and provided a very clear 'ceiling' to the dance during the second part. I would rather not have souls fly up and hit themselves on a million and one shards of waterford crystal. Third, someone (was it you Jack?) mentioned the lighting change - the distinct impression of lights fading into the starry night in second section instead of an abrupt dimming of lights. It was so subtly done at first that I thought it was my eyesight. I think I really would have preferred an abrupt dimming to clearly cue the difference in moods. But these are all staging caveats, the dancers danced beautifully. I would love to see what they can do in a year's time, or perhaps even five. It would be a lovely ballet to grow into. The dance archeologist in me wonders what the first concert version of Ragtime looks like (with Diana Adams). This version with its demi-caratère gestures and the loose-limbed choreography can only connect in my mind to Farrell and her little eccentricities. Elizabeth Holowchuk did admirably, but she filled the Farrell mold - is it possible for her to exceed it? Actually the first thought I had when they began dancing was, "My God, it's Rubies with Suzanne Farrell!" But it wasn't, not quite, she was perhaps a less cynical jazz baby, before she had acquired quite the verve and edge of Rubies. I went into Episodes completely cold, as I had seen only a recording of Kent in Episodes from the RM Productions. I must confess that I had to stifle giggling all through it. There were wickedly funny quotes from Agon (splits from the pas de deux, non linear canon work), what seemed to be the Rite of Spring (distorted plie work), and even tendu éffacés and écartés from what looked to be Theme and Variation in the Ricercata. The dancers, from both the SFB and Ballet Austin, had terrific energy and commitment in the performance of it, and the SFB dancers looked visibly more comfortable in this than in Liebeslieder. I did notice that the SFB dancers had sharper, more clearly delineated movements than those from Ballet Austin. The difference between whips and knives, perhaps? Finally, I will add that the corp work in the Ricercata, both in canon and also in its echoing of the principals, reminded me strangely of Fokine's logic in his corp work in Les Sylphides. The orchestration in the 'style of Bach' did nothing to dissuade me of that impression. Sunday 12 October 2008 8 PM 'The Balanchine Couple' Orchestra Row S 123 (Center Orchestra on the Left Aisle) I thought that this would be a good program to take a ballet neophyte to - and while Farrell's narration was great - the pas de deuxs were too disconnected from each other to make for good continuous watching. Watching Balanchine's work in excerpt always reminds me of how interlocked his choreography was - how do you begin to understand Apollo and Terpischore when there is no context of what came before or after? As I have nothing substantive to say about, this portion is broken up into random impressions: Apollo: See above for my complaint about context. Apollon Musagète is my favorite Balanchine ballet for its simplicity of both dance and orchestration. I'd love to see what sort of an Apollo Runqiao Du is in a complete ballet. After seeing him in Liebeslieder and this I have in mind him as a Martins type - he of the quiet controlled majesty. All right, perhaps Martin's majesty was a bit less controlled. La Sonnambula: I've only seen the recording of Baryshnikov and Ferri in this, so I don't have a fair comparison of it. Kirk Henning was a suitably yearning poet, perhaps too curious or attracted for his own good. Magnicaballi was a beautiful Sleepwalker - her controlled dancing created a lovely and menacing contrast with the lush and (I thought) rather insipid orchestration. The Unanswered Question: Hands down, my favorite pas de deux de six of the evening. I love Ives, and Holowchuk's disquieting performance was wonderful. There looked to be a few technical difficulties when the men moved her about, but it didn't break the atmosphere. Cook's dancing read very clearly on the stage against the dim lighting, but its sharpness also lent it a bit too much theatricality. La Valse: I told Jack that Maurice Ravel is one of my favorite composers. I love Dear Maurice precisely for his sense of orchestration - that one or two acidic notes in a lush chord that subtly throws my harmonic universe out of alignment. Death's appearance was sudden and dramatic (this being the revised version from the 70s), but I am of the opinion that if danced with suitable aplomb then his presence is not needed until the final scene in the ball room, the menace should have been telegraphed alone by the tension inherent in both the music and dancing. That said, I have nothing substantial to say, except that I'd love to see a full La Valse from SFB. (I've just realized that I had more to say than previously envisioned. Whoops.) Agon: I asked Jack if Agon was a contest between the dancers and the music, or whether it was a contest _between_ the dancers. He said Yes. In my limited experience I've never gotten the sense of the second part from a performance. It could be dancer proficiency or any number of things, but this performance put some of that menace, that sense of competition between the man and the woman, back in. Is he guiding her or is she being presented with a challenge that she cannot win? Moreover, did she provoke him to it? Meditation: ... After the last few pas de deux, Meditation felt surprisingly conventional. It was quite a shock, really. Pas de deux mauresque: Not the greatest of works, but it was a great display of range. It was character dancing à la Balanchine and a charmingly sinuous one, In a Manner Other than Coffee. Diamonds Pas de deux: Seeing this done in a Swan Lake esque classical tutu (instead of a powderpuff) just reminds me all the more powerfully that Diamonds is _not_ Swan Lake. Magnicaballi and Mladenov gave a good performance but she was slightly off her legs (tired perhaps?). It wasn't as majestic nor as mystically ecstatic as it could have been. I think I'd love to see Magnicaballi in Emeralds. Mladenov slipped off the radar (sorry!) as I spent most of it trying to figure out what she was doing with the role. Stars and Stripes: Pickard and Cook gave a spirited performance of the pas de deux (but alas, no full company finale!). They've both got the idea of it, but I don't think that either of them quite had the legs for this sort of dancing. Pickard at the end especially looked tired (perhaps concerned?) through the split jumps. Both of them played it straight. While the pas can be too campy, I remember seeing a recording of Hayden in her delight and perhaps even amusement at the things that her legs were doing (look at them go!). Of course, in this I could be a little biased, as my own private nickname for Liberty Bell is Tweety Bird. The Balanchine Couple is a lovely program, but it simply whets the appetite for _more_, for complete renditions of each of these ballets from the company. At moments I did question Farrell's casting, especially in the Stars and Stripes, but for the majority of it her choices worked well and gave _distinct_ performances in the pas. It is this very distinctness that I would like to see more of in Liebeslieder. A lovely day of visual overload and then it was back to academia for emi. i look forward to seeing them again in fifteen months or so. I may have more to say in the future but I think for now this is it. emi

A quick note after a full day of ballet - more description &tc will doubtlessly come tomorrow once my brain resets. It was a pleasure to meet Jack and kfw from BT. The only thing I can add at this hour is that the renovated Eisenhower Theater has great sight lines at the balcony level (not the boxes). I was four seats in from the end in row C and very little of my view was obstructed. The obstruction became a little worse from the top corner of the balcony (10% to about 20% at most - one set of doors to Liebeslieder and the tenor was obscured) but it didn't affect my view of the main group.

I will be at both the 2:30 and the 8 PM on Sunday, and I echo what Jack said about meeting up. As I don't know the KC very well I'll probably look for Jack as well! emi

There is no commercial release for Liebeslieder, unfortunately. The Balanchine documentary had a clip of Jillana from the L'heure du concert video (which was static) and there's also Verdy/McBride/(mumble)/(other mumble) from the 73 RM film that makes me airsick. What did Mr Astaire once say? "Either the camera will dance, or I will." I don't know whether the camera movements counted as 'dancing', does intent count? The RM productions are *occasionally* shown on German television (ZDF Theater). They showed La Valse/Valse Fantasie/Concerto Barocco back in March and April, but since then I don't think anything else has been scheduled. Jack - have you been up to the balcony? I was feeling stingy (ah school payments) and bought a side balcony seat, but now I am strongly considering giving that up for an orchestra seat. I foolishly gave up a row N dead center orchestra for it. Sorry Ms Farrell. I am going to both performances Sunday and would love to meet up with people before or after either performance. It will be exciting and perhaps highly uncomfortable, my favorite combination. (Will be very *very* glad to see liebeslieder from a stationary perspective.) emi (edited to include the correct quote from Mr Astaire. I can't remember exact words to save my life)

Thanks for your review, Jack. Now I am _really_ excited for both Sunday performances and am trying to prepare by watching Liebeslieder (I've never seen it all the way through, nor Episodes. Blasted German films). May I ask - how were the sightlines in the renovated theater? Think you will go again? emi

The NYPL does have the 1973 German Film of Episodes. I remember staring in fascination at the overhead angle as Allegra Kent turned and turned (turns green). http://catnyp.nypl.org/record=b3643171 I. Symphonie, opus 21. Soloists: Sara Leland and Anthony Blum. II. Fünf Stücke, opus 10. Soloists: Karin Von Aroldingen and Frank Ohman. III. Konzert, opus 24. Soloists: Allegra Kent and Bart Cook. IV. Ricercare. Soloists: Renée Estopinal and David Richardson. NYPL also holds one film talking about the original production, with interviews by a member of the Martha Graham Company (http://catnyp.nypl.org/record=b3648336). Various theater recordings exist (see NYPL catalogue, mostly from the 80s and 90s) There is one 1969 complete film with Violette Verdy in the first movement with Michael Steele, this is a 16 mm that one of the librarians will have to thread up for you http://catnyp.nypl.org/record=b3624692 Ann Barzel apparently made some recordings of Episodes, including more of Violette Verdy with Jonathan Watts. It's on Cassette 6, somewhere in the middle. http://catnyp.nypl.org/record=b4076494 last, this is a 1984 retrospective on Dance in America. However, I don't understand the listing for Episodes: http://catnyp.nypl.org/record=b3637982 Can anyone remember anything about this broadcast? --- emi

Regardless, thanks for your help, Jack. I've got balcony seats so I suppose I'll see what it's like after the renovation. Will post a report here if anyone's interested. Not sure if I'm adventurous enough to second act a show in DC...but it might be well worth it. emi

Thanks to all who replied! I have two tickets to the pas de deux program (aisle of center orchestra section) and have a single ticket (side balcony - at least it wasn't the very last aisle again like for Bolshoi Don Q last year - I heard all of the light changes happen before they did on stage) for the matinee of Liebeslieder/Episodes/Ragtime. All in all the performances have been selling very well. I was told by a very nice operator (44, also a dance fan) that the Saturday night showings, especially the cheaper seats, are almost completely sold out! In fact I suspect they may be soon. However, if you are around for the Sunday matinee, they still had center orchestra seats, dead center (behind aisle K) when I spoke to them yesterday. emi

How are the sight lines at the Eisenhower Theater? Does anyone have any advice about where to sit in this theater? Is balcony worth a shot or should I try to sit closer? Or, if I buck up and try for front balcony or even (heaven forbid) back of orchestra, where are the 'sweet spots' that BTers prefer? (in the throes of planning a weekend of Suzanne Farrell Ballet, after which she will be trapped in her burrow for the rest of the winter...) emi

I'd also suggest looking at budget hotels from hostelworld &tc (do a search for it). Two or three years ago, I stayed at one that was a 15 minute walk from the Palais Garnier (incidentally, I did not see any ballet on that trip - I thought "oh what a lovely building" and then WALKED AWAY FROM IT...the follies of the young and stupid). It was $40 per person for two nights, and was quite clean and comfortable despite being a little stark in the furnishings. Quite a few good (and reasonably priced) places to eat in the surrounding area as well. I can't seem to remember what the name of it is, but I know that one at least is still in business.

Sorry, just wanted to add that Martins is definitely in the Concerto Barocco, in all its dizzying cinematographic glory.

I went back and checked on the ParadiseLost clip and it looks like a second generation copy (and here we thought the digital age would get rid of such things!), meaning that unfortunately the clip will not clear up anymore than the way it was originally posted. However, if you try it on some other clip...(sorry for the gratuitous linking), say...a clip of Lezhnina being coached in Sleeping Beauty by Kolpakova before her debut (here)...compare to the same clip presented in higher quality here. Kolpakova's eyebrows are considerably clearer. popularlibrary, you are most likely appending the command correctly (remember, add &fmt=18 to the END of your Youtube link), but it really depends on the quality of the clip in question. Most people upload higher quality clips to Youtube than you would think - Youtube then reconverts the clips to a lower quality to save on bandwidth. Edited to say that Youtube has added a link at the bottom of the video screen to indicate whether you can indeed change between standard and high quality video for a particular clip. The screen icon is orange for standard quality and black for high. HOWEVER, the high quality clips are still nowhere as good as the mp4 clips that you will obtain by appending the command '&fmt=18'. OK, I'm a technological butterfingers. I tried adding the code to the end of the YouTube url, to the url for the individual video, and several other less obvious ways. None of them got me a bigger or clearer picture. Please, take pity on the maladroit. Exactly where and when do you add this code? Picture instructions and block printing would be appreciated. Thanks!

(I edited this response slightly because apparently I can't conjugate verbs late at night!) There's fragments of a Bolshoi Symphony in C floating about Youtube, focusing primarily on Alexandrova and Tsiskaridze (3'rd movement and finale). It's quite interesting to contrast the articulation of movements and tempi between the two Russian troupes. One does le Palais de Cristal and the other the Great White Abstraction (land ho!) and they could be doing two completely different ballets. As to the acting - I recently had the pleasure of _finally_ seeing Moncion as Death. He does not act. Instead the sensuousness and brutality of Death emanates from somewhere inside of him. The most successful performers of Balanchine, I've noticed (in my extremely limited experience), have been those who have been able to draw upon aspects of their own personality to resonate within the choreography. You do not have to _be_ McBride or Farrell or Luders, but that aspect of your personality which you draw upon to perform his/her/their roles need to be in some way compatible. Sympathetic vibrations, perhaps? Also, just wanted to note that the original clip for Mariinsky's Symphony in C is in fact _extremely_ high quality. As in, we can marvel (without squinting) at Irma Nioradze's eyebrows. Youtube has quietly added a higher quality function to most of their recent videos recently - I think all videos within the last 4-6 months or so will stream a higher quality version if you add the following command (without the inverted commas) to the end of your Youtube link: '&fmt=18'. Instead of streaming flash files, Youtube will instead serve up higher quality mp4 files - they're twice as big and two to three times as sharp. Re-edited again to say that the ParadiseLost version is fact a repost of a lower resolution recording from user ketinoa on Youtube. The _original_ files that ketinoa posted were indeed high quality. The flash reposts are unfortunately just flash. Thank you ParadiseLost, but, alas!