Giannina

Yikes! I'm going to be in Rome Oct. 1, just one night as my Elderhostel tour prepares to go home. I went to the site and I'm assuming "La Bella Addormentata" is Sleeping Beauty; am I correct? I wonder..... Giannina

Welcome to Ballet Talk, winnemucca; we're glad you've decided to come out of the shadows and share in our discussions. Please feel free to post; many of us have felt intimidated, but after a while it's hard to shut us up! We look forward to hearing from you. Thank you for your compliments. Giannina

Welcome to Ballet Talk, Legwarmer. We are very glad to have you with us and we hope you'll enjoy sharing in our discussions. We have forums for discussions about performances, DVD's, literature, and many other topics. If you have a topic you want to discuss it would be better to use these forums since this Welcome forum is just for welcoming new members and does not get much traffic. Enjoy the board. Giannina

I was in Russia in Sept. and went to Bolshoi Ballet, thinking I'd find a summer-replacement cast. Instead I saw Swan Lake starring Zakharova, and Osipova in one of the "national" roles in which she dazzled. A truly memorable moment, and I am pleased that Osipova continues to receive accolades. Giannina

Hello, Aurora, and welcome to Ballet Talk; we're very glad to have you with us. We hope you enjoy the board and sharing in our discussions. We cover just about every facet of ballet, from history to performances. Giannina

Ouch! But then I did see the Fiesta Bowl. What a whollop! Giannina

I found "The Good Shepherd" an extraordinary movie; saw it a couple of days ago and can't get it out of my mind. Matt Damon comes into his own in an understated role amazingly well played; very unlike him and definitely Oscar material. His demeanor is deadly calm, and with a face that hardly changes expression he manages to convey deep devasting emotions. I thought Jolie as his wife was wonderful casting. She plays her femme fatale role in her opening scene, then pays the consequences of her actions for the rest of her life, becoming a dramatically beautiful, tortured, mature woman. The story line is upsetting; the movie is riveting. Giannina

Welcome to Ballet Talk, Uli. Glad you've decided to register and join in our discussions. You have a wonderful background in ballet and we look forward to your comments and questions. (It IS hard to keep quiet, isn't it?) Giannina

Welcome to Ballet Talk, Corey; we are very happy to have you with us. You can bring lots of experience and information to the site, and we hope you will enjoy sharing in our discussions. Giannina

I got a gazillion ballet/dance DVD’s for Christmas and I’m starting to wend my way thru them. Today I watched “Liza with a ‘Z’”. I saw this when it was originally telecast 34 years ago and loved it then; I was thrilled when it was released on a DVD format. Let me preface this review by saying that”Caberet” is one of my favorite movies, and I think the MOST perfect moment in all of movie history is Liza Minnelli and Joel Grey singing “Money Money Money” in “Caberet”. When “Liza With a ‘Z’” was telecast I feel that Liza Minnelli was at her peak. In trying to recapture/repeat that peak she has lost the appeal she had for me. I recently saw her in a straight dramatic role on “Law and Order” and she was wonderful. OK; the DVD. I cried with joy thru most of it. “I Gotcha” is a blend of jazzy music and Fosse choreography, and I’ve found little to beat it. It is soooo Fosse. What spoiled it on the DVD was the jumping camera. It would have been so much better to have that camera pointed center front and STAY THERE. Audience applause mid-dance didn’t help one single bit. None the less it’s hard to beat for a soul-jolting moment of music and dance in perfect harmony. Over the 34 years since its telecast the song/dance “Ring Them Bells” has stayed with me; seeing it again 34 years later didn’t disappoint. This was a show of Fosse choreography rather than recreated Fosse choreography which never seems to measue up. After the2nd segment the show slowed down and calmed down. Still lovely but not something that continually raised me out of my chair. There are “bonus features”, none of which I enjoyed. I highly recommend this DVD to all Minnelli/Fosse fans. Ring Them Bells!! Giannina

I look great! And I like the whole idea. Giannina

Welcome to Ballet Talk, ScarlettDiva. As a fan you'll find lots of news and information about your favorite dancers here. We all love ballet, and we love our ballet discussions. If you are a dance student you'll enjoy our sister site, Ballet Talk for Dancers, which is designed for dance students; perhaps you've already found it. You can get there by clicking on "BT for Dancers" at the upper right hand corner of this board. vrsfanatic: I've done that too! Giannina

Welcome to Ballet Talk, jsiuluy; we're glad to have you with us. You have a sense of ballet history that I'm sure others would like to share with you. You can start threads of your own by checking our various forums, especially the ones devotes to ballet companies. Giannina

Great topic! I live in the Los Angeles area and we get many ballets here. My husband often talks of moving but he knows that I'll never move away from a ballet area. I've gone to New York for ballets. At one time my daughter lived in Queens and I'd visit her during ballet season (shameful, I know). My husband and I go to London in January for ballet; wonderful ballet in January, and with the city being so cold the tourist sites are comparatively empty. We've even had snow twice! I've seen ballet in Paris and Moscow and, again, London while traveling on river tours. I have often thought of a ballet tour: traveling during a time when all the ballet companies are performing and just going from one to another. Now THAT'S a tour!! Giannina

May I add my welcome to both of you. The cyberspace demons didn't tell me you were here. Spain does indeed have wonderful dancers and it is our fortune to be able to see them. Enjoy the board; there is a wealth of information here for you. Giannina

Hello again, Megan, and welcome to Ballet Talk. This board is for ballet fans and is brimming with all kids of news and information about ballet. I think you'll enjoy both boards, and we're glad to have you here with us. Giannina

Somewhere in the Archives there's a thread on a topic similar to this one and some of the posts are hilarious. I agree with WindFlyer about the audiences at the Orange County Kirov tour; I was at 4 performances and the audience was impossible at all 4. At one Swan Lake they applauded the lights dimming at Act I. Giannina

Welcome to Ballet Talk, Peter. We're glad you've found us and we hope you'll share in our discussions. There's tons of information on the board; take the time and explore. We even have old-timers who remember the dancing you mentioned in this post. Enjoy! Giannina

Hello again, Kristy and Scott. I'm the "The Welcome Lady" on both of Ballet Talks' sites. You'll enjoy both our sites; this one is for ballet fans and has an entirely different flavor than Ballet Talk for Dancers. Hope you'll contribute to discussions on both boards. Giannina

I was home before socalgal because hubby and I left after Act III. When you're going to Swan Lake it's not wise to see Lopatkina's white pdd first; her beauty ruins it for everyone else. Somova's white swan was tentative; she's young and I feel she's still getting the feel of the ballet. Beautiful blonde woman, very talented. I actually preferred her black swan pdd to Lopatkina's. Lopatkina looked like she was out on a vendetta; Somove was there to lure Sigfried by having a good time. She was radiant! Smiling and inviting, she charmed Sigfried down to his toes. Her technique was better suited to this pdd, except for the fouettes. I'm up to here in Russian ballet; lots of fun but I need a rest. Giannina

Fri. night's Swan Lake, the black and white of it. Lopatkina and Korsuntsev starred. Act I hummed along with the usual crowd dancing. The pas de trois was very good but I'm waiting. Waaaaiting. And finally, the white pas de deux. Lopatkina was beautiful. The word that came to mind was "fluid". Her movements were like flower petals opening, so smooth and graceful. Her supported pirouettes were the same speed, not a quick spurt and then a slowing down at the end of the pirouette. Her arabesques opened in a slow majestic movement. The music was very slow; reminded me of Makarova's tempi. Act III and I could hardly wait for the black pas de deux. All the princesses danced. All the countries danced. Waaaaiting. And finally it was here. But this was a different Lopatkina and I missed the other one. She entered looking like she was going to kill Sigfried rather than vamp him. I felt she never did settle on the personality she wanted to portray and the power of the duet was lost. The tempo was now faster and tho she was still lovely I wasn't as overwhelmed. I came home unsettled. I've seen Vishneva, Lopatkina, and I saw Zahkarova while I was in Moscow last month. And they all look the same; they even dance the same. They are reed thin, especially Lopatkina, and it's hard to be sexy in Act III of Swan Lake when you look like you need a meal. Maybe I've seen too many Russian ballets. I have another Swan Lake tomorrow. Odette and Odile's tutus were too big and floppy. Giannina

Thurs., Oct. 19: Romeo and Juliet redux. MUCH BETTER this time. Maybe it's because I knew what to expect and didn't overanticipate. The cast was exactly the same except for Juliet and Juliet's Companion. Obraztsova was Juliet and she was wonderful. She was not as technically solid nor as secure as Vishneva but I found her interpretatiion of the role better. While watching Vishneva Tuesday I kept thinking "She's too old for this role" but dismissed the blasphamous thought, knowing that some of the best Juliet's are older women. But I was right. In Act I Vishneva was not childish enough, and in Act III she was a mature woman going through a difficult time. Obraztsova was very young all the way through. She's a beautiful woman with a more juvenile face than Vishneva, and she maintained this youthfulness throughout the ballet. Fadeev's Romeo was enthralled by her and the chemistry was there. That spooky lift at Juliet's bier was less spooky; he held her horizontally and faced us in anguish. Great stuff. The dancing was lovely, what little of it there is in this production. Even the orchestra was better. I almost didn't go tonight because of Tuesday's presentation but I'm very glad I changed my mind. Giannina

art076...I didn't see your post til after the performance either. WindFlyer and I met and it would have been nice to have you there too. I will be there Friday night; let's meet: big TV screen, parking lot level, at first intermission. I'll PM you with news of what I'm wearing; you do the same. (WHAT to wear?) Giannina

The Kirov has come to the Orange County Performing Arts Center in Costa Mesa, Calif. I think tonight was opening night. They presented Romeo and Juliet with Vishneva and Fadeev in the title roles. It was sorely lacking. I shall try to concentrate on the positive. I had seen Vishneva only once, years ago, and she was not good. I went tonight hoping to like her and I do. This impression was helped immensely by the fact that there wasn't a single hyperextended leg position the entire evening. This ballet doesn't give her much to do, but what she did was quite good. Most of all it was secure; I was never nervous about whether she'd get through a passage without a mishap, a rare quality indeed. Her acting wasn't commendable in the 1st Act but she was very good in the final act, especially her confrontation with her father. The choreography.... Well, there WAS one terrific piece of choreography: a solo for Mercutio in Act I. Mercutio was danced by Sarafanov, a very young looking man with technique and pizzaz to spare. His death scene was understated in comparison to most that I've seen and therefore more realistic. The final scene had Romeo lifting Juliet in the most death-defying lift I've seen: horizontal over his head, then shifting her vertically with her body draped over his hand and carrying her up the stairs of her bier. The problem was that her gown had fallen over his face and he really didn't have a good view of those stairs. The costumes.... But I must mention that for most of the ballet Tybalt was clad in tights of every color imaginable, plus a head of red hair. He was a beacon! The orchestra.... Vishneva was a mass of wounds. She had a large bruise on her left upper thigh that was visible under her diaphamous costumes. By the end of the ballet she was bleeding from her right knee. The pointe shoes were blissfully quiet. The ballet started early: 7:30p.m. It ended at 10:50!! Giannina

I'm so bad at this. I'll be at the Kirov performances in Orange County Tues., Thurs., Fri., and Sat. nights. If other Ballet Talk members are going to be there perhaps we could meet. I don't know where, or how we'll distinguish ourselves. If interested PM me. Giannina