GeorgeB fan Posted June 2, 2004 Share Posted June 2, 2004 This is very, very, very depressing!!!!! I was unable to attend Monday night's performance of ABT's Balanchine Celebration. I know I was going to miss some magnificent dancing, but from reading Michael brilliantly detail description of the evening it makes it never more depressing Well, at least I still the wonderful memories of last Thursday night's performance of the same program!! Link to comment
Leigh Witchel Posted June 2, 2004 Share Posted June 2, 2004 I thought the discussion on Tschai pas merited its own thread here and I moved two posts on the ballet into that topic. Continue talking about the Balanchine program, and visit that thread to talk about your impressions of Tschai pas! Link to comment
oberon Posted June 4, 2004 Share Posted June 4, 2004 Leigh in his Board Host Beanie asks us to focus on how they dance rather than how they look. Isn't it all part of the package? Watching dancers, it is difficult to separate how they dance from how they look because the body is the instrument. A larger girl can be quite stunning but as a rule they don't look their best in a short tutu. I have been at performances where there have been titters in the audience when a "larger" dancer comes on...mainly because they look so different from everyone else onstage. Jock Soto, who has stated in interviews that he simply doesn't have a "normal" dancer's body, has certainly made a big career for himself, mainly thru judicious choice of roles. Of course, the fact that he is extremely sexy doesn't hurt either... Are we more willing to accept "different" body types in men than in women? How much of a part does physical beauty and/or sex appeal play in our admiration of a given dancer? And let's not pretend ballet isn't sexy... Link to comment
Leigh Witchel Posted June 4, 2004 Share Posted June 4, 2004 Just to explain from the position of the moderators: Feel free to discuss the larger issue of the role appearance plays in how you feel about a dancer, it's a good question that comes up from time to time. What we really, truly DON'T want is for discussion to turn constant "X looked heavy this performance" "Y is way too thin" "Z is just too big to put in a unitard." It doesn't mean that you can't mention or discuss a dancer's looks or appearance. I agree, it's part of the performance and your impressions. It's just that there's a point where a line gets crossed from discussion to dissection and it has to do with vehemence and/or frequency. And then I put on my Board Host beanie. That said - back to the discussion! [edited to add - this post was not meant as a hidden chastisement to anyone - on reflection I worried it might be! It's just some explanation of when we'd intervene.] Link to comment
atm711 Posted June 7, 2004 Share Posted June 7, 2004 Paul Parish---I loved your description of Susan Jaffe in "Ballet Imperial" and I regret not seeing it. I saw this grandeur with Ananiashville. The first time I saw the ballet was with the Denham Ballet Russe (eons ago) with Marie-Jeanne and Mary Ellen Moylan alternating the leads, and there was very little that was "Imperial", although one could (and did) admire their strong Balanchine technique. The one stand-out of that production for me will always be Maria Tallchief in the secondary role. I felt I was seeing a completely different ballet. This season of ABT I am concentrating on Ananiashvilli, I saw her Raymonda and look forward to seeing her 'Swan Lake' again next week. Yes, Paul, you should definitely come to NY. It's too bad Danilova didn't alternate with Marie-Jeanne and Moylan---I might have seen the 'Imperial' then. Link to comment
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