The tales of Hoffmann

[Dr. Coppelius]

A real classic is at last released on DVD .

The tales of Hoffmann

With Frederick Ashton and Moira Shearer.

Also soon to be released is "Sylvia" with Aurelie Dupont and Manuel Legris in Neumeier´s production for POB.

[dirac]

Goody. Thanks for the heads up. I'm sticking with my VHS, which cost me an arm and a leg and was very hard to find when I first acquired it, for now, but this is good to know. I see Scorsese is weighing in again as he did for The Red Shoes. It's quite a picture.

[DSanderson]

The Tales of Hoffmann DVD is chockful of bonus material (info taken from the Criterion Collection website):

- New, restored high-definition digital transfer

- Audio commentary by director Martin Scorsese and film music historian Bruce Eder

- New video interview with director George A. Romero

- The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (1956), a short musical film directed by Michael Powell, based on the Goethe story

- Rare collection of production designer Hein Heckroth’s design sketches and paintings

- Gallery of archival production and publicity photographs

- Original theatrical trailer

- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

- New essay by film historian Ian Christie

Here's the link to Amazon.com

Dana

[drb]

Re: Dr. Coppelius's report above:

"Also soon to be released is "Sylvia" with Aurelie Dupont and Manuel Legris in Neumeier´s production for POB."

Be advised that it doesn't look a great deal like Ashton's. Agence Enguerand provides photos of a number of performances, the first 18 with the above leads:

http://217.167.132.38/agence/general.php?o...rech_crit=titre

[Dr. Coppelius]

Re: Dr. Coppelius's report above:

"Also soon to be released is "Sylvia" with Aurelie Dupont and Manuel Legris in Neumeier´s production for POB."

Be advised that it doesn't look a great deal like Ashton's.

I am aware of that, but there is no other version available.

I usually don´t like modern versions of classic ballets by people like Mats Ek, Maguy Marin, Neumeier and others, but I did like some parts of "La Chauve-Souris " by Roland Petit, mostly because of a very funny Luigi Bonino and the wonderful Alessandra Ferri and a great Pas de deux in the end.

With the great Aurelie Dupont and Manuel Legris and Delibes music, I hope it is not to bad.

Thanks for the photos!

[bart]

Thanks, drb, for the links to the new production photos of the POB Sylvia. I can't speak for the choreography, but the stage design and costumes (Yannis Kokkos) are stunning --- simple, dramatic, utterly classy -- and appear worth the price of admission on their own. And they show the dancers is powerful, three-dimensional beings.

Photos of the more traditional ABT and Royal revivals appeared to me to be cluttered and over-fussy in comparison, with occasional whiffs of the ludicrous.

[Dr. Coppelius]

I don´t know if I am so delighted with those "hotpants" (is that what they are called?) they look like something you wear when you do gymnastics.