A Folk Tale on video?

[garybruce]

Has the Royal Danish Ballet ever filmed their version of A Folk Tale? I've heard it to be one of the pillars of their repertoire, but am unable to locate anything on video.

[Alexandra]

The old Hans Brenaa version (staged by Kirstein Ralov) was televised in 1977 (Sorella Englund and Henning Kronstam as Hilda and Junker Ove, Linda Hindberg as Birthe, and Fredbjorn Bjornsson and Johnny Eliasson as the trolls). The "Queen's version" (Queen Margrethe II designed the costumes) was televised twice in 1992 and 1993 (I think). None of these are available on video/DVD, even in Denmark, as far as I know, and, unfortunately, I doubt that they will be.

It is one of the pillars of the repertory. Both Fokine and Balanchine, who worked in Copenhagen, are said to have admired it.

[garybruce]

The old Hans Brenaa version was televised in 1977. The "Queen's version" was televised twice in 1992 and 1993. None of these are available on video/DVD, even in Denmark, as far as I know, and, unfortunately, I doubt that they will be. It is one of the pillars of the repertory. Both Fokine and Balanchine, who worked in Copenhagen, are said to have admired it.

Given all that admiration, Alexandra, why wouldn't the Danes want it on video to promote the ballet, their company and Danish achievement in the arts? I've always been fascinated by the refusal to film the best works out of purist notions (you can't properly put a three-dimensional work in a two-dimensional form), marketing (if the public sees the movie they won't go to the theater) or elitism (only balletomanes should see it and they'll go the theater).

I saw the Danes perform Napoli at Lincoln Center in 1986 and was disappointed--two acts of mime and one act of dance. I thought its dance architecture to be lopsided and non-classical. Is Folk Tale more classical in style?

[Dr. Coppelius]

I believe that if you are looking for classical ballet you would be disappointed.

There are not much dancing in "A folk tale", what I recall is some folk dance in act one, solo by Hilda (Silja Schanorff) in act two and a Pas de sept, with Johan Kobborg, in act three.

But it is a very entertaining ballet and I really like all the mime, not to mention Sorella Englund and Michael Bastian as the trolls.

Queen Margrethe II not only designed the costumes, she also did the wonderful sets.

More about A folk tale HERE

A short video HERE

[Anne]

Given all that admiration, Alexandra, why wouldn't the Danes want it on video to promote the ballet, their company and Danish achievement in the arts? I've always been fascinated by the refusal to film the best works out of purist notions (you can't properly put a three-dimensional work in a two-dimensional form), marketing (if the public sees the movie they won't go to the theater) or elitism (only balletomanes should see it and they'll go the theater).

I saw the Danes perform Napoli at Lincoln Center in 1986 and was disappointed--two acts of mime and one act of dance. I thought its dance architecture to be lopsided and non-classical. Is Folk Tale more classical in style?

I'm afraid you'll find A Folktale equally lopsided. But if the Bournonville mime is done well and with musicality it can be a very refined thing. Maybe one can compare the mime with the recitatives in the operas (the passages where the singing is closer to speaking and where the story is brought forward more speedily than in the arias): In the first place you find them a bit boring, but after a time you realize how much delicacy can be put into them, it's just more low-key than the real dancing. Personally I love the mime passages in Bounonville's ballets, because they give the dancers all the opportunities to create real characters.

Have you tried "La Sylphide"? It's available on dvd in a RDB production from the late eighties, and it's a very good one indeed! I think you'll find the proportions there more classical, more ballet-like, though you'll have to plough your way through a lot mime there too. But what mime!!! Especially Sorella Englund as the whitch is marvelous.

I understand why you wonder why there aren't more RDB-productions available on video/dvd, I wonder too. I'm afraid the reasons have nothing to do with artistic notions as you so kindly suggest. Far more it's the sad story of the strong Danish artists unions, who think their primary role is to secure the rights and salaries of the artists, making any release even of existing footage too expensive. It's very shortsighted, and in the end they are cutting off the branch they are sitting on.

[garybruce]

I believe that if you are looking for classical ballet you would be disappointed.

There are not much dancing in "A folk tale", what I recall is some folk dance in act one, solo by Hilda (Silja Schanorff) in act two and a Pas de sept, with Johan Kobborg, in act three.

But it is a very entertaining ballet...

More about A folk tale HERE

A short video HERE

Many thanks for the description and the links. I wasn't aware that the Danes have a different take on what constitutes ballet. It appears they rank mime acting as more valuable than classical dance within a larger theatrical concept, something Diaghilev brought to the West and encompassing in equal measure costumes, set design, music, mime, and dancing.

[garybruce]

I'm afraid you'll find A Folktale equally lopsided. But if the Bournonville mime is done well and with musicality it can be a very refined thing. Maybe one can compare the mime with the recitatives in the operas (the passages where the singing is closer to speaking and where the story is brought forward more speedily than in the arias): In the first place you find them a bit boring, but after a time you realize how much delicacy can be put into them, it's just more low-key than the real dancing. ... Have you tried "La Sylphide"? It's available on dvd in a RDB production from the late eighties, and it's a very good one indeed!

I've just ordered the RDB La Sylphide on DVD and look forward to seeing it. It's still interesting that the Danes have Napoli and Sylphide on DVD but not A Folk Tale--even with their Queen's personal involvement in the ballet's production!

Your advise about mime is well taken. I just have to adjust my frame of reference--as I did when first encountering Balanchine's works, which happen to "leave out" story, plot, set design and frequently costumes.

[Alexandra]

The ballet that made me fall in love with Bournonville was "The King's Volunteers on Amager" which is practically all mime. Bournonville considered mime dancing (as did other choreographers, the dancers and the audience in 19th century Europe). He called pantomime "dance with the turned in feet" (not pigeontoed, but not turned out). He also believed that the hero could only dance when he was not in conflict with himself or others -- "dancing could express only joy" (a change from the 18th century choreographers, such as Noverre, who believed that dancing could express nothing concrete, and that all emotions must be conveyed through mime. There were ballets -- Arthur St. Leon's "La Vivandiere," for example -- which were criticized because there was too much dancing in them! After St. Leon died, the Paris Opera chopped off the third act of Coppelia, which is all divertissements.

Why audiences do not like mime remains a mystery to me My advice, on any dance, is to WATCH WHAT IS THERE. If you watch Folk Tale thinking it's just mime and there's no "real" dancing until the pas de sept, you'll miss the ballet. I think adding classical pieces to these old works is as misguided as would (will?) be adding mime passages to Balanchine's "Agon" or "Concerto Barocco".

As to why more Bournonville is not on video, the company was very reluctant to release any ballets (I was told by the artistic staff at the time) because it was afraid people would take the videos and stage the works from them -- changing them, of course. (This has begun to happen. Let's jazz up the reel with more "dancing," or add a pas de deux or trois to the first act, which destroys the story.)

[bart]

This is developing into such an interesting discussion. I'd love to learn more about this phenomenon from Alexandra, Anne, Dr. Coppelius, and others.

Alexandra mentioned the way in which people's expectations get in the way of their willingness (and ability) to see what is actually there. What kind of audiences are there for these largely pantomime dance works? Are they older and more traditionalist than those that attend other performances? Do people bring their children and grandchildren? Are new audiences constantly being trained (and recruited) to love and appreciate this repertoire? Are Bournonville lovers optimistic about the survival of this repertoire into the future?

[Alexandra]

This is developing into such an interesting discussion. I'd love to learn more about this phenomenon from Alexandra, Anne, Dr. Coppelius, and others.

Alexandra mentioned the way in which people's expectations get in the way of their willingness (and ability) to see what is actually there. What kind of audiences are there for these largely pantomime dance works? Are they older and more traditionalist than those that attend other performances? Do people bring their children and grandchildren? Are new audiences constantly being trained (and recruited) to love and appreciate this repertoire? Are Bournonville lovers optimistic about the survival of this repertoire into the future?

Re audiences, when "A Folk Tale" came to DC in 1992, there were several area modern dancers in the audience I spoke to who loved it -- it had meaning, it wasn't empty display. I think many artistic directors are making the assumption that "story ballets" are "kiddie ballets" (why "adult" has come to mean "sexually depraved" could be another interesting topic ) "A Folk Tale" is the story of two little girls who were switched at birth, and explores the question of "nature versus nurture" (if you're born a troll, you're a troll, no matter how many etiquette classes you have to attend), what does it mean to be human (if you're human, even if you're raised by nasty little half-men, you will keep your humanity, a subject Bournonville explored in other ballets, including 'Napoli"). The RDB's current production of "A Folk Tale" is very cartoonish, unfortunately, which added to the "bring the kiddies" idea, and probably drove away others.

Bournonville has proven hard to kill off, although they've trid to through neglect and bad productions over the decades I think he'll make it until his next birthday. He's become an Issue now. If they really kill him, people will be cross. It's like burning the "Mona Lisa." You might be sick of her, and there might be films of her, but it just won't look right if she's taken out and burned.

[garybruce]

Bournonville has proven hard to kill off, although they've tried to through neglect and bad productions over the decades I think he'll make it until his next birthday. He's become an Issue now. If they really kill him, people will be cross. It's like burning the "Mona Lisa."

My disregard for mime as drama is that, from what I've seen of it, it's second rate when compared with the spoken word, and in classical ballets is rarely designed to support dance choreography. In my experience, ballet mime is usually executed poorly and is inadequate to what the story requires for conveying meaning (La Fille would be the exception, but then, it's an early ballet and the mime is thoroughly integrated into the choreography).

So...now you've piqued my curiosity to see Napoli again.

[Alexandra]

Gary, I think you're right -- mime IS usually executed poorly. Our dancers today aren't used to it, they're not trained in it, and it's not something you can learn on the last day of rehearsal. Watch Arne Villumsen -- an excellent mime, and a very subtle mime -- in Napoli. Watch the way he interacts with people, not only his fiancee, but his rivals, and the way you can tell what he's thinking in the Blue Grotto scene. Writing the word "subtle" reminded me of something.

When I first became interested in Bournonville, I often found I liked performers whom my Danish friends did not especially admire. One told me, "Americans aren't used to subtlety, and the best Danish art is very subtle." I found I had to wean myself away from the idea that someone jumping up and down and gesticulating was a "better" mime than someone who looked away at just the right time. There is one moment in "Napoli" that I think is brilliant storytelling as well as acting. The mother comes out of her house, not yet knowing that her daughter did not come back and is feared drowned. Two middle-aged women, obviously her friends, see her and don't knkow what to say. they look uncomfortable. When the mother sees them, she knows something is wrong. She asks "What is it?" and they look away. It's so subtle and so beautiful -- and how much more effective than going through a long mime sequence that spells out what happened.

[bart]

There is one moment in "Napoli" that I think is brilliant storytelling as well as acting. The mother comes out of her house, not yet knowing that her daughter did not come back and is feared drowned. Two middle-aged women, obviously her friends, see her and don't knkow what to say. they look uncomfortable. When the mother sees them, she knows something is wrong. She asks "What is it?" and they look away. It's so subtle and so beautiful -- and how much more effective than going through a long mime sequence that spells out what happened.

Alexandra, regarding subtlety. How important ist he size of the house? Wouldn't this be lost in a very large theater, as in Russia for instance? Also, to what extent are facial expressions -- which do not project very far -- essential to the effect?

Editd to add: One reason I ask is that I recall the Danes visiting the old Met long ago. I can't remember what they did, but it was not familiar to most of the audience. There seemed to be a lot of "dead" time, with little apparently going on. I now realize may have been mime that did not register in the large theater.

[Alexandra]

bart, I'd rather see them at home (small, intimate house) than the Met, but the mime registered to me at the Kennedy Center from standing room, which is along the back of the house. They had a success in Russia -- at least the critics saw it I think, again, it's what you're used to. There are balletomanes who notice if the ballerina's ribbons are tied in an unusual way, or if there is a run in someone's tights, from the Family Circle. I know from talking to them that the Danes are deliberately more presentational -- "bigger" -- in a big house than at home.

Facial expressions are important, but so is body language. Note, back to that tape of "Napoli", the way Villumsen shows that Gennaro is a man of action and emotion rather than intellect. Every major decision he makes is prompted by an external impetus -- she hits him on his ring finger, he remembers he's wearing a ring and asks her to marry him. He kneels to the Madonna -- the body goes down first, then the head bows. I think the "dead times" you saw were probably real mime but you weren't looking for it, and so didn't see it.

[Anne]

How important ist he size of the house? Wouldn't this be lost in a very large theater, as in Russia for instance? Also, to what extent are facial expressions -- which do not project very far -- essential to the effect?

Editd to add: One reason I ask is that I recall the Danes visiting the old Met long ago. I can't remember what they did, but it was not familiar to most of the audience. There seemed to be a lot of "dead" time, with little apparently going on. I now realize may have been mime that did not register in the large theater.

If we stick to talking about Bournonville I think the size of the house means a lot, but not all. A really good mime is able to let you imagine his or her facial expression through the body language. But of cause you get an extra dimension when you're able to see the faces, and if the theatre is not to big the dancers won't have to overdo it, which would spoil the delicacy of the style. I think it is one of the reasons for keeping the Bournonville ballets at the old stage in Copenhagen in stead of moving them to the new and bigger operahouse at the harbour.

Bournonville is nourished by the intimacy of a small theatre, where the dancers can really communicate with their audience. You can't transfer it to a big house without losing some of its charme, which doesn't mean that you can't transfer it at all. Normally I like to sit many rows away from the stage or on one the balconys to be able to overview the stage, see the formations (or if it's an opera I don't like to see all the physical effort the singing takes) etc., but if it's Bournonville I like to sit right in the front, not to miss any detail. And you only seldom have the feeling that this expression or that movement is meant to be seen from the gallery. That of cause is only possible in a small theatre.

But I think Alexandra is right when she says that it is also dependent on an audience who is conscious of what it should be looking for.