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The Royal Ballet tour 2014


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Judging by the amount of ballet clips on youtube that have obviously been shot by a member of the audience it would seem that in Russia there are not the same restrictions on photography/filming that there are in the UK. I also remember that when I first saw the Kirov ballet in the Palais des Congrès in Paris, much to my surprise there were people taking flash photos all the time during the performance. With advances in technology these days it is no longer necessary to have a video camera to shoot high quality video. Many mid to high range DSLRs have a built-in video facility which is capable of giving excellent results and with the minimum amount of disturbance to the subjects or bystanders - no flash, no whirring motor.

true just seems so out of order if i got me camara out at the royal ballet i would soon have someone saying should u not put that away

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Steven McRae has posted on Facebook that he will now be dancing with Sarah Lamb in Romeo and Juliet in Taipei.

Interesting. This is on the 29th June and Steven is guesting in R & J with Queensland Ballet on the 2nd and 4th July.

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These filmed extracts are, of course, lovely to see when one cannot attend a performance. But I am left wondering whether the people shooting them actually have the true and unbeatable experience of being there watching for themselves. Whether on holiday or in the theatre, seeing everything through a phone or camera and being preoccupied with shooting rather than with feeling it and taking it all in is not for me

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These filmed extracts are, of course, lovely to see when one cannot attend a performance. But I am left wondering whether the people shooting them actually have the true and unbeatable experience of being there watching for themselves. Whether on holiday or in the theatre, seeing everything through a phone or camera and being preoccupied with shooting rather than with feeling it and taking it all in is not for me

I agree but for the Russian/Moscow audience it's a very rare opportunity to be able to watch The Royal Ballet dancers so I can understand some of them prefer filming to watching (but I am so surprised filming is allowed inside the Bolshoi Theatre)

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The Russian Ballet critic Ms. Kuznetsova seems to have no qualms in mentioning some dancers' body parts she dislikes: "sharp,ugly knees and muscular calves of an urchin (Osipova), "ugly foot and lower calf" (Morera), "chubby cheeked, sturdy" (Campbell) and further writes about "beautiful hands and wrists" of some Corps dancers. She also wrote about "a classroom performance" (Bonelli) and wasn't too kind about Nela's performance.

 

Very different critiquing to our UK critics.

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Oh they have been very enthusiastic Aileen. They really loved the Company (based on all the Ismene Brown blog/Russian translations I have read) but this particular critic singled out some high ranked dancers...but they were full of praise for the Company as a whole and the Corps! 

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Two points:  I felt, seeing that extract from 'Rhapsody', as if I was seeing it for the very first time. What a brilliant piece of choreography it is and how it illuminates the music - it made me wonder if we appreciate Ashton quite enough! Secondly, I'm glad that the critic, Ms. Kutznekov, at least singled out Bonelli for praise (assuming she meant her comment as praise).  He doesn't get praised enough in my view.

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Rhapsody with its Rachmaninov score cries out for a Russian company to dance it and the Bolshoi's Krysanova would be perfect in the leading role.

 

As for this Kuznetsova, it would be interesting to know what her personal preferences are when reviewing the home team, could her mauling of Osipova be sour grapes that she is so successful away from the Bolshoi?

 

Filming the show is standard practice in Russia and a lot of dancers arrange for someone to film them in order to study and improve on their performances.  In general it is a practice I approve of, particularly when you consider that a great performance can only be seen by the tiny number in the theatre that night, filming a show and putting it on the internet makes the ballet a less elitist art form and gives the dancers an international platform for their talents.

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The purpose of my translating these reviews is so that you can read what the writers said and not jump to erroneous conclusions on the basis of misquoting three or four words. MAB and Nina G, you have both misquoted Kuznetsova by inference and inattention. If you were to read her triple bill review you would see that she is vastly admiring of Osipova and her points about physicality are part of the context of that huge admiration and for the British handling of realism. She would also likely not agree with you that Rhapsody is crying out for Russian performance - she writes that the Russians could learn a great deal from the British (and another critic makes the same point in a separate review). She thinks McRae is the equal of Baryshnikov, and that the London men and women have an enviable discipline and stylistic nuance. Her Manon review is here, comparing Osipova and Nunez. I suppose she might be considered the Moscow equivalent of Judith Mackrell/Clement Crisp. Maya Krylova is another thoughtful, appreciative critic who acclaimed the triple bill in detail. And Svetlana Naborshchikova raves about Sarah Lamb and McRae in Manon here.

Edited by ismeneb
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I should like to make it clear that my post was in response to Nina G.'s, who is perfectly entitled to comment on any aspect of a review she chooses, and indeed it is unusual (and I imagine distasteful to some) to read critics singling out specific parts of the body rather than general mention of arms, legs, and so on.

 

You clearly do not agree with my remark about Russians dancing Rhapsody but we are allowed to air personal opinions of that nature and I happen to believe they would bring a lot to that particular ballet.

 

So I am "inattentive", to what exactly?  I choose not to read your blog because of disrespectful remarks you have made there in the past and if I want a Russian review translated I have more authentic sources to refer to than a blogger,

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The purpose of my translating these reviews is so that you can read what the writers said and not jump to erroneous conclusions on the basis of misquoting three or four words. MAB and Nina G, you have both misquoted Kuznetsova by inference and inattention. If you were to read her triple bill review you would see that she is vastly admiring of Osipova and her points about physicality are part of the context of that huge admiration and for the British handling of realism. She would also likely not agree with you that Rhapsody is crying out for Russian performance - she writes that the Russians could learn a great deal from the British (and another critic makes the same point in a separate review). She thinks McRae is the equal of Baryshnikov, and that the London men and women have an enviable discipline and stylistic nuance. Her Manon review is here, comparing Osipova and Nunez. I suppose she might be considered the Moscow equivalent of Judith Mackrell/Clement Crisp. Maya Krylova is another thoughtful, appreciative critic who acclaimed the triple bill in detail. And Svetlana Naborshchikova raves about Sarah Lamb and McRae in Manon here.

 

My apologies to you and Ms Kuznetsova if what I wrote in Post 49 gave the impression of misquoting Ms. Kuznetsova.

 

I was just struck by her frankness in describing certain body parts/looks of dancers. I don't feel I misquoted Ms. Kuznetsova (I merely put her own publicised descriptions between speech marks) but perhaps by taking her descriptions out of context I therefor left it open to the possibility of misinterpretation by those who haven't read her reviews (which are beautifully and intelligently written). It was wrong that I took the liberty to interpret her descriptions as "...parts she dislikes" (see my post 49). Apology again.

Edited by Nina G.
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Just read this article carefully:


 


Source: Russia Beyond the Headlines - http://rbth.co.uk/arts/2014/06/26/stage_sensation_british_ballet_wows_moscow_37739.html)


 


and was surprised to see a careless mistake by its Russian author who attributed “the legendary performance of Romeo and Juliet… which was put on by the Bolshoi Theatre in London in the mid 20th century”, to the choreographer Leonid Yakobson instead of Leonid Lavrovsky.

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The purpose of my translating these reviews is so that you can read what the writers said and not jump to erroneous conclusions on the basis of misquoting three or four words. MAB and Nina G, you have both misquoted Kuznetsova by inference and inattention. If you were to read her triple bill review you would see that she is vastly admiring of Osipova and her points about physicality are part of the context of that huge admiration and for the British handling of realism. She would also likely not agree with you that Rhapsody is crying out for Russian performance - she writes that the Russians could learn a great deal from the British (and another critic makes the same point in a separate review). She thinks McRae is the equal of Baryshnikov, and that the London men and women have an enviable discipline and stylistic nuance. Her Manon review is here, comparing Osipova and Nunez. I suppose she might be considered the Moscow equivalent of Judith Mackrell/Clement Crisp. Maya Krylova is another thoughtful, appreciative critic who acclaimed the triple bill in detail. And Svetlana Naborshchikova raves about Sarah Lamb and McRae in Manon here.

Ismene, I'm very grateful for your translations of the Russian newspaper reviews. Thank you :)

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So am I.  If it weren't for Ismene taking the time and effort to translate all these articles, the world of Russian dance criticism would be closed to me, and it would be a considerable loss as I really enjoy reading what the Russian critics have to say about the performances and what is going on behind the scenes.  This is something I've never been able to do before, so a huge thank you to Ismene for doing it at all and for sharing it with everyone.

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Ismene, I'm very grateful for your translations of the Russian newspaper reviews. Thank you :)

 

Late to the party but agree wholeheartedly with this.

 

I'd also note that Ismene Brown trades under her real name - no sniping from the sidelines, hiding behind an anonymous Username.

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Late to the party but agree wholeheartedly with this.

 

I'd also note that Ismene Brown trades under her real name - no sniping from the sidelines, hiding behind an anonymous Username.

 

Very good point, Bruce.

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