Duck

Having seen Noah in Paris shortly after its premiere in 2017, I mentally jumped with joy when I realised that the company would be on tour near Stuttgart this season with exactly that piece. I saw the performance in Ludwigsburg on 14 October. The benefits of a repeat viewing. The longevity and tiresomeness of the flood at full height (curtains at the sides and the back of the stage go all the way to the top), and how Noah’s wife comes to prominence in this situation … whereas Noah seems to be showing some weakness at this stage, his wife is supporting and pushing along very effectively. The simple scenography was as striking as when I first saw the piece - floor, bench (on which the performers sit when they don’t dance) and curtains all in shades of turquoise. Costumes in earthy colours before, once the flood has receded, the dancers take them off (while sitting on the bench with their backs facing the audience) and now only wear flesh-coloured underwear, as a sign of starting afresh, in a new world (this was looking real to an extent that the gentleman next to me was sitting up straight and having a keen eye on what was happening on stage ;-). I was delighted to see Mickaël Conte again in the role of Noah, same as in Paris last year. The piece is an immense team effort as almost everyone is on stage from start to finish but still … Conte in the role of Noah in particular was dancing almost non-stop throughout, and to a lesser extent the dancer who portrayed Noah’s wife. And yet, even though the two dancers stood in the centre and were the last couple to step forward at the curtain calls, they didn’t receive the loudest ovations (just as in Paris, these went to Adam and Eve and the dancers depicting the pigeon and the raven even though their parts are much shorter). I think this is because Noah and his wife wear the same clothes as those whom they lead whereas the costumes for Adam/Eve and the pigeon/the raven are a lot more distinctive. As a result, spotting the performers in the role of Noah and his wife amongst the others at the curtain calls may be tricky at first sight. I guess it’s important to show that Noah stems from within the group but maybe there’d a subtle way of showing “this is Noah” … maybe just a scarf in a different colour that he is adding over time, or something like that. Anyway, love love love is all around with regards to that piece (sadly not within as it ends as it starts, with a fight and the killing of a man … mankind is given a new chance and does not use it, I still think). I just hope I’ll be lucky enough to see the company perform again somewhere sometime.

A cold and rainy Sunday, time to come back to a performance of John Neumeier’s Bernstein Dances with Hamburg Ballet in Baden-Baden on 7 October. Without being a biography of Leonard Bernstein, Bernstein Dances uses key musical pieces to guide through and illustrate 8 themes that Neumeier identified in Bernstein’s life and thinking - to quote from the programme booklet, of Bernstein’s “spirit”. Overture (Overture from Candide) Prologue – Who am I? (extracts from Peter Pan et al.) Start and Departure (Facsimile. Choreographic Essay for Orchestra) The city of all cities (extracts from Wonderful Town/ On the Town) Spirituality (extracts from Mass/ Broadway for Peace) Success (extracts from West Side Story) Time lapse (Overture from Candide) Review (extracts from Wonderful Town) In the Evening and through the Night (Serenade et al.) – this features a party at an apartment in NY Neumeier calls it “a loose sequence of compositions and choreographies”, and the themes flow from one to the next. The parts that I enjoyed most were the interaction on stage between dancers (Christopher Evans as Bernstein) and pianist (Sebastian Knauer) respectively dancers and singers (Marie-Sophie Pollak and Roy Goldman). Plus recognising Age of Anxiety (it’s not listed in the booklet but I recognised a theme from it, unless this theme is also used in other compositions) and Serenade, and thinking about how Neumeier’s choreography compared to Scarlett’s and Wheeldon’s works for the Royal Ballet. Very beautiful, flowing, elegant, timeless costumes by Giorgio Armani. Finally, I just loved the curtain calls, choreographed to Candide’s Overture. Trailer on the company’s YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOhT1Rahtls.

Welcome to Stuttgart, balletnut55 I am there from time to time, depending on the programme. Shades of White is on the verge of being too much "white tutu" for me, I'll give Romeo & Juliet a break this year and I am not planning to see Lady of the Camellias either, and so it'll probably be some time before I'll be back at the Opera House. Having said that, I really enjoyed Concert for Flute and Harp when I saw it a few years ago, just because it was different, having a male corps in addition to the two lead couples. Also, I quite liked the rehearsal of the Kingdom of the Shades scene with the Royal Ballet as part of the World Ballet Day. So maybe I'll get a ticket for one of the performances in December after all, depending on the casting. I don't know to what extent you've been able to look at other local & regional venues already that also offer ballet and dance events. There's Gauthier Dance at the Theaterhaus in Stuttgart (no risk of too much "white tutu" there), and the Forum in Ludwigsburg, just a short train ride north of Stuttgart, has a number of visiting companies throughout the year. Then there's Baden-Baden. If you are able to travel further, both Strasbourg and Paris generally work for matinee performances. In fact, most of the tickets that I've bought for the current season so far relate to events outside Stuttgart. Feel free to ask here or PM if you have any questions. Would be happy to say "hello" if we happen to be at the same performance.

Agreed, this is somewhat odd. There are a few Insight events shown in grey, too. I guess a search function by venue would be great (unless it's already there, and I missed it), in addition to searching the calendar by date and ticket price.

Details of events at the Linbury are now on the ROH site; I found identifying events at the Linbury easiest through http://www.roh.org.uk/seasons/2018-19 as most of the events shown in a grey box are at the Linbury. Some exciting content e.g., International Draft Works, Ballet Black with a choreography by Cathy Marston, Young Talent Festival.

That's the same version ☺

If you refer to the version with Elisa Badenes and David Moore in the lead roles, this recording is from 2017. It is the version that was shown in cinemas in Germany in July and on Arte last Sunday (see Angela's posts), and it is available there (for those with access to Arte) for another few weeks.

About a month in … highlights for me so far seem to say “Cello Cello Cello” … Shostakovich/ Cello Concerto, Dvorak/ Cello Concerto, Elgar/Cello Concerto. Also Shostakovich 7 and Drumming by Steve Reich. Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto, bringing back memories of a daily commute on the M25 in the morning rush hour, listening to the Violin Concerto day after day. And then those works that remind me of ballet performances to that music - Debussy’s Prelude a l’apres midi d’un faune (Cherkaoui) and Stravinsky’s Petrushka (Araiz). Looking forward to the second half of this year's Proms.

Incredibly sad news. It was her songs and those by Dionne Warwick in Forsythe's Love Songs that got me hooked on soul music, and that got me interested in ballet. RIP.

Yes, fair point, looking at Monaco and France together in that case would give a better view.

The article in the link here https://www.dancemagazine.com/in_training_training_in_germany-2306939803.html mentions further schools (some come with a focus on contemporary dance).

Oh, thank you, John. So sorry to read it is indeed 10 August, so that's another reason to ensure I do tune in for the remainder of this week, and equally to say thank you so much for highlighting.

As for the number of places at schools abroad, I would assume that the places at the John Cranko School in Stuttgart, Hamburg Ballet School and the schools in Berlin and Munich add up to a number that is - roughly - similar to the number of places at top schools in the UK. Plus places in Zurich and in Vienna, at Princesse Grace, at national schools in Scandinavia and others that I may/will not be aware of. Just as I don't have a complete list of schools for Europe (bearing in mind that I am looking at this from a ballet-watching perspective, I don't have any DC), is part of it about awareness of the options that are available? I’ve watched end-of-year performances of the JCS for the last three years. There are a number of pictures on Instagram that were taken towards the end of the most recent school year, showing the students in class or after the end-of-year performances with their teachers. A lot of the students in the pictures have public Instagram accounts that mention their country of birth or their hometown. Based on this information, the school is hugely international, and increasingly so with age. I saw a documentary about Princesse Grace in Monaco some time ago, and part of it was about how international the student intake was. Rudra Bejart in Lausanne publishes the names and nationalities of their graduates, again massively international. edited to say that post coincided with previous post by invisiblecircus

Thank you so much, John, for bringing this up. I agree, a tremendous loss. Just listened again to some of the interviews you mentioned. These are remarkable. I admire his ability to get to the bottom of things by asking short and open questions. His emotional intelligence, adjusting his interview style to the person in question and the specific situation – at times probing, challenging, reigning in, not letting go, and at other times full of empathy, seeking understanding and creating understanding for others, generating a calm atmosphere through listening, pausing, and giving interviewees ample time to respond. I haven’t been able more recently to listen to PM as frequently as I used to however in doing so, I’ve always found that it is not about him, and it is instead about the subject matter and the person on the other end of the phone line. When I read some time ago that his last PM would be in August, I put the date in my diary. Time has been flying. I need to make sure I make the most of the remaining time. A huge thanks and all the very best to him. The hope that I have - other than that he might return to BBC at some stage - is that the date of the last PM will be as announced by the BBC in early July (17 August) rather than the date that is now mentioned in the Radio Times (10 August).

In browsing the list of programmes, I found myself drawn to specific emotions that the various works elicit from me e.g., For serenity - any role in Ashton's Monotones I/II For fun - the Joker in Cranko's Jeu de Cartes To honour the preciousness of nature - any of the extinct species in Bintley's Still Life at the Penguin Cafe As embodiment of humanity and friendship - either role in the PDD in the 3rd part of Bejart's 9th Symphony To dance myself towards ecstasy - any of the larger roles in Bejart's Bolero

I was deeply shocked when I read the article in The Guardian, shocked about what happened at the hospital and in the courtroom. I am lost for words. Fiz's post just above pinpoints what I think of events. I am not a UK citizen/resident and am thus unable to sign the petition unfortunately. Wishing you lots of strength, courage and stamina to continue moving this forward. My thoughts are with you in this difficult time.

Thierry Malandain choreographed Noé to Rossini's Messa di Gloria. Uwe Scholz did The Creation based on Haydn's eponymous work. Mauricio Wainrot created The Messiah to Haendel's work of that name. Douglas Allen mentioned Bejart - I can think of Mahler's Songs of a Wayfarer and 9th Symphony to Beethoven but this may not be the complete list? There are a number of dance elements in Demis Volpi's Death in Venice, a coproduction by Stuttgart Opera and Stuttgart Ballet. Richard Siegal will provide the choreography and staging for a work to Bernstein's Mass for Musiktheater im Revier in a co-production with Ballet im Revier in Gelsenkirchen in autumn 2018. If we look at choral music/ music for solo or several singers beyond classical music - Will Tuckett created a work to Weill's Seven Deadly Sins, and Louis Stiens will provide the choreography for a co-production by Stuttgart Ballet, Stuttgart Opera and Schauspiel Stuttgart in early 2019. Volpi created Little Monsters to songs by Elvis Presley. Goecke has used a number of non-classical pieces for his works e.g., Sarah Vaughn, Johnny Cash, Etta James.

Requiem and Song of the Earth also shared a bill in winter 2014/15 (the double bill was called “Hommage a MacMillan”); I saw a performance of it on St Stephen’s Day that year. As you say, it’s definitely not the lightest of programmes, in particular over the festive season. Strangely, I quite enjoyed, however, how the mood of the two pieces reinforced each other … just like the mood of Dances and Initials do so in my view. In relation to Traces, I found an article in the NY Times archive that mentions such a piece – is it the one you have in mind? https://www.nytimes.com/1973/06/01/archives/the-dance-stuttgart-troupe-gives-3-premieres-at-met.html

The festival week concluded with a company gala on Sunday evening, again livestreamed into the park just outside the Opera House. There had been a risk of thunderstorms throughout the weekend. Whereas on Saturday the heavy rain had stopped mid-afternoon in time for the evening performance, there was no such luck on Sunday; it rained for about half of the time the gala was on. So those who braved the rain provided a rich picture in the park, donning raincoats and outdoor clothing in all shapes, colours and varieties. The gala kicked off at 5pm with Extracts from Matacz’ Etudes for the students of the John Cranko School and the Defilee of the company. Speeches highlighted, among others, Anderson’s stamina with regards to the new building for the JCS, the identification of choreographic talent and the fact that a number of Artistic Directors at other companies started as dancers in Stuttgart. Marcia Haydee praised Anderson for the fact that he brought her back onto the stage in Stuttgart in a number of character roles. The programme for the gala was put together by Tamas Detrich. Following Anderson’s time at the helm of the company in chronological order, it provided extracts from key works that were premiered or revived at the time (one work per year up to the 2014/15 season; maybe the gala would have gotten too lengthy had the final few years also been covered individually), extracts from the three major narrative works by Cranko and a rousing finish just before 11 pm. Daniel Camargo and Marijn Rademaker, who had already danced in the mixed bills earlier in the week, were joined by Polina Semionova and Anna Laudere as guests at the gala. Daniel Camargo danced (with Elisa Badenes) PDDs from DonQ by Guerra (this PDD brought the house down) and from Taming of the Shrew. Marijn Rademaker appeared in Bigonzetti’s I Fratelli (with Miriam Kacerova), in van Manen’s Two Pieces for HET (with Anna Osadcenko) and in Das siebte Blau by Spuck. Polina Semionova danced a PDD from Herman Schmerman with Friedemann Vogel, and the applause they received was tumultuous (it was the PDD with the yellow skirts). Anna Laudere appeared in a PDD from Neumeier’s Othello with Jason Reilly (the PDD that sees the cloth unwrapped; wow, just wow, exquisitely sensual, I was spellbound, I do hope Othello will be back on stage sometime soon). Extracts and PDDs from other works that the audience was treated to included Suite by Scholz, Giselle in a staging by Anderson and Savina, Bintley’s Edward II, Spuck’s Lulu (the one PDD that had a member of the corps in a leading role, Noan Alves; Elisa Badenes padded his hand when they took their bows as if saying to him “well done”; I quite liked this gesture), Kylian’s Return to a strange land, Goecke’s Orlando (a solo for Friedemann Vogel; a recorded voice read to music the words “Orlando lept as if she had been struck on the head. Ten times she was struck. It fact it was 10 o’clock in the morning. It was the eleventh of October. It was 1928. It was the present moment”, … and I was properly electrified), Neumeier’s The Lady of the Camellias, Volpi’s Krabat and MacMillan’s Requiem. In addition to the extract from The Taming of the Shrew, Cranko was also covered through the balcony PDD from Romeo & Juliet and the final PDD from Onegin. The piece that was performed in full was Spuck’s Le grand Pas de Deux (Elisa Badenes and Jason Reilly, hilariously funny). The one other piece that was performed in full was the short choreography that those in park had learnt before the start of the gala and that was shown on video to those inside the Opera House after the second interval. So image maybe around a thousand people in unshapely raincoats dancing to the Polonaise from Onegin, 3 steps forward, chassee, turn, chassee, turn, men on one knee, women around, arms in allongee, hop. Probably the one time in my life that I will have received ovations at the Opera House ;-) Camera work was a mix of views of the full stage and of close ups. The latter allowed to see and admire the dancer’s artistry in superb detail (e.g., Alicia Amatriain in The Lady of the Camellias and in Onegin, just incredible, in particular as these PDD were performed out of context), the intricacies of partnering, the dancer’s muscle definition (e.g., put to spectacular effect in Goecke’s Orlando). With regards to some of the works shown though, I actually would have preferred fewer close ups, considering the costumes involved (and I leave it to you which these may have been). The review of the 22 years through key works from that time gave insights into what had been performed when I wasn’t here, and provided the impetus to go and see some of them when as and when they will be revived next time. There were a few pieces, however, where I struggled with the content or who was on stage (prime example being Edward II, about which I wrote down on Sunday “why does the queen quarrel with Edward II”, and then read in a review this morning that it was actually Mortimer who was on stage; equally the extract from Krabat; I’d read a summary of the story but without having seen the work, I struggled to tell where in the story the extract performed would be positioned, again a review that I read this morning provided enlightenment). Maybe that’s not an issue for the majority of those who were watching but I thought that maybe just a sentence in the programme book would be great for the narrative works shown at the gala. Notwithstanding these aspects, it was a superb (and long) evening, and finishing with the finale from A Chorus Line, with the dancers both dancing and singing. A procession of Artistic Directors of other companies, former dancers and key staff gave roses and hugs to Reid Anderson. Marcia Haydee was the penultimate person to do so, and she opened her arms wide when she was still at a distance, and Reid Anderson dropped the roses that he had collated up until them, opened his arms, too, and they fell into a memorable embrace. The orchestra continued to play, and Anderson performed a solo on stage to much acclaim by the audience (see stuttgarterballett_fanpage on Instagram for details). Pictures from the gala performance on Sunday https://www.stuttgart-ballet.de/schedule/2018-07-22/sb-gala-2018/images/ https://www.stuttgarter-zeitung.de/inhalt.ballettfestwoche-endet-mit-gala-abschied-von-reid-anderson.7b1ec214-1c7a-44e1-8b7d-e7c750620a0b.html Huge respect and thanks to the dancers, musicians and those backstage for their preparation and handling of what will have been an intensive week for them. This last week proved life affirming. There were times in the 2017-18 season when I wasn’t able to see much dance. When I started again going to a few performances in Stuttgart and elsewhere, I sometimes wondered whether things had lost some of that sparkle for me. The festival week showed that it hadn’t. The frequency of watching dance last week in combination with the works that I did see earlier this season also provided the opportunity to follow a number of dancers in the corps, and I look forward to the coming season to see how they will develop further. For now, time to catch up with other things in life ...

The festival week continued with Ballet in the Park on Saturday evening for the gala performance of the John Cranko School, livestreamed from within the Opera House. It was great to meet Yumiko before the performance, allowing us to catch up on events since our previous meeting. Tadeusz Matacz lauded Reid Anderson for the autonomy and responsibility that he gave him in running the School and the support that he provided. He praised Anderson’s stamina in securing agreement and funding for the new (yet in progress) building of the JCS. He also referred to the breadth of the training, from classical via neoclassical to contemporary, in preparation for what the dancers will encounter in their professional engagements following graduation, and the works performed at the gala reflected that breadth of styles. These works came in two parts – a number of group works for the equivalent of the Upper School (Academy classes A and B) and the full version of Etudes by Matacz for students of all ages. Air! by Uwe Scholz is set to Bach’s music (Overture no. 3, I think). Really loved this piece for six couples – musical, rhythmic, warm/gentle, uplifting, joyful and celebratory, emphasised by the exclamation mark in the title, with a serene part (Air) in the middle for the two lead couples. The movements illustrated the joyful mood with flowing movements - lots of arabesques and jetes, and in particular in the third set hands in soft/ curbed allonges. The colour palette for the costumes (vanilla, chocolate and rust) added to the warm glow of the piece. I hope this work will be performed in future seasons, too. The Sylvia PDD by George Balanchine received huge cheers. Technically assured, with wonderful balances by Aina Oki (PdL finalist in 2017) and pirouettes and jumps by Motomi Kiyota (1st year of the Academy). I also loved the demonstrable joy with which they were performing this challenging piece. The school performance on 8 July included another work by Balanchine, the Glinka Pas de Trois. Contemporary style was covered through Marco Goecke’s A spell on you to music by Nina Simone, Lamento della ninfa by Stephen Shropshire and Alrededor no hay nada by Goyo Montero. Shropshire’s Lamento della ninfa uses a song by Ane Brun based on Monteverdi’s work. A female dancer is lifted, lowered, rolled along by one or two male dancers in quiet, contemplative movements, and she is always in contact with at least one of them. Having read Brun’s lyrics, I see the two male dancers as illustration of the waves that carry the nymph in the sea, moving her up and down in a variety of waves, and also to illustrate the emotional turmoil that the nymph is going through. Montero’s Alrededor no hay nada proved more challenging as it is performed to Spanish spoken word, utilising a number of poems by Joaquin Sabina (“Benditos Malditos”, in which he lists a number of items as blessed (bendito) or damned (maldito) and equally “Alrededor no hay nada” (there is nothing around) which mentions a number of body parts and ends with the statement “there is nothing around” … this whole section is performed through a series of solos and PDD) and a poem by Vinicius de Moraes, now including background music (El Dia de la Creacion; all dancers of the piece are now involved). I read the lyrics that I was able to find on the web following the school performance on 8 July in preparation for the gala performance on Saturday and then realised (… my reading …), however, that it is less about the multitude of specific aspects that are mentioned as blessed or damned, and instead more about the general sensation that the poems provide - the ups and downs/ the sweet and the bittersweets aspects of life, and how they are all intertwined and follow each other in quick succession. To quote a phrase from the poem by de Moraes, “today is Saturday, tomorrow Sunday, the life comes in waves like the sea”. It is the choreography to de Moraes that I enjoyed most as the repetitive use of “… because today is Saturday” in the poem provides rhythm and, as most items mentioned as happening on Saturday have a negative connotation, it also provides an uplifting outlook onto Sunday (“there is the outlook on Sunday because today is Saturday”). I think though that a sentence or two in the programme book would maybe have been beneficial in understanding the work as every time I see this piece, the applause is less than that for other contemporary works. Etudes by Tadeusz Matacz. If the Extracts from Etudes that I had seen last year come with a similar duration to the Grand Defile, the full Etudes went somewhat beyond 30/35 minutes, giving ample opportunity to showcase the academic training in both adagio and allegro elements as well as the PDD training, and how the skills acquired move from simple steps, turns and jumps to ever more complex movements. Graduates of the John Cranko School join Stuttgart Ballet, Ballet Ireland, Ballet Magdeburg, Ballet Zurich, Cannes Jeune Ballet, Eger, Joffrey Ballet, The Tokyo Ballet, Tulsa Ballet and Vienna State Ballet (the programme of the end-of-year performance on 8 July does not state which of these are apprentice/ corps contracts). Comments about last night’s gala performance of Stuttgart Ballet to follow (thankfully, the notes that I took in the rain yesterday have dried since ;-).

Full link http://www.elmundo.es/cultura/danza/2018/07/20/5b51949d22601d734e8b46d4.html. I think Google translate is correct, the critic describes the Spanish dance as anachronistic with regards to both costumes and choreography. Other links http://www.diariosigloxxi.com/texto-ep/mostrar/20180719004010/emocion-lago-cisnes-royal-ballet-inunda-teatro-real-paso-londres. A review of the opening night, the article highlights the applause and standing ovation https://elpais.com/cultura/2018/07/19/actualidad/1532001318_762937.html. A mixed review of the opening night. "La función de debú de “Lago” anoche tuvo sus luces y sus sombras." - "the opening night had its lights and shadows" (see the 3rd paragraph); further details in the 4th paragraph. https://www.eitb.eus/es/cultura/videos/detalle/5739484/video-itziar-mendizabal-presenta-el-lago-cisnes-madrid-/. An interview with Itziar Mendizabal (I don't understand what she says, I read Spanish but listening understanding is pretty limited) and showing rehearsal extracts. https://elpais.com/ccaa/2018/07/18/madrid/1531905100_992313.html. An interview with and portrait of David Yudes.

Seeing Dance about Friday's Encounters double bill http://www.seeingdance.com/stuttgartballet-encounters-23072018/

Thank you so much, Bruce, for sharing your own experience, I am glad I am not the only one to have experienced this phenomenon. Many thanks, too, for illustrating the richness of Dances at a gathering (I quite like the acronym DAAG) in such vivid terms, far more evocatively than I could ever achieve.

Thank you so much, Douglas for your reply yesterday. I envy you, having seen the work with those on whom it was created. Was it performed as part of one of their tours, or did you come to Stuttgart to see it? The first ballet performance that I ever attended will have been in around 1983/84, so unfortunately I missed both Heinz Clauss and Egon Madsen. Without the historic knowledge, my reaction is purely based on what I saw on Friday (I’ve only seen the piece five times myself), both technically and artistically. If Angela reads this thread, maybe she will be able to comment as she’s been following the company for much longer than I have. Maybe there’ll also be some comments in Seeing Dance as it seems that their critic is in Stuttgart throughout the festival week. I think the memory of the initial leads will be around in Stuttgart for some time but it would be interesting to see whether/ how the programme notes are (or already have been) adapted over time to reflect the fact that, in particular going forward, an increasing percentage of the audience will not have seen the work with the full initial cast themselves and may benefit from additional information. Looking beyond the memory of earlier casts, I see Initials as a work about friendship, about a group of individuals who are in contact with and support of each other, in full awareness and acceptance of each other’s – different - personality traits, and who come together to face the common future as a group with a degree of optimism. In particular, the pairing with Dances at a gathering leads me to see Initials as a timeless statement about humanity, understanding, conviviality and tolerance, and this definitely contributes to why I find the work so moving, memorable and special.

I can empathise as I miss the piece already ...