Ivy Lin

Serious question: has anyone ever tried to dance La Sylphide exactly the way Marie Taglioni would have danced it, WITHOUT the modern pointe shoe? Here are her ballet slippers and there is no hard block at all. Curious if modern ballerinas could hold themselves up purely with their foot strength like Marie:

I saw this tonight. Gorgeous! Ida Praetorius and Jon Axel Fransson were lovely. It's so different from the last Hubbe production. Just what I needed.

I saw O'Sullivan and Sambe danced the Tchai pas in NYC in 2018 and was blown away by their energy and allegro dancing. I was looking forward to watching them again and while there were some very good things I too was disappointed. It just didn't have the zip and sparkle I remember their performances having in NYC. I thought it was a bit affected and precious.

However the rest of the program was great. I LOVED Monotones II -- such a peaceful, tranquil ballet. Also loved Yasmine Naghdi in Concerto's second movement. Osipova's Dying Swan was definitely not the graceful, elegiac solo I'm used to but it was very vivid. Loved the Rhapsody pas de deux. 

I wrote a review of the new works for bachtrack:

https://bachtrack.com/review-video-new-york-city-ballet-digital-fall-lincoln-center-october-2020

The DAAG excerpt was exquisite.

Loved Symphonic Dances!

I loved the SAB workshop. Wow at Mira Nadon. I remember not being able to go to that performance and people telling me "you missed a perfromance of a lifetime." Now I get to see it!

RDB is streaming Diamonds. It has a geo-block but is easily accessible if you remove the geo-block via a VPN program.

Not ballet but Hamilton on Disney Plus is AWESOME! Omg.

https://humbledandoverwhelmed.blogspot.com/2020/07/hamilton-on-disney-plus-happy.html

I usually save the videos to my computer and watch them later.

4 hours ago, Jeannette said:

 

BINGO! That’s precisely what’s happened with me. I’ve decided to concentrate on new choreography in the classical mode (the Arizona desert ballets, SFco Unbounds, Penn, ENB) or not-so-new titles that I have not seen (the Cranko rarities!). With a couple of exceptions, I’ve avoided what was my bread-and-butter in the past: full-evening classics. If I read another suggestion of a Russian provincial company in Swan Lake or Bayadere, I’ll scream! (Ha - just kidding...I won’t yell but I’ll avoid it. Truly.)

Hmm if anything one thing the streaming has done is made me realize the greatness of some of the more regional companies. For example I had never seen much Perm Ballet but I look forward to their streams now -- they have a lovely, understated classical style. Not as distinct as the Mariinsky or Bolshoi but very beautiful. Also really enjoying Ballet Arizona, Pennsylvania Ballet, Dance Theater of Harlem, etc. 

I used a VPN program and was able to watch the Rubies.

I follow her on IG and it seems she now teaches at the Ballet West academy. She posted an IG story of her teaching today.

Recent NYCB Apollos have been CHase Finlay (obviously not going to show him), Adrian Danchig-Waring, Gonzalo Garcia, Taylor Stanley. All were in their own way wonderful, I think Stanley chooses a less noble, more childlike interpretation.

It was overall a wonderful gala. Here were some of my favorite moments:

https://humbledandoverwhelmed.blogspot.com/2020/04/the-best-moments-from-met-at-home-gala.html

Allegro Brillante was AWESOME! 

This upcoming week at the Met in streeams ... the Coviddammerung:

https://humbledandoverwhelmed.blogspot.com/2020/03/covidammerung-end-of-world-in-met.html

What I'm reading between the lines were that there were no issues with children at the Royal Ballet School but that there might have been many other issues with the Royal Ballet company that they're not willing to disclose at the time.

Well for those who want to stream the Met website here's my totally irreverent thoughts on the Met HD's being streamed. Stay safe everyone, wash your hands!

https://humbledandoverwhelmed.blogspot.com/2020/03/for-covid-apocalypse.html

Penelope did JK sound actually indisposed or like he was marking? I've heard both from him (along with some very magnificent nights). IMO he tends to be a somewhat variable artist.

I don't think Meghan is tragic either but I just had fun writing this. For one the overwrought press coverage really was operatic. I half expected some of the royal rota to break out in a mad scene.

Episodes has always been an odd duck in the Balanchine canon but with the Paul Taylor solo back in it makes so much more sense.

The revival of Episodes with the Paul Taylor solo was amazing!

https://humbledandoverwhelmed.blogspot.com/2020/02/nycbs-episodes-wakes-up-sleepy-winter.html

24 minutes ago, ninamargaret said:

I often wonder why some people bother to attend. If she was watching Onegin she couldn't have seen anyone who could be described as 'awful'. 

I live in the U.S. But bascially this isn't complaining about one thing. The curtain went up and she was complaining. It happened nonstop throughout the performance. She was just chatting with her companion DURING THE PERFORMANCE about how awful it was, like she was watching this on her TV in the living room.

Anyone run into a negative Nancy sitting next to you? I was at the ballet the other night and this woman behind me would not stop complaining about the performance ... during the performance. Everyone was "awful," numerous attempts to shush her did not work. She was so miserable I thought she'd be gone after the interval but nope she stayed, to complain some more. I wondered why she even left the house as she was determined to be miserable.