Jump to content

FionaM

Members
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    2,915

  • Joined

  • Last visited

 Content Type 

Everything posted by FionaM

  1. FionaM
    I’d say it’s a great honour for Vsevelod who is a junior soloist at ENB to be partnering a Bolshoi principal such as Alena Kovaleva. Vsevelod’s story of himself leaving Russia and his family leaving Ukraine https://parkmagazineny.com/dancing-for-life-an-escaped-ukrainian-dancers-story-vsevolod-mayevskyi/ Perhaps his view is that he is outside of the conflict personally. He may be supporting his family financially too.
  2. FionaM
    It has been changed over the years … but not much. Improvements with scenery, sets and costumes. Very little change to the choreography. I’d call it tweaks. In essence it is the same.
  3. FionaM
    Alonya Kovaleva also danced at a gala in Japan partnered by Xander Parish in December. perhaps artists are taking a different view on artistic collaborations. Talking of which I have just seen the great pianist Nikolai Lugansky performing Rachmaninov superbly, with the Strasbourg Philharmonic. Nikolai is on tour around Europe with this orchestra and others, and also with Vadim Repin (husband of Svetlana Zakharova).
  4. FionaM
    For those interested in modern choreography, here’s a reel of a piece created by Vienna based choreographer Eno Peci that was performed in Dubai recently and will have its premier in Russia on the Bolshoi new stage later this month as part of the ‘Postscript’ programme. The 4 dancers are contemporary specialist Ildar Young with Bolshoi soloists Maria Vinogradova, Anastasia Denisova and Daniil Potaptsev. Ildar collaborates regularly with Bolshoi dancers. https://www.instagram.com/reel/C3PrXDgo6wg/?igsh=aHMzcWJlenIwNHFi
  5. FionaM
    It’s here https://m.faz.net/aktuell/feuilleton/buehne-und-konzert/john-neumeier-kooperiert-mit-bolschoi-ballett-propaganda-instrument-putins-19512416.html?utm_source=ground.news&utm_medium=referral
  6. FionaM
    I’ve booked to support this show. Lots of tickets are still available. I hope others will book too
  7. FionaM
    And do read Joe Powell-Main’s posts of how this all came about … with photos and videos Part 1 https://www.instagram.com/p/C3GrL0JII3-/?igsh=MTM1cDhneDJldGx4eg== Part 2 https://www.instagram.com/p/C3G1E7aIAsw/?igsh=MTdhNjdodTI1N2RpYg==
  8. FionaM
    I think this format deserves a re-run. Maybe annually … to raise awareness of how fulfilling this dance can be. The piece by Stop Gap Dance was the most inventive and Joe Powell-Main’s new solo was very powerful. He does have a fabulous dance charisma on stage. The professional ballet dancers all gave superb performances, including the RB School duo. Bravo to Shiori Kase for stepping in to the Le Corsaire pdd with a few days notice and only one day of rehearsal with Daniil Simkin. She had fabulous control of the fiendish pirouette sequences. Daniil delighted the crowd with his usual multiple 540s and other tricks. Sangeun Lee and Gareth Haw brought beauty and emotional depth to the Act 2 Giselle adagio and solos. How wonderful that they are in London now. Maria Kotchetkova and Daniil Simkin closed the first act with a new duet by Sebastian Kloborg (Maria’s life partner). It was humorous and cheerful and full of regular ballet moves you’d all recognise. For some reason I was expecting contemporary. They have a super chemistry and I hope they get to repeat this exuberant piece. The costumes were fun too. Bravo to organisers Ross Freddie Ray and Henry Dowden
  9. FionaM
    It was fantastic … uplifting in so many ways. The performances from the abled and differently abled were all impressive. The programme and donation link are online here: https://linktr.ee/childrentodaycharity https://printcrew.co.uk/pdfbook/empower-in-motion-2024-2/
  10. FionaM
    Thanks Angela … can you provide the link to Neumeier’s statement?
  11. FionaM
    The Varna company was not formed in 2022, it is the touring State Ballet of Siberia renamed. Same promoters, organisers, owners, sets, costumes and productions. The only thing that changed was the dancers and the touring company name. They ditched their Russian dancers when the performances were all cancelled by UK theatres after February 2022. Subsequently hired lesser quality Western ones. All of whom including soloists and corps are 1-2 years out of training and have not been able to get jobs at any other companies in Europe. That speaks volumes for the (lack of) quality. I don’t have a problem with lesser quality dancers getting a chance to perform. Not to I have a problem with lesser quality troupes touring … just don’t charge me £70 for it as they did at Bristol Hippodrome. I’d pay that or more (and I do) for the better quality companies. it’s the audiences that are getting a raw deal … lesser quality at the wrong price.
  12. FionaM
    Danill Simkin is in both galas too.
  13. FionaM
    Hmm … the programme I have from Bristol did not have any Ukrainian dancers in it.
  14. FionaM
    That happened to me once. I hadn’t booked in advance as wasn’t sure I’d be able to make it. The cinema cancelled the showing. It was a half hour drive to the next nearest cinema. I was not pleased. Lesson learnt. Book ticket in advance. Then they have to show it … even if only 1 person books.
  15. FionaM
    Bravo to Ernst and DNB Junior Company 👏👏👏
  16. FionaM
    Hmm I’m not sure the charity have used the right poster … originally Giselle with Haw & Lee were not in the gala. They were a later addition. I hope there hasn’t been a last minute change. I really wanted to see this duo in Giselle. Sangeun Lee posted only 2 days ago saying she was looking forward to this gala https://www.instagram.com/p/C22YrlZIupb/?igsh=aWU5ODA5dHUzNG8z
  17. FionaM
    I also saw the encore relay, with about 25 others in the cinema. I enjoyed it. It’s an uncluttered production. The extra music for the pd4 was the only thing that jarred a bit. On the other hand, I didn’t mind the extra music for the extended Act 1 solo for Albrecht, probably because Jacopo Tissi is so beautiful to watch. I preferred Olga Smirnova in Act 2 as I felt she was not as convincing as the unworldly young village girl despite having a cohesive narrative that she was portraying. I did giggle when the 4 winestampers came on in their very short shorts. It felt like a Matthew Bourne joke. It certainly was the jolliest village scene which built up nicely to the moment when Hilarion spills his knowledge. Giorgi Potskhishvili dominated the stage whenever he was on. (I’ve been lucky to see him dance in person with DNB 4 times already in the last year … Rothbart, Siegfried, Dorian and I Raymonda. His aura is awesome.) Another vote to join others above, for the brilliantly fast and neat bourrees by Floor Eimers’ Myrtha, and also to the well rehearsed Wilis. I would have liked an introduction and interval interviews as Pathé used to do when they filmed the Bolshoi, even though this is a recorded show. There was something odd about the straight on camera angle which made the stage seem both shallower and wider than it is.
  18. FionaM
    @MAX yes Calvin was at the RBS after the PdL 2012, on a full scholarship. There are 8 PdL scholarship prize winners each year. Those fund one year of free tuition and living expenses at one of the partner schools. The prize winner gets to choose their school, after the others ranked above them. If they take a position at a company (rather than a school, as plenty are aged 18) that is not a partner of the PdL then the scholarship is either forfeited or rolled down to the next ranked finalist. (I don’t know how the mechanics of that work.). The PdL publish a list of where the scholarship winners go, about 1-2 months after the competition. The schools and companies are present at the PdL Networking Forum and make multiple offers to students whether prize winners, finalists or semi-finalists. in 2023, the gold medal was shared by two boys, Fabrizzio Ulloa Cornejo (Mexico) and Millán de Benito (Spain) who both chose to join the RBS. Other RB company members not named above that have joined the RB company via the school on PdL scholarships include: Harrison Lee, gold medal winner of PdL 2015 (aged 15!), Luca Acri, Joonhyuk Jun, Sae Maeda, Taisuke Nakao, Mariko Sasaki, Yu Hang, Leticia Stock, Denilson Almeida, Brayden Galucci, Stanislaw Wegrzyn (PdL apprentice to the company). And not to forget Vadim Muntagirov who joined the RBS on a PdL scholarship, and was given early principal roles at ENB before joining RB. There is a similar longish list of current company dancers who have been recruited to the school at even younger ages via the YAGP competition, including Daichi Ikarashi, who has since won the professional level Erik Bruhn prize.
  19. FionaM
    https://www.brb.org.uk/stories/2024-25-season-announcement
  20. FionaM
    Can’t help thinking that 2 days of La Fille in London is NOWHERE near enough for demand ….
  21. FionaM
    Didn’t the Pet Shop Boys already collaborate with someone in ballet? Putrov?
  22. FionaM
    Such a treat being so close! (Advantages to recorded music 😉)
  23. FionaM
    Now sold.
  24. FionaM
    Personally I’ve always found the way the veil is pulled off to be rather comical. But there is no easy solution to this one and if it’s sticking to what Mary Skeaping planned then so be it. It is minor. I did want to applaud the man in black’s skill … that supported lift across the back is so quick! I do agree with Matthew’s comment of the bits inbetween struggling to tell the story if the solos become only ‘show-off your technique’ pieces. Act 1 of any Giselle can be quite bitty like that, with the pauses in the music for applause and bows. This is how all the classics are… perhaps he is getting weary of traditional ballets. Then go see wonderful ENB in the Akram Khan Giselle! I don’t read Albrecht as a fool … he is any normal young person (man or woman, today or then,) who has got themselves caught up in a triangle of love and cannot extricate themselves because of Hilarion’s discovery and public pronouncement of it. Albrecht must then show us that he realises his true love for Giselle by the end of Act 1. This is important else there is no point to Act 2. it is a great story of love, betrayal and forgiveness!
  25. FionaM
    Front row seat for this sold out show £41 … will go back to box office if there are no takers in 48 hours. Performers are Matthew Ball, Alina Cojocaru, Kristen McNally, Tommy Franzen (‘strictly’ fame)
×
×
  • Create New...