Amelie-DALP

Three students danced, but 4 participated in the final "Défilé" (Perhaps a substitute?). 

Ravi Cannonier-Watson, Emile Gooding et Rebecca Stewart were students of the Royal Ballet School. They danced excerpts from "Rhapsody" by Ashton. All three of them were brilliant. But Emilie was truly... Whaou !  He danced the grand variation that opens the ballet with such brilliance, he impressed the whole audience ("Emilie" was the only word you could hear during the intermission among the spectators). He was the revelation of this gala. But all the students did well, it was a very beautiful evening, rich in these various dance schools. A very beautiful program. 

9 hours ago, Emeralds said:

Here's why I think there is some overlap and Principal Dancer isn't exactly a clear cut equivalent of etoile and First Soloist isn’t definitely Premier danseur/premiere danseuse. 

 

Thank you very much for the clarification! I didn't know that. I understand that there's a bit of an unofficial hierarchy among the Principals.

It's refreshing to read positive comments about the Noureeveries! ;).

In Paris, we've had our fill of Noureeveries. It's all we have, and we're tired of it. So, it's interesting to read different perspectives.

Paul Marque and Sae Eun Park were truly outstanding! Brilliant, engaging, and funny, just as we like DQ. They make the Noureeveries look easy and natural... But few dancers in Paris know how to make them look easy. And when that's not the case, the evening becomes long.

I also loved José Martinez's Don Quichotte. I saw it performed by the Compañía Nacional de Danza, and last year by the Bordeaux Opera Ballet. It's very lively, each character is well-defined. And yes, the work on character dances and Spanish dances is wonderful. Since then, I find it hard to watch a Don Quixote without this work; the character dances now seem very artificial to me.

On 31/03/2024 at 00:36, JNC said:

@Emeralds I’m not an expert but based on numbers alone etoile has to be the same as RB’s principal level - otherwise you’re looking at something more like “prima ballerina assoluta” akin to etoile that is far more rare. Also by the theory that etoile is “higher” than principal dancer is there an inherent assumption that Paris thinks its dancers are better than all other dancers in companies worldwide? (I’m being a bit silly of course but they must see etoile as equivalent to the highest rank of other equivalent companies). 

Oh, I think we can say that without joking

Sorry, I'm jumping in a bit late in the discussion. Just for some clarifications.

Some in Paris like to say that "Principal" equals "Premier danseur". It is just a Bla Bla Bla. 
 

In reality: Étoile = Principal, Premier danseur / Première danseuse = First soloist.
 

When you're a Premier danseur/Première danseuse, you only have one certainty: you will never go back to the corps de ballet. But you have no certainty of dancing lead roles. You are "remplaçant" for the lead roles and you dance supporting roles: Hilarion, the Queen of the Dryads, Myrtha, Gamzatti, Lescaut (some Étoiles can dance these last three roles as well), Effie, the three Shades, the pas de trois from Swan Lake or Paquita, Kitri's two friends, the equivalent of soloist roles (and not Principals) in Balanchine's ballets...
For me, it's really the equivalent of "First soloist."

If Marcelino was indicated as "Danseur" and not "Principal" on social media, honestly, it's just that the communication team at the Paris Opera is very bad and doesn't care about what comes from the outside. Two years ago, Alexandr Trusch was a guest. In the casting sheet, it just said "Guest Artist." The least courtesy would have been to add "Principal Dancer of the Hamburg Ballet John Neumeier" ... But well, it's the Paris Opera!

Hello to the BalletCo forum!

A brief explanation about the absence of the pony: a pony was indeed planned! But the rehearsals didn't go well, he didn't like the stage at all. So it was decided, for animal welfare reasons, not to put him on stage... And there was no replacement available.

I wasn't able to see the duo Bleuenn Battistoni/Marcelino Sambé. But all the "balletomanes" whom I know were thrilled by this duo. 

Thank you for this warm welcome

I hope to read a review of this gala. Especially the performance of Shale Wagman. I have been following since his Prix de Lausanne in 2018.

In fact, Thomas Docquir is a very talented young dancer. But it's more his partner Ines McIntosh who is considered a future Étoile :).