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Frederick Ashton: Links in the Chain documentary

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On 14/05/2023 at 04:25, oncnp said:

From today's Guardian

 

 

Following the screening there will be a Q&A opportunity with a panel featuring Vadim Muntagirov (Principal, The Royal Ballet), Francesca Hayward (Principal, The Royal Ballet), Lynn Wallis (former Artistic Director, RAD), Lynne Wake (dance film-maker, and director of Links in the Chain) and Christopher Nourse (Executive Director, Frederick Ashton Foundation).

Apologies answering myself but did anyone have a chance to go?

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bridiem

bridiem

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19 hours ago, oncnp said:

Apologies answering myself but did anyone have a chance to go?

 

Yes - it was very enjoyable. It's a wonderful film and I would recommend watching it on YouTube. The Q&A were good too; Lynn Wake spoke about making the film, Muntagirov and Hayward about dancing Ashton, and Lynn Wallis about ensuring that works are probably staged and will be so in future. The questions were mainly directed at the two Lynns. There were drinks afterwards but I didn't stay for them - no doubt there were more informal discussions then.

 

Apparently it was only the 3rd public showing of the film. Muntagirov had never seen it before (although he features in it, beautifully) and Hayward arrived late so still hasn't seen it!

Edited by bridiem
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Ondine

Ondine

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I rewatched this this afternoon via the wonders of YouTube and underneath is a wonderful comment posted a month ago from 'lucky luke' about working with Ashton

 

This embedded link leads directly to YT the Ashton Foundation channel.

 

 

I'm posting the comment here in full, on the grounds of scholarship and my firm belief small histories such as this are readily lost and yet are so very important when it comes to 'restaging' Ashton's ballets.  It's so easy NOT to read the YT comments and yet scattered there are many small gems posted by interesting people.

I'm sure some delving will bring up who 'lucky luke' is and when it was he danced Oberon!

 

"Wow! That brings back a lot of memories when Mr.Asthon came to Toronto at the National Ballet of Canada to look at the finish product of his Mid Summer Night's Dream in the studio a few days before opening night. I was doing Oberon at the time and half way through my solo, Mr Asthon stops the music and looks at me and says: My goodness, young man! You are not a left turner, are you? And naturally, I replied! Is it that obvious? The ballet mistress whom staged this production insisted that it be identical to the original cast and since Mr Dowell was a left turner, I had to abide by her rules. (I won't name her here) Mr Ashton looks at this ballet mistress who was sitting next to him with a look on his face that said : What is this?......Some kind of torture? Mr Ashton, who was freaking out because opening night for the presentation of The Dream, which was also a gala performance involving Baryshnikov's first appearance after his defection, looks at me and says: Young man, please! Adjust every thing to the right! Without a word I proceeded to please him (and myself). Being unusually tall for a dancer, moving fast is quite a challenge however I do enjoy speed. And since nobody else wanted to take up the challenge of that role, I said to myself. Let's make the best of it! When you are 19 years old, what have you got to loose? Just imagine an elephant moving like a bee! That's essentially what it felted like! After the rehearsal, Mr Ashton came over to me and said: Damn!.........That was better than Anthony! Somehow........I doubt that! But it sure got me boosted for opening night! Thank you Mr Ashton!"

 

 

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Guest oncnp

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That may explain Christopher Carr making such a point of explaining Muntagirov's left turning during the insight for Scenes de ballet

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bridiem

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55 minutes ago, Ondine said:

"Wow! That brings back a lot of memories when Mr.Asthon came to Toronto at the National Ballet of Canada to look at the finish product of his Mid Summer Night's Dream in the studio a few days before opening night. I was doing Oberon at the time and half way through my solo, Mr Asthon stops the music and looks at me and says: My goodness, young man! You are not a left turner, are you? And naturally, I replied! Is it that obvious? The ballet mistress whom staged this production insisted that it be identical to the original cast and since Mr Dowell was a left turner, I had to abide by her rules. (I won't name her here) Mr Ashton looks at this ballet mistress who was sitting next to him with a look on his face that said : What is this?......Some kind of torture? Mr Ashton, who was freaking out because opening night for the presentation of The Dream, which was also a gala performance involving Baryshnikov's first appearance after his defection, looks at me and says: Young man, please! Adjust every thing to the right! Without a word I proceeded to please him (and myself). Being unusually tall for a dancer, moving fast is quite a challenge however I do enjoy speed. And since nobody else wanted to take up the challenge of that role, I said to myself. Let's make the best of it! When you are 19 years old, what have you got to loose? Just imagine an elephant moving like a bee! That's essentially what it felted like! After the rehearsal, Mr Ashton came over to me and said: Damn!.........That was better than Anthony! Somehow........I doubt that! But it sure got me boosted for opening night! Thank you Mr Ashton!"

 

I've been doing some googling about this in the hope of identifying the dancer; all I can find is that the National Ballet of Canada premièred The Dream on 15 Feb 1978. I'm not sure if that's the performance referred to above (but since Baryshnikov defected in 1974 it doesn't tally with a gala marking his first performance after his defection, so that's a bit confusing).

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Ondine

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21 minutes ago, bridiem said:

 

I've been doing some googling about this in the hope of identifying the dancer; all I can find is that the National Ballet of Canada premièred The Dream on 15 Feb 1978. I'm not sure if that's the performance referred to above (but since Baryshnikov defected in 1974 it doesn't tally with a gala marking his first performance after his defection, so that's a bit confusing).

 

Yes it is confusing!

 

Archive:

 

https://digitalarchiveontario.ca/objects/241761/framed-dancer-in-metro-ballet-superstar-mikhail-baryshnikov

 

https://digitalarchive.tpl.ca/objects/241752/a-long-time-coming-it-took-almost-10-years-but-mikhail-bar

 

1984 gala? 

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bridiem

bridiem

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2 minutes ago, Ondine said:

Yes it is confusing!

 

Archive:

 

https://digitalarchiveontario.ca/objects/241761/framed-dancer-in-metro-ballet-superstar-mikhail-baryshnikov

 

So there was a NBC gala in 1984 marking Baryshnikov's first local appearance SINCE his first appearance after defection! But the review indicates that The Dream was not on the bill: DANCE: THE NATIONAL BALLET OF CANADA - The New York Times (nytimes.com). 

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Ondine

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Not 'Links in the Chain' but I feel another connected link in the Ashton chain! One which also deserves wider viewing.

 

The Sarasota Ballet 'Through The lens - Sir Frederick Ashton's Impact and Legacy' is an interesting, intelligent and insightful discussion re Ashton, his ballets, the challenges of dancing them and more.  The two films viewed together are a great introduction to the man and his 'style'. Danielle Brown, Daniel Pratt, & notator Grant Coyle

 

Possibly also bear in mind the other threads about Ashton and the influences of his Cecchetti training on his work. 

 

Embedded link, you can go through to the Sarasota Ballet's excellent YouTube channel from here too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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  • alison changed the title to Frederick Ashton: Links in the Chain documentary
bridiem

bridiem

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There's a very good review of Links in the Chain in today's - er - Links... and it reminded me of what I realised when watching the film: even though it is so recent, four of the interviewees - Lynn Seymour, Henry Danton, Beryl Grey and Gillian Lynne - have since died. So it is SO important to get the recollections recorded of people who worked with Ashton (etc) whilst they are still with us.

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JohnS

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And it flags up an Insight evening in the Linbury theatre on 27 October 2023, including Hamlet and Ophelia, which was news to me. Apologies if this is already flagged up elsewhere but I don’t yet see it on ROH’s website.

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2 minutes ago, JohnS said:

And it flags up an Insight evening in the Linbury theatre on 27 October 2023, including Hamlet and Ophelia, which was news to me. Apologies if this is already flagged up elsewhere but I don’t yet see it on ROH’s website.

On the calendar, 27 Oct has "The Liimit" at the Linbury

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Ondine

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 William Bracewell and Francesca Hayward?  This is confusing as surely it has already happened? I recall seeing it! October 27th is not a Wednesday in 2023. It was 2021.

 

http://www.frederickashton.org.uk/news.html

 

The first performance of a new production of Hamlet and Ophelia, formerly Hamlet Prelude, will also be given at the Insight on 27 October. Created by Ashton in 1977 for Margot Fonteyn and Rudolf Nureyev, the piece has not been seen for well over 40 years, and only once in this country. The revival is staged by Wayne Eagling, on whom Ashton created much of the role of Hamlet (Nureyev not being available) and who subsequently danced several performances with Fonteyn on an overseas tour. The work is presented in new designs by painter Sarah Armstrong-Jones, her first designs for ballet. The roles of Hamlet and Ophelia will be danced by William Bracewell and Francesca Hayward.

The Insight evening, featuring Royal Ballet and Birmingham Royal Ballet dancers, also includes extracts on film and in live performance of the Foundation's popular Ashton Rediscovered masterclasses of rarely-performed Ashton works.

The Insight, sponsored by the Ballet Association, forms part of ROH Insights supported by Rolex and the Paul Hamlyn Foundation and will be streamed on ROH digital platforms in due course.

22 October 2021

 

Ashton "in 2023" & which is going to cause more confusion I think?

 

https://www.britishtheatreguide.info/reviews/frederick-ashto-royal-academy-o-21976

 

They all appear in the film as talking heads with Hayward—and William Bracewell—being coached by Wayne Eagling in rehearsal for Hamlet and Ophelia (formerly Hamlet Prelude created in 1977 for Fonteyn and Nureyev), which can be seen at an Insight evening at the Linbury theatre on 27 October 2023. Next year, The Royal Opera House also promises two Ashton triple bills and Sarasota Ballet at ROH promises Valses nobles et sentimentales, Dante Sonata, Sinfonietta and Façade.

 

 

 

 

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JohnS

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Thanks @oncnp. I’d seen the Limit on the ROH calendar and in filtering for Insights there’s very little information for the new season.

Thanks too @Ondine. Perhaps British Theatre Guide has the wrong year although the article reads as if there’s a future performance.

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Jane S

Jane S

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2 hours ago, Ondine said:

 

I said the answer would be out there!  Thank you.

 

 

 

 

 

It's also listed in David Vaughan's Ashton book, if you have it - always my starting point for Ashton queries up to 1999!

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Ondine

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On 04/06/2023 at 09:11, Josette said:

Luc Amyot, National Ballet of Canada. 

 

 

A review! 

 

WITH a roster of guest stars that Included Suzanne Farrell, Peter Martins and Peter Schaufuss, a New Yorker could have felt on familiar ground at the gala benefit staged here Wednesday night at the O'Keefe Center by the National Ballet of Canada...

 

And yet it was an exciting evening of surprises that went beyond the obvious novelty of the company premiere of Sir Frederick Ashton's poetic Shakespearean ballet “The Dream.”

 

...Mr. Amyot, a young soloist attempting very difficult part, has a noble line that a stronger technique’ will find well served in the future

 

https://www.nytimes.com/1978/02/17/archives/ballet-the-familiar-and-new-in-toronto.html

 

 

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