Angela Posted November 22, 2015 Author Share Posted November 22, 2015 The full (and very long) Spiegel article on Polunin and Womack is here, and even in English language! http://www.spiegel.de/international/zeitgeist/the-story-of-ballet-dancers-sergei-polunin-and-joy-womack-a-1059837.html 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angela Posted November 22, 2015 Author Share Posted November 22, 2015 The German Dance Prize 2016 will be awarded to Martin Puttke, famous dance teacher/pedagogue, former director of State Ballet School of Berlin, Ballet of Berlin State Opera and Aalto Ballet at Essen and also an important lobbyist for dance in Germany. The Tanzpreis Zukunft (Dance Prize „Future“) goes to Brazilian dancer Marcos Menha (Ballet on the Rhine) and to Russian dancer and choreographer Andrey Kaydanovskiy (Vienna State Ballet). As the prize is normally dedicated to „outstanding emerging artists“, one may wonder a little bit about the age of the recipients: Menha is 32, Kaydanovskiy is 29. Never mind, the surely earned it. Further prizes will be given to dance physicians Elisabeth Exner-Grave, Liane Simmel and Eileen Wanke. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angela Posted November 22, 2015 Author Share Posted November 22, 2015 The Tanzfonds Erbe (Dance Heritage Fund) website has tons of new videos online, mostly modern and contemporary dance projects that deal with German dance history, but also for example: a full recording of Oskar Schlemmer's The Triadic Ballet (the reconstructed version after Gerhard Bohner) a full recording of Mary Wigman's Sacre and, moving beyond the German border, a full recording of Kenneth MacMillan's Anastasia, danced by the Ballet of Saarländisches Staatstheater at Saarbrücken. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanartus Posted November 22, 2015 Share Posted November 22, 2015 Many thanks for above. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caseybeatrice Posted November 23, 2015 Share Posted November 23, 2015 (edited) I hope it's alright if I chime in with some news about a German company currently abroad?Stuttgart Ballet have their final performance at the Tokyo Bunka Kaikan today and I'm really sad I'll be missing it. They brought Romeo and Juliet and Onegin (Cranko, but of course) as well as a gala show. They were in Korea for a few days before this and are now off to another city before concluding their tour. I was able to catch the Sunday matinees of the two full-length dramatic ballets in Tokyo and they were excellent.Through this tour, I've discovered some new dancers. In R&J last week, Elisa Badenes and Daniel Camargo danced the principals and they're very good; his jumps are especially impressive. She's a very physically expressive dancer but I think she lacks emotional nuance. Gorgeous legs though. I was surprised to find out in the interval (from a fellow Balletcoer!) that they dance together frequently; to me, they lacked chemistry. But maybe I didn't have the best seat? I was in the stalls, row 23. Yesterday, Hyo-Jung Kang and Roman Novitzky were Tatiana and Onegin respectively. The performance got off to a shaky start in my opinion (Olga [Angelina Zuccarini] and Lensky [Pablo von Sternenfels]) looked very precarious, the lifts were wobbly and underpowered and I thought they would come to grief a few times. But they warmed up by Act II. Though I disliked Kang's acting (she smiled all through Act I like she was auditioning for a toothpaste commercial) she is light and so delicate. I disliked Novitzky's acting too, unfortunately. A lot of nose in the air and dandyish strutting without much charisma or presence. But their dream pas de deux was thrilling and the final pas de deux made me quite teary, so they must have been doing something right!Audience for both shows was very warm. Yesterday's was ecstastic, as a matter of fact. "Bravi!" after Act I and a 15-20 min curtain call at the end! I joined in enthusiastically. Thank you so much, Stuttgart! Come again!In the meantime, I'll be counting down the days until Hamburg visit in March. (They're bringing Alina!! I'm one happy girl.) Edited November 23, 2015 by caseybeatrice 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Mallinson Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 Hamburg Ballet announced the plans for 2015/16 today: John Neumeier will create a "Duse" ballet for Alessandra Ferri in December and Olivier Messiaen's "Turangalila" symphony for the Hamburg Ballet Days in July. The company will tour to Baden-Baden, Bolshoi Theatre, Chicago, Tokio and Vienna. Alina Cojocaru continues as guest principal, Otto Bubenicek leaves the company (I think he'll go on freelancing with his brother Jiri, who nevertheless will still be dancing with Dresden Semperoper Ballet). Neumeier's Duse ballet seems to be called Choreographic Fantasies inspired by Eleonora Duse according to this illuminating YouTube video with Alessandra Ferri. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sim Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 Hello CaseyBeatrice and welcome to the forum!! We don't mind at all; please keep the posts coming as we always love to hear what is happening in dance around the world. Many thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tabitha Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 How do Stuttgart and Hamburg Ballet companies compare in terms of style, appeal, etc. I have never seen either of them but would be drawn to a more classical programme. Which would you recommend? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwissBalletFan Posted December 9, 2015 Share Posted December 9, 2015 (edited) Interesting guest news for Berlin. My favourite dancer and really fantastic Giselle Viktorina Kapitonova will dance Giselle on 3 March on the first night of the return of Patrice Bart's choreography from last season. She will be partnered by Denis Vieira also Principal at Zürich Ballet. Polina Semionova will dance with Alex Jones who joined Zurich from Stuttgart this season on the 4th of March, and Mariah Eichwald (freelance) will dance with Michael Kaninskin on the 5th March. Tickets here: http://www.staatsballett-berlin.de/de/spielplan/giselle/03-03-2016/199 Also Friedemann Vogel will guest in Zürich to dance with Viktorina Kapitonova as Giselle on 17th December and 2 January. Polina Semionova will dance Giselle with Alex Jones in Zürich on January 22nd. Tickets here: http://www.opernhaus.ch/vorstellung/detail/giselle-17-12-2015-17381/ Edited December 9, 2015 by SwissBalletFan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angela Posted December 9, 2015 Author Share Posted December 9, 2015 I'm not sure if there was a single story ballet at Berlin this season that took place without a guest. No more principals left, it seems. I can't remember a company that has disintegrated so fast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angela Posted December 9, 2015 Author Share Posted December 9, 2015 How do Stuttgart and Hamburg Ballet companies compare in terms of style, appeal, etc. I have never seen either of them but would be drawn to a more classical programme. Which would you recommend? Maybe you should chose a dramatic ballet, not a pure classical one, because that's what both companies excel in - Onegin, Lady of the Camellias, everything Cranko (Stuttgart) or Neumeier (Hamburg). Stuttgart has a broader range of styles, they also do some classics on a regular basis and lots of modern evenings, mostly mixed bills in the Kylian/van Manen/Forsythe style or contemporary ballet. Hamburg dances mostly Neumeier's works but sometimes also Bournonville, Balanchine, the classics. Nothing too modern there. Both companies have great dramatic dancers, at Stuttgart they are also fine in modern styles. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwissBalletFan Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 I'm not sure if there was a single story ballet at Berlin this season that took place without a guest. No more principals left, it seems. I can't remember a company that has disintegrated so fast. Hi Angela, I think Swan Lake will not have a principal guest dancing it. I think that there is some explanation for the number of female guests, the main one being that Elisa CC is not performing as she is pregnant, so I would put that to good news. The other I guess is the ever increasing popularity/presence of Ms Salenko in London, as she will still quite a few of the ballets in Berlin still. All principals are dancing at some parts this season, I wonder if its a combination of too many performances and showing the accompany that anyone can be replaced if needed, and that headline story ballets will not be cancelled, due to the saga that was (hopefully) the strikes due to Verdi. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angela Posted December 10, 2015 Author Share Posted December 10, 2015 Shoko Nakamura and Polina Semionova are guests in Swan Lake - they may have been in the company before, but they are not any more, so they have guest contracts, so they cost extra money. For a company that has already lost tons of money with the strikes last year. Just wondering. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwissBalletFan Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 (edited) Shoko Nakamura and Polina Semionova are guests in Swan Lake - they may have been in the company before, but they are not any more, so they have guest contracts, so they cost extra money. For a company that has already lost tons of money with the strikes last year. Just wondering. If it is simply economics, I would offer that in the grand scheme of things a Guest Artist salary will not be a huge difference in a company's budget, what would you expect EUR 1-2k a performance? I would imagine that also Iano Salenko is not paid by Berlin when she is guesting at ROH. Considering too that guests will need less rehearsals and will probably sell more tickets, especially than a junior member of Berlin, and there is not much of alternative with Elisa CC out, and the need to gain some stability of performances. They still have some very talented dancers in Salenko who says she has refused a moved to RB, and Elisa CC, and also Dinu, Kaninskin, and Marian Walter are strong dancers, and very popular on the Gala circuits. I guess if there is a small shortfall in finances, the German State isn't doing too badly at the moment, so it could compensate Edit: Sorry I was wrong about Swan Lake, I stand corrected, thanks. Edited December 10, 2015 by SwissBalletFan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angela Posted December 10, 2015 Author Share Posted December 10, 2015 I guess if there is a small shortfall in finances, the German State isn't doing too badly at the moment, so it could compensate Well if it were that easy then everyone of the ca. 150 theatre/opera/ballet companies in Germany would just spend a little more.... And just because the name is Berlin State Ballet, it is not subsidized by the German State (lots of federal states have lots of State Ballets), but by the town of Berlin. Which has the second highest pile of debts of all the federal states in Germany, by the way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwissBalletFan Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 Well if it were that easy then everyone of the ca. 150 theatre/opera/ballet companies in Germany would just spend a little more.... And just because the name is Berlin State Ballet, it is not subsidized by the German State (lots of federal states have lots of State Ballets), but by the town of Berlin. Which has the second highest pile of debts of all the federal states in Germany, by the way. Well I don't think I'll attempt to add anymore light to such a gloomy situation! So I will will just reiterate there are great guests at Berlin for Giselle and other performances. I hope they can be enjoyed, and please buy tickets, money is tight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aileen Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 I would guess that a guest dancer is paid much more than one or two thousand Euros per performance. The rehearsal time has to be factored in as well. If I had to pull a figure out of a hat I would think in terms of five to ten thousand pounds for two or three guest performances including rehearsals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwissBalletFan Posted December 10, 2015 Share Posted December 10, 2015 I would guess that a guest dancer is paid much more than one or two thousand Euros per performance. The rehearsal time has to be factored in as well. If I had to pull a figure out of a hat I would think in terms of five to ten thousand pounds for two or three guest performances including rehearsals. That could well be, but still, I am not sure a company's accounts would be severely dented by this amount if correct, especially as SN and PS are dancing multiples of each ballet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angela Posted January 26, 2016 Author Share Posted January 26, 2016 If you want to catch a glance at the Ratmansky Paquita in Munich, here's a new video magazine from Bavarian State Ballet. The interviews are in German, but it has many excerpts from the production: 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted January 26, 2016 Share Posted January 26, 2016 Oo, that looks spectacular Angela! Wish I could go... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angela Posted January 28, 2016 Author Share Posted January 28, 2016 The casting for Ratmansky's Swan Lake at Zurich has been confirmed in the Opera House Magazine (in print): Viktorina Kapitonova and Alexander Jones. http://issuu.com/opernhauszuerich/docs/mag36/29?e=1450767/33035011 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwissBalletFan Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 Thanks for the heads up Angela, as I am a big fan of Viktorina Kapitonova, I think it will be amazing. I have my tickets for the premiere, and will report back. It will be the first time they dance together in a full length piece, but I they danced Swan Lake Black Swan pdd for the Silvestergala. Ms Kapitonova received a great review, but I think Alexander was a bit nervous, and unluckily has not danced many times yet this season. http://www.zsz.ch/service/suche/innere-gespanntheit-klare-formgebung/story/22819289 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angela Posted February 1, 2016 Author Share Posted February 1, 2016 Tanztheater Wuppertal, the company of the late Pina Bausch, will get a new director in May 2017: 46-year old Adolphe Binder will be the new "Intendant" (German for AD+Manager), designated to invite guest choreographers and preserve Bausch’s legacy. She herself is not a choreographer, but a manager and dance curator, currently working as AD at the Danskompani at Gothenburg/Sweden. Binder is from Romania and was director of the Ballet at Komische Oper at Berlin before she went to Gothenburg. Martin Schläpfer, Director of Ballet on the Rhine at Düsseldorf/Duisburg, will step down from this position at the end of this season and concentrate on working as a choreographer. A dual leadership model will be installed with Schläpfer as Artistic Director and Chief Choreographer, and with Remus Sucheana, a former dancer of the company, as Ballet Director and Director of the Ballet School. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanartus Posted February 1, 2016 Share Posted February 1, 2016 Thanks Angela. Am a big fan of Ballett am Rhein and hope they continue their current direction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angela Posted February 2, 2016 Author Share Posted February 2, 2016 New trouble at Staatsballett Berlin: Nacho Duato will bring his own Nutcracker to the company in October 2016, which means that the company will drop the reconstructed version by Vasily Medvedev and Yuri Burlaka. As it is only three years old and was very expensive (1,5 million Euros), politicians at Berlin now ask why the continuously sold-out production will be removed, only to be substituted by a another classical version which is not even new; Duato created it in 2013 for the Mikhailovsky. Tim Renner, Secretary for Cultural Affairs in Berlin and Duato’s boss, declared that the reconstructed version will be dropped because it offers no challenge for the dancers. So if anyone needs a well-preserved Nutcracker with snowflakes in the original design, please call Berlin State Ballet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
now voyager Posted February 2, 2016 Share Posted February 2, 2016 That is horrifying news; the Burlaka-Medvedev Nutcracker is the most beautiful production of Nutcracker that I have ever seen. Email to Berlin to follow... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted February 2, 2016 Share Posted February 2, 2016 Unbelievable news. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aileen Posted February 2, 2016 Share Posted February 2, 2016 Perhaps ENB could acquire it to replace Wayne Eagling's flawed version. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Petunia Posted February 2, 2016 Share Posted February 2, 2016 This is deeply embarrassing. It shows the deplorable ignorance and lack of interest of Berlin’s Secretary for Cultural Affairs - not only this one but also his predecessor. I hope the “Freundeskreis” (Friends and Supporters) will either strongly protest or just disintegrate. The current leaders of the State Ballet are doing all they can to prove ballet as a second-rate art form. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alison Posted February 2, 2016 Share Posted February 2, 2016 This is a reconstructed version - of the Ivanov version, I presume? And that "offers no challenge" to the dancers?! Good grief. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Petunia Posted February 2, 2016 Share Posted February 2, 2016 Quoting from the State Ballet’s website A classic in very aspect: Vasily Medvedev and Yuri Burlaka, two Russian choreographers and connoisseurs of the tradition, have developed a version of “Nutcracker” which is based on the historic stage designs and choreography from the original of 1892. This loving reconstruction premiered at Deutsche Oper Berlin in the fall of 2013. The choreography is largely based on Lev Ivanov's specifications as it was he who gave this ballet its unmistakable style of dancing already at its inaugural performance over a hundred years ago. The stage designs and costumes have also been modeled on the historic designs, part of the treasures of the Russian ballet archives. Quoting from an article on the rbb-Radio website: “The reason the Nutcracker was dropped is that the technical abilities of today’s dancers are so much more refined compared to the level of the 1892 version.” If this is a statement issued by the directors of the State Ballet, I’d say good night and good bye. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Q Fan Posted February 2, 2016 Share Posted February 2, 2016 I am not happy with StaatsBallett Berlin being under Duato I don't think he knows what he's doing. SInce Malakhov left I don't think I have been to see anything. It is a shame the Nutcracker is being changed again - I liked the Bart one they had as it was a bit different but change again after only 3 years seems madness. Now that we have near daily reports of troubles (and particularly against women) in Germany I am very worried that I will ever get to Berlin again - I would love to see Jewels in May/June but I am really very worried for my safety if I went to Berlin on my own. Am I over-reacting? Anyone know how things are in Berlin? I generally do not let things such as terrorism bother me, e.g. I went to Paris days after the attacks, but the sort of assaults that have been taking place in Germany are a different matter and require careful risk assessment/consideration. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Petunia Posted February 2, 2016 Share Posted February 2, 2016 Don’t worry, Don Q Fan. I live here and I can assure you that everything is as safe as it always was – if you just use the normal 'big city smarts'. The areas to avoid in Berlin are not of interest for visitors anyway. If you have any questions, you can always pm me. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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