Margot Fonteyn's "The Magic of Dance" finally repeated on BBC4 - starts New Year's Day

[bridiem]

8 hours ago, jmhopton said:

Just got my Christmas double issue Radio Times and though I haven't had chance to go through it yet I see the Margot Fonteyn Magic of Dance programme which starts at 11.20pm on BBC4 as oncnp says, also has a brief introduction by Darcey at 11.10pm but is billed as the first of 6 programmes, so it looks as if they're broadcasting the entire series from 1979 which is great. About 10 years ago the BBC had a dance day at Christmas and showed one episode,  featuring Fonteyn and Nureyev dancing Marguerite and Armand so it will be interesting to see what gems the entire series contains. I think I'll have to record it.

 

That's wonderful! I'd thought that for various reasons it couldn't be shown again. I'll definitely record it!

[Emeralds]

The Magic of Dance by Margot Fonteyn is an absolute must see for everyone who's never seen it- set your alarm for reminders or get on BBC iplayer immediately if you miss it! It's like Shakespeare - or a David Attenborough nature programme- absolutely essential for one's edification. Don't miss Wayne Sleep, Lynn Seymour, David Wall, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Frederick Ashton, Natalia Makarova, Rudolf Nureyev, Arthur Mitchell, etc etc ....and of course Fonteyn herself dancing in it. Besides the dancing, the text and explanations are wonderfully clear and just long enough to provide information without being boring or digressing. Every budding dance writer or documentary maker should watch it to learn.  It will be a blast from the past for me and I'll definitely re-watch! 

Edited December 15, 2023 by Emeralds

[Jane S]

16 hours ago, jmhopton said:

Just got my Christmas double issue Radio Times and though I haven't had chance to go through it yet I see the Margot Fonteyn Magic of Dance programme which starts at 11.20pm on BBC4 as oncnp says, also has a brief introduction by Darcey at 11.10pm but is billed as the first of 6 programmes, so it looks as if they're broadcasting the entire series from 1979 which is great.

 

 

Episodes 2 and 3 are scheduled for Jan. 7th at 21.30 and 22.30

[Sim]

3 hours ago, Emeralds said:

The Magic of Dance by Margot Fonteyn is an absolute must see for everyone who's never seen it- set your alarm for reminders or get on BBC iplayer immediately if you miss it! It's like Shakespeare - or a David Attenborough nature programme- absolutely essential for one's edification. Don't miss Wayne Sleep, Lynn Seymour, David Wall, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Frederick Ashton, Natalia Makarova, Rudolf Nureyev, Arthur Mitchell, etc etc ....and of course Fonteyn herself dancing in it. Besides the dancing, the text and explanations are wonderfully clear and just long enough to provide information without being boring or digressing. Every budding dance writer or documentary maker should watch it to learn.  It will be a blast from the past for me and I'll definitely re-watch! 

I remember watching this in the 80s and videotaping it.  I still have the tape but no machine…I never did watch it again so will look forward to seeing it.  I do have the book which is very good, especially for those new to the art form.   

[Ondine]

47 minutes ago, Sim said:

The Magic of Dance by Margot Fonteyn i

 

Anyone who can't wait, it's been on YouTube for a very long time, with a bit of searching.

 

I also have the book.

 

I think the Emma Livry's tutu part is what really remains with me!

 

More information here about her, her dress, the tragedy and that of others.

 

https://hauntedpalaceblog.wpcomstaging.com/2018/03/29/the-bonfire-of-ballet-girls/

 

[Balletfanp]

I found it in YouTube but it’s terrible quality (the one I located anyway).

 

The Emma Livry part stuck with me as well - horrible!

[Jeannette]

On 15/12/2023 at 10:54, Sim said:

I remember watching this in the 80s and videotaping it.  I still have the tape but no machine…I never did watch it again so will look forward to seeing it.  I do have the book which is very good, especially for those new to the art form.   

The Magic of Dance series was one of the gems of my youth! I taped it on a BetaMax (remember those?), then dubbed it to VHS, then to DVD! I wish that every young person who enjoys ballet would see this series, for a total lifetime transportation! 

What would it take for TV producers to reproduce this series, traveling to the world’s four corners? It was so made for  the elegant Dame Margot as host!

[Guest oncnp]

Magic of Dance 

• The Ebb and Flow.  Episode 2 of 6   Sun 7 Jan 2024 21:30
• What Is New?  Episode 3 of 6           Sun 7 Jan          22:30

[Emeralds]

3 hours ago, Jeannette said:

The Magic of Dance series was one of the gems of my youth! I taped it on a BetaMax (remember those?), then dubbed it to VHS, then to DVD! I wish that every young person who enjoys ballet would see this series, for a total lifetime transportation! 

What would it take for TV producers to reproduce this series, traveling to the world’s four corners? It was so made for  the elegant Dame Margot as host!

Jeannette, us too! My mom kindly recorded it for me on Betamax tapes- all the episodes. I still get a lump in my throat when the Rose Adagio is played, as that was the theme tune. Margot Fonteyn was the perfect host/narrator. Nostalgia.....ahh.

[Don Q Fan]

Hopefully Magic of Dance will have been digitally enhanced and will be parked on iPlayer for a bit too, looking forward to seeing it. 

[Guest oncnp]

16 minutes ago, Don Q Fan said:

Hopefully Magic of Dance will have been digitally enhanced and will be parked on iPlayer for a bit too, looking forward to seeing it. 

 

Can't find any mention of digitalization on the program website.  

[Ondine]

Several copies of the book available.  I have the recording on VHS and yes I have a player.  😊

 

https://www.wob.com/en-gb/books/margot-fonteyn/magic-of-dance/9780563176459?

 

[Emeralds]

The Magic of Dance ought to be digitalised or formatted to go on DVD and sold, but I don't know if they will ever do it. 

 

I borrowed the book from our local library when it was first published as it was too expensive for us to buy in hardback (it would have had to be specially ordered and all). I used to wonder if any copies were out there. Recently a copy appeared at a jumble sale in our village- wowser!!! I couldn't believe it! (I don't even normally look at jumble sales but was jusr walking past.) It's a bit tatty on the outside but the pages are intact. Amazing!!

[Don Q Fan]

I got an autographed (MF)  copy of The Magic of Dance book off eBay a couple of years ago. Need to dig it out! 

[alison]

I thought this subject was so significant that it deserved its own thread, so here it is.

[JohnS]

Apologies - I put on the Christmas TV thread that the 6 episodes are all now available on iPlayer for 1 month. I’m assuming the month starts now rather than when the episodes are broadcast. Also I Player refers to The Magic of Dance series 1 but was there a second series?

[Emeralds]

I don't think there was a second series, @JohnS ....unless the BBC are planning a part two or modern reboot to follow Dame Margot's gem (which would be great, if it's even half as good as the original)!  😀 

[Peanut68]

A second series - yes pkease! Surely it’s a no brainier… with Darcey at the helm! 

[TSR101]

What a gem this series is!

[SheilaC]

No, there wasn't a second Fonteyn series. However, there was another wonderful series, headed by Peter Schaufuss, I think, on male dancers, called Dancer, I think. (Can't find anything by googling). There was some very interesting film of male dancers, most notably, for me, of Vladimir Vaslilev. There was a long sequence of him and his wife, the equally great Maximova, dancing the pas de deux from Giselle, breathtaking. It must have been shown in the late 1980s as it inspired us to go to see Maximova and Vasiliev dance Giselle as guests of the Kirov in Paris in January 1989, in a most unsuitable theatre, yet the most magical performance of Giselle I've ever seen. (By going to Paris we were unable to see a very young Guillem dance Giselle in London  for the first time, the same week, partnered by Nureyev, another big moment in the history of Giselle and dance). The series also showed Vasiliev in other roles, including some of his own choreography (he was not quite such a good choreographer as dancer). 

It would be wonderful if the BBC would show the series again, some excellent dance excerpts.

[MAB]

9 minutes ago, SheilaC said:

(By going to Paris we were unable to see a very young Guillem dance Giselle in London  for the first time, the same week, partnered by Nureyev, another big moment in the history of Giselle and dance).

 

The most extraordinary Giselle I ever saw.  All the lifts were cut forcing Guillem to improvise.  Nureyev never know when to give up, he sacrificed the performance for his ego that night. 

[Jane S]

You can see some details of the Peter Schaufuss programmes here .

Edited January 2 by Jane S

[alison]

I do hope that the BBC, in trawling its back catalogue, which is virtually all it seems to put out on BBC4 these days - not that I'm complaining (that much), since the contents are often quite incredible - can manage to put Dancer on as well.  There was an associated book too, which my local library used to have (and has probably dumped since, along with other important dance books such as the Crisp/Clarke blue book on ballets, can't remember the title, as being too ancient to be of interest )

[Beryl H]

3 hours ago, SheilaC said:

No, there wasn't a second Fonteyn series. However, there was another wonderful series, headed by Peter Schaufuss, I think, on male dancers, called Dancer, I think. (Can't find anything by googling). There was some very interesting film of male dancers, most notably, for me, of Vladimir Vaslilev. There was a long sequence of him and his wife, the equally great Maximova, dancing the pas de deux from Giselle, breathtaking. It must have been shown in the late 1980s as it inspired us to go to see Maximova and Vasiliev dance Giselle as guests of the Kirov in Paris in January 1989, in a most unsuitable theatre, yet the most magical performance of Giselle I've ever seen. (By going to Paris we were unable to see a very young Guillem dance Giselle in London  for the first time, the same week, partnered by Nureyev, another big moment in the history of Giselle and dance). The series also showed Vasiliev in other roles, including some of his own choreography (he was not quite such a good choreographer as dancer). 

It would be wonderful if the BBC would show the series again, some excellent dance excerpts.

 

I can remember how the Peter Schaufuss series started, hope no-one takes offence, he says something like "So you think ballet is for cissies, try doing this with your wife/girlfriend" and lifts a female dancer very high above his head, then says "easy isn't it?".

 

 

 

[Geoff]

With regard to episode 1, the distinguished writer and critic Graham Watts OBE has tweeted (or whatever one says in X world now) the following comment:

 

>>Nureyev partnering Lynn Seymour in the Sleeping Beauty grand pas de deux, which was fascinating if not only for the sheer speed of it - I’m guessing it was 30 seconds faster than the norm now

 

Given the number of discussions on this Forum about the Royal Ballet slowing down over the decades, perhaps this is another reason to watch this fascinating series. 

[jm365]

There was a second series called Ballerina presented by Natalia Makarova.  Unfortunately both were co-productions with a recording company that no longer exists.  I think it would be even more complicated to clear the rights for these series than for The Magic of Dance.  It is so very sad that so many incredible and historical performances cannot be shown to today's audiences.

[Blossom]

Just re-watching the Sleeping Beauty pas de deux. It’s so interesting to see how ‘the English style’ has developed from then till now with the advent of both globalisation and physio centres/focus on muscle build and strength. One thing which is clearly incredibly important but doesn’t seem to be as significant when dances today is the direction of the eyes and head.  

It’s also amazing to get access to these beautiful clips, to see familiar choreography and to just get to focus on the beauty of Lynn Seymour dancing - the ghost of Royal Ballet past,  filmed before I was born. 
 

Makarova is also a delight to watch and I haven’t had the opportunity before. Every part of her body is engaged in the drama of being Odette. The choreography might appear the same but the performance is so different. 

 

The image quality is so good it’s a joy to watch and it’s wonderful to see the set in all its glory. I am just sad not to have been able to share this and discuss with my grandma who was my original ballet pal, the person who introduced me to the theatre.  
 

 

[OnePigeon]

1 hour ago, jm365 said:

There was a second series called Ballerina presented by Natalia Makarova.  Unfortunately both were co-productions with a recording company that no longer exists.  I think it would be even more complicated to clear the rights for these series than for The Magic of Dance.  It is so very sad that so many incredible and historical performances cannot be shown to today's audiences.

You can find Ballerina online, I started watching it a few weeks ago but need to finish it.  Seeing Makarova visit a physio coach in New York to get into shape for Swan Lake and the exercises she did to strengthen specific muscles for the role was interesting and awe inspiring.  I imagine things are even more sophisticated now.

 

I’ve only seen Darcy’s introduction to The Magic of Dance so far, but am dying to find the time to watch it unimpeded.  It sounds like a treasure trove.

[Blossom]

Graham Watts pointed out that all episodes are now available on iPlayer. 

[SheilaC]

13 hours ago, jm365 said:

There was a second series called Ballerina presented by Natalia Makarova.  Unfortunately both were co-productions with a recording company that no longer exists.  I think it would be even more complicated to clear the rights for these series than for The Magic of Dance.  It is so very sad that so many incredible and historical performances cannot be shown to today's audiences.

All three series understandably featured quite a few excerpts of the presenter dancing but this was particularly true of Makarova's. In her case several of the dance sequences were specially filmed for the series. The most riveting was of the two main pas de deux from Onegin, beautifully and movingly done. Her partner in Onegin was not the brooding Alexander Sombart, who regularly partnered her in Onegin, to his disappointment as he told me, but Reid Anderson. All Onegin  fans would love it!

[jm365]

the rights to film the Onegin pas de deux were only granted on condition that Reid Anderson danced with Makarova.

[alison]

I've been hesitating on where to split this thread for discussion purposes, but Fonty's post seemed an ideal opportunity, so there's now a discussion thread in Performances:

 

 

I don't guarantee I won't move some of the other posts over as well   Please keep this thread for information about the series now.

[Fonty]

@alison  Maybe Geoff's post could come over as well?