LinMM Posted January 13 Share Posted January 13 I could watch Nureyev being interviewed by Fonteyn all day! In Makarova’s Swan Lake and Seymour’s SB I noticed how much more they use their heads than many modern dancers do. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suffolkgal Posted January 13 Share Posted January 13 Just watching the final episode… i started going regularly two years after this was made - the faces I remember! Sooo young makes me feel ancIent… but a joy to watch 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emeralds Posted January 14 Share Posted January 14 Ashton's Garland Dance/Act 1 Waltz from Sleeping Beauty just came on! (Don't worry, it's on iPlayer for those who missed it). 😉 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alison Posted January 15 Share Posted January 15 Not to mention the Clog Dance and cornfield pas de deux from La Fille Mal Gardée 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alison Posted January 15 Share Posted January 15 ... and all so speedy too! Not sure most of today's dancers could cope with it at that speed. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane S Posted January 15 Share Posted January 15 Apparently one of the dancers in Troy Game was Joseph Cipolla -- anyone spot him? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alison Posted January 15 Share Posted January 15 Will have to have a look - there was one who was noticeably paler-skinned. Waiting to see if my recorder has gone for stretched pictures again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emeralds Posted January 15 Share Posted January 15 Can you watch on a computer/phone/tablet instead if your picture is looking stretched on the recording, @alison? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alison Posted January 15 Share Posted January 15 Oh, I can watch it, that's not the problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jake Posted January 15 Share Posted January 15 Really enjoyed the series, both the history and the various performances shown. What a wonderfully natural presenter she was, and with that immaculate diction seldom heard today (Petroc Trelawny excepted). Thank you BBC for this treat. Wonder what else is in the archives. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alison Posted January 15 Share Posted January 15 9 hours ago, alison said: Waiting to see if my recorder has gone for stretched pictures again Blast, yes, it has. Don't know why my settings are playing up, but of the BBC FOUR ident I only get the last two letters, so my recordings are missing a lot of the "edges" of the broadcasts And Natalia Makarova's legs look ridiculously long in arabesque. So NOT what I wanted - they should have come out in 4:3 as they were broadcast Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LinMM Posted January 16 Share Posted January 16 Am very much enjoying this series again Wayne Sleeps extract of him pretending to be whoever he was pretending to be was terrific. Baryshnikov also very affecting as Petrouchka. Nureyev was also pretty good in this role …Fokine was definitely ahead of his time. A pity this ballet is no longer performed but maybe could only be placed nowadays in some programme which was part of some tribute to Fokine, The Swedish theatre with all the stage affects was a very interesting section too! Two more to go!! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alison Posted January 16 Share Posted January 16 12 hours ago, alison said: Blast, yes, it has. Don't know why my settings are playing up, but of the BBC FOUR ident I only get the last two letters, so my recordings are missing a lot of the "edges" of the broadcasts And Natalia Makarova's legs look ridiculously long in arabesque. So NOT what I wanted - they should have come out in 4:3 as they were broadcast Weirder and weirder: one recording stretched off the screen; one stretched but all on the screen; one in 4:3 as it should be - and two of those recorded back to back, so no possibility of the settings being altered inbetween. It would be interesting to know if anyone else recording the series is finding the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fonty Posted January 16 Author Share Posted January 16 On 15/01/2024 at 12:01, alison said: ... and all so speedy too! Not sure most of today's dancers could cope with it at that speed. That is the one thing that strikes me about many of the clips being shown. So why can't dancers do it at that speed today? 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff Posted January 17 Share Posted January 17 On 16/01/2024 at 14:27, Fonty said: That is the one thing that strikes me about many of the clips being shown. So why can't dancers do it at that speed today? True story. This question came up at an Insight event and Monica Mason (a panellist) said that one reason is because the stage is now so much larger. I will leave others to judge the validity of this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fonty Posted January 18 Author Share Posted January 18 (edited) 16 hours ago, Geoff said: True story. This question came up at an Insight event and Monica Mason (a panellist) said that one reason is because the stage is now so much larger. I will leave others to judge the validity of this. I remember that. Given that most of these performances are filmed on exactly the same stage, I would say that reason doesn't make sense. In fact, if the stage is so much larger, surely the dancers should be moving even more quickly in order to cover the space? Edited January 18 by Fonty 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHazell2 Posted January 18 Share Posted January 18 On 14/01/2024 at 23:05, Emeralds said: Ashton's Garland Dance/Act 1 Waltz from Sleeping Beauty just came on! (Don't worry, it's on iPlayer for those who missed it). 😉 Which episode is that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alison Posted January 18 Share Posted January 18 6 hours ago, Fonty said: I remember that. Given that most of these performances are filmed on exactly the same stage, I would say that reason doesn't make sense. In fact, if the stage is so much larger, surely the dancers should be moving even more quickly in order to cover the space? The stage for Fille struck me as smaller than the old roh one. What do others think? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mary Posted January 18 Share Posted January 18 I hadn't watched this since it was first on but have vivid memories of how much it inspired me. One thing I really like is how it keeps surprising the viewer: Fonteyn clearly enjoyed taking an unusual path through the subject and not doing the obvious thing. She is entrancing to watch, her delivery utterly charming and the whole series is itself - magic. I love her interview with Astaire- he is completely unable to explain in words how he makes dance/dances, but watch his hands: they never rest while he attempts to explain- then at the end of a long attempt, he just says - 'Oh I just dance' and she laughs. Magic. Then the interview with Nureyev - as you say Lin - I could watch that forever. The clip of Nureyev and Seymour in Sleeping Beauty must be some of the best dancing imaginable. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fonty Posted January 18 Author Share Posted January 18 2 hours ago, alison said: The stage for Fille struck me as smaller than the old roh one. What do others think? Which old ROH one are you thinking of? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JennyTaylor Posted January 18 Share Posted January 18 I'm enjoying this series so much (not watched it all through as yet). Highly recommended and Margot Fonteyn is just so elegant and informative. I owuld have thought it's a must for any ballet fan. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emeralds Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 On 18/01/2024 at 19:34, alison said: The stage for Fille struck me as smaller than the old roh one. What do others think? I do see what you mean.... the stage does look smaller than in the usual filming of ballets even pre-ROH renovation. I wonder if they brought a lot of cables, equipment etc onto the stage to film close ups, so it ended up cutting off part of the stage space? Someone should ask Wendy Ellis Somes-I think she's the only participant in a featured role from that clip who is still with us, ie not counting corps de ballet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emeralds Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 On 18/01/2024 at 13:18, CHazell2 said: Which episode is that? Episode 4: The Romantic Ballet, at 32:06, right after the dancing animals from Tales of Beatrix Potter. 😊 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blossom Posted January 21 Share Posted January 21 Just watched episode 6 on iPlayer- a real treat to see Marguerite and Armand with Fonteyn and Nureyev! 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LinMM Posted January 21 Share Posted January 21 I was at their last performance of this at the ROH. What a night!! The audience just wouldn’t let them go! Id had a great view from standing that night. I couldn’t see Marguerite and Armand for years after that as it felt so much “their” ballet. 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lizbie1 Posted January 21 Share Posted January 21 3 minutes ago, LinMM said: I couldn’t see Marguerite and Armand for years after that as it felt so much “their” ballet. I've never been fussed about it until seeing this episode - what a difference the original cast makes! Others' mileage will vary IMO Ashton was right to retire it. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane S Posted January 21 Share Posted January 21 I agree - I wish it had been left as a legend. The only cast I've seen that came anywhere near justifying a revival was Rojo and Polunin - also perhaps Le Riche in the very first performance, when I had the weirdest feeling that Nureyev's spirit was hanging around watching - the only time in my life I've ever felt something like that! 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blossom Posted January 21 Share Posted January 21 31 minutes ago, Jane S said: The only cast I've seen that came anywhere near justifying a revival was Rojo and Polunin My thoughts exactly. I have only seen them on DVD but have never been quite satisfied seeing this live on stage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emeralds Posted January 21 Share Posted January 21 (edited) I might be in a minority of one saying this but I saw Rojo and Polunin in this twice (different triple bills) and found Rojo very good, Polunin not so much- both times he was hesitant and wobbly in the entrance and really only got into it comfortably halfway, when he sees her with the Duke. Nicolas le Riche was superb and the only one could shake off the burden of matching Nureyev (he was definitely up to equalling him), yet do justice to the memory of Fonteyn and Nureyev. The ideal combination would have been him and Rojo (he did guest with ENB when she was also dancing, although it's not in ENB's rep). Superficially it seems easier for the ballerina technically, but I still think it's very hard to shake off the shadow of legends Fonteyn and Nureyev. (Or maybe those of us who saw the recording or stage performance of Fonteyn and Nureyev know that's the level they have to reach while people who haven't seen the recording/live performances by Fonteyn and Nureyev perhaps don't care.) It's unbelievably popular though- it seems to have overtaken Fille as the most popular Ashton acquisition by ballet companies around the world (cheaper to stage than Fille but Fille does better at the box office!) Edited January 21 by Emeralds Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LinMM Posted January 21 Share Posted January 21 An aside…a picture of Nureyev arriving at the film Premiere of Valentino just dropped into my Facebook page. He’s wearing a very large and voluptuous cloak which looks suspiciously like the ever expanding one he wore in Giselle lol!! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alison Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 And now my recorder has gone and cut out about 45 minutes into the last episode - right in the middle of Marguerite and Armand Am I right in thinking that that recording of the ballet also appeared in full on I Am A Dancer? I do have that, but perhaps only on VHS. Am I also right in thinking that this is generally regarded as the less good of the two Fonteyn/Nureyev recordings? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Two Pigeons Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 Any chance of the BBC would now repeat Makarova's series "Ballerina" and then Peter Schaufuss in "Dancer"? If nothing else it would mean that BBC 4 is going out in a blaze of glory Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LinMM Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 Why is BBC 4 under threat currently then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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