Tag: Ivan Vasiliev

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Film of the Bolshoi’s DON QUIXOTE Starring Natalia Osipova and Ivan Vasiliev Showing at BAM This Thursday

 

For New Yorkers: this Thursday, July 21st, Emerging Pictures’ “Ballet in Cinema” series will be showing a repeat of the Bolshoi’s Don Quixote starring Natalia Osipova and Ivan Vasiliev – the very same production I’d raved about here. This time, though, they’ll be showing it in BAM’s cinema, beginning at 7 p.m. I highly recommend it if you missed it the first time around. It’s the most spectacular Don Quixote I’ve ever seen and can ever imagine seeing. It’s also exciting because this is the first time a “Ballet in Cinema” production will be screened at BAM instead of the Big Manhattan Theater. Tickets are $24. If you can, go go go!

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Alina Cojocaru and Polina Semionova Guest Star in ABT’s DON QUIXOTE

Over the weekend, two European star ballerinas – Alina Cojocaru from the Royal Ballet in London, and Polina Semionova from the Berlin State Opera Ballet – guest starred in American Ballet Theater’s Don Quixote as Kitri.  Cojocaru danced with Jose Carreno, and Semionova with David Hallberg. I saw both performances. Overall, I thought both are beautiful dancers, have an innate sweetness that shines through, are absolute balance queens who can hold balances on one leg on pointe for many many seconds unassisted, and can dance the role nearly perfectly. But I thought that both of them lacked fire; they both played it too safe. Maybe it’s just that Natalia Osipova has ruined me and I just can’t see anyone else in this role now.

One thing I loved about the Cojocaru / Carreno performance were that the two seemed to have a real rapport, a genuine affection for each other. Did they ever dance together at the Royal, does anyone know? Or was Jose there too early for her? Cojocaru never threw herself into his arms with the wild abandon that Osipova did last year, and I missed that. But I don’t think Jose did 🙂 Seriously, he didn’t seem to appreciate Osipova’s theatrics that much. Cojocaru seemed to tone it down and they worked very well together. Also, as I complained about on Twitter ad nauseam, during those insane one-handed overhead lifts, Jose did not go on releve and hold one leg up in arabesque the way Ivan Vasiliev did with Osipova in the Bolshoi’s live-streamed performance. It’s okay; I still love Jose 🙂 But seriously, Vasiliev and Osipova have ruined me! Cojocaru has absolutely gorgeous developpes. She can lift her leg up so high – really stunning. And I mentioned the balances earlier. She held those for so long; crowd went wild. And sweetest thing: Jose kept demanding she return for an encore bow after each of her solos. Made me really love Jose.

Cojocaru was a little shaky during the first act, and she had a little stumble. But it wasn’t memorable. Far more memorable was her strong performance in the third act, her best. That’s when she did the crazy balances.

In the third act fan variation, Cojocaru did a completely different series of steps than I’d ever seen before, which makes me think there are a bazillion ways to do that variation. Or at least three – the American, the Russian, and the British. The Ballet Bag ladies sent me a You Tube link via twitter, of Cojocaru dancing with Johan Kobborg. Around the 7 minute point is where she does this different variation.

 

Jose is such a great Basilio. He’s a natural flirt, a natural macho Latin guy, and a natural actor who can be a macho and a flirt and still be totally endearing. And it really kind of made me melt when he kept insisting she take more bows.

I really enjoyed Sarah Lane and Isabella Boylston as “the flower girls.” They often weren’t in sync because Boylston danced with more expressiveness, arching her back, taking her time and drawing out the turns, playing with the musicality. Lane was more sharp and precise, hitting poses right on the beat. But I could have cared less that they weren’t perfectly in sync. I loved that each had her own personality, as people do in real life.

I missed Sascha Radetsky as Espada the matador. I’ve never seen him in that role and I think he’d make a good one. He was replaced by Gennadi Saveliev. He was replaced on opening night too, which worries me that he’s injured.

I thought Polina Semionova was really beautiful, and, where Cojocaru had a few wobbles, Semionova had none. She was very very near perfect. Like Cojocaru, the third act was the one that most brought her to life. She kind of veered all over stage on her third act series of fouettes but she threw several multiple pirouettes in, and her balances were even more stunning than Cojocaru’s, as, during her final balance, she took her leg out of arabesque and straightened it out in front of her, without ever holding Hallberg’s hand to steady herself. Audience went absolutely crazy with applause. They really loved her, and called her and David out for several curtain calls.

In the third act, she did “the American” fan variation. She’s Russian and dances in Berlin, so I really think each ballerina just chooses whichever version looks better on her body and feels most comfortable to her. I thought the little hopping “horse steps” on pointe were really sweet on her.

She and David seemed to like each other as well. The partnering was a little off at points, though, and he almost dropped her in a fish dive. She played it very safe with the second act swan dives into his arms as well, and he didn’t try any Vasilievs on the one-handed lift.

David is a beautiful dancer on his own though, and, as a critic said to me during intermission, it’s sometimes hard to focus on anyone else when he’s onstage. His movements were absolutely perfect, both the more balletic and those kind of side to side matador-looking movements. His jetes are beautiful – he’s just the most beautiful male dancer and you can completely lose yourself in the story of the ballet just watching him.

Acting-wise, I think David is wonderful in the romantic scenes. He’s definitely a romantic. But the rest of the time I think he should just be himself, make Basilio his own, and not try to be so cocky and macho. In him, I find it comes across as anger, an an intimation of violence even, like he’s really going to go off and whack someone. He’s not a natural cocky flirty Latin shit like Jose and Marcelo Gomes 🙂 And so it loses its charm with him. My thoughts anyway.

It probably won’t come to a surprise to anyone who’s read my blog for some time that Veronika Part (here as Mercedes, the “street dancer”) stood out to me. In the first two acts, I found her even more captivating than Semionova. One thing I love about her is her attempt to make the styling as authentic as possible. Part really looked like a Spanish dancer to me. And in the second act’s dream scene, I found her jetes across the stage really breathtaking – just as much as Semionova’s.

Sarah Lane danced the part of Amour in the white scene. I always want to call that character Cupid. Anyway, before the performance began, I overheard one teenage girl behind me say to another, “Sarah Lane! She was the one in Black Swan!”

All in all, really lovely performances, but I do think Cojocaru makes a better Sleeping Beauty and Giselle than Kitri. She’ll be dancing Giselle this Saturday night. She’ll also be dancing Don Quixote again with Jose tomorrow night (Monday, the 23rd). I’m excited to see Semionova in Swan Lake later in the season.

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The Bolshoi’s Don Quixote

 

So who went to the live-streaming yesterday? The Manhattan showing was such a blast. Daniil Simkin, ABT soloist and Natalia Osipova’s friend, was there, and I saw Marc Kirshner from TenduTv and several critics. And Evan McKie, principal at the Stuttgart Ballet, who many of us know from the Winger, was tweeting from Stuttgart or Canada or wherever he was. He was very informative too! I tweeted a bit under the hashtag #DonQLive – after I found out we were using that hashtag; I also tweeted about the performance without the hashtag earlier.

Anyway, I loved it. As always, I loved Osipova, though my friend who went with me, a longtime Gelsey Kirkland fan, pointed out that though she has excellent technique and athletic ability, she was lacking in artistry, particularly in her ability here to evoke a Spaniard. It’s true, and funny, because that kind of thing used to drive me nuts – when ballet dancers would perform straight ballet without any culturally specific accent (see my harping here on Paloma Herrera’s Bayadere). I remember when Angel Corella and Paloma Herrera used to be THE couple to see in Don Q in America, and of course they danced it perfectly. But then the next set of dancers – whoever it was I saw after them, all I could think was, couldn’t they have taken some Flamenco, some Paso Doble? But somehow at some point, I stopped being bothered by it.

But, Osipova also doesn’t have the gracefulness of some of the others, like Yekaterina Shipulina as the Queen of the Dryads, and Chinara Alizade in the third act Grand Pas variation. I am beginning to notice that one – Alizade – more and more in these Bolshoi showings and I really like her.

Osipova is more of an athlete and my friend said she’d have made a great ice skater, or some kind of Olympian. Which is true. But I still think she adds so much to the ballet and creates so much excitement with all of the astounding things that she can do. The theater in Manhattan was more packed than I’ve ever seen it – nearly, if not completely full – and people were ooohing and aaahing during intermissions and afterward and were applauding throughout – like when, before the performance, the camera showed her backstage warming up.

Here she is in the Act One variation:

 

But it was Ivan Vasiliev who really wowed the audience – or at least he did as much as she. I’d seen him in Flames of Paris too and he was fabulous in that as well, but this is a larger role and so he stood out to me more here. He kept taking these flying leaps, sometimes with a turn thrown in,  and he got amazing height on them, especially given that he’s pretty short. He definitely has the muscular legs of a jumper. And he always landed so solidly, which not everyone who jumps that high does. And his form was perfect. And he had the flirty, slightly mischievous character down perfectly. And he had the Spanish flair, for the most part at least. So, he’s perfect, in a word! I don’t know if there’s been a dancer since Baryshnikov who’s danced such an exciting Basilio. Bring him to NYC, Kevin McKenzie!!

Here is he dancing on his own in the studio:

 

I also loved Andrei Merkuriev as Espada, the matador, though I don’t know if anyone will ever outperform my Marcelo Gomes in that role, imo 😀 But Merkuriev just did incredible things with that cape – I’ve never seen anyone – not in ballet or Paso – whip a cape around with such speed like that.

There were many more character dances than in ABT’s production. It was hard for me to keep straight who danced which one because in the program it wasn’t broken down by act and I can’t tell the difference between, for example, what was called the Spanish Dance, and the Bolero. If Anna Leonova danced the lyrical Flamenco-like solo, then I loved her. I thought she was beautiful and knew how to work the dress and her arms and hands and everything. It might have been Kristina Karasyova though, or one of the three listed under “Spanish Dance.” I also liked Anna Antropova as the gypsy dancer. Ditto for her. They might have been the same dancer, actually…because those dances were in different acts… Oh who knows.

Anyway, it doesn’t matter because I liked everyone and thought they danced beautifully. Honestly, this company is absolutely astounding. I don’t think there’s anyone in it who’s not only an excellent dancer but compelling to watch in one way or another as well. If you ever get a chance to see the Bolshoi, don’t miss it.

One more thing – about the third act Kitri variation. I’ve noticed when Osipova dances with ABT, she changes that variation from the one ABT usually does, and so I wasn’t at all surprised that she did the same here. I’ve always liked her version BETTER because she does those traveling passees at the speed of blasted light, and they look so much better on her than the hopping on pointe. But my friend thought the other version, which Gelsey Kirkland apparently did, was harder and more artistic. But then Evan McKie told me via Twitter that Natalia’s is the version the Russians usually do. So maybe it’s not an issue of changing the choreography to suit the dancer but just the dancer performing the version she knows best. Anyway, I tried to look up Gelsey on YouTube and could only find the final scene pas de deux with Baryshnikov; they don’t have the variations. But here’s what I’m talking about: first video is the ABT version, starring Nina Ananiashvili, second is Osipova:

 

 

Which do you guys like better, or do you like them both the same?

Anyway, the next Bolshoi live-stream will be Coppelia, coming up at the end of May. The next live-stream from Emerging Pictures will be the Paris Opera Ballet’s Coppelia, coming up on March 28th. Visit the Ballet in Cinema website for times and theaters. These are such a blast!

Above photo of Vasiliev and Osipova from here.

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Moonlight on the Beach

Happy President’s Day everyone! I’m spending the week in South Carolina at my cousin’s timeshare – I needed a few days away from New York and the ocean is  my favorite place. (If I ever have money, I’m definitely buying a beach house somewhere.  I could never be one of those New Yorkers who buys a country home up in the mountains. I don’t understand those people. Who wants to risk a run-in with a bear or coyote or jaguar? Not to mention deal with permanently cold temperatures…) Anyway, the light from last night’s full moon on the ocean was gorgeous. My iPhone is not so good at taking pictures at night, so you’ll have to take my word for it 🙂

The condo’s wireless connection is a bit off and on, plus, it’s unexpectedly nice weather here – 71 degrees today, plus I’m supposed to be working on my novel, so I don’t know how much time I’ll have to blog. But here are a few items of interest:

Roberto Bolle makes his Hollywood debut;

John Epperson talks about his role as “Jaded Piano Player” in Black Swan; and

Our friend Benjamin Millepied is now getting hounded by the tabloids for working too hard and not paying enough attention to Ms. Portman

Also, here are some photos I just received of the magnificent Sara Mearns debuting as the Siren (opposite Sean Suozzi) in Balanchine’s Prodigal Son a couple weeks ago at NYCB:

 

 

 

Finally, if you haven’t seen Natalia Osipova dance yet, next Sunday, March 6th, will be your chance. She’ll be dancing Kitri in Don Quixote with the Bolshoi, in a performance that will be live-streamed direct from Moscow via Emerging Pictures’ Ballet in Cinema series. NY performance time is 11:00 a.m., at the Manhattan Big Theater, and she’ll be dancing opposite Ivan Vasliev. This is the role that made her famous, and she owns it, so try not to miss it if it’s showing at a theater near you. Check Emerging Pictures’ website for times and locations.

Okay, that’s all for now. Happy holiday everyone!

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The Flames of Paris, and Emerging Pictures’ Ballet in Cinema Series

 

Yesterday, I was invited to a preview of a filmed recording of the Bolshoi’s The Flames of Paris. The film will begin showing in New York at the BIG Cinemas Manhattan on November 2nd and will be broadcast nationally in over 30 locations starting on that day as well.

This film is the first in Emerging Pictures‘ Ballet in Cinema series, which, like the Met Opera’s high definition series, is a series of live (or recorded, but most are live) ballet performances that will be broadcast in various movie theaters. I’m psyched about this, especially since I’d bemoaned that ballet didn’t have such a thing when the Met Opera first started their film series.

Flames, by the Bolshoi, is the first ballet, and, as I said, it begins showing on November 2nd. That performance is recorded. Here is the rest of the schedule:

The Nutcracker, performed by the Royal Ballet (London), December 1, 2010 (Recorded)
The Nutcracker, performed by the Bolshoi, Sunday, December 19, 2010, 11 a.m. EST (Live)
Giselle, Royal Ballet (London), January 19, 2011, 2:30 p.m. EST (Live)
The Class Concert and Giselle, by the Bolshoi, January 23, 2011 11 a.m. EST (Live)
Caligula, Paris Opera Ballet, February 8, 2011, 1:30 p.m. EST (Live)
Don Quixote, Bolshoi, March 6, 2011, 11 a.m. EST (Live)
Coppelia, Paris Opera Ballet, March 28, 2011, 11 a.m. EST (Live)
Coppelia, Bolshoi, May 29, 2011, 11 a.m. EST (Live)
Children of Paradise, Paris Opera Ballet, July 9, 2011, 1:30 p.m. EST (Live)

At this point I’m not sure of all the locations or the time on the top date, but will let you know more specifics when I know. For now, for more info, visit their website or Facebook page.

Anyway, on to The Flames of Paris. This production is from March of this year, in Moscow, and stars Natalia Osipova, Denis Savin, and Ivan Vasiliev (as excellent a dancer as Osipova). It was originally choreographed by Vasily Vaynonen and performed in 1934, but Alexei Ratmansky has reconstructed it. Music is by Boris Vladimirovich Asafiev, a Russian and Soviet composer, and is based on songs of the French Revolution. Interestingly, it was Stalin’s favorite ballet, which confuses me, unless Ratmansky substantially re-worked things, but I’ll get to that in a minute.

It’s set during the French Revolution and tells the story of a pair of brother and sister peasants, Jeanne and Jerome (Osipova and Savin), a Marseillais (revolutionary fighter) named Phillipe (Vasiliev), and Adeline (danced by Nina Kaptsova), the daughter of the local Marquis. Jeanne and Jerome are young, energetic free spirits at the beginning of the ballet but, upon meeting Phillipe (whom Jeanne eventually falls in love with) become revolutionaries too. Adeline, bored at one of her father’s aristocratic parties (and perhaps jilted by a man there as well – I couldn’t really tell), wanders off, and eventually finds herself in the camp of the Marseillais. She hooks up with Jerome and they fall in love.

Eventually, as well all know, revolutionary fervor leads to the deaths of King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. During the last scene, Adeline sees her father, the Marquis, dragged toward the guillotine. She becomes hysterical and begins rushing toward him, trying to save him. Jeanne and Jerome try to hold her back – Jerome out of love for her and Jeanne seemingly out of now hysterical patriotism, demanding the Marquis’ death along with the other Marseillais. But Adeline won’t leave the executioners alone, and when they discover who she is, she is put up on the platform, under the guillotine as well. The ballet ends with her crying and looking terrified as the guillotine comes down on her head.

Jerome keels over crying and Jeanne comforts him, but then, as he is given Adeline’s head wrapped in some kind of gauze, Jeanne is lifted and off she goes with the other Marseillais fist pumping in the air, French flag overhead, with the creepiest most possessed, horror movie-esque look in her eyes I may have ever seen.

When I left the theater I felt very unsettled and more than a little scared of revolutions in general and the uncontrolled murderous mob activity they can lead to. Unless Ratmansky completed changed the ending, I don’t see how this was a piece of propaganda, glorifying the French Revolution and likening it to the equally glorious Russian. I thought Ratmansky had been criticized for bringing back two Soviet-era propaganda ballets – this one and Bright Stream – during his time at the Bolshoi. I feel like either I missed something, or he changed things. New Yorkers will be able to see Bright Stream at ABT next summer.

Anyway, the dancing was tremendous, and Natalia Osipova is just as spellbinding on screen as she is onstage. She just moves so fast and with such precision and power and impeccable technique; when she’s done you feel like you can’t believe what you just saw. I can’t imagine there’s going to be another dancer quite like her. She’s also a very good actress. She had the tomboyish, peasant-like gait down solid here; there was no flirty Kitri anywhere in this performance. She also, as I said, perfectly embodied the almost crazed Marseillais, sad for her brother but too hateful toward the Marquis to feel much for Adeline.

Vasiliev is also an excellent dancer, and his final final pas de deux with Osipova was fantastic. Crowd went wild, of course. And Russian crowds are a bit more fun than American 🙂 They clap in unison, all clapping on the same beat, as if they’re cheering the dancers on to do an encore to the rhythms they’re making. But there were no encores, just bizillions of bows. I realized that the ABT production of the pas de deux, during their City Center season a couple years ago, was altered probably to suit the strengths of Daniil Simkin. Vasiliev did none of those crazy over-rotated barrel turns that Daniil in known for and I thought I remembered a no-hands fish at the end of the ABT performance?… It wasn’t here. Also, they remained dressed in their regular street clothes; no fancy princess tutu for Natalia.

I thought Savin, tall and wiry, was a bit out of control in his dancing in parts, but maybe that was just part of the character. I think the Russians try to move the audience, to tell the ballet’s story, with their acting just as much as with their dancing, which is somewhat different than American-trained dancers, who seem to focus more on technique and movement quality than characterization. I thought Nina Kaptsova was a beautiful dancer. And she was perfect for the part of vulnerable Adeline. But I’m sorry, I can’t help but feel for anyone who has to share the stage with Osipova!

I loved the camera work – it panned in and out, just like in the Met’s HD films, homing in on various characters at certain points in order to make it more cinematic.

I’m really looking forward to the other performances. We don’t otherwise see much of the Bolshoi, the Royal and the POB here and, if the other films are as well-made as this one, I feel like you do get a very full experience.

Above photo (of Osipova, Savin, and Vasiliev) taken from here.