Dipping in to the 8th International Festival of Arts ‘Diaghilev. P.S.’ in St. Petersburg
The aim of the annual festival is to celebrate Russian influence in international culture, thanks to Diaghilev’s productions in the first two decades of the 20th century… St Petersburg also wants to boost its reputation as ‘a great forum of the arts’, introducing contemporary creations from different nations to Russian audiences.
Russian Ballet Icons Gala – In the steps of the Ballets Russes – London
★★★★✰ The long gala (three and a half hours with one interval) was well organised, with no speeches and no protracted curtain calls.
Mariinsky Ballet – A Tribute to Maya Plisetskaya, Program B – New York
★★✰✰✰ What’s going on in the head office at the Mariinsky Ballet?
American Ballet Theatre – After You, Le Spectre de la Rose, Valse Fantaisie, The Green Table, Valse Fantaisie, Company B – New York
A highlight of the season is the return of Kurt Jooss’s The Green Table, made in 1932. This meditation on the folly of war in eight scenes has lost none of its punch…
Sagraçamba: The Rite in Rio
Millicent Hodson and Kenneth Archer first put their reconstruction of “The Rite of Spring” on Rio de Janeiro Ballet in 1995. This year they went back to put it on again – this is what happened…
Mariinsky Ballet – Le Sacre du Printemps, Le Spectre de la Rose, The Swan, Paquita Grand Pas – Washington
In all, this was a tremendously entertaining and well-received program; but at the same time it left an unsettling impression that the Russian company is holding on to its eminent past with all its might, relying heavily on well-worn
The Work of Mikhail Fokine – Q&A with Isabelle Fokine
Born in Paris in 1958, Isabelle Fokine is the daughter of Vitale Fokine and granddaughter of choreographer Mikhail Fokine. She is artistic director of the Fokine Estate Archive, which holds the worldwide copyright to his work.
Andris Liepa and Georgy Isaakyan – Bringing Diaghilev Back: Recreating the Russian Seasons
Graham Watts, visited the Natalia Sats Theatre in Moscow, earlier this year, to talk to both Liepa and Isaakyan about their new production of Le Coq d’Or.
Ivan Putrov – Men in Motion (2014) – London
…the men Ivan Putrov has chosen for his latest Men in Motion programme are exceptional dance-interpreters, not self-glorifiers…
Ivan Putrov – Dancer, Choreographer and Director of Men in Motion
“I want audiences to leave inspired, not scratching themselves in boredom.”
Gallery – Les Saisons Russes of XXI Century in Spectre, Firebird, Scheherazade
18 pictures by Dave Morgan…
Les Saisons Russes of XXI Century – Firebird, Scheherazade – London
An apologetic Liepa promised to return for a week next time and bring the new Cleopatra with him, but this was an unsatisfying evening in its current form.
Les Saisons Russes of XXI Century – Le Spectre de la rose, Firebird, Scheherazade – London
But altogether, this was an evening of historical curios that lacked consistent vibrancy.
Russian Ballet Icons – Nijinsky Gala – London
Though this year it was Nijinsky’s turn to be reclaimed as a Russian icon, the contents of the gala had little to do with him. Very probably the choice of items – mainly pas de deux – depended on which dancers were available to perform whatever was in their repertoire.
The Joffrey Ballet – Age of Innocence, After the Rain, The Green Table – San Francisco
Closing the program is Kurt Jooss’s anti-war ballet from 1932,The Green Table, one of the greatest pieces of choreography ever created and still relevant after more than 80 years.
Desmond Kelly – Artistic Director Elmhurst and Governor of the Royal Ballet Companies
My nickname in BRB used to be Bastard – and something happened with Ballet Hoo! – I don’t know whether it’s my age, or the kids we worked with, but it made me realise that you can get the best out of dancers and students by coming in on a certain level and talking to them on a certain level – not always shouting. I do shout still, I do get very angry…
Ivan Putrov – Men in Motion – London
After all the fuss about Sergei Polunin abruptly leaving the Royal Ballet, guess who stole the Men in Motion show? Daniel Proietto, in the AfterLight solo Russell Maliphant made for him in 2010. Admittedly, you could read the 15-minute solo as a warning of the fate awaiting a troubled dancer deprived of the support of a company of colleagues
