Archive for October, 2006
October 31, 2006 at 9:18 am · Filed under SLOAN, ballet, new york city ballet, dance event, film, savannah
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| Posted by Sloan
Bringing Back Balanchine will be shown at the Savannah Film Festival today at 11:30am at the Lucas Theater!
Bringing Balanchine Back
USA, 2003, 80 min.
Director: Richard Blanshard
Producers: Earle I. Mack and Christopher Ramsey
Cast: New York City Ballet
“Bringing Balanchine Back” tells the story of New York City Ballet’s historic visit to St. Petersburg, Russia, to perform at the famed Mariinsky Theatre for the 100th anniversary of the birth of NYCB co-founder George Balanchine, who was born in St. Petersburg and received his training at the legendary theater. Included is rare performance footage of several of Balanchine’s most acclaimed works, as well as a number of fascinating backstage dramas such as famed Russian conductor Valery Gergeiv’s disappearance with the theater’s orchestra during the opening-night intermission for an unscheduled rehearsal, leaving everyone waiting for nearly an hour for the performance to resume. Through interviews with NYCB dancers and artistic staff, Russian audiences and performers, and the sights and sounds of an extraordinary city, “Bringing Balanchine Back” is a beautiful and unforgettable look at Balanchine’s birthplace and his legacy — the New York City Ballet.
Tuesday, Oct. 31, 11:30 a.m., Lucas Theatre
Recent Posts by kristin sloan
October 30, 2006 at 11:17 pm · Filed under ballet, dance event, friends, SUSAN
| | Posted by Susan
This past weekend, I made my way over to Tucson, Arizona to visit with and to watch Amanda McKerrow and John Gardner perform in a gala performance celebrating the opening of Ballet Tucson’s 21st season.
Amanda, John and I became very good friends during their time in California. They have spent the majority of their last two months in Tucson, helping their long-time friend Mary-Beth Cabana, Ballet Tucson’s founder and artistic director, with both the company and the school.
The evening featured a special program that included a full-length Paquita and the world premiere of Larry–well, Lawrence–Pech’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Amanda and John added a Balanchine flourish to the evening with “The Man I Love” pas de deux from his Who Cares?.
Here are a couple of photographs I snapped while watching their final dress rehearsal:
Hunchbacked and disfigured Quasimodo (Joseph McGrath) is tortured in front of a gore-adoring crowd until gypsy Esmeralda (Deanna Doncsecz) comes to his rescue.
Archdeacon Claude Frolo (Daniel Precup), Quasimodo and Head of the Military Phoebus (Daniel Escudero) shun the barriers that keep them from Esmeralda.
Hunchback’s choreographer, Larry Pech, helps adjust the set before giving his cast a few notes.
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Amanda, John and Larry chat before running “The Man I Love” pas de deux from Balanchine’s Who Cares?
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Last-minute warm-ups are so personal. Amanda uses the time to stretch out her back. John, meanwhile, entertains her (and the audience!) with an impromptu series of time steps. 
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I truly wish I could have captured snapshots of Amanda and John actually dancing; the pas de deux was performed so beautifully and the couple was so blissful(ly in love) while dancing it.
The Balanchine Foundation, unfortunately (for me), maintains strict restrictions on the photographing, filming and, even, performance of his works. Far be it for me to mess with an organization that does such a wonderful job of preserving the works of a mastermind.
Recent Posts by susan kim
October 30, 2006 at 6:01 pm · Filed under dance, dance event, culture, recommendations, DAVID, art, japan, butoh, france
| | Posted by David
Sankai Juku anyone? No I didn’t sneeze…
I have put this Paris-based Japanese butoh group on one of the top five performances I have seen… ever..
Now, that is quite a bold statement I agree, but I wish you all could have seen this performance of “Kagemi, beyond the metaphors of mirrors”.
Butoh I believe is best described as momentary meditative movement, therefore the artist is completely in the moment of the performace and looks as though they are in a trance, which then brings the audience in with them. These aritists all have their heads shaved and paint their whole body in white chalk, which comes off in a powder as they move.
What made the performance so compelling for me was not only the visual aspect (as you can see in these pictures) but the complete dedication of the aritsts to what they believed. The director of Sankai Juku, Ushio Amagatsu, had clearly spent his lifes work evolving this form of butoh. And the result of it, as an audience member, was almost a voyeuristic approach to seeing him in their habitat.
The piece opened with dozens of Lotus flowers hanging on the floor of the stage, only to rise to the ceiling once the performance started. Seeing these flowers gradually rise, made me feel as though the whole show was underwater.
It is art like this that motivates me to be an artist. Performers like these inspire not only fellow dancers and artists but the general public as well. The whole audience around me was captivated and entranced… Entranced with this movement that seems so hard to put into words.
Photo Credit: Jacques Denarnaud
Recent Posts by david hallberg
October 26, 2006 at 6:30 pm · Filed under backstage, tour, dressing room, GWYNETH, chicago
| | Posted by Gwyneth
Gina Pazcoguin, my good friend and dressing room neighbor, checking to make sure her headpiece for “Symphony in C” is securely in place.
Preparing for “Serenade”
The women of the corps preparing their shoes for “Serenade”.
It might seem strange that everyone is crowded in the corner of this tiny studio, but that’s where the rosin box was. We use rosin on the insides of our shoes (to keep them securely on our feet) as well as on the outer soles of the shoes (to keep ourselves from slipping). If you’re ever backstage and see a clump of girls sitting in a circle, chances are there’s a box of rosin amongst them.
Tutus and Trunks
A glimpse of the hallway outside my dressing room. Pictured are the beautiful costumes from “Serenade”, our leotards from “The Four Temperaments” and one of the many NYCB trunks that always seem to line the halls of every theater we invade.
Class on Stage
This picture was taken on the stage just before company class was about to begin. Every morning when I get to class, this is usually the sight that greets me: a room full of dancers stretched out on the floor, talking, laughing and having their last sips of coffee before pliés begin.
Normally, our classes are held in a traditional rehearsal studio with a mirror at the front of the room. However, since this theater did not have a studio large enough to accommodate all of us, we had to have some of our classes on the stage.
Dancing without a mirror is a really difficult exercise; it really forces you to use your own muscle memory to feel what your body is doing (instead of just checking out your own reflection).
| | Posted by Gwyneth
Recent Posts by gwyneth muller
October 26, 2006 at 5:43 pm · Filed under tour, art, museum, GWYNETH, photographers, chicago
| | Posted by Gwyneth
Although my busy schedule didn’t allow for much sightseeing, I did have the chance to skip off to The Art institute of Chicago one afternoon during a break in my rehearsal day. Lucky for me, a WONDERFUL photography exhibit is currently on display at the museum entitled “So the Story Goes”. It features works by Sally Mann, Larry Sultan, Nan Goldin, Philip-Lorca Dicorcia and Tina Barney, and together they left me in complete awe.
One of the reasons that I think these photographers are so brilliant is that they capture intimate scenes from their own lives, leaving viewers to feel as though they are intruding on something very personal. The brochure I was handed regarding the exhibit summed it up really well: “[The photographers] focus on the very events, sights, and emotions that we often prefer to exclude from our own personal snapshots or which were previously deemed inappropriate for aesthetic consideration: an anxious look, a loved one’s funeral, an unmade bed, a protective caress, or an argument in progress.”
If anyone lives in the Chicago area, the exhibit will be on display until December 3rd. I really recommend it- mark it an official “Gwyneth Pick”
Recent Posts by gwyneth muller
October 26, 2006 at 1:16 pm · Filed under food, video, art, podcast, vidcast, TONY, dance and technology, apples
Dancing is hard work…and hard work is a dance. Making cider is hard work too and uses lots of technology. While many are thinking about their Halloween costumes I am focused on one thing.
Apples.
Every year my family and friends get together to make cider under the direction of my father, Stephen Schultz. We use a blend of Golden Russet, Red Spy and Northern Spy apples to make the juice and a special line of cider yeast to process the fermentation. In time we filter it, chill it and put in bubbles. We make enough to share with friends and raise spirits throughout the year.
Next weekend is time again to make cider. Above is a timelapse from last years apple crushing extravaganza. Check out the apples, the cool hydraulic press and all those bodies moving. I work for my apple juice with an ensemble cast. Its a labor of love and it feels like dancing.
Recent Posts by tony schultz
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