At the beginning of the week, this review of Balanchine’s Agon from its original premiere with New York City Ballet in 1957 was posted on our bulletin board at FBP, and I found it extremely interesting.  In fact, it may be the most engaging dance review I’ve ever read.  It’s a detailed, thought-provoking assessment of the ballet, one that I believe gives the reader a rare peek at the intricacies of the choreography and its relationship with Stravinsky’s calculated score.  I’ve learned through attempting to blog about our work on Agon that it is an extremely difficult ballet to put into words.  Equally difficult to describe is the revolutionary connection between movement and music that has been imitated but never replicated since.  This article points out just how hard this ballet is to choreograph, compose, play and dance, and for that I must bow down in appreciation.

And a short excerpt:

“Like many dancers, I read reviews. I enjoy reading them, not that I always agree. I want to hear everyone’s honest perspective. I take a lot into account, and dance critics come at it from a position of knowing dance and watching dance all the time. Even too much, sometimes. They point out interesting things. I’m not doing this so people think I’m a genius. I just want to create works and add something meaningful to dance and to ballet and also bring other people to dance with intimate, accessible performances.”

“God creates, I do not create. I assemble and I steal everywhere to do it – from what I see, from what the dancers can do, from what others do.”

-George Balanchine

Mazzo and Martins have coached their roles in “Duo Concertant” and “Stravinsky Violin Concerto” for the cameras of the George Balanchine Foundation’s Interpreters Archive. Martins is now Ballet Master in Chief of New York City Ballet, and he and Mazzo are Co-Chairmen of the Faculty at the company’s official academy, School of American Ballet.

The aim of the Interpreters Archive video series is to document the viewpoints of leading dancers on whom Balanchine choreographed his ballets or with whom he worked closely, capturing his intentions at the time of creation through coaching sessions with dancers of today.

Taping sessions were held in New York City Ballet studios in the Rose Building, Lincoln Center, New York.

Martins and Mazzo coached the complete “Duo Concertant” with NYCB principal dancers Sterling Hyltin and Robert Fairchild. They later coached Aria II of “Stravinsky Violin Concerto” with the same dancers, who were then joined by principal dancers Rebecca Krohn and Amar Ramasar for the coaching of excerpts from the ballet’s Toccata and Capriccio sections. Nancy McDill, solo pianist with NYCB Orchestra, played for the sessions. Charles M. Joseph, noted Stravinsky author, conducted an interview with the two coaches. The taping was supervised by Nancy Reynolds, the foundation’s director of research, assisted by Nichol Hlinka, a former NYCB principal dancer, who is the associate director of the foundation’s video archives program, and former film professor Virginia Brooks.

Suzanne Farrell and Peter Martins in “Afternoon of a Faun”

“Duo Concertant” and “StravinskyViolin Concerto” are considered two of the gems premiered during the renowned NYCB Stravinsky Festival of June 1972. Each displays a partnership between music and dance that is unusually close, even within the Balanchine canon. And while each has its own movement vocabulary, taken together many of the choreographic ideas are unique to these two ballets. Both coaches have described the exactitude with which Balanchine choreographed the compositions. Perhaps not so coincidentally, they were written in the same year (1931); there are particularly acute musical echoes of the Dithyrambe (final) section of Duo Concertant in Violin Concerto’s Aria II.

The George Balanchine Foundation (www.balanchine.org) is a not for profit corporation established in 1983. Its mission is to create programs that educate the public and further Balanchine’s work and aesthetic with the goal of advancing high standards of excellence in dance and its allied arts. Visit the the Video Archives  at http://www.balanchine.org/balanchine/03/gbfvideoarchives.html.

In 2007 the foundation announced the completion of another major initiative, the online publication of the Balanchine Catalogue, a fully searchable database giving first-performance details of all known dances created by Balanchine, supplemented by lists of companies staging the ballets, a bibliography, a videography, reference resources, a database of roles Balanchine performed, and additional related material. Visit that catalogy at http://www.balanchine.org/balanchine/03/balanchinecataloguenew.html.

The project was made possible by a leadership grant from The Jerome Robbins Foundation.

Earlier projects include Popular Balanchine, comprising forty-two boxes of material pertaining to Balanchine’s commercial work, housed at the Jerome Robbins Dance Division of the New York Public Library; and Music Dances: Balanchine Choreographs Stravinsky, a video by Professor Stephanie Jordan of Roehampton University, London.

Symphony in Three Movements
Choreography by George Balanchine
(c) The George Balanchine Trust

Related articles

• How George Balanchine Created New York City Ballet (theatlantic.com)
• New York City Ballet (NYCB): G. Balanchine’s The Nutcracker (optimysticlivingevents.wordpress.com)
• Review: 60 Minutes on New York City Ballet (timesunion.com)
• A World of Pain and Magic (peterhshelton.wordpress.com)
• An Unforgettable Night at the Ballet (oceandrive.com)
• The genius of Balanchine: A visual breakdown (cbsnews.com)

Arguably the most important events in 2012, for dance-folk at any rate, happened off-stage. We bade farewell to Dame Monica Mason, Wayne Eagling and Ashley Page as Kevin O’Hare (Royal Ballet), Tamara Rojo (Engligh National Ballet) and Christopher Hampson (Scottish Ballet) acceded three of the most prominent artistic directorships in the country. Although yet to affect any real changes, something tells me that a sea-change is afoot, with Rojo having the most to prove, given her status as an international star.

Regarding what happened on stage during the year, two highlights stick out in the memory. Marking the 20th anniversary of his death, Kenneth MacMillan’s triple bill at the ROH in the autumn was outstanding and a huge tribute to his genius (http://wp.me/p20ZbZ-37). Up at Sadler’s Wells Helgi Tomasson’s San Francisco Ballet made a welcome return with a huge programme of various short ballets proving a wonderful showcase for the company, right across the ranks – they provided us with a surge of inspiration as we headed into the long winter with endless Nutcrackers.

As the rest of world goes into a post-2012 slump, given the changes at the top in the dance community, there should be enough to keep us excited – different repertoire, fresh faces and new creations. Among the highlights are sure to be Alexei Ratmansky’s Romeo and Juliet (National Ballet of Canada, Sadler’s Wells), Northern Ballet’s The Great Gatsby, Wayne McGregor’s Raven Girl (Royal Ballet) and to stop any local complacency setting in, Boston Ballet’s trip to the Coliseum in the Summer, overflowing with neoclassical treats from Balanchine and Forsythe. As always, the year will throw up surprises and disappointments, forgotten treasures and new stars – please 2013, give us your best!

Boston Ballet in Jiri Kylian’s Bella Figura, one of the highlights of their 50th Anniversary season. Photo by Joris-Jan Bos

They’ve been around for 50 years now but it’s been 30 years since Boston Ballet last performed in London. In July 2013 the company will put right these sad years of neglect by opening their 50th anniversary season with six performances at London’s Coliseum.

Among other pieces they’re bringing with them short works by the incomparable Balanchine, the ubiquitous Christopher Wheeldon, a dash of resident choreographer Jorma Elo and a rare chance in the UK to see Jiří Kylián’s skin-tight Bella Figura.

The performances are split into two programmes and tickets can be bought from eno.org

Programme A - 3, 4, 6 & 7 July

Serenade (Balanchine), Afternoon of a Faun (Nijinsky), Plan to B (Elo), Symphony in Three Movements (Balanchine)

Programme B – 5 & 6 July

Bella Figura (Kylián), Polyphonia (Wheeldon), The Second Detail (Forsythe)

Gerard Davis 

Marcelo Gomes and Veronika Part in ABT’s Nutcracker. Photo by Andrea Mohin.

Alexandre Benois design for The Nutcracker.

Tiler Peck as Dewdrop in the Waltz of the Flowers. (photo by Paul Kolnik.)

Adelaide Clauss and Philip Perez as Clara and the Nutcracker prince in Ratmansky’s Nutcracker for ABT. Photo by Gene Schiavone.

Alina Somova (Masha) and Vladimir Shklyarov (the Nutcracker Prince) int he Mariinsky Nutcracker. Photo by Valentin Baranovsky.

It’s not that the show isn’t worth seeing – it’s a great spectacle – but there are some major flaws when compared to the Nutcracker as generally performed by European ballet companies.

In short, the problem for me is that I go to the ballet to enjoy the music and dance, to see some fantastic dancers, great choreography and incredible live music. But the Balanchine Nutcracker is essentially a Christmas show for children that skips over major plot points within the ‘Nutcracker and the Mouse King’ story leaving it as essentially a disjointed series of skits – nice to look at, but not very satisfying if you came to the theatre expecting to see some ballet.

Of course there is some dancing, for example the pas de deux in the second act just before the apotheosis, but this dance is usually enjoyed by Clara and the Nutcracker. In the New York version a couple takes the dance with no explanation as to who they are.

The Royal Ballet in London use the 1984 Peter Wright version of the Nutcracker choreography, but Wright himself drew heavily on the much earlier staging from London, which had in turn come directly from the Imperial Russian Ballet.

In short, the role of Drosselmeyer is explained, the family connection to the Nutcracker is explained, the main characters actually dance – they are not cast as children who just watch the other dancers perform. It’s a proper ballet with a wonderful score and there is even an epilogue drawing the various threads of the story together.

The NYCB production is a nice little Christmas show and they must make an absolute fortune staging it every December – it has been produced in this format for almost 50 years now. But if you are a ballet fan and expect to be watching some great dance then it might be wise to save your cash for another show – there are Broadway shows with more dance than this.

Photo by Pat McDonald licensed under Creative Commons

In the wee hours of the night, I was prepping for our lessons that were to be taught today when I found myself becoming anxious over my fifth grader’s math and questioning my ability to teach this.  Yes, fifth grade math!  I’m using Singapore’s “Math in Focus” as our skeleton math curriculum and some of the word problems in the extra practice and enrichment books I’ve been frustrated with.  I don’t feel the authors have done a decent job of explaining how to present a few of the concepts.  This belief led me down that not-so-fun road of asking the question, “Do I throw in the towel on this curriculum and go back to what I was using before (Calvert Math), or do I persevere with what I’m presently using?” Math is such an important subject so I want to make sure it gets the time and attention it deserves, and that I’m comfortable in teaching it.  My latest thought is to combine Calvert’s Math and Singapore’s books and teach the concepts using both of their resources and methodologies, which just means more work for me-ugh.  But you just do what you have to do to make it work.  Hopefully, I”m making the right decision.  We’ll see how his next round of standardized testing goes.

1. Balanchine Ballet – Amazing.  Beautiful.  My favorite piece was A La Francaix involving a flirt, 2 sailors, a dandy and a sylph.  It was cute and whimsical and the flirt had an awesome pony tail that I was quite jealous of.
2. Miss Saigon – I had never seen this musical theater classic until this year.  I am so glad I was able to see it (and with a free ticket thanks to a friend of a friend).  The production was semi-professional.  I didn’t get to see a huge helicopter fly in, but it was still a very enjoyable show.
3. Blues & Brews Festival – I don’t recall very much from the Blues side of this festival, but the brews were delightful.  There were a bunch of local breweries represented and each had multiple brews to taste.  This was held during the summer and although it was nice to sit out on the grass and chill with a cold beer, there were two things that could have made it even better.  It was hot!  Not a problem.  Combine that with the fact that there was not a single tree in the field and that made things a little bit more uncomfortable.  Luckily it wasn’t a huge problem because the cold beer kept flowing.  The second fault was that it was summer time.  Yes, I know that explains why it was hot, but that is a downfall for another reason too.  Dark beers.  Porters.  Stouts.  No one had any dark beers.  I get it.  People want something light and fruity to drink in the summer time.  But my preference is for dark beer.  Still a good time was had by all.
4. Jesus Christ Superstar – I can’t complain at all about this.  Okay, never mind, I can.  The only problem was that it wasn’t a sing along.  Although I might have sang a little bit…very quietly.  This is one of my favorite musicals.  I love Andrew Lloyd Webber.  Multiple reasons.  Someone once told me that I sounded like Sarah Brightman when I was singing.  HUGE compliment even if I completely disagree with it.  I had a piano book of Andrew Lloyd Webber songs when I was younger.  I have fond memories of singing along.  I also have used “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” as my audition piece many times.  This musical could have been put on in someone’s backyard with people lip synching to the soundtrack and I would have loved it just the same.  Luckily it was a very original, contemporary take on the musical.  A fun night at the theater.
5. As You Like It – Not a fun night at the theater.  I left very disappointed.  I can’t honestly say that I remember a lot about the play other than leaving thinking “As I Don’t Like It”.  Shakespeare can be hard, but Shakespeare is often great  just because of the script.  Maybe in the future I will give this show another chance, but by a different theater indeed.
6. The Fantasticks – I saw this show at the same theater as As You Like It.  Luckily The Fantasticks is an amazingly funny comedy.  The minimalist set and feel of the show really catered to this theater much better than my failed Shakespearean evening out.  Once again, I wanted to sing along the entire show but managed to satisfy that desire with just mouthing the words.
7. Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat – Once again a musical for a cultural event, once again Andrew Lloyd Webber and once again a biblical story.  This production was put on by a college in town.  They did a great job.  Not everyone had a mic so some parts were hard to hear.  No need to worry though.  If you were sitting next to me I was reciting every line and singing every song right along with the actors.
8. The Wizard of Oz – This production was put on by a high school in town.  They did a very good job.  I might be biased though since one of the girls I danced with played Auntie Em.  Best Auntie Em I’ve ever seen.  To be truthful, I had never seen a stage version of this musical.  Obviously I have seen the movie too many times to count, and I was in the show many years ago, but I had never seen a stage version.  It was enjoyable.  I don’t want to sound like a broken record, but I might have sung along a little bit…or a lot.
9. San Francisco and surrounding areas – Yes, my musical and theater cultural events are over, unless of course you count that while in SF I saw Liam Tiernan of Barleycorn perform.  What to say about SF?  So many things.  I don’t even know where to start.  I originally was going to write about my trip in my NYR Update post, then I thought I would just include it here with my cultural events.  Now I fully realize that it needs a whole post of its own.  It was that awesome of a trip.
10. Wine Tour and Tasting – While I have been to wine tastings before, they were usually at a bar or at another event.  I had never gone to a vineyard and taken a tour.  While in California I got to visit the Chateau Julien Wine Estate.  Gorgeous!  The tour was fun.  We made it a girls’ afternoon out.  We got a drunk lady to take a blurry picture of us with the wine barrels and then she proceeded to drop her drink and glass shattered everywhere.
11. Casino Boat Cruise – Sure I have been to casinos before, and even a casino boat, but not one that heads out into the Atlantic Ocean.  This cultural event was both enjoyable and not so enjoyable.  The bad part was that apparently I get sea sick.  I was miserable.  I spent a few hours of the trip outside on the deck getting some fresh air trying not to puke.  The good part of the trip was that because I was out on the deck I wasn’t inside gambling and losing all my money.  I only lost about half my money.
12. Color Run – The Happiest 5K.  One of my friends started running and wanted a goal to help motivate her.  She chose the Color Run as her first race.  I jumped on the chance to run with her when she told me about the race.  We made it a short girls’ weekend adventure with a couple other runners on our team. Describing it doesn’t make it sound enjoyable, but this was one of the better races I have been to.  You obviously run a 5K, but at each kilometer people throw colored corn starch at you.  Trust me, this is enjoyable.  You scream, you jump around, you run, you dance.  Basically anything goes.  And by the end you are a complete mess of color.  Since I originally set out to make this blog about my running adventures, I feel the need to write an entire post on this event.  For the time being you can check out what Brit, my running partner, had to say about it on her blog.

I did do some other things this year as well.  I don’t feel like I need to tell you about absolutely everything since this is just an update to my New Years Resolutions.  So you get 12.  Deal with it.

You can’t dance if you aren’t music and energy, and if you met Balanchine

With Anthony Huxley in Rubies. (All photos by Paul Kolnik.)

In the mesmerizing solo in Wheeldon’s Polyphonia, where she drew us into her world.

At the time of her début in Polyphonia, I wrote: “A few days ago, when Sara Mearns performed the role, she seemed to expand, radiating energy outward; Lovette, instead, pulled us into her private world. She repeated a phrase, rising quietly on pointe and raising her leg, and then began to add gestures, a scooping up of the hands, a turn with the arms held aloft and then lowered into a kind of prayerful gesture. She accelerated slightly, she slowed down. Her fingers sparkled with life. She drew attention to every detail of the choreography and made us see it anew. In other words, she not only danced it beautifully, but made it her own.”

With Chase Finlay, again in Polyphonia.

Here she is in Stroman’s For the Love of Duke.

And here, in Balanchine’s Serenade, when she was still at the School of American Ballet.

There’s a video of her in Peter Martins’ Mes Oiseaux here. She’s the one with the bangs.

At the awards ceremony on Monday Lovette, who seemed slightly overwhelmed by her nervous excitement, spoke touchingly of her colleagues, the art of dance, and her sense of wonder at her own good fortune. The event was organized by Barnes’ widow, Valerie Taylor-Barnes, whom I recently interviewed for DanceTabs. She first met the critic when she was a dancer with the Royal Ballet. Fifty (!) years—and various wives—later, they married. Ms. Barnes has quite an eye; recent award-winners include Isabella Boylston (of ABT) and Chase Finlay (of NYCB).

For  updates, feel free to check out @MarinaHarss on Twitter. And I’m eager for your comments!

The article is mainly about the dearth of women choreographers in classical ballet (not modern dance, where there is no such shortage), and offers interesting insight as to why this may be occurring.  All I know is, it’s been an issue as long as I’ve been watching ballet.

The last time I watched any serious “modern” ballet choreography, it brought to mind a quote from a contemporary ballerina…something about being reduced to little more than a conveniently light body to be hauled around the stage.  I do remember seeing one ballet where the lone woman’s feet never touched the floor; she was handed from one male dancer to another.  I remember thinking that she must have been getting incredible mileage out of her pointe shoes.

More recently, I watched a video of a rehearsal of a modern ballet by the Paris Opera Ballet.  It seemed to be nothing more than a tangle of bodies interrupted by an occasional glare. Difficult to execute, yes…but worthwhile?  Not for me.

In fact, the thought has occurred that nearly all of the POB’s (and other companies’) modern works look one of three ways: (1) everyone is tangled up in a ball; then they untangle and then they tangle up again; (2)  the dancers are rolling around on the floor, or (3) they’re standing in a circle waving their arms over their heads.

In these ballets, the point of pointe is lost.  Women just wear pointe shoes and walk around on their toes.  There is no reason for it.  In fact, to me, there seems to be no reason for anything in these ballets.

Balanchine was different.  I admit I am not his biggest fan, but still, watching his creations as danced by the NYCB, they seem as fresh as if they were recently choreographed.  Mr. B. may have played with the classical medium almost to the breaking point,but he never went beyond that. And he never forgot that there were human beings on stage with a story to tell — whether or not there was actually any story to the given ballet.  He could convey heart and soul without splatting the dancers in fake blood.

And he allowed the women to move without being carried absolutely everywhere.  Also, I daresay that in Balanchine’s choreography, there is minimal rolling around on the floor and/or arm waving.  And I cannot remember seeing a Balanchine creation where there was a ball of dancers fraying and re-weaving and doing little else.

The basic rule that seems to get forgotten by most choreographers is that ballet is human.  Too much pure abstraction is boring; there has to be a beating heart somewhere.  The other rule — one mentioned by ballerina Natalia Makarova — is that ballet does not address heavy subjects (or current events) very easily or very well.   Occasionally it works, but the vast majority of “heavy” ballets I’ve seen have looked sophomoric.

Yes, love, betrayal and death are present in the old story ballets, but there is always some spiritual or mythological aspect.  Oddly enough, the strictly codified movements of classical ballet lend themselves well to the beating heart.  It’s as if they are a box that the human dancer can mold a bit with her (or his) own hands, heart, and mind.  The same movements do not lend themselves well to empty purity (rarely seen anyway), adolescent angst, or just dumb nothingness.  Any attempt in those directions is almost certainly doomed to failure.

Too often, it seems, modern choreographers forget these rules.  It leads to a lot of forgettable work.

That’s not to say that having women choreographers would change anything.  Still, it would be interesting to see if any actual wit or even just basic understanding crept into the proceedings were a woman to take the helm.

Adelaide Clauss and Philip Perez as Clara and the Nutcracker prince in Ratmansky’s Nutcracker for ABT. Photo by Gene Schiavone.

Seeing Balanchine and Ratmansky’s Nutcrackers back-to-back, one can’t help but compare their two. Yes, both are filled with tenderness and magic, but the overall style and approach could not be more different. Beneath the surface jollity, Balanchine’s Nutcracker is, unsurprisingly, much more formal. More of the story is conveyed in pure dance terms. Except, when it isn’t. In fact, the emotional heart of his ballet, I realized the other day, contains no dancing at all. And it is set to music from another ballet, the entr’acte from Sleeping Beauty. This yearning violin melody takes you straight to the heart of the story: a little girl encountering her first powerful emotions, which are a mystery even to her. She runs out, tiny feet flickering under her white nightgown, clutches the Nutcracker doll to her heart, and falls asleep on a couch in the cold living-room. From then on, all is mystery and magic.

The opening of the gifts. Photo by Gene Schiavone.

Alexei Ratmansky’s Nutcracker for American Ballet Theatre is less radical in its design (he does not alter the order of the music at all), and at the same time more layered and fussy. His is not a pared-down sensibility. (In the same vein, Richard Hudson’s designs are also loudly-colored and voluminous.) The ballet’s power lies in details, images that seem to come straight from the heart and to tap into a limitless reserve of memories.  Little scenes like a private moment shared by the family’s two maids after the Christmas party; they titter and gently mock the dancing of the guests, but then stop to clean up a spot on the floor. Or the way Clara suffers when her brother Fritz shoves the Nutcracker to the floor; she drags the life-size doll to safety, pulling with all her strength, alone in her private struggle. (The other toys come to the rescue, but run off as soon as they see her.) Ratmansky’s imagination teems with little stories that illuminate the ballet’s throwaway moments, especially in the stronger first act. Columbine and Harlequin’s little commedia dell’arte romance for the gathered guests is a jewel of dance theatre. As is the little courtship ritual for Sugarplum’s attendants at the beginning of the second act—they approach each other shyly, run away, gather up their courage again, bow, giggle, and walk off in pairs with nervous formality.

The snowflakes. Photo by Gene Schiavone.

There is no coup de théâtre in ABT’s productionequivalent to Balanchine’s awe-inspiring tree, or the sudden replacement of reality with abstraction that precedes the battle of the toy soldiers. Ratmansky’s transformation is more domestic, more tame; the tree is a disappointment. His battle, however, is terribly clever, with lines breaking and re-constituting themselves in different permutations. (Another touching detail: the toy soldiers quake with fear when they are overrun by the mice. They don’t want to die. They have souls.) Similarly, the Snowflake Waltz is a dizzying maelstrom of shifting patterns, sharpened by a frightening malevolence. The doubling of Clara and the Nutcracker Prince with adult versions of themselves is a powerful idea; the children see themselves in the future, and the two couples dance together, sharing a stage but divided by expanses of time. However the adult pas de deux at the end of the first act is rather amorphous, with the exception of a striking moment in which the male dancer turns and turns with the ballerina on his shoulders. Not so the rapturous pas de deux at the end of the ballet, which bubbles over with emotion; the adult Clara, especially, uses her torso and shoulders with great eloquence.  Exciting turns morph into lifts. The choreography is quite challenging, and not all the dancers can pull it off. (Ratmansky likes to push his dancers.) Perhaps it’s a bit over-literal to finish the ballet with a wedding, like the end of Sleeping Beauty. Ratmansky’s girl-woman is a universe away from Balanchine’s poised Sugarplum, who is less a woman than a symbol of womanly poise and grandeur. Ratmansky’s view is humbler, more human.

Sarah Lane and Daniil Simkin in the Chinese Dance. Photo by Rosalie O’Connor.

There are imperfections in the ABT Nutcracker: More of the music in the first act could be used for dancing; the Spanish dance in the second act is uninspired and engulfed in taffeta; and it seems a shame to have the women in the Waltz of the Flowers merely frame the action, most of which goes to a group of male bees. It’s a funny conceit, but the music demands more, with its melodic waves catching in the throat like sobs. Tchaikovsky buried a private drama in the petals of a pretty waltz, but you don’t see it here. But, on the other hand, there is the adorable Chinese dance, a frisky pas de deux that ends with a Charleston, and the delicious dance of the Mirlitons with their top hats, doing dainty tendus and gliding forward in a funny sliding walk that looks like something out of Alice in Wonderland. And the tiny polichinelles! They skip and kick and form a snaking conga line, bobbing their heads, and then drop to the floor and slide back between each other’s legs. The entire company looks engaged, challenged, and happy. It’s not a perfect Nutcracker, but when it’s good, it’s really really good.

Xiomara Reyes and Eric Tamm as Princess Clara and the Prince. Photo by Gene Schiavone.

It goes without saying…or at least it should, that RABs are always lurking around the corner, but that aside, how do Dyva’s survive the audition process?

Look no further, I will tell you…

The Dyva’s Survival Guide for Auditions:

The first step is home preparation. You know that any audition is going to conjure up some nervous energy, so spend the night before preparing anything and everything you may need for the big day: snacks, water, your resume, a pen, clothes you feel good dancing in, a change of clothes, shoes (tap, jazz, pointe, sneakers), DO for your B.O, your IPod and headphones…and of course, bright lipstick. **I forgot lipstick at my last audition earlier this week actually…and I definitely didn’t perform at my best…I’m just saying….

I’d rather be over-prepared than seizing in the corner with anxiety because I forgot my ballet shoes on my bedroom floor under the pile of dirty clothes (…true story for 17 year-old Nicole…) Put in the necessary time to make sure you’ve checked your bag for all of the essentials before you even go to bed.

Dyvas on Dyvas on Dyvas

So let’s say it’s the day of the audition, do yourself a favor and eat something…quality food please. Keep it clean so you don’t feel weighed down. Keep it substantial so you don’t feel famished by the time you hear “5-6-7-8”. Just keep it classy…I mean nourished…keep it nourished.

Breakfast: oatmeal with half a banana, almond butter, chopped dates, butterscotch chips, a shimmy of cinnamon, and brown sugar.
Lunch: Egg salad with avocado (wholly guacamole 100 cal packets instead of mayo) on two pieces of whole wheat bread, and some crunchy veggies.
Snack: Small apple with a handful of almonds or roasted chickpeas.
Dinner: Salmon with pesto and Parmesan cheese, and a side of steamed green beans.

There…now no matter what time of day you’re auditioning, you have no excuse not to eat healthy.

An hour before the audition:
Stop freaking out. Clap your hands in front of your face three times, and realize that in that particular moment, you have absolutely NO control over what will happen 60 minutes in the future. Make sure to give yourself ample time to warm up and physically prepare for whatever might be thrown at you. If you’re a yogi, see you in downward dog…if you’re a bunhead, see you at the barre…if you’re a RAB, go to hell. Trust your facility, and know that whatever happens…it’s going to be great!!! (…my motto for 2012…)

AUDITION TIME!!!
Take everything in stride, and do your best to stay focused. I find that the less time I spend glancing around worrying about what everybody else looks like, the more time I can invest in just picking up the information as fast as possible. Keep breathing, and never be afraid to stand out. **Try to use your context clues if you’re unsure about something: there’s never any harm in asking questions, but if it’s something you can figure out by observing others (…not judging), do that instead. It’s always better to stand out for your dancing (and lipstick), rather than your laundry list of questions and insecurities.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Now, what do I look for when I’m on the other side of the audition looking to cast dancers?

1. Confidence: Don’t be afraid to stand in the front row. It’s important to make your face seen, but don’t be too pushy; there’s a fine line between throwing elbows for the front row and being noticed because of your incredible skill and unique presence.
2. Stylistic Compatibility: Will your dancing fit the needs of my choreography for this specific project? I’m not going to cast a dancer with an affinity for lightness and free-flow if I’m looking to make a grounded hip-hop piece with bound flow…  (…wait…picture Balanchine tutting…you’re welcome…)
3. Your Reputation. Never forget how small the dance community is; we all talk. Be a professional: show up on time, show up prepared, and keep the talking to a minimum. Don’t make me blackball you… (I WOULD NEVER!…)
4. Our relationship. Have we met? Have we worked together before? Do we have matching friendship bracelets?
5. Scheduling: Sometimes timing just isn’t right. Nothing personal and no hard feelings.

Moral of the story: go in and do the job to the best of your ability. If you have a genuine interest in the project and are a good fit for the choreography, you can rest assured that if it’s meant to happen…it’ll happen.

May the odds be ever in your favor, Dyva!

MERDE ALERT!!!!

“Balanchine was a genius. Ashton, maybe, was close.”

GAH!!! To his credit, Ratmansky went on to say that he loves Ashton, but the damage was already done, and my psyche fell to the floor, bleeding a slow and agonizing death. Obviously, I disagree with Ratmansky’s assessment and of course I’m not the only one—luckily, a restorative elixir of life remained close, as I’ve never forgotten the following words I read in an interview with Baryshnikov: “Ashton’s not a lesser choreographer than Balanchine. Ashton’s a warmer choreographer—his skin is warmer, warmer as a person. I miss him.”

Post-resurrection, I began to consider the reverence of Balanchine and its effects on this generation’s dancers, choreographers, and even the audience. Balanchine was all the rage in Jennifer Homans’s book Apollo’s Angels, and he has throughout history been recognized for revolutionizing ballet. He is a wonderfully prolific figure and I don’t need to delve into his legacy because it’s so frequently discussed. However, I can’t seem to come to terms with such stringent standards for what defines a genius. I found Ratmansky’s words to be surprisingly rigid, and it made me wonder if he sees himself as a choreographer or a genius; but then that raises questions as to whether anyone who is genius truly seems themselves as such, because if someone is born with a certain aptitude, they only know their own point of view…so wouldn’t his/her self-image seem entirely normal in reflection? Ratmansky is rather humble anyway, and like most artists I’m certain he just wants to create, actualize his visions, and be proud of the results.

I’m not letting go of this “Balanchine-on-a-pedestal” business though. It’s not as though he doesn’t belong there, I just don’t think he should be alone, nor do I think it impossible for new choreographers to join him. I have a tendency to accept the idea of self-fulfilling prophecies and if idolatry of Balanchine goes too far, then no choreographer will ever surpass him because they’re indoctrinated with the belief that they can’t, which is indeed the fatal error. Actually, I should rephrase that because surpass is the wrong word—it’s not necessary to “surpass” Balanchine—the idea is to create in ways he didn’t, knowing that he couldn’t. “Compare and contrast” is a dangerous thing to do because it can be such a double-edged sword; one must be able to assess oneself relative to others without getting overwhelmed with competitiveness. Don’t get me wrong—there is a wealth of Balanchine ballets that I absolutely adore, but even a love of his work on a deeply personal level warrants some analysis. For example, I have no problem with admitting that Balanchine’s batterie is not the most interesting part of his work to me, but the batterie in ballets of Bournonville and even Ashton never fail to throw me into a stupor of fascination. If only I could bottle the essence of Bournonville’s ability to create such intricate sequences…I’d contaminate everyone’s drinking water, after taking a healthy swig or two myself.

Meanwhile, I also find it curious that some of Balanchine’s ballets that have not survived the test of time are rarely discussed. A few years ago I was doing a little research on his Metamorphoses, as it was created to Paul Hindemith’s ‘Symphonic Metamorphosis,’ a piece of music that I love to bits and pieces. Unfortunately, my research revealed two things: one, that the ballet has never been revived after Tanaquil LeClercq (upon whom it was made), was stricken with polio, and two, that the description and photos of it revealed a ballet that didn’t fit what I had imagined. Balanchine interpreted the music as a fantasy on insect life, which was perhaps too literal, though I don’t object to the idea as there are trills and such which can conjure images of swarms of fluttering insects. At any rate, the full title of Hindemith’s score is actually ‘Symphonic Metamorphosis of Themes by Carl Maria von Weber,’ and it’s that musical transformation that remains the central idea for me, as opposed to a biological metamorphosis. Having played ‘Symphonic Metamorphosis’ as a part of a wind symphony, I suppose I had experienced the music as quite grand in scope, beyond something terrestrial like the livelihood of insects—the music itself is far too menacing. The last movement (and by far my favorite) is epic—it’s the kind of music that raises your heart rate and can have the audience leaping out of there seats by the end, and yet Balanchine had the dancers fitted with giant feathered wings, and according to LeClercq, there was “lots of running around with poses [and] not much dancing.” It just doesn’t seem right and from photos the wings looked cumbersome and to a modern eye, rather dated.

Reviews generally noted the exhilarating spectacle of Metamorphosis and seemed to like Karinska’s bizarre costumes for it, but there is a possibility that Metamorphosis offered nothing profound. A vehicle for LeClercq yes, but a masterpiece? Impossible for me to say, and the number of people who have seen it is only dwindling. Still, I can’t help but feel that even if Metamorphosis were to be revived, the reality may very well be that it wouldn’t resonate with the audiences of today for any other reason than nostalgia for something Balanchine and an appetite for something different of his. To update it now would be something of a revisionist history anyway, and the ballet itself almost sounds a bit loony—a madhouse of strange costumes, Chinese/Balinese inspired movements, metal springs, and even a pas de deux between a dragonfly and a beetle, where the beetle partners the dragonfly entirely on his knees merely because Balanchine wondered if it was possible, and challenged himself to do it. As the remnants of Balanchine’s Metamorphoses gather dust on shelves, would choreographers today challenge themselves to take on the score he once used, with a belief that they could succeed with it, or more importantly, do—dare I use this ever precarious word—better? And is it audacious to think it possible, or is it a necessary human characteristic? And how does the human tendency to blur the lines between ego and belief play a factor?

Tanaquil LeClercq in ‘Metamorphoses’ (her partner might be Todd Bolender) Photo ©Gjon Mili/LIFE magazine

I have no idea, but what I do know is that to live a life in fear (or perhaps in this case, inferiority) is a folly. Especially in ballet—we’re all about fine lines and balance so surely a healthy and honest harmony between the awe of others can be woven with a cherishment of oneself. Although it’s never guaranteed, every great achievement begins with a seed of belief. And so does every…uh…“less-than-stellar” one. After all, even the choreographer of “the Chicken Dance” can claim an immortality that Balanchine can’t, even if I’d rather have Serenade danced at my wedding.

The North Star Ballet follows a traditional Balanchine choreography, and is a spectacular show if you’ve never seen it, or go every year. Performances this year feature returning guest dancers from Ballet West, Deanna Karlheim and Hannes Van Wassenhove as the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier.

The Nutcracker will be performed tonight, Nov. 30 at 8 p.m. tomorrow Dec. 1 at 2 and 8 p.m. and Sunday Dec. 2 at 2 p.m. Again I encourage everyone to support their local art scene and show them how much you appreciate their hard work.

Happy holidays!

Guests look on during the first-act party scene as Ian Zeisel dances the role of soldier doll.

Clara’s attention is beckoned to the guard house moments before the Nutcracker turns into a prince.

Wendy Langton and Ian Zeisel as the Snow Fairy and her Cavalier pose and snow drifts down around the dancers.

Lleyton Ho (Nutcracker prince), Robert La Fosse (Herr Drosselmeier), and Claire Abraham (Marie) in Balanchine’s “Nutcracker,” at New York City Ballet. Photo by Paul Kolnik.

Tiler Peck as Dewdrop in the Waltz of the Flowers. (photo by Paul Kolnik.)

Rebecca Krohn as Arabian Coffee. (Photo by Paul Kolnik.)

Photo by Nikolay Krusser

I have just been to see the New York City Ballet perform George Balanchine’s Nutcracker.

It was really beautiful, however I was amazed at how much detail went into a lot of the costumes.

The costumes and set used were the original pieces from the fifties, when Balanchine choreographed the show. The costumes were all designed by Karinska. She collaborated with Balanchine for the majority of his ballets and from this she became an innovator and created new, more practical ways of making tutus. Through a different method of layering fabric, she created tutu’s which didn’t ripple or bunch up. This has now become the standard way in which tutu’s are made.

Karinska’s costumes are truly beautiful. However, as an audience member, I feel like there would be so much more detail and embellishment if I were to see one of her garments up close. She once said that the detail wasn’t just there for the audience, it was to make the dancers look beautiful too..

And here is a short excerpt:
“hen something is beautifully made it never gets old. So it is with Balanchine’s Nutcracker, first performed by New York City Ballet in 1954 and honed to near-perfection over the years. There are good performances, bad ones, and every so often a magical one, but even a middling one will do, because the structure is sound. First, there is Tchaikovsky’s score: imaginative, filled with whimsy, but also, without warning, steeped in drama. Balanchine’s interpolation of the yearning violin cadenza from The Sleeping Beauty into the scene in which Marie falls asleep with the Nutcracker in her arms is so seamless, and feels so appropriate, that one would never guess the music had been smuggled in from another ballet.”