Monthly Archives: December 2009

Until soon …

By admin
From the studio

Behind Ballet is taking a little holiday over the Christmas period, but we’ll be back in the new year.

If you need to get your ballet on over the break, you can visit The Australian Ballet’s website for videos, galleries, season info and more, wiggle over to our YouTube channel, or swing by Facebook.

Thanks for reading this year. Sophie Bastas is the winner of our comment of the month competition for December for her beautiful missive on Damien Welch’s final performance. For January, we’ll be giving away copies of Graeme Murphy’s Swan Lake on DVD to TWO lucky commenters, so please keep the good stuff coming! We’ll announce the winners at the end of the month.

Have a fantastic Christmas and a balletlicious new year,
Behind Ballet

Image: Lana Jones. Photography Justin Smith
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23 December 2009
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Stephanie Williams’ top five

By Isabel Dunstan
From the studio

Coryphée Stephanie Williams has only been with The Australian Ballet three short years, but has already danced an impressive array of lead roles. We celebrate Stephanie’s recent double Telstra Ballet Dancer Award win by sharing some of her favourite performances to date.

Concord
I was in both Por vos muero and Dyad 1929. For me, Por vos muero is the complete package. I fell in love with dancing it, and I fell in love with watching it – you can’t always say that. Dyad 1929 was incredible too. I loved watching Wayne McGregor work and hearing what he had to say – I liked being the sponge. No one had any pre-conceived ideas about the work, so I could just go out, dance and be me completely.

Jerome Robbins’ Afternoon of a Faun
This is a work of pure genius. Throughout the ballet, you hardly catch eyes with your partner, but when you do it’s magical. It’s the most beautiful thing on stage when you share a moment with your partner that no one else truly understands. I was honoured to dance this with guest artist Cedric Ygnace for the Sydney season.

Stanton Welch’s The Sleeping Beauty
I love The Sleeping Beauty because it’s really classical, and that’s what you always dream of dancing as a little girl. I performed the role of the Lilac Fairy, which is very challenging. When I perform it I really feel like I’ve been taken away to another world. (more…)

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22 December 2009
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Becoming the Marschallin

By Isabel Dunstan
The Silver Rose

The Silver Rose tells the tale of the Marschallin, a celebrated actress who is facing the passing of time and the fading of her youth. The Marschallin’s lover Octavian finds himself unexpectedly enraptured by Sophie, a younger woman. While watching her lover drift into the arms of another, the Marschallin remains resilient but finds herself in the shadow of young love. Graeme Murphy choreographed the role of the Marschallin on Sherelle Charge for the Bavarian State Ballet. Now Sherelle is teaching principal ballerinas of The Australian Ballet the ways of this complex character.

The Marschallin is a beautiful, strong character. Do you think she might go down as one of those roles dancers dream to perform?
Absolutely. It’s a character that gives the ballerina a chance to delve deeply into her emotional side. What’s so enjoyable for the dancer performing the Marschallin is that she has this dual personality. She shows an external strength but, internally, she’s very fragile. She’s really struggling with her personal life and how she’s aging. It’s an issue you see every day in Hollywood, with women filling their face full of Botox and trying to do everything to stop themselves from getting old. Time is something that affects the Marschallin deeply, and not just physically. She’s had a history of many men and she’s realising this is finishing. It’s not her personal look that’s changing – it’s her whole life.

When the Marschallin is on stage, you get a real sense of her past. What kind of history did you create for her?
I think you craft a history for every role you perform on stage. But in The Silver Rose you really have the chance to see that she has a story to tell. In the initial scene she is having a nightmare about her past lovers. You can see that she was always very dependent on her youth and beauty. (more…)

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18 December 2009
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White Knights

By admin
Film

Picture this: Mikhail Baryshnikov in a dusty room, being seduced by a red-lipped grim reaper. He throws himself onto wooden furniture and is eventually coerced into committing suicide. This is the opening sequence to Taylor Hackford’s 1985 film White Knights in which Nikolai Rodchenko (Baryshnikov) and evil Colonel Chaiko mimic the two rival nations – Russia and the US – during the Cold War.

What follows is a drama slash dance film set in Leningrad, starring Baryshnikov alongside tap great Gregory Hines. Paralleling aspects of his own life, Baryshnikov plays Russian dancer and defector to the US Nikolai Rodchenko. Nikolai’s plane is forced to land in Russia, leaving him a prisoner to the evil Colonel Chaiko. Hines plays an American expatriate who becomes involved with Nikolai’s plight to escape Russia’s Orwellian society and return to America.
There is romance, car chases and a soundtrack from the likes of Lionel Ritchie, all punctuated by intelligent and powerful dance scenes. Highlights include Baryshnikov’s passionate solo to Vysotsky in a deserted Mariinsky Theatre and his infamous pirouette gamble. Hines bets Baryshnikov eleven-Rubles in exchange for eleven pirouettes. They are done effortlessly. Blink and you’ll miss them.

While you may have seen Baryshnikov’s acting abilities as Carrie Bradshaw’s ‘lover’ in the final season of Sex and the City, it is truly amazing to see his acting talent alongside his natural talent: dance.

Marissa Shirbin was a dancer, is now a romancer and an editorial assistant at Right Angle Publishing

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17 December 2009
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Having a wonderful time!

By Anna Sutton
From the studio

In an age where superliners tend to resemble shopping malls on water, Darcey Bussell’s new role as godmother to the P&O’s Azura will inject some good old-fashioned glamour into the world of pleasure cruises.

Cruise ships used to be places where, if the movies are anything to go by, you might have chanced upon a dapper group of African-American musicians jamming with Fred Astaire in an Art Deco ship’s engine room. Now we have Darcey to rekindle the idea that cruise ships should be places of style and charm rather than floating theme parks where cattle roam hungrily amongst the video game arcades and 24-hour buffets.

Bussell, who is well known internationally for her career as a ballerina as well as her current role as Strictly Come Dancing judge in the UK, will smash open the champagne at a naming ceremony for Azura in Southampton in April next year.

Only a few months ago the world’s largest cruise liner, Oasis of the Seas, began its maiden voyage from Helsinki to Florida. Weighing in at roughly 226 000 tonnes to Azura’s 115 000, I would say it probably heaved rather than glided out of the harbour. Quality over quantity should certainly prevail when members of the Royal Ballet perform on deck at Azura’s launch next year.

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14 December 2009
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Ask Colin: male dancers

By Colin Peasley
Ask Colin

Dear Colin,
Can you tell me what a male ballet dancer is called?
Kathy

Dear Kathy
That’s exactly what they are called – male dancers! Originally in Italy they were known as ‘ballerinos’ but this was never used outside of that country. In France they are called ‘danseurs’ and this is occasionally used in other countries, but in English speaking countries the regular term is simply ‘male dancers’. In The Australian Ballet they are also know by the rank they have obtained in the company – corps de ballet, coryphée, soloist, senior artist and our top rank, principal artist. You can learn more about our male dancers on our website.
Best wishes,
Colin

Dear Colin,
My nine-year-old son Orlando is only one of two boys enrolled in our local small town dance school.  Although he is extremely dedicated, how can we encourage his continuing involvement in dance during future years when his resolve may be tested?
Rhonda

Dear Rhonda
The main problem with learning dance in a small town dance school is the lack of competition for male dancers.  Males need to feel challenged so that they do not lose interest.  As there is only one other male in the school, I suggest that you stimulate his interest with DVDs of dance, especially ones where the male dancers exhibit athletic as well as aesthetic excellence . It would also be a good idea if his teacher occasionally rewarded his hard work by allowing him to join a higher class. Finally, ask the teacher of the school to join The Australian Ballet Buddies programme.  This allows the students of the school to correspond with a company dancer and, when the occasion arises, meet with them.  More information can be found on our website .
Best wishes,
Colin

You can email your ballet questions to Colin at hello@behindballet.com

Images: Tristan Message takes a Boys’ Day class. Photography Jim McFarlane
Kevin Jackson. Photography Justin Smith
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11 December 2009
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