Jewels: November 2nd, 2019 - Vienna State Opera

Jewels.

The name sounds expensive and perfect for a box-office hit. But when Balanchine's "plotless full-length ballet," premiered at New York City Ballet on April 13, 1967, it had no title, only three sections called Emeralds, Rubies, and Diamonds. (Balanchine explained, "I thought of doing sapphire, too—I had Schoenberg in mind, but the colour of sapphire is so hard to get across on stage.")

The original printed programme from April 13th, 1967 offered the following note by Lincoln Kirstein:

"The idea for a new ballet using highly jewelled costumes was started in Europe over fifteen years ago when Mr George Balanchine and Mr Claude Arpels were introduced by violinist Nathan Milstein but it was not until early 1966, after a visit by Mr Balanchine to Van Cleef & Arpels' Fifth Avenue Salons, that the idea of the ballet really began to grow. So impressed was Mr Balanchine by the beauty of the jewels he saw there, that he decided to try to capture it forever. The jewel motif in the three ballets is carried through by Mme. Karinska's costume designs with a strong emphasis on jewelled decoration."

Natascha Mair. Copyright: Vienna State Ballet / Ashley Taylor

Just a few thoughts before commenting on last night's Première:

Dancing Balanchine is very tricky. And also extremely dangerous.

I can still remember times when ABT dancers would not dare to think about dancing the New York City Ballet's repertoire. It was simply unthinkable. Balanchine is not only another „style".

It is another intellectual approach to Dance.

It is even more than that: It is another state of mind and that cannot be learned in a few weeks rehearsals.

Think of Patricia MacBride, Carol Sumner, Edward Vilella, Karin von Aroldingen, Gelsey Kirkland, Peter Martins and so many others who were „brought up" with this special approach to Dance.

Even great stars like Baryshnikov did the unforgivable great mistake of misjudgement when it came to Mr B.'s Dance.

Especially because his work was always changing and being polished over and over again.

In the purest sense of the word:

IN MOTION!

Nowadays, after his death, his work is, so to say, „frozen".

And I do surely believe that this was not his intention...

For all the care about „being truthful" to Mr B's approach to dance – and so many companies around the world have added parts of his repertoire to their programmes, my point is: Mr B's work cannot be considered only just a „part of the repertoire". It is full-time work. But I guess that my attitude towards his work is much more strict and serious than the many companies all over the world that „try" nowadays to perform it.

I do admire the Vienna State Ballet's work and the way it worked hard on Mr B's legacy but there is still a lot of work to be done. Yes, a lot.

Nikisha Fogo. Copyright: Vienna State Ballet / Ashley Taylor

I won't go into details except for mentioning Miss Madison Young's complete lack of understanding of what Balanchine is all about. I do not blame her for this unlucky portrayal but the kind of coaching she got was very misleading... She emphasizes extremely on facial expressions that'd be more appropriate in other ballets, like an overdramatic and exaggerated portray of a (very suffering) Giselle.

To my point of view a complete misunderstanding of Mr B's work. He NEVER choreographed his pieces for suffering Ballerinas' (and their suffering faces syndrome) that tend to overplay, overact... This is an abstract work. Not „Sleeping Beauty".

She was lucky though to have a great partner like Roman Lazik at her side: always a gentleman, reliable, talented – perhaps the only one „Danseur Noble" that our Opera has had in many years.

Ketevan Papava, Davide Dato, Ioanna Avraam, Alice Firenze, Dumitru Taran and Jakob Feyferlik gave very good, very correct performances, but to make long stories short: there were only three shining jewels on stage last Saturday.

Because of their understanding of what Balanchine is all about – also technically – and also because of their physiques that suit so well into his work:

Olga Esina & Jakob Feyferlik. Copyright: Vienna State Ballet / Ashley Taylor

Natascha Mair, a beautiful colourful emerald of the “first magnitude”, Nikisha Fogo a dazzling ruby and, of course, Olga Esina, to whom „Diamonds" could have been choreographed for: a marvellous, transparent diamond.

Three beautiful „jewels" here in Vienna.