July 9, 2010

Review : Degas’ Little Dancer, Back at the Palais Garnier

Laura @ 16:47 —
Filed under: English, Reviews/critiques — Tags: , , , , , —

La petite danseuse de Degas
Choreography: Patrice Bart
Paris Opera Ballet
Palais Garnier
29 June 2010

“The Little Dancer Aged Fourteen” is one of the Musée d’Orsay’s best-known pieces. Perhaps even more than his numerous paintings of dancers, Degas’ small bronze statue with its inscrutable expression captures the ambivalence of a young ballerina’s dreams in the 19th century. The discovery of the model’s identity in the 1990s prompted the idea of a ballet based on her life: a romantic young girl studying at the Paris Opera Ballet School is pushed by her mother to seduce the “regulars” in a ballet world where sex is the route to preferment. And who better than the Paris Opera Ballet itself to dance the story of her demise?

The idea may have been excellent, but the resulting production, premiered in 2003, is almost fatally flawed. The score that Denis Levaillant was commissioned to compose is not dance-friendly – obscure and at times dissonant, it fails to evoke the lively atmosphere of 19th-century Paris, not helped either by the set’s drab backcloths. The costumes, from the reproduction of the Little Dancer’s tutu to an eccentric take on bustle gowns in the second act, are charmingly sophisticated, a trademark of the Paris Opera, but the world Patrice Bart translates to the stage emerges with little resonance, historical or otherwise. (…)

» Read the full review in the Financial Times





June 26, 2010

Review : An early Kylián tale

Laura @ 21:35 —
Filed under: English, Reviews/critiques — Tags: , , , —

A late post, but Kylián’s Kaguyahime is on at the Opéra Bastille until July 15!

Kaguyahime
Choreography: Jirí Kylián
Paris Opera Ballet
Opéra Bastille
21 June 2010

Western dance has been exploring the far east this spring at the Paris Opera Ballet. The season has brought a revival of the exotic La Bayadère, Siddharta, a new work based on the life of the Buddha, and now the company premiere of Jirí Kylián’s Kaguyahime. Based on the 10th-century Tale of the Bamboo Cutter, the oldest surviving narrative in Japanese literature, this 1988 work impressively intertwines two theatrical traditions.

It tells the story of Kaguyahime, a moon princess who descends to earth and whose beauty provokes war and chaos among men before she returns to the sky. Kylián’s contemporary staging is respectful of the tale’s enigmatic symbolism. Kaguyahime, in a glittering white unitard, is a remote presence. The men’s earthy dances evoke a latter-day Bayadère divertissement, while the broken lines and open palms, inspired by many-armed Hindu gods, insist on the message of peace the princess brings with her. (…)

» Read the full review in the Financial Times





May 1, 2010

Review : The empty quest of Siddharta

Laura @ 14:53 —
Filed under: English, Reviews/critiques — Tags: , , , —

Siddharta
Choreography: Angelin Preljocaj
Paris Opera Ballet
Opéra Bastille, Paris
11 April 2010

If you have been wondering what is wrong with the Paris Opera Ballet these days, don’t miss Siddharta. This lavish creation is the latest and perhaps most obvious symptom of the derailment of a system – a state-funded institution with a budget most other companies can only dream of, but with no artistic control other than that of its long-time director. A lot of money has obviously been thrown at this season’s major premiere, created in the large Opéra Bastille – with a commissioned new score, splendid sets, shiny new costumes and gorgeous promotional images, how could it go wrong? Well, it did, with some of the most blindingly mediocre choreography I have seen in a long time. Is there a captain onboard?

Siddharta is based on the mystical journey of the man about to become the first Buddha. We witness him unhappy at his father’s court and with his wife Yasodhara; an immaterial being, the Awakening, impersonated on stage by a woman, appears and persuades him to leave his material life behind to commit himself to an ascetic existence. In the end, having overcome tentation, he becomes one with the Awakening. Spirituality should shine through in this story, but the production does the opposite: it sacrifices content to form. The commissioned score by Bruno Mantovani, difficult and dark, is not without interest, and yet Preljocaj only ever uses it for cheap effects – the entrance of Siddharta to guitar riffs, for instance. The stunning sets created by Claude Lévêque are another missed opportunity. The enormous sphere hanging over the initial scene of decay, swaying back and forth like a monstrous reminder of time, filling the air with incense-like smoke, is the most striking image of the ballet. Without a choreographic response, however, it is little more than an empty vessel. (…)

» Read the full review in Ballet.co Magazine

Aurélie Dupont & Nicolas Le Riche in Siddharta © Anne Deniau

Aurélie Dupont & Nicolas Le Riche in Siddharta © Anne Deniau

Siddharta
Choreography: Angelin Preljocaj
Paris Opera Ballet
Opéra Bastille, Paris
11 April 2010If you have been wondering what is wrong with the Paris Opera Ballet these days, don’t miss Siddharta. This lavish creation is the latest and perhaps most obvious symptom of the derailment of a system – a state-funded institution with a budget most other companies can only dream of, but with no artistic control other than that of its long-time director. A lot of money has obviously been thrown at this season’s major premiere, created in the large Opéra Bastille – with a commissioned new score, splendid sets, shiny new costumes and gorgeous promotional images, how could it go wrong? Well, it did, with some of the most blindingly mediocre choreography I have seen in a long time. Is there a captain onboard?

Siddharta is based on the mystical journey of the man about to become the first Buddha. We witness him unhappy at his father’s court and with his wife Yasodhara; an immaterial being, the Awakening, impersonated on stage by a woman, appears and persuades him to leave his material life behind to commit himself to an ascetic existence. In the end, having overcome tentation, he becomes one with the Awakening. Spirituality should shine through in this story, but the production does the opposite: it sacrifices content to form. The commissioned score by Bruno Mantovani, difficult and dark, is not without interest, and yet Preljocaj only ever uses it for cheap effects – the entrance of Siddharta to guitar riffs, for instance. The stunning sets created by Claude Lévêque are another missed opportunity. The enormous sphere hanging over the initial scene of decay, swaying back and forth like a monstrous reminder of time, filling the air with incense-like smoke, is the most striking image of the ballet. Without a choreographic response, however, it is little more than an empty vessel.





April 1, 2010

Interview : Maverick Marie-Agnès Gillot in Pointe Magazine (April/May 2010)

Laura @ 21:46 —
Filed under: English, Interviews — Tags: , , —

Marie-Agnès Gillot was the first dancer in the history of the Paris Opera Ballet to be made an Etoile not at the end of traditional full-length ballet, but after a contemporary performance. It was Carolyn Carlson’s Signes, in 2004, and since then Gillot has remained the most peculiar star of the company – with few classical heroines in her repertoire, but instead a wealth of tailor-made creations and avant-garde collaborations. I caught up with her a few months ago for a Reverence interview published in the latest issue of Pointe Magazine, with the lovely Maria Kochetkova on the cover:

Cover of the April/May 2010 issue © Pointe Magazine

Cover of the April/May 2010 issue © Pointe Magazine

You are a choreographer as well as a dancer. What drew you to hip hop for Les Rares Différences, the piece you made for the 2007 Festival of Dance in Suresnes?
My subject was Auguste Rodin. I needed bodies like sculptures—ballet dancers are too lean. Hip hop dancers have an absolutely statuesque upper body. I learned a lot from hip hop, too, especially from the movement dissociations.

What are you currently working on?
I’m putting together the first dance flash mob in France, for a charity. We will have professional dancers performing in a train station.

Who inspires you?
All of my colleagues. I pay a lot of attention to them, and I always find something that I would like to replicate. I love taking a little something from everyone.

Of which accomplishment are you the most proud?
I loved my first Don Quixotes and Swan Lakes. It was a consecration—I was already an étoile, even though I didn’t have the title. The audience and the orchestra were stamping. My dressing room was so filled with flowers I couldn’t sit. (…)

» Read the full interview in Pointe Magazine: ‘The Maverick Star,’ April/May 2010





February 19, 2010

Review : Mad professors in the Nutcracker house (Natalia Osipova & Nikolai Tsiskardize in Paris)

Laura @ 16:56 —
Filed under: English, Reviews/critiques — Tags: , , , , , —

The Nutcracker
Choreography: Rudolf Nureyev
Paris Opera Ballet
Opera Bastille, Paris
19 December 2009 & 9 January 2010

The Paris Opera Ballet’s 1985 version of The Nutcracker must be a surprise for anyone used to the English or American versions, with their often cutesy designs and feel-good effect. Rudolf Nureyev was always interested in psychoanalysis, and his reading of the tale is linked to his vision of a child’s psyche – the first act’s children are truly mean little creatures, and Clara certainly doesn’t dream of a sugary Fairy. What she sees when she falls asleep is deformed visions of her reality, of those who surround her – magnified into characters dances or terrifying, as she still resists the world of adults. When she imagines herself as a woman in the final Grand Pas, her prince is none other than her old, limpy godfather Drosselmeyer, who fascinates her throughout. In other words: the world of children is not pretty, and Tchaikovsky and Freud can apparently meet.

(…)

Fielding enough excellent casts for a month-long run is a challenge nowadays. N’est pas Elisabeth Maurin et Laurent Hilaire qui veut – the creators of the main roles were a rarity, two dancers capable of being both a young girl and a ballerina, in the case of Maurin, and an old magician who can moonlight as a Prince for Hilaire. It was a true priviledge this year to see the two Russian guests brought in by the Paris Opera Ballet, Natalia Osipova and Nikolai Tsiskaridze, as the production didn’t defeat them – they showed, on the contrary, how the Russian school and good old Bolshoi stagecraft can overcome hurdles that even the best French “Nureyevists” struggle with. Neither tries to nail each step technically to a T. Instead they are performing, each in their own eccentric style. (…)

» Read the review in full in Ballet.co Magazine

Myriam Ould-Braham & Nikolai Tsiskaride in The Nutcracker © Julien Benhamou

Myriam Ould-Braham & Nikolai Tsiskaride in The Nutcracker © Julien Benhamou





January 14, 2010

Now online: Brigitte Lefèvre Interview for Pointe Magazine (April/May 2009)

Laura @ 00:16 —
Filed under: English, Interviews — Tags: , —

Early last year I interviewed Brigitte Lefèvre for Pointe Magazine, and asked the almighty Artistic Director of the Paris Opera Ballet how she went about casting the many works performed by the company. The article was published in the April/May 2009 issue of the magazine, but her answers are now also online on Pointe’s shiny new website, in the archives section:

Cover of the April/May 2009 issue © Pointe Magazine

Cover of the April/May 2009 issue © Pointe Magazine

How do you go about casting each program?
I am in charge of all the casting, but it is really a group effort: I work very closely with the chief ballet master Patrice Bart and the administrator Olivier Aldeano. I try to figure out which dancer is best for each type of choreography, and whether it would be interesting to give someone who has been cast in classical works a chance to venture into something different. I don’t want dancers to become specialized.

How does the hierarchy at POB affect casting?
It sets rules—it is a basis for mutual comprehension. It used to be very rigid, but I think we have succeeded in making it both present and very flexible. When Benjamin Millepied choreographed Triade last year, I didn’t hesitate to entrust a young dancer with one of the main roles. I remain very cautious though, because the company has many étoiles and it is my duty to cast them. Everyone wants to dance, obviously. (…)

» Read the full interview in Pointe Magazine: “Classical to Contemporary”, April/May 2009





December 24, 2009

Review : Chasing the character of the Ballets Russes

Laura @ 10:01 —
Filed under: English, Reviews/critiques — Tags: , , , , , , , —

Ballets Russes
Le Spectre de la Rose / L’après-midi d’un faune / Le Tricorne / Petrouchka
Paris Opera Ballet
Opéra Garnier, Paris
18 December 2009

The centenary of the Ballets Russes has provided ballet companies with the opportunity to revive great works, many of them routinely achieving what eludes most creations today: an alchemy born not only of choreography, but also of music and design. The credits for the Paris Opera Ballet’s latest triple bill form a Who’s Who of ballet in the 1910s: Nijinsky, Fokine, Massine, Picasso, Bakst, Benois, Stravinsky, not to mention the dancers that once shared the stage with them. Where the works stand, however, today’s performers don’t always relate to the character flavor of the choreography, despite the glittering array of Principals on display for the filmed performances of the run.

Le Spectre de la Rose is an important work, perhaps the first manifestation of a woman’s desire in classical dance, but it is also the one piece on the program that seemed in serious need of a new design. The girl’s bonnet is now faded, old-fashioned in an intrusive way, while the Rose’s pale unitard and its pink petals only serve to make the feminine lines of today’s performers more obvious. Or is it just that we have lost something essential – the rich metaphor once conveyed by Nijinsky and Tamara Karsavina? On the basis of this performance, it is quite likely. Matthias Heymann turns the Rose into a jumping exercise – his eyes tend to go dead, and while he has clearly worked on his ports de bras, a certain stiffness remains. His partnering is also remarkably pedestrian – when the girl reaches out for him, he is happy to catch his breath for a minute behind her. His Rose is devoid of any perfume, but then – why throw him into a filmed performance so young, when comparisons will be made? Isabelle Ciaravola, now 37, but made an Etoile the same night as Heymann, gives a sensitive performance. Delicate and shy when she enters, she looks stunningly young as the young girl dreaming about her rose. There’s a hint of French 19th-century romanticism about her, and although she works her unnaturally arched feet to the point of distortion, her sense of wonder brings some meaning to a pale Spectre. (…)

» Read the full review in Ballet.co Magazine

Benjamin Pech in Petrouchka © Sébastien Mathé / Opéra National de Paris

Benjamin Pech in Petrouchka © Sébastien Mathé / Opéra National de Paris





December 4, 2009

Make Your Own Ballet Christmas in Paris

Laura @ 23:04 —
Filed under: English, News, Other — Tags: , , , , , , , , , —

Dorothée Gilbert and Manuel Legris in Nutcracker © Sébastien Mathé / ONP, 2007

Dorothée Gilbert and Manuel Legris in Nureyev's Nutcracker © Sébastien Mathé / ONP, 2007

It’s that time of the year again, and the Paris Opera Ballet is celebrating in style with the perennial holiday favorite, The Nutcracker, and a Ballets Russes program comprising of four ballets rarely danced by the company today.  If you fancy a Freudian Sugar Plum Fairy, the original Petrouchka or simply a chance to go and see the Christmas lights in Paris, here are a few tips, starting with the usual dilemma: which dancers shall you see?

Tree growing at the Opéra Bastille – Nutcracker casting

Myriam Ould-Braham & Nikolai Tsiskaridze

© David Elofer / Dmitry Rozhkov

© David Elofer / Dmitry Rozhkov

Beauty and the Beast
19 December (evening), 22 December

Why you want to see them : strong contenders for most unlikely couple of the year, and yet – the petite, delicate Paris Opera soloist and the tall Bolshoi star who ranges from teddy bear to neurotic on stage might be magic together. Myriam Ould-Braham was filmed in the role two years ago, and it is an all too rare occasion to witness her lyrical, absorbing presence. Tsiskaridze could make the odd Drosselmeyer/Prince of this version work, and we would then be in for a truly Freudian Nutcracker, in the best Nureyev tradition.

Potential holiday fun : watching Nikolai Tsiskaridze trying to work his long legs and bravura Moscow persona around Nureyev’s insanely complicated petit allegro choreography. When inspired, he does also occasionally hang on to nearby curtains.

» Video : Nikolai Tsiskaridze in Yuri Grigorovitch’s Nutcracker (Bolshoi Ballet)

Natalia Osipova & Matthias Heymann

© Andrei Melanin / ONP

© Andrei Melanin / ONP

The Firecracker Competition
8 & 9 January (evening)

Why you want to see them : She is the It Russian Girl of the ballet world – he is the latest prodigy of the Paris Opera Ballet. Neither has danced Nutcracker before, and neither is entirely right for the ballet, but watching them outdo each other in terms of stage presence and technical tricks should be an experience in itself. Natalia Osipova, the Bolshoi star now in demand everywhere, is a rare treat in Paris, and her high-flying sense of fun can be a breath of fresh air.

Potential holiday fun : Matthias Heymann, the happy kid on the block, as Clara’s old, grey-haired, limping godfather Drosselmeyer. A hilarious first act should ensue.

Dorothée Gilbert & Matthieu Ganio

© ONP / Michel Lidvac

© ONP / Michel Lidvac

Hieratically French
11, 13, 14, 25 & 29 December

Why you want to see them : They are two of the brightest young stars of the company, and although they haven’t been paired very often, their elegant, hieratic styles should complement each other perfectly. Matthieu Ganio, hopefully back for good after several long-term injuries, is a beautifully understated dancer, who should bring dignity to Drosselmeyer and the Prince. Gilbert was made an Etoile in the role of Clara two years ago, and she is entirely at home in Nureyev’s combinations of combinations.

Potential holiday fun : Which one of them will regret first to have agreed to five performances (seven for Dorothée Gilbert), and throw Nureyev overboard for a version of the choreography that would actually be fun?

» Video : Dorothée Gilbert in the final Pas de Deux of the ballet, with Manuel Legris

Myriam Ould-Braham & Emmanuel Thibault

© David Elofer

© David Elofer

Phantoms of the Opera
5 & 9 (matinee) January

Why you want to see them : Both are so rarely allowed on stage, let alone together, that their partnership has almost become a legend. The atmostphere at every one of their appearances in classical ballets was electrifying, and I cherish the memory of their Don Quixote and Fille mal gardée. Ekaterina Maximova & Vladimir Vassiliev invited them to perform at their 50th Anniversary Gala. Old-school stagecraft is their secret, and dancing together they are a wonder, an 18th-century painting come to life.

Potential holiday fun : Emmanuel Thibault flying across the stage, but watching them have fun together should be enough for a bright New Year in any event.

» Video : Myriam Ould-Braham & Emmanuel Thibault in a Vassiliev Pas de Deux

Mathilde Froustey & Matthias Heymann

© ONP

© ONP

Ambitious Youth
23 & 26 December

Why you want to see them : Both are crowd-pleasers, and Froustey is the undisputed darling of the French audience, who has been waiting in the wings of stardom for a few years. A born Fille mal gardée, she knows how to capture attention, and her technique is both strong and light, despite her thinness. The youthful couple of the run.

Potential holiday fun : Seeing them flirt with you, dear audience, much more than with anybody on stage.

Outsiders : Mélanie Hurel, Christophe Duquenne & Alessio Carbone, three strong and experienced soloists; Ludmila Pagliero & Josuah Hoffalt, who have both just been promoted to the rank of premiers danseurs.

Back to the Ballets Russes, once more

Le Spectre de la Rose / Le Tricorne / L’après-midi d’un faune / Petrouchka

Petrouchka and L’après-midi d’un faune were last seen in Paris in 2001, and when Le Tricorne was performed for the last time, Brigitte Lefèvre wasn’t heading the company yet (prehistoric times, in other words).  This Ballets Russes offering is an occasion to see a whole new generation take on legendary leading roles, and some performances will be filmed, with broadcasts and a DVD to follow.

Don’t miss :

  • Nicolas Le Riche and Clairemarie Osta in Petrouchka, in different casts. Sadly, Manuel Legris has pulled off his scheduled performances in the ballet due to injury, but Nicolas Le Riche should bring maturity and experience to the title role. Clairemarie Osta, on the other hand, was born to dance the Ballerina, and her Ondine-like eyes and soft lines should work wonders on stage.
  • Emmanuel Thibault and either Delphine Moussin or Clairemarie Osta in Spectre de la Rose. Matthias Heymann will be featured on the future DVD, but Emmanuel Thibault is a special performer, all lightness and infallible style. This may be the last occasion to see him in this iconic role.
  • José Martinez and Eve Grinsztajn in Le Tricorne, in different casts. José Martinez has been dancing the main role since 1992, the year he was promoted to Premier Danseur, and he even took part in its Moscow premiere at the Bolshoi, in 2005. A lucky role for the Spanish dancer, who will be featured on the DVD. Eve Grinsztajn, on the other hand, will not, but the fiery Première Danseuse, who had early triumphs as the Street Dancer in Don Quixote, should bring all the needed weight and strength to the Meunière.
  • Nicolas Le Riche or Jérémie Bélingard in L’après-midi d’un faune. Pure sensuality ahead with these two – remember Le Riche in Béjart’s Boléro. Jérémie Bélingard was even in a commercial for Jean-Paul Gaultier not so long ago, and his very physical stage presence should fit the Faun like a glove.

Dancers of the American Ballet Theatre in Petrouchka © Gjon Mili / Time Inc. (1946)

The American Ballet Theatre in Petrouchka © Gjon Mili / Time Inc. (1946)



But it is sold out…

This being ballet-starved Paris, both Nutcracker and the Ballets Russes program sold out within hours. So what can you do if you are coming in December, or if you still want to?

  • Check daily, and even several times a day, the website of the Paris Opera. Once in a while, a few (usually top-price) tickets for one or more performances are made available this way, but you’ll have to jump on them.
  • Audience members will sometimes sell tickets they cannot use, and a lot of them do so on Dansomanie, a popular French website, via “post-it” posts on top of the main discussion board. Be aware though that the number of people looking for Nutcracker tickets is higher than ever, especially for Natalia Osipova and Nikolai Tsiskaridze’s performances.
  • If you are in Paris and want to see a performance, go and queue for returns at the box-office. They are sold at regular prices around 45 minutes before the performance, but the queue around Christmas gets absolutely huge, and if you want something you should plan to arrive several hours in advance. If you are eligible for concessions last minute tickets, don’t waste your time – these are only sold after everyone in the returns queue has been served, and as the French would say, hens will grow teeth before that happens in December.
  • Beware of the black market – you will undoubtedly find resellers around the entrance of each Opera, Bastille and Garnier, who try and sell cheap tickets at five times their regular price. Don’t accept.

Finally, if you can’t find anything, don’t be too disappointed – the Ballets Russes program will be broadcast live in French, Belgian and Swiss cinemas on 22 December (see the list here), with a DVD to follow. The Nutcracker was filmed two years ago with Myriam Ould-Braham and Jérémie Bélingard, but it has yet to be released.

Happy holiday season!

More links:
» Official casting for Nutcracker on the website of the Paris Opera Ballet
» Official casting for the Ballets Russes program on the website of the Paris Opera Ballet
» Elizabeth Maurin and Laurent Hilaire in the two main pas de deux from Nureyev’s Nutcracker (TV production, 1989)
» Laëtitia Pujol and Manuel Legris in the final pas de deux
» Rudolf Nureyev in L’après-midi d’un faune (Afternoon of a Faun)





November 20, 2009

Review : In Jewels’ Paris store (Ashley Bouder and Gonzalo Garcia at the Palais Garnier)

Laura @ 01:59 —
Filed under: English, Reviews/critiques — Tags: , , , , , , , , , , —

Jewels
Paris Opera Ballet
Palais Garnier, Paris
5 & 12 November 2009

The Paris Opera Ballet clearly loves Jewels. Since its French premiere, in 2000, the company has danced it nearly 90 times – easier to tour than a narrative full-length, but still evocative of the supposed grandeur of the institution, Balanchine’s triptych has been shown in Australia and a good number of French cities. In the meantime, portions of the ballet, dressed by Christian Lacroix, have also started to look like a VIP party – smart, scintillating, and about as poetic as the jewellery section of the nearby Galeries Lafayette, despite Ashley Bouder and Gonzalo Garcia’s welcome visit.

As it is, Emeralds may be quintessentially French, but it is not sophisticated Lacroix French, despite the rather fitting creations of the designer. A good many dancers seem confused about the atmosphere they’re supposed to impersonate – some go for the big smile, some for expressionless, but an uneasiness persists over the potential lyricism of this intimate jewel. Strangely, those mixed feelings still work well in the Molto Adagio that closes the ballet. At this point, the seven soloists seemed to me a new image of a decadent nobility hanging on to its delicacy of manners, the men absent princes, the women already in another world – as if the chain they form and re-form was already dead, buried by too many changes. (Whether that bodes well for the company is another matter.)

Clairemarie Osta was head and shoulders above everyone else in this fleeting ballet, which fits her like a glove. In the Sicilienne solo, she is entirely lost in her world – an underwater kingdom where playing and mourning are two sides of the same thing. Her curtseys are little surprises, invitations to the invisible, but the Ondine she impersonates so well has clearly discovered the weight of the years gone by. Later on, in the pas de deux, nostalgia wins – a nostalgia triggered by the absent presence of her partner (Benjamin Pech, at his most pallid). Her expressiveness and longing find no echo in him, and she seems again to be waiting for something that no longer exists – gazing into an empty path while walking delicately on pointe, her solitude magnificent.

» Full review on Ballet.co (Ashley Bouder, Gonzalo Garcia, Aurélie Dupont in Rubies, Marie-Agnès Gillot in Diamonds…)





October 16, 2009

Russian Guests

Laura @ 15:32 —
Filed under: Français, News — Tags: , , , , , —

Paris et Londres s’apprêtent à accueillir plusieurs danseurs venus du Mariinsky et du Bolshoi cet automne, et cette célébration imprévue et involontaire du centenaire des Ballets Russes a de quoi réjouir dans les deux villes – et rendre uniques quelques représentations de La Belle au bois dormant et de Casse-Noisette.

Le Royal Ballet, dont ce début de saison est marqué par une cascade de blessures et d’indisponibilités, a fait le choix du remplacement haut de gamme en invitant Evgenia Obraztsova, première soliste au Mariinsky. L’absence annoncée de Lauren Cuthbertson jusqu’en 2010 est à l’origine de cette venue ; la troupe anglaise avait déjà invité la saison passée Ekaterina Osmolkina à venir combler les rangs de ses Odette/Odile. Evgenia Obraztsova, qui a dansé la première de ce même ballet avec le Ballet du Mariinsky cet été à Covent Garden, se produira aux côtés de David Makhateli. Filmée dans Les Poupées Russes (Cédric Klapisch) et Ballerina (Bertrand Normand), elle a notamment dansé la première cette année de la reconstruction de Shurale, sans compter ses apparitions dans les rôles de Juliette, Giselle, la Sylphide ou Aurore.

A Paris, c’est Natalia Osipova, l’envers fougueux de la Russie, qui va danser pour la première sur la scène de l’Opéra Bastille avec Nikolaï Tsiskaridze, déjà apparu avec l’Opéra de Paris dans La Bayadère. Prévus dans une série où les étoiles se faisaient rare dans les rôles-titres, les deux solistes du Bolshoi aborderont le Casse-Noisette de Rudolf Noureev, version inédite dans leur répertoire. Natalia Osipova n’a d’ailleurs jamais dansé le rôle de Clara à Moscou – sa présence devrait ajouter d’autant plus de piquant à un ballet déjà présenté par l’Opéra il y a deux ans, et qui n’est pas sans défauts. La troupe parisienne, de son côté, poursuit sur sa longue lignée d’invités russes, qui inclue ces dernières saisons Svetlana Zakharova, Diana Vishneva et Svetlana Lunkina.

L’Europe de Londres et de Paris se tourne donc à nouveau vers la Russie – l’histoire se répète, comme on dit.

Evgenia Obraztsova dansera le rôle de la Princesse Aurore avec le Royal Ballet les 31 octobre (matinée) et 14 novembre. Les dates des représentations de Natalia Osipova et Nikolaï Tsiskaridze restent à préciser – merci à Dansomanie pour l’annonce de leur venue.





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