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25
Thu
Jul
2019
19:30
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26
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Sep
2019
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$50 |
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AC1, 4/F, Administration Building, Hong Kong Cultural Centre |
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08
Thu
Aug
2019
19:30 |
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$50 |
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AC2, 4/F, Administration Building, Hong Kong Cultural Centre |
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Dance
Lecture Series on Appreciating Ballet — The Legend Continues
(Conducted in Cantonese)
Charismatic dancers of the 20th century - Vaslav Nijinsky, Margot Fonteyn, Rudolf Nureyev, Natalia Makarova and Mikhail Baryshnikov – are superstars who had interpreted countless dance classics and are loved by millions of dance enthusiasts. These outstanding dancers inherited and passed down centuries of ballet traditions and opened up new horizons in the realm of dance. They danced, and in the wake of their excellence, choreographed, dedicating themselves to the creation of new dances that stood at the forefront of their times, or supervising the staging of their own versions of full-length productions.
The lecture series this year has The Legend Continues as its theme. We will revisit various thrilling excerpts of the gravity-defying moments of these great ballet dancers, and appreciate a new generation of dance stars who have taken the baton in their performance of representative classical and contemporary pieces.
July 25 - Margot Fonteyn
The most crowd-pulling prima donna of the Royal Ballet from the 1930's to the 1950's, Margot Fonteyn (1919-1991) devoted her entire life to ballet and earned herself a world-wide reputation. With her much applauded outstanding performance as Princess Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty, she became the brightest star of the company, and the ballet has since been designated as one of the premier productions in its repertory.
The great choreographer, Frederick Ashton, deemed Fonteyn his muse and choreographed many timeless pieces for her, such as Scènes de ballet, Sylvia and Ondine, which elevated her further in her career. Her performance in Swan Lake and Firebird also demonstrated her outstanding ability in interpreting different roles.
Video clips: The Royal Ballet (United Kingdom)
August 1 - When Nureyev Meets Fonteyn
In 1961, when Rudolf Nureyev (1938–1993) toured Paris with the Kirov Ballet (now Mariinsky Ballet) and took it as an opportunity to defect to the West, he made headlines in international news. The following year, at Margot Fonteyn's invitation, he partnered with her in Giselle, and it became an instant sensation. Despite an age difference of nineteen years, the dance duo oozed a rapport that seemed to rise from the heart's core. From 1962–mid 1970's, Nureyev joined the Royal Ballet as its Principal Guest Artist. His strong, masculine leaps and fluent turns and his masterful control of his explosive dynamism on stage bolstered the erstwhile supporting role of the male ballet dancer.
The performances of Le Corsaire pas de deux, Swan Lake, Les Sylphides and Romeo and Juliet by this near-perfect legendary duo have made ballet history as all-time favourites.
Video clips: The Royal Ballet (United Kingdom) and Wiener Staatsoper Ballet (Austria) etc.
August 8 - Marguerite and Armand
Frederick Ashton chose Liszt's Piano Sonata for his choreography of the one act ballet, Marguerite and Armand, thus providing the setting for the dramatic delineation of Marguerite's tragedy by Margot Fonteyn and Rudolf Nureyev, the perfect dance couple.
When the curtain opens, the bedridden Marguerite is alone in her bedroom. She recalls in utter misery and loneliness her first encounter with Armand, how they fell in love, and later separated under duress, and the ensuing humiliation she suffered. Armand finally arrives in her last moments to declare his love. They bid each other an emotional farewell before Marguerite breathes her last in her lover's arms.
As we watch the interpretations of dancers of later generations – Sylvie Guillem and Nicholas Le Riche, Tamara Rojo and Sergei Polunin, Zenaide Yanowsky and Roberto Bolle alongside that of Fonteyn and Nureyev, perhaps we can feel how our hearts go out to the protagonists of this famous story of tragic love.
Video clips: The Royal Ballet (United Kingdom) and Paris Opera Ballet (France) etc.
August 15 - Natalia Makarova and her Swan Lake
A student at Leningrad Choreographic School (formerly the Imperial Ballet School), Natalia Makarova danced for the Kirov Ballet for fourteen years and was deemed the prima ballerina of the troupe. She sought political asylum while she was on a tour to London in 1970. She continues to perform classical dances after leaving the USSR, but she also performs dances by contemporary choreographers of the West.
As one of the top torch-bearers of the Russian school of ballet, Makarova brings to life the character traits of the two completely different personas - Odette and Odile in Swan Lake - with exquisite spontaneity. Her masterful portrayal of the distinct contrast between the two roles is most adept, showing a magical stage charisma.
Later, based on the original choreography of Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov and incorporating her own insights from accumulated experience, Makarova choreographs her own version of the full-length Swan Lake. She is often invited by ballet troupes all over the world to supervise the staging of this timeless classic.
Video clips: American Ballet Theatre, London Festival Ballet (United Kingdom), The Royal Ballet (United Kingdom) and The National Ballet of China etc.
August 22 - Mikhail Baryshnikov
Mikhail Baryshnikov has been eager to perform contemporary dance of various genres and subject matter but was forbidden to do so. So he defected in 1974 when touring with the Kirov Ballet in Canada. A dancer with consummate techniques and a charming stage presence, Baryshnikov is most adept at mastering the essence of different genres of dance.
Upon settling in the US, Baryshnikov continued to collaborate with choreographers from all over the world. They created many new works for him, such as American choreographer Twyla Tharp's Sinatra Suite, Jerome Robbins'Opus 19/The Dreamer, and English choreographer Frederick Ashton's Rhapsody. These exquisite ballets are still being staged by dance companies today.
Video clips: Paris Opera Ballet (France), American Ballet Theatre, The Royal Ballet (United Kingdom) and New York City Ballet (United States) etc.
August 29 - Don Quixote
Rudolf Nureyev had always loved Don Quixote, a ballet rich in the Spanish styles, so he created a version featuring the Prologue and Acts I to III. He had retained the entire mise en scene of the Kirov Ballet of Don Quixote visualising the image of Dulcinea and the gnomes and fairies in the woods. Added to Act II is a romantic duet by the male and female protagonists in front of the giant windmill under the moonlight; humorous and comedic excerpts are also enriched to inject more dynamism and energy to the dances to delight the audience.
In the 1970's, Nureyev choreographed a full-length production of Don Quixote for the Australian Ballet, and later turned it into a movie, taking up the dual roles of dancer and director himself. Between 1983 and 1989, he served as artistic director for the Paris Opera Ballet, so his Don Quixote, as a matter of course, became a part of its repertory. In 1985, Nureyev was invited to travel to Beijing to stage Don Quixote for the Central Ballet (now the National Ballet of China). Since then, other than the Central Ballet, many European dance companies have staged his production.
Video clips: Paris Opera Ballet (France), Australian Ballet, The National Ballet of China and Teatro alla Scala Ballet (Italy) etc.
September 5 – Cinderella
Sergei Prokofiev's ballet score inspired Rudolf Nureyev to choreograph a full-length ballet about the movie world. He transposed Cinderella's story to the 1930's star-studded and glitzy world of Hollywood in the USA. This three-act ballet tells the story of Cinderella who, despite being abused by her stepmother and stepsisters, manages to attend a gala casting event for a new movie at the studio with the help of the producer. At the casting, she encounters the most sought-after male star of the time, and the two fall in love. At midnight, in her haste to quit the studio, Cinderella leaves behind her shoe. The male star searches high and low for his beloved and finds her only after many trials and tribulations. Cinderella is offered a contract to star in a new movie as its female lead. Her dream comes true.
Video clips: Paris Opera Ballet (France)
September 12 - La Bayadère
Full of exotic flair and enjoying lasting popularity, La Bayadère is a classic example of the Russian school of ballet. As early as 1980, based on Petipa's choreography and décor, Makarova conceived and produced her version of a full-length La Bayadère. Its main difference from Nureyev's is that Makarova's three-act version provides an intact storyline and an ending, where the spirit of the dead Nikiya re-emerges; on Gamzatti and Solor's wedding day, because the latter has broken the betrothal vow with Nikiya, the gods destroy the entire temple in their wrath, burying everyone. Solor and Nikiya's spirits soar to heaven and re-unite with each other.
The staging of La Bayadère in 1992 was Nureyev's last full-length production for the Paris Opera Ballet before his death. He had intended to stage all four acts as performed by the Kirov Ballet, but due to deteriorating health, he could only finish the rehearsals for three. In the La Bayadère staged by the Paris Opera Ballet, the coda features Solor and Nikiya's reunion in the Kingdom of Shades, their performance of the solo variations, the veil pas de deux and the splendid and poignant corps de ballet. The Paris Opera Ballet is to date the only dance company that has kept Nureyev's La Bayadère in its repertory.
Video clips: Paris Opera Ballet (France), The Royal Ballet (United Kingdom), Teatro alla Scala Ballet (Italy) and The National Ballet of China etc.
September 19 - Nijinsky Sketches
Hailed as the god of dance, Vaslav Nijinsky's (1889-1950) prime on the dance stage lasted only ten years, but the personas he sculpted of in Petrushka, Scheherazade, Le spectre de la rose, La Carnaval and Les Sylphides remain vivid and memorable even after a whole century. These personas also reveal Nijinsky's multi-faceted personality. His choreography for L'après-midi d' un faune and Jeux, whether in terms of subject matter, the use of dance idiom, and the presentation of his choreographic conceit, reveals the fruit of an innovative and avant-garde artistic endeavour and points the way forward for contemporary ballet.
Video clips: Mariinsky Ballet (Russia), American Ballet Theatre and Paris Opera Ballet (France) etc.
September 26 – Nijinsky
John Neumeier, artistic director and choreographer of the Hamburg Ballet, once remarked that the genius of Nijinsky lies partly in his outstanding ability to transform. Once he immerses himself in a role, he would be able to assume the persona inside out in aspects of gesticulation, mien and airs. One cannot forget Nijinsky after casting one’s eyes on him.
Using the legendary life of Nijinsky as the subject matter, Neumeier's two-act ballet Nijinsky (premiered in 2000) purports to show the struggles of Nijinsky's inner world, its bafflements, pressure and his quest for a spiritual sanctum. There is the tussle between subjective and objective emotions: the turmoil of World War I, the three-way complex relationship between him, Sergei Diaghilev and his wife Romola Pulszky, and the challenges he encountered in the pursuit of ideals as a dancer and choreographer. Has he gone mad? Or is it the world in which he lives has gone mad?
Video clips: The Hamburg Ballet (Germany), The National Ballet of Canada and Australian Ballet etc.
(Free Seating)
Each lecture lasts for 2 hours without intermission.
The speaker reserves the right to change the content(s) selected for screening.
TICKETING
DATE VENUE PRICE 25.7.2019
1, 15, 22, 29.8.2019
5, 12, 19, 26.9.2019
(Thursdays) 7:30pm
1, 15, 22, 29.8.2019
5, 12, 19, 26.9.2019
(Thursdays) 7:30pm
AC1, 4/F, Administration Building, Hong Kong Cultural Centre
$50
8.8.2019 (Thursday) 7:30pm
AC2, 4/F, Administration Building, Hong Kong Cultural Centre
$50
DATE25.7.2019
1, 15, 22, 29.8.2019
5, 12, 19, 26.9.2019
(Thursdays) 7:30pm
1, 15, 22, 29.8.2019
5, 12, 19, 26.9.2019
(Thursdays) 7:30pm
PRICE
$50
DATE8.8.2019 (Thursday) 7:30pm
PRICE
$50