One Balmy August Evening - My Memory of Carla Fracci

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At the end of July and the first few days of August 1970. American Ballet Theatre visited the Royal Opera House.  They brought such great names as Cynthia Gregory, Sallie Wilson, Han Enelaar and Erik Bruhn. But the greatest of all was Carla Fracci.  I saw her at the height of her career in her greatest role one balmy August night nearly 51 years ago.

Although I was only 21 at the time I had already seen several productions of Giselle by the Royal Ballet and other companies.  And I have seen countless productions since then.  Many of these have been good and some have been great such as Lauren Cuthvertson's of 2 April 2016 (see Cuthbertson's Giselle  3 April 2016). None of them has equalled Fracci's performance that evening in August.  I can't remember who was her Albrecht.   I think it must have been Bruhn but I didn't pay him or for that matter, any other dancer much attention because Fracci commanded the stage in a way that I had never seen before or since.  Every detail of every scene from her exit from the cottage in Act I to her descent into her grave in Act II is recorded in my memory as though it were a film.

When I saw that performance of Giselle  I was a  Young Friend of Covent Garden.  As such I received 2 sheets of ticket vouchers every month that enabled me to sit in the L to Ps of the amphitheatre stalls for just a few shillings.   I think I visited the House just about every night.  I remember a very rich and varied programme that included Swan Lake and Giselle but also Balanchine, de Mille and Tudor. But nothing stuck in my memory like Fracci's Giselle.   She literally took my breath away.  For her acting which you can see in this clip as well as her virtuosity.

I never saw Fracci again after that tour.  I think the company returned in 1977 to celebrate the Queen's silver jubilee but I don't remember Fracci.  An army of obituarists and biographers have charted her career since her death 4 days ago.   It would have been necessary to refer to their work to write one of my own.  In this blog, I try to be original.  There is happily a lot of video footage of Fracci at the height of her career which I am gratefully working through now, Misquoting Nero, qualis artifex obiit. 

Dance in the Gulf

Along with lots of interesting news of its participation in the Patron's Lunch, a parade of its dancers and teachers in London, a pop up event in Birmingham and other activities in Leeds and Ormskirk to celebrate the Queen's 90th birthday, the latest email newsletter from the Royal Academy of Dance links to an article in the Kuwait Times about Teni Matian, an RAD teacher who "helps girls in Kuwait learn to soar".

The reason I take an interest in the region is that I also blog about intellectual property and other legal issues in the Gulf. I am on the lookout for news about dance in the region because dance notations, musical scores, stage backdrops and even some props and costumes can be copyright works and dancers and musicians have the right in countries that are party to the Rome Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organisations to object to the filming, taping or broadcasting of their performances.

A lot of money is going into the arts as states in the Gulf seek to diversify their economies and that has resulted in the construction of new auditoriums for the performing arts. One of the most impressive is the Royal Opera House in Muscat where the English National Ballet performed Le Corsaire between 10 and 12 March 2016. Other companies that are scheduled to visit that venue include the Eifman Ballet and American Ballet Theatre. The Eifman Ballet will dance Anna Karenina (which Mel saw in Budapest last Monday) between 15 and 17 Dec 2016 while ABT will dance Giselle on 6 and 7 April 2017.

While there is a very well established national ballet in Egypt at the splendid Cairo Opera House where I once saw a performance of Act I of The Nutcracker I have not been able to find any professional ballet companies in the Gulf itself. I believe there was once a very good Iranian ballet but that has been forced underground and overseas (see Wikipedia Iranian National Ballet Company). I have not been able to discern a consensus among my Muslim friends as to whether ballet is compatible with Islam (any more than I have been able to detect a similar consensus among my Quaker friends whether it is compatible even with that faith), but ballet certainly seems to be taught to children in many Islamic countries and not just wealthy ones like Kuwait (see Gaza Ballet School 3 Jan 2016). It would be nice to think of some of Teni Martian's pupils making a career in dance.

Isabella Boylston's latest Role - Principal Dancer with ABT!

Isabella Boylston and Daniil Simkin in ABT's Swan Lake 

©  Gene Shiavone 2012

After tremendous performances in this season's roster of classics at American Ballet Theatre (Bayadere, Giselle and Swan Lake), Isabella Boylston learned of her latest role on 30th June 2014 - that of Principal Dancer with the company!

It is with an infinite amount of gratitude and joy that I announce my promotion to principal dancer today @ABTBallet !!
— Isabella Boylston (@IsabellaABT) June 30, 2014

With her crisp, athletic jumps, exquisite lines and superb musicality, Boylston has been on my YouTube list of ballerinas (aka those dancers who I will probably never get the chance to see perform live) for sometime. She was the gold medallist at YAGP in 2001 and joined ABT in 2006 as an apprentice. After officially joining the corps in 2007, Boylston was promoted to the rank of Soloist in 2011 and even made appearances in ballet technique videos with respected teacher and former dancer Finis Jhung. Boylston is a true technician, one of those who will always be referred to as a 'dancers' dancer, and provides me with endless sources of inspiration in class (I've asked myself 'what would Isabella do?' on occasions!)

Anyway, you can see for yourself just how stunning she is in this video from Lincoln Centre:
Other end of season movements include promotions to the rank of Soloist for Joseph Gorak, Christine Shevchenko, Devon Teuscher and Roman Zhurbin. Congratulations to all!!

Ballet 101 - for those need it

In an American university the foundation class for a new subject is numbered "101". Thus, introductory French is designated "French 101".  In anticipation of a visit to Washington DC by American Ballet Theatre, New York City Ballet and the Russian National Ballet Theatre and a season by the District's own Washington Ballet, Stephanie Merry, the Washington Post's arts correspondent, offers "Ballet 101: Dispelling myths for newcomers and skeptics" in today's paper.  As she puts it,

"Ballet is more than layers of tulle and satin shoes. It’s ripples of muscle, explosive athleticism and inexplicably moving stories."

However, the best bit of Merry's article is the video in which Septime Webre, Artistic Director of the Washington Ballet and two male members of his company offer some useful tips for enjoying ballet to those new to ballet.

On the company's website there  is an even better "Ballet 101" which covers History of Ballet, The Famous Ballets, Septime’s Top 10 Must See Ballets (which includes I have yet to see but omits Sleeping Beauty and La Fille mal Gardee which I find surprising), Tips for Enjoying the Ballet with which I heartily agree and some useful Ballet Terms.

Most "newbies" - as Webre calls newcomers to ballet - are captivated the first time they attend a performance.   If not by the dance then by the music, sets, costumes or drama.  Ballet is the fusion of many arts.  That's why it is so captivating.