[11 of 100] Jewels
Our friends are awesome.
lyonesse , nacht_musik , veek , and And/or housemate M. got Tish and I an early wedding present of tickets to the opening night of Jewels and a dinner at Mistral. We haven't had the dinner yet, but tonight was opening night for the ballet and we had ninth-row seats to see it in all its glory.
Jewels was first performed in 1967. It is a full-length abstract ballet in 3 acts, set to music by three different composers: Faure, Stravinsky, and Tchaikovsky. The acts are also often read as homages to the three cities that Balanchine was most influenced by. The first act is "Emeralds", set to the Faure, inspired by Paris, where Balanchine lived when he was dancing with and choreographing for Diaghlihev's Ballet Russe, the second is "Rubies" with music by Stravinsky and inspired by NYC where, of course, he founded the New York City Ballet with Lincoln Kirsten,, and the third is "Diamonds" to Tchaikovsky and inspired by St. Petersburg, where Balanchine received all his ballet training between the ages of 9 and when he left for Paris.
There is interesting ballet scuttlebutt about the piece as well. Balanchine had a habit of falling in love with his ballerinas--he married 4 or 5 of them and had at least one long-running relationship with another one who he never legally married. When he choreographed Jewels he was in love with Suzanne Farrl, and he wanted to create "Diamonds" for her as a grand romantic statement. In setting the ballet, though, "Rubies" took on a life of its own. 'Emeralds" is soft and fluid, "Diamonds" grand and imperious, clearly recalling all the grand classical ballets Balanchine was raised on. But "Rubies" is, simply, brilliant. It is fast and edgy, playful, sensuous, challenging, sexy. Edward Villela, the dancer who originated the male lead in "Rubies" and who had a volatile personl relationship with Balanchine, said in his autobiography (aptly titled Prodigal Son, the name of another ballet Balanchine made for him) that he felt that in "Rubies" Balanchine had given him a love letter that honored Villela's childhood growing up on the streets of Brooklyn. These days, "Rubies" is performed by companies around the world, while "Diamonds" is rarely seen.
The Boston Ballet production was wonderful. I was bored by Lorna Feijoo's performance in "Emerald," but then, I am almost always bored by her. Erica Cornejo, on the other hand, was transcendant. The difference between the two ballerinas was like the difference between cheap fish and chips and really amazing sushi. The fish and chips might be nutrionally similar, except for its higher fat content, but it's also mushy and overdone. Really great sushi, on the other hand, is crisp and fresh and each of the ingredients has its flavor come through in both its individual element and as a harmonious whole. When Lorna was on stage on yawned, when Erica was onstage I forgot to breathe. Larissa Ponomorekno and Roman Rykine in "Diamonds" epitomized the grand Russian tradition with perfect aplomb and regality. But it was, as always, "Rubies" that stole the show. Meliisa Hough, James Whiteside, and Kathleen Breen Combs, soloists all, took in the flavor and the sass, the boldness and the play and showed it to us in all its glory.
lyonesse , nacht_musik , veek , and And/or housemate M. got Tish and I an early wedding present of tickets to the opening night of Jewels and a dinner at Mistral. We haven't had the dinner yet, but tonight was opening night for the ballet and we had ninth-row seats to see it in all its glory.
Jewels was first performed in 1967. It is a full-length abstract ballet in 3 acts, set to music by three different composers: Faure, Stravinsky, and Tchaikovsky. The acts are also often read as homages to the three cities that Balanchine was most influenced by. The first act is "Emeralds", set to the Faure, inspired by Paris, where Balanchine lived when he was dancing with and choreographing for Diaghlihev's Ballet Russe, the second is "Rubies" with music by Stravinsky and inspired by NYC where, of course, he founded the New York City Ballet with Lincoln Kirsten,, and the third is "Diamonds" to Tchaikovsky and inspired by St. Petersburg, where Balanchine received all his ballet training between the ages of 9 and when he left for Paris.
There is interesting ballet scuttlebutt about the piece as well. Balanchine had a habit of falling in love with his ballerinas--he married 4 or 5 of them and had at least one long-running relationship with another one who he never legally married. When he choreographed Jewels he was in love with Suzanne Farrl, and he wanted to create "Diamonds" for her as a grand romantic statement. In setting the ballet, though, "Rubies" took on a life of its own. 'Emeralds" is soft and fluid, "Diamonds" grand and imperious, clearly recalling all the grand classical ballets Balanchine was raised on. But "Rubies" is, simply, brilliant. It is fast and edgy, playful, sensuous, challenging, sexy. Edward Villela, the dancer who originated the male lead in "Rubies" and who had a volatile personl relationship with Balanchine, said in his autobiography (aptly titled Prodigal Son, the name of another ballet Balanchine made for him) that he felt that in "Rubies" Balanchine had given him a love letter that honored Villela's childhood growing up on the streets of Brooklyn. These days, "Rubies" is performed by companies around the world, while "Diamonds" is rarely seen.
The Boston Ballet production was wonderful. I was bored by Lorna Feijoo's performance in "Emerald," but then, I am almost always bored by her. Erica Cornejo, on the other hand, was transcendant. The difference between the two ballerinas was like the difference between cheap fish and chips and really amazing sushi. The fish and chips might be nutrionally similar, except for its higher fat content, but it's also mushy and overdone. Really great sushi, on the other hand, is crisp and fresh and each of the ingredients has its flavor come through in both its individual element and as a harmonious whole. When Lorna was on stage on yawned, when Erica was onstage I forgot to breathe. Larissa Ponomorekno and Roman Rykine in "Diamonds" epitomized the grand Russian tradition with perfect aplomb and regality. But it was, as always, "Rubies" that stole the show. Meliisa Hough, James Whiteside, and Kathleen Breen Combs, soloists all, took in the flavor and the sass, the boldness and the play and showed it to us in all its glory.