6/1/20 O&A NYC DANCE: Spectre de la Rose- Rudolph Nureyev and Denise Jackson

DeniseJacksoninLeSpectredelaRose197Le Spectre de la rose (English: The Spirit of the Rose) about a young girl who dreams of dancing with the spirit of a souvenir rose from her first ball.  Continue reading

4/17/20 O&A NYC SHALL WE DANCE FRIDAY: Judith Jamison- Josephslegende (The Legend of Joseph)

Josephslegende (The Legend of Joseph), Op. 63, is a ballet in one act for the Ballets Russes based on the story of Potiphar’s Wife, with a libretto by Hofmannsthal and Kessler and music by Richard Strauss. Composed in 1912–14, it premiered at the Paris Opera on 14 May 1914. Continue reading

(REPOST) 3/23/24 O&A NYC DANCE: Rudolph Nureyev: Encore Performance- Afternoon Of A Faun (1981)

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Vaslav Nijinsky choreographed Afternoon of a Faun, using the music of Claude Debussy. In this interpretation, Leon Bakst‘s scenery and costumes have been stunningly reconstructed by Ralph Holmes. The original choreography, designed to evoke the two-dimensional flatness of a Greek frieze, was reconstructed by Elizabeth Schooling and William Chappel. Continue reading

5/23/17 O&A NYC DANCE: Rudolph Nureyev and Denise Jackson- Spectre de la Rose

DeniseJacksoninLeSpectredelaRose197

Le Spectre de la rose (English: The Spirit of the Rose) about a young girl who dreams of dancing with the spirit of a souvenir rose from her first ball.  Continue reading

5/20/16 O&A NYC SHAll WE DANCE FRIDAY: Sherezade (2002)- Kirov Ballet Feauturing Svetlana Zakharova and Farukh Ruzimatov

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Scheherazade premiered on June 4, 1910, at the Opéra Garnier in Paris by the Ballets Russes. The choreography for the ballet was by Michel Fokine and the libretto was from Fokine and Léon Bakst. This ballet provoked exoticism by showing a masculine Golden Slave seducing Zobeide who is one of the many wives of the Shah. Continue reading

Rudolph Nureyev: Encore Performance- Afternoon Of A Faun (1981)

NureyevPerformsAfternoonofaFauninPa

Vaslav Nijinsky himself did the choreography for Afternoon of a Faun, using the music of Claude Debussy. In this interpretation, Bakst’s scenery and costumes have been stunningly reconstructed by Ralph Holmes. The original choreography, designed to evoke the two-dimensional flatness of a Greek frieze, was reconstructed by Elizabeth Schooling and William Chappel. Continue reading

Rudolph Nureyev and Denise Jackson: Spectre de la Rose

DeniseJacksoninLeSpectredelaRose197

Le Spectre de la rose (English: The Spirit of the Rose) about a young girl who dreams of dancing with the spirit of a souvenir rose from her first ball. Jean-Louis Vaudoyer wrote the ballet story. He based it on a verse by  Theophile Gautier.  The dances were designed by Michel Fokine. The music is Hector Berlioz’s 1841 orchestration by Carl Maria von Weber’s piano music Afforderung zum Tanz (English: Invitation to the Dance). Leon Bakst designed the original sets and costume. The ballet was first presented in Monte Carlo on 19 April 1911. Nijinsky danced The Rose and Tamara Karsavina danced The Young Girl. Continue reading