Last night a Gala to celebrate Rudolf Nureyev was had at La Scala. It is the 80th Anniversary of his birth and also 25 years after his death. The Gala was previewed by a benefit audience on Thursday, and opened Friday 25 May, with further performances on 26 and 29 May. La Scala's Étoiles Svetlana Zakharova and Roberto Bolle were joined by guests Marianela Nuñez, Germain Louvet, … [Read more...]
Bolle’s Boléro: Roberto Bolle at La Scala performs Béjart’s intoxicating rite for the first time
I certainly wasn’t the only one to have doubts when Roberto Bolle announced his intention to climb onto Béjart’s red table. Facebook was abuzz with comments from puzzled ballet fans who couldn’t see him as La Mélodie. Even now, after his run of performances of Boléro, many hold on to that view. How delighted I was to be proved wrong (not that I had voiced my doubts, I may add) … [Read more...]
Dame Margot Fonteyn’s topsy-turvy day, with Rudolf Nureyev, Annette Page and Richard Attenborough
In 1963, journalist Barry Norman – later famous on television as a film critic – was writing on entertainment for The Daily Mail, and he shadowed Dame Margot Fonteyn for a day, the day she recorded the Gayane and Swan Lake pas de deux for Richard Attenborough's Gala Performance programme for the BBC. Here's the article transcribed from newspaper clippings: Dame … [Read more...]
Rudolf Nureyev died 25 years ago – La Scala pays tribute to the great dancer
Rudolf Nureyev’s debut at La Scala was on 9 October 1965 when, finally, the Milanese public had the opportunity to see the Russian dancer that all the newspapers were writing about. With him was Margot Fonteyn, and they danced Romeo and Juliet together. On 16 September 1966 Nureyev and Fonteyn returned with Marguerite and Armand and several days later he danced with another … [Read more...]
Interview with Marianela Núñez: We live in a world where there’s no space left for magic
I have three older brothers. When I came along mum she wanted that I did feminine things: there was too much football in the house. I was always dressed in pink and, and then when I was three, she took me to a dancing school. It was though a lightbulb came on in my head. It’s difficult to explain. There’s a book called The Soul's Code, and according to James Hillman every one … [Read more...]