La Bayadère, one of the key ballets in the classical repertoire, premiered in St Petersburg in 1877. Marius Petipa created a perfect harmony between mass scenes and protagonists, and it was the … [Read more...] about Countdown to Bayadère – casting and designs for La Scala’s opening
Merle Park
Four Auroras – Fonteyn, Sibley, Jenner and Park with The Royal Ballet in 1972
Philip Hope-Wallace was the music, theatre and dance critic for The Guardian from 1959 until he died, twenty years later. The obituarist in The Times called him "a critic of the arts as wise and … [Read more...] about Four Auroras – Fonteyn, Sibley, Jenner and Park with The Royal Ballet in 1972
Photo Album: Nureyev Gala at La Scala – Zakharova, Louvet, Nuñez, Muntagirov and Bolle (and Nureyev at La Scala facts and figures)
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, … [Read more...] about Photo Album: Nureyev Gala at La Scala – Zakharova, Louvet, Nuñez, Muntagirov and Bolle (and Nureyev at La Scala facts and figures)
Interview with The Royal Ballet’s Merle Park in 1979: Green Park, Hyde Park or Merle Park?
Merle Park, the engine driver’s daughter from Rhodesia (modern Zimbabwe), ended up being one of The Royal Ballet’s brightest stars. She says that she first realised she’d become famous when she heard … [Read more...] about Interview with The Royal Ballet’s Merle Park in 1979: Green Park, Hyde Park or Merle Park?
Dame Merle Park on a ballerina’s need for rest and energy: I have six spoonfuls of sugar in my tea
Back in the days when Merle Park was a CBE — she became Dame Merle in 1986 — she left this interview with a British women’s magazine. It makes interesting, and amusing, reading almost 40 years … [Read more...] about Dame Merle Park on a ballerina’s need for rest and energy: I have six spoonfuls of sugar in my tea
Mara Galeazzi answers the Gramilano Questionnaire… Dancers’ Edition
Q&A When did you start dancing? When I was 6. Why did you start dancing? At first was for fun. Which dancer inspired you most as a child? Alessandra Ferri, Carla Fracci and Pina … [Read more...] about Mara Galeazzi answers the Gramilano Questionnaire… Dancers’ Edition
John Cranko’s The Lady and the Fool & Pineapple Poll out on DVD
These two ballets by John Cranko are early examples of the choreographer's theatrical ingenuity. Created for the then Sadler’s Wells Theatre Ballet, (later Royal Ballet), Pineapple Poll is a light … [Read more...] about John Cranko’s The Lady and the Fool & Pineapple Poll out on DVD
