Mikhailovsky Ballet – Giselle 11/12 matinee

When America’s middle tier ballet companies tour Eastern or Western Europe and present Balanchine works as part of a program, there are probably some in the audience who are disappointed because they were expecting to see something on the level of New York City Ballet. After all, the dancing comes from America; it’s Balanchine; there are standards to uphold. When a ballet company from St. Petersburg comes to a major stage in New York with Petipa on its main course platter, it’s hard not to expect something tasty through and through. Expectations are high because St. Petersburg is, practically speaking, Chez Petipa.

So it was somewhat disappointing to see that the Mikhailovsky Ballet’s Giselle really didn’t approach the level of the extraordinary Giselles that St. Petersburg has exported to us over the years. There were some satisfying moments in Wednesday afternoon’s performance – it’s always nice to discover promising new dancers – but overall the performance was a snooze that didn’t wake up until Albrecht’s variation in Act II.

The 2007 production by Nikita Dolgushin is thin on mime, simplifies some of the choreography, and employs an odd usage of the quite stunning scenery.

Our Giselle and Albrecht for the afternoon were Anastasia Soboleva and Victor Lebedev. Both are quite young – she graduated from the Bolshoi’s feeder school in 2010 and he graduated from the Vaganova Academy in 2010. But it was not the debut for either even though at times it looked like it might have been.

When Soboleva popped out of her cottage for the first time, we instantly fell in love with her exquisitely long and finely shaped arms, her beautiful face which looked as though she could be our own Sarah Lane’s sister, and her wholesome, unaffected charm. But some labored hops on pointe, the substitution of attitude turns with the leg in front instead of behind, loosely pointed feet, and some miscalculated arabesques in Act I dampened our enthusiasm. Act II, however, revealed a more composed and focused artist but still there were some technical problems in Giselle’s variations. The developpes a la seconde were shaky and extremely high but without a finely formed foot at the end. The penche arabesque was frightfully unsteady. But here in Act II, Soboleva was able to transform her character from life to spirit through the use of her delicate arms and elegant neck.

In Act I, Lebedev’s Albrecht was not particularly engaged in what was happening on stage, but he likely wasn't too worried about it because of what he had up his purple sleeves for Act II. A beautifully proportioned danseur whose turnout escapes him frequently, Lebedev raised his dancing another level or three in Act II. In his variations, he flew down the diagonal with assembles each of which ended with a soulful and extraordinary flexible backbend. His arabesques and attitudes were gorgeous in form, dramatically balanced, and exceeded those of Giselle’s. His pleadings with the Wilis and his efforts to escape to the right and then to the left conveyed his desperation and his loss of will. When Myrtha finally commanded him to perform his entrechat sixes, it seemed that he had nothing left to give. But oh wait, 35 entrechat sixes later, he finally flung himself onto the forest’s floor in a heap of exhaustion. The roar of the audience drowned out the howling of the hungry Wilis. Giselle burst into the action, and saved him.

The forest scenery in Act II curiously rose up and down, sometimes creating the effect of being blown by the wind. Giselle’s grave was in the downstage corner, but there were other graves along the back of the stage. When Giselle made her final exit, she bourreed not toward her own grave but upstage toward the other grave markers in the back. It looked like maybe she might return to a grave other than her own. Wouldn't that be an interesting twist?

Myrtha was performed by Irina Kosheleva. Though magisterial, her grand allegro often seemed forced. The front leg and foot of the grand jetes were high above a dropped torso. There was no sense of wisp or flight in her jumps. Irritated woman, yes; vengeful spirit, no. After seeing Sam Shepard’s take on revenge in A Particle of Dread (Oedipus Variations) at Signature Theatre on Tuesday night, we think perhaps someone should give him a shot at enhancing Myrtha’s scheme. Holy bloodbath, Batman; but Shepard sure does have a way with words.

Hilarion, in this production referred to as The Gamekeeper, was excellently portrayed by Andrey Kasyanenko. His dance to the death before Myrtha and the Wilis was one of the most dramatic sections of the performance.

The demi-soloists and corps de ballet were proficient in both acts. Act I included a nice touch in which the peasants, both men and women, criss-crossed the stage in a manner that seemed to foreshadow the voyage of the Wilis in Act II. The Peasant PdD was performed by Anna Kuligina and Ivan Zaytsev who had all of the correct technical change in their pockets. The Wilis were mostly very lovely if at times a little noisy in the feet.

It was a treat to see the Mikhailovsky Ballet with its very own artists instead of a crew of imports who obscure the true picture of the company. We’re going to check back in on Victor Lebedev on Friday for Don Quixote to see what his Basilio brings. In the meantime, we’ll bestow upon him the H.H. Pump Bump Award, a Gucci stiletto in royal purple.

Comments

[Stephanie Phillips]

Hi Haglund, This is off topic, but did you hear about Misty Copeland dancing Swan Lake with the Washington Ballet? That news put a damper on my day! I can't stand her, and my husband says with her shoulders, maybe she could help out the Washington Redskins, as she looks like a linebacker. No offense to her fans, but I can't stand her dancing, or her smug, entitled attitude. I became close with her mom thru FB, and she is a warm lovely woman who is so hurt by all of this nonsense. Might have to switch to NYCB for my ballet fix.

[angelica]

I was at that same performance, Haglund, and agree with everything you said. I would make two additional points: The first is that while everyone is marveling at Osipova's ballon, I thought that Soboleva showed nice ballon as well, both in Act I and Act II. Her entrechats in Act II, however, lacked definition. The other thing that struck me was that when the wilis came out, line by line, to do their chugs in Act II, they ran out and chugged in place, until they were all out on stage, when they proceeded to cross lines in those moments we all wait for. I wondered whether that was an artistic decision, and if so, why, or a simplification.

I wonder, too, whether it is really easier to turn in attitude en avant, as Soboleva did in Act I, than in attitude derriere, which is customary. I will put it to the test in my next pointe class. :)

[Haglund]

Hi, Angelica.

I don't know why the Wilis did it that way; maybe it had to do with the width of the stage. I really liked their special Wili turn step that they did without the saute de basque that ABT employs. The ladies just sort of piqued up, around and over whereas the Paris Opera Ballet Wilis simply step around themselves. It looks much smoother. The Wilis' heads don't bob up and down like they do at ABT. But those chugs on Wednesday afternoon were very, very noisy.

[Haglund]

Hi, Stephanie. Yes, I've been reading the press that Misty has been putting out which is trying hard to create the idea of a racial stereotype so she can have something to rise up against and conquer. Basically, Misty is trafficking in racism. I'm not sure why she thinks that she stands so high above the black dancers at Dance Theatre of Harlem, Houston Ballet, and Birmingham Royal Ballet who have starred in Swan Lake to great acclaim. Before she claims to be making history, Misty should try reading some.

The Washington Ballet is a very small company - fewer than two dozen dancers – which means that their Swan Lake will use one heck of a lot of students or stringers unless it is adapted and scaled down for the Eisenhower Theater.

All that said, let's keep this particular discussion close to the Mikhailovsky. Thanks.

[Diana]

Chugs! I never knew what to call that step. My agony is over.

It's my favorite part of Giselle, in fact, my favorite thing in any performance of anything. I wait for it. That part never fails to make me go crazy.

[Haglund]

Hi Diana!

I think the official name for the "chugs" is arabesque voyage or voyage arabesque. One of the words may have an "s" on the end of it - or however one says traveling arabesque in French.

[buffee]

I believe the Mikhailovsky filled out their peasant and wili corps with dancers/students from New York.

[Haglund]

Hi, Buffee. That's interesting. How did you come by this information? Do you know someone from NY who actually danced in the Mikhailovsky production - as opposed to being a supernumerary? Using local supers as stage filler is a very common practice.

The Borzoi dogs were guest artists and were clearly credited in the Playbill but there was no mention of any students or other NY dancers.

The Mikhailovsky has 50 women corps/coryphees. Not sure why they would need local talent to do actual dancing.

[buffee]

I know of one student who was hired to dance in the corps but also know there were others too. Maybe they didn't bring their entire company.

[Haglund]

Which local school was the student from?

[buffee]

a Russian school - can't name it.

[Haglund]

A source from Ardani Artists, the presenter, has clarified that no students or local dancers were used in actual dancing roles in the Giselle corps de ballet but that one student will be used in Class Concert.

Going forward, don't offer info with "can't say" with regard to where you got it.

[buffee]

my apologies! I heard it from a family member so I thought it was correct.

[JM]

Haglund, the proper spelling you were looking for is "arabesque voyagée", as "arabesque" is a feminine noun in French.

Always happy to read your erudite posts. Cheers!

[Haglund]

Thanks much, JM.

[bookworm68]

Hi Haglund,

Thank you for this beautifully descriptive review. I attended the same performance and was incredibly taken with Soboleva/Lebedev. For me, they captured the Romantic essence of Act II. Looking forward to seeing more of them during The Mikhailovsky's New York tour.

[Haglund]

Hi, bookworm68. Thanks for stopping by H.H.

I totally agree that Soboleva and Lebedev captured the Romantic essence of Giselle. It would be nice if they would stay intact as a pair for a few years so that we might watch their artistic interpretation and partnership grow in response to one other.