Surprises at the ballet

This morning I headed over to the historic Opera House to see a “matiné” at 11:00 a.m. of two ballets, Raymonda, a 19th-century Russian classic originally choreographed by Petipa with a score by Glazunov, and Serenade, choreographed by George Balanchine to Tchaikovsky. Matineés in the U.S. are typically regular performances in the afternoon on weekends, so that was the first puzzle. The ridiculously low prices (60 SKK or $2.40 for an orchestra seat) were another.

A helpful usher tipped me off that this was not an actual performance, but a lecture-preview of the new productions, which will premiere next weekend. I sometimes hear about pre-performance lectures to help audiences appreciate what they are about to see, but even that is unusual in the U.S. We were not allowed to take pictures of the presentation, but here is the stage set up for the guest speakers in this lovely little opera house that is becoming my second home.

A youngish crowd, many in jeans, and a significant presence of older balletomanes in casual dress were in the audience. This was a sharp contrast to the very formal dress I usually see at performances.

As I am one of those devoted balletomanes, I was fascinated to hear discussions of the performances, with some video clips. Two American dancers who stage Balanchine works, John Clifford and Patricia Barker, provided insights on working with Balanchine, the distinctive aspects of his technique, and their work with the Slovak dancers in setting the first Balanchine ballet they have performed. Thank goodness they spoke in English, with Slovak translators. Johnny Chang, Ballet Master of the Royal Winnepeg Ballet, also speaking in English, explained his production of excerpts from Raymonda and the history of the many versions of the ballet. I look forward to seeing both ballets next weekend at the premieres.

On Friday night, I saw the company’s magnificent production of Bournonville’s 1836 La Sylphide, the oldest classical ballet still in active repertory. After seeing it performed three decades ago with Mikhail Baryshnikov and Gelsey Kirkland, I thought I was ruined for life for enjoying any other performances. While not quite evoking those two legendary dancers, the male lead (Adrian Ducin) earned appreciative and well-deserved applause and “bravos,” with a dynamic presence and the precision and polish demanded by this very distinctive style of choreography from Denmark.

For more information on the performance:

http://www.snd.sk/?ballet&predstavenie=balanchine

I regularly encounter other international visitors and today was no exception. An older couple from Washington, DC sat behind me today. They had been hiking in the High Tatras mountains in northern Slovakia and were now visiting Bratislava. Outside the ticket office, I had a fascinating discussion with an older couple from the Netherlands, speaking very good English, as we traded our memories of seeing Serenade performed by other companies. A few days ago, I struck up a conversation with another Dutch citizen taking pictures of the same Holocaust monument I was photographing. He spoke fluent English, works in Vienna, and was spending the day with his girlfriend in Bratislava -- could I give him suggestions on what to see in one day? I was happy to oblige with my recommendations.

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