[.ca] George Balanchine: Jewels

Beautiful dances, beautiful dancers:
It is a huge pity that back in 1977 PBS elected to record only excerpts from New York City Ballet's staging of Jewels. For years that Dance in America broadcast has been the only performance of the ballet available on video. So having the complete ballet, performed by the Paris Opera Ballet, no less, is a great addition to the DVD market. Overall, the POB's performance of "Emeralds" is excellent, as might be expected. There is a greater sense of atmosphere than NYCB brings to it, helped enormously by the beautiful playing of the Paris Opera Orchestra. I found Laëtita Pujol lacking in comparison with Merrill Ashley, but the dancing of Mathieu Ganio (son of Dominique Khalfouni and Denys Ganio, and only 21 years of age at time of filming) is marvellous. Perfect body, perfect technique, perfect style: it's not difficult to understand why he rose to étoile faster than any dancer since Sylvie Guillem. Clairemarie Osta is excellent in the Sicilienne, but she and Kader Belarbi seem to have missed the rhythmic point of the Nocturne. (Refer to Karin von Aroldingen and Sean Lavery for that one.) The great crying shame of Dance in America's Jewels is that it doesn't include any footage of Patricia McBride's "Rubies." Aurélie Dupont could never hope to match McBride's peculiarly turned-in, effervescent glamour, but she is a great star in her own right and nails every bit of the choreography. Alessio Carbone is very fine as her partner, and Marie-Agnès Gillot is terrific as the "tall girl," genuinely Balanchinean. It's great to have this section of the ballet on video. A gaping hole has finally been filled. Strangely, the section I found least engaging was "Diamonds." Though she is a prima ballerina in every sense of the word--glamorous, commanding and accomplished to the nth degree--Agnès Letestu is no Suzanne Farrell. (Who is?) The Dance in America DVD is worth buying simply for Farrell's mysterious aura, her musical phrasing and the way her body "sings" in the pas de deux. Jean-Guillaume Bart also can't match Peter Martins for hunkiness (again, who could?), but though his elevation is less than gasp-inspiring, he is the sort of danseur noble that you simply won't see in Canada. Together, you can't help but admire the purity of their style and technique, their synchronicity and their general superiority as dancers, but they aren't as fast or as daring as Americans are in approaching Balanchine's off-centre positions, and there's no sense of total surrender to the dance, so ultimately they aren't transfixing in the way that Farrell and Martins were. I also wish the final movement of "Diamonds" had more overhead wide shots. The camera often zooms in for a close look at the steps, but Balanchine's kaleidoscopic floor patterns are lost in the process. Ultimately, "Diamonds" is carried by the POB corps. Their sort of stylistic unity is hard to come by these days, and the stately promenade just before the grand finale couldn't ever have looked so splendid. The Paris Opera Orchestra is superb throughout, Christian Lacroix's designs are very fine (and mercifully unobtrusive) and the shots of the Palais Garnier interior will make you long to get on a jet for Paris this instant. Recommended for all fans of Balanchine, the Paris Opera Ballet and dance in general.

Buy it for the documentary and to enjoy all 3 Jewels.:
Jewels, by the Paris Opera Ballet, arrived in the mail last week and I viewed it last night. I was a little disappointed in the cinematography. It should be noted many ballet DVDs suffer from a lack of creative camera angles and far too many views from the mezzanine. When I watch ballet I like to focus on the couple; not so much the patterns created on stage. The sets and costumes were 1st rate. As for the dancing, I was very pleased with Emeralds and Diamonds but not so much with Rubies-Why I bought the DVD in the 1st place! It's my favorite part of Jewels and never filmed before POB to the best of my knowledge. For some reason, NYCB only presented Emeralds and Diamonds for its DVD. Aurélie Dupont did not live up to the daring or playfulness required for the role. I would have much preferred to see Heather Ogden of the National Ballet of Canada! I still recommend the DVD. There's a lovely bonus in the form of a documentary and colorful booklet. Note: It's all in French for the exception of interviews with the Chairwoman of the Balanchine Foundation, Barbara Horgan. There are subtitles. * I'm glad I purchased it early. The ballet is no longer available via Amazon.