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My mother's birthday is on Wednesday but we had tickets to the ballet last night (read: she bought two tickets; I got good seats!) so I took her out to dinner. Turns out a nice dinner in NYC is really really expensive. Okay, I knew that but seeing the bill was still a bit of a shock. In the end, though, it was worth it to feel kind of grown up about taking her out to dinner, even if I did have to ask her exactly how one paid with a credit card to include a tip. See, when I go out to dinner I'm almost always with a bunch of people who all pitch in cash and somebody else always figures out the tip. Mom has a little cane now that she can fold up in her purse, which is good because it helps her walk but bad because I wish she could walk without it hurting so much. I get this insane urge to yell, "Cut it out!" Like she's limping just to upset me.
Edit: I felt less guilty about that after she started yelling at me in the middle of the street about the hole in my shoe.
We went to see La Bayadere, a really fun ballet with Indian gods, temple dancers, gold body paint and killer snakes. Angel Corella danced Solor, the hero. Love Angel Corella. Clearly nobody's explained to him he's supposed to be embarrassed about jumping around with a feather on his head (or in a puffy pirate shirt like he did in Le Corsair) so he's completely un-self-conscious about it, like a kid playing pretend. Nikiya was Alina Cojocaru and Stella Abrera played Gamzatti. They made a really interesting contrast. AC has this very innocent quality and her limbs are very fluid while SA is a bit stronger in her attack etc. She kept reminding me of that character Lucy Liu plays in Chicago. (I'd sort of be interested to see them reverse roles, in fact. You'd get a very different ballet. ) Meanwhile Angel Corella is bouncing around in his early-Paul-McCartney-way so you like him even though he's playing a complete jerk. Applause to the corps too, especially the one Asian dancer who was fourth from the left in the Kingdom of the Shades.:-)
Apparently a friend of my parents has just started dating again so he's been going to the Opera. I admit I just have never been able to get into Opera, though I've seen some of enjoyed (and I'm going to see Baz Lehrman's La Boehm!). The singing just always seems so far-removed from regular human voices I rarely get anything emotion out of it. My favorite opera singer to listen to is my friend Cynthia and sometimes I think it's because she's got such a strong musical theater background. I never have trouble knowing what she's singing about no matter what language it's in and also her voice has a nice clear bell sound that I like. I've heard the Met's opera subscriptions are getting really popular again with younger people. I don't quite get why people don't like the ballet just as much. Maybe part of my problem is that a lot of opera music just washes over me. In talking to this friend of his my dad announced that he likes ballet music and his friend asked him if he was gay. LOL! Take my word for it; the idea of my dad being gay is very funny. Not because the idea would offend him or anything; I don't think he has any strong feelings on homosexuality. It's just that he's so straight he barely notices the possibility and he's from a time period where real men all listened to Broadway Shows, Opera and Ballet! Personally, I think ballet music rocks, which is why people dance to it. My mother opined that the reason this friend was dating again was that his wife was gay and left him for a woman. I've learned never to dismiss Mom's perspective on these things. She would have some real Miss Marple potential if her mind moved in a straight line instead of loop-de-loops.
I ran off to the ladies' room during the first Intermission and of course returned to find my mother deep in conversation with the people around her, giving them advice about shows to see and correcting their theater trivia. I'm kind of interested to see Bernadette Peters in Gypsy but having seen Ethel Merman in the original Mom just can't get to excited about it. (She claims she almost went into labor with my brother when Ethel Merman first appeared just behind her and shouted her first line: SING OUT LOUISE!)
Did you know spell check tries to change La Bayadere to La Boyardee?
Speaking of Gypsy, and Mama Rose in particular, I'm kind of floored by something that happened at work. I'm paranoid about putting in any details about my job (not because I'm a spy or anything; I just really shouldn't do it) but I must say I recently witnessed the most incredible display of conceit and attention grabbing on the part of a parent I've ever seen. Seriously, the only time I've seen somebody so blatantly shove their kid out of the way and take credit for their kid's accomplishments it's been in, like, a situation comedy. I don't think she was aware she was doing it either. It was like she just didn't get how crazily narcissistic she was being. I really really hope this kid leaves home soon. The whole thing was kind of comical from my pov but I'd hate to live with it. Anyway, that's why I started calling her Mama Rose in my mind, though Rose in Gypsy is much more competent and at least she actually did have a little to do with where her kid ended up!
Btw, tomorrow I have all-day detention at work. Who knew that would happen post-high school?
Edit: I felt less guilty about that after she started yelling at me in the middle of the street about the hole in my shoe.
We went to see La Bayadere, a really fun ballet with Indian gods, temple dancers, gold body paint and killer snakes. Angel Corella danced Solor, the hero. Love Angel Corella. Clearly nobody's explained to him he's supposed to be embarrassed about jumping around with a feather on his head (or in a puffy pirate shirt like he did in Le Corsair) so he's completely un-self-conscious about it, like a kid playing pretend. Nikiya was Alina Cojocaru and Stella Abrera played Gamzatti. They made a really interesting contrast. AC has this very innocent quality and her limbs are very fluid while SA is a bit stronger in her attack etc. She kept reminding me of that character Lucy Liu plays in Chicago. (I'd sort of be interested to see them reverse roles, in fact. You'd get a very different ballet. ) Meanwhile Angel Corella is bouncing around in his early-Paul-McCartney-way so you like him even though he's playing a complete jerk. Applause to the corps too, especially the one Asian dancer who was fourth from the left in the Kingdom of the Shades.:-)
Apparently a friend of my parents has just started dating again so he's been going to the Opera. I admit I just have never been able to get into Opera, though I've seen some of enjoyed (and I'm going to see Baz Lehrman's La Boehm!). The singing just always seems so far-removed from regular human voices I rarely get anything emotion out of it. My favorite opera singer to listen to is my friend Cynthia and sometimes I think it's because she's got such a strong musical theater background. I never have trouble knowing what she's singing about no matter what language it's in and also her voice has a nice clear bell sound that I like. I've heard the Met's opera subscriptions are getting really popular again with younger people. I don't quite get why people don't like the ballet just as much. Maybe part of my problem is that a lot of opera music just washes over me. In talking to this friend of his my dad announced that he likes ballet music and his friend asked him if he was gay. LOL! Take my word for it; the idea of my dad being gay is very funny. Not because the idea would offend him or anything; I don't think he has any strong feelings on homosexuality. It's just that he's so straight he barely notices the possibility and he's from a time period where real men all listened to Broadway Shows, Opera and Ballet! Personally, I think ballet music rocks, which is why people dance to it. My mother opined that the reason this friend was dating again was that his wife was gay and left him for a woman. I've learned never to dismiss Mom's perspective on these things. She would have some real Miss Marple potential if her mind moved in a straight line instead of loop-de-loops.
I ran off to the ladies' room during the first Intermission and of course returned to find my mother deep in conversation with the people around her, giving them advice about shows to see and correcting their theater trivia. I'm kind of interested to see Bernadette Peters in Gypsy but having seen Ethel Merman in the original Mom just can't get to excited about it. (She claims she almost went into labor with my brother when Ethel Merman first appeared just behind her and shouted her first line: SING OUT LOUISE!)
Did you know spell check tries to change La Bayadere to La Boyardee?
Speaking of Gypsy, and Mama Rose in particular, I'm kind of floored by something that happened at work. I'm paranoid about putting in any details about my job (not because I'm a spy or anything; I just really shouldn't do it) but I must say I recently witnessed the most incredible display of conceit and attention grabbing on the part of a parent I've ever seen. Seriously, the only time I've seen somebody so blatantly shove their kid out of the way and take credit for their kid's accomplishments it's been in, like, a situation comedy. I don't think she was aware she was doing it either. It was like she just didn't get how crazily narcissistic she was being. I really really hope this kid leaves home soon. The whole thing was kind of comical from my pov but I'd hate to live with it. Anyway, that's why I started calling her Mama Rose in my mind, though Rose in Gypsy is much more competent and at least she actually did have a little to do with where her kid ended up!
Btw, tomorrow I have all-day detention at work. Who knew that would happen post-high school?
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I'm so jealous — I so wanted to go this week and even had tentative plans to get tickets Wednesday or Thursday nights, but various paper deadlines for school got pushed back (read: I was late), and I completely missed the run. Too bad, because I'd been curious about La Bayadere and the famous dance of the shades.
Oh well, thanks for the terrific description! *fangirls Angel "Look how many turns I can do" Corella.* I'll have to content myself with HereAfter tix next week, if they have student rush tickets. Any other performances you'd recommend? :-)
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Today I was thinking that piece they're doing to Carmina Burana sounds interesting. But then, what isn't interesting when you add that music?:-)
Isn't Angel a big cutie? That's exactly what you think everytime he dances. "Weee! Look at meeeeee!" Did you see that documentary they did on PBS a while ago with him and the three other principal male dancers? They were working on something for Mark Morris. I'm not sure now what program it was on--probably Great Performances or something--but it was fun.
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And whee! Someone else who saw Born to Be Wild (yes, that *really* was what it was called)! I'd thought my friend and I were the only ones. It had the cheesiest, most overdramatized narration, but if you turned off the volume and just watched, you were in heaven. Angel Corella always looks like he's having a terrific time on stage and throwing himself 110% into any role. I did tape it, but I was coincidentally just checking for the tape the other night, and I think my roommate recorded over it accidentally. :-( Oh well, I've still got a copy of Frederick Wiseman's Ballet, and one of these days I'm going to give in and buy another one of those PBS tapes of short repertory performances.
Shall try to go to HereAfter tomorrow and maybe Movin' Out (for the ex-ABTers in it, though Ashley Tuttle is now back with the ABT). Wish me luck! :-)
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That documentary was so hysterical--I think the part that made me laugh the most was when Eric Stiefel went back to his hometown and all the little ballerinas were excited to see him. Plus seeing him on his motorcycle made me think of that movie "Centerstage." He's such a bad boy. Yeah. Uh huh.
Hey, I went to your lj and you reminded me of an interest. Diana Wynne Jones! Of course! The woman is AMAZING.
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I never saw Contact, though I'd heard a lot about it. But I gather both are supposed to be lively and full of energy. Were there former ABTers in Contact as well? I've been told the NYCB is technically superior, but I can't get into their performances as much; it always seemed to be a bit of a crapshoot, going to NYCB performances and gambling that I'd enjoy at least one or two of the ppieces.
*fangirls Stiefel as well* You should have heard the squealing in my row for all the Center Stage stars. Great dancing, horrendous story; another one of those videos you watch with the volume off. :-) He's way too into his bad boy image, though, don't you think?
Oh, and I saw HereAfter last night, but I found it disappointing. The part set to Carmina Burana was especially frustrating — the costumes were apparently channeling some strange mix of futuristic and BC Phoenicia or something, to match the medieval poems for Carmina Burana. The eye makeup and helmets for Jose Manuel Carreno were a particular low point, some strange cross between Roman gladiator and LeVar Burton's headgear in Star Trek: TNG. I don't know if I would have enjoyed it more without such garish, distracting costumes, but the choreography also struck me as a bit repetitive and dull. The NYT review was pretty much what I thought. I'll probably post about it at some point when I actually get time to make a real post :-), which I've been meaning to do for ages...
And Diana rules! Although I *still* haven't read her new book, which is pretty embarrassing for someone who owns nearly every book in print from the fabulous DWJ. Have you checked out her LJ community (
P.S. Mind if I friend you? Cannot believe I've found another person who actually remembers the PBS special and Center Stage and realizes that Movin' Out is full of ABTers. (Although I think you know much more about dance than I do...I'm just being squeeing fangirl, haven't danced for years and was never any good anyway.)
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That's too bad about HereAfter. Sometimes you really have to wonder what they're thinking with those costumes. Can't you just imagine JMC getting that helmet?
NYCBallet is always kind of a crap shoot, I think (how weird--I wrote that and then went back and reread what you'd actually said about it and...gee, same exact word!). Sometimes you see something that's weird but really interesting and other times...not.
I can't help but laugh when Stiefel and his bad boy image. No matter how many motorcycles he rides he still looks like a farm boy and a ballet dancer. The piece he does in CenterStage is so funny because it's supposed to be so daring and yet in pales in comparison to the kind of thing a lot of ballet companies might actually do! Fun fact: I know somebody who was *in* CenterStage. She was an extra in the bar scene and you can see her for a split second there.
I am terrible at keeping up with DWJ too. Everytime I read one of her books I love it, then it still takes me a long time to get around to reading her again. I have gone to the community a few times--I have a feeling that's another one I'll start going to regularly and have to add...
P.S. Mind if I friend you? Cannot believe I've found another person who actually remembers the PBS special and Center Stage and realizes that Movin' Out is full of ABTers. (Although I think you know much more about dance than I do...I'm just being squeeing fangirl, haven't danced for years and was never any good anyway.)
Sure you can friend me! Actually, I think not being any good at dancing must be another thing we have in common. I'm not good either, I just think it's fun. :-)