#wheeldon

Ages ago I wrote about seeing McAllister and Wheeldon, two people I love and admire, in conversation at Australian Ballet.

The video of that conversation is actually available online, and I highly recommend you watch it. Wheeldon offered some very interesting insights both into his “Alice in Wonderland” and the Royal Ballet as a whole. 

Fun fact: you can totally see the back of my head in this video. #famous #blessed

“This Bitter Earth”

Choreography by Christopher Wheeldon

Music by Max Richter and Diana Washington

Hello! Did Eleonora Sevenard go to the Tatler Debutante Ball? Are debutante balls in Russia similar to the US (when girls are presented to Society)?

What was the Tatler ball that Eleonora Sevenard attended? It looked like a debutante ball.

To answer both of the above questions: debutant balls are not really a thing in Russia. I’m not very familiar with the American tradition, but what little I know suggests that there is actually a rich history and heritage behind the US debutant balls. That’s not the case in Russia. I think the Tatler ball is Moscow’s “high society’s” attempt to appear more Western. These affairs are usually attended by the daughters of local tycoons and celebrities. You won’t find many young women of actual talent of substance there. Elya is an anomaly at an event like this.

What do you know about Camilla Mazzi? On the Mariinsky website it said she graduated from the Moscow State Academy of Choreography in 2017 and is now a trainee. This would be a pretty rare Moscow-Petersburg trade wouldn't it?

Yes, it’s pretty rare for a BBA graduate, let alone a foreigner, to end up at the Mariinsky. I don’t know much about Camilla, to be honest. She won II prize in the Moscow International Ballet Competition this year (juniors), but that’s about it. The reviews I’ve read or heard so far are very mixed.

Hi Melmoth! Do you know which roles will Masha Bulanova and Daria Ionova perform this year? Another question, as soon as you'll find out the dates of the VBA tour in Italy, can you post them? Thank you, your blog is great!

Thank you! So far, I’ve only seen them as the Spanish Doll and the Chinese Doll in “The Fairy Doll”, respectively. Yes, of course I’ll post the dates when I know them.

In the movie you posted recently, called Bolshoi, I noticed there was a scene with a girl taking off her chest bindings and (there’s a bit of nudity) it turns out her breasts (I don’t say it to be perverted) were... let’s say quite more than I had expected. I’ve always thought the Russian ballet schools choose the girls whom they think will grow up to have smaller breasts hence eg. starts like Zakharova who appear to be small chested. My question is, do ballerina do chest binding?

It’s very difficult to predict what a child will look like once they hit puberty. There’s a certain amount of guesswork involved in every audition. That’s why so many girls drop out or are expelled in their mid to late teens - their bodies change and deviate too far from the “standard”. Russian companies favour long limbs, a small head and a flat torso, but there are examples of successful ballerinas who do not meet these requirements. In recent years, VBA produced several stellar female graduates with large breasts. They’ve had no problem with finding work and their careers are progressing very well. From memory, neither bandaged their chest while at VBA. There are always exceptions to the rules, especially when real raw talent is involved. In my limited experience, there is actually a lot of diversity at VBA when it comes to the shapes and sizes of their students.

P.S.: I think a lot of elements in “The Bolshoi” were exaggerated for dramatic effect.

What do you think of choreographer Christopher Wheeldon? I saw the documentary Strictly Bolshoi and he seems very unprofessional, going into the company with no plans and expecting the dancers to come up with half his choreography. It also shows some of Nikolai, and it kind of made him look like quite a diva, although I can kinda see why he was annoyed at Wheeldon. Overall, what do you think?

Please read my response here. Overall, I hate that doco with a passion. Wheeldon was an absolute ass and they tried (and succeeded) to make Tsiskaridze look like a villain. The fact that, despite all of this, Wheeldon is still one of my favourite people in the ballet world goes to show just how strong my  love for him is.

Can I just say how happy I am that Kirill S is back at the Vaganova? Ok I feel better, thanks!

Plenty of people are relieved to see him back at the academy. He may also have transferred to Tsiskaridze’s class, but I haven’t had an official confirmation of that rumour yet.

I agree about what you said about Vaziev-- and recently I've found the harsh and bitter nature of 'balletomanes' kind of disturbing-- the hell-bent backing of Olyesa Novikova (granted, she is an incredibly talented dancer,) and the hate towards Skorik, as well as the mocking of Fateyev not hiring VBA grads like Kovaleva and Sevenard. It frustrates me to see comments as vicious as they are from people who probably have zero ballet experience.

I find the complaints against Fateyev especially frustrating. People fly off the handle at the slightest hint of drama. And he did make Elya a job offer, though she chose to turn it down. And his decision not to hire Kovaleva is very reasonable. She’s very tall and there are not that many guys who can partner her at the Mariinsky. 

A compilation of responses to the questions which came through Ask this week. As always, thank you for asking.

How are the dancers of the soviet generation different from those that came after them, in your opinion? (@cheddarloops)

I talk about the Soviet generation and how they differ from modern dancers here, here, here and here.

Where do the teachers at VBA live? Do they live in the school, or do they live in their own houses/apartments.

Teacher live off campus.

Do you think any of the Russian companies will ever travel to perform in Australia? How big (or small) do you think those chances are?

Bolshoi was in Brisbane a few years ago, and individual dancers come down every now and then to dance with the local companies (Evgenia Obraztsova was in Brisbane recently).

Is Nicholas McKay still dancing in Russia? If so where and how is he doing?

According to his instagram, he is still in Russia, but I don’t know what he’s up to.

Which version of Romeo and Juliet do you prefer more: Lavrovsky or MacMillan?

I actually don’t really like “Romeo and Juliet”. Never have. I don’t know why. I guess that ballet just isn’t my cup of tea. That being said, I prefer the Lavrovsky version. Especially as performed by the great Galina Ulanova.

I just watched the documentary 'Strictly Bolshoi'. I was shocked that Wheeldon seemed to have come totally unprepared to choreograph Hamlet. I didn't know what to think, however, about Tsiskaridze's behaviour. As much as he seemed to be acting uncooperatively, was this justified given how unprepared Wheeldon was? He was shown struggling to make up the choreogrpahy as they went along, seemed clueless and suddenly switched the entire programme. I was wondering what your thoughts are on this.

That doco should be renamed “Strictly Bullshit”. I’ve written about it here.

Beyond Postnova, who were the other 12 BBA students hired by the Bolshoi?

I posted the list here.

I've recently seen it several times that when a ballerina has her farewell performance she takes her pointeshoes off during the applause and puts them down on the stage. Do you know what this gesture means?

I’m sorry, I have no idea. I guess it’s a symbolic gesture of some kind. Like a dancer leaving a part of themselves on stage. If anyone knows the exact origin and meaning of this tradition, please share.

This has been making the rounds recently on IG. I love this so much, and will never get sick of it. Here's the full version with Alessandra Ferri & Craig Hall. And I LOVE that Ms. Ferri will soon be the new AD of the Vienna State Ballet. Seeing more women at the helm of world class ballet companies is a trend I can get behind — and way overdue.

Property – Implied easements – Rule in wheeldon v burrows

With detailed discussion of relevant legal principles and authorities explain the courts policy in relation to implying easement under the rule in Wheeldon v Burrows and Daar Pty Ltd v Feza Foundation Ltd [2001].

Remember that if an easement were to be implied under Wheeldon v Burrows it is a burden imposed “after the event ” rather than as…