Month: January 2010

The Saturday (1/30) 2pm was the 7th Swan Lake I’ve seen, but I never saw Sarah Van Patten in it, so it was worth the trip to SF Ballet. It was probably a bad idea trying to watch Serena vs. Henin in the Australian Open the night before, because I was kind of tired for the show. And by kind of, I mean very. I think this reflects at least slightly in my experience of SL #7.

Although I don’t recall all the specifics of last year’s performances, I can say that Mr. Tomasson’s production doesn’t seem quite so bad, although it still feels a bit bare in some places, and the story as a whole seems disconnected in a way I can’t describe. Overall, it was a nice experience. The performance really could have used Elana Altman, though.  She pretty much blows my socks off in the swan maiden and Spanish variations, but you know I’m a little biased.

SVP gave a solid performance, but perhaps I expected too much, given the hype about her in Pointe magazine and by Ms. Maffre’s suggestion. It did seem like SVP’s technical skills were a little below the other ballerinas’, especially with her fouttes ending a bit precariously; she didn’t do any doubles, which I guess I liked in a way. It seems to fit Odile’s character a little more to not have that technical feat.

I must say though that I got goosebumps from SVP’s Odette interpretation, even if it wasn’t the most impressive technically. Her port de bras as Odette in particular was quite powerful. Her expressive capabilities make her Odette wonderful to watch. Her Odile didn’t seem as memorable. Something just wasn’t quite sadistic enough in it.

I can’t wait to see Sarah Van Patten in Romeo and Juliet. And Elana Altman better get some bombass roles this season. Otherwise, I’ll be sad.

Also, taking ballet makes watching it a lot harder. Instead of enjoying the show as a whole, I was also trying to figure out all the steps as well, which was mentally taxing. Life is so cruel sometimes.