I do think that this ballet, especially when seen complete, may be the most beautiful, exciting, perfect ballet Balanchine created. Although there are so many to choose from!
If Kistler is lacking in any way in this performance, I'm glad I can't see it. I've watched this many times, and I've gotten so much pleasure out of it. I'd hate to start seeing flaws. I love the Kirkland version, of course, but I'm happy that I can enjoy both.
A beautiful performance I had never seen before I believe. Igor Zelensky, a name from the recent past, was a superb partner. I am only sorry that the beauty we see on stage is not always replicated behind the scenes, in real life.
You’re absolutely correct, of course. I had completely overlooked Zelensky’s contribution as a partner in making Kistler look so radiant. His additional height and princely bearing helped, of course. That’s the thing about the best male partners in the world, if they’re really good at doing their job, we almost don’t notice them.
@@exaudi33 Absolutely! His overall strength is astounding; the balanced conformation of his legs & harmonious proportions contribute to his abilities to support himself and his partner with such grounded mastery.
Enchantingly, hauntingly beautiful. And yet like a breath of pure air in a beautiful sunrise. The music and the dance steals my heart. Pure joy and pure perfection.
Thanks so much for this segment. A Balanchine addict can only be super-grateful. Kistler is wonderful and her partner seems genuinely aware of her presence.
Ottima coreografi a proscenica del corollario danzante ed ottima concordanza duale dei ballerini con gradevole enfatizzazione alla fine dell'esecutivita' tecnica.Molto bravi .Bighin GIULIO RENZO
Due to multiple injuries and a two-year hiatus Darci Kistler’s technique had eroded beyond repair by the time this video was shot. However, there’s no denying her special gifts which shine undiminished - the deliciously fleet footwork, the radiance, and the sheer, authentic, unalloyed joy in her dancing! What a gift to us all she was.
@@Jayjen35 yes, of Course, many people Have or hopefully Will dance this ballet but there are some that are better than other AND we all have preferences. But about pure quality genius, born dancer there Is less. to discuss. I came across one few days ago, enchanting, joyfull extremely talented, incredibly Light, effortless, María Khoreva, only 18, already soloist-principal at Mariinsky. My favorite so far with her Is her 9.18 min. vídeo on YT, Midsummer dream with other top Russian dancers AND Lovely music by F. Mendelssohn. Worth seeing.
@@karennoble1168 Well, of course few if any.could equal Ms. Kirkland in this ballet, but Ms. Bussel certainly did a beautiful job. Aknowledging one artist need not negate the work of another. There's room for many artists to dance the roll.
Yes. I don't adore Kistler at all--she was never the same after her early injury, much as her rabid fanbots tried to pretend she was--and agree totally about Kirkland.
Thank you, Karen, Will look up the vídeo, probably very difficult to do better than B. AND G. This one does not do much for me, Altghough beautiful. But Not everything fits Is.. Altghough i love Igor Zelensky AND i heard about Darcie's injuries, how difficult...
Can you imagine how little rehearsal time they had?. SHe is EXQUISITE those feet and legs are like a thorough bred race horse . She is FANTASTIC !!'!'!!!!!!!!
Oh, my. Was Kistler really that bad towards the end? What a shame, because I loved watching her. I had heard all about her foot injuries and her problems with her back and ankles and how after a two-year hiatus, she never returned to full form, she was always dancing at half-strength. I last saw her in 1994, in Sleeping Beauty. Apart from some wobbly balances in the Rose Adagio, (no hyperkinetic, preternaturally hyperactive NYCB ballerina can ever do them), she was marvellous.
You can do a comparison, when in doubt about exquisite dancing, see for example lovely María Khoreva, 18, in the 9.18 min Midnight Summer dream. Incredible lightness, effortlessness, a great rising or already a Russian star.
I completely disagree. I think she is the ONLY one I have seen so far that can come close to Gelsey. I LOVE Gelsey and am obsessed with that film footage of her and Misha, but this is also wonderful. She dances it with the exact Balanchine style, and most importantly moves in such a light way, even without the partner lifting her, a mark of a true ballerina.
This is why I say Balanchine defined dance in the 20th century. As Petipa did in the 19th. A documentary on Balanchine shows that Petipa died very soon after Balanchine was born. It was a dramatic juxtaposition. Balanchine did away with the rows of immobile dancers with arms crossed, standing in position for ages. In a Balanchine traditional ballet like this, every corps member dances.
In no way does this begin to approach the Kirkland - Baryshnikov version. They were some of the greatest dancers ever, so almost everyone else will seem sadly lacking by comparison.
@@Jayjen35 Sorry, DARLING. Many other NYCB ballerinas, to say nothing of ABT or PNB or MCB, danced 'Theme' brilliantly--and put Kistler to shame. Ashley, Nichols, Bouder, Peck, Gregory, van Hamel, Carberry, Loscavio, Imler, Pantastico, Catoya, Delgado, etc. ad infinitum were all what a 'Theme' ballerina is supposed to be. Kistler is NOT.
Thanks for posting the ballet video. Suite #3 has been one of my favorites along with the other 78 works of Tchaikovsky. I fast forwarded to the Polonaise at 6:20 to see dancers' progress toward the climax at 7:06. The dancers were great but I expected a more powerful choreography like group high jumps rather than just the timid dancing performed here. Barishnikov's version has the same issue at this particular spot IMHO.
I felt so very sorry to hear about her major injuries. She does her best here, very admirable but it does show, she can barely get an arabesque 3/4 up. It feels like a ballet from the 60s. This is the first and only video i have seen with her, only now and wish her only the best!! Love Igor Zelensky.
I find it ridiculous that anyone thinks Kistler is better than Kirkland based on this performance. She makes this sublime pas de deux just look exceedingly stodgy and dull. This was unfortunately just part of the 2 decade long absurd and unrelenting effort of Peter Martins to make his wife the prima of the company. She never was anything close to it, especially after her injuries. This was part of the Balanchine Celebration, and any director in their right mind in 1993 would have had Nichols (who had kept the flame of greatness alive for Balanchine and NYCB for 2 solid decades (!) and was still in her prime in 1993) dance this pas, rather than that minor Walpurgisnacht ballet. Nepotism was certainly alive and well (see also Nilas Martins dancing Apollo, eyeroll!) at NYCB at that time.
This does not seem an accurate summary . Darci needed no one to promote her …her love of dance .. perfect proportions and lines are spectacular . I have yet to see anyone dance sugarplum as she did in 1993. Very cruel and untrue
@@marymohagheghi4875 This is an incredibly accurate and intelligent summary; you are an imbecile who knows nothing of ballet. Kistler was never again a great dancer after her early injury, and was already technically inadequate at the time of this recording.
Darci Kistler is superior in this role in comparison to the Kirkland version. This tempi is actually faster than the Baryshnikov/Kirkland version but you don't notice that is is fast because Kistler and the NYCB core make it look effortless so that one does not feel the technique or the speed, the dancers simply make you see the movement in the music. Fabulous thanks for posting!
Absolutely, balletjones. The tempi are all *slower* here, not faster--I cannot imagine how anyone could possibly be blind enough to think Kistler, who is already a shadow of her former self here and her former self was NEVER anything approaching Kirkland, is better than Kirkland (OR Gregory, OR van Hamel, OR Serrano, OR almost any other Seventies prima) in this role. Kistler's feet are sloppy compared to Kirkland's and she simply does not have the goods any more for the part.
Yes. I liked Kistler when she was very young, Neryssa--before the serious injury which , I think, altered her entire subsequent career. She was never again as brilliant, daring, technically audacious after the mid-Eighties--and she committed the awful sin of dancing ten years longer than she should ever have remained on stage. I am sorry to say I saw her far too often in those years, and it was mortifying.
Many other NYCB ballerinas, to say nothing of ABT or PNB or MCB, danced 'Theme' brilliantly--and put Kistler to shame. Ashley, Nichols, Bouder, Peck, Gregory, van Hamel, Serrano, Carberry, Loscavio, Imler, Pantastico, Catoya, Delgado, etc. ad infinitum were all what a 'Theme' ballerina is supposed to be. Kistler is NOT and never was after her first two or three years in NYCB (before her injury). Sadly, after the little beating incident, she blackmailed Martins into keeping her onstage ten years after he should have forced her to retire.
@@rayhelinski6662 No you have not even seen half of them all, as they span decades and continents. Kistler and Zelensky are barely adequate here--NOTHING more. Get lost. Schooled, blocked.
I'm going to have to agree that Gelsey was far superior in this role. But I wasn't aware, either, that Darci had sustained so many injuries; it's too bad that she was cast in this extraordinarily difficult role after her prime. Would have loved to have seen her before her technique was compromised. How wonderful if Kyra could have danced this role for this event.
I have always loved Gelsey Kirkland, read about her troubled life. The best Clara With Baryshnikov. It was a special Time, Sort of a golden era of ballet in the USA, when Baryshnikov was with her AND others at ABT, gave it so much new Energy, attracted people to ballet, also because of the movies Made with him. Such a charismatic dancer, artist AND person. There was also the great Natalia Makarova. Years After him appeared Danil Simkin, looks like His brother, same body style, sky high jumps, charm. Went lately? to the Berlín ópera, redoing la Bayadere. Great in Don Quichote.
![[ENCORE] Vladimir Fedoseyev / Khachaturian: Lezginka](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/QUqHL2etajc/mqdefault.jpg)
Darci has one of the purest arabesque lines in the world ever.... She is a genius
I do think that this ballet, especially when seen complete, may be the most beautiful, exciting, perfect ballet Balanchine created. Although there are so many to choose from!
If Kistler is lacking in any way in this performance, I'm glad I can't see it. I've watched this many times, and I've gotten so much pleasure out of it. I'd hate to start seeing flaws. I love the Kirkland version, of course, but I'm happy that I can enjoy both.
Her feet are flawless and an art unto themselves
her feet her turn out her arms , where do I stop !
A beautiful performance I had never seen before I believe. Igor Zelensky, a name from the recent past, was a superb partner. I am only sorry that the beauty we see on stage is not always replicated behind the scenes, in real life.
You’re absolutely correct, of course. I had completely overlooked Zelensky’s contribution as a partner in making Kistler look so radiant. His additional height and princely bearing helped, of course. That’s the thing about the best male partners in the world, if they’re really good at doing their job, we almost don’t notice them.
Zelensky is so perfect here. I couldn't keep my eyes off him.
Solid as a rock, elegant, graceful and precision !!!!
Amen!
@@exaudi33 Absolutely! His overall strength is astounding; the balanced conformation of his legs & harmonious proportions contribute to his abilities to support himself and his partner with such grounded mastery.
Enchantingly, hauntingly beautiful. And yet like a breath of pure air in a beautiful sunrise. The music and the dance steals my heart. Pure joy and pure perfection.
Как красиво вы сказали...Да,так и есть!
Superb music, inspired choreography and wonderful dancing! What more can one want?
Zelensky is just an Absolute rock of a partner here. So great.
wow, such brilliant choreography. so many beatiful details and accents.
Thanks so much for this segment. A Balanchine addict can only be super-grateful. Kistler is wonderful and her partner seems genuinely aware of her presence.
I love this couple very much. Zelensky is wonderful partner for Darci!
My word... those legs feet and musicality .... genious
Ottima coreografi a proscenica del corollario danzante ed ottima concordanza duale dei ballerini con gradevole enfatizzazione alla fine dell'esecutivita' tecnica.Molto bravi .Bighin GIULIO RENZO
A joy to see such musicality! Thank you very much for posting.
l adore Kistlers interpretation of the pas, it is rich in the Balanchine neo-classical style . I was hoping to see her in the solos .
great choreography and music!! thank you for posting!
But if you've ever seen Cynthia Harvey in this role you would have been blown away!!! Strength, grace, technique and spirit!
I never got the chance, I envy you. I remember when she got into Ballet Theatre I knew I knew big things would come her way.
She was a brilliant and vastly underrated ballerina. Her Paquita variation (with the opening diagonal of grand jetes) is astounding.
Due to multiple injuries and a two-year hiatus Darci Kistler’s technique had eroded beyond repair by the time this video was shot. However, there’s no denying her special gifts which shine undiminished - the deliciously fleet footwork, the radiance, and the sheer, authentic, unalloyed joy in her dancing! What a gift to us all she was.
Il bacio
so Sad about Darci's injuries, it Is obvious that she Is not in the right shape...
@@karennoble1168 Darci is no more to be faulted than a soldier who has suffered war wounds. I think she danced beautifully.
With all the respect for Darci this is Gelsey's role!!! No one was like Gelsey and no one will be (-:
Sorry, but you realize that other people did/do have to dance the roll as well...
@@Jayjen35 yes, of Course, many people
Have or hopefully Will dance this ballet but there are some that are better than other AND we all have preferences.
But about pure quality genius, born dancer there Is less.
to discuss.
I came across one few days ago, enchanting, joyfull extremely talented, incredibly Light, effortless, María Khoreva, only 18, already soloist-principal at Mariinsky.
My favorite so far with her Is her 9.18 min. vídeo on YT, Midsummer dream with other top Russian dancers AND Lovely music by F. Mendelssohn. Worth seeing.
@@karennoble1168 Well, of course few if any.could equal Ms. Kirkland in this ballet, but Ms. Bussel certainly did a beautiful job.
Aknowledging one artist need not negate the work of another. There's room for many artists to dance the roll.
Thank you, Darci! I could watch you dance all day every day!
Spot on - I don't see how Kistler can even be compared to Kirkland in this role or, in general, actually. (And I adore Kistler).
Yes. I don't adore Kistler at all--she was never the same after her early injury, much as her rabid fanbots tried to pretend she was--and agree totally about Kirkland.
Beautiful! Thanks for posting.
This was so great! I remember watching this on tv
I like them both, but I am old enough to remember the original cast of Mme. Alicia Alonso and Mr. Igor Youskevitch
stunning ballet-there is a wonderful version from the 1970's with Kirkland and Baryshnikov, but the video quality is very poor.
Thank you, Karen, Will look up the vídeo, probably very difficult to do better than B. AND G.
This one does not do much for me, Altghough beautiful.
But Not everything fits Is..
Altghough i love Igor Zelensky AND i heard about Darcie's injuries, how difficult...
She is unbelievable!,
Beautiful arms
Can you imagine how little rehearsal time they had?. SHe is EXQUISITE those feet and legs are like a thorough bred race horse . She is FANTASTIC !!'!'!!!!!!!!
It's all in her schooling as well as years of dancing his Ballets. It shows!
чудесная музыка... танцуют музыку...Как же хочется увидеть запись "темы и вариации "в исполнении Александра Годунова...
Great!!!
Un gusto verlo de nuevo!!!!!
Oh, my. Was Kistler really that bad towards the end? What a shame, because I loved watching her. I had heard all about her foot injuries and her problems with her back and ankles and how after a two-year hiatus, she never returned to full form, she was always dancing at half-strength. I last saw her in 1994, in Sleeping Beauty. Apart from some wobbly balances in the Rose Adagio, (no hyperkinetic, preternaturally hyperactive NYCB ballerina can ever do them), she was marvellous.
You can do a comparison, when in doubt about exquisite dancing, see for example lovely María Khoreva, 18, in the 9.18 min Midnight Summer dream. Incredible lightness, effortlessness, a great rising or already a Russian star.
Красота!Блеск!👏👏👏👏
I love Darci to death, but this was Gelsey's role all the way
I completely disagree. I think she is the ONLY one I have seen so far that can come close to Gelsey. I LOVE Gelsey and am obsessed with that film footage of her and Misha, but this is also wonderful. She dances it with the exact Balanchine style, and most importantly moves in such a light way, even without the partner lifting her, a mark of a true ballerina.
This is why I say Balanchine defined dance in the 20th century. As Petipa did in the 19th. A documentary on Balanchine shows that Petipa died very soon after Balanchine was born. It was a dramatic juxtaposition. Balanchine did away with the rows of immobile dancers with arms crossed, standing in position for ages. In a Balanchine traditional ballet like this, every corps member dances.
She loved to dance and it shows
please stop comparing kistler to kirkland. they both bring something different to the ballet
Oh, absolutely. Kirkland brings dazzling technique and accuracy; Kistler brings bad technique and declining skills.
In no way does this begin to approach the Kirkland - Baryshnikov version. They were some of the greatest dancers ever, so almost everyone else will seem sadly lacking by comparison.
I absolutely agree!!
Well, sorry love, but other people did actually have to do the ballet - not just those two...
@@Jayjen35 Sorry, DARLING. Many other NYCB ballerinas, to say nothing of ABT or PNB or MCB, danced 'Theme' brilliantly--and put Kistler to shame. Ashley, Nichols, Bouder, Peck, Gregory, van Hamel, Carberry, Loscavio, Imler, Pantastico, Catoya, Delgado, etc. ad infinitum were all what a 'Theme' ballerina is supposed to be. Kistler is NOT.
Thanks for posting the ballet video. Suite #3 has been one of my favorites along with the other 78 works of Tchaikovsky. I fast forwarded to the Polonaise at 6:20 to see dancers' progress toward the climax at 7:06. The dancers were great but I expected a more powerful choreography like group high jumps rather than just the timid dancing performed here. Barishnikov's version has the same issue at this particular spot IMHO.
I felt so very sorry to hear about her major injuries. She does her best here, very admirable but it does show, she can barely get an arabesque 3/4 up. It feels like a ballet from the 60s.
This is the first and only video i have seen with her, only now and wish her only the best!!
Love Igor Zelensky.
темп и скорость исполнения вариаций,хореография - не предполагают арабески за 180) все остальное - вполне приемлемо)
I find it ridiculous that anyone thinks Kistler is better than Kirkland based on this performance. She makes this sublime pas de deux just look exceedingly stodgy and dull. This was unfortunately just part of the 2 decade long absurd and unrelenting effort of Peter Martins to make his wife the prima of the company. She never was anything close to it, especially after her injuries. This was part of the Balanchine Celebration, and any director in their right mind in 1993 would have had Nichols (who had kept the flame of greatness alive for Balanchine and NYCB for 2 solid decades (!) and was still in her prime in 1993) dance this pas, rather than that minor Walpurgisnacht ballet. Nepotism was certainly alive and well (see also Nilas Martins dancing Apollo, eyeroll!) at NYCB at that time.
This does not seem an accurate summary .
Darci needed no one to promote her …her love of dance .. perfect proportions and lines are spectacular .
I have yet to see anyone dance sugarplum as she did in 1993.
Very cruel and untrue
@@marymohagheghi4875 This is an incredibly accurate and intelligent summary; you are an imbecile who knows nothing of ballet. Kistler was never again a great dancer after her early injury, and was already technically inadequate at the time of this recording.
Darci Kistler is superior in this role in comparison to the Kirkland version. This tempi is actually faster than the Baryshnikov/Kirkland version but you don't notice that is is fast because Kistler and the NYCB core make it look effortless so that one does not feel the technique or the speed, the dancers simply make you see the movement in the music. Fabulous thanks for posting!
Wrong, Matthew. Gelsey's tempo was always faster. And no one else comes close to her interpretation.
The boy is great
You are right farci is genius
love both but Darci is so much nicer,Kirkland clean,but so much drama,Draci smiles,but Gels nails this,this is her role darci is apollo&agon
I would like to see the recordings of this ballet with the participation of Alexander Godunov ( in 1980)
Absolutely, balletjones. The tempi are all *slower* here, not faster--I cannot imagine how anyone could possibly be blind enough to think Kistler, who is already a shadow of her former self here and her former self was NEVER anything approaching Kirkland, is better than Kirkland (OR Gregory, OR van Hamel, OR Serrano, OR almost any other Seventies prima) in this role. Kistler's feet are sloppy compared to Kirkland's and she simply does not have the goods any more for the part.
can anyone tell me the names of the pieces?
Yes. I liked Kistler when she was very young, Neryssa--before the serious injury which , I think, altered her entire subsequent career. She was never again as brilliant, daring, technically audacious after the mid-Eighties--and she committed the awful sin of dancing ten years longer than she should ever have remained on stage. I am sorry to say I saw her far too often in those years, and it was mortifying.
who is thé girl svo
Many other NYCB ballerinas, to say nothing of ABT or PNB or MCB, danced 'Theme' brilliantly--and put Kistler to shame. Ashley, Nichols, Bouder, Peck, Gregory, van Hamel, Serrano, Carberry, Loscavio, Imler, Pantastico, Catoya, Delgado, etc. ad infinitum were all what a 'Theme' ballerina is supposed to be. Kistler is NOT and never was after her first two or three years in NYCB (before her injury). Sadly, after the little beating incident, she blackmailed Martins into keeping her onstage ten years after he should have forced her to retire.
I've seen them all. Darci and Igor are perfection here
@@rayhelinski6662 No you have not even seen half of them all, as they span decades and continents. Kistler and Zelensky are barely adequate here--NOTHING more. Get lost. Schooled, blocked.
Time to watch NYCB to cleanse my soul. I just viewed that terrible Russian version.
Why are the variations missing?
Its for the TV> it was the Balanchine Celebration so excerpts from some of his ballets were performed at one performance that aired on PBS.
Totally agree! Darci is more enjoyable to watch.
I'm going to have to agree that Gelsey was far superior in this role. But I wasn't aware, either, that Darci had sustained so many injuries; it's too bad that she was cast in this extraordinarily difficult role after her prime. Would have loved to have seen her before her technique was compromised. How wonderful if Kyra could have danced this role for this event.
No way1
I have always loved Gelsey Kirkland, read about her troubled life.
The best Clara With Baryshnikov.
It was a special Time, Sort of a golden era of ballet in the USA, when Baryshnikov was with her AND others at ABT, gave it so much new Energy, attracted people to ballet, also because
of the movies Made with him. Such a charismatic dancer, artist AND person.
There was also the great Natalia Makarova.
Years After him appeared Danil Simkin, looks like His brother, same body style, sky high jumps, charm.
Went lately? to the Berlín ópera, redoing la Bayadere. Great in Don Quichote.
qui sont les danseurs svp très belle. la fille
Darci Kistler and Igor Zelensky
aliba15 merci
This corp doesn't stay together well at all seems to me
NYCB corps has never been noted for being in unison
Meant Darci
Darci is more energetic then Gelsey,Lyrical is pretty but Darci attacks the choreography&Gelsey does it
Laughable ignorance from you. Exactly the opposite is correct.
Not the land of Balanchine. Dreadful. A joke. They need to take classes from Mariinsky how to dance this Russian choreographer.
Run along, little Russkytrollette WANNABE. You're the joke.