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December 2006

Nijinsky Awards Announced "The fourth biennial Nijinsky Awards, considered the Oscars of the dance world, were presented Thursday on a stage where, nearly a century ago, legendary dancer and choreographer Vaslav Nijinsky often choreographed, rehearsed and performed: the recently restored Monte Carlo Opera House." Los Angeles Times 12/09/06

Sugar Plum Conundrum What is it about the Sugar Plum Fairy that sets so many ballerinas' hearts atwitter? Hers is not a leading role, not even close, and compared to some of the leaping, cavorting characters in The Nutcracker, she's not even that interesting from a dance point of view. "Sugar Plum is always in danger of being little more than a pink and pretty vacuum - which is why a succession of producers have attempted to invent extra substance for her." The Guardian (UK) 12/06/06

Royal Ballet Lands An Outsider Choreographer The company named Wayne McGregor as its new resident choreographer, and it's an oddly inspired choice. "The world as seen by Wayne McGregor is a world apart from the warm, centrally heated classrooms of the Royal Ballet School and the dainty interval sandwiches of Covent Garden. It is a mindset that engages with the real world of conflict and abandonment, of cruelty and technological revolution, of commonality and infinite human difference. It is a new world for the Royal Ballet, a renaissance by any other name." La Scena Musicale 12/05/06

Stepping Out In San Diego San Diego is seeing a boom in dance performances by young choreographers staging their work in makeshift spaces... San Diego Union-Tribune 12/03/06

Los Angeles Ballet Makes Its Debut The company opens with a new Nutcracker. And it's not bad, writes Lewis Segal... Los Angeles Times 12/04/06

A New Look Ailey? The Alvin Ailey Company unveils a new look. "Two additions to the repertory unveiled in the first week of the Ailey's monthlong season at the City Center are by celebrated choreographers -- both female, both white, both renegades -- who operate far from the themes of black experience, the humanistic outlook, and the conventional sentiments typical of Ailey's own work." Bloomberg 12/04/06

Sinking, Swimming Or Soaring At City Ballet Only a handful of dancers are made City Ballet apprentices each year, but for them it is an almost certain prelude to becoming part of the company. "City Ballet does not hold auditions; other than a few dancers like Nikolaj Hübbe, who joined as a principal after attaining that rank at the Royal Danish Ballet, company members enter through the school, which was created to cultivate dancers of the quality George Balanchine needed." The New York Times 12/03/06

Ailey Company Flying High It's been more than 15 years since Alvin Ailey died, and yet the company that bears his name is more vibrant than ever, says John Rockwell. "As this 2006 season opens, the company is showing signs of moving up to a new level. Its performances are enjoyed by teeming audiences nationally and internationally, with a steady, not to say backbreaking, touring schedule. Its dancers are better than ever, with the marvelous athleticism, vivid personalities and sleek sensuality the company has long fostered, now infused with the presence of starry newcomers." The New York Times 12/01/06


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