Ballet performance videos. Performances by, Mikhail Baryshnikov, sparkling full-length production of Don Quixote captures all the excitement, Spanish color, and humor of Cervantes’ original masterpiece. It is one of the most popular and joyful ballets su


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	Ballet Performance Videos


	Ballet Performance Videos

Don Quixote. Baryshnikov, Harvey, American Ballet Theatre DVD
Mikhail Baryshnikov’s sparkling full-length production of Don Quixote captures all the excitement, Spanish color, and humor of Cervantes’ original masterpiece. It is one of the most popular and joyful ballets surviving from the imperial Russian ballet’s repertory. The famous virtuosic pas de deux is danced in this performance by Baryshnikov "like a dream," according to the New York Post, "a madcap bravado which combined with his pure classicism gives his dancing an edge of genius." His partner, Cynthia Harvey, who takes the part of Kitri, was reviewed in the New York press as possessing "a clear line and splendid grace that grow more wonderful on each viewing." American Ballet Theatre was ecstatically received by the New York press for this performance. The New York Times described how "the dancers had the audience gasping," while the New York Post felt that the company had "never looked better. Dancing flows out of the Ballet with a boisterous beauty."
Product ID: B00008AORE.01 $49.95

Romeo and Juliet. Royal Ballet. Rudolf Nureyev and Margot Fonteyn DVD
It's not a stretch to call Rudolf Nureyev and Margot Fonteyn the most sublime of all dance partners and Sergei Prokofiev the most gifted 20th-century ballet composer. And so it goes without saying that the 1966 film version of the Royal Ballet production of Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet featuring Nureyev and Fonteyn as the star-crossed lovers is an absolute must-have for anyone who cares a whit about the art. Director Paul Czinner has made all the right moves, alternating between full shots of the performers with long shots that accentuate how Kenneth MacMillan's fastidious choreography is inexorably linked to the characters, their story, the elaborate sets, and the viewer. Nicholas Georgiadis's costumes are sumptuous without being overdone, the supporting dancers and ensemble are as exquisite as the leads, and John Lanchbery conducts the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House with just the right mixture of joviality and tragedy that Prokofiev's classic score needs but doesn't always receive.
Product ID: B00003M5GE.01 $49.95

A Midsummer Night's Dream DVD
A Midsummer Night's Dream is George Balanchine's story-ballet masterpiece based on Shakespeare's play. With music by Felix Mendelssohn, the Pacific Northwest Ballet's full-length production was performed and videotaped before a live audience in February 1999 at London's Sadler's Wells Theatre. The critics lavishly praised this outstanding presentation. PNB artistic directors Francia Russell and Kent Stowell have trained and coached their dancers to a very high level of artistic excellence. The corps de ballet exhibits technical prowess, evident in every dance sequence. The women in the corps de ballet do pas de bourree courus, pirouettes, and various poses all in perfect unison.
Principal ballerina, Patricia Barker as Titania, shows why ballet audiences and critics alike so highly regard her. Every step she executes and every pose she takes are done with ease and grace. Her deep arabesques- and attitudes-penchees exude elegance. Paul Gibson (Oberon) glides across the stage, turns suavely, and does some very nice batterie, while Charles Newton (Titania's Cavalier) shows that he too can move with agility and finesse. Hippolyta (Ariana Lallone) does a variety of jetes (three very fine grands jetes in a row that punctuate a sequence of turns, steps, and postures) and her fouettes rond de jambe en tournants are as good as you will ever see. The show-stopper, however, is Seth Belliston (Puck). His expressive miming and his movements all over the stage dazzle: He runs, he jumps, he spins with esprit and verve. Act II, a divertissement, features Louise Nadeau and Olivier Wevers in a pas de deux so sensuous it's impossible not to be filled with joy with their passion provoking dancing. Ms. Nadeau displays perfect line and musicality. Mr. Wevers lifts her effortlessly, and his turns and leaps are clean and sharp. Lisa Apple, Julie Tobiason, Ross Yearsley, and Jeffrey Stanton (the two sets of lovers) and Kaori Nakamura (Butterfly) turn in solid performances. Timothy Lynch (Bottom) makes a fine "ass."
The BBC Concert Orchestra, under the direction of Stewart Kershaw, gives a polished and sonorous performance of The Overture and Incidental Music To A Midsummer Night's Dream (augmented with other compositions by Mendelssohn). Three vocal accompaniments, liltingly sung by soprano Libby Crabtree, mezzo-soprano Judith Harris, and a small chorus include: 1) the Fairies Song (No. 3, Op. 61) set to Shakespeare's Fairies Song (Act II, Scene 2); 2) an excerpt from Mendelssohn's The First Walpurgis Night for voices and orchestra (Op. 60); and 3) the Finale (No. 13, Op. 61) with portions of Oberon's and Titania's speeches at the end of Scene 1, Act V. (The booklet included with the DVD does not provide the texts of the vocals.) This is a "must-have" DVD.
Product ID: B00005Q313.01 $49.95

Tchaikovsky. Swan Lake. Makarova, Dowell, Royal Ballet Covent Garden DVD
It is difficult to believe today that Swan Lake was a failure on its production in 1877 and was not successful until the Petipa/Ivanov version of 1895. Today it is regarded as one of the greatest works in the art of ballet. The magic of Tchaikovsky’s music, embodying the love of Prince Siegfried for the enchanted Swan Queen, has greatly contributed to making this the best loved of all classical ballets. This production, with designs by the late Leslie Hurry, stars Natalia Makarova as Odette-Odile and Anthony Dowell as Prince Siegfried. Prince Siegfried celebrates his twenty-first birthday; his mother tells him it is time to marry, but he prefers to go hunting. Alone, by a lakeside, he sees a swan who turns to human form. She is an enchanted princess who can be saved only by true love. He promises this, but is tricked by the wicked magician who disguises his own daughter as the swan-maiden. In despair, Siegfried and the swan-maiden leap to death together and their sacrifice destroys the evil power.
Product ID: B00008AOR4.01 $49.95

Bizet,Shchedrin. Carmen. Cullberg Ballet DVD
With the hot glow of her cigar, the piercing intensity of her gaze, and her unabashed sexuality, Carmen radiates defiance. She's a woman who knows what she wants and is ruthless in pursuing it. She takes and discards lovers as she pleases. Mats Ek's International Emmy Award-winning version of the fiery tale of passion and murderous jealousy is an exciting, suspenseful mix of bravura dancing and inventive, powerful storytelling. Set to Rodion Shchedrin's "Carmen Suite," the Russian composer's arrangement of Bizet's perenially popular opera music, this stylish production features award-winning dancer Ana Laguna as a mesmerizing and irresistible Carmen, with Yvan Auzely and Marc Hwang as her rival lovers: macho bullfighter Escamillo and romantic young soldier Jose.
Product ID: B0000687DZ.01 $39.95

American Ballet Theatre at the Met - Mixed Bill DVD
From the Metropolitan Opera House, New York, this triple bill of ballets, with an additional glittering pas de deux, is a delightful introduction to the range and excitement of American Ballet Theatre’s repertory. The first piece is Les Sylphides in which Mikhail Baryshnikov is the poet surrounded by the drifting chorus of sylphs. The Sylvia Pas de deux is a sparkling duet for Martine van Hamel and Patrick Bissell, and it is followed by Triad, one of Sir Kenneth MacMillan’s most poetic and sensitive short ballets. Finally, in a blaze of brilliant dancing, the Grand Pas from Paquita shows off the technical virtuosity of ABT’s dancers in a cascade of mock-Spanish bravura choreography staged by Natalia Makarova from the original Petipa version.
Product ID: B00008AORF.01 $49.95

Tchaikovsky. The Sleeping Beauty. Kirov Ballet DVD
With its perfect fusion of music and choreographic ideas, The Sleeping Beauty is the quintessential romantic ballet, and it finds its spiritual home preserved in the outstanding classic traditions of the Kirov Ballet. The stylish grandeur of choreographer and artistic director Oleg Vinogradov's production shows the entire company at its best. Founded more than 200 years ago as the official ballet of the St. Petersburg Imperial Court, the Kirov Ballet was home to Marius Petipa, creator of this classic as well as Swan Lake and Raymonda. The highest tradition in dance continues with Larissa Lezhnina, one of Kirov's brightest new talents, brilliant as Princess Aurora, and Farukh Ruzimatov's performance in the role of Prince Desire demonstrates both power and grace.
Product ID: B00005NG0Y.01 $49.95

Lar Lubovitch's Othello. San Francisco Ballet DVD
One of the most thrilling chapters in San Francisco Ballet's history is back in all its glory. Lar Lubovitch's "Othello," with a commissioned score by Academy Award winner Eliot Goldenthal, will be broadcast tonight on PBS' Great Performances and has just been released on DVD by Kultur. Although there is no substitute for witnessing dance live in the theater, this "Othello," directed for television by Matthew Diamond, is more than a souvenir of a great performance. It is a gripping, entertaining home-viewing experience. It stars Desmond Richardson, who created the title role in New York for American Ballet Theatre. San Francisco's Yuan Yuan Tan dances Desdemona, perhaps her greatest role. Parrish Maynard, an Iago in both companies, returns alongside a supporting cast that includes Katita Waldo as Emilia, Gonzalo Garcia as Cassio and Lorena Feijoo as the whore Bianca. Emil de Cou conducts the San Francisco Ballet Orchestra in a performance of Goldenthal's score that makes clear that "Othello" is a gift to American music as well as American dance. Taped live at the War Memorial Opera House in March 2002, "Othello" is a co- production by ABT, San Francisco Ballet and the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company. Premiered by ABT at the Metropolitan Opera House in 1997, "Othello" was revised slightly by Lubovitch and Goldenthal for the 1998 West Coast premiere in San Francisco. The piece grows more fascinating with every cast and every viewing. Turning the Bard's words into movement is a daunting task, and Lubovitch succeeds spectacularly: His "Othello" joins the select company of great Shakespearean dances that includes John Cranko's and Sir Kenneth MacMillan's "Romeo and Juliet," Cranko's "The Taming of the Shrew" and Jose Limon's "The Moor's Pavane." "Othello" is traditional in aiming to enrich the canon rather than reject it. But it is also a radical ballet, both in its negation of fashionable Balanchinean abstraction and in its unembarrassed embrace of the theatrical values of modern dance. Lubovitch's choreography is free of jargon, innocent of the slang of dance that modern dancemakers from Mark Morris to Twyla Tharp might have been tempted to use in trying to make the story contemporary. Lubovitch often simply suggests the plot and assumes that the details are known to the audience, and he plays on that knowledge to dwell on the profounder themes and vivid characters at the heart of Shakespeare's play. Inspired at every step by Goldenthal's unsettling music, Lubovitch achieves archetypal ideals. He explores the universal themes of Shakespeare's tragedy with intensity and clarity, in movement that seems drenched in dramatic truth. The truth is in the dancing. And San Francisco Ballet, from corps to principals, succeeds. Richardson -- who is on Broadway in the Burt Bacharach review "What the World Needs Now" -- is not as winning as San Francisco Ballet's Yuri Possokhov in the title role. But he is still an Othello of tragic stature, an outsider as much to the society around him as to the possibility of happiness. Given the most complex arm phrasing and athletic bravura turns, Richardson seems possessed by the unstoppable momentum of Lubovitch's choreography. Tan's Desdemona is lovely and subtle, daringly so. Embodying the very image of innocence about to be brutalized, she draws on her considerable musicality and virtuosity to bring to life the tragic futility of Desdemona's emotions. The childlike glee of Tan's duets with Garcia's Cassio, the earthy sensuality of Feijoo's seductive tarantella and even the terrifying ebb and flow of the Act 2 seaside ensemble all come off extremely well on the small screen. Only George Tsypin's icy Plexiglas sets suffer in the transition from stage to television -- much as they lost some of their sheer monumentality in their voyage from the Met to the War Memorial. Still, not unlike the dancers, the stage pictures of "Othello" gain a new dimension in front of the camera: an intimacy not easily shared in a large theater. In close-ups such as the desperation in Richardson's mad scenes in the theater, Lubovitch's "Othello" rings true.
Product ID: B00009PY1C.01 $49.95

Prokofiev. Cinderella. Sibley, Dowell. Royal Ballet DVD
Cinderella may be Sergei Prokofiev's most accessible ballet, both musically and visually, and in the hands of a master choreographer, it can be a thrilling experience. And so it is with this 1969 Royal Ballet performance, with then-resident genius Frederick Ashton pulling out all the stops in a staging guaranteed to please fans and win new converts. Ashton's particular ability to couch his innovative moves within a conventional framework is in evidence here. The back cover calls this "an acclaimed historic performance," and historic it certainly is. Several Royal Ballet dancers are shown in top form, including Ashton (as one of our heroine's ugly stepsisters!), Anthony Dowell as the prince, and the wonderful Antoinette Sibley as Cinderella. The production itself is filled with colorful sets and vivid costumes, and the Orchestra of the Royal Opera House plays Prokofiev's enchanting music under the steady baton of John Lanchberry.
Product ID: B00005K9PM.01 $49.95

Kirov Classics DVD
This is an excellent mixed bill program of ballet performed by a strong stable of Kirov dancers who achieved their notariety and acclaim during the late eighties and nineties. The depth of skill and artistry displayed by principals, soloists and corp de ballet alike here on this DVD is quite remarkable and well showcased in a diverse program that ranges from Les Syphlides, Le Corsaire pas de deux and Maritenka pas de six. Also on the DVD are lesser well known but equally well performed ballets of The Fairy Doll and Petruska. The DVD is anchored by a phenomenal performance of Paquita, led by Yulia Mahklina and Igor Zalensky and enhanced by the precision and elegance of other company members as they dance the various solos, pas de trois and ensemble segments of this ballet. The DVD is worth adding to any home collection for this Paquita alone.
Product ID: B00006G8HI.01 $49.95

Suzanne Farrell - Elusive Muse DVD
Romantic triangles. Unconsummated passion. Jealousy. Revenge. Just another day offstage at the New York City Ballet for ballerina Suzanne Farrell and her mentor, legendary choreographer George Balanchine. Elusive Muse traces the development of Farrell into an extraordinary performer while trying to define her passionate professional and personal relationship with "Mr. B." (Farrell says dancing with Balanchine was "more passionate, more loving" than a sexual relationship would have been.) Relying heavily on interviews with Farrell and her longtime dance partner, Jacques d'Amboise (who calls her a "goddess" and the "last, great muse for Balanchine"), the film follows her evolution from awestruck student to inspiration--Balanchine created some of his most breathtaking ballets for her, and lengthy footage of them, including "Diamonds" and "Mozartiana," is shown. The story is as tortured as ballet's best: Marriage to another dancer causes their banishment from the company and she's forced to dance in Europe to keep her career alive, but she triumphantly reunites (professionally) with her mentor
Product ID: B00005KA78.01 $39.95

Prokofiev. Romeo and Juliet. Nagano. Lyon Opera Ballet DVD
Angelin Preljocaj's startling new choreography of Shakespeare's tragic star-crossed lovers, set to Sergei Prokofiev's powerful score, is performed by the Lyon Opera Ballet, widely acclaimed for their stylish and innovative productions. Preljocaj sees the story as a class struggle between Romeo and Juliet with love as the power that can overthrow the established order's oppression. Reflecting the director's vision, designer Enki Bilal has magnificently created a stage world reflecting a communist sterility. The contrast between the ballet's cold environment and the lovers' heated encounters is beautifully realized in supple and imaginative duets danced by Pascale Doye and Nicolas Dufloux.
Product ID: B00005UQ8I.01 $49.95

Tchaikovsky. The Nutcracker. Collier, Dowell. Royal Ballet Covent Garden DVD
Fantasy and magic are the essential ingredients of The Nutcracker, and Tchaikovsky’s imaginative score helps bring to life the fantasy world of E.T.A. Hoffmann’s enchanting story of "The Nutcracker and The Mouse King." Gennady Rozhdestvensky is the guest conductor who "drew ravishing playing from this most ravishing of Tchaikovsky’s ballet scores." (Guardian) Though the original scenario for The Nutcracker was considered to be fatally flawed, this magical work has survived to become one of the firmest favorites in the ballet repertory. This production by the Artistic Director of Sadler’s Wells Royal Ballet, Peter Wright, with the help of Tchaikovsky ballet expert Roland John Wiley, attempts to rescue from far-flung archives surviving evidence of the original Ivanov/Sergueyev staging, combined with some captivating modern stage effects.
Product ID: B00008AOR5.01 $49.95

Purcell. Dido and Aeneas. Mark Morris Dance Group DVD
A danced opera. This adaptation of the critically acclaimed and provocative dance production by Mark Morris takes a fresh and controversial approach to the baroque operatic masterwork written in 1689 by Henry Purcell. Dido, the noble Queen of Carthage, has fallen in love with the Trojan Prince Aeneas. While the court celebrates the imminent union of the two monarchs, the evil sorceress with her coven of witches plots their downfall. Romance leads to heartbreak and tragedy. Dido and Aeneas stars Mark Morris himself in the dual roles of Dido and the sorceress, and the supporting roles are performed by the incomparable Mark Morris Dance Group. Tafelmusik, the award-winning Toronto-based baroque orchestra, provides accompaniment to a superb cast of vocal soloists, including the great American mezzo-soprano Jennifer Lane as the singing counterpart to Mark Morris. 56 minutes.
Product ID: 6305770336.01 $34.95

Tchaikovsky. Swan Lake. Barenboim, Scherzer, Matz, Deutsche Staatsoper Berlin DVD
While Artistic Director an dGeneral Musical Director of Berlin's Staatsoper Unter den Linden, Daniel Barenboim has always seen ballet as an artistic genre equal to opera and the concert. Thus, he conducted the ballet premiers of Schonberg's Verklarte Nacht (Glorious Night) and Bartok's Der wunderbare Mandarin (The Wonderful Mandarin) and directed the premiere of Swan Lake
Barenboim sees Tchaikovsky's music as containing two aspects of Russian culture of the time: the highly cultivated European nobility, and, as counterpoint, Slavic folk culture. Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake "is a masterpiece that transcends its time!", Barenboim said of the world-famous ballet whose symphonically-structured score met his interest in 19th-century Russian music halfway. That a conductor in such great demand assumed the musical direction of the Swan Lake premiere was also a sign of the great respect he has for the Lindenoper ballet ensemble's quality and power to shape dance.
Patrice Bart has been Deputy Ballet Director at the Paris Opera since 1990 after his worldwide career as "danseur etoile" on the world's most important dance stages. In the ensemble's choreographic production, he adapted and carefully modernized the legendary choreography of Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov. This production, modeled on the historical choreography with complicated steps and leaps in the style of the classical Russian school, shows a ballet evening in perfection.
The musical direction of Daniel Barenboim, the choreography of Patrice Bart, and the extraordinary achievement of all the artists involved results in a unique synergy of music and dance, making the ballet Swan Lake a great event even 100 years after its world premiere.
Product ID: B00004UEE0.01 $49.95

Stravinsky. The Firebird. Royal Danish Ballet DVD
"The Firebird" is a famous ballet that was first presented in 1910 by Diaghilev's Ballets Russes in Paris. The music by Igor Stravinsky is famous. Perhaps you've heard of "The Firebird Suite." It's comprised of selections from the ballet score, and it's often performed by orchestras without the dancing. The story behind the original ballet is of an exotic bird with magical powers, but this 1982 production by The Royal Danish Ballet, with choreography by American Glen Tetley, bears little resemblance to the original other than the name and the music.
The promotional copy on the jacket explains the revised story: "The Firebird is kept in an enchanted garden where she is guarded by a Victorian family, lead by a father figure. With the help of her lover, the Firebird liberates herself from the family's strict traditions and bonds, and with each pas de deux she becomes more and more human. As in every fairy tale, good triumphs over evil. Her lover overcomes evil, in the form of the garden's guardian, and is at last reunited with his Firebird."
Product ID: B00006G8HH.01 $49.95

Raymonda VHS
This glorious three-act ballet boasts a magical score by Alexander Glazunov, filled with melody, color and grand effects.
ACT 1 – Ludmila Semenyaka is magnificent as the youthful, charming Raymonda, niece to the Countess Sybil de Daurice of France. Raymonda is engaged to the gallant knight Jean de Brienne, who is superbly portrayed by Irek Moukhamedov. Because he must immediately depart on a campaign with King Andrei II of Hungary, the youth comes to the castle to bring his fiancée gifts and to bid her farewell. That night as Raymonda muses on her beloved, a statue of the White Lady, patroness of the House of Daurice, appears in a vision. She beckons the girl to the Magic Garden of Dreams, where Jean awaits her. But the apparition suddenly disappears, and in Jean’s place there is an unknown, exotic Eastern knight, who makes a passionate declaration of love to the bewildered Raymonda, when she faints, the knight vanishes. As dawn breaks, Raymonda awakens in the belief that her dream has been a terrible omen of her destiny.
ACT II – A celebration is underway at the castle. Among the guests is the Saracen knight Abderakhaman, performed by the electrifying Gedeminas Tarands. In him the terrified Raymonda recognizes the mysterious stranger she saw in her dream. Though he promises to give her riches and power in return for her heart and hand, she rejects. Him. Aberakham tries to abduct Raymonda. Unexpectedly however, Jean and the other knights return from their mission. To resolve the differences between Jean and Abderakham, King Andrei proposes a duel of honor. Aberakhman is defeated and Jean reclaims the overjoyed Raymonda.
ACT III – Raymonda and Jean are marries at the court of King Andrei. In honor of the monarch, Hungarian dances are performed during the wedding festivities. 146 mins.
Product ID: av1170 $39.95

Romeo et Juliet. Alessandra Ferri, Angel Corella DVD
The revival of the classically choreographed version of Prokofiev's Romeo and Juliet by senior choreographer Kenneth MacMillan enjoyed a phenomenal success at La Scala in January 2000; it was the first time that Alessandra Ferri and Angel Corella, the acclaimed stars of the American Ballet Theatre, had danced together on stage.
Hailed by the Italian press as the "new star couple," they both brought to their roles the youthfulness and innocence reflected in Prokofiev's music: Juliet, the young, inexperienced adolescent girl who puts all her faith in her feelings of love and undergoes the heights of passion as well as the depths of despair, and Romeo, the carefree young man certain of his feelings as a lover, ready to turn the established order on its head as a result, and knowing no bounds in his love for Juliet.
The intensive role-play of the two protagonists turns the lovers' tragic end into a disaster we experience with them, transcending the conventions of the story's familiar close.
Product ID: B0000TWMNY $39.95