Well again I’m sitting at an airport noticing that my last post has been more than a month ago. Hmmm. My plane from Tokyo to Frankfurt is late for three hours, what can I do ;).
Anyway yesterday I had my show in Tokyo which went really well. After my vacation period in Varna (what? I am on vacation…impossible! hahaha) I got back in shape and went for a week to Japan to perform first in Takamtsu and then in Tokyo and now I’m heading back home.
4 days in Frankfurt to recover from the Jet-lag and get back in shape for class.
(As you might or might not know there are different kinds of ‘being in shape’. To be in shape for rehearsing is different than to be performing. Then again for every performance and for even every Pas de deux you need different shapes, as different muscle groups are needed to perform. Actually it’s logical. Different kinds of jumps, different muscles, different shape.)
Well after that i am going for a week to Vilnius, Lithuania to prepare the role of Solor, which I’ll be doing there in December for the first time. My partner will be again Miki Hamanaka as Nikiya and Natalia Ledovskaya as Gamzatti.
After that I will be in Vienna for a week to visit friends and do some trainings there.
And I guess then I’ll be writing again to update you ;-).
By the way I have good news for my Mexican followers and friends. As it is planned I will be very probably performing in Guadalajara on September 26. Stay tuned for updates and news concerning that show.
“Le Spectre de la Rose is a ballet of the Ballets Russes based on a choreographic poem by Théophile Gautier. The music, by Carl Maria von Weber, was taken from his short piece Invitation to the Dance. Choreography was by Michel Fokine and set and costume design by Léon Bakst. It premiered on April 19, 1911 by the Ballets Russes in the Théâtre de Monte Carlo.
The story is about a debutante who falls asleep after her first ball. She dreams that she is dancing with the rose that she had been holding in her hand. Her dream ends when the rose escapes through the window. The dancers at the original performance were Vaslav Nijinsky as the Rose and Tamara Karsavina as the Girl. …”
Youtube was a great help. I was able to watch so many great dancers performing that piece. I could see, compare and decide what I like and what I don’t like in every performance. You get a couple of clips right beside here, so you can get an idea about the piece:
Manuel Legris:
Baryshnikov:
Nureyev:
Ruzimatov:
These are just a few and there are even more on Youtube to watch.
This piece of dance is pretty delicate to dance since it’s pretty different from what I’ve done. It’s far more important how you move and involve your arms and hands.
What is really dangerous is that all the big names of ballet history (starting with Nijinsky) danced that piece already and as an audience it is really tempting to just be lazy and start comparing. Who is jumping higher, who is doing which version etc…, but in the end please keep in mind there is no perfection possible in any art form and therefore comparison is useless.
I don’t know how about you, but for me it’s important if a performance/photo/painting/show, plainly said any art piece, gives something or not. This giving may be private or public, strong or weak, delicate or bold, but if you’re satisfied with this ‘present’ please be satisfied. There is no need for comparison.
Oups, I got kinda drawn away from my main subject, but whatever…just my two cents ;-).
If everything goes right I will be able to perform it the first time in Taipei on June 20th and 21st.
I just returned from my last performance in the Vienna State Opera.
I am sorry again that I was gone from blogging for some time. Last weeks have been nice. I was working on La Spectre with my mother and sorting out a lot in my life besides ballet. One thing is sure now. I am leaving Vienna as my residence and the ballet company as of May.
…
Here is a list of my performances in the months of May and June:
May 04th - Stars of the 21st Century in Toronto, Canada
May 14th - Hommage a Rudolf Nureyev Gala in Malaga, Spain
May 20th - Full Don Quixote in Kasan, Russia
May 23rd & 24th - Gala in honor of Rudolf Nureyev in Kasan, Russia
One month it is gone since I was in New York and only now I kinda feel like writing something about it. This tells you a lot of things happened to me since then which I am not yet willing to share, but definately will, when the times comes right.
New York
(All of the following pictures are from the courtesy of Mr. Gene Schiavone)
To sum it up, everything went pretty well and accordingly to the critics pretty successful.
“Even in distinguished company, certain artists seem to rise to the surface. This time it was Vienna Opera Ballet’s Daniil Simkin, a compact dancer of amazing agility and range. In his first solo, Moorhuhn, to messed-about Mussorgsky – parts of Pictures at an Exhibition mixed with sounds of clucking chickens, tweeting birds, etc – Simkin gave quirky choreography an impish twist and acrobatic prowess. His comedic versatility looked even better in Les Bourgeois to Jacques Brel in a solo epitomising a cheeky garçon at large in Paris.
It was not until Simkin partnered the Royal Ballet’s Roberta Marquez in the obligatory gala pas de deux from Don Quixote that his classical line, soaring elevation and attentive partnering came through. He was nicely matched with Marquez, a piquant whiz of a technician, and they gave this occasion an appropriately high-spirited finale.”
“…We saw 13 dancers in 13 pieces plus a stage-crossing finale. The occasion’s discovery was Daniil Simkin, a 20 year old currently in the Ballet of the Vienna Staatsoper and Vienna Volksoper but the product of Soviet training via his parents, Dmitrij Simkin and Olga Aleksandrova.
Looking boyish still, Simkin’s bravura stems from an airy technique and a light-boned, smooth-muscled physique. With Puckish charm he carried off two overly cute solos, his father’s “Moore Hen” which calls for him to lay an egg (supposedly to Mussorgsky music) and Ben Van Cauwenbergh’s “Les Bourgeois” in which he swaggers and smokes accompanied by a Jacques Brel song. What really put Simkin over was the “Don Quixote” pas de deux with Roberta Marquez. He had the clean classical elegance and full range of standard steps for this “Petipa” showpiece plus the ample strength to add extra turns on the ground and twists in the air. Simkin lifted Marquez high and partnered her attentively…”
“…Next year, let’s have several new talents like Simkin this year! ”
“And a “Don Quixote” pas de deux, danced by Roberta Marquez of the British Royal Ballet and Daniil Simkin of the Vienna Opera Ballet. But Mr. Simkin was oddly subdued. Only in the finale did he and Mr. Matvienko tear up the night in feats of fast, stage-crossing, bravura dancing. ”
(You cannot please all, or can you ;)?)
“Newcomer Daniil Simkin of the Vienna Opera Ballet also made three appearances Monday night. Mr. Simkin exemplifies the current vogue for very young dancers who look even younger. To some extent it’s a perennial vogue, and ballet perpetually capitalizes on the thrills of the prodigy. According to the program, Mr. Simkin was born in 1987, but he’s very childlike: small, slight, and cute in an urchin-like fashion. He performed a solo in each half of the program. One was created by his father, Dmitrij Simkin, and one was by Ben Van Cauwenbergh. Both blended acrobatic ballet stunts with actual acrobatics, and left no doubt about his hypertechnical and hyper-flexible capacities. He closed the program by partnering the Royal Ballet’s Roberta Marquez in the “Don Quixote” pas de deux, which had been the final number on last year’s program as well.”
” The irrepressible Daniil Simkin (above), who performed two humorous solos in addition to closing the evening in the Don Quixote pas de deux, was a favorite of the audience, which liked the quirky solos and applauded his high leaps and multiple turns in the pas de deux.”
“…and one of the evening’s favorites Daniil Simkin, Vienna Opera Ballet.
A winner of the several ballet competitions including Varna in 2004, D. Simkin won the audience over as much with his personality as with his craft. In the twitch and tangy “Moorhuhn” by Dmitrij Simkin, D. Simkin moved with the fluency of Tharp dancer—boneless and razor sharp and once again in “Les Bourgeois” by Ben Van Cauwenbergh, Simkin proved a beguiling guide through the music of Jacques Brel…”
” Stealing the show, undoubtedly, was Daniil Simkin, a dancer with the Vienna Opera Ballet. Daniil took the stage three times last night–twice in solos and once in a Don Quixote Pas de Deux with Roberta Marquez of the Royal Ballet. Daniil’s charismatic stage presence almost overshadowed his bounding leaps and perfectly solid turns. You never worried that Daniil might miss a beat or lose his spot. He was flawless the entire evening and each time he took the stage he was welcomed with resounding yells of “bravo!” from the audience.”
Well what else can I say…not much for the moment actually. There is a gala coming up in St. Petersburg, Russia. Actually it’s my first gala in Russia and it was funny to obtain a russian visa at the embassy (since I am a German citizen).
As you saw I added a facebook button at my networks. You can add me if you want.
In the next days and weeks I am going to try to set up the calendar/schedule on the right side of this page so you can see my following performances. and maybe recode some of my videos. Beside this I’ll have a photoshoot soon and it may be you will see some photos of that soon on this site…a lot to do.
But as I said I have some news concerning my future, but in the moment I am unable to make them official. Please be patient and understandable.
