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The title says it all…

Greetings from Guadalajara, Mexico.

Before I start, I have to set something clear, preferably from the mouth of the master himself:

From Wikipedia:

“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.