La Dame aux Camélias

I saw a performance last week with Claire-Marie Osta, Mathieu Ganio, and Michaël Denard. It's running until March, and since I bought tickets for these two performances less than two weeks ahead of time, I figured I could get at least something for the end of February and March. Ha. No. They were (almost) sold out. After handing me my now-much-more-prized-10-euro-ticket they are *completely* sold out.

So I made it to three La Dame aux Camélias.

Although, I will probably try buying the tickets "with no visibility" and go down to the 4th balcony to stand and watch... I stand in any case.

Intermission.

Tuesday, 2/9/2010:

with Claire-Marie Osta, Mathieu Ganio, and Michaël Denard

[no photos, sorry]

I think this was a better performance than the opening night. Emotionally a little warmer, a little freer dancing-wise.

I liked Osta. Although her acting was not especially strong, she was present and lived through her part of the role -- unfortunately without much reciprocity from Ganio. He dances well, partners well, his technique is strong and clean, he is handsome... too bad he doesn't ever forget about it. This makes for a very one-sided relationship between Marguerite and Armand. I'd like to see more sincerity on his part when he extends his arms toward his beloved, instead of, "come to me, I am handsome, aren't I, oh I love you so!"

Just sayin'.

The highlight of the night was seeing Myriam Ould-Braham as Olympia. She stands out from the majority of French dancers. She brings her personality on stage, whereas others have a tendency to appear as professionals at work. She looks at the audience -- her head and face, her eyes are the focal point, instead of feet or no focal point at all.

She is exceptionally graceful.

I look forward to seeing her more! T

here was another girl in the corps de ballet who also stood out, but I haven't figured out who it is.

* * *

Monday, 2/15/2010:

with Delphine Moussin, Benjamin Pech, Andreï

Klemm

Better, stronger than the prior two performances. Moussin is a bit older, so her character had more weight and authority. She seemed to be La Dame, while Osta seemed to have just ended up in the story and went from there. Moussin had more expressive posture,

a stronger 'ballerina-appearance

.' She also danced with abandon, as did Pech. Their duet was, finally, a duet.

In general, the one thing I have yet to experience from Paris Opéra is that feeling of magic, of inspiration, at least of something special happening on stage. They often seem to have this aura of professionals doing their job. Also, the joking around in the country-side could have been more elegant. I know hopping on pointe is hard, but...

Better acting in this performance. No weak flinging aside of jewelry -- Moussin just let it drop. If you can't do it so that it's a statement, don't chuck it at all, IMHO, because it comes off as a feeble "meh!" Not the desired effect.

Moussin and Pech.

I've totally confused my family as to why I'd go to see three performances of the same ballet.

“So you mean it’s the same choreography, every time, same ballet, but different dancers? And it’s different? But the choreography is the same?” Since I didn't really get to answer because everyone was distracted with the two-year-old dropping something, I will forever be the strange girl who likes ballet too much :).

Visit to Bourgogne - Part 2 (Sunday)

Sunday began with a visit to the Abbaye de Fontenay, which was founded in 1118. It is remarkably well-preserved, although at one point it had been turned into a paper mill (it was, and still is, privately owned).

From the outside, it doesn't seem particularly big but the view from the inside is much different. It seems larger, more spacious. This effect is due, in part, to the lighting. The lights are not in the center, on the ceiling, but are instead around the inside perimeter, from underneath the columns.

Such a wonderful feeling of mystery amid 900-year-old stone.

There is also a dormitory, in which the inhabitants slept year-round. Let me tell you, it is cold in a stone building in the winter! Apparently, the only sources of heat were the kitchen and a 'fireplace' near the scriptorium, from which warm air rose to the dormitory.

In the courtyard --

In the garden --

We didn't get to see any castles, unfortunately, although we passed several. Here is a photo of one taken through the bus window --

Then we drove to Vézelay, which is a town of about 500 inhabitants (as of 2006...according to Wiki :)). Of note, the Second Crusade began here.

La Basilique Sainte-Marie-Madeleine de Vézelay

After a quick tour of the Basilique, Mariana and I went for a walk around Vézelay.

View of the valley, from behind the Basilique.

As you can see, Vézelay is on a hill and the Basilique is at the highest point. Sometimes fog collects in the valley around it and then the Basilique appears as if it's floating in the clouds - very cool!

Mariana

Great trip!

Funny moment - as we were getting off the bus back in Paris, I searched for my umbrella....eventually I came away with 4 umbrellas total, mine among them.

Introducing Lilly, the Host Cat (and now my roommate)

That would be Marlowe's Dr. Faustus. Cozy pillow, I know...

Visit to Bourgogne - Part 1 (Saturday)

We spent last weekend traveling around in Bourgogne, which is about 3 hours away from Paris.

Our first stop was in Beaune, one of the cities in Bourgogne famous for its wines. After a yummy lunch in a restaurant (where I had chocolate ice cream for the first time in Paris), we went to see "Les Hospices," which was a hospital from 1443 until 1971. More than 500 years!

Les Hospices de Beaune (also known as Hostel-Dieu de Beaune).

Rooftops of the Hospices.

Inside. On the right, those are all the beds for the patients, separated by curtains. They're really short by today's standards.

Surgical instruments from long-ago -- a wee bit frightening...

Rooftops.

A moment in life.

Afterwards we went to the Reine Pédauque for a wine-tasting. The cellar was mysterious, humid and dark, with mossy walls. (No photos from inside because my camera does not cooperate with near-darkness.) Their lighting fixture was made of empty wine bottles :). I found the following sign in one of the aisles:

Meursault Charmes

Ce grand vin, comme vous Mesdames, est proprietaire de multiples...charmes

(This great wine, just like you, my Ladies, possesses many...charms)

Katie and I at the wine tasting.

We tried 3 wines -- St. Véran (white), Ladoix and Mercurey (both red), and 2 liqueurs -- de cassis (black currant) and de la prunelle sauvage (wild plum? sloe??). (I think culinary vocabulary has been one of the bigger language challenges. Host family likes to have unusual things for dinner and they are often quite amused when we don't understand what it is even after they translate it into English.)

Notes from the tour of the cellar:

--Wine tasting involves three things: looking at color against the light, smelling the wine, swirling it around and smelling some more, and finally tasting it.

--Most wines are kept for around 2 years, some up to 8, and several very expensive ones even longer.

--1947 was a very good year for wine in Bourgogne. They are now super-expensive (500 euros, if I heard correctly...I actually thought it'd be more). The Americans used to be at the forefront of the market (I'm not sure which...just for the 1947 wines?? See how awesome it is to understand half the conversation?), then the Japanese, and now apparently the Russians.

Au revoir, Beaune...

We (well, at least Mariana and I) wished for our hotel to be in the middle of nowhere, and it most definitely was. It is a good feeling to be out in the fields, surrounded by thick fog and complete darkness!

Waiting for dinner at the Bergerie.

I don't think anyone can resist munching on French bread, so it is gone as soon as it appears (which reminds me of the sentiments of Winnie the Pooh regarding honey :)). The rest of dinner included endive salad with sauce, potatoes, chicken and fish, then munster cheese and bread, wine, and an éclair for dessert. After everyone was warm and happy, we learned several (naughty :)) French songs from our professor-turned-tour-guide.

The next morning Mariana and I wandered near our hotel after breakfast, in the cold, peace and quiet.

Chenôve.

On the road again... Sunday adventures will be another post.

French Food

French food in pictures (warning: it may make you hungry :)) --

Part 1 of dinner with host family:

carrots + baguette + some kind of fish + caviar prepared with wasabi

Gaufre caramel + latte

Home-made dinner:

spaghetti + cucumber + some kind of meat + shrimp

(can't take credit for the last two... merci to host dad!)

More of my attempts.

Other observations:

--When you get a coffee at a cafe, you also get a small little something to go with it, like a cocoa-powder-covered almond. Or a small chocolate. They are delicious! (Coffees will get a post of their own later.)

--If there are 3 chocolate pastries, and only one of them is squished, which one are you likely to get from the lunch lady at the cafeteria?

--One thing you are never far from and are not likely to go broke on: bread. Bread, bread, and more bread. You can always find a sandwich (or a crêpe).

--Vin chaud (hot wine) sold on a street corner sounds so appetizing on a cold, rainy day! (Mind you, it's the same price as hot chocolate. Decisions, decisions... :))

Theater News

Pictures from visit to Opéra Garnier to see La Dame aux Camélias (chor. Neumeier), with Agnès Letestu as Marguerite Gautier, Stéphane Bullion as Armand Duval, Michaël Denard as Monsieur Duval:

Interesting performance -- nice to see a full house! I didn't really warm up to Letestu's character, but the performance got better as it went on. Part of the reason may have been the abrupt beginning -- they just started. No lights dimmed, no curtain rising, they just started. I would like to see more of Letestu in real life (videos don't always do justice). Enjoyed Chopin's music, though it resonated more with me than the dancing. Everyone performed very well, but sort of half in-character, half thinking-about-what-comes-next...

Everybody went as a group to see Amphitryon by Molière. The play was pretty much the same as the original, but transposed into a more modern environment. So more modern costumes, one nifty set that turned around for different scenes, and lots of yelling. Not particularly impressed with seeing Jupiter wearing a business suit, motorcycle helmet, and silver shoes (which oft came off along with two socks), but there may have been a point. Hard to tell...

Will be going to see Shéhérazade, Firebird, The Afternoon of a Faun, and Armida's Pavilion the first week of March at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées. Hoping to see Nioradze, Tsiskaridze, Aleksandrova, Lobukhin, and the Kremlin Ballet.