nbcdjf 0607 outershell - national ballet of canada

Ballet Notes

Aleksandar Antonijevic and Sonia Rodriguez as Trigorin and Nina.

Photo by Cylla von Tiedemann.

The Seagull March 21 – 25, 2012

national.ballet.ca

Celia Franca, C.C., Founder

George Crum, Music Director Emeritus

Karen Kain, C.C. Kevin GarlandArtistic Director Executive Director

David Briskin Rex Harrington,O.C.Music Director and Artist-in-ResidencePrincipal Conductor

Magdalena Popa Lindsay FischerPrincipal Artistic Coach Artistic Director,

YOU dance / Ballet Master

Peter Ottmann Mandy-Jayne Senior Ballet Master Richardson

Senior Ballet Mistress

Aleksandar Antonijevic, Guillaume Côté, Greta Hodgkinson, Jirí Jelinek, Zdenek Konvalina*,Heather Ogden, Sonia Rodriguez, Piotr Stanczyk,Jillian Vanstone, Xiao Nan Yu+, Bridgett Zehr*

Kevin D. Bowles, Lorna Geddes, Tomas Schramek,Hazaros Surmeyan

Keiichi Hirano, Tanya Howard+, Stephanie Hutchison,Etienne Lavigne, Patrick Lavoie, Elena Lobsanova,McGee Maddox, Stacey Shiori Minagawa, Tina Pereira, Jonathan Renna, Rebekah Rimsay,Robert Stephen, Brett van Sickle

Jordana Daumec, Naoya Ebe, Chelsy Meiss,Alejandra Perez-Gomez, Jenna Savella

Danyla Bezerra, Ryan Booth, Skylar Campbell, Adji Cissoko,Shaila D’Onofrio, Krista Dowson, Nadine Drouin, Jackson Dwyer,Giorgio Galli, Selene Guerrero-Trujillo, Emma Hawes, Juri Hiraoka, Kathryn Hosier, Rui Huang, Lise-Marie Jourdain,James Leja, Alexandra MacDonald, Elizabeth Marrable, Ji Min Hong, Shino Mori, Tiffany Mosher, Andreea Olteanu+,Brendan Saye, Christopher Stalzer, Joseph Steinauer, Dylan Tedaldi, Nan Wang, Aarik Wells, Sarah Elena Wolff

RBC Apprentice Programme / YOU dance: James Applewhite,Jack Bertinshaw, Esabelle Chen, Daniel Cooke, Francesco Gabriele Frola, Larissa Khotchenkova, Miyoko Koyasu, Lisa Lanteri, Nayara Lopes, Asiel Rivero.

Lorna Geddes Joysanne SidimusPointe Shoe Manager / Guest Balanchine Assistant Ballet Mistress Répétiteur

Ernest Abugov Shelby-Jai FlickJeff Morris Assistant Stage Manager/Stage Managers Stage Manager, YOU dance

*Guest Artist+Maternity Leave

OrchestraViolinsBenjamin BowmanConcertmaster

Lynn Kuo, Assistant Concertmaster

Dominique Laplante, Principal Second Violin

James AylesworthJennie Baccante Csaba KoczóSheldon GrabkeXiao Grabke• Nancy KershawSonia Klimasko-LeheniukYakov LernerJayne MaddisonRon MahAya MiyagawaWendy RogersFilip TomovJoanna ZabrowarnaPaul Zevenhuizen

ViolasAngela Rudden, Principal• Theresa Rudolph Koczó,Assistant Principal

Valerie KuinkaJohann LotterBeverley Spotton• Larry Toman

CellosMaurizio Baccante,Principal

Olga LaktionovaAndrew McIntoshMarianne PackElaine ThompsonPaul Widner

BassesHans J.F. Preuss, PrincipalPaul LangleyRobert Speer• Cary Takagaki

FlutesLeslie J. Allt, PrincipalMaria Pelletier• Shelley Brown, Piccolo

OboesMark Rogers, PrincipalKaren RotenbergLesley Young, English Horn

ClarinetsMax Christie, Principal• Emily MarlowGary Kidd, Bass Clarinet

BassoonsStephen Mosher, PrincipalJerry RobinsonElizabeth Gowen, Contra Bassoon

HornsGary Pattison, PrincipalVincent BarbeeDerek ConrodScott Wevers

TrumpetsRichard Sandals, PrincipalMark DharmaratnamRobert Weymouth

TrombonesDavid Archer, PrincipalRobert FergusonDavid Pell, Bass Trombone

TubaSasha Johnson, Principal

HarpLucie Parent, Principal

TimpanyMichael Perry, Principal

PercussionMark Mazur, ActingPrincipal

Kristofer Maddigan

Orchestra PersonnelManager and MusicAdministratorJean Verch

Assistant OrchestraPersonnel ManagerRaymond Tizzard

LibrarianLucie Parent

Extra PlayersAnne Armstrong, ViolinRenee London, ViolinHiroko Kagawa, ViolinSonia Vizante, ViolinBethany Bergman, ViolinCarolyn Blackwell, ActingAssistant Principal Viola

Nicholaos Papadakis,Viola

Keith Hamm, ViolaTom Hazlitt, BassKevin O’Donnell, PiccoloColleen Cook, ClarinetRob Carli, SaxophoneDiane Doig, HornBeverley Johnston,Percussion

Richard Moore,Percussion

John Thompson,Percussion

Samuel Morgenstein,Percussion

Andrei Streliaev, Piano

• On Leave of Absence

The 2011/12 season is presented by

The SeagullA ballet by John Neumeier after Anton Chekhov

Choreography: John NeumeierAfter the play by: Anton ChekhovMusic: Dmitri Shostakovich+, Evelyn Glennie++, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Alexander ScriabinSet, Costume and Lighting Design: John NeumeierRépétiteurs: Magdalena Popa, Rex Harrington, Peter Ottmann,Mandy-Jayne Richardson, and

Lindsay FischerConductor: David Briskin, Music Director and Principal Conductor

+ By arrangement with G. Schirmer, Inc. publisher and copyright owner

++ Used by arrangement with European American Music LLC, sole Canadian and U.S. Agent for Faber Music Ltd publisher and

copyright owner

Premiere: The Hamburg Ballet, June 16, 2002, Hamburg, GermanyNational Ballet premiere: November 14, 2008, Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts.

The Seagull is generously supported in part by an anonymous friend of the National Ballet.

“Chekhov, like Shakespeare, is an authorwho creates characters so complete, so true, that they live in the imaginationoutside and independent of the text. It is the emotional life behind Chekhov’swords that I transform into dance. Forme, the central theme and conflict of The Seagull is the relationship betweenlove and art – art and love.”

– John Neumeier

Wednesday, March 21, 2012 at 7:30 pm

Thursday, March 22, 2012 at 2:00 pm and 7:30 pm

Friday, March 23, 2012 at 7:30 pm

Saturday, March 24, 2012 at 2:00 pm and 7:30 pm

Sunday, March 25, 2012 at 2:00 pm

Zdenek Konvalina and Greta Hodgkinson

in The Seagull.Photo by Cylla von Tiedemann.

national.ballet.ca

Irina Nikolayevna Arkadina, Prima BallerinaGreta Hodgkinson (Mar 21, 22 eve, 24 mat, 25)Heather Ogden (Mar 22 mat, 23, 24 eve)

Konstantin (Kostya) Gavrilovich Triplev, her SonGuillaume Côté* (Mar 21, 22 eve, 25)Patrick Lavoie* (Mar 22 mat, 24 eve)Keiichi Hirano (Mar 23, 24 mat)

Piotr Nikolayevich Sorin, her BrotherJonathan Renna*

Boris Alexeyivich Trigorin, ChoreographerAleksandar Antonijevic (Mar 21, 22 eve, 25)Jirí Jelinek* (Mar 22 mat, 24 eve)Piotr Stanczyk (Mar 23, 24 mat)

Nina Mikhailovna Zarechnaya, Young GirlSonia Rodriguez (Mar 21, 22 eve, 25)Elena Lobsanova (Mar 22 mat, 24 eve)Jillian Vanstone (Mar 23, 24 mat)

Yevgeny Sergeyivich Dorn, DoctorMcGee Maddox*

Semyon Semyonovich Medvedenko,Schoolteacher Noah Long

+(Mar 21, 22 mat, 23, 24 eve, 25)

James Leja* (Mar 22 eve, 24 mat)

Ilya Afanasevich Shamrayev, Manager ofSorin’s EstateKevin D. Bowles

Polina Andreyevna, his WifeStephanie Hutchison (Mar 21, 22 eve, 23, 24 mat, 25)Rebekah Rimsay* (Mar 22 mat, 24 eve)

Masha, their DaughterChelsy Meiss* (Mar 21, 23, 25) Stephanie Hutchison* (Mar 22 mat, 24 eve)Alejandra Perez-Gomez* (Mar 22 eve, 22 mat)

Yakov and Dima, LabourersNan Wang and Aarik Wells

Arkadina’s AdmirersShaila D’Onofrio, Brett van Sickle or SkylarCampbell, James Leja or Jackson Dwyer

The Cast

Aleksandar Antonijevic, Greta Hodgkinson and Sonia Rodriguez in The Seagull.Photo by Cylla von Tiedemann.

Kostya’s Dream DancersElena Lobsanova or Tiffany Mosher,Tina Pereira or Jenna Savella,Juri Hiraoka or Chelsy MeissKeiichi Hirano or Brett van Sickle orPatrick Lavoie, Naoya Ebe or Giorgio Galli,Christopher Stalzer, Robert Stephen

Les Etoiles de la Revue Krista Dowson and Nan Wang (Mar 21, 25)Krista Dowson and Aarik Wells (Mar 22 mat,23, 24 eve)Juri Hiraoka and Nan Wang (Mar 22 eve, 24 mat)

Revue DancersJordana Daumec, Tiffany Mosher or ChelsyMeiss, Emma Hawes, Selene Guerrero-Trujillo, Alexandra MacDonald, JennaSavella or Nadine Drouin, Lise-MarieJourdain, Sarah Elena Wolff, Rui Huang,Shino Mori

Christopher Stalzer or Francesco GabrieleFrola, Skylar Campbell, Dylan Tedaldi,Joseph Steinauer, Jackson Dwyer,

Giorgio Galli or Naoya Ebe, Aarik Wells orNan Wang, James Leja or Jack Bertinshaw,Ryan Booth, Brendan Saye

Corps de Ballet of the Imperial TheatreJi Min Hong, Shaila D’Onofrio,Sarah Elena Wolff, Danyla Bezerra,Nadine Drouin, Alexandra MacDonald,Kathryn Hosier, Adji Cissoko

Skylar Campbell, James Leja orJoseph Steinauer, Jackson Dwyer,Giorgio Galli or Naoya Ebe, Brendan Saye,Ryan Booth, Nan Wang, Aarik Wells

* Debut+ Guest Artist

What does it mean to be in love?What does it mean to be an artist?What does it mean to be an artist,who is in love?What does it mean to be someonewho loves to be an artist?– John Neumeier

Greta Hodgkinson and Artists of the Balletin The Seagull.Photo by Cylla von Tiedemann.

The SeagullA ballet by John Neumeier after Anton Chekhov

Cast of Characters

TrigorinSuccessful Choreographer

ArkadinaPrima Ballerina

sister and brother

passionatelyinvolved

infatuated with Trigorin

NinaAspiring Dancer

KostyaRevolutionary Choreographer

in love with each other

national.ballet.ca

her son

SorinEstate Owner

married

their daughter

Masha MedvedenkoSchoolteacher

DornDoctor

in love with Masha

in love withKostya but

marriesMedvedenko

Polina

in love with Dorn

ShamrayevManager of Sorin’s Estate

Act IThe countryside by a lakeKostya has built a stage in the garden of hisuncle Piotr Sorin’s estate. Nina, a girl from theneighbouring farm, arrives to dance the title rolein his creation “Soul of the Seagull”. Kostyaloves Nina. Nina loves Kostya.Dmitri ShostakovichPiano Concerto No. 2 F-Major, op. 102, 1957,2nd Movement

Kostya’s mother, the famous prima ballerinaIrina Arkadina arrives with her lover, thechoreographer Boris Trigorin. Among the otherguests for Kostya’s performances are: IlyaShamrayev, manager of Sorin’s estate, his wifePolina, their daughter Masha, the physician Dr.Dorn, and the village schoolteacher, SemyonMedvedenko.

Medvedenko loves Masha. Masha loves Kostya.Kostya loves Nina. Nina falls in love with Trigorin.Trigorin loves Arkadina but is fascinated by Nina.Arkadina loves Trigorin. Polina loves Dr. Dorn.Dmitri ShostakovichSymphony No. 15 A-Major, op. 141, 1971,1st Movement

Kostya, NinaSorin, Mascha, Medvendenko, ShamrayevDorn, Polina, Arkadina, Trigorin, LabourersArkadina’s Admirers

Kostya’s dance piece “Soul of the Seagull”Evelyn GlennieExcerpts from Shadow behind the Iron Sun,2000

Nina, Kostya and the Dream Dancers

Music from across the lake – Arkadina recalls one of her famous rolesPyotr I. TchaikovskyDecember from The Seasons, op. 37a,1875/76, No. 12

Arkadina speaks with her son KostyaTrigorin teaches NinaDmitri ShostakovichSymphony No. 15 A-Major, op. 141, 1971,2nd Movement

Card games and amusementArkadina, Trigorin, Masha, Medvedenko,Polina, Dorn, Shamrayev, Sorin, Yakow,Dima

3rd Movement

Jealousy and decisionsNina, Kostya, Trigorin, ArkadinaKostya’s Dream Dances

4th Movement

Intermission

Act IIMoscow: Revue Theatre – Nina is one in a chorus lineLes Etoiles de la Revue Revue DancersDmitri ShostakovichMoscow Cheryomushki, Operetta Suite, op. 105, 1958, edited by Andrew Cornall,No. 1 A Ride through Moscow

Synopsis Please see the surtitles above the stage for information

By John Neumeier

Page 8 national.ballet.ca

Nina meets a changed TrigorinThe Revue goes onDmitri ShostakovichMoscow Czeryomushki, Operetta Suite, op. 105, 1958, edited by Andrew Cornall,No. 2 Waltz

In the country: Kostya’s Dream DancesDmitri ShostakovichPiano Trio No. 2 e-minor, op. 67, 1944,3rd Movement Largo

Nina’s polkaDmitri ShostakovichPolka, No. 4 from Ballet Suite No. 1, 1949

Imperial Theatre: Trigorin’s ballet “Death of the Seagull”Dmitri ShostakovichMoscow Cheryomushki, Operetta Suite, op. 105, 1958, edited by Andrew Cornall,No. 4 Ballet

Arkadina, as MöwenprinzessinTrigorin, as JägerCorps de Ballet of the Imperial Theatre

Masha decides to marry MedvedenkoAlexander Scriabin

Nocturne op. 9,2, 1894

Nina’s letter to KostyaKostya, SorinDmitri ShostakovichChamber Symphony for Strings c-minor, op. 110a, 1960Arrangement: Rudolf Barschai, 1st Movement

Autumn garden: Sorin faints2nd Movement

Arkadina’s visit – A sad wedding celebrationSorin, Kostya, Masha, Medvedenko, Polina,Dorn, Arkadina, Trigorin

3rd Movement

Nina’s appearance – Nina’s farewellNina, Kostya

4th and 5th Movement

Kostya’s Dream Dances come to an end...KostyaArkadina, Dorn, Masha, SorinDmitri ShostakovichSymphony No. 15 A-Major, op. 141, 1971,excerpts from the 4th Movement

(Opposite page) Zdenek Konvalina and Sonia Rodriguez in The Seagull.Photo by Cylla von

Tiedemann.

(Right) GretaHodgkinson, Xiao NanYu and Piotr StanczykThe Seagull.Photo by Cylla von

Tiedemann.

Running Time:ACT I 1 hour 6 minutes Intermission 20 minutes ACT II 1 hour The performance will run approximately 2 hours and 26 minutes

iterature has often inspired my choreography.After reading a book, a play or poem, I ask

myself what aspects of the text touch my emotional memory, which characters ring truefor me personally. In other words, where am I – or what part of me is in this text? Only thencan I transform word into dance: Create anoriginal ballet having its own life, independent of its literary source.

The ballet The Seagull does not interpret theplay. My intention was to invent similar charactersand situations parallel to those we find inChekhov. Seeing the ballet you will not hear a single word of Chekhov. You need not bereminded of his text and surely should not miss it. In changing the actors and writers ofChekhov’s play to dancers and choreographers,my ballet is not only about dance: It speaksthrough dance, it is dance!

My first theatre experience with Chekhovwas a production of The Three Sisters directedby Lee Strasberg in New York City during the1960’s. This production made an unbelievableimpression on me, an impression I have neverforgotten. Inspired by Chekhov, the possibilityof orchestrating varied and contrasting humanemotions through movement began to fascinateme. It was long my wish to make a ballet of The Three Sisters. However, on January 1,1996, I saw The Seagull at the Schaubühne Theatre in Berlin and my Chekhov fixation changed itsfocus. It became immediately clear to me thatThe Seagull dealt not only with the emotionalrelationships between a particular group ofpeople at a specific time in history (as in TheThree Sisters), but rather with something universally true and timelessly valid. Dealingwith the world of art and artists, it seemed theperfect vehicle for transformation into dance.That day, I knew I would choreograph TheSeagull some day! As an artist I was particularlystruck by what an important role “art” played inall the love relationships. The delicate balance

between love and art: Success in love – failurein art? Success in art – failure in love? I wasmoved by the character’s constant reflection on the past, their lost chances and squanderedpossibilities.

In The Seagull, the character’s relationshipto the music is extremely important because it tells us not only a lot about their particularcharacter but illuminates their inner emotionalstates. In choreography, there are several waysto play with the relationship between movementand music. Should it be clear, for example, thatthe dancer reacts, i.e. dances to music outsidehimself? A music, whose source is clearly theorchestra pit, whose musicians may, in fact, bevisible as in a ballroom. Or, do we hear musicbecause the dancer experiences a situation sointensely that we hear his emotion? Or is thedance exactly opposite to that which we hear,thereby giving us the feeling that what this character is dancing, is in direct opposition to histrue feelings? In The Seagull, I have used a methodof contrasting action and emotion, similar toChekhov, where people often do not say whatthey think or feel. Their trivial conversation mayfunction as a form of distraction or signal a

John NeumeierCreating my Seagull

L

John Neumeier.

hidden intension. For example, in the scene ofseduction between Trigorin and Nina, when thedancers are at a musical climax stop and remainmotionless, rather than expressing physically theemotion and dynamic of the music, their stillnesscommunicates a wish to distance themselvesfrom reality or extreme emotional tension.

The characters in Chekhov’s comedy speaka lot about literature – in my ballet they dance alot and in many styles. With Kostya’s avant-gardechoreography, for example, we experience aninvented form of dance that reminds us of theinteresting development, the explosion in modernart at the beginning of the 20th century. On the other hand, the main line of character relationships is choreographed in a style continuing the dramatic-emotional tradition of Antony Tudor, Sir Frederick Ashton or JohnCranko. Other sections of the ballet contrastKostya’s experimental choreography with a

vision of the Imperial ballet world of Arkadina, a legendary star ballerina, reminiscent of AnnaPavlova. Nina’s desire and efforts to realize acareer as a dancer reveal elements of cabaretor revue dance as it might have been at thebeginning of the 20th century. Contrastingthese four sometimes diametrically opposedtypes of movement, my Seagull also becomesa lesson in dance history.

The translation of literature into dance cannever be simply word for word. I choreographbetween Chekhov’s lines and my ballet visualizesscenes only described in the play. We experience,for example, what might have happened toNina in Moscow, what one of Arkadina’sImperial ballet performances might have lookedlike, what Kostya’s Dream Dances might havebeen. In a ballet, we can only understand whatwe see. We can only be moved by what werecognize in our own hearts as true.

Anna Pavlova and George Balanchine, two Russian-born titans of dance, inspired John Neumeierfor the characters of Arkadina and Trigorin in The Seagull.Photography: Madge Abercrombie and Holger Badekow, George Balanchine image courtesy of New York Public Library.

Karen Kain,C.C., LL.D., D. Litt., O.Ont.Artistic DirectorAcknowledged as one of theleading classical ballerinas ofher time, Karen Kain is also oneof Canada’s foremost artsadvocates, bringing the samepassion and dedication sheexemplified as a dancer to herroles as a spokesperson forCanadian culture and as theArtistic Director of The NationalBallet of Canada. A native ofHamilton, Ontario, Ms. Kainstudied at Canada’s NationalBallet School, graduating in1969 when she joined theNational Ballet. After quickly rising to the rank of PrincipalDancer, she came to the attention of international audiences when she won theSilver Medal at the MoscowInternational Ballet Competitionin 1973. This led to a highlysuccessful career on stagesthroughout the world, dancing a wide range of classical andmodern roles with such companies as Roland Petit’sBallet de Marseilles, BolshoiBallet, The Hamburg Ballet,London Festival Ballet, ParisOpéra Ballet and the Eliot FeldCompany. Ms. Kain retired fromdance in 1997 after a nationwidefarewell tour and, shortly after-wards, assumed the position of Artist-in-Residence with theNational Ballet. In 1999, her rolewas expanded to that of ArtisticAssociate and in June of 2005,she was appointed ArtisticDirector of the company. Ms.Kain has received numerousaccolades and awards through-out her career. She is aCompanion of the Order ofCanada, the first Canadianrecipient of the Cartier LifetimeAchievement Award and wasnamed an Officer of the Order of Arts and Letters by theGovernment of France. In 1997,she was honoured with aGovernor General’s NationalArts Centre Award and receiveda Governor General’s Award forLifetime Artistic Achievement in2002. From 2004 to 2008, Ms.

Kain was Chair of the CanadaCouncil for the Arts. In 2007,she received the BarbaraHamilton Memorial Award fordemonstrating excellence andprofessionalism in the performingarts. In 2008, the Karen KainSchool for the Arts opened, atribute to Ms. Kain’s ongoingcontributions to the cultural lifeof her country, and in 2011, Ms. Kain was honoured by the International Society for the Performing Arts with theDistinguished Artist Award.

John NeumeierChoreographer, Set,Costume and LightingDesignerJohn Neumeier was born in1942 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin,where he received his firstdance training. He continued hisdance studies in Chicago aswell as at Marquette Universityin Milwaukee where he createdhis first choreographic works.After further ballet study both inCopenhagen and at The RoyalBallet School in London, JohnCranko invited him in 1963 to join Stuttgart Ballet, where he progressed to Soloist andcontinued his choreographicdevelopment. In 1969, UlrichErfurth appointed Mr. NeumeierDirector of Ballett Frankfurt,where he soon caused a sensation due to his new interpretations of such well-knownballets as The Nutcracker andRomeo and Juliet. In 1973, he joined The Hamburg Ballet as Director and ChiefChoreographer and, under hisdirection, The Hamburg Balletbecame one of the leading balletcompanies on the Germandance scene and soon receivedinternational recognition. In1972, he set his first work forThe National Ballet of Canada,Don Juan with Rudolf Nureyev in the title role and in 1993, he created Now and Then forKaren Kain. As a choreographer,Mr. Neumeier has continuallyfocused on the preservation of ballet tradition, while giving his works a modern dramatic

framework. His ballets rangefrom new versions of evening-length story ballets to musicalsand to his symphonic ballets,especially those based on GustavMahler’s compositions, as wellas his choreographies to sacredmusic. His latest creations forThe Hamburg Ballet, Purgatorioand Liliom, premiered in 2011.Mr. Neumeier holds the DanceMagazine Award (1983), Orderof Merit of the Federal Republicof Germany and French Order ofArts and Letters and the Legionof Honour. In 2006, he wasawarded the prestigious NijinskyAward for Lifetime Achievement.He received the Herbert vonKarajan Musikpreis in 2007 and the Deutscher JubiläumsTanzpreis in 2008. In 2007, hewas made an honorary citizen of the city of Hamburg.

Dmitri ShostakovichComposerDmitri Shostakovich was born in St. Petersburg, Russia in1906. After a period influencedby Prokofiev and Stravinsky,Shostakovich developed ahybrid of styles that juxtaposeda wide variety of trends within a single work, such as the neo-classical style and post-romantic style. His uniqueapproach to tonality involved theuse of modal scales and someastringent neo-classical harmoniesà la Hindemith and Prokofiev.His music frequently includessharp contrasts and elements of the grotesque. Shostakovichprided himself on his orchestration,which is clear, economical, and well-projected. This aspectof Shostakovich’s technique owes much to Mahler. His most popular works are his 15 symphonies and 15 stringquartets. His works for pianoinclude two piano sonatas, anearly set of preludes and a laterset of 24 preludes and fugues.Other works include two operas,six concertos and a substantialquantity of film music.Shostakovich had a complexand difficult relationship with theSoviet government, suffering

Selected Biographies

two official denunciations of hismusic and the periodic banningof his work. At the same time,he received a number of accolades and state awardsand served in the SupremeSoviet. Despite the official controversy, his works werepopular and well received.

Evelyn GlennieComposerDame Evelyn Glennie was bornin Aberdeen, Scotland in 1965.An internationally renowned solopercussionist, she gives morethan 100 performances a yearworldwide, with some of thegreatest conductors, orchestras,and artists. Ms. Glennie’s collaborations have been withsuch artists as Nana Vasconcelos,Kodo, Béla Fleck, Björk, BobbieMcFerrin, Sting, Emmanual Ax,The Mormon Tabernacle Choirand Fred Frith. Ms. Glennie hascommissioned 150 new worksfor solo percussion from manyof the world’s most eminentcomposers and also composesand records music for film andtelevision. Her first high qualitydrama produced a score sooriginal she was nominated for a British Academy of Film andTelevision Arts Award. Of her 25recordings to date, Ms. Glennie’sfirst CD, Bartok’s Sonata for twoPianos and Percussion won hera Grammy in 1988. A furthertwo Grammy nominations followed, one of which she wonfor a collaboration with BélaFleck. Ms. Glennie has receivedover 80 international awards. In 1993, she was named Officerof the British Empire. This wasextended in 2007 to DameCommander for her contributionsto music. After 20 years in themusic business Ms. Glennie has begun teaching privately.

Pyotr Ilyich TchaikovskyComposerPyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky wasborn in Votkinsky, Russia, onMay 7, 1840. At the age of four,he composed his first song andsoon began piano lessons.When Tchaikovsky was 19,

his studies for a career in lawgave way to his childhood loveof music to which he was todevote his life. In 1861, heentered the St. PetersburgConservatory of Music. By1866, Tchaikovsky had begunto teach theory of compositionin Moscow and became a localcelebrity with his compositions.In 1876, Tchaikovsky was ableto turn his attention fully to composing through the patronage of Nadezhda vonMeck. In February of 1878, hecompleted his opera EugeneOnegin. In 1890, von Meck suddenly announced that shewas bankrupt and could nolonger support Tchaikovsky. Herclaim was false and, althoughthe composer was no longerfinancially dependent on her, it was a shattering blow to hisself-esteem. This occurred during his writing of the scorefor The Nutcracker and addedto the difficulties he was having composing for what he considered an uninspiring scenario. The last three years ofTchaikovsky’s life were filled withgreat despondency and he didnot live to see the success ofeither The Nutcracker or his earlier ballet score, Swan Lake.

Alexander ScriabinComposerAlexander Nikolayevich Scriabinwas born in 1872 in Moscow,Russia. In 1894, Scriabindebuted as a pianist in St.Petersburg, performing his own works to positive reviews.Mitrofan Petrovich Belaieff hiredScriabin to compose for hispublishing firm that includedother notable composers suchas Rimsky-Korsakov andGlazunov. This was followed bya period of extensive touring inRussia and abroad, culminatingin a highly successful 1898 concert in Paris. That sameyear, he became a professor of piano at the MoscowConservatory. Scriabin wrotefive symphonies, including TheDivine Poem (1903), The Poemof Ecstasy (1907) and the

Poem of Fire or Prometheus(1909). His ten piano sonatasare staples of many pianists’repertoire. Scriabin’s hundredsof preludes, études and poemsare considered masterpieces of 20th century pianism, and histitled pieces such as Fragilité,Satanic Poem, Etrangeté, Désirand Caresse Dansé, are greatlyadmired. Scriabin’s style changedenormously as he progressed.The early pieces are romantic,fresh and easily accessible,while his later compositionsexplore harmony’s furtherreaches. His work influencedcomposers such as Messiaen,Prokofiev and Stravinsky.Immediately upon Scriabin’ssudden death in 1915, SergeiRachmaninoff toured Russia in a series of all-Scriabin recitals.

David BriskinMusic Director and Principal ConductorOne of the most highly respectedand versatile conductors atwork today, an insightfulinterpreter of works from notjust the ballet repertoire but theoperatic, symphonic and choraltraditions as well, David Briskinis in his sixth season as MusicDirector and PrincipalConductor with The NationalBallet of Canada. He brings a rich and varied musicalexperience to his position withthe National Ballet, having servedas Conductor with AmericanBallet Theatre for seven years,leading performances at theMetropolitan Opera House, NewYork’s City Center and majoropera houses around the world.As a guest conductor, Mr.Briskin appears regularly withNew York City Ballet and SanFrancisco Ballet and has alsoconducted for such companiesas Houston Ballet, Joffrey Ballet and Les Grands BalletsCanadiens de Montréal. He alsoserved as conductor for TheJuilliard School’s Dance Divisionfor 12 years. In addition, he hasconducted symphony orchestrasand opera productions through-out North America, Europe and

national.ballet.ca

Asia, appearing with, amongothers, the Pittsburgh, Detroit,Baltimore, Indianapolis andShanghai symphony orchestrasand such opera companies as Calgary, Manitoba, OperaCarolina and Lake George. He also served for six years as the Music Director of theMasterwork Chorus andOrchestra, conducting annualperformances of Handel’sMessiah at Carnegie Hall. In 2008,Mr. Briskin was appointedDirector of Orchestral Studies atthe University of Toronto Facultyof Music and Conductor of theUniversity of Toronto SymphonyOrchestra. Mr. Briskin attendedthe Indiana University School ofMusic and received a Bachelor of Music Degree in orchestralconducting from the University ofCincinnati College-Conservatoryof Music and a Master’s Degreefrom Queens College, CityUniversity of New York. Incelebration of the NationalBallet’s 60th anniversaryseason, Mr. Briskin will leadThe National Ballet of CanadaOrchestra in its debut concertperformance at Koerner Hall on April 3, 2012 performingworks from the company’s richmusical history.

Ernest AbugovStage Manager Ernest (Ernie) Abugov hasserved as Stage Manager ofThe National Ballet of Canadasince 1973, working with everyArtistic Director in the company’shistory from Celia Franca toKaren Kain. He has travelledwith the company all over theworld, touring to Israel, Asia,Europe, Mexico and throughoutNorth America. Mr. Abugov hasworked with many of the world’smost renowned choreographerswho have created original worksfor the National Ballet includingJohn Neumeier, WilliamForsythe and Glen Tetley. Mr.Abugov was born in Montréal,Québec. Before beginning hislong association with the NationalBallet, he worked with Les FeuxFollets, The Charlottetown

Festival, La Poudriere Theatreand The Studio Lab Theatre. He worked at Expo ’67 inMontréal, stage managing over4,000 puppet shows. Mr. Abugovalso toured with Harry Belafonte.In what little spare time that hehas, Mr. Abugov guest-lecturesto theatre students.

Jeff MorrisStage Manager Jeff Morris studied technicaltheatre production andadministration at RyersonTheatre School. He has workedas Production Stage Managerfor Toronto Dance Theatre and with the Fringe Festival of Independent Dance Artists, in addition to a broad range ofToronto’s independent danceartists. In 1995, Mr. Morrisjoined The National Ballet ofCanada and has since stage-managed a wide range of thecompany’s classical andcontemporary repertoire,including world premieres ofJames Kudelka’s The FourSeasons, Cinderella and AnItalian Straw Hat. He is also an adjunct faculty member atthe School of Toronto DanceTheatre, where he teachesProduction Elements forDancers.

Shelby-Jai FlickAssistant Stage Manager Shelby-Jai Flick serves as StageManager for the National Ballet’sYOU dance programme, basedin Toronto and touring through-out Ontario, as well as AssistantStage Manager for the company.In addition to her work in dance,Ms. Flick has a varied theatrebackground, most recentlystage managing Sometimes Y Theatre’s production of Ditch.Selected theatre credits includeThe Two Gentlemen of Verona,A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, JuliusCaesar, The Importance ofBeing Earnest (Stratford Festival),Mimi (or a Poisoner’s Comedy),Courageous, If We Were Birds(Tarragon Theatre), Rosencrantzand Guildenstern are Dead

(Touchmark Theatre), Glorious!(Victoria Playhouse Petrolia) and Shirley Valentine, Old Love,A Bench in the Sun (Port StanleyFestival Theatre), as well aswork with The Wrecking Ball in Toronto, a collective ofacclaimed Canadian and international theatre artists.

The National Ballet ofCanada OrchestraThe National Ballet of Canada is privileged to have its own fullOrchestra with over 60 members.The Orchestra has performed in each of the National Ballet’sseasons and is led by MusicDirector and Principal ConductorDavid Briskin. The company’sfirst Music Director was GeorgeCrum who, along with FounderCelia Franca, was a pioneer ofthe company. Mr. Crum heldthe position from the company’sinception in 1951 to 1984,when he was appointed MusicDirector Emeritus. The Orchestrawas led by Ermanno Florio from 1985 to 1990. OrmsbyWilkins was Music Director and Principal Conductor from1990 to 2006. The NationalBallet of Canada Orchestra has toured extensively with thecompany through Canada, theUS and Europe. Over the years,the orchestra has receivedmuch acclaim from audiencesand critics alike and hasrecorded two CDs of MichaelTorke’s compositions for The Contract (The Pied Piper) and An Italian Straw Hat.

For more information, visitnational.ballet.ca

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