Reflections on Shanghai

Wednesday, September 30th, 2009 | All Posts by Bruce Sansom, Perpetual Motion: SFB on Tour | No Comments

Half way through the tour, we’re now in Beijing and I’ve got a bit of time to sit and look back over our time in Shanghai.

Having arrived on Friday 18 September, the dancers were offered an optional class on Saturday that I taught. The crew were working to get the theatre ready for our stage rehearsals, and, with no studio available that day within the theatre, we took buses out to Yuan Yuan Tan’s former ballet school.

There’s always a slight sense of ‘spirit of adventure’ with optional classes. The dancers don’t have to be there, but probably want to shake out the cobwebs of the previous day’s air travel.  It’s the first chance for them to find out how their body has reacted to hours of sitting.

The studio was a good size, and with open windows all the way around, the conditions outside meant that inside it was also warm and slightly humid; the perfect conditions for muscles to relax and work well. We had the pleasure of an audience made up of some of the school’s staff and students. I reminded the SFB dancers that this wasn’t an exhibition class, but nevertheless, by the end our audience was enjoying the virtuosic pirouetting some of the company members put on, applauding loudly.

The next day (Sunday) we were working in the theatre’s studio. This proved to be smaller than the previous day’s and with a very solid floor. The studios back in the ballet building in San Francisco are state of the art, and it comes as a shock to the joints to be jumping on a floor that doesn’t have any ‘give’ at all.

The company always travels with it’s own sprung floor to cover the stage, so the sooner we can get on to the stage for class and rehearsals the better; but for the crew, setting everything for the mixed-repertory program (On a Theme of Paganini, Stravinsky Violin Concerto, Distant Cries, Concerto Grosso and Within the Golden Hour) and Swan Lake was a huge task.  This meant the dancers weren’t able to get on to the stage until the next afternoon (morning class again in the small studio) for a Swan Lake placing and run-through.

Yuan Yuan Tan and Damian Smith in Liang's Distant Cries (© Erik Tomasson)

The next day, class again in the studio while the crew changed over from Swan Lake to the mixed-repertory program. That afternoon’s rehearsal of the mixed-rep program was somewhat of a stop-start rehearsal as the company adjusted to the new space, a new orchestra, and spot lights that needed to be adjusted down in intensity. The stage itself—with our own blissfully well-sprung floor—was a great size with lots of depth to it; not unlike the WMOH, but it still takes time to adjust to new surroundings.

That evening’s performance went extremely well, with the company pulling out all the stops and everything together superbly. We had been forewarned that Chinese audiences weren’t used to mixed-repertory programs. To begin with they seemed reserved in their response, however, by the end of the evening they were very enthusiastic, and I had the feeling that they realized they could get involved with the quality of the dancing, even if there was no story.

Wednesday it was on to Swan Lake. Again, with the crew making the program changeover, company class was in the studio. In order to spare their joints, the dancers held back  from jumping too much until they could get down on to the stage before the stage rehearsals began.

San Francisco Ballet in Tomasson's Swan Lake in Shanghai (© Erik Tomasson)

Having just seen the new production of Helgi’s Swan Lake in San Francisco this last April, it was strange seeing the old production again, which I had danced with the company back in 1992.  The older style of sets and costumes (all designed by Jens Jacob Worsae) meant that, while the majority of the dancing/steps remained the same, the way the dancers as characters moved on stage needed to be adjusted slightly.  The rehearsal, barring a few tempi (easily adjusted) and spotlighting issues (on tour they always seem to be too bright and to be coming from a different angle), went well, as did the opening night.

While Yuan Yuan Tan had performed the previous night (Liang’s Distant Cries with Damian Smith), this was her ‘real’ opening night in her hometown with the company. The audience seemed to be extremely polite, or holding their breath, until the very end of the performance when you got a better sense that they were acknowledging her as an artist and as a local heroine. The company danced beautifully, especially the Swans in Act II, who danced as one creature, especially on their entrance into the lakeside scene.

Thursday—and finally class on stage, which was a luxury in being able to get everyone jumping, and jumping, and jumping! The early afternoon was spent in rehearsing a few changes of casts; pas de trois, cygnets, the Act III divertissement, etc. That evening’s performance of Swan Lake had Vanessa Zahorian and Davit Karapetyan in the leads. The audience seemed more relaxed and prepared to respond more readily than the previous evening, and Vanessa and Davit gave, what was to me, a stunning performance of Act II. While their Act III was strong, they took themselves to a new height in Act II.

Friday—much the same as Thursday with class on stage and then a series of request rehearsals in the afternoon. That evening’s performance saw Yuan Yuan and her partner, Tiit Helimets, giving their second Swan Lake. They really took off in Act III and the audience responded more and more as the drama built up.

That was it!  Shanghai performances are over and now our thoughts are on moving on to Beijing and a whole new set of working conditions to get used to. The Saturday was a free day and, as I expect you’ve been able to read in some of the dancers’ blogs, they were making the most of getting out and enjoying what Shanghai had to offer.

I’ll do another update once we’ve completed our performances here in Beijing.

Tags: China Tour, Damian Smith, Davit Karapetyan, Swan Lake, Vanessa Zahorian, Yuan Yuan Tan

And… We’re Off!

Wednesday, September 16th, 2009 | All Posts by Bruce Sansom, Behind the Scenes, Perpetual Motion: SFB on Tour | No Comments

I started in my new role (Ballet Master and Assistant to the Artistic Director) on July 6^th and it has been a whirlwind first few months. There is, as I already knew there would be, a lot of repertory in the 2010 season, and it all needs to be prepared during the months leading up to Nutcracker, so it’s full on. So far I’ve worked on Petrouchka, The Little Mermaid, Theme & Variations, Yuri Possokhov’s 2010 World Premiere, and now Swan Lake. On top of the preparations for the season, the company is also heading off to China as part of the USA’s participation in the 60^th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China and the 30^th anniversary of the normalization of relations between the United States and the PRC – a great opportunity for the company, not just to be going, but to be representing the nation.

It’s been a bit of a relief to know that the repertory for China is, in the main, repertory that will be performed in the coming season. With so many ballets already needing to be prepared, having a chance to get some of them set, rehearsed and performed ahead of the 2010 season makes perfect sense. It means that the dancers can keep their focus on the ballets we’ll be performing in China, with the knowledge that they’ll then be performing them back here in the season.

A typical day in the office. (© Erik Tomasson)

Each year Helgi aims to get the company performing in the fall, during the rehearsal period; this allows the dancers to work towards real performances ahead of Nutcracker so they have a goal midway through the rehearsal period to work towards, making sure that they’re in shape and refined for the stage.

As I’ve indicated above, the way the company works means that the dancers have to learn an enormous amount of repertory in the fall and, if there were no thrill of performances to work for, the rehearsal period could seem longer than it actually is. The extra dimension, frisson, and challenge of performing offers the edge that dancers need and relish. Nothing really feels the same as performing to an audience.

A fall tour also offers Helgi–and all of his ballet staff–a chance to see the dancers in action ahead of Nutcracker and the full season…it’ll provide an opportunity to see who’s making good progress and who might be ready to be offered greater challenges later in the season.

It’s also important for the company to be seen beyond the Bay Area, nationally and internationally. SFB has built a great international standing and touring helps the company maintains its visibility around the world. So, the tour to China, as a new country to visit for SFB, fulfills the need for international visibility and, as we’ll be performing during the celebrations for both of these important anniversaries, there’ll be even greater kudos for the company.

It’s going to be a fascinating trip, and hopefully I’ll get a chance to blog about it after we’re all back in October. Until then…

Tags: China Tour, Helgi Tomasson