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

Pic of the Week

Friday, April 24th, 2009 | Pic of the Week | No Comments

Pascal Molat and Vanessa Zahorian in Elo's Double Evil which opens Tuesday, April 28, 2009 (© Erik Tomasson)

Tags: Double Evil, Pascal Molat, Program 8, Vanessa Zahorian

Pic of the Week

Wednesday, January 21st, 2009 | All Posts by Open Studio 455, Pic of the Week | 1 Comment

San Francisco Ballet will kick off its 2009 Repertory Season with a special gala performance tonight. This photo, taken at last year’s Opening Night Gala, shows Artistic Director Helgi Tomasson and Company members celebrating on stage as they take their final bows. (© Erik Tomasson)

Tags: Helgi Tomasson, Opening Night Gala, Tina LeBlanc, Vanessa Zahorian