Boston Ballet : Spain Tour 2007

BOSTON BALLET
SPAIN TOUR 2007

Artistic update from Artistic Director Mikko Nissinen

July 20, 2007

I send warm greetings from Spain. After three very busy rehearsal weeks in the Boston studios, we have embarked on this tremendous tour of seven festivals in Spain.

The company arrived on July 17th to Tenerife, the second largest of the Canary Islands. After the long travel day, they enjoyed a day off on the 18th. Many of the dancers went to the beach, armed with plenty of sunscreen and sunburn warnings. The islands, which are off the north-western coast of Africa, (Morocco and the Western Sahara) is very tropical but not humid or too hot – it is a very pleasant climate. Flowering trees and cactus are everywhere and grow to extreme sizes.

I arrived to Tenerife on July 18th, due to meetings in Boston on the 16th, and my second flight from Madrid was unexpectedly diverted to the South airport on the island, so I had an hour long taxi back to the North. Jonathan McPhee also arrived on July 17th and headed straight to the orchestra rehearsal.

There was a company class held on July 18th to give the dancers an opportunity to move and get their bodies back to ballet. Class was held at the studio in the theatre so it was our first look at the Auditorio de Tenerife, and it is quite spectacular. Built five years ago, it was designed by the re known Spanish architect, Santiago Calatrava. It sits directly beside the sea, and resembles a gigantic wave of white tile. The interior is equally impressive, with a soaring ceiling above the house seats. Dressing rooms are lovely, clean and new, and everyone has been enjoying these surroundings. I think that everyone’s jet lag is beginning to subside. The hotel is very nice, although the pool is under construction, which disappoints the dancers, but there will be plenty of time for beaches on this tour.

On July 19th the Tenerife Festival held a press conference at the theatre, with Trinidad Vives, Yury Yanowsky, Karine Seneca, Lorna Feijoo and myself. The Mayor of Santa Cruz officiated and moderated, and it was great to see such a good turn out of press - 11 journalists and 4 photographers, including one TV.

Our general rehearsal of La Sylphide was that afternoon, and it was exciting to see the company on a new stage, in a different environment. The dancers are still getting used to a new time zone, new space and different floor, and there are still technical aspects to work out. We heard the Tenerife Symphony Orchestra, and they sound very good. Jonathan has done a great job with them. The acoustics of the theatre are amazing.

July 20th – opening night in Tenerife, and opening night of our tour. The theatre was sold out, with 1,500 in the audience. It was an exciting night, and the company performed well. While the nerves were up, the whole company was backstage supporting everyone onstage, and the company camaraderie was wonderful. Yury Yanowsky, a native of the Canary Islands, was James in La Sylphide, and his whole family was there. The Mayor was also in attendance. This was the first time that a Tenerife ballet was performed to a live orchestra. It is good to get the first performance underway, and it was a good start to the tour. Tomorrow is the first Classic Balanchine performance, and then on to Las Palmas, Gran Canaria. Until next week, I send our best wishes from all of us here on tour in Spain.

July 23, 2007

Las Palmas
Our second performance in Tenerife, on July 21st, was changed to Classic Balanchine a few weeks ago, (it was originally La Sylphide) but the presenters felt that ticket sales were slow, and asked to change it.

The Company danced extremely well and truly excelled in the performances of Serenade, Who Cares? and The Four Temperaments. Everyone really rose to the occasion, even with recorded music. We have not yet located reviews, although I’d like to think there are several.

On Sunday, July 22nd, we traveled to Las Palmas, the largest of the Canary Islands, by high speed ferry. It is just a one hour trip, but the seas were quite rough, and despite a lot of Dramamine, quite a few dancers suffered with sea sickness. A lot of us spent the ferry ride watching the Formula One race on TV, and the boat broke into spontaneous applause when the Spaniard driver actually won. After docking in port, it was a one hour bus to the city of Las Palmas. By that evening most of those afflicted by sea sickness felt a lot better fortunately.

Las Palmas is a lovely seaside city, with a busy port and nice beaches. Like Tenerife, it is also a dry climate, with very little humidity. The winds are higher here, and the terraced farmlands and gardens are protected by large irrigation tents which also reduce the soil erosion.

Monday, July 23rd was a day off for the dancers, and the beach was again a popular spot. The production crew loaded into the theatre, encountered a variety of challenges, and devised a partial set for La Sylphide. We won’t use the entire Act 1 set, due to the wind and various other limitations, but it will have the basic elements of the fireplace, chandelier, doors, and stairs. Dressing rooms are in trailers, with port-a-potties for bathrooms. It’s good to experience every type of venue when on tour.

The XII Festival Internacional de Teatro Y Danza is held from July 7th to August 11th and includes such groups as Antonio Marquez, a flamenco company, Victor Ullate Ballet performing Coppelia, Gran Canaria Ballet, Zalakadula Circus, among others. The Festival is directed by Anatol Yanowsky, Yury’s father, and the outdoor festival stage is constructed beside the Yanowsky ballet studio, in the heart of Las Palmas.

There is no front curtain, which means the dancers cannot get on stage before the performance, but fortunately we are able to utilize the Yanowsky studios for class, rehearsals and warm up.

Our daily schedule on this tour reflects the lifestyle here in Spain, especially for an outdoor stage, where it would be too hot to rehearse during the afternoon. Performances don’t begin until 9:00pm or even 10:0pm, so the dancers day usually begins with class around Company class is usually at 3:00pm, rehearsals are from 4:30-6:30pm, and then the performance. Their day ends around midnight or later if they choose to eat dinner after the show, and most places in Spain stay open until 2 or 3 am.

The next several performances are without orchestra, so Jonathan McPhee has returned to Boston until August 4th, when he joins us in Santander.

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

The Festival press conference was held at the Yanowsky studio building, and again the Mayor, Mr. Jeronimo Saavedra officiated. He was very knowledgable about dance and has seen a great deal. There were 10 journalists, many photographers and three TV stations represented. Trinidad Vives, Yury Yanowsky, Lorna Feijoo and I represented the Company. Naturally the press is very interested in Yury, since he grew up here and his whole family is prominently involved in the arts here.

It has not rained in Las Palmas in 7 months, but as luck would have it, it rained on the evening of our general rehearsal. The crew scrambled to cover anything out in the open and to keep the stage dry and safe. We were able to walk through and space out La Sylphide on the stage, but not much more, and because of the danger of anything electric, we were unable to review the lighting design.

Wednesday, July 25th, 2007

Our first performance in Las Palmas went well. The theatre was close to sold out, with 1,250 patrons, which included many Yury Yanowsky family and fans. The young Spanish girl who joins us for the Canary Island performances of La Sylphide, Teresa Saavedra, also had plenty of her friends here. The outdoor communal backstage area, although short on creature comforts, is a place of company camaraderie, with everyone hanging out in the same place. I’ll update on tonight’s performance in the next installment.

Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Last night was our second performance of La Sylphide here in Las Palmas, and it was a better show all around technically. The audience was full and a bit warmer. The wind picked up considerably, and the sylph’s skirts dramatically wafted in the forest. We could have done without the nearby car alarm that sounded for several minutes during Act II, but that is the nature of outdoor stages.

Once the performance ended at 11:30pm, time was of the essence, in order for our La Sylphide set to make it to Madrid on time for our next performances there. The set had to be struck and loaded on a truck by 2:30am, in order to make it to the port and clear customs at 5:00am, then be loaded onto an 8:00am ferry to mainland Spain. The truck and set then continues on to Madrid, where we’ll see it on August 2nd. The electricians stayed until 5:00am to set up the Balanchine program lighting. Needless to say it was another difficult night for Ben and our production crew.

I took a morning trip to the beach, intending to swim out to the reef, but we arrived at high tide and the current was too strong for safety. The company has been enjoying mornings on the beach or poolside at our beautiful hotel.

Company class today was taught by Carmen Robles, Yury Yanowsky’s mother. I also enjoyed a pre-performance dinner with Anatol Yanowsky, the Festival Director and Yury’s father, and Carmen.

Sunday, July 29, 2007
Both of our Balanchine performances were received well, and Serenade looked very beautiful with the skirts blowing in the breeze. Our lighting for Who Cares? remains problematic, and we’ll have to tackle this again in Madrid. A favorable review appeared in La Provincia, and we’ll try to have it translated and sent home.

As our Las Palmas week comes to an end, we bid farewell to the Canary Islands as we head to mainland Spain tomorrow. Some are leaving a bit lighter than when they came, because of laundry timing issues. A few people dropped off dirty clothes at the laundromat, expecting to pick them up clean before leaving Las Palmas, only to discover the laundromat had closed early, and won’t be open before we leave. The clothes were now stuck in Las Palmas. Just another interesting challenge of life on the road.

Sunday, July 29, 2007
We travelled from Gran Canaria to Madrid by air, and change our clocks one hour ahead upon arrival at the impressive Madrid airport, which was designed by the same architect as our theatre in Tenerife. The company is staying in the Arguelles/Moncloa section of the city, and walking distance to our theatre, Auditoria Conde Duque, which makes things very convenient. Madrid is very, very hot, and summer is surprisingly quiet in this big city, because so many residents leave for the beach or cooler parts of the country for holidays.

I met up with Pino Alosa, our ballet master who is working in Madrid for the summer, and we had a great dinner together. He has invited the dancers to his open class the next morning at a local studio, and we worked fast to get the information to the dancers so they are aware of this. It is so important for them to keep up with class on days off, and I’m glad this open class is possible with Pino.

Some dancers took Pino’s class on Monday, July 30th, some go sightseeing and exploring. Lorna Feijoo, Erica Cornejo, Carlos Molina, Nelson Madrigal, Yury Yanowsky and Raul Casasola, along with Trinidad and myself, attended the noon press conference. It was again very well attended, with 20 journalists and 10 still/TV photographers. Many questions were asked, and post conference interviews were conducted with many of us.

Boston arts journalist Christine Temin arrived in Madrid today, and I had a nice dinner with her and Walter Gilbert, followed by a fun Flamenco performance. Christine is nearing completion on a book about Boston Ballet, and our tour will be included in her book. Walter is the book’s photographer, and he has been diligently documenting rehearsals and performances for over a year. Christine will continue to interview me and several dancers here in Madrid as well.

The family of dancer Raul Casasola, who is from Madrid, hosted a dinner at their home for the Company this evening. I heard that Mama Casasola provided a wonderful meal, and a good time was had by all.

July 31, 2007
The Conde Duque theatre is outdoors, and inside a courtyard, which really retains the heat. The local production staff is very helpful and adept, and things are going well from a technical standpoint. There is a front curtain, and nice dressing room facilities which are kept cool. I think we’ll be comfortable here this week. We have a few dancers struggling with injuries, or who are trying to protect existing ailments from worsening, and we’ll soon be addressing casting changes to accommodate. Our Physical Therapist Mickey Casella is working hard. Pino Alosa taught Company class onstage, and we were fortunate to have a pianist, which is not possible for most of this tour, regrettably.

Tonight’s rehearsal is from 9:00pm – 12:30am, however, the sun does not set until about 10:15pm, so we can’t really know what the lighting will look like until then. Performances begin here at 9:30pm, and must conclude by midnight because of a city ordinance – they don’t want the residents near the theatre to be disturbed by the theatre sounds. It seems a bit ironic, given the Spanish late night lifestyle. And so, since Serenade would be almost completely in daylight, and therefore would not have the same dramatic impact, I’ve decided we’ll hold the performance until 9:45pm to give us at least a bit more darkness. Following rehearsal, I stayed with the production team until 4:00am to work on the lighting, had a bite to eat from room service at 5:30am and hit the pillows at 6:00am. It was another long day.

Other important news is that the clean but formerly held hostage Las Palmas laundry was returned to their rightful owners today, and they are feeling whole again (and clothed.)

August 1, 2007
All our world news seems to come from CNN these days, and it is alarming to learn of the terrible forest fires on both Tenerife and Gran Canaria, where we’ve just come from. Let’s hope this fiery trend does not continue to follow us.

This morning I went to the Reina Sofia – Museum of Contemporary Art, with Liz Olds. It’s filled with so many masterpieces of Picasso, Dali, Miro, and I especially liked the new artists and their installation work.

Apparently there will be an hour long television program about Boston Ballet’s tour of Spain, to be aired nationally on channel 2, and we’ll be sure to get a tape. There has been a lot of press here, and naturally great interest in our two Madrid natives, Trinidad Vives and Raul Casasola.

Tonight was our first Madrid performance and it went extremely well. The Company did very well and we got the lighting issues much closer to where they should be. Serenade looked beautiful, Who Cares? was the best so far, and The Four Temperaments was so good that I simply just relaxed and thoroughly enjoyed it. I was so proud of the Company and how they danced. So it was a very easy evening for me, and easy for me to take a bow (a standard practice in Spain is for Artistic Director’s to bow) at the end of the show.

This tour has been in the Company’s plans and on our minds for many years and Madrid was the first major city we’ve done, so this show had lots of importance for Boston Ballet and our reputation internationally. I’m certain that we’ve made a wonderful impression with performance number one.

Until next time,
Mikko

August 9, 2007
All four performances in Madrid went very well, and it was a pleasure to be in this bustling city and pleasant theatre. Although the Patio del Conde Duque was outdoors, it was well equipped and quite comfortable considering the heat. The change over time between the Balanchine program to La Sylphide proved nearly too short, and our crew barely got the set up in time for the 9:30pm performance.

The technical designer of this theatre (as well as Perelada’s), Mr. Fonta, hosted a marvelous lunch at the historic Botin restaurant near Plaza Major. We could peer into the kitchen where they roasted whole piglets, and we had our fill of them, leaving completely satiated.

Many special guests attended our performances in Madrid, including Finnish Ambassador, Mrs. Maija Lähteenmäki, Victor Ullate, representatives from Nacho Duato’s National Ballet of Spain, and plenty of friends and family of the company. We received very positive reviews in Madrid. ABC, a national newspaper, stated “we are envious and wish we had a company like this here.” Another national newspaper, El Mundo said that “Serenade had stupendous moments; The Four Temperaments was pure strong dance, and was the most brilliant performance of the evening.” We were also on a national television show on channel 2.

As we left Madrid, we had some changing of the guard. We exchange sound technician Josh Schacht for our own Ben Young, who has just returned from his honeymoon. Our wardrobe supervisor Howard Merlin leaves us and Heather McLernon joins us in his place. Physical therapist Mickey Casella returns to Boston, and Christine Ploski replaces her. Christine and Heather experienced a rather harrowing trip of delays and lost luggage, but are now acclimatizing and their suitcases have been returned to them. Executive Director Valerie Wilder and her daughter Sabina have joined us for the remainder of the tour. Conductor Jonathan McPhee and Freda Locker also rejoin us for Santander. Here we are fortunate to have live music - the Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet Orchestra is with us for all three performances.

Santander is a big departure from Madrid. It is a smaller, quieter, very quaint city on the northern coast of Spain, in the Cantabrian region. Naturally the seafood here is terrific and among the many dishes I’ve discovered is a new delicacy – percebes. They are large barnacles, which are extremely unattractive to look at, but delicious.

Santander’s theatre is large and modern, with 3 stages, and very comfortable accommodations for us. We are sharing the theatre with the Opera and the Lithuanian Orchestra, so the hallways are always filled with music, singing and instruments. Our theatre seats 1,600 and our performances are nearly sold out each night.

The press conference here was also well attended by 12 journalists and photographers, and Boston Ballet was well represented by Valerie Wilder, Roman Rykine, Romi Beppu, Yury Yanowsky and me. Festival Directors Jose Luis Ocejo and Emilia Levi were thrilled with the performances, and have been very generous, hosting an opening night cocktail party and a post performance dinner. Both our La Sylphide and Balanchine performances here went very well.Heather Myers made her debut as Madge and James Whiteside filled in at the last minute in Sanguinic with Erica Cornejo, in The Four Temperaments. Carlos Molina danced James in place of Nelson Madrigal, due to a hip injury. We are trying to keep the injuries under control, and everyone is handling the workload pretty well.

You can always tell where the wireless internet connection exists in the theatre. The artistic and production staff must migrate to the hallways and corners of the theatre to get their work done, and the dancers often join them during breaks to check their e-mails. We tend to be nomads in order to get business accomplished. In other recent news from the US, our make up artist Jason Allen has been nominated for an Emmy award in makeup for a History channel television show. Congratulations to Jason. The Company is really excelling with each and every performance, and I am extremely happy with how things are going. They are making Boston and Boston Ballet proud.

August 17, 2007
Our Santander performances concluded with an invitation from the very happy festival directors for a Boston Ballet return engagement in 2009. I could not be more pleased to know that the Company is getting the recognition they so well deserve and repeat performances are requested.

The hardest working production crew in ballet finally enjoyed a well deserved day off – one of only two they get on this tour. Five of the guys chartered a fishing boat and went out for the day, catching 18 tuna, all captured on video and photos. Although I’m terribly jealous of their trip, no one deserved a great day at sea more than they did.

I made my way to Barcelona with Valerie to join our Boston Ballet Friends tour. Howard Amidon, although delayed by 24 hours, arrived in Barcelona the same day, and prepared for the Friends to arrive. It is wonderful to see familiar faces and great to have our loyal supporters and home-town fans with us for Perelada and Mallorca.

The XXI Festival Castell de Perelada is extremely prestigious and attracts some of the finest artists and ensembles from Spain and internationally. They really know how to produce a wonderful festival. The tremendous outdoor stage facility is constructed on the grounds of a castle, owned by Carmen Mateu de Suque and her husband Arturo. The property also houses beautiful gardens, terraces, restaurants, a casino, a cloister, a library, and wine and glass museums. Perelada is also prestigious vineyard, known in particular for their cava (champagne). Along with other artists and groups such as Carlos Núñez, St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, George Benson and Al Jarreau, Julio Bocca’s Company, Ballet Flamenco de Andalucia, Tales of Hoffman, directed by Lindsay Kemp, and The Moscow Opera’s Barber of Seville, we are proud to be invited to this exciting festival.

Here we did one performance of La Sylphide with Lorna Feijóo as the Sylph and Carlos Molina as James. Both dancers are well known to Spanish audiences and they and the Company were enthusiastically received. Headlines in the national newspaper El Pais read “Eternal love with absolute virtuousity - Boston Ballet dazzles in the Perelada Festival with their version of La Sylphide” El Periodico stated “The embodiment of romanticism- Boston Ballet offers a virtuoso, energetic and brilliant version of the classic La Sylphide”. Our second show in Perelada was the last performance of the Balanchine program. The Company exceeded itself yet again, and I couldn’t have been more proud of these artists and their performance. All our Friends attended this program and their support and energy was felt by everyone too. Carmen and Arturo extended an invitation to return for their 2009 festival, making this the third repeat invitation to us, including Madrid.

An added thrill to the day was the visit of Roland Petit, the legendary French choreographer who came from his home in Switzerland to see the Company. Mr. Petit’s own company was based in Marseille for 26 years, and he is now primarily a freelance artist and much of his time is spent working with the Paris Opera. We had a wonderful lunch together, along with the festival directors, and we formed a true connection. Mr. Petit was blown away by the performance that evening and I was extremely proud to have him see the Balanchine program in particular. I’d love for Mr. Petit’s work to be in the repertoire of Boston Ballet in the future and this is a special relationship for us. Arturo and Carmen Mateu de Suque hosted a lavish party following the performance for the entire Company and Friends on the lawn of the castle and everyone was their best dressed.

Our travel day to Mallorca was a long one, but we were rewarded by balmy island breezes and the tropical mild climate. The port area of Palma de Mallorca is reminiscent of a Mediterranean style South Beach, filled with nightlife, restaurants and hundreds of immense sailboats and yachts. We received confirmation that Her Majesty the Queen of Spain would be attending our performance here. I look forward to sharing news of the performance and her royal visit on my next installment.

August 23, 2007
Our only performance in Palma de Majorca on August 18th was made extra special by a Royal visit. Her Majesty, Queen Sophia of Spain attended La Sylphide, along with the Princess of Jordan, and many of her adorable grandchildren. The Queen met the company backstage after the show and graciously spent time chatting. The grandchildren were especially delighted and a little bit frightened of Melanie Atkins as Madge and our four witches. The paparazzi were there in droves and were very pushy, nearly knocking over our own Sabi Varga (Soloist and Company photographer) to get shots. Several newspapers and even Hola magazine, the equivalent of People magazine, ran full page photos of her backstage visit. It was really exciting to have Her Majesty there, and I think the Company realized how very extraordinary the experience it was.

The Boston Ballet Friends and several of our dancers enjoyed a wonderful dinner at the Castillo Hotel Son Vida, a spectacular property overlooking the city of Palma de Mallorca, and we bid the Friends a fond farewell at the end of the evening, since most will return to Boston on August. 19th. It has been great to have them along for this portion of the tour and I think they’ve really enjoyed being with us.

We traveled to our final stop, San Sebastian, on Sunday, August 19th. San Sebastian is in the heart of Basque region, and the Basque influence is very strong in its food, language, culture and their thoughts towards the rest of Spain. It is also a beautiful and very scenic city right on the sea, but we seem to have arrived during a rainy season. We haven’t seen much sunshine, and the conditions have been quite windy, which makes the crashing waves just past our theatre all the more spectacular and impressive. The Teatro Kursaal held a press conference on Monday, August 20th and the press coverage here has been terrific.

Both performances of La Sylphide in San Sebastian went well. The ballet will now be packed up and sent back to Boston – ready to open it up again in October for our audiences at home. I look forward to sharing this beautiful romantic ballet with our Boston audiences, especially with the critical success it has received on our entire Spain tour. We’ve enjoyed having our two young Spanish girls with us for La Sylphide on this tour. Teresa Saavedra performed with us in the Canary Islands and Elena Suarez was with us for the remainder of the tour. They are both now Boston Ballet family members. The end of the tour brings many friends, wives, husbands and family members to join us, which is great for everyone’s moral. The Company members have two weeks off and many will scatter throughout Europe before heading home to Boston, back to rehearsals on September 10th.

I must mention our tour presenter Ada Casanovas, who accompanied the whole six weeks and who has done an incredible job of putting this entire tour together. She has worked with several other touring companies, including Asami Maki Ballet, La Scala Theatre and Roland Petit. Ada is with us every day, confirming logistics, production requirements, travel, media and performance details, and she works closely with our own team to ensure the company, crew and our two programs all get to where they need to be and at the right time. She has been invaluable and I thank her very much.

I threw a party for the company on the final night of our performances at the Albiztur restaurant, with typical Basque food and cider flowing from vats in the walls. It was a great celebration of Spain, the Company and the tour, tinged with bittersweet – knowing that this tour was coming to an end. It has been a tremendously successful tour from every perspective. I was very happy that we achieved all the objectives, plus more. We danced into the hearts of all of Spain, received lots of terrific press and media attention, impressed the many important people who came to see the company, and received invitations to return to Spain. From what I’ve heard from all our presenters, Spain now has a new and different opinion of Boston Ballet. Our stock value has definitely gone up, and future tours in Europe should now be easier for us. From all of us here, I send final wishes from the tour and we are looking forward to seeing you all again soon.

Mikko