I think Dupont's objection was to the emotional strain.

A very good interview with her in the Europe forum.

Something I saw in Etoiles surprised me: dancers warming up, lying on the floor in costume -- and more costume-y costumes than just unitards. It seemed incongrous, considering how authoritarian a place the school is.

<small>[ 11 December 2003, 12:53 AM: Message edited by: djb ]</small>

And how about those poor little understudies?

I just got the DVD "Dancer's Dream: The Great Ballets of Rudolf Nureyev: Raymonda" for Christmas and highly recommend it to those interested in POB, Raymonda, or Nureyev. It's an 83-minute documentary with lots of performance footage from between 1983 and 1998, and extensive interviews with POB dancers who performed the principal roles during those 15 years. It's in French, but has English subtitles as an option.

Other dancer's dream titles are available (at least in France...): Sleeping Beauty, and Romeo and Juliet.

Just another word to say now, after trials Paris opera has had with some female dancers, retirement age is 42.5 for both men and women.

Indeed, only Aurélie Dupont spoke about its sufferings at school. The other dancers never mentionned it. However, you probably know some times ago, the opera has been charged with moral harassment, in a "Sanitary and Social Cases Management" report.

I'm glad to hear the retirement age is now the same for men and woman. @urelie, do you know the reason for the difference in the past? I've never heard that discussed.

<small>[ 30 December 2003, 02:44 AM: Message edited by: djb ]</small>

No idea, djb. It seems dancers themselves don't know the reason. (maybe male dancers shortage?)

I'm not sure about what I'm going to say, but I thought I had seen somewhere that it dates (or rather dated now) from the Second World War, indeed because there too few male dancers compared to the number of female dancers... However, this would need to be checked, it could just be I'm imagining things! :confused:

I thought it might have to do with the greater numbers of female dancers. It wouldn't make sense to base it on longevity, since athleticism is demanded more in men.

Yes djb, I am talking about numbers and not longevity!

Sulian, in case what I said was unclear, I was confirming what you said (as in, "I thought so"), not proposing what I thought was an alternative theory.

<small>[ 31 December 2003, 12:11 PM: Message edited by: djb ]</small>

Ok djb, I thought it was what I said that was unclear!
To everyone: HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Speaking about videos...
If you ever get a chance to have the documentary about Nicolas LeRiche in your hands, watch it !!! It is by far the best piece of "dance on the screen" I have ever seen. Simply fascinating. I used to watch the same shots three times in a row, for some of them are pure beauty... like this one where he is practising his jumps, doing a big manège while the camera is in the center of the circle and follows him. Then you see it again but in slower motion, without any sound but the music... and he is flying. Wow. In this documentary you have interviews (with Nicolas and also other dancers, most notably Aurélie Dupont, who was not yet Etoile at that time, but also choreographers such as Roland Petit or Neumeier, ballet masters, etc), rehearsals, choreography being created, and dance, dance, dance. All styles. Many great partners such as I.Guérin, Pietra, Ferri, and also Clairemarie Osta.
It is very "reworked", there is some slower motion, faster motion, editing, mixing, and also a few poems that are said (or whispered) after or during some dance pieces. It is *very* effective for me, but if you don't know french you may not appreciate it the same way as I did.

Anyway, having seen this documentary, I think my expectations where a bit too high when I watched "Tout près des étoiles" (I mean "Etioles" ), unconsciously I was waiting for something similar and I was a bit disappointed. No aesthetically magical moments, in my opinion. But an interesting movie anyway.