<P> <BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>This is all quite a change from the normally formal repertory of Britain's oldest dance company, and it confirms a significant trend in modern dance. The cool, formal abstractness of body movement of the past 30 years, American in origin, is being overtaken by a new, psychoanalytical, emotional approach from Europe, where feelings matter more than aesthetics. The new pieces have been made by two choreographers working in Britain who happen to be European: Didy Veldman and Javier De Frutos.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE><BR> <A HREF="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/et?ac=003500045945328&rtmo=kN3CqeLp&atmo=tttttttd&pg=/et/00/9/21/btsin21.html" TARGET=_blank>Read more...</A> <p>[This message has been edited by grace (edited September 21, 2000).]

James Hopkins sees Didy Veldman's new work '7DS', but it is 'Ghost Dances' that mesmerises him. UK dance fans who have not seen this work should go now as it will soon be out of the rep. as Rambert move into the New Year.<P> <A HREF="Http://www.guardianunlimited.co.uk/Archive/Article/0,4273,4066643,00.html" TARGET=_blank>Http://www.guardianunlimited.co.uk/Archive/<BR>Article/0,4273,4066643,00.html</A> <BR><p>[This message has been edited by Stuart Sweeney (edited November 25, 2000).]

Donald Hutera finds little to applaud in Didy Veldman’s ‘7DS’, but is generous<BR>enough to say that;<P> <BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>The damage inflicted by former Rambert dancer Didy<BR> Veldman's 7DS is hardly irreparable. Rambert, nearly 75<BR> years young, is strong enough to accommodate such<BR> venial failures. In 7DS Veldman's powers of invention<BR> seem to have temporarily deserted her. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE><P>What a nice way to say it, in contrast to some of his colleagues who adopt a ‘shock,<BR>horror, probe’ approach when someone produces a piece that doesn’t hit the spot. <BR>There were rumours that ‘7DS’ was proving more difficult to create than earlier work<BR>by the talented Veldman. <P><BR><A HREF="http://www.the-times.co.uk/news/pages/tim/00/09/25/timartdan01003.html" TARGET=_blank><B>Hutera’s review</B></A><P>

Ismene Brown gets little from Veldman's '7DS', but does find things to enjoy in the remainder of the programme. Amy Hollingsworth, a recent recruit from Australia, gets a special mention.<P><BR><A HREF="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/et?ac=000148269364269&rtmo=kNZANNLp&atmo=99999999&pg=/et/00/9/27/btisme27.html" TARGET=_blank><B>Ismene Brown's review</B></A><P><p>[This message has been edited by Stuart Sweeney (edited September 27, 2000).]

<P>'Sergeant Early's Dream'<P>Nadine Meisner is intrigued by Rambert's version of Mats Ek's 'She Was Black' and is delighted with the revival of Bruce's 'Sergeant Early's Dream'. <P><A HREF="http://www.independent.co.uk/enjoyment/Theatre/Dance/Reviews/2000-10/dancerev061000.shtml" TARGET=_blank><B>Nadine Meisner's review</B></A>

Mary Brennan previews the new Rambert work, 'The Celebrated Soubrette', from Javier de Frutos, based on Las Vegas, Liberace and Tennesee Williams<P> <BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Though he can't swear that Williams and Liberace actually ever met, they did have a common friend: the celebrated stripper, Gypsy Rose Lee - which brings us back to Vegas, that tinselled-epitome of the drifter, the loner, the dreamer that so often figures in Williams's writings. It's those drifters and dreamers that he hopes we catch sight of in The Celebrated Soubrette. "I've encouraged the dancers to take a chance with this. Said things like, 'if you were a bitch from hell - what kind of bitch would you be?'. They're in this lucky position that - for 20 minutes on stage - they can play with this and get paid. They are not really in Vegas, way out in that desert, having a mid-life crisis at 25."<HR></BLOCKQUOTE><P>I met a couple of Rambert dancers last week and they were saying what a great experience it had been working with de Frutos.<P><BR><A HREF="http://www.theherald.co.uk/arts/archive/31-10-19100-20-30-46.html" TARGET=_blank><B>Mary Brennan's preview</B></A><P><p>[This message has been edited by Stuart Sweeney (edited November 01, 2000).]

<BR>Deirdre Chapman, of Rambert and ex-SFB, in their London studios.<P>It looks as though Rambert have a hit with their new work from Javier de Frutos 'The Celebrated Soubrette' based on Las Vegas. Alice Bain in The Guardian tells us that:<BR> <BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Inspired by the slick of Las Vegas and the Liberace sound and shine, it ends the evening on a high, high heel. This is a very fast, tricky composition. Hips swivel, feet strut, piano keys ripple like perfect pecs, all at once. It is balletic and then showgirl. It is swinging loose and then uptight. It is stagey and then for real. What is going on is anybody's guess. Glamour is at the heart of it, but both music (Le Tombeau de Liberace by Michael Daugherty, played lusciously live by London Musici) and dance melt so quickly from frame to frame that you're taken from 50s film to snake-charming chant in the time it takes to say "Sunset Strip".<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> <BR><A HREF="http://www.guardianunlimited.co.uk/reviews/story/0,3604,391956,00.html" TARGET=_blank><B>now read on </B></A><P><A HREF="http://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/0,,29236,00.html" TARGET=_blank><B> Donald Hutera </B></A> sees Las Vegas come to Edinburgh in Javier De Frutos's short but slyly satirical new work.<P>And<A HREF="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/et?ac=000148269364269&rtmo=Lxt7dSbd&atmo=99999999&pg=/et/00/11/3/btfrut03.html" TARGET=_blank><B> Ismene Brown's review</B></A>, which also cover Mats Ek's 'She was black' and the revival of 'Sargeant Early'sDream'.<BR>And a <BR><A HREF="http://www.arts.scotsman.com/cfm/theatre/headlines_specific.cfm?rankuniqueid=76" TARGET=_blank><B> preview interview </B></A>with de Frutos in The Scotsman.<P><BR>

<A HREF="http://www.arts.scotsman.com/cfm/theatre/headlines_specific.cfm?rankuniqueid=76" TARGET=_blank>http://www.arts.scotsman.com/cfm/theatre/headlines_specific.cfm?rankuniqueid=76</A> <P>stuart, just to let you know this thread took just over 2 minutes to load - no obvious reason why....but if it keeps happening, maybe 1 of the pics should be deleted?

Thank you grace, that's very interesting, as it took about 5 seconds to load on my obselescent machine. Anyone else out there taking over 30 seconds to load this topic? Please tell us.<P>I met someone last week who explained that distance from a main Internet hub was a key factor in speed of download.

<P>'She Was Black' performed by Culberg Ballet<P>Unlike me, <BR><A HREF="http://timeoff.ft.com/ft/gx.cgi/ftc?pagename=View&c=Article&cid=FT3ZN5ACLFC&live=true&tagid=ZZZQ35K480C" TARGET=_blank><B> Clement Crisp</B></A> does not enjoy Rambert's double bill of the enigmatic 'She Was Black' by Mats Ek and Christopher Bruce's 'Sergeant Early's Dream'. Basically they are both in styles that Crisp does not like, as he freely admits for the latter. His demolition of the Ek is a stylish piece of work in itself, however.<P>'She Was black' was beautifully performed by the Rambert dancers when I saw it on the second night, with the Americans Deirdre Chapman and Brendan Faulls particularly catching the eye. Some of the movement is quirky, but some looked very beautiful to me and there is much choreographic ingenuity throughout. I will need a second sighting to get below the surface brillinace of the work, but I did find my attention gripped throughout. As far as I can make out this is the first time that we have seen a Mats Ek work in London, as Culberg Ballet go to Edinburgh rather than cpme here.<P>'Sergrant Early's Dream' is a charming and accessible work that I saw in 1984 in a big-top in Battersea Park. The Rambert dancers continue to extract much expression out of the mainly folk based steps and the live music on stage adds to the enjoyment. I have to say that it doesn't have the resonance of 'Ghost Dances' for me, but it is a lighter work. However, it has a lot going for it and was well worth reviving. <P><BR><p>[This message has been edited by Stuart Sweeney (edited November 16, 2000).]

ah, clement - where would we be without you? <P>much less amused, that's for sure!<P> <BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Coarse-grained movement; insistance upon sexual anger or dysfunctional relationships; hideous, Oxfam decoration; much banging about, with neurosis wielded like a frying pan in a domestic fracas; the musical sensibilities of a pile-driver: these dubious and predictable ingredients are lurking in Ek's She was Black, which has entered the Rambert repertory. (But why look overseas for such stuff? Are there no tiresome local makers of movement who could have been given a chance to annoy?) - - -<P>A girl spends time imitating a slug in agray shroud. Ecstatic cries from certain sections of the public. Your critic in search of oblivion in a glass. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE><P>i hope he found it.... <P> <p>[This message has been edited by grace (edited November 16, 2000).]

In their different ways, both David Dougill and Jann parry are fascinated by 'She Was Black'. David dougill waxes lyrical about the Company and I can understand his enthusiasm. Since August this year, Christopher Bruce has had a former dancer with the company, Stephen Brett, as Associate Artistic Director and the new appointment move seems to be helping Bruce to raise the company to new heights.<P><BR>David Dougill's review:<P> <A HREF="http://www.sunday-times.co.uk/news/pages/sti/00/11/19/sticuldnc02003.html" TARGET=_blank>http://www.sunday-times.co.uk/news/pages/sti/00/11/19/sticuldnc02003.html</A> <P><BR>Jann Parry's review and a round-up of some recent RB performances:<BR> <BR><A HREF="http://www.observer.co.uk/review/story/0,6903,399549,00.html" TARGET=_blank>http://www.observer.co.uk/review/story/0,6903,399549,00.html</A> <P><p>[This message has been edited by Stuart Sweeney (edited November 19, 2000).]

Clement Crisp finds two out of three of the Rambert Triple not to his taste:<P> <BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>The evening tests one's admiration for Rambert to the limit. Fortunately, there is a revival of Christopher Bruce's Moonshine as sandwich-filling between these two slices of cardboard. Bob Dylan songs; a family of four; Bruce's affection for dance-illustrated lyrics. Humour, sadness, very nimble and touching performances by Sheron Wray, Hope Muir, Vincent Redmon. And, large bonus, Bruce himself as the paterfamilias. His sense of timing, his dramatic projection, are as potent as ever: still a dancer to watch.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> <P><A HREF="http://search.ft.com/Search/MultiSearch/globalarchive.jsp?docId=001123001524&query=clement+crisp&resultsShown=20&resultsToRequest=100" TARGET=_blank><B> Clement Crisp's review</B></A><P>Whereas <A HREF="Http://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/0,,40219,00.html" TARGET=_blank><B>Allen Robertson in The Times </B></A>enjoys two of the three. The Times seems very slow loading at the moment. It might be best to click on the link and look at some other pages while it loads.<P> <BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Moonshine was first staged in 1993 for the small group of mature dancers who make up NDT3, the third company of the Hague-based Nederlands Dans Theatre which comprises artists who are no longer sleekly flexible, yet well before their sell-by date. Bruce originally choreographed Moonshine for dancers aged 47 to 55. Here, except for Bruce, who is 54, the performers are younger, but no less impressive. <P>The other pieces on this bill, also London premieres, bracket Moonshine like a pair of mismatched bookends. The Celebrated Soubrette by Javier de Frutos is the cynical flip-side of Bruce’s philosophy: clever, edgy and knowingly sour. The less said about Didy Veldman’s 7DS the better. Its female cast of five dances superbly, but Veldman’s choreography shows that hell is not the only thing that can drag on for all eternity.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> <P>I'm afraid I haven't come across anyone who has enjoyed Didi Veldman's '7DS'.<P><BR> <p>[This message has been edited by Stuart Sweeney (edited November 25, 2000).]

What a duo - Dylan and Liberace. Jann Parry reviews the second week of Rambert Dance Company at Sadler's Wells, London. <BR> <A HREF="http://www.observer.co.uk/review/story/0,6903,402994,00.html" TARGET=_blank>http://www.observer.co.uk/review/story/0,6903,402994,00.html</A>

'This ballet is simply torture.' <P> <A HREF="http://www.independent.co.uk/story.jsp?story=49292" TARGET=_blank><B>Jenny Gilbert</B></A> reviews Rambert's 'Swansong' and also 'Moonshine'. <P>Just for the record I don't always man the Amnesty stand, the local groups do the job outside of London. <BR> <P><BR>[This message has been edited by Stuart Sweeney (edited December 05, 2000).]<p>[This message has been edited by Stuart Sweeney (edited November 01, 2001).]