William Forsythe's Impressing the Czar (Royal Ballet of Flanders)

[rabelais95]

I saw it in 1989 in Grenoble... it was an absolute shock ! A revolution at this time...

[toeknee1965]

@rabelais95 cool i saw it too then. ooops i mean i was in it. we did not think it was revolutionary. we were just haveing a mad old time

[noelephantitis]

@thierryeric I knew about "In the Middle" being created before the full ballet, but I didn't know the "Czar" was the director of the Paris Opera! So you're saying that the ceiling of the rehearsal room had some kind of decorative element that included cherries and all the other objects that appear in "Impressing"? There's some kind of fetishism going on here, having to do with "potency"--the cherries look so much like certain parts of male anatomy, but they are only "somewhat" elevated ...

[noelephantitis]

@thierryeric I agree that it's all pretty abstract, but I've actually argued with Billy himself that his work is more specific and political than he's willing to admit. I have a documentary where says that working at the Paris Opera was about "reckoning with history" for him, and the fact that the Czar is the director of it ... might he also be the Man in the Box from the auction? And those schoolgirls end up being very scary at the end--but ultimately you're right, it's up to each person ...

[toeknee1965]

@noelephantitis u guys crack me up with your thinking . love listening

[noahkaa]

she's short

[PhxPrincess]

Als ze impressing the Czar opnieuw opvoeren ben ik er als de eerste bij voor tickets!

[faintingfrontrowfan]

the catholic school girls are off the hook. loved that scene.

[jibriljared]

The duet is the best there is... And they do move great!...!!

[wldcat17]

the first duet is "in the middle, somewhat elevated..."

[batoud]

the first duet is horribly executed !

[lieneuh]

What do you find so horrible about it?

[lieneuh]

I find the girl ok, it's the guy who has a horrible posture, as if he's not thinking of his body anymore, just watching the girl to be sure she doesn't fall.

[batoud]

The boy is so bad Partner ! The girl so STUCKED !

the only best version is by Sylvie Guillem ,and Svetlana Zakharova . I saw the Semporer Oper of Dresden, and it was good also.

[rumpwrestler]

@batoud Funny but after watching other versions on you tube, this one seems so labored, like it's planned out and not spontaneously brilliant like the others.

[noelephantitis]

@rumpwrestler I have a bootleg VHS of the premiere in Frankfurt, and you're right, it's completely, totally mad. My understanding is that it was thrown together very quickly, and it sure seems very raw.

[tonnelet75]

tremendous!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!­!!!!!!!!!!!

[mariandemian]

what is the name of this song? i want it so bad !

[wolfgang731]

"In The Middle, Somewhat Elevated" by Thom Willems

[noelephantitis]

@mariandemian You can get it on CD, Thom Willems' "The Loss of Small Detail" 2-CD set. I think I got it from Amazon UK or France. I also recommend Willems' "Enemy in the Figure" CD.

[0berenice0]

I saw it in France, it was something too !

[StafyShinnisy]

Great! I saw this in moscow.... Perfect

[shemalegazebo]

i saw this one in frankfurt. great job!! :)