Gelsey Kirkland and Anthony Dowell-Romeo and Juliet Pas De Deux

[ShellGunner]

Put Dowell's eyes together with Kirkland's lips and you've got a Bratz doll.

[stilless]

HERMOSO HERMOSO, CASI PUEDO SENTIR SU TEMBLA CUANDO EL LE BESA,

[WakkaandLulu]

God she is awesome and is still dancing and she is about 56 years old now i think

[numberonefilmfan]

@WakkaandLulu Actually she is 59 now.

[numberonefilmfan]

@numberonefilmfan this film is from 1986

[leoniemikele]

She was really special, her understanding of style is extraordinary. (Heather Watts, Gelsey and Wendy Whelan were/are a little too thin.)

[BoringGreenDinosaur]

She has talent that's out of this world. Her grace and gentleness has kept audiences captivated, even by 2011. The only thing that kills me is how skeletal she looks. If you look at her, you just feel how miserable she must've been.

[NinjaTree6]

i cry every time i watch this. she's from another planet <3

[markbob120]

Kelsey was destroyed by Balanchine. So sad! He thought to be appealing a ballerina needed to be an anorextic contortionist! read her autobiography"Dancing on My Grave".

[lesleynaughty]

@markbob120 Well not quite she overcame it and is now teaching dance -and Im sure she's advising her students to eat healthily -unlike Balanchine!

[markbob120]

@lesleynaughty Not quite to you, darling, You may go on but believe me, I've been there, you never overcome it. It is with you every day! it's not as easy as you so naively suggest.

[lesleynaughty]

@markbob120 But she wont be telling her students to "eat nothing" like Balanchine told her!

[sa65cn1]

The unhealthy side of ballet, for women, anorexia is quite evident here with Ms. Kirkland. Even though she was the best of the best in the seventies.

[iamgr80k]

God! What a tub 'o' lard!

[mamallama29]

Gelsey onstage - at any age - brings tears to my eyes.  There is just something so...vulnerable about her ASTOUNDING strength that renders me awestruck. Thank you, Gelsey, for sharing your amazing talents with us mere mortals.

[dogcat126]

oh i love gelsey! i agree that she was light years away in her dancing. i saw her practicing and she had her own way of practicing. she's like a giselle. i think it was after her relationship ended with baryshnikov that she kind of fell apart and the substance abuse began. i think she has written a book about it. she now teaches i think. she has a sister who was in the san francisco ballet. she is just sheer beauty in motion. thanks soso much for posting!!!!

[jeanemail7]

It is healthy that you have opinions. Why don't you keep them to yourselves. Some great artists have not posted things on here because of the idiots who wish to express themselves and say that they "don't like" It is healthy not to like something. Fine!!!!! Don't look! Some of us do like. We also feel cheated of beauty that WE would like to see and search for. So, I say it again. If you don't like, don't look and keep your opinions to yourselves.

[Capizio77]

Even though she is anorexic, she has know gotten past it and moved on with her life. She is now probaply in the best shapeof her life now. This video was filmed a long time ago.

[HollywoodHillsCookie]

Her acting and dancing are phenomenal...though the anorexic state of her body is disgusting, not to say distracting.

[mannixisle]

@HollywoodHillsCookie... most agree that it was Balanchine that started the “Balanchine body,” or the “anorexic look" and he made his dancers neurotic about their weight. He would tell his dancers that he wanted to “see their bones” and they should "eat nothing".

[MrKLT1945]

@mannixisle Not wrong there! Mr B's obssession with '...only bones are beautiful' has a lot to answer for. Loved GK 's dancing but one could sometimes tell when she had had a moment of 'substance abuse' prior to going onstage. She even admiited to it in her biog. Wonderful feet. Watched this a lot, still can't spot anorexia here! Amazing how some ppl cofuse leanness with anorexia. Not exactly a stick-insect, is she? Let's just enjoy the artistry.

[markbob120]

@MrKLT1945 If you do not spot anorexia you are blind! I know and have has a lifelong struggle with anorexia in part, I accept some of the responsibility, because od George Balanchine. I danced during the Balanchine era in NYC with Gelsey and was routinely referred to by Balanchine as that "fat girl" in the corps. I an 5'4" tall and at the time weighed 95 pounds. When i began throwing up my dinners in the bathroom and dropped to 86 pounds I was told by Mr. Ballanchine how beautiful I was.

[pads41]

I'm so sorry you had to go through this. Your story reminds me of the two ballerinas who talked about their struggles with anorexia seen on NOVA's documentary, "Dying to be Thin" that came out in the 80's. It is shocking to me how dancers will put their lives in jeopardy in order to make the cut. Very sad.

[CedricsMom]

Just gives me chills. She was simply amazing. There was a quality to her dancing that was strictly hers. She was a tireless workaholic, yes, but that unique undefinable something, that is all Gelsey. You can study it all day long and try to imitate it, but it's God-given Gelsey, something no one can duplicate.

[malaya18]

Guerin of course

[malaya18]

Oh please don't exaggerate, I'dont "hammer" her down, I simply dont' like her interpretation. It was strong opinion but not rude, besides who invented very charming notion "eurotrash" for some prominent European artists - American critics and this is "hammering down". I like very much the conception "less is more" in many creations of Isabelle Gerin and Aurelie Dupont for example, but for me Kirkland here don't have any conception or "method". MacMillan Julia is much more than greate pique.

[havenization]

"It's hard to believe that someone could perform this pas de deux so bedly like she did it. Comparing with this one, Kirkland attempt should be hiden in some archives " these are your words malaya18 ,I call that hammering down .Why should it be hidden ? Harsh! I am glad that this clip exists free and openly ,it brings myself and lots of dancers/dancerlovers joy and  insperation Although I have an infinity for all dancers you mentioned ,Gelsey is 2nd to none in my strong opinion . Peace

[malaya18]

I love MacMillan version of RJ but not his interpretation, Dowell is too mature for Romeo. Kirkland's expression is very strange her body "act" too excesively and it's so artificial but her face has one aching mine. I have impression that she dance something else not Julia part. Certaity she is very professional dancer but all in all her genius as a personality will stay mystery for me and she is very American phenomenon.

[havenization]

To hammer kirkland down as you do is not necessary to me.There are 2 kinds of performers & 1 is the overt version that most ballerinas do at the top of the balcony,Rubbing &over caressing themselves this always seemed so phony and unrealistic.. kirkland has internalized her version with less is more,She is more a method actress,just look at her Gisselle,The piques runs that kirklands Juliet does in a circle around Romeo are 2nd to none! most look unnatrual and she makes it effortless!

[emalabem]

So gorgeous...inspired by the ferocious intensity of Kirkland's dance. She seemed to give her all to every role...wish I had been alive to see her live :-)

[uclmu2008]

I know from her second book what an immense amount of work and thought on the acting went into that piece. And I am a huge fan of Gelsey  Kirkland's work - she is a truly wonderful dancer. So I hesitate to say it, but I was actually taken aback by their acting in this scene. It didn't work for me, at all. The dancing was beautiful, but I saw just Gelsey, not Juliet.

[TheLaluna1]

Anthony Dowel romano is the best dancer I have seen.

[lesleynaughty]

@TheLaluna1 Its Romeo not Romano!

[riverdaughter3]

I can see a lot of Ballachine influences in her dancing. I watched her dance when I was a little girl during the stravinsky festival in saratoga. Some of Ballanchine's visuals are not "pretty" but they are edgy and come from some primal force.

But, gawdalmighty, Gelsey is skeletal in this piece. I don't know how she manages to do anything without collapsing. Her emaciation detracts from the beauty. it's like dancing death. 

[TheLaluna1]

This has to be the best version, and i have watched alot. this is the best.

[speytonc]

If gelsey Kirkland is fat then everyone is in big trouble...she only ate an apple a day--literally.

[jondavwal]

Gelsey Kirkland being fat is the funniest thing I've ever heard in my life. She never weighed more than 95 pounds. Plus, in comparison to all other dancers she's like a feather in the wind. Guinnesstrail is blind obviously.

[guinnesstrail]

Jesus, who is that fasto?

[havenization]

@guinnesstrail , why are you going from ballet video to ballet video spewing your distain and disgust for some of the most world aclaim dancers in the world , your comments add no value either / or They discusse nothing about the technique or music score ect....just insults ....so why take the time to tap the few vile words and head straigh to the next ballet video and do it again ?

[guinnesstrail]

@havenization That is not distain; it is honest commentary. She's a little fat. Clearly being overweight impacts on her technique--she cannot leap as high as her potential.

[havenization]

@guinnesstrail

that is such a farse ! Gelsey clearly never weighed over 110 lbs , its well documented , and if you referring about her "ballon" or as you say " leap " The choreography does not require that kind move for Juliet in this pas de duex ..... and as far as potential , she is dancing for the queen of England in this performance .........so your just an instigator as far as I am concerned

[guinnesstrail]

@havenization

No, I meant what I said, her Jete was always a little off due to her fat ankles. Had she lost a little weight, she would have been a bit more graceful. I do not what you are insinuating but I do not like it; it is almost insulting. Clearly, you have trouble discerning a ballon from a brise...and obviously, you have never been to the opera...so why do you continue to stalk me with your insults, havenization. Your homosexuality is not a curse, it is something to be embraced.

[havenization]

@guinnesstrail , from what I read, you are just going from post to post hurling insults at world aclaimed ballet dancers , just like you try and insult me. Opera ,,homeosexuality.... I thought tthe subject was ballet . You have embraced homosexuality, good for you and your husband, but I think it is causing you some pain as you so obvioulsy chanel it on youtube Anquish , caused by the thought you could have been Gelsey Kirkland . .BTW I dont do same sex but voila ,

[dontcallmedoll88]

@havenization Totally agree with you, also some people have nothing better to do then to insult something that they probably could not ever do in the first place...

[dontcallmedoll88]

@guinnesstrail Wow, your a complete idiot!!!

[guinnesstrail]

@dontcallmedoll88

listen, doll, why are you conducting personal attacks. I made a comment about a fat ballet dancer? Have you ever read Kirkland's autobiography? She battled weight throughout her whole career. In fact, the battle got to be so overwhelming that she turned to cocaine to assuage her guilt. And why do go around blaming Mexicans for the inherent problems with ballet as an art form?

[dontcallmedoll88]

@guinnesstrail Hey, put a lid in it. I don't need an autobiography to notice weather someone can dance bad or great. She is a great dancer. You read about her problems, and then make a judgement because now you can SEE it all because you read some info about her. If anyone here is the fatty, it's you and that big head of yours that you keep cramming with bull crap so that you can observe and make snotty remarks. If you don't like her, then why did you read her autobiography?? Weirdo...

[havenization]

Its obvious that GUINNESSTRAIL is just sturring the pot. He chooses to wear the YouTube " Dunce Cap " And the funny thing is he wears it so PROUDLY .posting his little jabs , good for him. Grandpa just discoverd Youtube and now hes a know it all .

[fishyfish4444]

Ms. Kirkland's runs make me shake.

[SuperEfexor]

Gelsey is splendid allways...

[MooJoo5555]

This would be awful without Gelsey. He is terrible and can't jump very high, seems to struggle lifting her (how much can she weight, 10 pounds?) and expressionless, and the music is boring. But she makes it worth watching!

[dontcallmedoll88]

@MooJoo5555 have you lost your mind, anthony dowell is one of the best british male dancers. Get a clue...

[MooJoo5555]

get a clue???? you're very mature. 

[dontcallmedoll88]

@MooJoo5555 Wow, lets point out my word structure on how mature I am. Very mature of you pointing that out!!! I'm just telling you that you don't know what your talking about. How can he be clumsy and work with people dancers like Antoinette Sibley, worked with Kenneth MacMillan and was director of the Royal Ballet from 1986 to 2001... please tell me then how he is clumsy after a long career and then becoming director of a great school??? Anyone...

[dontcallmedoll88]

@MooJoo5555 He also danced with some of the best ballerina's ever. How could he be clumsy??? Watch Manon with him in it...

[bookkeeper57]

Anthony Dowell is English.

[hughman55]

Wow... Once again, I did not remember her being THIS good. Amazing performance. Someone else here commented, "best American ballerina ever". I agree.  Anthony Dowell, good too. But, maybe not such heavy makeup. Looks a little drag queenish.

[supersimpsonsfan100]

Shes like freakishly skinny =/

[akim81]

Best American ballerina ever!

[Esme226]

just beautiful! She such a wonderful dancer and even though she looked ill, her dancing make her beauty come out! She is truly an amazing dancer! May god bless her heart!

[Cherilynn100]

Gelsey is magnificent.

[blondebunhead]

She has the most beautiful walks and runs of any dancer. I know that sounds silly, but walking or running in ballet can be really difficult and she makes it look so effortless and graceful!

[kabaiivansko]

Julietta a large, strong technical and refined, arms and feet to dance and would like many dancers in 2010

[fishyfish4444]

Why is there no set here as there was for Rudy and Dame Margot?

[havenization]

Gala performance

[yanisericfilm]

@fishyfish4444 it was a gala

[munchki628]

gelsey kirkland makes my heart ache!!! but at least she's happy and healthy now and has such an amazing career to show for all her suffering

[citruzzlove]

Gelsey really scares me. She looks like a corpse! So thin and white and... just euw.

[and567go]

Really it's been my experience as a professional dancer that we are suppose to be lean & long. It makes for better lines.

[toolips1400]

They both look insane at 2:08, but having read her book, it explains why - silicone injections, anorexia, cocaine. But what the dansuer's excuse - he looks frightening and frightened.

[rozirda]

You're absolutely right about 2:08! They're almost scary!

[and567go]

They are suppose to look frightened of being caught together. Do you even know the story? "But what the dansuer's excuse?" ?what?

[toolips1400]

@and567go

Well duh - who doesn't know the story of Romeo and Juliet. Good acting on the other hand in expression is not being displayed here.

[havenization]

I totally disagree with you.....why ? you can read the many, many reviews of Gelseys performance for this gala and her Sleeping beauty of the time , , google it, and there you will lfind that the hardened hyper critical English audiences and the most renowned critics adored her interpretation of R&J , including the choreographer Mac Milllan , and Dame N de Valois . . I certainly agree with them .

[iancas]

Gelsey, still stunning by today's standards...poetry in motion

[and567go]

Could not agree more!

[SuperMimi1979]

I'm fairly sure that at this point she was already extremely ill from the drug abuse & eating disorders. All things considered, she was absolutely brilliant. Imagine if she were healthy.

[havenization]

some people fail to see that Gelsey is light yrs ahead because they often fail to take thier Margo Fontayn rose colored glass's off when watching ballet videos

[and567go]

Put very well :)

[rozirda]

Just how emotionless can a stage kiss be?

[theaterkid1015]

3:30 is sublime

[lacouerfairy]

Still never fails to astound me how good she was. Some of the "great" dancers of yesteryear, you look at their work and think in 2009 they wouldn't make it. They wouldn't be considered good. If Gelsey performed like this in 2009 she would still be amazing, that's how advanced her dancing was when compared with her peers. She was light years ahead of the others.

[mysticmeg111]

Lacouerfairy I fail to see where Gelsey is light years ahead of ohters. She is dancing according to the choreographer. At 2.02 when she and Romeo hold hands their body language is cold and distant they look as though they are having mug shots done. She does not portray a tremulous virgin well and what is so brilliant about her traipsing down the stairwell? She has a very sharp facial profile looks tired and her arms are horrible-lacking smoothness-the muscles are knotted and tense.

[Andante735]

@lacouerfairy

If she performed anything in 2011, she would still be several galaxies ahead of anyone.

[iamgr80k]

@lacouerfairy Wow! who are you? Try telling the trinas of the time that Gelsey was the best! THere were many many great ballerinas of the 70's and 80's and even before that gelsey wouldn't DARE compare herself to.... not taking anything away from Gelsey, but please, get your history straight.

[Tsunade363]

@iamgr80k Yes, you are correct in a sense but there is no one like Gelsey! Never will be. Even, the great ballerinas(so many beautiful ones) of her times didn't have that touch that Gelsey has. Everyone has different opinion, this is mine. So please don't give any rude comments.

[Jayjen35]

@Tsunade363 Everyone has their favorite, that shouldn't mean that they need to belittle any other artist of the time. There were many beautiful ballerinas then, and yes a few of them very well rivaled Gelsey Kirkland, and some out-shined her in ways. She out-shined them in others. I suppose its a matter of personal preference which quality a person values over another, but a reasonably intelligent person can see the value and greatness of all of those incredible women! They were all beautiful

[ARMSare4HUGGING]

almost done reading her book "dancing on my grave" it is soooo true of the ballet world and gelsey is an amazing dancer :)

[fishyfish4444]

I am pleased to hear that you are enjoying Ms. Kirklan's book. Ms. Kirkland's reported issues or anyone else's substance abuse issues are their issues, not the issues of the business. I become sad when ballet students with talent and passion are discouraged by the misconception that ballet will make them a drug addict. Substance abuse is due to the individual, whether that individual is an investment banker, governor, unemployed, or fortune 500 CEO.

[EurydiceSeven7]

Anthony Dowell is mroe than a bit amazing too :-)

[lanycx]

You should have seen her at 16 with NYCB...unreal. Yes, a psychological mess, but the dancing was extraordinary.

[28Elfboy]

I was fortunated enough to see Gelsey, Mikhail and Leslie Browne dance LA SOMNAMBULA during a gala in Los Angeles in...1977? Gelsey was BRILLIANT, the tiniest bourres you've ever seen...and her eyes closed; she trusted Misha completely ! A revelation, truly. (Her NUTCRACKER is the only one worth watching if you're watching Clara and not the sets...)

[miranditasdad]

I also had the privilege of watching her in La Somnambula in Miami around that time. I will never forget it - just extraordinary and magical. How can someone do bourres like that?!

[havenization]

Why do people bring up plastc surgury or drugs And what does this have to do with her dancing?

We all know she had a TORRID past , its like beating a dead horse with that subject the way she decends that stair case speaks volumes of her genius!

[snowgirl1052]

Ive seen many pictures of her before all her plastic surgery and she was so beautiful. No plastic surgeon should have done surgery on her, as she was beautiful to begin with.

[MissKrystalKay]

She was indeed so, so beautiful. It's a shame the ballet world got to her & made her believe she needed to look any different than she did.

[tedsler]

Wow, her energy on stage is amazing but I am not sure if I like it 100%. For me personally, she is a bit like watching Sylvie do Juliet, somehow the movement isn't innocent enough. I can't explain what I mean really. Don't take me wrong she is/was AMAZING !!! but I don't think I believe she is an innocent young girl the way she dances. Or maybe I am just jealous I have never been taught this pdd haha

Thanks for posting! Love it! 5 stars from me!

[spirit2dance]

Thanks for uploading this!

[taurusbs]

Gelsey is magnificent

[prdoob]

I was lucky enough to see one of the first full-length Kirkland-Dowell Covent Garden performances, and to have a chat in the interval with Sir Fred and Madam (Ninette de Valois). Kirkland earned the ultimate accolade from those two legendary figures: "She runs like Pavlova!" This video illustrates what they meant. MacMillan's balcony scene and ballroom pas de deux remain #1 for me.

[hbanana7]

THIS choreography is really tops for me. Not only does it express what Shakespeare does, but demands the upmost technicality, controlled strength, flexibility(esp for Juliet, acting and chemistry from both dancers. She is so lucky to have partnered with Dowell!!!!!

[havenization]

again I love the way gelsey does not embelish the choreography , her belconey sceen is captivating . The way she catches the moonlight on her hand flips it and brings it to her heart

[AllegroDancer1884]

how old is she in this video...after they kissed she looked OLDD!!

[bluejay602]

This was from the 60th birthday gala for Queen Elizabeth April 21, 1986. Gelsey would have been 33 (34 in December) at the time. She actually did this after performing for the Royal Ballet and ended up with a stress fracture. Took time off and then performed Sleeping Beauty with RB. Retired shortly after. All detailed in her second book, "The Shape of Love".

[jondavwal]

One of my big regrets is that I never got to see her dance again after she left ABT. Thanks for posting. This is amazing. There really was never anybody like her before or since. She was pure music and soul.

[iluvnola123]

The musculature in her arms is incredible!

[brewskyxxx]

Absolutely!! I think they look awesome!!!

[mysticalkittykat]

Oh, she's so captivating to watch.

[9415908]

I think that they dance very well together and have great chemistry. There is no denying her talent and that talent realized in many ballets, it is the ruination of that talent and after reading her book, her inability to see any fault within herself and blaming everyone else that bothers me. Surely she had a hard life, but she brought most of it on herself. I don't know maybe she has changed now, but it is frustrating to watch her.

[beesjubilee]

I was 21 in 1976, and the problems for Kirkland and those she danced with was that ballet, especially American ballet had suddenly become the celebrity basket cases like we see today for Hollywood. It was horrible celebrity stalking with gossip galore for newspaper and all sorts of media. Totally nuts for Russian, Brit and Nederalnd "faabulous daaaling" star scene as bad as Hollywood, then.

[Leonnidik]

Her soviet rivals had the fame and publicity. Kirkland is a legitimate genius. Never did I see her do a phony,meaningless step for effect.Her pique arabesque in Giselle's var. 1act was in the dimension of the Gods. In act2 she was.

[beesjubilee]

Oh, she had the publicity and fame of her Russian and European rivals, and more to be sure in the seventies, but she and those of the ABT and NY Ballet Co. had the incredibly difficult Balanchine and 1950's American dancers image laid out for them in 1970's when ballet bacame the big theatre craze like all the media craze for TV and Hollywood and it was the horrible sex and drugs gossip seeking media that helped make the destructive environment for dancers. Bekuieve me, it was awful.

[Leonnidik]

Beesju- Agreed. Thank Rudi and Misha for that. It wasn't until Misha asked Gelsey to be his partner that she really became famous(same with Rudi and Margot). He was the great soviet defector and dance god and she the chosen one who matched him onstage.The rest you know.

[beesjubilee]

She and her sister, Johnna, were both well known dancers in NYCB with George Balanchine by 1970. very much known in media and photography, even Seventeen magazine. Well known for their dancing skills, and two of his top dancers with historical importance for American dance theatre, along with even Susan Farrell. Kirkland was not some unknown made famous by Nureyev and Barishnikov by any means what so ever. You need to read more about the actual history of the ABT and NYCB to understand..

[beesjubilee]

Seriously, this was the time of who is the good looking celebrity, and it sure hit the world of ballet hard. The "perfect body" of the athlete, or rather the fitness figure, running for fitness and health was just barely taking off from the athlete track, and movies and magazines for the celebrity scene was terribly mishandled by managers of both ABT and NYBC making dancers prey to all sorts of publicity of fitness and the "sexy" craze. Making dance popular to Americans since the 50's!!

[pediatrapaola]

@Leonnidik the same for sir dowell,saw him many times live in london,was 79,surely one of the best of his time,and l am not a great fan of english dancer,but he was really outstanding

[exaudi33]

Re. Kirkland's running -- I think it was once said of Galina Ulanova that she "trailed the stars" and surely the same could be applied to La Kirkland. Thanks so much for posting this. I feel blessed to have seen her perform often in the 70s-80s with ABT. Perfection!

[seanbboy]

Gelsey is fantastic, but I find her almost too mature a Juliet in this video, and Dowell looks too gay for my taste. It's well danced but a bit awkward looking. I doubt they had chemistry if for no other reason than Gelsey getting second billing. ; )

[tackychic66]

agreed. i love her giselle though

[tickledpink22]

maybe so, but honestly her quality of movement is so beautiful that none of that matters. personally, I was so captivated by her dancing that I didn't even notice him (or their possible lack of chemistry).

[manfredfinch]

I love their beautiful legato dancing-- everything perfectly phrased. You can see the ravages of anorexia on Kirkland, but also those underlying muscles of steel-- so extraordinary.

[DaisyMusicalTheatre]

thankyou x

[DaisyMusicalTheatre]

what would anyone say kenneth macmillans style of choreography is?? and his general aspect on ballet...how it changed the traditional forms of ballet??? HELP XX

[dancermm]

Now you mention it, it is pretty difficult to classify his style of choreography. I would describe it as classical/contemporary, but all of his ballet told a story.

[MzFabulosity33]

(Sigh) This is my favorite pas de deux but I've never seen Gelsey perform it before...breathtaking for sure. Dancermm, where did you get this?

[kdub10009]

I agree that it's difficult to classify his work. While Macmillan's story ballets are his most famous and most often danced (perhaps because they seem to sell tickets more readily), he was actually equally adept at choreographing abstract neoclassical works, i.e. Concerto, Diversons, and so on. Clement Crisp's book Into the Labyrinth: the Works of Kenneth Macmillan is an excellent resource for anyone wanting a more in depth exploration of the themes behind his work.

[AcemanJones]

neoclassical.

[kdub10009]

Macmillan was also particularly known for his rapturous, passionate pas de deux. Most of his ballets climax, or culminate, in at least one (usually more) sensual pas de deux between its male and female protagonists, with lots of entwining movements (see: Mayerling final pas de deux for another great example).

[AcemanJones]

That's true, but it's also true of most Romantic Ballets.

I would say that while Macmillan's technique did not utilize the Balanchine method, it is definitely neo-classical, which is also true of other choreographers, such as Ashton and Forsythe, for example.

[kdub10009]

Macmillan's pas de deux are unusually sensual and often frenzied in their passion - that's one of his signatures. Dancers love throwing themselves into them.

[AcemanJones]

That's true of Balanchine, Ashton, Robbins, and other neo-classical choreographers as well as Macmillan, isn't it?

[kdub10009]

Not in the particular way that I'm talking about, no, not in general. Macmillan specifically uses the pas de deux in an explicitly sensual manner, not as abstractly as the other choreographers - IN GENERAL. I was just answering the person asking for a generalized description of his style. Of course there are exceptions, and just characterizing one choreographer in a particular way does not imply that other choreographers do not occasionally share similar characteristics.

[AcemanJones]

I respectfully disagree.

[SURFUR]

by Dane Youssef

Simply breathtaking. Every single dancer must bring something new to this piece that was once danced by Fonteyn & Nureyev. And only the best dancers truly do. Give us something really memorable.

Gelsey has always had a frail child way in everything she does and Dowell's masculine cavalier way is the perfect counterbalance, especially in a piece like "Romeo & Juliet."

It's kind of funny, but Royal Ballet actually seems like the best place for her.

by Dane Youssef

[SURFUR]

by Dane Youssef

Here it is. The ballet Gelsey Kirkland danced after she defected from the ABT and America itself.

Simply amazing... she actually did all this while she was fresh out of rehab and recovering from all those injuries. She also had lome legal mishaps. She was also extremely difficult and insufferable.

She calls this some of the best work she's ever done. And she was right. Wow. Maybe she should have stayed with them. And her first husband, too.

by Dane Youssef

[tutugirl4life]

I think my favorite part of that whole magical PDD was Gelsey running at 1:55-1:59

[fishyfish4444]

I am confident in saying that there will never be anything better in the world of ballet than Ms. Kirkland's running. This is why "everyone" nowadays needs to do tons of brilliantly performed jumps and turns. They cannot impress with or do the hard things, like running.

[TinyDancer567]

i cant believe how many people look up to this woman as a role model. she completely ruined herself by using drugs and starving herself. look at her! you can seee how insanely thin she is. its so sad. never be like her. ever.

[kdub10009]

Yes, Gelsey had her demons and she fell deeply deeply down, into a dark dark place that no one wants to visit. But she rose up and she wrote, with incredible honesty, about her troubles and in doing so probably helped a lot of other dancers NOT follow in her footsteps in that respect. But there's nothing wrong with looking up to her as an artist.

[Newyorkfoodie]

yes she was magic!

[kdub10009]

Gelsey was the best. Just simply the best.

[uniela81]

How old was Gelsey KIrkland in this? She was light as a feather.

[numberonefilmfan]

about 34.

[hairyeahyeah]

SHE IS PURE PERFECTION in my eyes!!! A million thanks for sharing this

[crez941]

I worked for her from 1983 to 1984. am amazing talent who was the most unusual person I have ever met. Was her assistant. Can't reveal much more :-)

[Beachmaiden]

I always looked to Gelsey as my dancer role model when I was a young dancer. She was magic.

[Leonnidik]

She owned every stage she walked on.Her talent was God Given but, dancing isn't magic, it's work.

[jeanneadele]

@Leonnidik w/out getting into a "shouting match" may i suggest that yes, it's work... a ton of it... and then after all the work... with some dancers there is also that "magic"... and Miss Kirkland had it in abundance?

[MCurtis612]

My favorite--Gelsey!!. So excited that someone posted this on here. I watched her dance alot in the 70's with NYCB and ABT.. She was by far the best ever!!

[pasdebourree]

Her grande rond de jambe at 3:31-3:33 says it all - virtuoso technique; passionate perfection. Thanks for posting!

[ewbarnes]

she is fucking incredible! she is the best actress in the last 25 years to have graced the dance world!

[emmsteemmastewart]

she danced that with a fractured ankle....her autobiography 'the shape of love' was written about her coming back to ballet and her time with the royal ballet. it's amazing how much preparation she put into the role of juliet...

[numberonefilmfan]

In 1986; this was a television special celebrating the Queen's 60th birthday and featured opera and ballet stars.

[SonyaNatalia]

Gelsey Kirkland is perfect for Juliet (but she is frighteningly thin and over-worked here), but Anthony Dowell is far too British and far too much of a ponce to be a convincing Romeo.

[numberonefilmfan]

He is 43 years old here.

[BernardProfitendieu]

too British?!?  you mean like Shakespeare?

[rosacotton]

How Gelsey flew across that stage... Wow. She and Anthony are wonderful here.

Thank you!

[bolshoiboy8]

wow... a video of gelsey kirkland in romeo and juliet... SO RARE!!!!

[dianabirchall]

Thank you so much for posting a clip from this rare and legendary performance. Never thought I'd see it!

[lovesserenade]

WOW.. that was amazing... any idea what year that was from???

[dancermm]

I'm guessing that this is from the mid-1980s when she danced with the Royal Ballet after she took a break from dancing.

[numberonefilmfan]

@lovesserenade 1986.