NUTCRACKER Act II Grand Pas De Deux - Margot Fonteyn and Michael Somes

[@neverlostforwords]

Joyous, expressive, commanding performance by Fonteyn. She connects perfectly with the music, her partner, the audience and her Sugar Plum Fairy role. Her head movements are natural and musical, never forced. Brought tears of joy to my eyes.

[@tkoran]

Beautiful; her phrasing & musicality are unmatched! It's so nice to see this kind of artistry, instead of the usual tiresome acrobatics.

[@robertlobiondo7573]

She has such JOY while she does this; it's mesmerizing!!

[@neverlostforwords]

Yes, I felt it too. She radiates her joy to the audience. I also love the way she moves her head to express the music. It's very natural and provides a very personal interpretation of the music.

[@elisedunstan2080]

I wish I could have seen her live. She is perfection and never misses a beat.

[@kaythomas3171]

Her arms, hands and fingers.....so majestic.....superior extension and line.....

[@susannevollmer2347]

I a m always amased of the lightness and easyness of heir dance!

[@sedekiman824]

Yes, and seamless.

[@delph2000]

Those backbends at that speed are terrifying!

[@Rysanekfan]

Fonteyn’s ability to move with speed while retaining a seemingly soft or lyrical core continues to fascinate me. There is pulse to her movement and it never strikes me as sharp. Yet, it’s precise. I never tire of watching her and attempting to understand its essence. I’m not sure if it can be explained as technique...though, of course, it is.

[@neverlostforwords]

Fonteyn was clearly aware of the pulse of the music. You can't help noticing it when comparing her style in this dance with others who had their own interpretations. Timing was evidently very important to Fonteyn, yet she never lost her softness and musicality, as you noted. Perhaps it was that her facial expressions and head movements were always relaxed and joyous, never tense, and held the audience's attention so that the fast movements required to keep the pulse of the music were subsumed by her joy of dance.

[@tatianakurosh1701]

Спасибо за подаренную возможность увидеть такую красоту❤

[@giuliorenzobighin8165]

Ottimo i passi sulle punte in eundo veloce della ballerina. Impressione d'esecutivita d'acchito r di leggerezza e levità praesens ed astante fatta tensione elanista e motile sorprendente.Ottimo mantenimento della figuralita ' nelle pose d'ensemble del balletto.Molto bravi Bighin Giulio Renzo

[@Morganasnotarobot0]

Micheals beautiful

[@saralindsay7103]

This is one of my favourite videos of Margot. What is so extraordinary is that she can take a duet that is in many ways supposed to be light, fluffy and decorative (without grand tragedy or emotion) and yet make you want to cry with every step. I think it is in the charm and sweetness of her personality and the way that when she looks at her prince you believe that she truly loves him.

[@jcliff26]

Mine too. In all of her storybook roles she excels in the acting, which unfortunately isn’t a priority today. These old ballets really need that.

[@mithrilmoon1]

What a total joy! Thank you so much xx

[@yvonnestrong3856]

The music is a lot faster than nowadays but the dancing isn't rushed. What a shame that modern dancers feel the need to show off their extensions and their balances and their hyperflexibility in these 19th and early 20th century classics rather than reserving it for the modern choreography where it belongs. Margot Fonteyn could teach the current dancers a huge lesson in what ballet is really about.

[@jcliff26]

+Matthew Brehm Of course they shouldn't dance as in the past, however they should respect the music. When things are slowed down to allow for higher legs or more turns (usually by the boy pumping the girl) the music loses all dramatic quality. If they want to get legs higher, do it in tempo. Much more exciting to see the girl turn on her own and just have the boy stop her. Just my taste of course.

[@caruuso]

I see nothing rushed in the modern interpretations, and the music is a lot richer for the steadier pace. Things do improve with time: Olga Corbet's gymnastic routines wouldn't even post a score these days, yet she is still lauded by many. There is an understandable tendency to put the past on a pedestal where it doesn't automatically belong. The test would be to show otherwise uninformed people an old and a modern version, and ask which they prefer. Though even then, people on a "past kick" might still see the black & white and give an erroneous answer.

[@pediatrapaola]

+Matthew Brehm he is dredful also for that time

[@sedekiman]

Then you should.

[@1212wolfgang1212]

Tchaikovsky specified the intended tempo of this quite clearly in his score. This particular performance is actually slightly slower than than his recommendation (69bpm), but it's as close to the composer's intentions as I've ever heard (other than commercial recordings). The result is a constant sense of forward motion and lightness. It makes the music sound good (the way the composer intended). A typical 2018 performance might start at 40-45 crotchets per minute. That's two-thirds of the intended tempo! It doesn't make the music sound horrible per se, but it does alter the intended artistic effect, and flies in the face of what Tchaikovsky wrote. If Tchaikovsky had known it would be taken so slowly, he might have chosen to score this differently. Ultimately, this practice of altering speeds of ballet music to accommodate technical advances in ballet is commonplace. It allows for the execution of some amazing athletic feats, but sadly comes at the cost of artistic quality of the music.

[@igalflint]

the very best baillarina!

[@gyypsy]

I've never seen a one-handed supported pirouette before!!! . . . and I've been around a LONG time . . . I danced the Mother Ginger kid's thing in Los Angeles with NYC in 1960 and NYC's Midsummer Night's dream a couple years later - both at the Greek Theater.

[@jcliff26]

gyypsy It was the norm for many years. Unfortunately it’s been discarded lately.

[@tatianakurosh1701]

Волшебная музыка и волшебная Фонтейн! Абсолютно безукоризненна и прекрасна! Абсолютта= Фонтейн!! Идеал! ❤

[@edwardarckless3112]

Just fantastique and wonderfull to see thank you Edward Arckless

[@ElectronicsTech09]

Very lovely.

[@yasminzimnowodzki5357]

She was much more emotional in the arms of Nureyev.

[@caroletraynor8763]

beautiful.

[@dianatannhauser5320]

Exquisite!

[@caruuso]

What a fast tempo.

[@jls4382]

Thank you for posting this! Is there a copy of the complete ballet available? Its wonderful to see these dancers brought to life again. 💐 💐 💐

[@jcliff26]

Haven’t found one with this cast.

[@jls4382]

@@jcliff26 Thank-you! I'm so glad I found your channel. I am looking forward to watching the rest of your videos and seeing what you find next. 🌸

[@artwatch-y9j]

❤

[@morticiamom1]

Breathtaking! *Puts curmudgeonly "you darned kids get off my lawn" face on* The modern, Soviet holdover, style with the music tempo slowed to a dirge pace to give the dancers time to get in the biggest rhythmic gymnastics style extensions they can do is so tedious. I fear it will get worse, finally overcoming the last pockets of resistance at the Royal Ballet, and New York City ballet, making the whole ballet world a giant gymnastics gymnasium, before people realize what they've lost and the pendulum swings back. I don't know if I'll be alive to see that, but until then we have these recordings. Ballet is an art, an art requiring some athleticism to be sure, but still an art. I dislike modern competitive sport ballet. I do approve of the changes in partnering style however -- I'm not a complete negative Nelly.

[@pediatrapaola]

+Shelly Callahan he was weak dancer also for that time

[@elisedunstan2080]

Margot - perfect musicality......beautiful lines and no gymnastics like many of today's dancers. Miichael Somes partnered Dame Margo often. This is art. Balanchine allegedly did not like her style. He said her hands were like spoons.

[@jcliff26]

Mary Nazario. No. This IS The Nutcracker.

[@Morganasnotarobot0]

Beautiful graceful

[@margaretstorey5960]

Nureyev's version: kzbin.info/www/bejne/a5fLaYOKo5Zjd8k

[@giuliorenzobighin8165]

Errata corrige esecutivita'

[@mikoomaee9460]

what part are they playing?

[@yosefaguilera9941]

Grand pas de deux

[@elisedunstan2080]

This is the Grand Pas De Deux from The Nutracker. She is the Sugar Plum failry and he is the Prince.

[@giovannaesposito9532]

Molto intenso, ma nulla al confronto di quello eseguito da Rudolf Nureyev e Merle Park. La Fonteyn sempre straordinaria per stile e musicalità, ma nell' insieme non convince molto.

[@pediatrapaola]

soames was dreadful also for his time

[@sedekiman]

Yes he was rather stiff and lacking in technique but don't forget he gave up 5 years of his training to be involved in WW2 and also you are not really a fan of the royal Ballet.

[@yvonneleslie7681]

The choreography is hideous.

[@jcliff26]

Well it’s the closest to the original I’ve seen. Times change but I love the tempo and the dancers.

[@yvonneleslie7681]

@@jcliff26 Margot was go gifted that she could make most anything look good! What I didn't like about this pas de deux, is how little real dancing there is in it, just a series of repetitive, sometimes awkward, poses. Oh, and that part where he seems to be sweeping the floor with her head over and over...

[@laurentdumontel5680]

Cela est bien en dessous du pas de deux de Noureev. Celui ci est trop facile, trop sucré. La danseuse trop rigide

[@michelboudot2882]

Michael Soames....was dreadful...dancer...good partner...old fashioned to boot.

[@jcliff26]

Standards were completely different in those years but yes he was a wonderful partner.