'Busby Berkeley on pointe'

[callmemadam]

This is apparently how some people have described Swan Lake. The BBC's new Tchaikowsky season got off to a cracking start yesterday with The Magic of Swan Lake, introduced by Darcey Bussell. Isn't she lovely? This was followed by a performance from the Mariensky Theatre in St Petersburg. I recorded it to watch later and still haven't seen it all.

When I was a child we had the ballet music on a set of 78s. As we had few records and played them a lot, I know the music very well and Tchaikowsky was my introduction to classical music. Like many women, I suspect, everything I know about ballet I learned from Ballet Shoes and Lorna Hill's 'Wells' books. Even now, watching these professional dancers, I can imagine Posy Fossil in the wings, criticising their footwork. Checking my Lorna Hill books I found that of fourteen titles in the series, five feature Swan Lake. I've put scans of some of these, with other ballet books from my shelves, in a gallery which you can view here. You'll need to click on the images to see them properly.

Hate ballet? Have a laugh with A Bullet in the Ballet by Caryl Brahms & S J Simon and its sequel Six Curtains for Stroganova.

Comments

[minniemoll.livejournal.com]

I caught most of the ballet, although I missed the introductory programme, which is a shame. I do like Darcey Bussell, I saw her dance once, sadly it was in a modern programme which didn't do a lot for me.

I love ballet on stage, but I'm not good at watching it on tv, I'm far too easily distracted. I think that I watch most programmes with about half my eyes, looking away often to knit, read, generally gaze round the room, talk to the cats, whatever, which isn't good when watching ballet :)

Ballet Shoes and the Wells books were firm favourites when I was young, I was dying for ballet lessons. Alas, there were ballroom dancing classes at the community centre down the road, so I was sent there instead. I hated it, and was very bad at it. With hindsight, I would have been bad at ballet as well, but at least I might have enjoyed being bad at it.

Bullet at the Ballet sounds fab, I'll look out for a copy. I know the name Caryl Brahms, but I can't just think where from. Unless - did s/he write No Bed for Bacon? Or am I completely confused? I haven't read that either, but I do have a copy somewhere. At least I did have.

[callmemadam.livejournal.com]

No Bed for Bacon: yes, they wrote that, also Don't, Mr Disraeli and various others. (Caryl was a she. She was a professional ballet critic. Simon died sadly young, after which she didn't write much. Towards the end of her life she did a collaboration with Ned Sherrin but I can't remember what it was.) I can almost guarantee Bullet in the Ballet; a funny murder story set amongst the personnel of a ramshackle touring ballet company. What more could you ask?

I know what you mean about concentrating when watching ballet. I'm afraid I wait for the music to tell me when the good bits are coming up and then rest the knitting for a while. According to Lorna Hill's books, there was once much more ballet on television than there is now. I suppose the fifties was a peak period, with Fonteyn and all.

[dorianegray.livejournal.com]

Wish I'd known that was on. I'm really bad at finding out what's on TV in advance, and usually miss the few programmes I would actually like to watch.

On a slightly chirpier note, you seem to have the same 1950s pb of "Ballet Shoes" that I have (my mother's childhood copy). That started my lifelong love of ballet stories, though I have to admit that I've always much preferred the Drina books to any of Lorna Hill's stuff. I went through a phase when I was about 10 of reading everything ballet-related in the local library, including all the non-fiction books on the subject.

Always wanted ballet lessons, and never had them, but the drawing in one of the non-fiction books of the position of a foot en pointe stood me in good stead many years later at jazz-dance class, when I was the only person in the class who arched her foot when pointing it!

[callmemadam.livejournal.com]

That pink Ballet Shoes is my childhood copy and I would never part with it. Funny about the Wells/Drina thing. I've read all the Drina books but don't like them very much. I've missed out Jean Ure, who's written some very good books on the subject. I might fish out some of those for the gallery.

To see what's on TV try the DigiGuide TV Guide. I think you have to sign up for it but it's really good.

[callmemadam.livejournal.com]

PS LJ ate some of my comment. DigiGuide will be your first hit if you Google for it.

Complementary Reading

[(Anonymous)]

Lorna Hill, Noel Streatfeild ....ballet.. how about "A Candle for St Jude" by Rumer Godden
Ruth
www.craftypeople.blogspot.com

Re: Complementary Reading

[callmemadam.livejournal.com]

Hello Ruth. I haven't read A Candle for St Jude (another for the list) but enjoyed Rumer Godden's Thursday's Children, also about ballet.