Today is Jacques d'Amboise's 75th birthday:

A photo of d'Amboise as Apollo:



Photo from the New York City Ballet archive

A report from Periodic26.cu on the last performance by the Royal Ballet on their trip to Cuba:

http://www.periodico26.cu/english/culture/july2009/royal-ballet071809.html

"Between ovations, accompanied by the dancers of the Royal Ballet of London and Cuba’s National Ballet Company (BNC) that had participated in the Tribute to Alicia Alonso, the Maestra, filled with happiness, received a beautiful bouquet of flowers as a symbol of her life devoted to dance, from the hands of Monica Mason, director of the British troupe, on the stage of the García Lorca Hall of Havana’s Grand Theater (GTH). "

Time Magazine with a feature on what might be next for the Bolshoi Theatre after its musical director's resignation:

http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1910930,00.html

"The rose-and-white-columned façade of Russia's famed Bolshoi Theater has stood shrouded in construction curtains and spiky scaffolding for four years — and it looks to stay that way longer still, as the sudden resignation of the theater's musical director has pitched the future of the theater and its multi-million-dollar renovation into disarray. "

DanzaBallet reviews Corella Ballet's production of La Bayadere:

http://www.danzaballet.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=3026

"Corella Ballet’s corps managed to get through the opening night but needed greater technical security and were not always well synchronized. This is still a young corps, requiring time and greater experience to move as one body and with greater aplomb. In general, there is a certain stylistic diversity within the group and the technical level is not all that it could be. "

The Royal Ballet performed Manon in Havana:

http://www.caribbeannetnews.com/news-17774--5-5--.html

"Cuba's leading dancer Carlos Acosta, invited by the prestigious British company, and Spanish Prima Ballerina Tamara Rojo took on the leading roles of Kenneth MacMillan’s Manon, showing their maturity and virtuosity in the perfection of their moves and the harmonic interrelation in between them."

American Ballet Theater's Paloma Herrera and David Hallberg performed Romeo and Juliet with the company in Kenneth MacMillan's production, in Los Angeles, reviewed by Laura Bleiberg:

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2009/07/dance-review-murphy-and-hallberg-in-romeo-and-juliet.html

"Paloma Herrera, who appeared as Juliet Friday night, returned to the role opposite Hallberg Saturday evening, replacing Gillian Murphy (out with an injury). If the wear and tear of this challenging part, performed two nights in a row, was a trial, the steadfast Herrera didn’t show it. But her partnership with Hallberg was merely satisfactory, never rising to tragic levels."