If you read my blog, you already know that I am in love with Mikahil Baryshnikov, the Danser. Russians are raised with the love of art and it is not uncommon to see parents with young kids at the Bolshoi or Mariinskyi. But my love for ballet was inspired by my uncle Mikhail, who used to dance in the Bolshoi, knew Plisetskaya, Vasiliev and Maksimova and still remains very dashing and elegant in his 7o’s-you should see how he holds his back and how he walks!
When my uncle (named Mikhail incidently too) retired from dansing in the Bolshoi, he went on travelling around the world, teaching ballet and still does it successfully……
At the times when travelling abroad was as rare as sunshine in the UK, my uncle not only brought gifts but videos of Baryshnikov or Nuryev dancing and my cousin and I sat transfixed watching those giants of ballet dance and create magic on stage.
I never saw Nuryev danse ‘live’, but I was blessed to see Misha, as he is lovingly called universally, in London’s Barbican and Sadler’s Wells on several occasion and on one special evening even managed to talk to him for less than five minutes.
A few weeks ago a friend of mine sent me a cheeky e-mail, saying that she and her husband were going to see Baryshnikov dance at the Theatre de La Ville in Paris. After a very quick discussion with my husband and mother, plans were made and tickets booked.
A few days before the performance date it looked like I won’t make it, but luck was on my side and I had an interesting evening with my mum, friends and a very Parisian audience-I was surprised that there were so few Russians….
There were four pieces performed-Valse-Fantasie choreographed by the wonderful creative Alexei Ratmanskyi, an extract from Solo for Two, choreographed by Mats Ek, Years later, choreographed by Benjamin Millepied and finally the Place choreographed by Mats Ek.
Baryshnikov, who remains boyishly youthful while aging gracefully-the man has no fat on his body and his muscles will give any 25 year old a run for their money-kept the audience transfixed by his moves, his humour and by just being him, the wonderfully versatile dancer. He lives on stage and his enthusiasm for his craft is still very much palpable, as is his vigour and talent. In Years later he dances against the video of himself, aged 17 (?), while being a student of dance at Vaganova academy, pirouetting at great speed. Mischa is humorous in the admission of age limitations but he does it with such dignity that you know that this is a man who knows who he is and who is at peace with himself.
Place is mesmerising partially because of the performance but also because of the unusual music by Flaskkvartteen that pulls at your heart’s strings and makes you draw in your breath-it transfixes you and takes you away into an unknown realm, an Avatar of sorts.
My only problem was watching Ana Laguna, who I didn’t find graceful or maybe I just didn’t enjoy watching the woman not in her prime-maybe woman’s aging is more painful to watch when you can see what awaits you? But then this is a purely an observer’s comment and is not meant with malice. I think Baryshnikov would have shined even brighter if his partner was younger but then, I am not a performer and I don’t have the performers vision.
I don’t know if I will ever have the chance to see Baryshnikov dance ‘live’ again-those opportunities have been rare, but it makes my memories even more special-but I left the audience thanking my lucky stars for allowing me to be present and seeing the transformation of Baryshnikov from a classically trainer ballet dancer into a very modern contemporary one . Bravo Mischa, bravo !
p.s if anyone can let me know how or where I can get my hands on the recording of the Flaskkvartetten’s piece to which Baryshnikov and Laguna dansed-and God knows I tried to ’source’ it!-I promise if not my gratitude then a kiss! Anyone?
Unfortunately I don’t come to my city of birth often enough but when I do the place seems to become more alien every time . The face of the nation is changing, the traffic gets worse, the shopping assistants or the street cleaners seem to be from any other region of the former USSR but Russia, there are more men who carry beer bottles from the early morning-the list can go on.
Of course it’s not all bad, there are young guys who can help you with carrying of the buggy or a very smart looking elderly lady, who gives you a helpful advice regarding the insect bites, while you are queuing in the pharmacy, or the really delicious food that they serve in one of the Coffee Mania’s –not going to tell you which one, because it’s the best one! The waiters there are smiley, the juices freshly squeezed and delicious and I love watching the nice crowd that gathers there every time I go there, be it for lunch or cocktails.
The laws of how things work bewilder me too, for example I wanted to see Giles Bensimon’s exhibition of Russian celebrities called ‘Bed and Breakfast’. It opened last week at Dom Spiridonova /Spiridonov’s house. My sister-in-law and I tried in vain to get into the place but when we couldn’t open the entrance door, we called the exibition’s space phone line-the guy who picked up the phone was not only rude but told us in a surprised voice that the exhibition has closed….having been open for four days only. Is that the sign of success or the poor level of interest?
But the thing that irks me the most is the use of English language in everything, from news to the names of the restaurants or description of services. We have the most beautifully musical and rich language that is full of synonyms, wonderful expressions and history yet we tend to use English terms, while many people don’t actually speak or know English. Where else will you find the bridal shop called ‘To be bride’ or the café called ‘Flat Iron’-I mean seriously, do people even think of the meaning of the words when they use them? What scares me is that we are on the downhill path of losing our identity, our language and the next generation, who might love Grisham more than they love Akunin, prefer American movies to the ones made by Mikhalkov or Bodrov or Hotinenko and who choose to copy the West instead of following our path and being proud of being part of a magnificent nation who is culturally and historically rich.
On one of the nights, my brother and his wife took me out to have dinner in the restaurant on the 22nd flood of the Academy of Science, which had a sweeping view over Moscow. I felt almost lost, barely recognising the skyline of the city where I was born and raised and which I dearly love. There are too many high-rises that look out of places, the buildings stand too close to each other and while I know that progress moves us forward, I had a sinking feeling that whoever is building those monstrosities and betting on making a lot of money for himself in the process, does not think of our past and traditions, while planning the future. And without the past there is no future…………
5 x 15 or how to keep one’s brain fresh
posted May 25, 2010
Posted by galina in Culture Women's issues
When you are looking after kids full time or are working from home, your social skills might take a beating and your brain might go stale- women who are stuck doing routine tasks will understand what I am talking about. But what if that doesn’t work for you, what if you want to continue being ‘current’ and social and you want your brain to be creatively stimulated?
I have found a perfect solution and I would highly recommend it to any man or woman for that matter. Intelligence Squared organises events called 5 x 15, where interesting people talk about a chosen subject for yes, you guessed it, 15 minutes. The latest event, that I attended, took place in Notting Hill, at a place called Tabernacle where you sit comfortably on your own or with a girlfriend or friends, have a lovely Spanish snack and a glass of wine and listen to completely different people talk about politics, life, humour, music, economics, books-the possibilities are endless as are the subjects for stimulating conversation.
The evening started with a beautiful and self-depreciating, albeit the chosen subject-history of political assassinations-Fatima Bhutto, niece of belated Benazir. She talked about political dynasties, politics and violence, the unique silence when it comes to violence in Pakistan and the nuclear power that has deprived the country of resources and where polio remains uneradicated.
She was followed by a very dapper Andrew O’Hagan who talked about his new book, called ‘The Life and Opinions of Maf the Dog and his friend Marilyn Monroe’-if that doesn’t intrigue you, I would be quite surprised….
15 or so minutes later Terence Blackercame on stage and reduced the audience to piles of laughter with his smart and soulful songs, the one in particular about Brit Anglais who desperately wants to be Francais was beyond words in its originality and humour.
Frances Stonor Saunders added a serious note to the evening with her story of Violet Gibsonwho failed to assassinate Mussolini but was declared insane and put into asylum until the day that she died. The story was sad, evocative and emotional.
Yotam Ottolenghi, the chef who started Ottolenghi in Notting Hill talked about growing up in Jerusalem and a relationship between food and politics. I was fascinated and have to admit that I love the seared tuna and the cakes from his restaurant. There are people who are vegetarian and I am a carnivore who hardly eats vegetables but when you are queuing to buy food and your eyes feast on beautifully presented salads it’s almost hard not to give in.
The evening ended with a sweetly charming Maureen Lipmanand I left the venue to have dinner with my husband and his colleagues, feeling elated, brimming with ideas and emotions evoked by those very different and immensely unique people. In one evening you touch many subject, listen to very different people and get educated in the process. Are you inspired? I was!!
I finally got my hands on the latest edition of ABOVE magazine (I mentioned it in one of my earlier posts this year) and it doesn’t disappoint. You have Luciano Benettonand his Green star certified Tribu boat, you have ‘kind’ cashmere from Aymara knitwear, an article on the new, modernist homes by Marmol Radziner-really cool idea by the way!-, interview with unstoppable and ever evolving Philippe Starke and the beautifully smart Elettra Wiedemann,accompanied by unusual photos Bettina Rheims-and believe me, I keep an eye on fashion spreads daily .) Then there is Cecilia Rodhe, who sculpts something very cool and so much more, I hardly scratched the surface of the volume.
I like this magazine because it combines cool layouts and photography with education mixed with thought provoking pieces-what more can you ask for to keep you curious and make you more aware of the world on a wider scale?
My only complaint is that I can’t buy this magazine at any of my local newsagents and have to go to Selfridges in order to buy it. Can newsagents & magazine distributors take notice, as this magazine is truly a gem ?
http://www.above-magazine.com/
Movies are such a pleasure, they take you away from reality and give you the time to enjoy the moment pf peace, laughter or reflection.
If I am honest, then I will admit to preferring European and Russian cinema to American, most of the time, as the stories run deeper, emotions are heightened and cinematography is so much more colourful but then you get a movie like ‘Julie & Julia’ and you sit back and savour it, like you favourite dessert.
The film came out a little while back but it’s only now that I managed to watch it-sometimes you are lucky to have the time to watch the film that you want as soon as it comes out and sometimes the time runs away from you and it can be months before you get to sit down and watch it.
Meryl Streep is always superb but she takes on the role of the American cooking doyenne Julia Childs with such gusto and such skill-the scene with shopping of the onion deserves an Oscar on its own merit. Stanley Tucci, as her diplomat husband is both funny and romantic and Amy Adams, as the frustrated New York bureaucrat Julia Powell, who takes a year of her life to cook every single of Julia’s recipes from the ‘Mastering the Art of French cooking’ (and write a blog about it) is very endearing.
I would recommend this movie for when you are feeling a bit down or tired, with a bowl of popcorn and I promise you, you will feel happier and more invigorated, before you go to sleep, which hopefully will be restful.
Tennis is a beautiful game that can keep you on the edge of the seat if you feel passionate about the players but one wonders what life a tennis player leads, how he or she trains-the list of questions is endless.
Andre Agassi’s book answers many of those. He was riveting on the court and fans loved him, but he says in his book that he hated tennis and wanted to quit it daily. He tells about his relationship with his father, who made the decision that his youngest son will be a tennis star. He recounts with honesty about his time at Nick Bollettieri’ s academy, which brought up such stars as Jim Courier and Anna Kournikova. He talks about his relationship and marriage to Brooke Shields-he comes across as very sincere but Brooke Shield’s wasn’t as complimentary about his descriptions of things in her recent ‘Easy living’ interview.As they say, it takes two to tango…..
Agassi explains how his support team came about and what they all mean to him. He opens up about his drug use. And of course, his opponents and his romance and family life with the court goddess, Steffie (Stefanie) Graff.
I loved reading this raw and honest book, learning more about the game and the players that I grew up watching. You really get to understand how much blood, sweat and tears it takes to take you to the top of the game and of the rankings. You get to respect the people who put their bodies under tremendous stress in order to succeed on the court, in front of fans and foes. And it takes a lot of determination not only to get there but to stay on the top too.
It wasn’t just the fact that Sandra Bullock (who I have never met but seem to adore) has won an Oscar for her role in the Blind Side, it’s the fact that my friends seem to rave about it continuously, that made me finally get off the couch and go and see it.
Blind Side is based on a true story of a middle class white Touhy family, who take in a black boy from the street and help him realise his overall potential. Sandra Bullock plays the head-strong mother of the family, who has a loving husband, two wonderful kids (the little boy is a true jewel, who will make you smile or crack up laughing throughout the movie) and a successful career as an interior designer. But when she sees Big Mike, a boy who studies at her kid’s school, soaking wet, walking by the road side in the dark, something compels her to turn the car around and take him home. I urge you to see the movie for yourself but I will say that I haven’t seen a movie that good for a long time. It made me (and the rest of the audience) laugh but it also made me well up several times, and believe me, I normally don’t cry when I go to the movies. But the best compliment I can give this movie is to say that it made me think about our place in society and about what kind of people we all are.
How many of us can truly sympathise with a stranger? How many of us will come to the rescue of a person we have never seen before? Are many of us capable of helping a person who struggles or giving a child a loving home when we already have kids of our own? Would we spend our own money on a complete stranger, expecting nothing in return?
We tend to be divided by so many things, like race, wealth, outlook on life, we are so quick to judge each other or be rude to each other but it’s the genuine acts of kindness that make us human and worthy of being called a human being.
Recently we had two bombings on the tube in Moscow and reports were varied but you know what shocked me the most? A short news story that said that taxi drivers in the affected areas tripled their fares. They didn’t rush to help people or take them to the hospital- they looked to make a buck for themselves out of someone else’s tragedy. While some people, inside those train carriages, racked by the blasts, saved other people from dying, by being at the front of the explosions, some morons on the ground, safe and sound, tried to profit from a horribly tragic situation. Did it get mentioned during governmental briefings? Oh no, it didn’t, while I strongly believe it should have. Those actions are beyond shameful and by not saying anything, one seems not to condone it. I am not saying there weren’t plenty of decent and courageous people out there, helping out-there were plenty! It’s always a small bunch of inhumanes that can be found anywhere around the world, attacking a frail pensioner for their meagre savings, killing a youth for his mobile phone, raping a young woman or abusing a child-the list can be endless.
But we need to talk about things like that and learn as society. Certain events make people come together, but a story told in the Blind Side is the best example of what all of us are capable of. Every nation has good and bad people and every nation has monsters, said President Medvedev while addressing his government and the nation shortly after the Moscow tube bombings and I think he is fundamentally right, we just need to unite across the world and be led forward by kindness and selflessness, hopefully making our world a better place for our kids to live safely in.
There is something magical about theatre and it doesn’t matter what age you are. I prefer the theatres that are smaller, more intimate and then you get to feel like you are part of that mysteriously creative process.
So, if you like theatre, you are bound to like Simon Annand’s exhibition ‘The Half’ at Victoria & Albert museum.
‘‘Half” is the term used in theatre, those sacred 30 minutes that actors get before the start of the play, when they immerse themselves in their creativity or just stay reflective, getting ready to surprise their audience. Rarely, if at all, you are allowed to see actors in those precious minutes but over the course of 20 years that’s what Simon Annand did and his work is truly mesmerizing, giving you a very intimate glimpse in to the un-atteinable world.
Beware, though, that finding the exibition in the maze that is V&A isn’t easy, it took me several attempts, following mixed-up directions of the staff. A worthy treat in the end, though .)
When one grows up in a civil society, it’s hard to imagine the life in the countries that don’t follow a similar path. I recently chanced upon a book by Haleh Esfandiari, an Iranian woman who, being an Iranian-American academic in the US Wilson Centre, was firstly robbed and then imprisoned, while visiting her elderly mother in Iran. The book offers insight into Iran’s background, politically and socially, but also describes very vividly life under the regime of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. One can be violated in different ways, and when your freedom, your daily routine, the right to see your family or simply read, is taken away, it’s incredibly difficult to continue standing up for what you believe in and not sign fake confessions. I certainly feel better educated about Iran having read the book of this wonderfully stoic woman.
There is another book, that I am currently reading, that I want to mention. It’s written by an American male nurse, Greg Mortenson, who having failed to climb K2 in memory of his younger sister Christa, decided to build a school for the children in the village of his porter, Mouzafer, in a remote area of Pakistan.
How many of us will leave our comfortable existence behind, in order to go to a third world country and build a school? To save money, to sell one’s belongings, in order to help someone who you have never met? We take so many things for granted, we lose patience over the tiniest things but thanks to books like ‘Three Cups of Tea’ and ‘My Prison, My home’ one gains perspective and hopefully, changes for the better, offering our society something back, expecting nothing in return.
Haleh Esfandiari ‘My Prison, My Home’, Harper Press, pp.230 2009
Greg Mortenson ‘Three cups of tea’, Puffin books, pp.209 2009
When I was a teenager and living in Moscow, one of my favourite movies was a Russian version of Sherlock Holmes, with Vasylyi Livanov as the formidable detective and Vitalyi Solomin as the faithfull side-kick Dr. Watson. When I heard that Guy Ritchie made a film about the famous detective it aroused my curiosity, even though I found Layer Cake (so many guys I know love it, not least because Sienna Miller is in it…) and Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels were too violent for my liking.
The fact that Robert Downey Jr was fronting this project made me want to see this film twice as much, because, as far as I am concerned, he is so versatile as an actor, he can play anyone, blowing you away every single time with his talent and charisma. His Sherlock Holmes is handsome, smart and damn sexy, and while Jude Law does nothing for me, he plays Dr. Watson well. The film is shot beautifully and it keeps the pace, while you sit on the edge of your seat (or sofa) with bated breath, wondering what twist will come next. All I can say is that I hope there will be a sequel or pre-quell.
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