Bayadere

Weak La Bayadère with starry leading couple
With "La Bayadère" Milan's La Scala completes its Svetlana Zakharova/Roberto Bolle classical trilogy. Even more as with the previous releases in this series ("Swan Lake" and "Giselle", both published by TDK) the main reason for acquiring this DVD will be the presence of the two stars.

Filmed live at La Scala in May 2006, the company can be seen in Natalia Makarova's well-known staging of Marius Petipa's "La Bayadère", among others danced by London's Royal Ballet (and also available on a TDK DVD, starring Altynai Asylmuratova, Irek Mukhamedov and Darcey Bussell). As in the Royal Ballet's version the traditional sets are by Pier Luigi Samaritani, the costumes by Yolanda Sonnabend.

The company of La Scala proves competent, if nothing more. The female corps de ballet does a commendable job in the Shades Act, but the absence of noteworthy demi-soloists constitutes a serious handicap, as does the generally fast conducting of David Coleman. Moreover, by...

Two dancers' show
Zakharova and Bolle are so handsome that they can get all attentions by just standing on the stage, not mention that they are great dancers. Unfortunately the rest of the cast does not match. I could have given 5 stars, but it is so obvious that the supporting roles and corps de ballet are technically not so good. Generally speaking La Scala Ballet is not first class ballet company, especially many of the female corps de ballet don't seem to have good physical conditions to be ballet dancers. Anyway Zakharova and Bolle save the show. This comment also applys to La Scala's Giselle and Swan Lake.

Simultaneously Superb and Deeply Flawed
Roberto Bolle rhymes with Black Hole in my book as he eats energy on stage, sapping the performances of others. Errol Flynn did the same to Bette Davis in The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex, if you need another example. That Svetlana overcomes him makes her an even greater ballerina. The company on display manages to be adequate, i.e. get on and offstage without breaking their legs. Whoever cast the role of Gamzatti must have been looking for Bolle's female counterpart. I've got the Swan Lake and Giselle and so can say that the above remarks apply to them. My overwhelming impression is that at La Scala, ballet is the Ugly Duckling which only occasionally shows signs of being a swan.

I bought all three to have records of Svetlana in them. She is best in Bayadere. I also recommend La Fille de Pharaon and not only for her performance. It's a humdinger of a ballet. Her dancing reminds me of La Divine Sylvie Guillem who was also pilloried for "head-banging", and...

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