Rooftops

A picture from “In Situ — dans les coulisses de l’Opéra de Paris” by Pierre-Élie de Pibrac, Éditions Clémentine de la Féronnière (Paris, 2014). Photo: Pierre-Élie de Pibrac/Agence Vu.

Metaphors of Confinement

• Anna Bandettini, L’appello di Alessandra Ferri: “Non fateci allenare attaccati ai lavandini” | The appeal of Alessandra Ferri: “Don’t let our bathroom’s sink be a dancer’s barre”, la Repubblica, May 14, 2020

The appeal of Alessandra Ferri: “Don’t let our bathroom’s sink be a dancer’s barre” The ballet étoile hopes that soon dancers will be allowed again to do their rehearsals in the dance halls, even though in compliance with the distance rules and all safety measures: “In order to study safely and competently, we do need parquet floors, barres and mirrors”. [Read more].

The black curtain at last is lifted, revealing a stage behind the bars. Artwork © pionpi.

Opera Game

Paris Opera ballet dancers perform outside Palais Garnier in protest against pension reform. Photo: Stephane de Sakutin/AFP.

Swans in Rehearsal

Ballet dancers in white tutus performed scenes from Swan Lake on the forecourt of the Paris Opera on Tuesday in a show of support for the French strike against the government’s pension reforms. “No swan can maintain a level of excellence until 64”, they protest. Photo: AFP.

Breathtaking

Svetlana Yuryevna Zakharova performs in Mauro Bigonzetti’s Come un Respiro (Like a Breath) at the Coliseum Theatre in London, England. Photo: Robbie Jack/Corbis/Getty Images.

Breathless

Ana Turazashvili, a soloist at the Bolshoi Ballet, performs her solo in Mauro Bigonzetti’s ballet Come un Respiro (Like a Breath) at the première of the new program Modanse by Svetlana Yuryevna Zakharova at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow, Russia. Photo: Eugene Odinokov/RIA Novosti.

Green and Purple

And then, while summer is passing, ballet dancers of 钦州 (Qīnzhōu) School are already rehearsing for next summertime, in 钦州 (Qīnzhōu), 广西壮族自治区 (Guǎngxī Zhuàng Autonomous Region), China. Photo: 張璦麟 (Zhāng Àilín)/新华社 (Xīnhuá News Agency)/Barcroft Media.