Elizabeth! OC arts patron honors exiled Russian ballet dancers in Segerstrom gala

Dance
“Reunited in Dance,” was a gala so glorious, so glamorous, so grand that it would normally take a village to produce. But perhaps you haven’t met Elizabeth Segerstrom. A Polish-born, Russian-speaking dynamo who holds a doctoral degree in psychology, she is an accomplished entrepreneur and published author. Elizabeth (everyone calls her that) threw a ballet ...

Jacopo Tisi nails grand jete in ‘Corsaire,’ part of ‘Reunited in Dance’ 1

Dance
That’s a grand jete that packs a wallop. Just sensational. Every element of the Italian-born danseur noble Jacopo Tisi‘s position is proper. His legs are equally rotated outward in his hip joints; his feet are fully stretched; the arcing curve in his spine that finishes at the top of his head is sublime; his arms ...

German ballet & film worlds connect in age of COVID

Dance · Film
Grand Pas de Deux from LE CORSAIRE: Iana Salenko, Daniil Simkin As we have said umpteen times — to the point of “We get it!” — doing the arts on line is not our first choice. We love going out, we miss it so much. Everyone does. But, wow, some creative things have been pouring ...

While in Moscow, California dreamin’: ABT’s Ivan Vasiliev

Dance
We very much enjoy seeing this photo of the divine Ivan …That would be Ivan Vasiliev, heading to Los Angeles for weekend performances with American Ballet Theatre. Here’s Ivan, caught by the camera pouring CALIFORNIA  wine at a recent Moscow dinner party. On his teeshirt: True Believer Los Angeles, California That is so righteous. We ...

Cruising “Corsaire”s

Dance
Preparing for four “Le Corsaire” (1856-restaged) performances by American Ballet Theatre next weekend at the Music Center. I’ve not seen anything beyond the warhorse pas de deux of this pirate-themed full-evening ballet. The PDD’s a beloved ballet chestnut, an old and familiar friend, bearing the slight tinge of mothballs. My only-middling enthusiasm for a full-length ...