New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1910-10-16
|OX THE RUSSIAN DANCERS
Pantomimic Ballots at the Opera
House.

Russian opera and ballet at the Chatelet
Theatre, in Paris, which set gray boards
and brown a-wagging and prompted the
management Of our Metropolitan Opera
House to try the experiment Of diversity
ing the lyric drama. which Is the staple
OF that Institutions productions, with ex-
hibitons OF dancing At once there was
such a terpsichorian eruption as seemed TO
indicate that the people OF America had
been seized with as veritabIe a dancing
mania as that which ragged on the CONT
nent of Europe centuries ago as n sequei
of the Black Death Miss Duncan came
and Mile. Sachetto: Miss Fuller returned 10
US with her flying skirts and light effects,
and at last Mile Pavlowa and NJ. MoTdlKtn
brought hithsr faint reflection Of the
glories that had illunlined the Chatelet-
To many It seemed as II the old art.
which had long been moribund, was on the
point Of being revived and that IN natural
sequence the Russian imperial ballet, which
had created a f1utter in Paris, where stage
darcing had fallen into decay but was not
quite dead, would this year be an integral
element Of our opera. That contamination.
however is YET only 70 be devoutly wished.
We shall not see even the fine contingent
which regaled Paris in the summer Of feos,
but when the time is ripe the patrons or
cur opera are TO be permitted TO enjoy the
pleasures Of which there was a foretaste
at the Metropolitan Opera House yesterday
afternoon. The purveyors Of this pleasure
Oct the line be painstakingly quoted from
the house bib are Mile. Anna Pavlowa
and Mons. Mikail Mordkin, with Imperial
Russian Ballet and Orchestra
This means that a score Of dancers have
been gathered around the two artists VINO
won their way 70 such great favor last
season, and with this organization they
are to set out upon tour Of the country
The dancers had a magnificent greeting.
The great theatre was crowded, and there
was prompt and generous applause for
nearly every feature of the entertainment
though real enthusia SIN was inspired only
by those features in the dancing of Mile
Pavlowa and her companion which had
seized upon the taste and fancy Of the
public last season. It was an unstaled de-
light to observe again the wonderful art
with which the pair have seemingly set the
laws OF gravity ar naught-a delight so
keen as scarcely 70 permit Of the reflection
which came when either was alone on the
stage. that In some features Of the tech
nique Of their art they were far from i'm
peccable. 4 further revelation Of skill was
found only in the stimulation Of frenzied joy
which Nile. Pavlowa gave in the baccha-
naIan dance which ended the second part
Of the programme.
This second part was Of a miscellaneous
character, and its touches of nationalisIn,
Hungarian, Polish and classical Greek,
raised its charm far above the two pSnto-
mimic ballots which opened and closed the
a
tinctiveIy Russian except some of the
music which was so poorly performed ny
the orchestra as to suggest both lack OF
preparation and incapacity on the part OF
the performers True. there was a Russian
dance on the programme, but in its place
the corps de ballet danced a Polish ma
zurka. and danced It with little effect II
made one long to see again the Bohemian
dances OF The Battered Bride, with their
dash and spontaneity. The ballet entitled
"Giselle." for which Adolphe Adam wrote
much graceful and expressive music some
seventy years ago, was danced first Al
its foundation lies the story which
served Puccini for his first OPERA LIZ
Will" which was brought forward al
the Metropolitan two years ago-a weirt
and pathetic tale Of the ghostly maiden:
W no. dying between betrothal and marriage
seize upon young men and dance them &c
death-lIke the white ladies Of Norman
folklore When the subject was presented
in opera # seemed as il made for IL ballet
but when it was danced yesterday II
seemed like an opera that cried for articu
late speech, so persistent were the lyrfca
forms. There was pathos in Mile. Pavlo-
was acting, but the spectacle of nader
showing her madness with her legs WA
even more 1udicTous than mad Lucia with
her emulations of the trilling flute. An orr
entail ballet constructed by VI. M0rdlSin
with pasticcio of music by Russian com
posers. ended the show. H e. x