Word: bejart
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...Guillem. Before a performance she suffers from le trac, or stage fright: ''No more legs. I go limp, and panic inside.'' It does not show. She commands a wide repertory, including the obligatory Swan Lake, but what shows her off best is a rather outrageous theater piece by Maurice Bejart. In Arepo, Guillem performs five roles, with suitable costume changes, that display her personal range as well as the gamut of ballet's dramatic postures. She does the classic ballerina turn, the rehearsal-costume pas de deux, the androgynous duet, the music-hall floozy and, best of all, the woman...
...What does a retired ballerina do for an encore? Suzanne Farrell, whose cool lyricism and blazing virtuosity redefined American ballet in the 1960s and '70s, has put together a troupe of 16 young dancers to perform her stagings of works by Jerome Robbins, Maurice Bejart and her mentor, George Balanchine. The repertory includes Meditation, which Balanchine made for Farrell, then 18, in 1963. Until now, no other woman has ever appeared in Meditation. "Dancers have asked to do it in the past," she explains, "and I always said no. But then I suddenly thought, What am I saving...
Versace drew from varied universes in his acquaintances too. His undepletable pool of celebrity friends included everyone from choreographer Maurice Bejart to Princess Diana (with whom he spoke once a week), from Madonna to Lisa Marie Presley. A number of years ago he happily accepted a lunch invitation from Mike Tyson, a longtime Versace fan. At his dinner parties he often liked to have fun with seating arrangements, once placing Harper's Bazaar editor Liz Tilberis next to a Milanese soccer goalie...
Nureyev danced everywhere in a huge variety of roles, from the full-length classics to modern works by Martha Graham, Paul Taylor and Maurice Bejart, among many others. During the '70s his plasticity began to decline, robbing his performances of their wonderful flow. By the '80s the problem had become severe, but despite the advice of friends and critics he would not quit. He was not, however, just a nomad. In 1983 he became artistic director of the Paris Opera Ballet for six colorful years. Again his temperament made headlines, but Nureyev gave the company a professionalism it had virtually...
Eight years later, at the invitation of Gerard Mortier, director of the Theatre Royal de la Monnaie in Brussels, the young American replaced Maurice Bejart as resident choreographer for Belgium's national opera house. The deal included doubling the size of the company to 24, spacious rehearsal studios, production budgets of up to $1 million for new works, and most important, the opportunity to work with live musicians. The Belgian capital's reputation for good food and great beer didn't hurt either...