Margot Channing

Strike a Pose

Serge Lifar, giving good face.

"Someday, Swan...

...a shrieking Icelandic banshee will claim our look for her own!"

ANNA PAVLOVA
February 12, 1881 - January 23, 1931

Separated at Birth?

1960's dancer/songstress Mara Lynn Brown

(THANKS!)

Former ballet dancer/First Son Ron Reagan

The gamine-like quality, the aqualine nose, the gangly limbs - spooky!

Anna Pavlova

(THANKS)
We should like to portray her in a film, if only for the costume changes.

Is it True What They Say...

...about the size of a man's hands?

Dancer Boris Kochno by dear old Cecil Beaton; we'll have to ask Sergei Diaghilev and Cole Porter for confirmation about the hands business.

Speaking of Celebrity Dreams...

...last night, I had a dream about American Ballet Theatre's resident sex god, Jose Manuel Carreno.

My dream also involved, at various times, a poached egg, sandstorms, a banquet hall, a mangled Porsche convertible a la James Dean, my father, laboratory beakers, and a really nasty Dina Lohan lookalike.

Fortunately, such is the beauty and splendor that is Jose Manuel Carreno, he overrides such horrors and I still look back at my dream with fondness.

Swanee, How I Love Ya

Believe it or not, I actually do enjoy cultural stimulation beyond that of Jane Powell movies and obscure disco singles. I do attend the ballet and opera, and like that lady who wasn't really a tramp, stay wide awake.

Last night, I attended an ABT performance of Swan Lake for the fourth or fifth time. To be honest, I'm not a big fan of the work itself; the acts go on forever, and in the wrong hands, the swan imagery can be ridiculously trite, even laughable.

That having been said, the high points are gorgeous, and when danced by the absolutely untouchable Nina Ananiashvili, transcendent. You simply have to see her to appreciate Nina's genius; I can't even begin to describe her signature "arm ripple." Anyway, Nina was divine, as usual; her Prince was played by Angel Corella, who is not my favorite male principal. I have to admit, though, that his youthful, show-offy style actually suits this part quite well. Angel seemed to be working overtime to keep up with Nina's brilliance, executing some derring-do-style spins and jumps at dizzying speeds (but then ending up with several wobbly landings).

The best part of the evening, however, may have been Nina's curtain calls. I've never seen anything like it; she poses, she gestures, she basks in the adoration. They literally pelt her with roses, for God's sake! She took six curtain calls, then finally called it a night.

For those who give a fig: I wore a lovely tan 2 button suit, a jade green and navy striped shirt, a navy tie with small tan motifs, a navy and burgundy foulard hankerchief, and to-die-for caramel benchmades. Also, for those in the neighborhood on a Monday evening: Cafe Luxembourg's Monday night lamb special has been revamped for spring with a yummy yogurt dill sauce and polenta squares, and pairs beautifully with their new mushroom salad as an appetizer.

Just so's ya know.