UNITED KINGDOM SUMMER PEARLS: London's architectural gems along the banks of the Thames
MUSIC: Europe's best pop and rock gatherings
BAGPIPES: The plaintive sounds of Scotland
SUBMARIUM: Journey to the bottom of the sea FESTIVALS: Fun in the sun in West Belfast
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FRANCE and SWITZERLAND VULCANIA: Blow your top at France's volcano park
ART: Berthe Morisot, the unknown Impressionist
FESTIVALS: Aix-en-Provence has it all
ART: The Barbizon School painters come to life
ART: Take a stroll through medieval gardens of delight
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SPAIN, PORTUGAL, ITALY and GREECE SALAMANCA: The city splashes out on culture
MUSIC: God's rock stars: the singing Greek monks
FOOD: Italy's unusual culinary delights
FILM: Great outdoor viewing in Rome
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GERMANY and BENELUX HORTICULTURE: The world blossoms at Floriade
BRUGGE: Belgium's second city shines
ART: Berlin's homage to multiculturalism ART: The best of the world's artists on show at Documenta 11
DANCE: Czech twin ballerinos steal the show in Hamburg MORE ..
CENTRAL and EASTERN EUROPE ART: Yugoslavia's modern art museum is back
ART: A retrospective of Samizdat art and writing from the Communist bloc
GRAZ: Austria's little-known city of culture
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THE NORDIC REGION DESIGN: Denmark celebrates Arne Jacobsen
MUSEUM: Get a blast from the past at Stalin World
STOCKHOLM: Welcome to the Venice of the North
MUSIC: Pianist Leif Ove Andsnes on tour MORE ..
PLUS LISTINGS: Other things to see and do in each region
Spectators at the premiere of The Seagull — based on Chekhov's play — at the 28th annual Hamburg Ballet Days (June 16-30) might think they're afflicted by a bad case of double vision when they see the play's rival lovers, Triplev and Trigorin, on stage together. Yet the striking similarity has a simple explanation: the dancers are Czech twin brothers Jiri and Otto Bubenicek.
The resemblance between the gifted 27-year-olds is complemented by their ability to achieve a harmonious symmetry of motion. "We can feel each other move," Jiri explains. "When we're both on stage," Otto adds, "my brother can anticipate what I'll do the next second and I can do the same with him." Sometimes, Jiri says, "I think I'm looking into a mirror when I watch Otto."
For all the similarities, there are still subtle differences
between the way the brothers dance. Jiri, the twins agree after
the quick exchange of glances that invariably precedes every
response, is "faster, stronger and can jump higher," while Otto's
movements are more sinuous — "like a panther," jokes Jiri
and ducks his head in expectation of the playful slap his brother
is not slow to deliver. After completing their training at Prague's
Conservatory of Dance, the two "Bubis" — sons of a traveling
trick cyclist from Prague — joined choreographer John Neumeier's
renowned Hamburg Ballet ensemble in 1993, where they are now
the principals.
As actors, they have each developed their own idiosyncrasies.
Otto, the more sensitive, reserved and thoughtful of the pair,
often plays darker or more romantic parts, the later of which
he displayed with the prince in Sleeping Beauty. Jiri, who is
more extroverted and lively, is frequently assigned the role
of the macho womanizer or daredevil. During the Ballet Days
the brothers will also star in The Saga of King Arthur (June
17), Peer Gynt (June 23) and Nijinsky (June 28).
The twins, who have never been apart for any length of time
since their childhood, have no intention of going their separate
ways. "We will always stay together," declares Otto confidently,
with a sidelong glance at his nodding brother. "Happiness,"
Lord Byron once wrote, "was born a twin." For the Bubeniceks
— and those who watch them — that's doubly true.
