Independent 6638 / Phi Where was Les SylPHIdes?
Posted by tilsit on January 25th, 2008
Pirouetting into sight today is Phi with a puzzle containing some well-known (and not so well-known) ballets.
Solving time: 20 Minutes, (plus a couple of Google checks for titles).
Very enjoyable with the usual mix of fine clues. One tiny query about 3 down.
ACROSS (*) = ANAGRAM, (R) = REVERSAL (CD) = CRYPTIC DEF
1 BIG APPLE GAP + P inside BILE
5 BALLET ALL inside BET
10 CHECKMATE CHECK = stop MATE = China (plate) - Cockney rhyming slang for mate. Checkmate was a one-act ballet by Ninettte de Valois
12 ABDOMEN AB’s (sailor) + DOME (rounded shape) + N (note)
14 SWAN LAKE WAS* + L inside NAKE(D). The most famous of all ballet.
19 ACRID AC + RID(E)
21 COPPELIA COPPE(R) + ail (R) My personal favourite ballet by Delibes.
24 MARTINI MAR + TIN + I _ A new one on me. I wasn’t aware that a Martini is a type of rifle.
27 NUDGE (EG + DUN) (R)
28 FANCY FREE FANCY! = Well I never! + R in FEE This was a ballet by Jerome Robins, with a score from a young Leonard Bernstein.
29 AROUND A round of golf = 18 holes
30 LES NOCES ENCLOSES* A ballet from Nijinska with music from Stravinsky.
DOWN
1 BUCHAN German word for Book = BUCH + A + N -John Buchan wrote amongst other thrillers The 39 Steps.
2 GLENDOWER END in GLOWER - Owen, the Welsh hero of that ilk.
3 POKEMON Was this a computer game? PACMAN Yes. POKEMON was a dreary Japanese TV cartoon, plus collection of trading cards. POKE + NO M (R).
4 LEARN A lovely clue - LEAN with R (one-third of the basics - The Three R’s) inside.
6 AUGMENT AUG + T (”Summer time” with MEN inside.
7 LEEDS (B)LEEDS
8 TINTAGEL TINT + AGE + L
9 SELF-HELP Another clue I liked. FLESH* + L inside E P.
15 AYCLIFFE FIFE CLAY*
17 BRIC-A-BRAC BBC AIRCAR*
18 RAYMONDA R A DYNAMO* Silly me! I looked at the anagram and thought NORMANDY, which of course it isn’t. It’s a less well-known ballet by Glazunov and Petipa.
20 DRIVE IN I’VE inside DRIN(K)
25 RODEO RODE + O Aaron Copland’s splendid work with some memorable music.
January 25th, 2008 at 8:04 pm
My knowledge of ballet is v limited, but thanks to Phi for clueing them in a friendly manner. At the end, I was left with three which meant nothing so I keyed my guesses for them from the wordplay and ‘ballet’ into Google and all was confirmed.
One thing I do not understand (maybe I’m out of touch with something everyone else knows) what’s nudge (v clear from the wordplay) got to do with a fruit machine?
Bullet proof clueing as always from Phi.
January 25th, 2008 at 8:14 pm
If you play a fruit machine it sometimes offers you a “Nudge” feature, to drop reels to possibly produce a win.
January 25th, 2008 at 8:14 pm
A ‘nudge’ is something you can do on a fruit machine to move one of the scrolling fruity things by one item, to change a cherry to a strawberry (say) and thereby try to make a line or increase your chance of doing so. Or something. I’m afraid I’m no expert, having lost all interest in fruit machines as soon as I was old enough to play on them.
January 25th, 2008 at 8:58 pm
Thank you both - you might think from my comment that I never played them, but I did, and left my money in them.
January 25th, 2008 at 9:03 pm
I finished this one, but there were a couple of clues I didn’t quite follow. I didn’t entirely follow 26 dn - “Drunken affair, note in Estonia’s capital ?”. Obviously, the answer is binge (=drunken affair), so it’s looks as if we’ve then got b (note) + in + E. But where does the g come from ? Or have I misinterpreted it ?
I didn’t follow 23 down either. Clue is “Take surplus though not by holiday period”. I think the answer is “recess” (holiday period). So, presumably r (take) + excess. So does “x” = “by” ?
January 25th, 2008 at 9:06 pm
X = times (by) multiplication Note (n) in Big E
January 25th, 2008 at 9:38 pm
3d - Pokemon is indeed a computer game. Pokemon Diamond and Pearl are the latest incarnations for the Nintendo DS system.
January 25th, 2008 at 11:57 pm
Some of us are still stuck on Level 6 of Chukie Egg on our BBC Micros!
January 26th, 2008 at 10:17 am
Good stuff - knew the ballets except Raymonda, but hadn’t spotted the outrageous ‘Big E’ in BINGE.
January 26th, 2008 at 7:05 pm
Just to answer Dave’s titular query: the ballets are all specifically composed for the stage, Les Sylphides is a choreographed selection of pre-existing music. If I go the ballet, it is generally for the music, so I approach it from the composer’s side. This happily keeps me away from anything by Minkus.
If Eimi’s keeping to my submitted order, you’ll have even more fun next week…