The Royal Ballet: Woolf Works, Winter 2017

[penelopesimpson]

Well, today's matinee certainly worked for me.  This is the second time I've seen it and I found a lot more to enjoy and think it is a fantastic piece.  However,  the third act could do with some fine tuning - it lacks any dramatic narrative or cohesion which means the ballet ends on a downer rather than the reflective mood which I think they are aiming at.

 

Act 1 belonged to Matthew Ball.  I was blown away by the expressive warmth of his movements, as were my neighbours.  I am not so sure about Hirano in this piece but perhaps it was just that Ball was so drop-dead fantastic.  Naghdi also absolutely in a class of her own.  This was evident even though I didn't realise it was her at first.  This is a difficulty with Woolf Works - it really is hard to sort out who is dancing.

 

Act 2 was Campbell's moment and indeed all the cast were fabulous.  However, I couldn't help remembering Osipova and Macrae in this piece who again were at another level.

 

All in all a fabulous afternoon with the exception of the ROH cloakroom arrangements which are now beyond parody.

[Jamesrhblack]

Have been musing on this afternoon.

 

Becoming doesn't work for me. It seems too unvaried and there's not enough differentiation of gender which I had taken to be the point of the novel (think Tiresias). There was some jaw droppingly impressive dancing, including from Campbell and Choe (the latter surprised me) but also Cowley (who I always love) and ?Edmonds? but monotony set in for me.

 

I now, I then is simply beautiful and could well work alone. I was pleased that I had done my homework and read Mrs Dalloway as the relationships between the characters became clearer. I'm not sure I'm a fan of Woolf's stream of consciousness style, but dance with its ability to superimpose generations physically before you suits it well and I thought the whole cast outstanding with special kudos for Matthew Ball, Yuhui Choe (there I go again, never take anyone for granted) and Calvin Richardson, but also Yasmine Naghdi, Mayara Magri, Ryoichi Hirano and Tomas Mock. Above all, how wonderful to see Mara Galeazzi back on the ROH stage. Still wondrously lissome, she has now an extraordinary quality of still intensity that I found mesmerising to watch.

 

Tuesday moved me very much. After the reading of the letter, I watched the initial pas de deux remembering Wayne McGregor saying that it was "an exchange of weight" and I was now able to see that as the balance within the marriage that Woolf describes so movingly. The desolation of Galeazzi's back as she sat and removed her shoes was heartbreaking and when the corps de ballet emerged it seemed to me that she was seeing within the inter relationship of "the waves" the support that she had experienced with her husband and in whose arms she now sort solace. As she became at one with them, moving with their rhythm, and the repeated musical figures (including a solo by one of my sopranos!) suggested the timelessness of dying and of a life slowly releasing, I found my eyes damp and the final laying down as peace was achieved for this brilliant but tortured woman will long live with me.

 

I don't think Woolf Works is flawless, but I will go to the cinema for a second proper experience (my first two years ago was marred by a bad seat, no programmes being available so I was essentially clueless, compounded by having forgotten my glasses) and, of course, to see Ferri, Watson et al, but its finest moments seem to me to show McGregor working in a way more sympathetic to music and situation than is always the case (it does concern me that he choreographs without music) and there are some hauntingly beautiful moments where music, choreography, design (and execution) come together remarkably compellingly.

Edited January 21, 2017 by Jamesrhblack

[penelopesimpson]

Have been musing on this afternoon.

 

Becoming doesn't work for me. It seems too unvaried and there's not enough differentiation of gender which I had taken to be the point of the novel (think Tiresias). There was some jaw droppingly impressive dancing, including from Campbell and Choe (the latter surprised me) but also Cowley (who I always love) and ?Edmonds? but monotony set in for me.

 

I now, I then is simply beautiful and could well work alone. I was pleased that I had done my homework and read Mrs Dalloway as the relationships between the characters became clearer. I'm not sure I'm a fan of Woolf's stream of consciousness style, but dance worth its ability to superimpose generations physically before you suits it well and I thought the whole cast outstanding with special kudos for Matthew Ball, Yuhui Choe (there I go again, never take anyone for granted) and Calvin Richardson, but also Yasmine Naghdi, Maynard Magri, Ryoichi Hirano and Tomas Mock. Above all, how wonderful to see Mara Galeazzi back on the ROH stage. Still wondrously lissome, she has now an extraordinary quality of still intensity that I found mesmerising to watch.

 

Tuesday moved me very much. After the reading of the letter, I watched the initial pas de deux remembering Wayne McGregor saying that it was "an exchange of weight" and I was now able to see that as the balance within the marriage that Woolf describes so movingly. The desolation of Galeazzi's back as she sat and removed her shoes was heartbreaking and when the corps de ballet emerged it seemed to me that she was seeing within the inter relationship of "the waves" the support that she had experienced with her husband and in whose arms she now sort solace. As she became at one with them, moving with their rhythm, and the repeated musical figures (including a solo by one of my sopranos!) suggested the timelessness of dying and of a life slowly releasing, I found my eyes damp and the final laying down as peace was achieved for this brilliant but tortured woman will long live with me.

 

I don't think Woolf Works is flawless, but I will go to the cinema for a second proper experience (my first two years ago was marred by a bad seat, no programmes being available so I was essentially clueless, compounded by having forgotten my glasses) and, of course, to see Ferri, Watson et al, but its finest moments seem to me to show McGregor working in a way more sympathetic to music and situation than is always the case (it does concern me that he choreographs without music) and there are some hauntingly beautiful moments where music, choreography, design (and execution) come remarkably compellingly together.

Oh dear, I wish I had been able to give such an insightful review.  I am afraid I just watched it for the dancing.  Yes, I am familiar with Woolf and think I understood some of the meaning, but I tried to see it just as visual art and enjoyed it so much although I stand by what I said about Act 3.  Yes, of course, it is wonderful if you can get an in-depth feel of what is going on, but most visitors probably won't want to devote so much study.  So, does it work without the knowlege - yes!

 

I am going again on Feb 8 to see the Watson cast so will take your wonderful post with me and look deeper.  Yes, forgot to mention Galeazzi and how good it was to see her again.  

[standingticket]

I am just back from this evening's performance, which was my first time to Woolf Works since I was on the other side of the world for the whole of its premiere run. 

 

I was completely blown away. I thought that 'I now, I then' was beautiful- the section with Watson, Dyer and Takada particularly so. I'm not sure I blinked I was so drawn in. I was not familiar with the story of Mrs Dalloway, but was able to follow the emotional narrative of the piece  and was quite gratified to surmise from the excerpts in the programme and from a little googling, that I was not far off. 

 

I appreciated 'Becomings', but more in the way that I generally experience McGregor, which tends to be more intrigue/wonder at the human body/slightly overwhelmed by how many people are doing different things on the stage! That said, I enjoyed the gradual morphing of all the dancers into eventually indeterminate figures. Osipova was outstanding in this though I have to say - and I thought that before I put my binoculars to my eyes and realised it was her.

 

As for 'Tuesday' well it left me in tears, and I can safely say that no McGregor work has ever had that effect on me before. I will definitely attribute some of that to Max Richter's incredible score, but the performance of Ferri together with the poignancy of the theme, and the clever construction of this number and the use of the corps (even if it wasn't actually corps dancers) were collectively just so beautiful.

 

What an evening. Incidentally, my relatively ballet naive friend also absolutely loved it

Edited January 21, 2017 by standingticket

[Jamesrhblack]

Oh dear, I wish I had been able to give such an insightful review. I am afraid I just watched it for the dancing. Yes, I am familiar with Woolf and think I understood some of the meaning, but I tried to see it just as visual art and enjoyed it so much although I stand by what I said about Act 3. Yes, of course, it is wonderful if you can get an in-depth feel of what is going on, but most visitors probably won't want to devote so much study. So, does it work without the knowlege - yes!

 

I am going again on Feb 8 to see the Watson cast so will take your wonderful post with me and look deeper. Yes, forgot to mention Galeazzi and how good it was to see her again.

 

Penelopesimpson, you're very kind. I doubt I'm "insightful" at all. I do like to read around things to try and fill in the gaps in my knowledge (the older I get the more I realise how little I know) and I really don't feel familiar with Woolf at all, or, indeed, McGregor... Edited January 21, 2017 by Jamesrhblack

[zxDaveM]

Cerys Matthews on the wireless just now, played a track from Woolf Works, and says that Max Richter's album (due out Friday) will be album of the week on 6Music. So lots more sections will get an airing over the course of next week on the various shows. Also gave a plug for the shows at ROH. I do so love 6Music!

[Vanartus]

Just pre-ordered the CD on ROH website. It comes out on Jan 27. Re last night's performance - stunning! First and last sections just as moving as I remembered, and I appreciated the central section far more this time for the brilliant romp it is. Standing ovation greatly deserved.

[Fiz]

I just tried to order "Frankenstein" and the web page wouldn't load. I am loath to order it from Amazon.

[Beryl H]

I saw both casts yesterday, I was so impressed with the whole matinee cast for the Mrs. Dalloway ballet,  Yuhui Choe as emotional as I've ever seen her in the short role of Septimus's wife, Yasmine Naghdi beautiful as the young Clarissa, and Matthew Ball and Calvin Richardson moving as Septimus and Evans. The evening performance of course added even more depth, Edward Watson is almost unbearable to watch as Evans, this is the best of the 3 ballets for me and a modern masterpiece I think, love the music, especially the final scene.

 

With repeated viewings of Orlando I was able to pick out favourite pdd and solo's but the lighting could be turned up a little, there's a lot of amazing choreography amongst the gloom.

 

No quite so keen on the final ballet, but the imagery of what I imagine is death by drowning is very powerful, shame the dancers have to all hang around until the end for the curtain calls!

[Jamesrhblack]

I saw both casts yesterday, I was so impressed with the whole matinee cast for the Mrs. Dalloway ballet, Yuhui Choe as emotional as I've ever seen her in the short role of Septimus's wife, Yasmine Naghdi beautiful as the young Clarissa, and Matthew Ball and Calvin Richardson moving as Septimus and Evans. The evening performance of course added even more depth, Edward Watson is almost unbearable to watch as Evans, this is the best of the 3 ballets for me and a modern masterpiece I think, love the music, especially the final scene.

 

With repeated viewings of Orlando I was able to pick out favourite pdd and solo's but the lighting could be turned up a little, there's a lot of amazing choreography amongst the gloom.

 

No quite so keen on the final ballet, but the imagery of what I imagine is death by drowning is very powerful, shame the dancers have to all hang around until the end for the curtain calls!

Yes, I was astonished at the matinee to see Choe so involved, that was a real first for me. Watson is Septimus though isn't he not Evans...

 

Of my party of four, two preferred I Now, I Then and two (one of whom was me) Tuesday. None of us was overly keen on Becomings...

Edited January 22, 2017 by Jamesrhblack

[Don Q Fan]

As a rule I'm not a McGregor fan. I've never read any Woolf.

Any point going to see this at the cinema?

[zxDaveM]

As a rule I'm not a McGregor fan. I've never read any Woolf.

Any point going to see this at the cinema?

 

You don't need to have read Woolf - Woolf is the spark that set the choreographic process into motion. I've not read Woolf either - so perhaps someone who has can say whether having done so, increases their involvement in the piece (or not)

The middle section is what you would normally think of as typical McGregor, the 1st and 3rd not (but with McGregor definitely in the mix). The music is largely hauntingly beautiful (especially in the 1st and 3rd sections).

If your local cinema not too expensive, you're really not losing much if you give it a whirl!  :-)

As Wayne himself says - go into it with an open mind and pull out of it what you enjoy.

[Mummykool]

As a rule I'm not a McGregor fan. I've never read any Woolf.

Any point going to see this at the cinema?

I'm not a massive fan either, especially so after sitting through that interminable McGregor triple bill before Christmas. I was worried that Multiverse had scarred me for life but I absolutely loved last night!

 

Before seeing Woolf Works last year I 'mugged up' on the three novels on which it is supposed to be based.Knowing an outline of the story for Mrs Dalloway helped (gleaned off the internet!), but I was still a bit confused as to who was who. However, it was very moving. As far as the other two pieces are concerned, I don't think my homework helped at all but we really enjoyed everything.

 

As Dave has just said, the music is (mostly) hauntingly beautiful and a lot of the choreography is far more fluid and balletic than the usual McGregor fare. Orlando is more his usual style - contortions, lots going on at once, laser lighting etc etc but we loved it. That is the piece that needs seeing more than once to figure where (and who) to watch, especially as they keep changing costume!

 

Sometimes I think these things are better without preconceived ideas as to what should happen. Perhaps there will be far more explanation for the cinema audience than was provided in last year's programme (which was very intellectual but totally uninformative!)

Personally I'd give it a go. 

[Vanartus]

Inept and hilarious! A surprising 4 stars just in from the Torygraph critic who persists in calling Wayne McGregor Wayne HEMINGWAY!!!

Edited January 22, 2017 by Vanartus

[Jamesrhblack]

As a rule I'm not a McGregor fan. I've never read any Woolf.

Any point going to see this at the cinema?

 

I found having read Mrs Dalloway useful. Beginnings didn't do much for me and I'd only done a wikipedia for Orlando as I find Woolf tough to read. Haven't read The Waves but found Tuesday absolutely heartbreakingly beautiful - from summaries of The Waves I think that there is much more Virginia Woolf life story than novel content in this one...

[Jamesrhblack]

Inept and hilarious! A surprising 4 stars just in from the Torygraph critic who persists in calling Wayne McGregor Wayne HEMINGWAY!!!

 

If you mean Jane Shilling's review in The Telegraph, it's concise but insightful and there's no mention of Hemingway. 

[Don Q Fan]

Thank you Dave, Mummycool and Jameshr black....I'll give it a go and go with an open mind. It may be that Darcey explains a bit too. Thank you!

[Vanartus]

"If you mean Jane Shilling's review in The Telegraph, it's concise but insightful and there's no mention of Hemingway. "

 

Well they changed in the last hour probably due to my and others contacting the Torygraph!

[alison]

What's Jane Shilling doing reviewing ballet in the Telegraph?

[penelopesimpson]

"If you mean Jane Shilling's review in The Telegraph, it's concise but insightful and there's no mention of Hemingway. "

 

Well they changed in the last hour probably due to my and others contacting the Torygraph!

Do you think we could dispense with calling it The Torygraph?  It is The Telegraph, just as The Guardian needs it proper name.  I'm not being po-faced - we all read different media and have a different take on our politics - but having the media lampooned on a non-political site I find offensive.

[penelopesimpson]

I think in many ways the best take on Woolf Works is to park the fact that it is from Wayne McGregor and enjoy it (or not) for what it is which is, IMHO, a stonkingly good ballet which I will happily see again and again.

 

As for Woolf, she is pretty impenetrable and the programme notes seem almost to have written to confuse people.  Last time around I found them laughably pompous and they haven't improved.  But - it is great theatre with some mesmerisingly moving moments and the score is incredible.

 

Go, enjoy.

[Vanartus]

Apologies.

[penelopesimpson]

Apologies.

No need.  Its just I hate the stereotyping of people who read either The Mail or The Telegraph or The Guardian.  Makes people ashamed of their choice as if it labels.  I spent years working in the media so still have the habit of reading a wide cross section and feel that they all have something to offer.

 

Thank-you for responding, anyway.  I meant no offence.

[Jamesrhblack]

What's Jane Shilling doing reviewing ballet in the Telegraph?

I guess being employed to review dance productions...

[Jamesrhblack]

Do you think we could dispense with calling it The Torygraph? It is The Telegraph, just as The Guardian needs it proper name. I'm not being po-faced - we all read different media and have a different take on our politics - but having the media lampooned on a non-political site I find offensive.

I'm not over fond of The Grauniad either...

Edited January 22, 2017 by Jamesrhblack

[Jamesrhblack]

The problem with the liberal left it seems to me (as somebody who is left-ish) but confused) is that they seem to assume that they have the moral high ground and are contemptuous of any view point that is not that their own, They call it Democracy, Seems closer to Tyranny to me, as any opposing viewpoint is aggresisvely rejected....

Edited January 22, 2017 by Jamesrhblack

[alison]

Let's not divert the thread into politics.  We have enough of that everywhere else at the moment

[zxDaveM]

I was at the dress rehearsal with Mara Galeazzi's cast - so here are some photos.


I Now, I Then: Yasmine Naghdi, Mayara Magri, Ryoichi Hirano, Mara Galeazzi, Tomas Mock
© Dave Morgan. Courtesy of DanceTabs / Flickr


Becomings: Olivia Cowley
© Dave Morgan. Courtesy of DanceTabs / Flickr


Tuesday: Mara Galeazzi, Ryoichi Hirano
© Dave Morgan. Courtesy of DanceTabs / Flickr

See more...
Set from DanceTabs: RB - Woolf Works (2017)
Courtesy of DanceTabs / Flickr

By kind permission of the Royal Opera House

[Scheherezade]

A heavy ballet weekend for me: Woolf Works on Saturday (evening), Giselle on Sunday, of which more elsewhere.

 

I'll try to keep Woolf Works brief. I wondered whether it would stand a second viewing. Answer: absolutely yes!

 

I came with four WW virgins ranging in age from 25-70, one of whom was a big Wayne McGregor fan, one most definitely wasn't and the other two fell somewhere in the middle. All four agreed with me.

 

For myself, I was particularly pleased that the Mrs Dalloway piece, atypical McGregor, continued to impress. Why hasn't he done more works like this? Oh, and Francesca Hayward was lovely, as always.

 

I wasn't surprised that the Orlando piece still worked for me as I generally enjoy his big, colourful works the most. Not surprised, either, at the audience reaction as this is a piece that connects. And it reminded me how fabulous Osipova and McRae are together. Why, oh why, isn't there a repetition of their awesome Rubies casting in the next run of Jewels?

 

And although the third piece lacked the immediate impact of the other two, this felt both appropriate and deliberate and, as a result, it wrapped up the triptych in a moving and meaningful way.

[Beryl H]

Nice picture in today's Times of Yuhui Choe and Matthew Ball in "Mrs Dalloway", I really did like that matinee cast.

[aileen]

I'm going to see this next month. I'm pleased to hear that it stands up to a second run. One of its strengths is that the three pieces are so different in mood and staging.

[zxDaveM]

As I am listening to Cerys interviewing Max Richter and playing lots of snippets from Woolf Works on the wireless, lo and behold my CD of Three Worlds arrived. Nice!

[SPD444]

As I am listening to Cerys interviewing Max Richter and playing lots of snippets from Woolf Works on the wireless, lo and behold my CD of Three Worlds arrived. Nice!

 

Hey Dave, what's a wireless?