SheilaC

The government's latest policy is no surprise, although deeply worrying. In general, their view of what education should be about has, for several years, been narrowly focused on skills hence their emphasis on STEM degrees, rather than broader, more humanistic, degrees which aim to teach students how to think and to learn how to learn. Skills learned on science maths and computing degrees are valuable but those specific skills can be out of date in a few months. The 'soft' skills learned in the arts can be valuable for life and transferable across many occupations. So far as degrees in dance, music, drama and other creative arts are concerned they may not typically produce a 'graduate' job or high earnings soon after graduation, but they develop the personal skills that are crucial to the economy. The government wants more enterprise but most STEM courses, with their narrow focus on technical skills and learning the right way to do things counteract, rather than are conducive to, enterprise since that requires creativity and the ability to spot unlikely connections. The creative arts degrees foster communication skills, the ability to work constructively ln a team yet also to work independently in a focused way. As a university careers adviser for many years I researched the destinations and opportunities for students, specialising in the arts and social sciences and, before retirement, contacted every university that taught degrees in dance for information on what their graduates had gone on to achieve over the years. True, few went on immediately to a high salary, but many had satisfying portfolio careers, combining a range of inter-related opportunities in the arts where they continued to develop their skills and contacts. This may be less possible in the current anti-arts climate. But the qualities and communication skills gained open up a lot of broader opportunities

I saw the company on both occasions that they performed in York. It's very moving to see them, given all that is happening in their home country, and worth going to see them as a means of supporting them. However, they didn't dance the full Les Sylphides in York, and while some of their dancers are quite good, neither the content of the programme or the standard of dancing will be as high as the ENB bill, which looks to be very good, musically, as well as boasting, in Theme and Variations, one of Balanchine's most glorious classical ballets; if only BRB would do it again as SWRB did, with the sublime Yoshida doing the best performance of it I've ever seen, despite seeing many companies across the world do it. I have booked for 3 performances of the ENB programme; if I hadn't seen the Kyiv company each time it danced in York I would have booked for one performance of them and two of ENB.

Today's Observer has a very interesting article,' 12 Culture Secretaries in 13 Years', which understandably wasn't selected by Jan for the Links as it's only indirectly relevant to ballet. But it's well worth a read (really sorry I'm not capable of providing the link). It shows how, since Chris Smith, very few Culture secretaries have had any interest in the arts as a whole. It claims that Nicky Morgan suggests that few audience members at the ROH are likely to be Tory voters- even in the ROH 'dress circle' (sic) when challenged. Most interestingly it is claimed the the Arts Council had already largely prepared its funding round when Nadine Dorries sent ACE a letter in February 2022 instructing them to make ' an annual reduction of £24M in the budget for NPO investment in London and the funds to be directed outside the capital .... akin to "lobbing a hand grenade" at a process that was then almost settled'. As Joan says, the arts sector contributes significantly to the economy so it is disappointing that arts cuts, very minor compared to the national budget as a whole, can become political footballs.

You don't have to be a subscriber but if you are you can book tickets for the entire season. Otherwise, for one-off bookings, the start dates for booking are : 30 May (Robbins) ; 20 June ( Kylian, Casse-Noisette) ; 19 September (Bejart, Sadeh 21) : 17 October (Ecole de dance, Fille, Don Q, Giselle) ; 21 November ( Ecole de dance performances, Swan lake, Barbe- Bleue )

How does one get news about the strike in Paris? I've just checked the website and can find no mention whatsoever. The performances I've booked are the final three in the season but, on past experience, I doubt if the strike will be over by then.

I'm afraid I don't agree that Apollo is old fashioned. The choreography, particularly for Terpsichore, looks much more contemporary, to me, than the choreography by Nunes and Bintley for the other two ballets, enjoyable though the dances for both those ballets are. And the quality of the music by Stravinsky is on a different level than that by Luke Howard and Simon Jeffes, although they are easy on the ear, even produce earwigs. Of the two casts, while Mathias Dingman gave a solid performance, Brandon Lawrence really seemed to understand what the role of Apollo is about, not just dancing superbly but charting the progress from unsure, even vulnerable, young Apollo to maturing into a god recognising his responsibilities. Celine Gittens, his Terpsichore, captured the Balanchine style better than any of the other female dancers, although in the second cast Yaoqian Shang and Miki Mizutani were close and the first cast, Lucy Waine and Amelia Thompson, were better in their second performance. But all the women smiled too much and their smiles seemed to be too focused on the audience- it is Apollo they are dancing for. The choreography, mounted by the redoubtable Patricia Neary, differed in quite a few respects from the production that the company danced for several years, mounted by Desmond Kelly, himself a great Apollo, no doubt the reason why Kelly was one of only two people allowed by Balanchine, and later the Trust, to stage Balanchine ballets. It is well known that Balanchine often adapted his ballets for different dancers and companies so Kelly and Neary must have learned different versions. The most famous difference, of course, is whether the ballet starts with the depiction of Apollo's birth and ends with him mounting the staircase, the original version, which BRB adopted. As others have said the programme was well balanced and while Apollo is quite spare, Interlinked had lots of dance to very catchy music, very enjoyable although with emotional undertones, and Still Life at the Penguin Cafe is varied, amusing, colourful with lively music, but ultimately with a serious message. I was disappointed that the company didn't do even more to celebrate Brandon at the end of his final performance for the company, although Caroline Miller did come on stage to present him with a bouquet and hug and there was a small flower throw. I knew Carlos Acosta was unlikely to come on stage, given he had Covid, but David Bintley or someone else could have made the gesture.

In an innovative double bill based on a theme of death and remembrance, Dane Hurst choreographed and directed both new ballets premiered in Leeds on Friday. It was an ambitious programme that included two dance companies ( Phoenix Dance, based in Leeds, and Jazzart Dance Theatre, based in Cape Town) and two opera companies (the choruses of Opera North and of Cape Town Opera) supported by the full orchestra of Opera North, conducted by Gerry Walker, their Music Director. Dane is the previous artistic director of Phoenix, now their Artistic Consultant and Guest Choreographer, and currently the artistic director of Jazzart Dance theatre, based in Cape Town. The two pieces were complementary in theme, yet contrasting in both music and dance style. Whilst both pieces explore grieving for the dead, Requiem, inspired by Mozart's final unfinished score, is shaped by religious influences from the Old and New Testaments and is full of sadness. The second piece, The After Tears, is more celebratory, after sections of mourning, and is shaped by the specially commissioned score by the South African composer, Neo Muyanga. Dane Hurst's choreography for Requiem is contemporary, initially focusing on the group of 8 dancers as a whole, later concentrating on the interactions of smaller groups and of individuals, which I found even more moving. Equally impressive, the opera chorus also contributes to the movement, swaying and making gestures in unison and being moved as groups later to frame the dancers' performance, so they are integrated into the work more fully than if they were only singing. In the second piece, After Tears, After a Requiem, the choreography is not exclusively standard contemporary dance, rather it is a fusion with South African dance, related to new ideas in the townships about renewal. Whilst much of the first piece is sombre much of the latter part of the second one is vibrant, the dance reflecting the lively music and bright costumes. The programme was ambitious, bringing together dance and opera companies from South Africa and Northern England. It was a total success and the response from the full audience was rapturous. The project is also another milestone in the history of Phoenix, ruptured last year despite a highly successful retrospective gala. All performances were cancelled and this is, I assume, the first performance for about a year. Only one of the eight dancers has been a dancer with Phoenix previously, as far as I can make out. Phoenix has had many lives since I first saw it in a community hall in Teesside over 40 years ago as a lively group of three dynamic young black men from inner city Leeds; as its name indicates, it has risen from the ashes many times. Let's hope that it survives in these difficult times. There are only a few performances between now and June 4 at the Leeds Grand Theatre. But the good news is that BBC4 will be showing a film of the programme later in the year.

I hope Romany will start dancing again soon with the Royal. But I'm wondering if she has been spending time with Dane Hurst. They were engaged but I've just watched a video of him on the Phoenix website and he was wearing a very thick wedding ring! Either way, I expect she'll be in Leeds on Friday for the premiere of 2 works by Dane, one for Phoenix (Requiem to Mozart's choral masterpiece, with the chorus of Opera North and its orchestra) and After Tears: After a Requiem, to music by South African composer Neo Muyanga for Jazzart Dance Theatre and Cape Town Opera. Dane is now director of Jazzart Theatre. The programme is inspired by the grief and loss experienced during Covid.

On Wednesday's Composer of the Week, (BBC R 3: May 17), about 18 minutes in, there is an interesting discussion of Sleeping Beauty. Monica Mason explains why the Rose Adagio is so terrifying for dancers and talks of how incredibly nervous Fonteyn was before performing Beauty in Russia. Matthew Bourne says he was unsure about doing a production based on SB for 20 years but visiting Tchaikovsky's home and seeing his small bedroom was what decided him to go ahead. Available on Sounds.

Tchaikovsky will be the Composer of the Week, Monday (15 May) to Friday, 12 noon for an hour, on Radio 3. On Monday Monica Mason and Matthew Bourne will be contributing to the discussion of Swan Lake. It will also be available on Sounds if you can't hear it live.

Madam was very impressed by Bintley and chose him to perform her ballets, notably Checkmate. The Rake's Progress was one of the very first English ballets (score, choreography, design- based on Hogarth's classic pictures) so should be kept in the rep for historical reasons- also it gave Fonteyn a major early role as the Betrayed Girl. I am not alone in thinking Bintley was at least as good a character dancer as choreographer, if not better. He was unsurpassed in Fille as the Widow and Alain. But once he stopped dancing he didn't like any reference to his career as a dancer. One of the times I interviewed him when he was director he gave me short shrift for referring to his dancing career.

The link that Amelia so kindly posted of excerpts of ballets recreated by Pierre Lacotte contains several clips of the very young Osipova dancing The Pharoah's Daughter.

I went to her performance of Juliet, it was a Saturday matinee, she was very good and really looked the part. Her experience as a dancer was deepened by having been a dancer in Ballet for All, the organisation run by Peter Brinson to show some of the classics to regional audiences in a sort of workshop mode of ballet plays giving insight into specific classics. In particular Maggie did Giselle and without doubt that experience contributed to her being one of the most moving Giselles of her era.

The package also claimed that they hope to present it worldwide. (Could that be why booking still hasn’t opened in Sunderland. The company has never replied to my request for a booking date.)

I don't think anyone has noticed that Frankie will be performing in the autumn, after all - in the Linbury with Alex, in Krsiten McKnally's The Limit (Oct 20-28). Hannah Rudd and Jacob Wye are the alternative cast.

So much so that NYCB wanted her to join them, although I'm not sure I agree with Fonty that she would have been one of Balanchine's muses, she had different qualities from most of them.

When the Royal Ballet first danced it they did so with such commitment that it seemed a total masterpiece, despite the unusual score (for a ballet), the brown sombre costumes, the (initially) seeming lack of emotional engagement. I do so wish they would do it again. Another ballet I'd really love to see again is Christopher Bruce's Ghost Dances, a section of the score was played this morning on R3 (as was a Scott Joplin piece that's in Elite Syncopations, which we are likely to see again). The Royal never did it and the latest incarnation of Rambert, (who created it) is not likely to choose to perform it again. Yet the spirit of the ballet is very much in tune with the times and the Sadler's Wells audience would love it..... as they did the environmentalist piece by Crystal Pite that NDT did last week (at the final performance Simon McBurney, of Complicite, who created the piece with Crystal, came on stage and addressed the audience to urge us to fight what he called ecocide; a political act that would be completely unthinkable at ROH!)

I have made the same calculation, Lizbie1. I would think the summer is more likely than late spring. I think the Company usually does its Saratoga season soon after the NY season ends in June so perhaps early July. ENB is scheduled at SWT 27 March to 6 April so that slot's out. I wonder if they'll bring the new ballet Tiler Peck is due to create given she was such a great favourite in her recent season at the Wells. Personally I'd rather have mostly Balanchine and Robbins, plus a Ratmansky and Peck (Justin).

NYCB has announced that they will be performing at Sadler's Wells next season. The dates have not yet been announced. Great news!

Eagling said exactly that to a critic friend of mine, at the time. And I think that MacMillan suggested Bussell performed for a year at SWRB to gain stage experience before he moved her to the RB in order to create a ballet on her.

There were a few seats available at Edinburgh performances when I checked last night before posting, Alison. The R3 In Tune discussion (well worth catching up on BBC Sounds- a very interesting interview with the composer and some attractive excerpts from the score) only referred to Glasgow being sold out. I'm sure I'd agree with you about Coppelia, I didn't even bother travelling to London to see it as I could tell that it wouldn't be the sort of ballet I like. I don't particularly like their Swan Lake, either, although I like some of David Dawson's other ballets, and others on the forum love it.

I went to the final performance in Edinburgh of Annabelle Lopez Ochoa's two act ballet based on the famous play by Tennessee Williams. First created 11 years ago, to great success, it has not been performed for eight years. The only disappointment was when I arrived at the theatre early and discovered that no programmes were available. Theatre staff said that the company had run out of programmes- even though the company is taking it to five further venues! However, the ballet is a masterpiece. It tells the story clearly and sympathetically, avoiding the many possible pitfalls of the violent and disturbing plot; none of the sex and sadism depicted is gratuitous, and apparently there was an intimacy adviser to enable the dancers to feel comfortable despite the brutality they have to enact at times. Director Nancy Meckler keeps the action fast and flowing, it never flags. The music, composed by Peter Salem (who also composed Scottish Ballet's The Crucible and ENB's Broken Wings- not to mention Call the Midwife tunes!) is lively, varied, at times jagged and menacing, often jazz infused and provides an excellent underpinning for the choreography. The scenery is versatile, costing a tiny fraction of the new Cinderella's, yet even more appropriate to the action. Lopez Ochoa's choreography is varied, depicting the emotional journey of Blanche as she searches for love and redemption and the differing sexual encounters she initiates and her close relationship with her sister Stella. There is light relief with lindy jives and other moves for the corps. There are several casts, including one with Ryoichi Hirano, who will dance two performances in Edinburgh (May3, 5). I saw Roseanna Leney as Blanche, her first major role, but you would not believed that, she seemed almost as good as Vivien Leigh in the film or Gillian Anderson in the play, her movements, including her fluttering hands, conveying her emotional state.. Her sister Stella was danced by Constance Devernay-Laurence, a very experienced and charismatic dancer, who was very good in Mayerling, and her affection for Blanche yet the difference between the two sisters highlighted the eventual tragedy. Evan Loudon was the sexy, savage husband Stanley. The choreography revealed the personalities and weaknesses of each and the technical and interpretive skills of the dancers produced a compelling evening. If only the ballet could be seen widely in England. But the production shows how strong and versatile the company is, fielding several casts for an intensely dramatic work, as it also did recently for their version of Mayerling (which I prefer to the full Royal Ballet production because it is more focused), their modern take on Coppelia and the various productions of ballet classics.

I'm afraid the Royal dancers tend to dance Balanchine on the slow side. I agree with Alison, one interval doesn't make sense. If there really is only one interval then it needs to be after Emeralds, it's the most substantial of the three ballets. But each ballet is so distinctly different from each other that running Diamonds after Rubies is too big a contrast.

Having heard the music again on Radio 3 at lunchtime I would love to see Van Manen's Four Schumann Pieces again. It's most unlikely that the Royal still has any rights to it, and absolutely certain that we wouldn't see Dowell in it again (one of his best ballets as a dancer) or the divine Jenny Penney..... but the current batch of dancers would be very good. Other than that any of the following would be more than acceptable : Fille, The Dream, Symphonic Variations, Scenes de Ballet, Month in the Country, Monotones, Les Rendezvous: In the Night, Dances at a Gathering, Afternoon of a Faun: Symphony, Diversions, Concerto, Gloria, Song of the Earth; Symphony in C, Apollo, Serenade, Ballet Imperial, Night Shadow, Four Temperaments, Violin Concerto, Theme and Variations, Symphony in 3 Movements; The Firebird, Les Sylphides; Checkmate; Dark Elegies, Jardin aux Lilas, Pillar of Fire _ very few would even be considered! plus Onegin, Giselle, Bayadere

But after that false ending Alain breaks into the room to rescue the love of his life, his red umbrella. An ending that proves conclusively, to me at least, how important Alain (and the dancer who created the role, Alexander Grant) was to Ashton; and that the caricature of a comic idiot that people rightly object to, is a gross misreading of Ashton’s ballet.