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Geoff

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Everything posted by Geoff

  1. Geoff
    Try writing to the DG, as above, to press the point!
  2. Geoff
    I suggest that everyone who has posted enthusiastically here writes to the current Director General of the BBC, Tim Davie, and stresses the value of BBC4 showing these series: tim.davie@bbc.co.uk His office is used to being lobbied and past history shows that if enough people write on a specific issue, it can have a positive impact on decisions. It is after all "our" BBC.
  3. Geoff
    I would like to add a post in honour of the wonderful conductor, Gavin Sutherland. Given his considerable ballet experience I made the silly mistake of assuming he was conducting all the shows in this run (no doubt far too gruelling a task). So I was puzzled when yesterday”s matinee, otherwise most enjoyable, didn’t feel quite right. Then at the curtain calls, a different conductor to the one I was expecting walked out. All clear. Let me say, the other conductor was, well, fine, ok. But when I went back to the show today, conducted by Gavin Sutherland, with yesterday afternoon still in my head, from the very first bar the music was more focussed, intense, thrilling and generally dramatic. So a big shout out to Gavin Sutherland, and long may he be invited to conduct this and other ballets.
  4. Geoff
    Um, I think I covered that when I wrote “People on the Forum have occasionally mentioned the Shen Yun show”. My point is, given how ubiquitous this show is and what turns out to be behind it, it deserved a thread of its own so that people could add up to date thoughts. Hope that’s ok.
  5. Geoff
    People on the Forum have occasionally mentioned the Shen Yun show, widely advertised at the moment on the London underground and, of course, by leafleteers at the end of Giselle. Curious, I just looked them up and admit to being shocked by what I found: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shen_Yun
  6. Geoff
    Seeing it on Tuesday. The talk among my friends is (a) orchestra wins the night (b) singers get honourable mention but no more (c) production pointless but not distractingly so. The choosiest friend is going back to see it again, so it can’t be terrible. I took a seat where I could hear really well but not see that much. If that helps.
  7. Geoff
    You win MAB! Sadly the YouTube extracts of Platt in the Hollywood film Tonight And Every Night stop before the Hitler section so one needs to find a copy of the whole movie to see this remarkable sequence in full.
  8. Geoff
    To change things around a little here’s a historical quiz question for the weekend. Which member of the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo went on to dance a number to a speech by Adolf Hitler?
  9. Geoff
    By the way, just noticed that the website boasts of a “new” Help section. The relevant part for this thread is here: I AM HAVING A PROBLEM WITH THE ROYAL OPERA HOUSE WEBSITE. CAN YOU HELP? We recommend trying the following actions: Try using a different browser (for example Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Safari) Try using a different device (for example, a desktop computer, tablet or mobile phone) Try using 'incognito mode' in Google Chrome On busy booking days we experience high traffic to the website and processes may take longer than usual. We recommend: Returning to the website later in the day Waiting a little longer for your email confirmation Waiting up to an hour before trying to access your tickets through your account.
  10. Geoff
    Yes and there are other offers flying around as well. 40% off top price seems to be what’s around at the moment. Perhaps everyone has seen the unappealing production and doesn’t want to see it again, particularly with a so so cast and conductor.
  11. Geoff
    Are my eyes deceiving me or does the ENB website now say Frola is dancing again, the matinee tomorrow Saturday?
  12. Geoff
    I’ve taken a ticket at £25
  13. Geoff
    If you scroll up MAB you will see that I asked a similar question. Apparently this statement came about as a result of “observation” (so a deduction? a guess?)
  14. Geoff
    That’s sad to hear. Can you say more?
  15. Geoff
    I hope they make something out of the apparent contradiction of tap (with its deep relationship to the ground) and Icarus (rather the opposite). Anyone seen this?
  16. Geoff
    ‘Twas ever thus. I have seen a Soviet cartoon from the early 1920s, showing the box office of the ballet - with a long queue for the window for classical work, and no one queuing for the alternative modern revolutionary offering.
  17. Geoff
    True story. This question came up at an Insight event and Monica Mason (a panellist) said that one reason is because the stage is now so much larger. I will leave others to judge the validity of this.
  18. Geoff
    Prejudicial? No one has been charged, so how can anything be prejudicial at this stage? The relevant IPSO guide sums things up nicely: >> There are also rules about what a newspaper (or any member of the public) can publish which might be in contempt of court. Once somebody has been arrested or civil proceedings have started, they are protected by law from the publication of information which might mean that their trial cannot take place fairly. The rules of this Forum are in part, as Sim said earlier, to manage these issues. But of course the Forum, as it has its own rules in addition to English law, can make more restrictive decisions if it deems this necessary. So yes, it’s right to be careful.
  19. Geoff
    My memory of seeing her dance Giselle twice in the 2017 run is that she was wonderful (in fact I discussed this with Tamara Rojo). But if you say she chose not to use "many" "unique" "elements" it would be most interesting to know more, can you remember some specific examples?
  20. Geoff
    There is a phone box (remember them?) opposite the Houses of Parliament, towards Whitehall, and I have often seen entire bus loads of tourists queuing up for the chance each to have their own individual selfie with phone box and Big Ben in the background. I now try and avoid that section of the square if I can, not because I don’t want to help (it is a well-organised activity, they don’t need help) but because it can be hard to get past.
  21. Geoff
    I agree LimMM and apologise for drifting from the topic. One Swan Lake issue is relevant: the extent to which this production is - or is not - evidence supporting what one hears occasionally, ie that KOH, for all his self-evident strengths, is less interested in / fearful of / feels himself not competent in making judgements in detail on choreography and new productions.
  22. Geoff
    Thank you. To repeat, I know the law of defamation. And also to repeat, I am not going to say any more.
  23. Geoff
    Apologies. But I am familiar both with the law of defamation and the rules of this Forum so wish to say no more on the subject.
  24. Geoff
    Those familiar with Liam Scarlett’s life might hazard an explanation - but this is not the place for such speculations.
  25. Geoff
    Indeed RobR. I made no comment on any past RB productions, just hope that one day someone will stage a production worthy of the new tremendous sets (which have gone a long way to distract from other things: the clumsy magic, the odd new narrative, the dull new ensembles, Benno’s deeply uninteresting - and distracting - “character development”, the faux pdd, Oh, I could go on, but …)
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