ROH Cinema Festival

[capybara]

This has been referred to on other threads but I thought it merited a separate discussion as it is an interesting initiative in its own right, especially in the context of 'open up'.

 

I was fortunate to see the live rely of The Nutcracker and, last night, a repeat of the Lamb/Muntagirov Manon which is to be issued as a DVD/BluRay. But there have been, and will be, other ballets (Osipova/Acosta in Giselle, Cuthbertson/Bonelli in Romeo and Juliet, Nunez/Muntagirov in Swan Lake etc) and operas.

 

The Linbury environment seems ideal for such screenings and it is a nice touch to have introductory interviews with dancers (last night Hirano rather than Lamb as advertised). Most of what is being shown has been out on DVD/BluRay for some time. However, the 'big screen' is a very different experience and what I value especially is the opportunity to watch a ballet that way at a bit of a distance from the live relay and the actual run of the production. One comes to it with a fresh eye in all sorts of ways.

 

It was again noticeable last night that there were many in the audience who were new to the ROH, new to the RB and new to Manon - tick.

Tickets were cheaper than in most cinemas - tick.

Screenings must surely be cost-effective for the ROH and easily mounted - tick.

What is shown is 'played straight': just an intro to the ROH, then straight into the performance, with only one short interval - tick.

 

There are some 'wrinkles' with The Linbury so I'm now turning to my e-mail to customer services.

 

But I count this Cinema Festival as a success for 'Open Up' and look forward to more such seasons.

 

 

[alison]

Well, I went to the Romeo & Juliet (2012! where has the time gone?!) showing this afternoon, and didn't spot anyone I recognised, whatever that may mean - unlike capybara, I wasn't able to work out whether people were new to any of it or not.  About 15 minutes' discussion between Kevin O'Hare and Kristen McNally (who played the Nurse), and a full 20-minute interval between Acts I and II.  A very good view, but given the size of the screen personally I'd have preferred to be less close to the front.

[capybara]

8 hours ago, alison said:

.  A very good view, but given the size of the screen personally I'd have preferred to be less close to the front.

 

Yes, it's not a good idea to be near the front. Even the seats higher up at the back are much, much nearer to the screen than in most cinemas.