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Royal Ballet - Don Quixote - Spring 2019


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16 minutes ago, Rob S said:

Edmonds replaces Clarke as Fandango Man this evening, Gartside replaces Whitehead as Gamache.....and as the ROH is taking part in Earth Hour at 8.30 presumably candles replace the normal stage lighting for Act 2 

 

Take your torches with you - you might need them!

 

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22 minutes ago, Rob S said:

Edmonds replaces Clarke as Fandango Man this evening, Gartside replaces Whitehead as Gamache.....and as the ROH is taking part in Earth Hour at 8.30 presumably candles replace the normal stage lighting for Act 2 

 

I just saw that on Twitter & thought "How is that going to work?!" Though I guess it'll be at the time Act 2's on & that does take place at night!

 

I very much enjoyed my 2nd viewing of Don Q this afternoon. I know the production isn't universally popular but I like it. I thought Magri gave a really good Kitri debut & she & Campbell worked really well together. I find they both come over as very warm & likeable on stage (this is in general, not just today). The rest of the cast were very good but I can't go into more details now as I'm running out of battery & about to see Follies.

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A very enjoyable double helping of Don Q this weekend with many of the cast on stage twice, some in the same role, others swapping roles, and Nicol Edmunds also swapping roles half way through the matinee.

 

I thought the matinee took a little while to fizz.  I found Gary Avis not as sympathetic a Don as Christopher Saunders (opening night), in part because to me Gary Avis played him as too much of a duffer for my liking.  I think Christopher Saunders is much more the poetic dreamer.  Reece Clarke and Itziar Mendizabal seemed rather shaky to me in Act 1 and I do hope Reece Clarke quickly recovers from his injury.  I thought Mayara Magri a bit tentative in Act 1 and had been expecting a bit more of an explosion.  Very good to see Alex Campbell and Fumi Kaneko and Romany Pajdak were sparkling friends, Fumi exquisite.

 

Acts 2 and 3 settled and I very much enjoyed the opening pdd for Kitri and Basilio.  The Dryads scene was lovely, Claire Calvert’s Queen and Mayara Magri’s vision particularly.  I’m not as taken with Meghan Grace Hinkis as Amour.  Act 3 fizzed - Alexander Campbell’s comic timing excellent.

 

The evening was everything I had expected given the reports in the week, and more so with Laura Morera and Ryoichi Hirano both fabulous.  Fumi Kaneko a wonderful queen and Isabella Gasparini captivating as Amour.  I loved Kitri’s Friends - Anna-Rose O’Sullivan and Meghan Grace Hinkis.

 

But this performance will be remembered for Natalia Osipavo and Vadim Muntagirov.  Fabulous dancing and utterly intoxicating.  Not sure what happened to Kitri’s shawl at the start of Act 2 - perhaps no one was cold given the heat generated by such a performance.

 

I’ve very much enjoyed Don Q.  It’s good to leave the theatre with a smile after each performance.  I’ve been impressed with the narrative and I like the production.  It’s good to find Don Q and Sancho Panza so sympathetic and engaging, particularly the Christopher Saunders/David Yudes pairing.  And Don Q’s horse has almost as much character as Peregrine.

 

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I came out of last night’s Don Q feeling much as I did on Monday (with effectively the same cast) – thoroughly impressed by some exhilarating individual performances, but frustrated by the supporting framework within which those performances were presented.

 

For me, a major gripe about this production has been the bland musical arrangement - the vibrancy apparent in other productions has been weakened, unnecessarily making more difficult the tasks of the choreography and dancers. Having said that, the music did seem a bit livelier than on Monday – and asking others about it, they felt so too. That did not, however, redeem it – the music still seemed ponderous in places, still had unnecessary ornament (the bit at the start of Act 2, which I always associate with La Bayadere, had the occasional drum-roll thrown in), and I’m sure the melody of the slow part of the Act 3 PDD has been tinkered with. These may well be legitimate things to do when re-orchestrating, but for me they added nothing and ended up just being irritating.

 

Also irritating was all the on-stage shouting; OK, no doubt it is proper Spanish rather than ‘cod’, but it’s equally meaningless (I don’t speak Spanish, which is my problem, of course) and pointless either way. It’s an intrusive, distracting, tacky, ballet-inappropriate gimmick. How on earth can it be justified in the middle of the Act 3 PDD? The principals are on-stage, moving from one phase to the next, and the rest of the cast move as if to surround them, calling out. Quite frankly, I would rather have a mobile phone or two go off; not only would it be quieter, it would be accidental rather than deliberately planned!


As on Monday, the individual dancers shone. Osipova seemed somewhat more, though perhaps not fully, ‘at ease’ this time around, and once again provided moments of sheer dance joy. Her solo in Act 2 was a masterclass in balance, and her accelerating Act 3 fouettés were brought to a halt instantly, nonchalantly and seemingly effortlessly (where does all that rotational energy actually go? She must be breaking at least one law of physics!).

Muntagirov provided his customary massive leaps and dizzy spins, though a couple of turns were a bit off-axis (the two Act 1 lifts also seemed more precarious compared to the rock-steady holds on display on Monday).

I was mightily impressed on Monday by Kaneko as the Queen of the Dryads, and I was even more impressed last night. She flowed through her moves slowly and smoothly, full of confidence in herself and her character.

 

In fact, ‘confidence’ is probably the best word to sum up the attitudes and performances across the whole cast sheet last night. Here is a troupe with total (and fully justified) belief in their abilities, and I salute that confidence and the on-stage magic it engenders. But I’m still left with that nagging feeling that the whole would have been much greater than the sum of the individual parts if the dancers had been performing in a different production.
 

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I sympathise with some of Nogoat’s comments.  I’ve never been that keen on the on stage shouting and I do think a lighter touch for some of the music would be welcome.  I thought yesterday’s matinee was much heavier than the evening performance, particularly at the very opening.  But I’m also impressed with just how big a change in tempo is allowed - very fast for Natalia Osipova but would anyone else attempt such a speed?  Incidently has Martin Yates always conducted Don Q - I thought Tom Seligman might have conducted some performances last run?  I like to think that as I know there’s going to be on stage shouting, I can forget about it and not let it bother me but I’d still prefer it if it were reduced if not cut.  Is there a point when you think it’s all over for someone to start up again?  What I much preferred was the firm clapping on the beat, tambourine playing and table drumming.  And even with the on stage shouting, I’ve found Don Q a delight, very much lifting the spirits.

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4 hours ago, JohnS said:

I found Gary Avis not as sympathetic a Don as Christopher Saunders (opening night), in part because to me Gary Avis played him as too much of a duffer for my liking.  I think Christopher Saunders is much more the poetic dreamer.

 

I thought Saunders had an ideal combination of chivalry & mild dottiness. Avis was good yesterday but not quite as good. I preferred Avis as Lorenzo, in which role I thought he was excellent. Marriott's Lorenzo yesterday I didn't find nearly as detailed. For example, when Lorenzo enters at the top of the staircase in Act 3 Avis hung over the bannister out of breath, showing he was knackered from their long pursuit of Kitri, while Marriott just looked quickly over the bannister before walking downstairs.

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Yes, I can only echo what has been said by previous posts about the two performances yesterday. Both were really excellent and you wouldn't think it was Mayara Magri's debut. She ran on the stage full of confidence and seemed to be having a ball which is what you want from Kitri. Alex Campbell's partnering and soles were wonderful as always and he has a great cheeky persona and always times his 'death' perfectly which isn't easy to do. I think I too prefer Christopher Saunders/Philip Moseley Don/Sancho Panza. I thought Christopher in particular gave a very nuanced performance and is the only person I've seen who makes me believe in the Don as a credible character not just a stage eccentric - and yes the horse is very good and a lot less messy than the real thing.

But Vadim and Osipova in the evening were just sensational! I'm so glad this is the last Don Q I'll see in this run as I just want to remember it forever. My husband, Terry, came with me (he enjoys ballet but doesn't come as much as he used to) and he thought it fabulous too. I'm so glad he saw this performance. We both enjoy seeing Vadim and have seen him in two Pigeons and Winter Dreams and he never disappoints. An audible gasp ran round the auditorium both times he did his split cabriolets and the audience nearly raised the roof at the end of the performance. I've never heard so much noise and as Terry is noise sensitive he had to leave during the curtain calls (fortunately we were at the end of a row) Everyone was really good especially Fumi Kaneko as Queen of the dryads but the night really belonged to Osipova and Muntagirov for their very special performance. we are so lucky to have them (especially Vadim!) Roll on Romeo; can't wait!!

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11 minutes ago, Dawnstar said:

 

I thought Saunders had an ideal combination of chivalry & mild dottiness. Avis was good yesterday but not quite as good. I preferred Avis as Lorenzo, in which role I thought he was excellent. Marriott's Lorenzo yesterday I didn't find nearly as detailed.

 

Yep, I agree with all of this

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44 minutes ago, Dawnstar said:

Marriott's Lorenzo yesterday I didn't find nearly as detailed.

 

Yes.  Perhaps it was just down to my location, but in both the Muntagirov performances where he sneaks the moneybag from Lorenzo's pocket - and Lorenzo suddenly gets happy about the prospective marriage because he believes that Basilio does have money after all - I didn't pick up on Lorenzo's realisation that his money had been stolen as an explanation for the sudden change back of his attitude towards Basilio.

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I had a huge happy grin on my face for the duration of the matinee yesterday.

 

I thought Mayara Magri was a natural Kitri - she was effervescent and made the choreography look effortless.  It was hard to believe that it was her debut in role.  She and Alex Campbell had a great chemistry with lots of affectionate flirting going on.  They have both got big stage personalities and they really seemed to spark off each other.

 

I was loving Reece Clarke's Espada and was very sad when it was announced before the start of Act 3 that he had been injured and his place was taken by Nicol Edmonds, whose performance I also enjoyed.

 

The whole cast looked as though they were committed and having fun!

 

I'm already working out my dream casting for BRB next year but I think Carlos Acosta may have to do some tweaking as I can't see the set fitting on the Hippodrome stage!

 

It was good too to be able to say hello to so many Forum members.

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6 minutes ago, Jan McNulty said:

It was good too to be able to say hello to so many Forum members.

 

May I ask how people manage to find each other to meet up? Do you all know each other already? At West End shows I've managed to meet up with people I only knew previously online by finding out each other's seat numbers beforehand, but given the size & number of levels of the ROH I think that would be tricky there.

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1 hour ago, Dawnstar said:

 

May I ask how people manage to find each other to meet up? Do you all know each other already? At West End shows I've managed to meet up with people I only knew previously online by finding out each other's seat numbers beforehand, but given the size & number of levels of the ROH I think that would be tricky there.

A lot of us know each other already but next time you are at the House let us know in advance and we can arrange to meet up. 

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7 hours ago, Sim said:

A lot of us know each other already but next time you are at the House let us know in advance and we can arrange to meet up. 

 

Thank you. As I do most of my theatregoing alone it's nice when it's possible to meet up with others in an interval, especially as the ROH manages to put nearly an hour of them into most ballets!

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Speaking of fellow forum members, I spied someone sat in front/diagonally across from me looking at the forum on their tablet in the second interval on Saturday’s matinee! I nearly said hi but didn’t want to impose on their reading.

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I apologise in advance for feeding into more conjecture as we will never know but it is curious that Cuthbertson in St P, and Sambe and Naghdi in London, were all allowed to guest and Osipova was not, as these dancers all have performances this week at the RB, and clearly illness or injury can then impact scheduled performances. 

 

Wishing Cuthbertson well, and pleased Kaneko gets another shot at Kitri with a new partner. Will look forward to hearing reports of the performance. 

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13 minutes ago, alison said:

*Last* night?!  I was assuming it was an injury problem.

 

It's all here on BCF, Alison. Lauren danced Marguerite to Xander Parish's Armand so, fully fit or otherwise, her being able to dance Kitri tonight was always going to be a close call.

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16 hours ago, Jan McNulty said:

I had a huge happy grin on my face for the duration of the matinee yesterday.

 

I thought Mayara Magri was a natural Kitri - she was effervescent and made the choreography look effortless.  It was hard to believe that it was her debut in role.  She and Alex Campbell had a great chemistry with lots of affectionate flirting going on.  They have both got big stage personalities and they really seemed to spark off each other.

 

I was loving Reece Clarke's Espada and was very sad when it was announced before the start of Act 3 that he had been injured and his place was taken by Nicol Edmonds, whose performance I also enjoyed.

 

The whole cast looked as though they were committed and having fun!

 

I'm already working out my dream casting for BRB next year but I think Carlos Acosta may have to do some tweaking as I can't see the set fitting on the Hippodrome stage!

 

It was good too to be able to say hello to so many Forum members.

Agree entirely dear Jan with your summing up of a sizzling and exciting afternoon and wonderful debuts from Mayara and Alex.  Lovely to meet you ))) x

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A bit of a delayed report, but I was at the Osipova/Muntagirov performance on Saturday night (long journey home yesterday). I saw him with Nunez earlier in the run so the different performances made an interesting contrast. My mother-in-law wanted to see Vadim, but had been unable to come for his scheduled performances earlier in the run, so his extra performances with Osipova worked out well as she was able to attend this one (I managed to get hold of two fairly decent tickets!).

 

 I’m can’t say anything about Muntagirov, really, over and above what has already been said. Spectacularly beautiful dancing (more gasps from the audience!) and a very charming Basilio all round. It was interesting, though, to see the very different Kitris. Osipova’s Kitri was as expected - full on, dazzling, energetic and feisty. Nunez’s was also feisty and full of character, but in a gentler way, and beautifully danced (and the smile!).

 

I was glad to see Osipova in the role and it is clear why her Kitri is held in high regard. I enjoyed her performance hugely but on balance I felt that Nunez had the edge for me as I enjoyed her actual dancing more. A personal opinion and I’m sure others will disagree. Someone mentioned in an earlier post that Osipova’s shoulders appeared tight and I couldn’t help but agree - they were almost up near her ears at some points, especially when she jumped. It’s a shame as it spoils her line. Her fouettes were amazing, taken at breakneck speed (how does she do that??) and fantastically controlled to boot, but her arms are almost crossed in front of her chest and tucked right in when she does them, and although breathtakingly impressive, for myself I preferred Nunez’s slower but more aesthetically pleasing  fouettes.

 

The partnership of Osipova with Muntagirov is interesting and works on a surprising level. It might be good to see them in more together. Their portrayal felt like Kitri was the wayward firebrand, with Muntagirov’s Basilio almost as an adoring, but slightly steadying influence! With Nunez the partnership seemed more “equal.”

 

The rest of the main characters were almost the same casting as I saw before, but I have to say that Fumi Kaneko has now absolutely nailed that Queen of the Dryads solo - beautiful! Perfect control of that very difficult choreography. And having enjoyed Anna Rose O’Sullivan’s Amour before, it was lovely to see Isabella Gasparini’s performance this time - also excellent (please promote her, Mr O’Hare!).

 

I too prefer Gary Avis as Lorenzo, I agree that some of the detail was missing from Mariott’s portrayal and the miming wasn’t as clear.

 

I have to say that there was a row of Osipova fans in front of me, who cheered and clapped Osipova extravagantly in everything she did, but stubbornly refused to applaud ANY other dancer, Muntagirov included most of the time, although I think he had more or less won them over by the end and they gave him some rather grudging applause. I know that people have their favourites, and it is their choice to applaud or not, but to me it seems rude and incredibly narrow minded to think that only your favourite dancer can do anything well and worthy of applause. Ho hum.

 

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1 hour ago, capybara said:

 

It's all here on BCF, Alison. Lauren danced Marguerite to Xander Parish's Armand so, fully fit or otherwise, her being able to dance Kitri tonight was always going to be a close call.

Since Lauren also cancelled her Aurora in St Petersburg I suspect that she is nursing an injury that prevents her from performing long, strenuous ballets like Beauty or Don Q but can withstand the shorter, less technical Marguerite and Armand.

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I understood it was illness not injury that prevented her from dancing Aurora. And after all she did dance Juliet last week, which although not like Beauty or DQ is still quite demanding.

 

Either way, I think that undertaking to perform in St Petersburg on one night and in London the next is a) asking for trouble and b) indicates a worrying lack of understanding of the physical limitations that even these incredible dancers have. I'm not criticising anyone, just reflecting.

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