Scheherezade

Saturday evening was my first ever viewing of the BRB Sleeping Beauty and I loved it: sets, costumes, tempi. It zipped along with style and brio, almost three hours with two helpfully short intervals of a mere 15 minutes each - ROH take note - flying by, and it was impossible not to go home on a sustained high. I liked the non-dancing depiction of the Lilac Fairy, which I felt added to her serenity and authority, particularly when pitched against the calculated frenzy of an irredeemably bitter Carabosse (an appreciative mention here for both Eilis Small and Daria Stanciulescu) and I felt that, by comparison with the RB version, this Sleeping Beauty delivered more pace, variety and cohesion to the whole. One such preference was the “Snowflakes” style sequence in which the corps provided rather lovely, and somewhat welcome, relief from Florimund’s otherwise endless trek through layer upon layer of overgrown forest in his ongoing quest to find Aurora. I also found him a rather more switched-on Florimund than those generally at large here in London: having caught sight of the somnolent Aurora he made a bee line straight for her and didn’t need to be told to give her that life-restoring kiss. Sticking with the production, I was quite happy to see the back of those poor women who, in the RB version, are almost executed for smuggling in their spindles: all a little alarming at Aurora’s 16th birthday celebration and not great PR for the king. Moving forward 100 years, I liked the colours, costumes and backdrop to the Act 2 hunting scene, beautifully reminiscent of those bucolic 18th century paintings, with an additional plus for the presence of the musicians, who brought an added vitality to the overall tableau. And so to the dancing, and I absolutely loved Yu Kurihara. Yes, there were a few wobbles in those fiendish balances, but they were all held, they were less noticeable in the second set, and in no way did they detract from a performance imbued with delicacy, vivacity and a joyfulness that characterised every step she took. Lachlan Monaghan was a considered and credible Florimund, three-dimensional in a role in which it is difficult to move beyond the cardboard cut-out of the Disney Prince. His partnering was exemplary, the connection between him and Yu Kurihara was palpable and the fish dives, in particular, were utterly spectacular. Last night was also the first time that I have seen Beatrice Parma, and whereas the performances of the other Prologue fairies and Act 3 character dancers varied in quality, Beatrice was a notable stand-out both as the Fairy of Temperament and the Enchanted Princess. Which wraps up pretty much everything apart from the audience behaviour which, from where I was sitting on the far left of the 2nd circle, was pretty good: no spilled drinks or unpleasant food odours; nobody humming along to the music; and no-one checking out their mobiles, nor smart watches flashing away every time their owner lifted their arm. There were a number of children, some very young, and all, as far as I could see, perfectly behaved, which perhaps gives added credence to the pace and clarity of this particular production. The only disturbance came when a woman who had slipped out of the 2nd circle just before the end of the first interval (I noticed the usher motioning to her watch as she went out) returned during the performance to stand in front of the protective mesh, blocking off half the stage for the people sitting near me. A woman to my left, having shrugged in disbelief and coughed loudly to no avail, was forced to shout “blocking”, which fortunately had the desired result as the offender turned around and moved back and to the side.

I watched it and loved it back in 2020. Very atmospheric iirc.

Yes, but I do feel that more nuanced performances from the main characters - and, given his prominence in the Scarlett SL, I count Benno as one of them - adds to the overall satisfaction factor.

Thank you for this, Sebastian, I am now looking forward to Saturday evening with added interest.

In a way, yes. Had he been part of the entertainment at the ball, his joyousness would have seemed more appropriate but he was portraying a character and the nuances that come with characterisation were missing. As I mentioned earlier, he is young, dramatic skills generally take time to acquire and his dancing was certainly impressive but currently of a one note quality, which was perhaps more evident than usual given that he was dancing alongside Matthew Ball.

I haven’t seen Yasmine and Matthew’s earlier performances so can’t give comparisons here’s what I thought of last night (theatre not cinema). First off, to negate the negatives, I didn’t find Yasmine chilly and nor was I underwhelmed by Matthew. Having seen Sarah Lamb the other night - someone I used to find chilly but didn’t on Saturday - they were very different. Sarah’s was an Odette whose vulnerability carried a discernible hope that the enchantment could be broken; Yasmine’s was a heavy-hearted Odette who seemed to know her fate from the start. Yasmine was, of course, technically sublime and beyond that, I did feel that her dancing conveyed the overarching sadness of her Odette. Yes, Matthew’s passion gave her a temporary respite, a glimmer of hope broke through, but deep down she always knew that it couldn’t last. So on to Matthew, whose performance, for me, had all the dramatic heft that we have come to expect from him, and apart from the slight slip that has been mentioned in earlier posts I couldn’t find anything to criticise technically either. A heartbreaking, totally convincing Siegfried, who made total sense of all the inbuilt negatives in that particular role. Staying with technique, I agree that Joonhyuk Jun made a spectacular impression as Benno but would add a caveat since I do feel that at present he lacks the skill to add characterisation to his virtuosity. Someone commented above that he is very joyful and indeed he is but that joyousness is where, for me, his Benno falls down. He is still young and his portrayal will obviously develop over time but at present it is too one dimensional to convince, particularly when pitched against Matthew’s dramatic skills. And again, a big shout out for the wonderful corps. And for the four cygnets. I did not find them heavy in any sense last night.

Ah, thanks for this.

You are obviously a glass half full person @MAB I thought was too but obviously not since my reaction tends more towards I’m not holding my breath than my fingers are crossed.

I have no musical background @Geoffbut I generally find dramatic Interpolations that have no connection to the music irritating in the extreme. I also find them patronising since they tend to imply that the audience lacks the imagination to join up the dots in the plot.

Did you have someone in particular in mind? ( … the chances of my ever watching him conduct again …)

Sorry, Alison, not sure who you mean. Did I miss something earlier?

I think that most of us probably choose not to comment rather than posting unequivocally negative views. Personally I have to really dislike something before sharing my negative impressions but I am very happy to read the less than positive views of others. As well as giving a balanced spectrum of opinion, it makes me feel less of a grinch when I do so.

I think that Reece Clarke answered this potentially thorny little matter rather effectively last night by visibly starting at Von Rothbart’s prostrate form draped over the rock, inducing him to check the area behind.

I totally agree with @bridiem and @Rachelm. Please let us have your true thoughts, @Buru.

It didn’t occur to me that the post in question might be referring to the weight of the cygnets. I automatically assumed that the poster felt that they were heavy on their feet.