MAB

Something I should have mentioned sooner: Muntagirov will dance Swan Lake (4th, 5th & 9th) and La Bayadere (7th & 8th) in Paris next month with St Petersburg Ballet Theatre so clearly Mr O'Hare has no objections to his new recruit honouring his current engagements. The theory that he was told by ENB to "clear his desk and leave the building" is looking the more likely scenario.

In that case he will become like a number of other international stars whose fan base will seek him out whatever the location.

Strange comparison: Muntagirov already has a massive fan base in London so there is no need whatsoever to build recognition, whereas Golding was an unknown name to 99% of the audience. Slightly off topic: I have yet to see Mr Golding but two long term ballet fans whose judgements I trust weren't impressed by him at all and are already hoping his tenure will be a short one.

As has been mentioned before Muntagirov may well have been prepared to honour his committments, but may have been prevented from doing so. Too many assumptions about this business.

If you think that Ismene Brown gives the RB a hard time, you should read what she writes about the Bolshoi! I sometimes think the only qualification for a dance critic in Britain is to not like ballet, don't worry though, happily the internet will kill the lot of them off.

Do you actually have tickets for this? You've mentioned Madrid several times now. I'm going to Paris at the weekend, when I made the arrangements it was to see Kolesnikova dance Juliet, but she has cancelled so I will see a rank and file company member instead. Disappointing to be sure, but Paris is a wonderful city to spend a weekend in as is Madrid, just enjoy the trip, plenty to do in Madrid and I recommend the Thyssen Gallery which I preferred to the Prado. Go and enjoy the city - and ENB's other excellent dancers.

No earlier, Olga Spissetzeva (sp?)

I think you will find Giselle's lonely grave is a design feature as earlier productions that I've seen in photos have showed her buried on the edge of a graveyard, crosses take up room however so Giselle’s grave exists apart, we can use our imaginations to see the cemetery that exists behind her. The romantic era was addicted to its ghosts, Puccini's Le Wili and Meyerbeer's Robert Le Diable favour similar scenarios, but I've been watching and reading stuff like this for decades without it making me a neo Nazi. The Soviet's liked Giselle because it showed an aristocrat in a bad light? They liked Cinderella too - a ballet that has the message be a nice person and you get to marry a prince. Sorry I don't buy any of your argument.

Absolutely. And I note he is from Chelybinsk, a town not a million miles away from Ufa, where Rudolf Nureyev hailed from, perhaps there is something in the air!

But the analogy breaks down if we are alluding to Muntagirov as he trained for three years at RBS anyway, so you could say he is back to the company he was created for.

I think they are producing a DVD of this; wonderful news as Osipova's unique Giselle deserves to be recorded for posterity.

Read what Janet McNulty says in post #10, she may very well be right.

No! Not shoddy at all. I think I can guess his reason, all may become clearer later this year. I applaud what he has done even though it has taken me by surprise. By the way he could have gone to ABT and made a mint instead he chooses to stay in the UK for the benefit of his devoted UK fans. Bravo, Vadim xxx

Dancers are no different from the rest of us and with mortgages to pay and families to support they often have to make difficult decisions.

WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Juliet will now be danced by Anna Samostrelova on 31st Jan & 1st Feb. Ms K. is indisposed, but it is a happy indisposition.

Believe me some would have liked it very much if they were the victim of unfair treatment. That's why they can be the recipients of generous terms in what I think are called gagging orders.

Royal Ballet is very much the public domain, our taxes keep it in existence.

But some of us do know why certain dancers 'left' and I suspect some journalists do too. The journalists I despise are the ones that become privy to certain information but choose not to make it public, most probably because they fear losing their privileges.

Yes and no. Back in the Fonteyn/Nureyev days I always went to the stage door probably to prolong the magic of the evening somehow, nowadays I don't unless I'm waiting for a dancer friend usually before heading for a pub (sorry you teetotallers). Two exceptions were in Paris first to wait for Laetitia Pujol after a performance of Sylvia. I had seen neither the ballet nor the dancer in a leading role before and was so impressed I went round to the Bastille stage door and asked her to sign my programme. For the record she was charming, seemed genuinely happy that I had enjoyed her dancing so much and spoke very good English. The second time was after Emmanuel Thibault danced his first leading role and I joined a massive throng, He conversed with everyone and was staggered at the number of UK fans that had crossed the Channel for the afternoon. I am useless at spotting celebrities; I used to work in Knightsbridge and many times when I went out with my colleague at lunch she would nudge me and say 'that's so and so' and I would not have noticed them at all. I suppose seeing a TV star or the like out of context means I fail to recognize them at all.

Reasons to be confirmed, casting also.

I'll book a half days leave!

Latest news is that Kolesnikova will no longer be dancing with the company in Paris.

Not a surprise to me Capybara, the unreliability of public transport at weekends, Sunday in particular,makes a lot of us reluctant to book for Sunday performances.

As the male casting of Don Q. left a bit to be desired, I suspect you are correct there.