Jan McNulty

It says from activation because you can actually book now.

Hello Nath and welcome out of the lurking shadows. Thanks for sharing your experiences.

I use zoom on my laptop (a MacBook but assume it is similar for any computer). I believe, assuming your teacher is "the host" that she could "make you the host" by looking at the participant list and selecting the option to make you the host. You could then do the recording. (I assume you do not use the gallery view, if you record that you would see both of you on the recording.) What several friends and I have done before something we consider really important is to have a practise. Have you got a friend you can connect with on zoom (obviously it doesn't have to be a dance session)? If you host the meeting, you just need to press the record button on the menu. Press the participant button and a list of participants should appear on the right hand side. Experiment with making your friend the host. Does the recording stop or carry on? Play around till you know how it is working and then you and your teacher can employ the same technique. BTW when you are the host and you are recording, it does take a little while to download the recording - you get both an audio and a visual recording provided. Last time I recorded a meeting I got a link instead (I didn't ask for this it just happened!) and that was easier. As you can see, I have been having to use zoom rather a lot recently! It is fair to say that I am somewhat zoomed out!!

Now TV is a sort of USB stick that fits into a HDMI connection on your TV. It effectively gives you smart tv capability without the need to upgrade. Without paying for the passes that are available (I do the Entertainment pass) it allows you to watch the main catchup facilities such as iPlayer, ITV Hub etc. You can also watch YouTube and Vimeo. I've found it very useful and I only started paying for the entertainment pass to see NB's Casanova a couple of years ago!! I think that Amazon Fire sticks and Apple TV offer similar facilities but how do you choose which one best suits your needs?

I don't know how it will have been translated to the much smaller stage at the Birmingham Rep but it's a gorgeous production and the cast is top notch.

May - SkyArts is now available as a terrestrial channel (channel 11 on Freeview) to watch "at the time" but it is not available on the standard catchup. I'm a Netflix novice so I can't find listings. Assuming Netflix is the same worldwide I know that the Debbie Allen documentary about the Hot Chocolate Nutcracker coming up. There is also a series called Move and one about a young dancer from India (the name of which escapes me). There's a series about SAB and a drama series. News about some of these are included in the Links forum. Hopefully someone with more Netflix nouse will be able to chip in.

The announcement on the company's website is slightly clearer. There are 2 viewing options - you can either watch the livestream on 18th December or the on-demand from 19th December. There are separate booking buttons for each option. Of course you could do both. It does not clear up the PR's statement about 2 casts and something being available online in 2021. https://www.brb.org.uk/whats-on/event/the-nutcracker-at-the-rep-online

Thanks for bumping this Mandy. The reviews have all made this exhibition sound absolutely fascinating and I would love to go but, sadly, I won't be travelling to London in the near future. It's also due at the V&A in Dundee in October 2021... https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/18706669.michael-clark-cosmic-dancer-exhibition-come-v-dundee/

As I understand ENB's digital @home season are also 3-day hires.

I have to admit to being confused too.

Damned with faint praise. OK let's get the elephant out in the room - I absolutely loathe SPW's production of the Nutcracker for the Royal Ballet whereas his production for BRB is the best bar none!

Links - Saturday 05 December, 2020 Feature - David Hallberg, AD Australian Ballet: Amanda Hooton, The Age News - Birmingham Royal Ballet to livestream The Nutcracker after live show cancellations: News Desk, Broadway World News - Royal Opera House unveils biggest programme of streamed ballet and opera: Staff, London Post Feature - Bettie de Jong (of Paul Taylor company) reminisces about the film 9 Variations on a Dance Theme (1966). A new generation pays homage: Gia Kourlas, NY Times Live Review - Royal New Zealand Ballet, Sleeping Beauty, Auckland: Raewyn Whyte, NZ Theatreview Exhibition Review - Michael Clark: Cosmic Dancer, London: Sam Moore, Hyperallergic Feature - With no Nutcracker, New York City Ballet dancers make their next move: Annie Goldsmith, Town and Country Feature - Why National Ballet of Canada’s Nutcracker is still a stunner worth seeing onscreen: Michael Crabb, Toronto Star Streamed Review - The Place’s Festival of Korean Dance: Lyndsey Winship, Guardian Streamed Review - Quarry Dance IX: Marcia B Siegel, Arts Fuse Film Review - A Christmas Carol (danced version): Ellen E Jones, Guardian Live Review - David Huggins & Caitlin Davey at Experimental Dance Week 2020, Auckland: Katrina Bastian, NZ Theatreview Nutcracker Streaming News from New York: New York City Ballet: Asia Grace, New York Post American Ballet Theatre: News Desk, Broadway World New York Ballet Theatre and The Bang Group: News Desk, Broadway World

Watch the BRB streaming on 18th December. It's a truly magnificent production!

Gorgeous casting for the three lead roles.

As the official press release has come in about the streaming I have started a new thread:

PRESS RELEASE 4 December 2020 Birmingham Royal Ballet to go ahead with live streaming adapted version of The Nutcracker at Birmingham Repertory Theatre Following news of Birmingham’s Tier 3 status last week, and ongoing uncertainty about what will be possible post 16 December, Birmingham Royal Ballet has taken the difficult decision to move their 2020 adapted version of The Nutcracker online. The magical Christmas production will be streamed live from The Birmingham Repertory Theatre on Friday 18 December at 7.30pm, giving audiences an experience as close to watching it live in the theatre as is possible. Birmingham Royal Ballet’s The Nutcracker at The REP will be available to watch as a livestream event at 7.30pm on Friday 18th December. It will then be available to view as a video-on-demand recording from Saturday 19th to Thursday 24th December. Video-on-demand sales close at midnight on 21st December, but can be viewed until midnight on Christmas Eve. Director of Birmingham Royal Ballet Carlos Acosta said ‘I guess you could say we’re trying to look on the bright side at the moment! By live streaming this new adapted version of our famous and much-loved production we can proceed with confidence and focus on making the event as special as possible for our wonderful audiences and now, wherever you are in the world, you can be part of it. I can’t deny it’s disappointing not to see everyone’s happy faces in the theatre, but we will plan to end the year on a Christmas high, finding ways of celebrating is important right now.’ Sean Foley, Artistic Director at The REP said: ‘We hope this newly announced Live Stream performance of The Nutcracker at The REP will bring a flurry of theatrical magic and seasonal warmth into families’ homes this Christmas. Teams at The REP and Birmingham Royal Ballet have been working tirelessly since new safety measures were announced to make this very special, one-off adaptation of the classic festive tale. We are tremendously excited to share it with thousands of people across the world at the same time - the first time ever a performance has been streamed 'Live from The Birmingham REP’. In light of the performances being cancelled the Company has again focused on finding solutions and decided to tackle uncertainties by enabling audiences to enjoy the world premiere of this new adaptation from home. After the cancellation of this year’s full production at the Royal Albert Hall, this will be the one chance to experience Birmingham Royal Ballet’s Christmas classic this year. The full-length Nutcracker will be shortened to an 80-minute magical experience that will retain all of the most enchanting moments and characters you would expect and hope for - Snowflakes, Drosselmeyer, Fritz and Clara’s Christmas Eve party, King Rat’s battle, the Kingdom of Sweets dances from around the world, the iconic Sugar Plum Fairy and, of course, The Nutcracker Prince - and features the cherished Tchaikovsky score performed live by the Royal Ballet Sinfonia conducted by Paul Murphy. Ticket holders for this pay per view production will also be able to enjoy some extra treats the Company have tied together with a seasonal red bow to make the experience as special as possible. People who have bought tickets for the original live performances The REP will be contacted by the box office. This year’s performance will ensure the safety of all performers, technical crew and staff. Two performances featuring two different casts will be captured at The REP. The second film will feature three third year students from The Royal Ballet School performing Trepak, the Russian dance, and students from Elmhurst Ballet School dancing Snowflakes will be available for audiences to watch online in early 2021. Birmingham Royal Ballet is committed to offering performance opportunities for students of the Royal Ballet School and Elmhurst Ballet School, especially at this time when such opportunities are so rare for students starting out in their careers. Birmingham Royal Ballet and Birmingham Repertory Theatre’s social media pages will reflect a celebration of The Nutcracker throughout the run, including exclusive new dance footage, ballet lessons for the very young and behind-the-scenes insights and the premiere of a new animated film inspired by The Nutcracker created with Birmingham Royal Ballet’s second company, Freefall, whose exceptionally talented dancers have learning disabilities. _________________________________________________ Listings Information The Nutcracker at The REP 1st Cast: Clara: Karla Doorbar The Prince: César Morales The Sugar Plum Fairy: Momoko Hirata Royal Ballet Sinfonia conducted by Paul Murphy Running Time: 90 minutes – Including a short interval and exciting behind-the-scenes access Fri 18 Dec - 7.30pm Live Stream Tickets: £15 per device Booking Information: brb.org.uk/nutcracker-online NOTES TO EDITORS: Birmingham Royal Ballet Based at Birmingham Hippodrome, Birmingham Royal Ballet is the United Kingdom’s leading touring ballet company performing a range of traditional, classical and heritage ballets as well as ground-breaking new works with the aim of encouraging choreographers of the future. The Company’s Director since January 2020 is the internationally renowned Carlos Acosta. Birmingham Royal Ballet performs at Birmingham Hippodrome for approximately ten weeks of the year and the remainder of the year tours throughout the United Kingdom and overseas. On average, the Company performs 175 shows a year nationally and internationally. The Royal Ballet Sinfonia is Birmingham Royal Ballet’s permanent orchestra, it is also Britain's busiest ballet orchestra. The Sinfonia also plays frequently for The Royal Ballet and other leading ballet companies, including performances with: The Royal Ballet, Paris Opéra Ballet, New York City Ballet, Australian Ballet, Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, the Kirov, Norwegian Ballet, Atlanta Ballet, San Francisco Ballet and La Scala Ballet. Birmingham Repertory Theatre Birmingham Repertory Theatre is the only producing theatre in the UK’s Second City. The oldest building-based theatre company in the UK, The REP has an unparalleled pioneering history and has been at the forefront of theatre in this country for over 100 years. It is a registered charity (number 223660). The REP’s mission is to create artistically ambitious popular theatre for, by and with the people of Birmingham and the wider world. The commissioning and production of new work lies at the core of The REP’s programme and over the last 15 years, the company has produced more than 130 new plays. As well as presenting over 60 productions on its three stages every year, the theatre tours its productions nationally and internationally. The REP’s acclaimed learning and outreach programme is one of the largest and most diverse of any arts organisation in the country. Every year we have over 70,000 contacts with young people and adults in the community on projects from drama or writing workshops to large-scale productions. The REP is also committed to nurturing new talent through its youth theatre groups, and it offers training for early career writers, directors, and artists through its ground-breaking REP Foundry theatre makers programme. Many of The REP’s productions go on to have lives beyond Birmingham. Recent tours and transfers include The Lovely Bones, Brief Encounter, Nativity! The Musical, What Shadows, LOVE, The Winslow Boy, The Government Inspector, Of Mice and Men, Anita and Me, Penguins and The King’s Speech. The theatre’s long-running production of The Snowman celebrated its 25th anniversary as well as its 22nd consecutive season at London's Peacock Theatre in 2019.

Indeed Lachlan Monaghan spoke to Terpsichore's Stage Door group from Australia!

Just seen the casting on Facebook - Clara is Karla Doorbar (love her in role), Prince is Cesar Morales (love him in role) and Sugar Plum is Momoko Hirata (oh yes!!!).

Links - Friday 04 December, 2020 Feature - Skylar Brandt, American Ballet Theatre on dancing through a pandemic: Camille Freestone, Coveteur News - Matthew Bourne to reimagine The Car Man for Royal Albert Hall’s 150th Anniversary: Georgia Snow, Stage Teresa Guerreiro, Culture Whisper Streamed Reviews: Pacific Northwest Ballet, Rep 2: Dean Speer, Critical Dance Tokyo Ballet, M (Béjart): David Mead, Seeing Dance Eliot Smith Dance, Virtual Triple Bill: Lyndsey Winship, Guardian Live Review - Sydney Dance Company, New Breed, Sydney: Claudia Lawson, Fjord Review Film Reviews - A Christmas Carol (danced version): Kevin Maher, Times Robbie Collins, Telegraph Maryam Philpott, Reviews Hub Stephen Dalton, Hollywood Reporter Streaming News: Pennsylvania Ballet to stream George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker: News Desk, Broadway World Boston Ballet presents BB@yourhome: The Gift: News Desk, Broadway World BalletMet stream The Nutcracker: Mikey Taylor, The Lantern Featurette - Lauren Ostrander & Janae Korte, Sarasota Ballet: Andrew Fabian, SRQ Live Review - Amber Liberté & Fa’asu Aloa-Purcell at Experimental Dance Week 2020, Auckland: Rewa Fowles, NZ Theatreview Live Review - Kelly Nash, Body I(s)land, Auckland: Katrina Bastian, NZ Theatreview Live Performance News - Cuban Classical Ballet of Miami will perform Don Quixote Suite: Orlando Taquechel, Miami Herald Looking Back - 10 years later, ballerinas still hate Black Swan: Parker Herren, Thrillist

Northern Ballet have come up with another way of raising funds via a sealed bid auction. The items to be bid on are snippets of the scores of various ballets and if you bid and win you get the Vimeo recording (which apparently you can also personalise and use as an e-card). Details are on the website: https://northernballet.com/northern-ballet-sinfonia-sealed-bid-auction

Links - Thursday 03 December, 2020 Obituary - Mary Oslund, choreographer & teacher: Martha Ullman West, Oreon Arts Watch Feature - Sadler’s Wells’ Alistair Spalding on weathering the shutdown: Helen Barrett, FT Streamed Review - English National Ballet, Digital Season: Debra Craine, Times List - London live dance Christmas 2020: Teresa Guerreiro, Culture Whisper Feature - Evan McKie, National Ballet of Canada: Deborah Weiss, Dance for You Magazine News - Sarasota Ballet expands season of digital programmes: Jay Handelman, Sarasota Herald Tribune Feature - Alvin Ailey’s digital season: Celia Wren, Washington Post Feature - Dancers say it’s time to talk about ballet companies that body-shame: Charlotte Barnett, NY Observer Preview Feature - On Display Global honouring international day of persons with disabilities: Josephine Minhinnett, Fjord Review News Feature - Australian Ballet’s 2021 season: Stephen A Russell, Time Out Featurette - Viktoria Tereshkina, Mariinsky Ballet: Mihaela, Dance for You Magazine Exhibition Preview - On Pointe: Royal Academy of Dance at 100, London: Teresa Guerreiro, Culture Whisper News - New footage of Margot Fonteyn with RAD youngsters of 1972 discovered: Dalya Alberge, Guardian Streamed Review - Netflix documentary series “Move”: Maya Phillips, NY Times News - Choreographer Faye Driscoll awarded New York Live Arts Residency: Peter Libbey, NY Times Streaming News - Diablo Ballet’s Nutcracker Reimagined & 2021 season preview: Dean Speer, Critical Dance Live Review - Joanne Hobern & Jazmine Rose-Phillips at Experimental Dance Week 2020, Auckland: Rewa Fowles, NZ Theatreview

I've just looked at The Big Give website. It would seem that both Northern Ballet and Birmingham Royal Ballet have reached their targets. English National Ballet is just over half way there.

Oooo the Paul Taylor programme looks enticing...

The Playbill link including the trailer was in the Links yesterday: https://www.playbill.com/article/watch-the-trailer-for-disney-s-dance-docuseries-on-pointe

PRESS RELEASE 2 December 2020 22 aspiring young West Midlands dancers aged eight to 11 win places on prestigious training programmes at The Royal Ballet School and Elmhurst Ballet School Hard work and dedication have paid off for 22 aspiring young dancers participating in Birmingham Royal Ballet’s Dance Track scheme, with two being offered coveted places on The Royal Ballet School’s Junior Associates programme and 14 on the Elmhurst Ballet School’s Young Dancers Programme. Following successful auditions, the young dancers will make their first steps with both programmes this autumn/winter. Because the pandemic has temporarily reduced the number of recruits to the Junior Associates programme at The Royal Ballet School this year, a further six promising young dancers from Birmingham, currently on the waiting list, have been offered a place on a short-term programme offered by The Royal Ballet School. This brings the number of Birmingham’s aspiring young dancers enjoying success on prestigious dance development courses to a total of 22. Since March, due to current Covid-19 guidelines, Dance Track students have been unable to attend their usual classes at Birmingham Royal Ballet’s studios, but with the support of their families and tutors, participants have persevered and continued their lessons via Zoom. Carlos Acosta, Director of Birmingham Royal Ballet, a Governor of The Royal Ballet School and a Vice President of Elmhurst Ballet School, comments on their achievements: “All of the gifted young people taking part in our Dance Track Programme are amazing, and I would like to take this opportunity of congratulating each and every one of them. However, for these 22 young dancers in particular - and especially in these challenging times - this is a milestone opportunity to develop further the skills and talent our Dance Track team has brought out in them during their time with us at Birmingham Royal Ballet. I am incredibly proud of them and I look forward to watching their progress as they continue to inspire many others by following their dreams of becoming professional dancers. What a great expression of our historic links to The Royal Ballet School which go back to the 1950s, and to our more recent association with Elmhurst Ballet School, and a celebration as we encourage as many young people as possible to benefit from the experience of dance!” Birmingham Royal Ballet’s Dance Track is a free-of-charge programme designed to identify, nurture and develop talent and potential in young people aged six to eight in Birmingham. It has been Birmingham Royal Ballet’s flagship outreach programme at the heart of the community for more than 23 years, delivering workshops annually to some 2,500 young people in 48 schools across Birmingham, the majority of whom would otherwise have no opportunity of experiencing ballet and dance. Dance Track is generously supported by the Linbury Trust and the Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation. NOTES TO EDITORS: Birmingham Royal Ballet: 2020 marks the 30th anniversary of Birmingham Royal Ballet moving to the City in October 1990. Based at Birmingham Hippodrome, Birmingham Royal Ballet is the United Kingdom’s foremost touring ballet company, performing traditional, classical and heritage ballets as well as ground-breaking new works with the aim of encouraging new generations of choreographers, composers and designers and reaching new and diverse audiences. The Company is one of the family of three ‘Royal’ companies, the others being The Royal Ballet and The Royal Ballet School. Birmingham Royal Ballet performs at Birmingham Hippodrome for approximately ten weeks of the year and the remainder of the year tours throughout the United Kingdom and overseas. On average, the Company gives 175 performances each year nationally and internationally. The Royal Ballet Sinfonia is Birmingham Royal Ballet’s permanent orchestra and is the UK’s busiest ballet orchestra. The Sinfonia also plays frequently for The Royal Ballet and other leading ballet companies, including Paris Opéra Ballet, New York City Ballet, The Mariinsky Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, La Scala Ballet, The Australian Ballet, Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, Norwegian Ballet, Atlanta Ballet. Please note: Birmingham Hippodrome has been closed for stage performances since lockdown but Birmingham Royal Ballet looks forward to returning to its home theatre for Cinderella in spring 2021. The Royal Ballet School’s Associate Programme: The Royal Ballet School’s Associate Programme was launched in 1948 by Dame Ninette de Valois, founder of all three Royal companies: Birmingham Royal Ballet (previously Sadler’s Wells Royal Ballet), The Royal Ballet and The Royal Ballet School. Based in nine centres throughout the UK (London, Birmingham, Bath, Dundee, Eastleigh (Southampton), Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle and Totnes) the School’s Junior, Mid, Senior and Advanced programmes offer gifted young people from eight to 18 years of age the opportunity of developing their dance talents in line with The Royal Ballet School’s renowned system of training, in conjunction with their regular dance training. The Birmingham cohort is normally hosted at the studios of Birmingham Royal Ballet, but due to current Covid-19 restrictions, classes are taking place via Zoom or an alternative venue. The Royal Ballet School’s Associate Programme is generously supported by the Leverhulme Trust. www.royalballetschool.org.uk Elmhurst Young Dancers' Programme: The pre-vocational Elmhurst Young Dancers' Programme for Years 4, 5 and 6 provides weekend classes for younger children. The programme, created in Birmingham in 2005 with regional centres opening in Manchester, Plymouth and Sunderland in 2011, helps young students to prepare for full-time training and another step closer to a professional career in dance. The programme, created and managed by Elmhurst Ballet School, the Birmingham based vocational school with close regional links to Birmingham Royal Ballet, has seen a number of its students selected to perform alongside professional dancers in Peter Wright’s The Nutcracker. The Extended Elmhurst Young Dancers' Programme for Years 7 to 12 was formalised in 2017 and takes place in Birmingham only. The programme would not be possible without the generosity of supporters including The Cecil King Memorial Foundation. More information can be found at www.elmhurstballetschool.org