Jan McNulty

Northern Ballet have issued a trailer for this delightful piece. The trailer also includes a synopsis of the plot: http://northernballet.com/?q=video/elves-the-shoemaker-trailer

John Chesworth OBE, 1930 - 2014 Rambert is sad to announce the death of its former dancer, choreographer and Artistic Director John Chesworth. John Chesworth was born in Manchester in 1930. He served in the RAF, and after demobilisation in 1950, with no prior dance experience, he enrolled in the Rambert School of Ballet. After only 18 months at the School he was invited to join Rambert’s corps de ballet, and he would continue to work for the company for the next 28 years. Chesworth quickly established himself as one of the company’s finest and most versatile character dancers, with roles including Hilarion in Giselle, Dr Coppelius in Coppelia and the title role in Don Quixote, and leading roles in ballets by Frederick Ashton and Antony Tudor, including Façade, Les Masques, Dark Elegies and Gala Performance. He also created principal roles in most of Norman Morrice’s early ballets, and later Glen Tetley choreographed roles for him in Ziggurat and Rag Dances. In 1966 Ballet Rambert reinvented itself as a contemporary ensemble under the co-directorship of Morrice and Dame Marie Rambert. Chesworth was appointed Assistant to the Directors, and Time Base, his first choreography for the company, had its premiere in November of that year at the Jeannetta Cochrane Theatre. Chesworth would go on to make six more works for the Rambert repertoire as the company built audiences for its new style of work: H (1968), Tick Tack (1968), Pawn to King 5 (1968), Four According (1970), Pattern for an Escalator (1972) and Ad Hoc (1972) – the latter an enormously popular improvised work with a different theme and cast for each performance. Chesworth became Associate Director of Ballet Rambert in 1970, and succeeded Morrice as Artistic Director in 1974. He would lead the company for the next six years, developing Rambert’s reputation for technical excellence and diverse repertory, which included new creations by Richard Alston, Christopher Bruce, Siobhan Davies, Anna Sokolow and Glen Tetley. A notable success of his tenure was Cruel Garden(1977), created by Bruce and Lindsay Kemp and featuring Chesworth in the cast, which was performed in a Ralph Koltai-designed bull-ring set at the Roundhouse in London. Chesworth also supported the choreographic development of Rambert’s dancers, reviving regular workshop seasons of company members’ choreography. He was very interested in the possibilities for dance on film and television. He created Project 6354/9116 Mk2 for BBC TV (1974) and directed the experimental film Dancers (1978), a collaboration with Derek Hart and Yutaka Yamazaki which won awards at the Chicago and Krakow film festivals. In 1977, he was Associate Producer of the BBC production of Rambert’s children’s programme Bertram Batell’s Side Show. Talking to Dance Europe in 2001, Chesworth said of his time with Rambert: “When you look at it, it’s as if I was in three different companies. When I joined in 52 it was the ‘old’ company, where the whole repertoire was basically single act works dating from the 30s and 40s – a nice way to get into the past. Later it changed into a more classical style company with just one new modern work a year, normally by Norman Morrice. Finally in 66 it changed quite abruptly to be a totally contemporary company. I think that’s what kept me going, if it had been the same all the time I wouldn’t have lasted the course. “I was fortunate that Dame Marie just let me get on with whatever I did. We never had any terrible clashes, it just seemed to work for me and work for her.” After stepping down from his role at Rambert in 1980, Chesworth would go on to become the founding Artistic Director of the National Youth Dance Company, which he led from 1985 to 2003, the year in which he was appointed OBE for services to dance. In 2012, Chesworth joined the other surviving Rambert Artistic Directors past and present in planting a time capsule of memorabilia from the company’s history in the foundations of its new home on London’s South Bank. Rambert’s current Artistic Director Mark Baldwin said: “John was Artistic Director when I first joined Rambert, where he had the reputation as a great coach of performers, and nurturer of young choreographers. He was enormously charismatic and had a beautiful speaking voice. This made him a fantastic advocate for Rambert, and for dance. I remember him introducing the matinees, which he continued to do when he was director of the National Youth Dance Company. He commissioned a work from me for NYDC, which he would introduce at each performance with warm insight. It certainly gave confidence to a burgeoning choreographer.” Christopher Bruce, Associate Director of Ballet Rambert under Chesworth and later Artistic Director said:"As a dancer, choreographer and director, John was always totally dedicated to the Rambert company. He was a man of ideas and just the nicest person you could ever hope to work with. I will be forever thankful for his support during my time with the company and especially grateful to him for bringing Lindsay Kemp and I together for the creation of Cruel Garden. I will so miss his sense of fun as well as our discussions on the subject of cricket."

There is a place called Kitchenette opposite the Palace Theatre (which may be around a 10 minute walk away). Here's a link to the menu: http://www.mudcrabindustries.co.uk/files/menus/020914_1650_A3%20K-LD.pdf I loved the duck and sweet potato hash (had it twice in a week!) and the ice cream cones are to die for! If you walk a few minutes further up from the Palace Theatre I think there are a number of other restaurants. If you have time to kill during the day there's a super cafe called Java on the slip road up to Oxford Rd Station: http://www.javabarespresso.com/index.php?main_page=page&id=8 I think it's open till around 9pm too. There is also the Corner House (or whatever it is called these days) and a Starbucks seems to have opened adjacent to the theatre.

Holland, Germany, Italy, certain Eastern European countries too! I've long since lost most of my interest in football but I get very annoyed when people assume it is only the British (or specifically the English) who behave in this way. It's time we pointed this out!

Fiz we don't lead the world in football hooliganism - it's just reported in our press more than the hooliganism in other countries is reported in their press. Some European and South American countries have a far worse problem than we do but we do not really hear about it!

Many years ago when Northern Ballet were performing Michael Pink/Christopher Gable's Dracula a friend asked the then company manager if a bouquet could be presented to the dancer performing the eponymous role. (The dancer in question is Russian and had commented to my friend that he was surprised more flowers weren't presented on stage and were never presented to men). The company manager approved the idea. Well my friend contacted the florists' department in Fenwicks in Newcastle. Up to that point I had not been a huge fan of bouquets and cut flowers full stop but to this day it is the most spectacular bouquet I have ever seen! My friend is one of those people who can charm the birds out of the trees and explained what the bouquet was for. Well the florists really went to town. We had 24 of the largest and deepest red rose buds I have ever seen, 12 of which they sprayed black, these were supported by dark green foliage and black, red and gold tissue paper and cellophane. It was totally appropriate and absolutely gorgeous and the dancer really appreciated it! Very recently one of BRB's Beasts received a bouquet on stage following his debut in role.

It would indeed have been Northern Ballet and I am still hoping it will come back into the rep! David Nixon often uses Patricia Doyle as his dramaturg. Her association with NB goes back to Christopher Gable's day. Speaking of NB pre-David Nixon, Didy Veldman did 2 cracking productions for the company - Carmen and Streetcar Named Desire - wish I could see them again too!

The collaborative choreographic laboratory being held at Northern Ballet's HQ in May/June this year specifically refers to story ballet and mentions mentors. The outcomes could be interesting. The collaborating parties, Royal Ballet, Northern Ballet and Scottish Ballet will each give one of their young choreographers a place on the laboratory and there is one place advertised for audition. http://www.balletcoforum.com/index.php?/topic/8299-northern-ballet-scottish-ballet-royal-ballet-choreographic-workshop/

Tango Fire Flames of Desire The Peacock Tuesday 27 January - Saturday 14 February 2015 Tues - Sat at 7.30pm / Sat Mat at 2.30pm / Sun at 2pm Tickets: £15 - £42 Ticket Office: 0844 412 4322 or www.sadlerswells.com “Sensual, erotic and authentically Argentinian.” (Daily Telegraph) After an acclaimed sell-out season in 2013, Tango Fire returns to The Peacock from Tuesday 27 January toSaturday 14 February with Flames of Desire, a show featuring global tango stars German Cornejo andGisela Galeassi, plus a cast including world tango champions and some of the best dancers from the tango houses of Buenos Aires. Choreographed by Cornejo, this show combines the rawness and sophistication, seductive and sultry sides of tango, evoking the intoxicating passion of late night Argentina. The audience is taken on a journey through the history of tango, tracing its roots in the dance halls of Buenos Aires before moving through the decades to showcase tango’s growing popularity as a contemporary dance form. Tango Fire encompasses all that defines Argentine tango; dancing which sizzles with sensuality, accompanied by four of Argentina's brilliant young musicians playing the music of the great tango masters includingPiazzolla, Pugliese and Gardel. Since its formation, Tango Fire has become an international leading tango company, with a fan base across the USA, Europe and Asia, and a YouTube audience in excess of 18 million. German Cornejo and Gisela Galeassi’s work with acclaimed contemporary dance choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui can be seen in m¡longa, the first international large-scale tango production to be directed by a non-Argentine artist, which premiered at Sadler’s Wells in 2013. m¡longa returns to Sadler’s Wells on 9 – 13 June 2015. Click here to see a video clip of Flames of Desire: http://bit.ly/1Cf2oZk Free post-show dance classes: Tuesday 3 & Tuesday 10 February Press night: Tuesday 27 January at 7.30pm Notes to editors: About Sadler’s Wells Sadler's Wells is a world leader in contemporary dance, committed to producing, commissioning and presenting new works and to bringing the very best international and UK dance to London and worldwide audiences. Under the Artistic Directorship of Alistair Spalding the theatre’s acclaimed year-round programme spans dance of every kind, from contemporary to flamenco, bollywood to ballet, salsa to street dance and tango to tap. Since 2005 it has helped to bring over 90 new dance works to the stage and its international award-winning commissions and collaborative productions regularly tour the world. Sadler’s Wells supports 16 appointed world class Associate Artists and 3 Resident Companies and nurtures the next generation of talent through its National Youth Dance Company, Summer University programme, Wild Card initiative and its New Wave Associates. Located in Islington in north London, the current theatre is the sixth to have stood on the site since it was first built by Richard Sadler in 1683. The venue has played an illustrious role in the history of theatre ever since, with The Royal Ballet, Birmingham Royal Ballet and English National Opera all having started at Sadler’s Wells. Sadler’s Wells is an Arts Council National Portfolio Organisation and currently receives approximately 9% of its revenue from Arts Council England.

Hello Coupdepied and welcome to the Forum. I do hope you will keep posting!

I think that no-one can get it right all the time but there is a strong recent history of great narrative ballet going back, say 30 years. I am most familiar with BRB and Northern Ballet so I will list just a few of each that I think particularly strong: Hobson's Choice (Bintley) Far from the Madding Crowd (Bintley) Edward II (Bintley) Cyrano (Bintley) Madame Butterfly (Nixon) Wuthering Heights (Nixon) Great Gatsby (Nixon) Dangerous Liaisons (Nixon) Tale of Two Cities (Marston) Romeo and Juliet (Morricone/Gable) Christmas Carol (Morricone/Gable) Then, of course, we have Mark Bruce's Dracula in the mix too. As a member of the audience I sometimes think that the synopses in the programme can make the work seem over-plotted and perhaps a briefer synopsis that leaves more to the audience imagination would work better. A good example of that is Northern Ballet's Dangerous Liaisons where multiple scenes are described when it is the relationships between the protagonists need to be established and the rest is obvious when watching the production.

Two of my friends saw Hamburg Ballet performing Lady of the Cammelias in Copenhagen as part of a ballet festival in (I think) 1987. They never stopped talking about it. When I realised POB were performing the ballet in 2006, I mentioned it and one of those friends and I booked for two performances. I quite enjoyed the first performance but couldn't really understand what all the fuss was about. The leads for the second performance were Agnes Letestu and Jiri Bubenicek (whom I think was a fairly late addition to the cast, he was not even listed in the programme as a guest). What a difference a cast can make. I don't think I can ever remember sobbing so much at a performance! My friend and most of the people around us sounded as though they were in the same state! At the end this remarkable performance was accorded a standing ovation that lasted so long the technical crew seemed to give up - they turned the house lights up and left the audience to it! My friend and I sobbed all the way back to the hotel and were completely beyond the power of speech for at least an hour. To this day I do not know why I was so affected by one performance and not the other. I saw his R&J in Copenhagen a couple of years ago and loathed it. I didn't think he could tell the tale at all.

Backes & Strauss and English National Ballet renew their partnership Backes & Strauss, the world’s oldest diamond company (est. 1789) is delighted to announce that its partnership with English National Ballet is to continue, entering into its second year. Marking a celebration of the deepening relationship between these two iconic brands, Artistic Director of English National Ballet, Tamara Rojo is to become a brand ambassador for Backes & Strauss. English National Ballet’s partnership started in 2013 where Tamara endorsed the beautiful Victoria Collection. Please click here to view the announcement video. Led by Tamara Rojo, English National Ballet brings world-class ballet to the widest possible audience through innovative collaborations, creative excellence and bold ways of honouring, and adding to, traditional ballet. Established in 1950 by Dame Alicia Markova, who was widely considered to be one of the greatest classical ballet dancers of the 20th century, English National Ballet will turn 65 next year as the UK's premier ballet company, touring Britain and around the world. Throughout its history, English National Ballet has worked with world-class talent including Rudolf Nureyev, Sir Frederick Ashton, Natalia Markarova and Carlos Acosta. With meticulous attention to detail and a rich British heritage, Backes & Strauss is the natural fit to partner with the iconic ballet company. Both London-based brands boast a shared tradition of excellence, immersed in grace, finesse and precision whilst inspired by contemporary design. The collaboration will provide a platform for the two leading British brands to deliver unique experiences to their growing consumer bases. Tamara Rojo, Artistic Director of English National Ballet said, “I am delighted to be an ambassador for Backes & Strauss, and English National Ballet is enormously grateful for its support. I look forward to continuing our collaboration together to highlight our outstanding work.” Vartkess Knadjian CEO of Backes & Strauss added that "As a company proud of its British heritage we are thrilled to continue our partnership with English National Ballet and Tamara Rojo, the quintessential British dance company that through its creativity broadens the appeal of ballet throughout the world." Notes to Editors About Backes & Strauss As the world’s oldest diamond company (est. 1789), Backes & Strauss has constantly looked forward, pioneering new diamond cutting techniques and enthralling connoisseurs with its compelling designs. Today, Backes & Strauss is part of the Franck Muller group. Backes & Strauss and the Franck Muller Group are masters of the art and science of their respective crafts. While Backes & Strauss is occupied with light and Franck Muller is concerned with time, both share a devotion to mathematical precision. The result of this meeting of masters is a collection of timepieces so intricate, they are veritable masterpieces both inside and out. About English National Ballet English National Ballet is a world-class ballet company, renowned for creative excellence, innovative collaborations and engaging ways of honouring and enhancing traditional and contemporary ballet. English National Ballet aims to bring ballet to the widest possible audience, touring across the UK and internationally. In 2013/2014 English National Ballet gave over 190 performances to just under 250,000 people. 2014 saw English National Ballet commission and present the critically acclaimed productions Lest We Forget at the Barbican, Le Corsaire at the London Coliseum and on tour, and Romeo & Juliet in-the-round at the Royal Albert Hall. Under the Artistic Directorship of Tamara Rojo, English National Ballet has increased the amount of new works it has commissioned; working on new productions with contemporary choreographers including Russell Maliphant and Akram Khan performed alongside traditional productions including Derek Deane’s critically acclaimed Swan Lake and Wayne Eagling’s Nutcracker. English National Ballet has brought some of the greatest dancers from around the world to a UK audience, as well as developing new talent within the Company through events including the annual Emerging Dancer competition and Choreographics, giving dancers the opportunity to develop their craft as performers as well as dance makers. English National Ballet is committed to making ballet accessible to all, offering tickets from as little as £12 in London and £5 on tour. The My First Ballet… series is a joint venture with the English National Ballet School, offers children the opportunity to see a ballet production created specifically for their age group. Through its Engagement department, English National Ballet works with local communities of all ages involving them with ballet through workshops, talks and classes that take place around the country. In 2014 it’s hugely successful Dance for Parkinson’s programme that works with people with Parkinson’s, their carers and families, extended its regional output creating two new hubs in Ipswich and Cardiff. http://www.ballet.org.uk

Northern Ballet creates new opportunities for emerging choreographers Northern Ballet is furthering its commitment to invest in the future of dance by offering emerging choreographers the unique opportunity to work with the Company's award winning Artistic Director and dancers. Tell Tale Steps, the Leeds-based Company's inaugural Choreographic Laboratory will take place from 25 May to 20 June 2015. The Royal Ballet and Scottish Ballet are partner organisations in the project and have nominated an emerging choreographer from within their organisations to take part. They will be joined by one of Northern Ballet’s artists and Artistic Director David Nixon OBE has invited open applications for one final place. Applications from ambitious choreographers in the early stages of their careers, with a genuine interest in classical dance and the narrative form are now being received. Those wishing to be considered must send a CV along with a concise written statement to David Nixon OBE, Northern Ballet, Quarry Hill, Leeds LS2 7PA. Tell Tale Steps will offer emerging choreographers studio time in Northern Ballet's state-of-the art headquarters in Leeds, working with a selection of the Company's dancers to experiment with creative processes, play with movement ideas and begin to see a dance story develop from the perspective of the audience. Those selected to take part in the Choreographic Laboratory will be mentored under the expert guidance of David Nixon, with further support from guest artists throughout the process. David Nixon said: 'Northern Ballet is in a privileged position to be able to offer emerging choreographers this special opportunity to feed their creative desires, channel and articulate their ideas and develop their own creative style, working with some of the UK's most uniquely expressive and talented dancers. As one of the UK's largest ballet companies we have a responsibility to create opportunities such as these, offering support and guidance for the choreographers of the future and an environment in which they are able to play with ideas with no expectations of a finished product. I hope that this opportunity will not only enable the selected artists to flourish but that the project will create a platform that could lead to the development of new and exciting work that audiences can then potentially experience in theatres. I am proud of Northern Ballet's significant contribution to the UK dance scene and particularly the Company’s pivotal role in placing Leeds firmly on the map as a city of dance and a major hub for dance outside of London. I hope that, through a continued commitment to this project, Northern Ballet will become an internationally recognised centre for classical choreographic development, investing in the future of classical narrative dance.' The selected applicants will experience the choreographic process in its entirety. Prior to the laboratory they will take part in an introductory weekend in February 2015, looking at the history of narrative dance, where they will be given a remit for the lab from which they will put together their own proposals. The choreographers will experience all aspects of creating a production, from auditioning and selecting dancers to the opportunity to spend time with an audience to gain feedback on their work. A presentation of ideas will take place on Saturday 20 June where people will be able to come and hear an overview of the project from a panel of experts and the choreographers, and gain an insight into the process behind creating narrative classical dance. Tell Tale Steps is supported by the Stanley Thomas Johnson Foundation and the Leche Trust. -ENDS- Notes to Editors For more details of Northern Ballet's tour, on sale dates and booking information, please visit northernballet.com/whatson. Voted Best Company at the 2014 Taglioni European Ballet Awards, Northern Ballet is one of the UK’s five large ballet companies. Based in Leeds it performs throughout the UK as well as overseas. Northern Ballet’s productions mix classical dance and theatre, embracing popular culture and taking inspiration from literature, opera, or giving a unique interpretation of popular classical ballets. Northern Ballet is the busiest touring ballet company in the UK and is typically on the road for around 32 weeks of the year. The Company of 46 dancers tours a combination of full-length new work and established repertoire to cities throughout the UK and is the only large scale ballet company to do so. Northern Ballet will introduce a new strand of touring from 2015, widening the Company’s already extensive reach. The new mid-scale tour will see the Company perform in nine additional venues. Northern Ballet tours widely with its ballets for children, the first two of which were adapted for TV by CBeebies, and also performs a mixed programme showcasing the versatility of its dancers. Visit northernballet.com for more information on the Company and tour.

I've just found these on Amazon. They are for Kindle Fire but I'm not sure if they are the same size: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Case-Fun-Kindle-Leather-Wallet/dp/B00OEYDLQI/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1416921820&sr=8-2-fkmr0&keywords=kindle+paperwhite+ballet+covers http://www.amazon.co.uk/Case-For-Kindle-Fire-8-9in/dp/B00LGUJSJM/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1416921896&sr=8-3-fkmr0&keywords=kindle+paperwhite+ballet+covers

I keep getting on-line offers from most of the big high street retailers these days. I just collected an order from one of them yesterday! That's nothing to do with Black Friday!

Dance Consortium Presents Cirque Eloize Cirkopolis Full UK tour details: www.danceconsortium.com Canada’s internationally acclaimed circus company Cirque Éloize returns, following the success of iD in 2013,for a Dance Consortium UK tour in Spring 2015, beginning at Sadler’s Wells’ Peacock Theatre in London on 17 February and concluding at Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff on 11 April. A world leader in contemporary circus and a firm favourite in the West End, Cirque Éloize combines circus arts with music, dance and theatre. Based in Montreal, the company has been creating thrilling performances since 1993. In Cirkopolis 12 multidisciplinary artists including acrobats, jugglers, contortionists and aerial artists rebel against monotony, reinvent themselves and challenge limits. Performing within an inventive stage design and accompanied by an original musical score and video projections, the company creates a world where fantasy provokes reality, the veil of anonymity and solitude is lifted and replaced by bursts of colour and imagination. Directed by Artistic Director Jeannot Painchaud and co-directed and choreographed by Dave St-Pierre,Cirkopolis seeks to transport performers and spectators between dream and reality in a stream of acrobatics, music, images and drawings. Painchaud says: “Cirkopolis was imagined as a crossroads – between imagination and reality, between individuality and community, between limits and possibilities. The show is driven by the poetic impulse of life, the physical prowess of the circus and the humour, at once serious and light-hearted. Entering Cirkopolis is all about letting go and allowing yourself to be borne aloft by hope.” Following performances at the Peacock Theatre, Cirkopolis tours to Canterbury, Southampton, Bradford, Birmingham, Edinburgh and Cardiff. Dance Consortium is a group of 17 large scale venues located across the UK, supported by the Arts Council England. Since its formation in 2000 Dance Consortium has presented 35 tours by 22 different companies from Australia, Brazil, Canada, Cuba, France, The Netherlands, Taiwan, Israel and the USA. Their performances and education activities have been experienced by hundreds of thousands of people across all parts of the UK. “There are much bigger shows than Cirkopolis, but I’d bet there aren’t more beautiful ones” New York Times Tour schedule 17 - 28 Feb Peacock Theatre, London 3 - 7 Mar Marlowe Theatre, Canterbury 11- 14 Mar Mayflower Theatre, Southampton 18 - 21 Mar Alhambra Theatre, Bradford 25 - 28 Mar Hippodrome, Birmingham 1 – 4 Apr Festival Theatre, Edinburgh 8 – 11 Apr Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff

Links - Monday, November 24, 2014 Obituary – Helen Werner: Ann Eatwell, Guardian Review – Mikhailovsky Ballet, Don Quixote, New York: Mary Cargill, Danceview Times Reviews – National Ballet of Canada, Nijinsky, Toronto: Michael Crabb, Toronto Star Paula Citron, Toronto Globe and Mail Cate Kustanczy, Digital Journal Feature – Little Dancer, Big roles for women: Sarah Kaufman, Washington Post Feature – Kate Prince, choreographer, The Mad-hatter’s Tea Party, London: Lyndsey Winship, Standard Gallery – AVA Dance Company, Provisional Landscapes, London: Foteini Christofilopoulou, DanceTabs Preview – The Best Festive Shows this Christmas (scroll down for various dance items): Guardian critics, Guardian Review – West Australian Ballet, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Perth: Rita Clarke, Australian Review – Jack Ferver and Ralph Lemon, The House is Open, New York: Siobhan Burke, NY Times Review – Dance Wellington Festival, Embody, Wellington: Sam Trubridge, NZ Theatreview Feature – Recollections by a master carpenter backstage at PNB’s Nutcracker: Moira Macdonald, Seattle Times

Hello A Proud Mother, welcome out of the lurking shadows. I do hope you will continue to contribute. BTW. I have merged the two similar topics/

I've amended the title of this topic to be a bit more generic about Moscow City Ballet as Nutcracker and Swan Lake have also now been mentioned. Please do add your thoughts to this thread if you have seen the company on the current tour

Links - Sunday, November 23, 2014 Review – Mikhailovsky Ballet, Flames of Paris, Le Halte de Cavalerie, Class Concert, Prelude, New York: Luke Jennings, Observer Preview – Mikhailovsky Ballet, Flames of Paris, Los Angeles: Joseph Carman, LA Times Review – Royal Ballet, Scenes de Ballet, Five Brahms Waltzes in the manner of Isadora Duncan, Symphonic Variations, A Month in the Country, London: Judith Cruikshank, Danceview Times Interview – Katerina Novikova, press spokeswoman of the Bolshoi: Ismene Brown, Blog via 20 minutes Review – Sarasota Ballet, Sergeant Early’s Dream, Lux Aeterna, Rubies, Sarasota: Carrie Seidman, Sarasota Herald Tribune Review – Rambert, Triptych, London: Graham Watts, DanceTabs Review – Baryshnikov & Dafoe, The Old Woman, Berkeley: Robert Hurwitt, SF Chronicle Review – Dance Theatre of Harlem, Gloria, Dancing on the Front Porch of Heaven, Return, Chicago: Laura Molzahn, Chicago Tribune Review – Smuin Ballet, Christmas Ballet, Walnut Creek: Allan Ulrich SF Chronicle Review – Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures, Edward Scissorhands, Glasgow: Kelly Apter, Scotsman Review – Northern Ballet, Cinderella, Manchester: David Upton, Lancashire Evening Post Preview – Sundays on Broadway: Siobhan Burke, NY Times Review - Orlando Ballet & Bach Festival Society, Carmina Burana, Orlando: Matthew J Palm, Orlando Sentinel Feature – Mikhail Baryshnikov, on photography and his new exhibition: Liz Hoggard, Observer Preview - Cork City Ballet, Nutcracker, Cork: Sophie Gorman, Irish Independent

Hello CharlieChuck, I've moved your latest thread to the more appropriate Doing Dance Forum, where you are more likely to get some responses.

Links - Saturday, November 22, 2014 Review – Mikhailovsky Ballet, Don Quixote, New York: Gia Kourlas, NY Times Preview – An American in Paris, Paris: Laura Cappelle, FT Review – Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures, Edward Scissorhands, Glasgow: Vivienne Aitken, Daily Record Preview – This week’s new dance in London and Lancaster: Judith Mackrell, Guardian Review – Northern Ballet, Cinderella, Manchester: Elise Gallagher, What's on Stage P/Review – American Repertory Ballet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Rahway New Jersey: Robert Johnson, New Jersey Stage Review – Luke George, Not about face, New York: Gia Kourlas, NY Times Review – Hawthorne Dance, ClockWork, San Francisco: Allan Ulrich, SF Chronicle Review – Post:Ballet, Hi-5 mixed programme, San Francisco: David Weigand, SF Chronicle Feature - Baghdad’s Ballet School, a tiny island of creativity amid inescapable violence: Guardian via Associated Press Review – Ballet Ireland, Swan Lake, Dublin: Christie Seaver, Irish Times Review – Joe Moran, Arrangement, London: Jeffrey Gordon Baker, London Dance Review – Steps Beyond, The Look of Feeling, New York: Matt Hanson, Broadway World And finally… Original 1948 Film Review – The Red Shoes: Anne Campbell Dixon, Telegraph

So sorry about your young friend Taxi. Sincere condolences to his family and friends.

I was at the performance on Wednesday in Liverpool, led by Tamara Rojo and Junor Souza. Derek Deane's production is a great traditional Swan Lake with great costumes and sets (I differ from DQF in that I love the autumnal colours of the costumes in Acts 1 and 3). I agree with DQF that the company is on splendid form and the swans were superb. I loved Junor Souza from his first appearance on stage - he's princely and a sensitive partner and his dancing was enthralling to watch. I thought James Streeter exuded menace as Von Rothbart. I wasn't so sure about Tamara Rojo at first in Act 2 - she was a bit too steely for my taste as Odette, however in the last couple of minutes as Von Rothbart is reeling her back in, she was so desperate to remain with Seigfried that she just broke my heart and absolutely convinced me she was Odette. It was just stunning to watch. Of course, she was superbly convincing as Odile! And then onto Act 4 when I was completely blown away by the tragedy of her performance - what a tragedienne! She and Junor Souza were magical together. The orchestra, under the baton of Gavin Sutherland, was magnificent throughout. Altogether it was a splendid performance, made even better by catching up with DQF in the intervals!