Irmgard

I was so pleased to attend Friday evening’s performance to experience yet again the sublime partnership of Erina Takahashi and Jeffrey Cirio. They are so perfectly matched and give the gentlest, most tender reading of Manon and her Des Grieux. Before I write about that, I have to agree with a previous post about the irritating ‘business’ going on around the sides of the stage. It seems to me that the only direction the beggars, harlots, thieves etc. have been given is “keep busy”, resulting in the pantomimic, caricature ‘acting’ I loathe, especially noticeable when the lead characters are so real and natural, which was one of my niggles when I first saw the production again in the autumn! However, because I know the ballet so well, I can hone in on the real action and ignore the rest (unless it is really intrusive!), especially when the leads are as immediately engaging as Takahashi and Cirio! However, things seemed to have settled somewhat by Saturday evening’s performance (more about that in another post) or maybe I just became truly expert at ignoring them! As in the autumn, I immediately fell for Cirio with his elegant dancing so full of quiet emotion and always directed towards the diminutive, wide-eyed Takahashi’s Manon. Her formidable technique is always subjugated to the character she is portraying, and her Manon is full of quiet gentleness, like Cirio’s Des Grieux. Her exquisite footwork, which I have always admired, is used to perfection in Manon’s first entrance, and I loved the way she imbued all that filigree footwork with a sense of wonderment at the fascination she creates in others. After Cirio’s beautifully expressive solo, Takahashi also makes much of the stillness as she almost hovers en pointe before taking off into the most joyous pas de deux in which there is such a delightful, youthful intimacy that it can only end with the two of them running off together! Before that, there was the joy of the wonderfully elegant solo danced by Daniel McCormick as Lescaut and the exuberant Rina Kanehara owning the stage in the Mistress’s solo. She appears so determined to enjoy life that even his sometimes brutish behaviour towards her cannot diminish her zest (or that phenomenal technique!). This was especially so in the Act II drunken pas de deux where even an unexpected tumble towards the end (and anyone seeing it for the first time would have assumed it was part of the choreography) could not displace that joyous smile! As in the performance I saw in Milton Keynes, the Act I bedroom pas de deux from Takahashi and Cirio was the embodiment of young love and had acquired an even more ecstatic sheen, culminating in that famous dive by Manon onto the bed! Her euphoria was quickly dashed by the arrival of Lescaut and Monsieur GM. Dmitri Gruzdyev plays him as a brutish, lecherous predator intent on owning the delectable Manon as he places the necklace around her neck in a gesture purely denoting ownership rather than the seductive quality Reimair gives it. Takahashi’s Manon appears bewildered and hurt by her brother’s manipulation of the situation and goes through the motions of the pas de trois as if constantly being coached by him as to what to do. As she goes off with GM, I had the feeling it was only because she was submitting to her brother’s will, as no doubt she would do to GM’s, but that she was not going to enjoy it! Perhaps a timely reminder, especially with the latest television dramatisation of Les Misérables, of what women without fortune throughout time have been obliged to do to survive. As before, when Takahashi is paraded around the gambling den, her face is almost expressionless and there is that slight faltering in her walk as she passes Des Grieux. This is Manon the actress as she performs for GM, firstly her seductive solo, with those smaller arm gestures to Des Grieux, and then the aerial manipulation. When her façade does finally crumble, and she clings to DG, it is intensely moving. And what a beautiful, yearning solo Cirio gave us! When they have escaped back to his lodgings, Manon’s relief at finally being able to express her love for Des Grieux was evident, although there was still that almost childlike refusal to give up the bracelet which represented her one piece of financial security. Takahashi’s naturally gamine appearance adds an extra poignancy to Manon’s arrival in the New World and the unwanted attentions of Daniel Kraus’s Gaoler. Cirio’s distress at seeing her carted away by the guards progressed naturally to his stabbing of the Gaoler and their escape. Both Cirio and Takahashi were heartbreaking in their response to each other in the final pas de deux, still clinging to their memories of their first joyous love as her strength fades. They seem such a natural partnership that I hope very much they will be cast together in many more performances to come!

Unfortunately I don't have a ticket for this show but at least it is giving me time to write up all the others!

I have already written much about the two performances I saw on tour of the fabulous new partnership of Begoña Cao and Aitor Arrieta. On Thursday evening, there was a real buzz amongst the almost-capacity audience for the only performance by the company’s “home-grown” ballerina and perhaps one of the youngest dancers to take on the challenging role of Des Grieux. As reported in my previous brief post, due to sometimes unintuitive conducting from Orlando Jopling, the performance did suffer from an orchestral accompaniment that, although ravishing, did lack some impetus, particularly in the Act II pas de deux, and it was for that reason alone that it did not always reach the dizzying heights of the performance I saw in Southampton. However, that is a very small niggle in an otherwise unforgettable evening and of course anyone seeing this cast for the first time would have been completely unaware of it, such is their artistry. The last-minute spate of injuries and seasonal illnesses, presumably the reason for not displaying all the casting on the website as was done for the autumn tour, meant that some alterations in the pairing of the supporting roles have been made since then, but I was delighted that the brilliant partnership of Ken Saruhashi’s scheming Lescaut and Crystal Costa’s Mistress remained intact. To say that Costa’s Mistress is a ‘tart with a heart’ is to do an injustice to her gorgeously refined dancing but her warmth, charm and vivacity lit up the stage whenever she appeared, making the heartless slap by the controlling Lescaut in the first scene seem particularly cruel. As before, the haunted look on her face when she realises deportation could be her fate was intensely moving. Arrieta’s Des Grieux is definitely the bookish young man of Abbé Prévost’s story (who is seduced away from the priesthood by Manon after she first abandons him – a scene which is retained in Massenet’s opera). He is an innocent abroad, unsure how to react to the teasing of the Courtesans at the coaching inn, but we can see that his life will change completely as he falls utterly in love with Manon from the moment he sees her. With a beautifully pliant, long lean body, Cao’s Manon is already aware that she can fascinate, as witnessed by the way she hands her cape and hat to the obliging gentlemen, but not yet of how devastating this will power will be. There is something so ethereal yet sensual about the way she moves, and her whole body looked breathtakingly beautiful as Lescaut effortlessly lifted her whilst teasing the Old Man. Her materialistic side is already evident in her facial expression as she realises the Old Man’s bag left with her to guard is filled with money. When Des Grieux danced for Manon, there was something genuinely touching about the gentle, elegant way he expressed his feelings, as if daring to hope they might be reciprocated. I noticed that he took both her hands to kiss them and Cao then brought her hands to her chest in a gesture expressing an inner joy. When he led her from the chair, her bourrées were so exquisite, it seemed as if she was floating and then there was that lovely moment when she stands so still, en pointe, as if the sudden love she experiences is almost overwhelming. And then those gloriously eloquent legs and feet of hers, expressing total rapture in the aerial walks! And how lovely to see her eloquent quicksilver épaulement in the little series of steps where Arrieta repeatedly turns her to look at him and then away again! This was MacMillan choreography danced in the style of Ashton at its very best! As with Dronina in the afternoon, Cao’s beautiful, seductive way of stretching her feet to the very ends of her toes so that it appears she is not wearing pointe shoes at all is the hallmark of MacMillan’s conception of Manon so that Monsieur GM’s obsession (and MacMillan’s!) is completely understandable. If the music for the bedroom pas de deux lacked the expected impetus, Arrieta and Cao made up for it by an almost languorous sensuality and in those astonishing lifts with Arrieta carrying Cao on high with her amazing backbends, one could feel her ecstasy pulsating through the glorious arc of her body. It was so good to see Junor Souza back onstage, after his injury shortly before his scheduled Siegfried in the autumn, emanating danger and lust in his imposing Monsieur GM. With the manipulative Lescaut, the pas de trois reached new levels of eroticism with Cao’s tantalising developpés and huge eyes hypnotising him. As well as having technique of the highest quality, Saruhashi and Costa are exceptionally fine actors and know how to be genuinely funny without playing for laughs. Therefore, their drunken pas de deux in Act II was a masterpiece of comedy, looking completely spontaneous and natural (and some of the ‘drunken’ ladies and gentlemen onstage should take note of how it is done!). The Mistress has to allow her body to be manipulated into some of the most ungainly positions ever seen onstage and Costa was brilliant at this, especially when Lescaut is staggering around, holding her upside down, and she relaxed her upper body so much that her head was bobbing about in a truly comic way but totally believable. Cao’s glittering entrance showed her transformation into a woman of such sophistication and dignity that one could sense the feeling of awe from everyone else in the room, and the almost gloating pride of GM. Cao is supreme in the Act II solo, imbuing every movement with a tantalising sexuality, again with that gloriously languid upper body and ports de bras which almost glow with electricity. Arrieta’s Des Grieux could only watch with a sense of increasing hopelessness as this evolved into the hypnotic and erotic manipulation of Cao by the gentlemen and there was something so touching about the desperate way he sought to intervene, only to be rejected again by Cao, her alarm showing in her luminous eyes. His solo of yearning for her was heartbreaking, and her descent from sophistication into a broken woman as she realises her all-consuming love for him had me welling up with tears! It was in the subsequent pas de deux that I keenly felt the lack of pulse in the music which is needed to drive the pas de deux onwards, so superbly drawn from the orchestra by Gavin Sutherland at the afternoon’s performance but then he is, for me, the best ballet conductor I have come across in my many years of attending performances, intuitively understanding the support each individual dancer needs. However, Cao and Arrieta magnificently overcame this with a most tender, soulful reconciliation, Cao again letting the ravishing sound flow through her entire body. If such a small moment in Act II had me welling with tears, Act III was almost unbearable, starting from Cao’s descent from the boat with her limbs and body taking on such an air of fragility but still with her luminous beauty attracting the attention of Daniel Kraus’s quietly authoratitive Gaoler, with Arrieta’s young, distraught Des Grieux powerless to stop him. Cao is so fragile by the time of the Gaoler’s sexual assault that, as I said of her previous performances, her body appears totally broken as she literally lies in a heap on the floor. The final, desperate pas de deux had me inwardly gasping at so many moments as Arrieta seemed to be trying to bring Cao back from her delirium by reliving the precious moments from their previous pas de deux and Cao desperately attempting to respond to him and then that final, off-balance arabesque as a heartbreaking distortion of its previous appearance as an expression of their ecstatic love, caught with such passion by Arrieta that it brought me to tears before Arrieta’s anguish when he realises she is dead finished me off completely. When Cao was presented with a huge sheaf of flowers following the company bow, it was wonderful to see everyone onstage and in the pit break into spontaneous applause for her magnificent performance, in which Arrieta also proved what a superb artist he is. To respond to a comment in an earlier post about the lack of flowers for Dronina, there have been flowers for the dancers at every performance but it appears entirely random as to which are presented onstage and which are delivered to the dressing rooms! For those who were at this performance, I hope my report will bring back memories of this very special evening and, for those who were not, will provide a glimpse of what the audience was privileged to see.

Please, please, please continue to watch ballets and let us know how you react to them! Apart from paying tribute to the wonderful performances I am privileged to see, I would hope that my reports enhance your viewing pleasure by pointing out some of the lovely details to watch out for. Yes, I do have specialist knowledge but the biggest pleasure of having that knowledge is to share it with others.

The matinée audience on Thursday was of a respectable size but nowhere near what this emotional rollercoaster of a performance deserved. Jurgita Dronina is Abbé Prévost’s “very young” Manon, looking barely more than a child as she emerges from the coach and runs towards her brother with the most dazzling of smiles. As she gazes out at the auditorium in wide-eyed wonderment, it is as if she is seeing all of Paris laid out at her feet. This is no ballerina pretending to be an adolescent – she simply IS. Dronina has added so many fine details to her performance since last year that it was hard to watch anything else on stage, even when she was at the back, for fear of missing something. Isaac Hernandez as Des Grieux responded as I have never seen him before: once he has seen her, never taking his eyes off her and, when they are finally alone, she could not take her eyes off him so that the chemistry between them was electrifying. His solo, while still lacking a degree of finesse, was imbued with passion and everything was directed to her, with his eyes continually coming back to her. Then a magical moment: after he gently and tenderly kissed her hand, she let her arm linger in the air for a moment and then sank back in her chair with a feeling of sheer bliss. Then came a pas de deux with all the spontaneous, rapturous abandon I had longed to see at their performance in Milton Keynes. As he led her gently from the chair, her gorgeous bourrées shimmered, as if quivering with excitement. I noticed even more freedom in Dronina’s beautifully pliant upper back and neck, especially in the arabesque when she rolls her head towards him as he turns her to face him: their faces were so close it was if they were going to kiss. In fact, there were so many moments like this in their growing intimacy and, for her, growing ecstasy as Hernandez lifted her with great passion, his very secure partnering allowing each lift to draw a more ecstatic response from her upper body, arms and head. The last lift before the final embrace was breathtaking: as he ran forward, she did a sort of backbend with a sense of complete rapture throughout her whole body. In the following bedroom pas de deux, Dronina’s Manon showed her childlike playfulness, so sweetly demonstrated in her gentle teasing of her travelling companion, the Old Man. Perfectly reflecting the ravishing sounds drawn from the orchestra by Gavin Sutherland, the rapturous young love between Manon and Des Grieux developed into a deeper passion but always with a sense of youthful abandon, especially as he spun her round in the off-balance arabesque, culminating after he has left to post his letter with that delightful moment when she hurled herself onto the bed which looked completely spontaneous. Indeed, everything about Dronina’s performance looked spontaneous, with nothing calculated or planned, bringing a wonderful freshness to MacMillan’s inspiring choreography. This performance benefited from the chilling presence of Fabian Reimair’s dissolute and dangerous Monsieur GM. If there was anyone in the audience not aware of MacMillan’s foot fetish before this performance, they would be left in no doubt about it as Reimair first fondled the legs and feet of Lescaut’s Mistress, played as a delightfully dizzy airhead by Rina Kanehara, and then became obsessed with Manon’s in an erotically charged pas de trois aided and abetted by the darkly manipulative Lescaut of Daniel McCormick. Dronina responded with her beautifully seductive développé and exquisitely pointed feet. She played on his obsession later in her Act II solo, when she tantalised GM with her delicious dégagés, again with those beautifully stretched feet, while Des Grieux looked on helplessly. Before the pas de trois, there was more wonderful detail with the coat as she could not stop stroking the fur until, in a gesture as much seductive as proof of ownership, Reimair placed the necklace ever so slowly around her neck and there was a little shiver of ecstasy as she feels the diamonds touch her skin. After the pas de trois, the way she impulsively rushed to put on the coat again was like a child with a new toy and reinforced just how young Manon is while demonstrating that it was life’s luxuries she could not forego, even if it meant abandoning her beloved Des Grieux. Act I was brought to a stunning conclusion by a very realistic fight between an anguished Des Grieux and Lescaut as Lescaut forces him to accept the money GM has paid for Manon. I was once told by the legendary Ashton dancer, Julia Farron, that Margot Fonteyn had such an aura about her that, whenever she entered a room, all eyes would be on her, and this is the effect created by the Act II entrance of Reimair and Dronina. And always, there was Hernandez, never taking his eyes off her and trying to attract her attention, always resolutely ignored by her until he interrupts her hypnotic dance with the other men, when her distress that GM might see them together was so real. When they are finally alone, with DG expressing his love for her through his dancing, the moment her facade crumbles was intensely moving. During the card game which followed, I loved the way she continually tried to distract GM from Des Grieux’s clumsy cheating by showering him with kisses and caresses in a very playful way. After Manon and Des Grieux escape, their pas de deux was initially so carefree it was as if the interlude with GM had never happened and they were back to their magical first encounter. Until, that is, Des Grieux tried to make her give up her bracelet and then the Manon who cannot live without luxury returned. With Reimair as GM, his shooting of Lescaut in front of Manon was particularly chilling and ruthless, bringing forth an almost unbearable outpouring of grief from Manon. As they arrive in the New World, Dronina’s Manon is already very weak and disoriented, so much so that she cannot even walk down the gangplank without the tender support of Des Grieux. From this moment on, she cannot bear to be parted from Des Grieux and pushes away the advances of Streeter’s brutal Gaoler to return to Des Grieux each time. After the Gaoler’s vicious sexual assault, Dronina curls into a foetal position as if to soothe her abused body. As Manon and Des Grieux escape, having killed the Gaoler, I love the way the mists swirl onto stage with a sense of foreboding, perfectly reflecting the Dies Irae theme in the music, and Dronina makes it clear from her anguished body language that the parade of people from her past represents her hallucinations. There followed the most heartbreaking final pas de deux, full of despair yet affirming their extraordinary love for each other as Dronina again could not bear to be parted from Hernandez for a single moment, hurling her broken body into his arms with every last ounce of her strength until, following that last, intensely moving off-balance arabesque of utter despair, her body becomes achingly sad and limp as he catches her in one final lift and tenderly lays her on the ground before realising she has died. Well, this really has turned into L’Histoire de Manon but I hope I have helped anyone going to the Saturday evening performance to recognise what a truly remarkable and unforgettable experience it will be.

This will be a very brief post before I head back into London for the Royal Ballet dress rehearsal, thus sadly missing the debut a day early of McWhinney and Frola, before this evening’s performance by the wonderful partnership of Takahashi and Cirio. Both performances yesterday deserve more detailed reports so I will try to do this tomorrow morning or after the evening performance by Jurgita Dronina and Isaac Hernandez. At the matinée, Dronina enchanted me all over again with her exquisite Manon. After their performance in Milton Keynes, I expressed a wish that Hernandez would be more rapturous and yesterday afternoon my wish came true! Although his dancing still lacks a degree of finesse, it was filled with such passion that I found all the pas de deux breathtaking and, during the final pas de deux, I felt my heart pounding at the impending tragedy! I am therefore looking forward to tomorrow evening’s performance to see if it reaches even greater heights! The otherwise glorious performance by Begoña Cao and Aitor Arrieta in the evening was slightly marred by the unsupportive conducting of Orlando Jopling. Conducting the score for the first time at the Coliseum, I do not know if he was overwhelmed by its vastness but he appeared to be conducting a concert performance of the score. There was absolutely nothing wrong with the ravishing sounds coming from the pit but they lacked the impetus needed for MacMillan’s exhilarating but exhausting pas de deux. However, nothing could diminish the heart-breaking final moments. It is just a shame that the exceptional partnership of Cao and Arrieta only received the one performance. More about it tomorrow!

Having seen so many visceral, heartrending performances (five out of six) during the company’s autumn tour, about which I wrote extensively, and of course the thrilling final performance of “Swan Lake” on Sunday, I was surprised to be somewhat underwhelmed by Alina Cojocaru’s and Joseph Caley’s opening night performance. I am sure there will be many who disagree with me, as luckily most of the near-capacity audience loved them and therefore the company received the rousing ovation it richly deserved, even if the houselights were brought up far too early. I felt there was not enough chemistry between the leads and, although I cannot fault the dancing (except to say that Cojocaru’s unflattering pointe shoes distracted from the filigree footwork of the choreography), I felt both pas de deux in Act I lacked the rapturous abandon I saw from the other casts, and even the final pas de deux was a bit too carefully danced for my taste. However, Cojocaru’s eye make-up in Act III was superb and really opened up her eyes, making them appear huge which added to her already gamine-like appearance. It took a while for me to warm to Jeffrey Cirio’s Lescaut in Act I (having immediately fallen for his Des Grieux previously!) but his characterisation deepened and, with his flawless technique, the drunken solo in Act II was nothing short of brilliant, as was his pas de deux with his long-suffering but indulgent mistress, Katja Khaniukova. From her first appearance in Act I, she was a very high class courtesan with her particularly elegant yet seductive and vivacious dancing which certainly caught the eye of James Streeter’s Monsieur GM. Her characterful and stylish solo in Act II, when she is trying to distract Des Grieux, demonstrated her exceptionally exquisite footwork. It was extraordinary to see a full house of other Lescauts and Mistresses in the ensembles and, in the very elegant trio of dancing gentlemen, Thursday night’s Des Grieux, Aitor Arrieta, along with Ken Saruhashi and Daniel McCormick who will both be dancing Lescaut. There was also the loveliest line-up of Courtesans: Crystal Costa, Adela Ramirez, Rina Kanehara, Jia Zhang and Anjuli Hudson, and it was wonderful to see the sublime technique and vibrant personalities of Costa and Ramirez given full comic rein in their warring duet in Act II. In fact, watching the vivacious Ramirez, I find it curious she has not been cast as Lescaut’s Mistress! In Act III, the beginning of the dance of the deported prostitutes was full of the pathos and hopelessness I remember being so moved by ten years ago although it was not sustained throughout and I was more conscious of the choreography rather than the emotion by the end. However, Act III benefitted from the chilling Gaoler of Fabian Reimair, oozing power and lust as he inspected the new arrivals and chose Manon for his pleasure, resulting in a particularly brutal assault, and the look of shock and surprise on his face as he is stabbed (probably only visible to those of us on the left side of the auditorium) was unforgettable. Although overall this performance showed the company in top form, it was the sublime music, so superbly played by the orchestra under the miraculous baton of maestro supremo Gavin Sutherland, which touched my soul and tugged at my heartstrings.

Absolutely! McWhinney and Frola are a stunning combination!

Beggars, courtesans, dancing gentlemen, townsfolk, deported prostitutes - there may not be as much for the ladies as in "Swan Lake" but there is still plenty for them to dance! However, this extremely hard-working company is used to such an intense performance schedule.

As of today, Dronina should be dancing both her performances! Frola is a fantastic Des Grieux (see my previous post of his performance in Southampton) and I am looking forward to seeing him again with Alison McWhinney.

I, too, would have to watch that DVD again as I really can't remember all the details from so long ago! However, it would not surprise me if there were slight differences in the staging although in the main it is definitely Ashton's.

For the last “Swan Lake” of the season, the dancers and musicians pulled out all the stops to give a performance that was almost as flawless and certainly as sublime as the miraculous partnership of Begoña Cao and Aitor Arrieta. Conductor Gerry Cornelius understands dancers and the support they need and he drew from the orchestra the most exquisite sounds, especially from the violin and cello soloists in the Act II pas de deux, which was ravishing, and the hauntingly beautiful Act IV. From the moment the delightful, nimble-footed Adriana Lizardi and Barry Drummond led on the very spirited group of villagers, it was clear this was going to be a performance to treasure. While I would have liked more Ashton style from most of the ladies in the Pas de Douze, there was the lovely lyricism of Emily Suzuki’s dancing and some very stylish partnering and dancing from the gentlemen. There followed an absolutely delicious pas de trois with beautiful style and joie de vivre from dream team Crystal Costa, Adela Ramirez and Ken Saruhashi. These are quality dancers who imbue even the smallest step with artistry and musicality, as per the very first temps levé in which they all stretched the left foot exquisitely to the nth degree which, for me, was one of the many moments when I inwardly gasped at the sheer beauty of their technique. All three solos were shot full of character and style, leading to a most joyous and thrilling coda. Ramirez also shone in the sparkling Neapolitan in Act III, along with Rhys Antoni Yeomans, with Ramirez especially demonstrating the original Ashton ports de bras and both of them dazzling with their beautifully executed intricate footwork and sunny smiles. Ramirez was also on the cast sheet as a cygnet but she was replaced by Francesca Velicu, joining an outstanding cast of Crystal Costa, Jung ah Choi and Rina Kanehara in a seemingly effortless and perfectly synchronised performance of this fiendishly difficult choreography. And so to the glorious Prince Siegfried of Aitor Arrieta, who has added even more characterisation and detail to the already finely nuanced performance I saw in Bristol. Arrieta is himself still so young that his bewilderment, beautifully portrayed, over his mother’s wish for him to marry is totally believable. His elegant dancing is so effortless, with the silken sheen of his beautiful arabesque line and the oh so soft landing of his jumps into melting pliés, that it is easy to forget how difficult the Act I solo really is. There was the usual problem of audience chatter and lights from mobile phones spoiling the beginning of Act II but the magnificent Von Rothbart of Fabian Reimair rising majestically and sinisterly from the swirling mists brought the audience to a stunned silence as he skillfully manipulated his huge wings. In fact, there was such power and authority to the way he did this that I wondered if it had been the inspiration for the opening section of Khan’s “Dust” in which Reimair manipulated the arms of the dancers on either side of him as if they were wings and he was trying to take flight. Like Dronina, Cao’s Odette/Odile has reached stratospheric heights and everything I wrote about her enchanting Odette in Bristol and the breathtaking beauty and delicacy of her dancing applied even more at this performance. The electrifying chemistry with Arrieta was even more evident than in Bristol, when he replaced Souza as Cao’s prince only a few hours before curtain-up, and led to new levels of tenderness in the flawless Act II pas de deux which was of such moving intensity that I was brought to tears for the second Sunday in a row. Just before the pas de deux, when Arrieta returned to the stage in search of her, I loved the way he actually looked at the other swans and showed his disappointment each time he could not find his Odette (something he repeated in Act III when the exceptionally lovely line-up of princesses did not include her). Then there was a moment of pure magic as he raised his arms as if in despair and Cao gently placed her hands on his right arm in that perfect Cao arabesque. This was so much more moving than those Siegfrieds who just stick their arms out so that Odette can balance. There followed the most limpid of solos from Cao in which Tchaikovsky’s haunting music flowed throughout her entire body and then the most gorgeous ports de bras I have ever seen as she joins in the balancé steps with her wonderful corps de ballet of swans at the end of the coda. The Act III pas de deux became truly dramatic with Reimair wielding a hypnotic power over the whole court and conspiring with the incandescent, sensual Odile to totally bewitch the already beguiled Siegfried. And I doubt there are many Odiles who can toss off a perfect set of thirty-two fouettés while maintaining a dazzling and triumphant smile throughout! As to Act IV, I can pay no higher compliment to the immaculate ensemble of swans, and to ballet mistress Hua Fang Zhang who no doubt was responsible for meticulously maintaining the standard, that when I am asked for my five best performances of 2019, ENB’s corps de ballet of swans in Act IV will be amongst them, as no doubt will be this performance by Cao and Arrieta, whose Act IV was heartbreaking in its dignity and despair. An honourable mention as well for the fabulous death throes (something I don’t usually notice) of Reimair’s mesmerising Von Rothbart. I can only reiterate what I said after their performance in Bristol, that I cannot comprehend why such a world-class partnership as Cao and Arrieta have proved to be were only granted one out of ENB’s thirteen performances at the Coliseum. For those unlucky enough not to be part of the capacity audience yesterday, I would recommend grabbing any unsold tickets for their “Manon” on Thursday evening as fast as you can!

Thursday afternoon marked the London debut and only performance during the run of the partnership between Shiori Kase and Ken Saruhashi and it was a class act from start to finish. Both of them are possessed of the most refined and elegant technique and musicality which always makes them a huge pleasure to watch and, together, something very special, as appreciated by the ecstatic applause they received from the capacity audience. ENB has been very stingy for many years with the number of curtain calls their wonderful dancers and orchestra are accorded, bringing up the houselights far too early when it is evident, as it was yesterday afternoon, that the audience wanted more! Saruhashi has an innate nobility, which makes him a natural for princely roles, while also making Siegfried a many-layered character, so gallant in partnering the ladies in the Pas de Douze, responding thoughtfully although negatively to the request of the lovely Queen of Sarah Kundi that he considers marriage, and being totally believable in his instant captivation by the exquisite Odette of Kase. In Act III, he partners the prospective fiancées with care but it is clear his mind is elsewhere and then, being the consummate actor that he is, even imbues his walk upstage to start his solo with his innermost thoughts. He makes the fiendish solo in Act I a soliloquy of the most heartfelt yearning with every arabesque and port de bras not only beautifully executed but an expression of his inner turmoil. There is not much for Siegfried to do in Act II, apart from partner Odette, but Saruhashi continues his masterful portrayal through his wonderfully eloquent mime and his protective, tender and almost awestruck partnering of this fragile swan maiden. As I reported from Bristol, Kase is the most regal of Odettes yet displays great vulnerability and once again I was struck by the delicacy and breathtaking grace of her dancing. Her beautifully slow, controlled half-turns in attitude were an absolutely joy to behold and her face was so expressive, whether imploring Siegfried not to shoot her fellow swan-maidens or Von Rothbart (the regal but sinister Daniel Kraus) or continually searching Siegfried’s face to reassure herself of his love. Her lovely solo was both limpid and soulful. The Act III pas de deux can become just an exhibition of party tricks but this sublime couple made it a portrait of the most sensual of seductions, with Siegfried completely and utterly in thrall to Odile. What I loved was the moment when Kase came out of her supported backbend when the audience could not see her face or Saruhashi’s but it was clear from the electricity of their body language, even in this static pose held for just long enough, that he was looking deep into her hypnotic eyes. The talent Kase has for holding poses to the nth second of the music was also notable in the delicious series of échappé relevé in her solo, holding the last one ever so slightly longer in a moment of triumph. The Coda brought the house down and, if Kase did not give the phenomenal multiple turns to her final fouetté that she pulled off in Bristol, she still gave a spectacular display of rock solid singles and doubles. Accompanied by the soulful dancing of the swan maidens, Act IV was heartbreaking, with Kase’s Odette remaining dignified and regal to the end and Saruhashi’s Siegfried broken by his inadvertent and devastating betrayal. A totally engaging performance to introduce the many, mainly well-behaved, schoolchildren in the dress circle to the joy of ballet. There were elements of yesterday’s performance which did not live up to the highest of standards set by the two stars but the exceptions included another sparking Neapolitan with exemplary footwork and joie de vivre from Katja Khaniukova and Joshua McSherry-Gray and another sublime Act IV from the corps de ballet of swans who seem to be going from strength to strength at each performance, despite their arduous performance schedule. As per the query in a previous post, the Cast Sheet continues to perpetuate an error in assigning the Polonaise in Act I to the six couples who perform the Waltz (Pas de Douze) who exit hot on the heels of the Queen Mother. It is the (very upmarket yet uncredited) fourteen peasants who perform the Polonaise which is the last ensemble dance in Act I, stylishly led at this matinee by Anjuli Hudson and Pedro Lapetra.

I'm not sure but if enough people pester them, it would be in their interests to do so!

Takahashi has another performance on 11 Jan and it really is worth ringing the box office to see if there are any returns or unsold box seats. Plus, I have been informed that they may be selling standing passes!

As I was not able to see their performance in Bristol, I was extremely pleased to be at the Coliseum debut of the partnership of Erina Takahashi and Francesco Gabriele Frola on Saturday afternoon (5th). Takahashi’s Odette/Odile is always something special, with her beautiful fragility as Odette and breathtaking fireworks as Odile, and she was perfectly matched by the passion and elegance of Frola. I have been a fan of his since his unforgettable performance in “No Man’s Land” when he first joined the company in September. Here is a dancer who is able to convey a wealth of emotions through his whole body, which made his Act I solo particularly soulful with his beautiful sense of line and ports de bras, and his musicality at one with the gorgeous playing of the orchestra under the baton of maestro Gavin Sutherland. Before that, he engaged well with the villagers and courtiers in celebrating his birthday and I liked the affectionate mother-son relationship with the radiant and regal Queen of Sarah Kundi who thus seemed surprised and hurt rather than annoyed when he tells her he is not ready to consider marriage. At the lakeside, Frola’s Siegfried was instantly attracted to the captivating Odette of Takahashi as she used beautifully clear and elegant mime to tell her story and he responded with equally eloquent mime. The ensuing pas de deux was sublime, as was Takahashi’s delicate solo with her hallmark exquisite footwork and beautifully sustained balances, perfectly matching the musical line. In Act III, her Odile was electrifying and, in the entrée of the pas de deux, her astonishing balance in arabesque was probably the longest I have seen any Odile make without one wobble but, instead of just being a party trick, Takahashi imbued it with a sense of triumph over the Prince so that it breathed instead of just being static, and of course her series of single and double fouetté turnsin the Coda were immaculate! Frola was equally impressive, especially in his joyous solo, and so all the fabulous turns he pulled off in the Coda expressed his ecstasy at finding the girl he loved and therefore made his heartbreak palpable when the deception is revealed. Act IV was simply sublime from all concerned. Apart from a sparkling Neapolitan from Katja Khaniukova and Victor Prigent and the always watchable Jung ah Choi in various dances, I felt most of the dancing in Acts I and III was not particularly distinguished but I did notice a refinement to the Czardas and Mazurka which had been missing at the performances I saw in Bristol, and I also felt that the ensemble dancing of the swans in Act II had gained in style and precision. Since I was sitting a few seats away from Derek Deane, no doubt the company has had the benefit of his guiding hand for the London performances! For the performance on 6 January, Gerry Cornelius stepped in for the indisposed Gavin Sutherland to conduct with great sensitivity and drawing ravishing sounds from the orchestra as befitted the utterly sublime Odette/Odile of Jurgita Dronina. Before trying to describe her mesmerising performance, I would like to commend the whole company for a quality performance. Although some of the ladies still lack the Ashton style of the Pas de Douze, there was excellent dancing and partnering from the gentlemen. The villagers were led by the effervescent Barry Drummond and Anjuli Hudson and, as has happened each time I have seen her this season, my eye was drawn to the lovely style of Emily Suzuki. The pas de trois at this performance was exquisitely danced by Crystal Costa, Katja Khaniukova and Shale Wagman. Costa seems to have been born dancing en pointe, such is the quality of everything she does, with beautiful line and footwork and a ballon as uplifting as her dazzling smile. She gave a masterclass of Petipa style in her delightful solo. Khaniukova shone in the second solo, with a charming flirtatiousness and lovely, delicate footwork. Shale Wagman danced with great zest and virtuosity and my one criticism of him would be that he should try not to lose his sunny expression on the big jumps. In Act II, I was even more impressed by the improvement in style, musicality and precision of the corps de ballet of swans than I was on Saturday and this performance benefitted from the elegance and grace of Alison McWhinney and Precious Adams as Lead Swans and a quartet of cygnets (Crystal Costa, Katja Khaniukova, Adriana Lizardi and, replacing the indisposed Adela Ramirez, Francesca Velicu) who, while not quite reaching the flawlessness of their original quartet I saw in Bristol, came extremely close to it. Lizardi replaced Ramirez in the Neapolitan dance, giving a charming performance with Rhys Antoni Yeomans, and another highlight of Act III was a sizzling Spanish dance with particularly sensual dancing from Emily Suzuki and Stina Quagebeur to which Erik Woolhouse and Fernando Coloma responded with great panache. Isaac Hernandez was Siegfried. I understand there was a lot of criticism in the press of his opening night performance and I myself was disappointed in his performance I saw in Bristol. However, it seems he may have taken on board some of the criticisms and I was pleased to see an improvement in his engagement with others onstage and an effort to imbue his dancing with a more emotional quality but there is some way to go before he reaches the artistic levels of his colleagues in the role or to even begin to reach the stratospheric level of Dronina. What I will always praise him for is his excellent partnering of her and I thought there was an extra degree of tenderness to this at Sunday’s matinee. Having already used so many superlatives for Dronina’s performance in Bristol, I can only state that they applied even more to this performance where she reached such levels of beauty in her dancing that my breath was continually taken away! She even made her first appearance during the overture into a thing of rare beauty and I loved the look of terror on her face as she sensed the approach of Von Rothbart (a very sinister James Streeter) before she saw him, something she repeated when he separated her from Siegfried in Act II. At this performance I noticed even more use of her head and neck with her lovely eyes continually seeking reassurance from Siegfried that his love for her was real. During the pas de deux she was so meltingly soft and hauntingly vulnerable that it brought tears to my eyes and the one image that stays in my mind was the most gorgeous developpé just before the first series of petits battements serré into the single supported pirouette. She unfolded her leg with such beauty of movement, ending perfectly on the last note of that phrase of music. Her solo was exquisite and reinforced my previous thoughts that she is the most feminine of Odettes with a softness to every movement which she keeps for her Odile while throwing off all the expected fireworks, including beautiful fouetté turns, so that it makes perfect sense that Siegfried would mistake her for Odette. Hernandez seemed galvanised by her and added some virtuosic jumps that I do not remember seeing in Bristol, so that they both received prolonged applause by the end of the Coda. If Act II took my breath away, Act IV tugged at the heartstrings, especially the opening when the swans emerge from the swirling mists. Again, I congratulate them all on a sublime performance of this mini masterpiece by Ashton (so much more rewarding than the latest or the previous Act IV by the Royal Ballet). Once again, Dronina’s mime was heartbreaking but this time there was an urgency as she ran towards the lake and, as she was stopped by the other swans, she appeared to collapse over them and there was a most wonderful, utterly defeated droop to her body and neck as they led her back to their protection. I was also touched by the way she haltingly folded herself into the ‘dying swan’ position before Siegfried ran on to find her, again showing the hopelessness of her situation, as did her drooping body as he held her in supported attitude derrière. The battle with Von Rothbart was especially exciting as she appeared to kick at him as she was carried aloft by Siegfried in the supported jetés. I love the fact that the loyal swans are the focal point of the final moments of the ballet as they bow to the spirits of their queen and her prince united in death so that the ending is as sublime as the music. Deservedly, the performances this week are sold out but it is always worth telephoning the box office for returns or for the occasional unsold box seats which you have to ask for specifically as they are not sold on the website.

Slight error! The Prince's Act 1 solo was actually first introduced by Nureyev in 1962 but was fully incorporated into Ashton's 1965 reworking of the production.

Yes, it is Ashton's Act IV from his 1963 production for the Royal Ballet. As well as the Neapolitan and the Pas de Douze (waltz in Act I), I believe the Spanish dance and possibly the Fiancees' are also his. The Prince's Act I solo is sometimes attributed to Ashton but it was actually introduced by Nureyev in 1965. The company also used to do Ashton's pas de quatre in Deane's proscenium version but this was cut some time ago.

It did on tour.

Cesar Corrales and Jia Zhang in “Le jeune homme et la mort” (ENB) Luana Georg in her farewell performance of “Giselle” with Sergei Upkin and Estonian National Ballet in Mary Skeaping’s production Begoña Cao, Aitor Arrieta and Junor Souza in “Manon” (ENB) Begoña Cao and Aitor Arrieta in “Swan Lake” (ENB) Fernanda Oliveira, Aitor Arrieta and Ken Saruhashi in “Song of the Earth” (ENB) As I mostly attend dress rehearsals of the Royal Ballet, I can’t really count them as performances but Vadim Muntagirov is always the highlight of whichever ballet he appears in. I also loved Jurgita Dronina in everything I saw her dance with ENB this year but her partners did not always match her artistry, otherwise her performances would have tied for second place in my list as nothing (for me) can beat those electrifying performances by Cesar Corrales and Jia Zhang!

After two days’ off following their run of double-performance days, the company looked revitalised and refreshed for their performance on Boxing Day to the delight of the capacity audience. And if the music did not quite reach magical heights under the baton of Orlando Jopling, there were plenty of magical performances onstage. I particularly liked Sophie Mucha as the young Clara. I believe this must be at least her third season performing the role, her experience showing in her beautiful dancing and assured stage presence. She is also not much shorter than Shiori Kase, as her grown-up counterpart, making the transition totally believable, as well as her young girl’s infatuation for the very gallant Nephew of Francesco Gabriele Frola. It is always a delight to watch Alison McWhinney as Louise, the older sister, both in her charming pas de deux with suitor Skyler Martin and her deliciously delicate dancing in Mirlitons, partnered by the genial Drosselmeyer of James Streeter. I was very happy to see the gorgeous Lead Snowflakes of Crystal Costa and Adela Ramirez again and, in fact, all the Snowflakes gave a scintillating account of the choreography, including beautiful legato ports de bras and footwork on the exiting step after their quicksilver dancing to the marvellously in-tune “Ah’s” of the choir. As Clara, Shiori Kase enchanted from her first entrance and, after battling with the wickedly mischievous Mouse King of Daniel Kraus, her pas de deux with her beloved Nutcracker, danced admirably by Daniel McCormick, was heartmeltingly beautiful. Despite the rather plodding tempo taken for the pas de trois that opens Act II, Kase conveyed a wonderful sense of rapture during all the tricky partnering so securely done by Streeter and McCormick. Then, as the Nutcracker transforms into the Nephew, Frola’s devastating smile was enough to light up the whole Coliseum. The divertissements offered a Spanish dance of great panache by Jung Ah Choi, Anjuli Hudson and Pedro Lapetra, an exhilarating Russian dance from Ken Saruhashi and, despite the music being barely audible, Fabian Reimair channelling his “Golden Slave” to give a virtuosic turn to the Arabian dance, supported by a quartet of sultry harem ladies. The tempo taken for the entrée of the grand pas de deux was ‘la plus que lente’ but Kase and Frola gave a sublime account of the choreography, both bringing a glittering majesty to it, with Kase’s innate musicality filling out the extended phrases with her graceful ports de bras and elegant line. I can give no higher praise to the marvellous partnering by Frola than to say that not once did I notice the mechanics of it. Kase’s Sugar Plum Fairy solo was a lovely confection of exquisite footwork and beautifully sustained balances and then both she and Frola were so electrifying in their series of pirouettes, fouetté turns etc. in the coda, that the audience burst into spontaneous applause long before they reached their final pose. In all, an extremely enjoyable way to spend Boxing Day.

Despite reservations seasoned balletgoers may have about Eagling’s “Nutcracker”, it has the power to enchant and engage children, as it did during the matinée on 19 December, when all the children around me, dressed in their Christmas finery, sat in rapt silence throughout. And what a pleasure not to be surrounded by adults munching their way through crisps or sweets or swigging wine, as happened at so many of the performances of other ballets I saw on tour this autumn! I did feel that the staging of both the skating scene and the party scene was rather lacking in ambience this year, with too much slapstick in the skating scene and a lack of genial elegance at the party, apart from the gracious hosts, James Streeter and Stina Quagebeur. This was not helped by the sluggish conducting of Orlando Jopling who failed to bring out the delicacy and magic of the score which I have heard so many times in the past from this superb orchestra. I felt it most keenly in the short overture to Act II which is supposed to represent the journey to the Kingdom of Sweets. As travel is by balloon in Eagling’s production, it most definitely felt like a lead balloon at this performance! So I applaud those dancers who managed to give sparkling performances, in spite of this. In particular, Anjuli Hudson, as Louise, and an uncredited Rentaro Nakaaki, as her suitor, brought great charm to their little pas de deux in the party scene, and Crystal Costa and Adela Ramirez were the most glittering of snowflakes, drawing in the audience with their radiant smiles and giving this beautiful (imported) choreography the touch of class it deserves. Hudson also fluttered beautifully in Mirlitons, partnered by the benevolent Drosselmeyer of Daniel Kraus, and Daniel McCormick threw off a thrilling Russian dance. New in the role to me was William Simmons as the Mouse King who gave a particularly stylish account of the choreography and had fun with the role without being too scary for the younger children in the audience. But the stars of the show were most definitely the three leads, with Erik Woolhouse transcending his mask to bring a touching tenderness to the pas de deux for the Nutcracker and the enraptured Clara at the end of Act I and, with Kraus, partnering Clara so securely as to make the pas de trois at the start of Act II look effortless. Ken Saruhashi was the handsome, very elegant Nephew and proved the perfect partner for the glorious Clara/Sugar Plum Fairy of Katja Khaniukova, both bringing a serene nobility and grandeur to the entrée of their grand pas de deux in Act II. From her first entrance in Act I, I was entranced by Khaniukova’s exquisite footwork, making even something as deceptively simple as running across the stage look special. She has the advantage of being perfectly believable as an adolescent girl, with a naturalness to her acting, especially her reactions to the fight between the mice and the soldiers. As well as the tenderness of her pas de deux in Act I with the injured Nutcracker, Khaniukova brought such a soulfulness to her dancing here that it seemed Tchaikovsky’s music is part of her DNA. I also loved her gracious use of the upper body and ports de bras, as well as her meltingly beautiful bourrées, particularly in her wonderfully delicate Sugar Plum solo. She and Saruhashi pulled out all the stops in the coda with plenty of fireworks, including her impeccable series of single and double fouetté turns, yet always remaining the most serenely regal of couples. As I am writing this on 23 December, I would also like to mention that the lovely Connie Vowles gave her last performance with ENB this afternoon. Her dancing has given me great pleasure in the two years she has been with the company, especially her delightful Lead Sylph in “La Sylphide” last season, and I wish her every success in the future.

I believe the choir is made up of the children who have just been dancing onstage.

It has just been reported on Facebook that the former prima ballerina of Scottish Ballet has died. RIP

Thank you very much! I do enjoy writing them (when I have the time!) and I try to point out dancers who usually get overlooked by the press.