Irmgard

The last performance of a beloved colleague is inevitably tinged with sadness and, coming at the end of a very tough autumn/winter season, one might have expected a slightly subdued atmosphere this afternoon. However, when the lady in question is star ballerina Elena Glurdjidze, the dancers of ENB conspired to give one of their finest and liveliest performances as a tribute to her. It is also worth noting how much juggling of the casting is required when just one dancer (in this case Katja Khaniukova) is indisposed. Shiori Kase, herself still recovering from injury, gave up the Act I pas de trois to replace her in the Act II Cygnets dance, impeccably danced by the all-oriental team (as they are happy to call themselves) of Kei Akahoshi, Crystal Costa and Senri Kou as well as Kase. Instead of the Czardas in Act III, Anjuli Hudson found herself unexpectedly repeating her vivacious Neapolitan dance, today with Joshua McSherry-Gray as her equally lively partner, and accompanied by two exuberant tambourine-playing gargoyles (a one-time “end of term” treat!). Kase’s place in the Act I pas de trois was taken by Laurretta Summerscales, who was not scheduled to dance in this performance and neither was Ksenia Ovsyanik, who replaced Jennie Harrington (moved to the Mazurka) as a Princess in Act III, but both seemed delighted to be part of this very special afternoon. Apart from some exceptionally fine dancing from the men in the Act I Waltz, the highlight for me was a thrilling Coda to the pas de trois danced by Summerscales, Kou and Vitor Menezes to a bravura orchestral accompaniment courtesy of maestro Gavin Sutherland. There was luxury casting amongst the swans with Lead Swan Begoña Cao giving a masterclass in swan-maiden style with her exquisitely limpid port de bras, bourrées, attitudes and even the angle of her neck. Alison McWhinney, though not yet in Cao’s league, complemented her beautifully as they both dance with an innate lyricism. As well as the ‘black swan’ pas de deux, another highlight of Act III was possibly the sultriest Spanish dance ever seen on this stage by Tamarin Stott, with backbends so deep her spine appeared to be made of india rubber rather than bone, and with an allure to rival Odile’s, much to the delight of her partner, James Streeter. All praise to Casey Herd, (who partnered Glurdjidze in ‘Nutcracker’), for agreeing to learn Derek Deane’s production for just one performance. Even though the two pas de deux are more or less the same in most productions, the rest of the ballet is not, including the fiendishly difficult Ashton solo in Act I. Herd is an eminently likeable chap and, although one might wish for a little more princely bearing, he was a solicitous and secure partner for Glurdjidze. Dramatically, he saved the best for last with a moving portrayal of a man broken by remorse and humbled by the supreme dignity of his all-forgiving Odette. As for the lady herself, what can one say about an artist such as Glurdjidze who has graced so many ENB performances and delighted thousands of audience members within that time? Her Odette was sublimely lyrical and regal while her Odile was all wicked sensuality and fearless technique, proving she is leaving ENB at the height of her powers. At the end of the performance, almost the whole company filled the stage to applaud her and present flowers to her in a wonderful display of the affection and esteem in which she is held. Many thanks to Capybara for organising and carrying out the flower throw from the audience at the end of this memorable afternoon. Although Glurdjidze will no longer be appearing with ENB, plans are afoot to ensure she will not be absent from the stage for very long!

A couple of fluffed notes at the start of yesterday's matinee (17th) was a timely reminder that this orchestra and many of the dancers have given over 80 performances since September, not to mention all the dress rehearsals! However, under the galvanising baton of Tom Seligman, the orchestra was immediately back on top form and gave a stirring account of this beautiful score. Seligman was blessed with a cast of principal dancers (Vitor Luiz and Fernanda Oliveira) who are not musically self-indulgent and who understand that neither a string-player's bow nor a wind-player's breath is endless, thus allowing the musical phrases to follow their natural arcs. Luiz has a naturally regal bearing and I particularly liked his gallant attentiveness to the ladies of the Pas de Douze in Act I in which it was also lovely to see a radiant Shiori Kase back on stage after her recent injury and demonstrating a genuine Ashton epaulement in his choreography for the Waltz. Also in this Act was a lively Pas de Trois from Max Westwell, Anjuli Hudson and Ksenia Ovsyanik, with first-class solos from each of them. The peasants' polonaise, led by the effervescent Jennie Harrington and Anton Lukovkin was strongly cast on the male side who obviously relished the brisk tempo set by Seligman although I think most of the girls were students who really need to learn how to run prettily. Luiz acquitted himself very well in the Ashton solo with beautifully clean lines in his arabesques and neatly finished turns. If I have one criticism it would be that I would have liked the yearning expression on his face to have been carried throughout his body. From the first moment he saw his Odette in Act II, it was clear that this Siegfried was not only fascinated but smitten. Oliveira's Odette reminds me of a comment by Margot Fonteyn that, unlike the Firebird who is a wild creature, Odette is a woman enchanted and only tiny remnants of her daytime swan persona remain at night when she is allowed to become a princess again for a few short hours. Oliveira is all femininity and vulnerability and there was something very touching about the way she looked searchingly at Siegfried throughout the flawless pas de deux as if to ask if she could really trust him. Luiz partnered beautifully and tenderly throughout and was is clear there is a rare chemistry between these two dancers. After another immaculate Cygnets dance from the dream team of Shiori Kase, Senri Kou, Kei Akahoshi and an uncredited Anjuli Hudson (replacing Khaniukova) in which even the series of pas de chats was perfectly synchronised, Oliveira's solo was a delicious blend of delicacy and melancholy with an exquisite series of developpe a la seconde and a wonderfully understated ending perfectly timed with the music. In Act III, Oliveira's Odile plays on Odette's femininity but adds a sensuality and glittering allure that is irresistible for Siegfried, who has just rejected an extremely lovely line-up of Princesses. After the lively national dances with an outstanding Neapolitan dance from Anjuli Hudson (a busy afternoon for her!) and Barry Drummond both demonstrating exquisite footwork, the 'black swan' pas de deux was electrifying, with a breathtakingly reckless abandon in which Luiz's partnering was so secure that Oliveira appeared to be flying above his head in some of the lifts. The beginning of Act IV in this production must surely be one of the most beautiful there is as the swan-maidens emerge from the swirls of dry ice to the hauntingly plaintive melody. As the storm music swells, Oliveira's broken Odette took on an extra air of fragility as her tiny body was tossed and whirled by the wonderfully powerful Rothbart of James Streeter as he tears the reconciled lovers apart. This was an unforgettable performance from all three principals and it inspired the corps de ballet of swan-maidens to an emotionally charged finale, hugely appreciated by the capacity audience. In response to Ian's previous post, poster-girl Begona Cao had two performances in Liverpool (and possibly one in Milton Keynes) but was not given a London performance although she has done several Spanish dancers during the run.

What a magical afternoon! ENB has an honourable tradition of strongly-cast matinees with everyone giving 100% but, for the debut of a much loved colleague today (29th), they managed to excel themselves with the energy and goodwill onstage being almost palpable. Ksenia Ovsyanik is perfectly cast as Clara/Sugar Plum Fairy, as there is a genuine sweetness about her that permeates her dancing. She is an instinctive actress, so that her Clara is delightfully and naturally youthful rather than ‘acting’ as a child: she is enchanted and enchanting. The Act I pas de deux had an air of rapturous abandon to it that was made possible by the wonderfully secure partnering of Fabian Reimair as the Nutcracker who, even though his face is covered by the mask, managed to convey a loving tenderness towards his adoring Clara. When she leapt into his arms and flung her arms round his neck, it was magical. The performance also benefitted from the Drosselmeyer of James Streeter who, along with Reimair, made light work of the extremely tricky pas de trois at the beginning of Act II with a positively radiant Ovsyanik. Reimair and Max Westwell, as the Nephew, are physically well matched so that it was quite possible to believe that the Nutcracker and the Nephew were one and the same. As most of the partnering in this production is done by the Nutcracker, the Nephew’s big moment comes in the grand pas de deux and Westwell made the most of presenting and partnering Ovsyanik to perfection in glittering style. Her Sugar Plum Fairy solo was a delicious confection of lyricism and delicacy and she then whipped up an immaculate series of single and double fouettés in the coda. Of the rest of the cast, there was another very amusing Mouse King from Shevelle Dynott, and Maria Jose Sales and Michael Coleman are becoming quite the double-act as the Grandparents. A word of praise also for the sweet Nurse of Angela Wood. The Act II character dances had an extra helping of panache this afternoon and Alison McWhinney fluttered her way prettily through Mirlitons with sterling support from James Streeter. It was also delightful to see a radiant Crystal Costa back on top form as a lead Flower along with Kei Akahoshi and their elegant cavaliers Guilherme Menezes and Francisco Bosch. But the highest accolades of the afternoon are, of course, for Ovsyanik – a rare talent that ENB should cherish. If you can grab one of the few tickets remaining for her performance on 4 January, I urge you to do so.

Perhaps that should have been 'departure' in the singular as only Konvalina, amongst the principals, has officially left the company this season. Cao came back from maternity leave for last season's 'Nutcracker' performances but was not cast in 'Corsaire', the "Lest We Forget" programme or "Coppelia" (apart from "Prayer"). She did dance Juliet at the Royal Albert Hall and Odette/Odile on tour but surprisingly has not been given a performance in the forthcoming run at the Coliseum.

So far, I have seen three performances, including the two on 12 December. Due to the sudden departures/indispositions of an alarming number of the company’s male dancers, the burden of the bulk of the performances has fallen on Max Westwell who will dance 16 out of the 33 performances as either the Nephew or the Nutcracker. The matinee on 12 December marked his debut as the Nephew, a role he easily assumed with his natural charm and secure partnering of his Clara/Sugar Plum Fairy, the exquisite Begoña Cao, woefully underused since her return from maternity leave last season. They were an excellent choice for what seemed to be an unofficial, packed, schools’ matinee with at least 80% of the audience in the stalls, where I was sitting, being children or youngsters. There is something magical about being surrounded by children who are obviously seeing ballet for the first time and who are so entranced that they are much quieter than most adult audiences, except for their gasps of delight at each scene change. This was infectious, as the woman behind me gasped in awe at the sheer beauty of Cao’s bourrée backwards in a circle around the wounded Nutcracker at the beginning of their Act I pas de deux. For me, no-one can match Cao at the start of the Sugar Plum Fairy solo as she steps delicately forward en pointe as gracefully as a gazelle picking its way through the grass. She and Westwell shone in the grand pas de deux, secure in all the increasingly difficult lifts and fish-dives, including the interpolated, one-handed Bolshoi lift commonly known as the “bum” lift which not all the couples attempt. Ken Saruhashi danced the Nutcracker at this performance with great dignity, especially the Act I pas de deux and, with the Drosselmeyer of James Streeter, made Cao look as light as gossamer as they tossed her around in the “Manon”-inspired pas de trois that begins Act II of Eagling’s production. Other debuts that were unmarked on the cast sheet included a highly entertaining Mouse King from the very talented Shevelle Dynott and a delightfully scatty Grandmother from Maria Jose Sales. Tamarin Stott, as the Mother, brought some much-needed elegance to the party scene, showing the ubiquitous new recruits how the adult dances should be done. It was a shame that not all the children had as beautifully stretched feet as the child Clara of Sereina Mowlem. I have seen the company perform the beautiful Snowflakes dance at the end of Act I (imported from a Russian production) which much more grace and precision than at this performance but it was led with true ENB elegance of style by the always sparkling Crystal Costa and Anjuli Hudson, replacing an injured Adela Ramirez. Eagling told me in January that he intended to redo the Arabian dance as nobody “got” it and I have to say that it had taken me several viewings to realise that the slaver who ‘manhandles’ Freddie is the transformation of the military man who admonishes him when he breaks the Nutcracker in Act I. Removing Freddie from the equation gives the slaver a chance for more sensual and virtuosic dancing with his harem and Fabian Reimair took full advantage of this (even if the little girls behind me did think this dance represented Hawaii!). Pedro Lapetra kicked up a storm in the Russian dance and Crystal Costa and Alison McWhinney, with their cavaliers Laurent Liotardo and Anton Lukovkin, were rewarded with ecstatic applause as the lead couples in the Waltz of the Flowers. The performance had the added bonus of Gavin Sutherland drawing out all the beauty of the Tchaikovsky score from the newly named English National Ballet Philharmonic and an uncredited Julia Richter making the celeste sound positively glow in the Sugar Plum Fairy solo. James Streeter, whose Drosselmeyer presided over the action in the matinee with benevolent authority, repeated his performance in the evening when Clara was danced by Erina Takahashi, whose flawless performance demonstrated why she is one of ENB’s brightest jewels. Watching her youthful ardour in the Act I pas de deux with the ever-reliable Fabian Reimair as the Nutcracker, it was hard to believe that this is her 18th season with the company. This performance marked the debut of guest Mathias Dingman as the Nephew but the ease and perfection of the pas de deux with Takahashi made it look like they had been dancing together for years. And with Reimair and Streeter as her partners in the pas de trois, Takahashi appeared to be floating on air. Act I saw Sales and Stott reverse their matinee roles with Sales an elegant Mother and Stott repeating her dotty but slightly subversive Grandmother with a subtlety that seemed to elude some of the party guests who hammed it up with irritating ‘tiffs’ etc. that have crept into the production this year. Last-minute cast changes due to injury meant that we had the pleasure of seeing Ksenia Ovsyanik not only as a lead Snowflake along with Laurretta Summerscales (doubling up as Louise) but also as a lead Flower with the always charming Senri Kou and cavaliers Laurent Liotardo and Francisco Bosch. The Spanish dance was given an extra dose of panache by Crystal Costa, Amber Hunt and Yonah Acosta, and Anjuli Hudson showed herself to be the mistress of martial arts in the Chinese dance, ably abetted by Van Le Ngoc and Barry Drummond. My third visit was to yesterday’s matinee (27th) in which Fernanda Oliveira replaced the injured Shiori Kase with Yonah Acosta as the Nephew and Fernando Bufala as the Nutcracker. The result was another flawless performance from the three leads, with the Act I pas de deux drawing prolonged applause from the packed audience even before it had finished, and the grand pas de deux being a feast of classical excellence with perfect, secure lifts and plenty of fireworks in the coda. New to me was the warm and ‘cuddly’ Drosselmeyer of Juan Rodriguez who, with Bufala, made effortless work of partnering Oliveira in the very tricky Act II pas de trois. A last-minute cast change saw Ksenia Ovsyanik replacing the injured Crystal Costa as Louise and it was a joy to see her in the little pas de deux in the Act I party scene partnered by an uncredited, wonderfully attentive Daniel Kraus and then flutter her way gracefully through the Mirlitons pas de deux, even if Rodriguez was a smidgeon too short for her. Senri Kou and Anjuli Hudson shone as the lead Snowflakes although the rest still lacked some of the finesse of previous years, and Kou was perfectly paired with Kei Akahoshi and their cavaliers Guilherme Menezes and Francisco Bosch as lead Flowers. A dancer completely new to me, Cesar Corrales, gave a technically brilliant performance of the Russian dance which would have been perfect if he had managed a smile. It was good to see Junor Souza back onstage, even if his injuries preclude him from dancing anything except the Arabian dance to which he brings his unique sensuality. A note for Aileen - Elena and Casey Herd have done a performance together (24th, I think, which I couldn't go to) although had to leave out the solos in the grand pas de deux so fingers crossed they will be on top form for the 3 January.

Apologies, there is a typo in my post (18) which I can't seem to edit. Adela Ramirez danced the second solo in the pas de trois, not the first.

I agree with you and Capybara that Elena's Raymonda was the outstanding event of that summer season - a masterclass in the Petipa style. Elena is a very enterprising person and already has exciting plans for the future, including continuing to dance internationally. I will certainly post details here when she gives her permission.

I took advantage of my airmiles to travel to Liverpool for Ksenia Ovsyanick’s long-awaited debut as Odette-Odile at the matinee performance on 19 November. Due to the sudden retirement of Zdenek Konvalina, the performance also saw the debut of Ken Saruhashi as Siegfried, his first major role for ENB. I admired him when he was a student at ENBS and he did not disappoint on Thursday. He is a long-legged and elegant dancer with a beautifully clean technique which served him extremely well in the Ashton solo at the end of Act I which had a wonderful, yearning quality. At the opening of Act III, he had so clearly been spellbound by Odette that he made it obvious he was only dancing with the very beautiful prospective fiancées out of duty. In fact, he and Ovsyanick were perfectly suited not only for the beauty and musicality of their dancing but also for their intelligent and well-thought-out characterisations of these regal beings. All the superlatives apply to the polished and totally assured Ovsyanick. As Odette, she was as light as swansdown with exquisitely eloquent bourrées and fluid ports de bras, and her initial series of half-turns in attitude spoke volumes about her soulful longing to be released from Rothbart’s spell. Her Act II solo was breathtaking in its grace and simplicity of execution. After a glitch at the beginning, due to bits of their costumes becoming entangled (from which they both recovered with remarkable composure), the Act II pas de deux was a miracle of delicacy and contrasted beautifully with the glamour and electricity of the Act III pas de deux which was controlled by the very commanding Rothbart of Shevelle Dynott. Act IV was especially poignant, with every fibre of Ovsyanick’s body signifying her broken heart at Siegfried’s unwitting betrayal yet managing to summon up supreme dignity to forgive him, and the way Saruhashi laid his head upon her hand as she did so was a moment of pure magic. The Liverpool audience was very privileged to see a star in the making and another whose stardom has been evident to audiences since her first unforgettable performance of Giselle in 2010. Whilst the precision of the corps de ballet of swans did not quite reach the heights of previous years (some of the new recruits have not yet completely absorbed the ENB style), there was much to admire and enjoy at this performance, including an immaculate Cygnets’ dance from company stalwarts Crystal Costa, Desirée Ballantyne, Senri Kou and Anjuli Hudson. Hudson also sparkled in her debut in the Act I pas de trois, particularly her beautiful footwork in the first solo. I had hoped to see Elena Glurdjidze in her second-last performance of “Swan Lake” with ENB in the evening but, due to the indisposition of her scheduled partner Arionel Vargas and with nobody to replace him, the performance was danced by Alina Cojocaru and Alejandro Virelles. Cojocaru is an accomplished dancer but was rather wayward both choreographically and musically. Virelles is personable and an excellent partner but I would have liked more emotional depth from both dancers. For me, the highlight of the evening was the always enchanting Adela Ramirez, bringing her devastating charm and ballerina sheen to the first solo in the Act I pas de trois and to the Act III Neapolitan Dance during which both she and Anton Lukovkin delightfully demonstrated the correct Ashton ports de bras, so often missing in performances today. A special mention also for the very spirited Czardas led by Tamarin Stott and Juan Rodriguez with a perfect mixture of hauteur and panache. At both performances, the orchestra put its heart and soul into Tchaikovsky’s glorious score but there was an extra shimmer to the strings in the evening under the baton of maestro Gavin Sutherland. Just a shame the audiences marred the quiet moments with relentless sweet unwrapping, rustling of plastic bags and chatter!

Since this press release was issued, three more dancers are leaving the company: Araminta Wraith goes to Scottish Ballet, Chantel Roulston will be teaching Pilates full-time and Stephen Wilson has trained as a massage therapist and will appear as an actor in ENO's "Xerxes" in September.

I attended three performances (Friday, Saturday matinee and Sunday) and I must say, with all the horrible things happening in the world at the moment, it was wonderful to have over seven hours of pure escapism! With its rather silly story, Coppélia is one of those ballets which could easily descend into a cheesy mess, especially if the actual choreography is in danger of being overpowered by the chocolate-box designs. However, ENB’s 1985 production by Ronald Hynd is saved by the sheer exuberance of the dancers and their formidable technique (this is first and foremost a showcase for classical technique of the highest order with an inconsequential story tacked on) plus, of course, the ravishing and melodious score by Delibes, who gave ballet music its “heart”. Friday night marked the welcome return to the stage of Dmitri Grudzyev after an absence of several months due to injury, during which he toured as Ballet Master for “My First Coppélia”. His Franz is full of youthful enthusiasm and mischief and his dancing is powerful, having lost none of its ballon, with his trademark panther-like landings and perfect endings to multiple pirouettes, and his final manège in Act III must still be the envy of the younger men in the company. He also gave a masterclass in having total command of the stage without appearing to play to the audience. He is, of course, a very experienced and sympathetic partner and showed off his Swanilda, Fernanda Oliveira, to perfection. They have a chemistry which is almost palpable, making their constant spats and making-up totally natural and believable. Oliveira is blessed with an instinctive air for comedy, with her very expressive face and a smile that radiates sunshine, as well as beautiful feet and rock solid technique which made her two diagonals of brisés in the Ear of Corn scene to die for. She also held some fabulous, completely musical balances in the first solo in the scene and ended the whole scene with an immaculate triple pirouette. There was an amusing bit of business during and after the Czardas, led by Juan Rodriguez and Tamarin Stott, where, having rejected Franz, she makes him dance with Stott, only to become intensely jealous when Franz appears to be having too good a time with the very flirty Stott who in turn is furious when Franz and Swanilda are reconciled by the end of the dance. Oliveira also gave the most flamboyant Spanish dance in Act II of the three casts that I saw. I really like in this production how Swanilda and Franz are immediately sorry for the anguish they have caused Dr. Coppélius, at this performance an unrecognisable Daniel Kraus. His endearing Coppélius looks and acts rather like the delightfully dotty inventor in “Back to the Future” with just a touch of Léonide Massine’s mad shoemaker in “The Red Shoes”. This performance also marked the debuts of Shiori Kase as Dawn and Ksenia Ovsyanick as Prayer. Fresh from her triumphant debut as Swanilda, Kase gave a delightfully sunny and secure performance of the Dawn solo. Ovsyanick’s Prayer was delicate with a near-perfect sequence of arabesques penchées and was certainly the most spiritual of the three I saw. I also saw probably the most exquisite performance of the Waltz of the Hours that I have seen in this production (and I saw many in the 1980s, including the premiére). The sequence where each girl performs one slow pirouette beginning and ending from a kneel was flawless. Such quality dancing almost at the end of a very long and arduous season (the company has two performances in Spain this week before their holiday) is to be greatly admired and appreciated. A word of appreciation too for the dancers who are the automata in Act II, and deservedly are mentioned by name on the cast sheet, who manage to hold their positions for ages before they are allowed to move – their stillness would give any of the street performers prolific in Covent Garden a run for their money! Coppélia herself was performed by Desirée Ballantyne, taking a night off from her Holland Park commitment, and was wonderfully mechanical, her head-turning after being oiled being the best of the three I saw. The audience on Friday evening was wildly enthusiastic, with many in the stalls giving the company a richly deserved standing ovation. At the Saturday matinée, the lovely Erina Takahashi danced Swanilda with her customary verve and gorgeous technique. She was partnered by Fernando Bufala who gave a very good account of himself technically and artistically although lacks the power and brio of Gruzdyev. Other changes of cast from Friday included Stina Quagebeur very elegantly leading the Czardas, and what a pleasure it is to see both this and the Mazurka performed with such style and enthusiasm by the whole company. Adela Ramirez, who had to dash off after the matinée to dance in the evening performance at Holland Park, danced the Dawn solo with great charm and Alison McWhinney brought a lovely serenity to the Prayer solo. On Sunday afternoon, I saw Shiori Kase’s second performance as Swanilda which was a delight, being technically secure and with plenty of energy left for Act III which she sailed through with her customary sparkle and soubrette charm. Yonah Acosta was a very cheeky Franz although characterisation does seem to elude him when performing the technically challenging solos but hopefully this will improve with experience. Michael Coleman’s Dr. Coppélius was a twinkly old man with immaculate comic timing (I remember his ebullient Colas at Covent Garden having the same sense of mischief) and it was lovely to see the whole company applauding him at the curtain call. Crystal Costa bounded through the Dawn solo with a smile that lit up the whole theatre. Because there is no musical break between Dawn and Prayer, the dancer does not usually receive applause immediately after the solo but the audience broke into spontaneous applause for Costa which lasted well into the first minute of Prayer which luckily is just a walk on in this production. Prayer was danced by Laurretta Summerscales with great finesse. Coppelia was the delightful Jung Ah Choi who managed to put herself together again to dance “Work” in Act III! All the performances I saw were danced with such zest by the whole company that, like Janet’s comment previously, at the end of each performance I felt that the dancers, and the fantastic orchestra, would continue to party long after the audience had gone home!

I went to the dress rehearsal of this production on Monday evening and how refreshing it was to see beautiful dancing, beautiful choreography and beautiful costumes (for the dancers), as much a rarity on this stage as it can be at the Royal Opera or ENO when it comes to the dance scenes. The plot of the opera revolves around the mysterious death of Adriana Lecouvreur, an actual 18th century actress of the Comédie Française but involves various political subplots. However, the director arbitrarily chose to update the action to what appeared to be Occupied Paris with the occasional Nazi wandering around which made nonsense of references in the text to the King and Queen of France and Polish royalty but did have the advantage of pointe work being historically accurate. Cheryl Barker, singing the title role, has had a very successful international career but the emotional depths of the role seemed to escape her and there was no chemistry between her and the supposed love of her life sung by Peter Auty, a very personable tenor who unfortunately shouted most of his role. The drama was therefore left to the very glamorous and richly-voiced Principessa, Adriana’s love rival, sung by Tiziana Carraro and of course the ravishing score played by the City of London Sinfonia. James Streeter was one of the choreographers featured in a special afternoon of new choreography based on Opera Holland Park’s season in 2012, and created a very musical and dramatic20-minute interpretation of “Eugene Onegin” at that time so it was no wonder he was asked to provide “The Judgement of Paris”, the all-too-brief ballet interlude for this opera which takes place during a soirée at the Principessa’s palace. His lovely goddesses, danced by the always charming and currently underused ENB dancers Desiree Ballantyne and Adela Ramirez joined by the elegant Sarah Kundi in what was essentially her first solo role since joining ENB, were dressed in diaphanous white Grecian-style tunics reminiscent of “Apollo” with Joshua McSherry-Grey as Mercury and Jade Hale-Christophi as Paris in Grecian skirts. In a series of very brief solos and pas de deux, Streeter made excellent use of the space available and even showed a good sense for comedy in the dancers’ reactions to the behaviour of their “audience” (something for the Audience Behaviour thread!) as the principal characters ignore the ballet and indulge in all sorts of ever-louder recriminations ending with them invading the dance space, forcing the dancers to retreat before having a chance to complete the ballet. It is rare to be able to say that the ballet was the highlight of an opera performance but I can in this case! For those wondering about Jade Hale-Christophi, it appears his contract as an ‘extra’ dancer for “Romeo and Juliet” at the Albert Hall was extended to include these performances at Holland Park, presumably because ENB only wanted to release one male dancer from the Coliseum season and next week’s performances at Peralada but it would certainly be good if his contract was extended to full-time!

I have all Mary Skeaping's dance material, who was the company's ballet mistress at the time of the first US tour and it includes part of the programme from the opening night which states: Gala American Premiere, Sunday October 9th 1949 at 8pm, "The Sleeping Beauty". Produced by Nicolai Sergueeff after the choreography of Marius Petipa. This was the version designed by Oliver Messel with which the company re-opened the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden in 1946, i.e. Prologue and three Acts. Incidentally Mary Skeaping staged American Ballet Theatre's first production of the full-length 'Beauty' in 1976 when the company acquired the rights to the Oliver Messel designs.

If anyone can afford the ticket prices, just to let you know that Esteban Berlanga and Nancy Osbaldeston will be dancing a new piece created for them by Jenna Lee.

The sun shone on ENB today for this extraordinary performance thankfully broadcast by the BBC. It must have been disconcerting to have the cameras circling around them on stage but it gave some incredibly powerful images, particularly of faces, every one of them totally involved in the work. Some changes of cast from the Barbican, most notably Erina Takahashi in the main pas de deux, made even more poignant by dancing with her husband, James Streeter. Delighted to see Fabian Reimair repeat his breathtaking opening 'solo'. Although it was disconcerting to cut away to the audience, it was good to see how rapt almost all of them were with what was happening on stage and what a fantastic response they gave at the end! If anyone was wondering who the wellies done up with pointe shoe ribbons belonged to in the introducion, they were Amber Hunt's. I did think this was one time the girls needn't have taped up their wedding rings! My favourite moment was Takahashi and Streeter framed against the open sky - just perfect!

Just a reminder that English National Ballet makes its Glastonbury Festival debut on Sunday 29 June with a performance of Akram Khan's "Dust". It will be televised by BBC2 at 12 noon on the day.

For those who contributed to the baskets of flowers for Daria, kindly organised by Capybara, you will be delighted to know that Daria posted a photo on Facebook yesterday of herself sitting on the floor at home surrounded by ALL the baskets and bouquets with the caption "I took them all home!".

I expect it might be worth dropping a note to ENB about the poor sightlines, especially if you are complimentary about the rest of the show! I expect they would be delighted to reduce the size of the extra corps de ballet for financial as well as aesthetic reasons! At one performance I think a couple of people in the front row must have complained to the staff because they were moved further back before the start of Act II. Of course, there weren't that many seats going spare for yesterday's show. However, one does not really expect to have a 'restricted view' seat for £60 at the Albert Hall.

I've posted my thoughts about yesterday under the Romeo & Juliet topic but I would like to remind everyone that Daria celebrates her 43rd birthday today! Hopefully she is enjoying a lovely day at home with her family and beloved cat but she told me yesterday she intends being back at morning class soon!

Well, what an unforgettable afternoon at the Royal Albert Hall! Before talking about the extraordinary Daria Klimentova and Vadim Muntagirov, I would like to pay tribute to all the other dancers who helped to make it such a special event. As well as people I have already mentioned in other posts, I was delighted to see Alison McWhinney as a charming Rosaline, James Forbat as a warm and dignified Paris, and Anton Lokovkin who must have been born to dance the mercurial Mercutio. There was also the endearing Nurse of Amber Hunt who shed real tears at the discovery of Juliet’s body, as did the lovely set of Friends, including Nancy Osbaldeston making her last appearance with ENB. Stina Quagebeur’s Lady Capulet was the epitome of aristocratic elegance, full of repressed emotions to which she gave way like a dam-burst over the body of Tybalt, played to perfection with a lethal combination of arrogance and hotheadedness by James Streeter. His swordfight with Romeo was the most exciting I have seen all week. And so to the golden couple: Muntagirov was a genial, lovable Romeo provoked beyond endurance by the murder of Mercutio when that lovely, smiling face of his turned into an almighty thundercloud as he slashed at Tybalt with his sword, perilously close to those in the front row! It goes without saying that his dancing was superb in every way. Klimentova’s Juliet was eternally youthful, radiant and refreshingly honest like the lady herself. How wonderful to see her leave her audience with this unforgettable image of an artist at the peak of perfection. For me, the bedroom pas de deux seemed to sum up the afternoon. It was not full of overt passion, as might have been expected, but loaded with sadness and an inevitability that Romeo must leave his Juliet as art imitated life, and all the more moving for that. Then came the company’s personal tribute to Klimentova. The dancers themselves had insisted that they present the flowers and perform the flower shower for her and it was fitting that the first bouquet was presented by ballerina Erina Takahashi, herself celebrating 18 years with the company, joining in 1996 like Klimentova. Juliet’s friends brought on baskets brimming with flowers (thanks to Capybara for organising these from Daria’s fans in the audience) and then a long line of dancers presented further bouquets to her, all receiving one of Daria’s special bearhugs. Even the orchestra, who have played so magnificently throughout the season in their extremely widespread ‘pit’ on different levels, got in on the act and showered her with flowers from above while more dancers tossed flowers from the sides of the arena. It was typical of Daria to remove her pointe shoes with a huge sigh of relief and toss them into the audience. Happily she still has some galas to perform in the coming months but sadly none in England. Tributes to Daria from company dancers past and present started appearing on Facebook first thing this morning and continue to be posted, showing how cherished she is by all who have had the pleasure and privilege to work with her, me included.

For my third visit this week (Saturday night), I was sitting in the fourth row of the Stalls and, although people around me experiencing it for the first time loved being so close, I did find it irritating to have my view of various crucial moments obscured by townsfolk and guests. There were times when I would have loved to have asked them to move out the way! Also, on my fourth viewing of this production, the deficiencies in the choreography of the street scenes in particular are becoming more apparent. Sadly, for this production it is easy to spot the dancers who have been brought in to swell the numbers as most of them are just not up to the standard of the company dancers and do tend to indulge in my pet hate, superfluous arm gestures. However, being so close did have the advantage of feeling the full force of Lady Capulet’s grief at Tybalt’s death –another magnificent performance by Elena Glurdjidze. The rest of the main cast was almost the same as Friday night with the exception of that night’s Juliet, Begoña Cao, giving us another immaculate Rosaline and Saturday afternoon’s Romeo, Arionel Vargas, as, surprisingly for him, a rather charmless Paris. Saturday night was Brazilian night at the ballet with compatriots Junor Souza and Fernanda Oliveira in the title roles. Souza, amazingly fresh after his performance on Friday night, once again gave a passionate account of the role and was completely unfazed by his two Juliets being onstage at the same time in the ballroom scene. Oliveira’s is a completely innocent and tentative Juliet who does not instinctively know how to react to the sudden male attention from both Paris and Romeo. Although mesmerised by Romeo, she is clearly bewildered by the awakening of her emotions. In the balcony scene, she longs to see him and yet is unsure of him. Every time he touches her is a delicious surprise for her, running through her whole body, and most of all her extremely expressive face, until she completely yields and the second half of the pas de deux takes on a reckless abandon which was breathtaking to watch. Oliveira is a dancer who knows how to rack up the tension which she gradually builds during the scene with Paris and her parents to an unbearable level which is broken only by her exquisite run around the arena where she seems literally to fly to Friar Lawrence. The second scene where she finally capitulates is even more unbearable as every time Paris lifts her, she pleads with her father not to let this happen. The reactions of the Nurse (Tamarin Stott), Capulet (Fabian Reimair) and Lady Capulet are masterful. Oliveira puts her own stamp on Deane’s awkward choreography before taking the potion, with a mixture of rage and anguish. In the crypt scene, Souza again pulls at the heartstrings as he tries to revive his beloved and then clasps her to him as he takes the poison. Oliveira, who gives the most believable awakening yet as she tries to shake off the effects of the potion, is unforgettable as she realises Romeo is dead and we actually see her shock and pain as she stabs herself and then stumbles back to die by his side. Another outstanding performance from ENB, richly deserving the tumultuous applause that followed.

Whereas Nureyev tried to cram too much of Shakespeare’s plot into Prokofiev’s score, Deane gives us little more than the bare bones and, with rather routine choreography, the success of his production depends on the dramatic qualities of the dancers. To my mind, Friday night’s performance was therefore a monumental success with an absolutely superb cast. With the dancers having to take on multiple roles throughout the run, it seems a miracle that they can switch from one to the other so easily and not confuse the choreography! Last night we had Thursday matinee’s Mercutio as Tybalt, Tybalt as one of his friends, and Juliet as Lady Capulet, not forgetting the first night cast’s Tybalt as Lord Capulet and Benvolio and Rosaline as the star-crossed lovers. Fernando Bufala’s Tybalt was rather sketchy in comparison to Max Westwell and Fabian Reimair but he came into his own in the sword fight with Romeo. New to me last night was the Benvolio of James Forbat, a truly elegant dancer who shone in the trios with Romeo and Mercutio and one who made a distinction between Benvolio’s gentle nature and the extrovert Mercutio of Yonah Acosta. Also new to me was Desiree Ballantyne, taking a night off from being one of Juliet’s friends, as Lady Montague, played very much according to Shakespeare. Here was a mother who deplored violence as much as her dreamer of a son but was prepared to face up to the more volatile Capulets with great dignity. She is a petite dancer but proved the perfect foil to Elena Glurdjidze’s magnificent Lady Capulet. From the moment Glurdjidze sailed onto the stage, skilfully manipulating the huge purple cloak so that it billowed around her as a statement of power, she was in complete command of the role. In her first scene with Juliet, there was a warmth towards her but a determined lack of physical contact, leaving that to the wonderful nurse of Tamarin Stott. On the death of Tybalt, Glurdjidze did not indulge in the histrionics adopted by so many Lady Capulets but portrayed a shock and raw grief that was so real, it was heartrending. And kudos to her for only giving the merest hint that there might be anything more to her feelings for Tybalt than familial love. Her moment alone in the red spotlight was magical. She carried on this portrait of a woman numb with grief throughout the scenes with Juliet and Paris so that, when she and Lord Capulet find Juliet supposedly dead her broken body spoke volumes that the sudden death of two loved ones was more than she could bear. Sitting directly opposite the ‘plinth’ in the crypt scene last night, I noticed Fabian Reimair’s Lord Capulet plant the gentlest of kisses on Juliet’s forehead as leaves her for the last time, a beautiful little detail I missed the previous day. And so to the dream team of the long-limbed Junor Souza and Begoña Cao, perfectly in tune with each other both physically and temperamentally. I have admired Souza since I had the pleasure of working on Albrecht with him four years ago during his second year in the corps de ballet. His ability to completely absorb the character and bring a multi-layered, superbly nuanced character to life, along with his formidable dancing skills, never ceases to amaze me. Here was Shakespeare’s Romeo, a lovestruck adolescent, and, as he made his entrance in pursuit of Rosaline (a charming debut by Madison Keesler), I was reminded of the words to the minstrel’s song in Zeffirellis’s 1960’s film: “What is a youth? Impetuous fire!”. He could not take his eyes off Rosaline and it was clear that he was only crashing the Capulet’s ball to be near her, following her around with his eyes fixed on her so that it seemed logical that he was not aware of Juliet until the fateful moment, perfectly timed by the couple to look like a complete accident, when their eyes met and an almost visible electric shock ran through their bodies. London born and trained Cao made her debut as Juliet in Nureyev’s production a couple of years ago with Souza as her Romeo. With her slender legs and delicate footwork, she always reminds me of a gazelle. Here, with less busy choreography, she can give free rein to her astonishing passion while making something truly beautiful out of the rather workmanlike pas de deux. Like Souza, once she has seen Romeo, she never takes her eyes off him and is truly bewildered by her family’s reaction. After Romeo has been banished from the ball, she stands bewildered and unnerved by the glares of her family and reaches out for her Nurse’s hand before running off stage – only one of the beautifully conceived touches of humanity she brings to the role. The all-too-brief marriage scene was a delight, with the couple barely able to keep their hands off each other (a very nice touch was Romeo crossing himself as he entered the ‘chapel’) and rushing back to each other after they have been gently prised apart by Friar Lawrence and the Nurse. It is this Romeo, drunk on love, who returns to the marketplace and Souza makes much of not wanting to fight Tybalt, as Shakespeare directs. Even after Mercutio has been killed and the crowd urges Romeo to avenge him, Souza takes up the sword unwillingly and fights with a visible numbness until anger finally overtakes him and he stabs Tybalt in the most uncontrived manner that I have seen so far in this production. The following bedroom pas de deux is full of tenderness and regret with Cao at her most passionate in trying to prevent him from leaving her. The following scene with her family and Paris was heartrending and her run around the arena on her way to Friar Lawrence was breathtaking. She also managed to make something very moving out of the awkward choreography before she takes the potion and her physical pain as it takes effect was beautifully judged. As if we had not been put through the emotional wringer enough, when Romeo finds her body in the crypt he makes sense of manipulating it as if trying to bring her back to life rather than dancing with a corpse as it so often appears. It was enough to reduce even the hardest heart to a blubbering wreck. Like Glurdjidze yesterday, when Cao discovers Romeo is dead, her whole body screamed with grief and, while the production dictates that she must stab herself away from the plinth and then crawl back to it, she did this in such an understated way that it looked completely natural, as did her very gentle collapse onto Romeo, bringing this performance to an end with the audience stunned into silence. The applause and cheering thereafter was tumultuous and richly deserved. It is sad that three of the company’s loveliest ballerinas have only been given one performance each as Juliet but it certainly brings an extra frisson of expectation which both Glurdjidze and Cao rose to, as no doubt will Takahashi this afternoon whose performance sadly I cannot attend.

I hope we can also do the same for Vadim's entrance! People may not realise but it does mean a lot to a dancer to have his/her entrance applauded, although I realise it is not appropriate in every ballet. But wasn't it lovely how the matinee audience, although not applauding Elena's entrance, did not sit on their hands for the rest of the performance and applauded every scene, particularly after her beautiful run round the stage! I hope it was the same last night.

I have just returned home from Elena Glurdjidze’s one and only performance of Juliet at today’s matinee but, before I wax lyrical about that remarkable artist, I would like to mention a few other highlights of this afternoon’s performance. The first was the debut of Ksenia Ovsyanick as Rosaline. Accompanied by her equally elegant quartet of friends, from the moment she appeared her naturally aristocratic bearing and grace made her perfect for Romeo’s current infatuation and I was pleased that the role of Rosaline is extended in this production so that she appears in the ballroom scene where there was a charming rapport between her and Juliet. Also making his debut was Vitor Menezes as Benvolio. Although he and Fernando Bufala as Mercutio did not quite measure up to Junor Souza and Yonah Acosta in the same roles, they nevertheless danced with great gusto and plenty of charm. It was nice to see Grant Rae, a stalwart of the corps de ballet, given his chance to shine as one of Tybalt’s friends, the other being the always impressive Nathan Young. And a word of praise for the quartet of harlots for being delightfully ‘unslutty’ goodtime girls: Laurretta Summerscales, Marize Fumero, Araminta Wraith and Nancy Osbaldeston who will be much missed when she leaves at the end of the season. Stina Quagebeur’s brief appearance as Lady Montague also caught my eye for her perfect Renaissance posture and her ability to glide around the stage whilst conveying her hatred for the Capulets in the tilt of her chin and her blazing eyes. Fabian Reimair’s Lord Capulet was a breath of fresh air as he convinced from his first scene with Juliet that she was the apple of his eye and his incomprehension of his beloved daughter’s rejection of the suitor he had obviously lovingly chosen for her grew into almost uncontrollable rage. His devastation when he believes she is dead was tangible. Daniele Silingardi impressed once again as the noble and kindly Paris. Max Westwell as Tybalt gave a searing portrait of a hot-headed teenager spoiling for a fight and taking every opportunity to provoke one. His final sword fight with Romeo was spine-tingling even if Romeo’s fatal blow was not entirely convincing. Romeo was danced by Arionel Vargas who is not my idea of Shakespeare’s dreamer in love with love, being more suited to the impishness of Mercutio, but he has oodles of charm and brings a joyousness to the part which makes the love-at-first-sight moment with Juliet entirely plausible. And so to Glurdjidze’s Juliet which incredibly was her debut in the role in this production. Hers was a highly intelligent, beautifully thought out interpretation yet utterly spontaneous in delivery and with a youthful radiance. She did not make the mistake of some Juliets by pretending to be a little girl in the first scene with her friends (the same lovely group of eight that I saw at the dress rehearsal) but was most definitely a carefree 13 or 14-year-old so that she was visibly flattered by the attentions of Paris. I was lucky enough to have a view of her back when Paris first took her hand and the frisson that ran down it as she pulled her hand away in shocked delight was a master-stroke. Considering that Glurdjidze has not danced a classical role since Christmas, her dancing was remarkable for its superbly clean technique and melting beauty and there was something about the way she moves in this particular role that reminds me of Ulanova in the classic film of Lavrovsky’s production, especially her beautiful run around the arena on her way to see Friar Lawrence. Two other moments that particularly impressed me were in Act III. When she dismisses the Nurse after agreeing to marry Paris, there is no anger as she almost absent-mindedly waves her away because we can see on her face she is already focussed on retrieving the phial she has hidden. Finally, when she discovers Romeo is dead, not just her face but her whole body screams with grief, making it the most heartbreaking moment of the ballet. Glurdjidze made her debut last night as Lady Capulet and repeats the role on Friday and Saturday evening. I cannot wait to see what revelations she will bring to this role!

I haven’t been able to spend much time on writing this month but, as Daria Klimentova starts her last week of performances with ENB, I thought it would be better late than never to report on her gala in Prague, exactly a month after the event on 15 May. Klimentova did not call it a Farewell Gala but rather a Thank You to the city and company where she trained and where she started her career. It was held in Prague’s beautiful State Opera House and it is a mark of the esteem in which Klimentova is held by her fellow Czechs that the evening sold out within twenty minutes of the tickets going on sale! I therefore felt very privileged that I was able to be there for the evening which opened with a ten-minute film of Klimentova on and off stage throughout her career which, despite having a Czech commentary with no subtitles, was a thoroughly enjoyable record of highlights from her extraordinary career and her unassuming offstage persona. Klimentova involved members of the Czech National Ballet in the performance with principals and soloists giving us Javier Torres’s take on the pas de deux from “Sleeping Beauty” Act III (minus the series of three fish dives), excerpts from Balanchine’s “Theme and Variations” , a contemporary solo created and danced by Viktor Konvalinka and an avant-garde interpretation of the balcony pas de deux from “Romeo and Juliet” complete with the participation of Queen Mab and Friar Laurence (choreography by Petr Zuska). While the dancers may not have quite the technical finesse and brilliance of Klimentova and Vadim Muntagirov, everything was danced with great commitment and brio. But of course this was Klimentova’s night, shared with her favourite partner at his most sympathetic and ardent, starting with the Act II pas de deux from “Swan Lake”. As I watched Muntagirov’s superb partnering and the delicacy of Klimentova’s petits battements between each of the three supported pirouettes at the end, I felt very sad that we will never see this partnership dance the complete ballet again. They ended the first half of the evening with a passionate and breathtaking performance of the Grotto pas de deux from “Le Corsaire”. To end the evening, a suite of dances from “Don Quixote” had been arranged, including the famous pas de deux, which also allowed dancers from the company to shine in various solos and ensembles. Muntagirov’s bravura solos elicited gasp after gasp from the audience and Klimentova proved that she is retiring at the height of her powers even if she had decided enough is enough when it came to the fouettés which she happily left to a student from the Conservatory! As Klimentova appeared for her final bow, carried aloft by Muntagirov in a one-handed lift as in “Spring Waters”, the audience spontaneously rose en masse to give her a standing ovation which lasted at least fifteen minutes during which the bouquets kept arriving and confetti showered down on her – a truly memorable evening. I had hoped to download a snapshot from the evening but not sure how to do it!

Yes, Elena will be dancing Odette/Odile with ENB next season.