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Fonty

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  1. Fonty
    A critic?
  2. Fonty
    He must be a huge fan of Wayne McGregor, that's all I can say! And maybe Ashley Page was before his time. Reading this thread, I would say that most people seem enthusiastic about it. It's obviously not perfect, but the majority seem to have enjoyed it. What was the applause like at the end?
  3. Fonty
    The BBC had the official name announcement as Breaking News. I think that might be attaching just a little bit too much importance to it.
  4. Fonty
    I am getting quite overwhelmed by all these reviews! Can someone tell me, is there any moment in the ballet where you genuinely feel sorry for the monster?
  5. Fonty
    Perhaps they should use Bournemouth as their role model? A very small team, with a ground that only holds 11,000 people. yet they managed to finish safe in the middle of the table.
  6. Fonty
    This seems to be an ongoing theme with just about every new work for the last few years, whether it is a one act or full length ballet. It does seem to me that before they go the whole hog, and shell out on very expensive sets and costumes, there should be some way of previewing new works in a more simple way. A big ask, I know, but I would have thought they could come up with some way in which the choreography could be judged on its own. How many times have I read: "should be pruned" "lacks emotional depth" "not particularly exciting". It wasn't exactly a rumour, was it? It was in response to a statement in The Arts Desk article, which some people knew to be incorrect?
  7. Fonty
    Strange, I could have sworn I saw her in it. Must have been wishful thinking! It must have been Benjamin then.
  8. Fonty
    I know I have seen Anastasia, and I think I must have seen Tamara in the role (?) I can't remember that much about it, though. However, from the bit I can remember, I just cannot see Cuthbertson performing it. Has she done it before?
  9. Fonty
    I am keeping my fingers very firmly crossed that no new outside female principal is brought in. At the moment there seems to be an excellent amount of talent in the first soloist and soloist sections, who should all be given a chance to show what they are capable of. Otherwise, some girls who appear to have the ability to move right to the top will be left languishing down in their current positions, and we will never get the chance to see them doing some of the roles we would dearly love to see them in.
  10. Fonty
    I haven't tried any myself, but these are hilarious. Right up there with the very, very odd subtitles that frequently come up on the programmes being shown when I am in the gym.
  11. Fonty
    I wonder how much Gary Linekar will regret that comment! Perhaps he will present Match of the Day wearing a superman costume, which might meet the brief(s)
  12. Fonty
    The image shows a barbie doll with darker colouring than the usual mildy white complexion. I am slightly puzzled by the statement that black dancers have trouble finding the right coloured shoes. Don't the shoes normally match the tights? And if all the dancers are dancing bare legged, how many people of any ethnicity have skin that is the pale, candy pink of normal pointe shoes? Off hand, I can't remember what colour shoes male dancers wear when dancing bare legged.
  13. Fonty
    Yes, well done Leicester. They showed what superb teamwork can do, with the help of a manager who gave them belief in themselves. So refreshing to have a team win the premier league that doesn't consist of superstars being brought in, and being paid ridiculously high wages. I hope it doesn't go to the Leicester players' heads. I expect there will be a few cheque books being waved in their faces, and it will be interesting to see what happens next year. But in the meantime, it is wonderful to have a different team win. And commiserations to Spurs, who came so close, and just let the occasion get to them. They have also had a superb season, and fingers crossed they can repeat it next year.
  14. Fonty
    Actually, I just thought I would check and see who the Artistic Director was before Dowell took over, and I discovered it was Norman Morrice. I must confess I have never heard of him, I don't think I was watching any ballet at that time. He seems to have come from a contemporary dance background. Is there a connection here between his time as AD, and the declining standards in the classical rep?
  15. Fonty
    Well, that makes me ask the next obvious question: What happened to the school in the 1970s? I can accept that perhaps no truly great dancer came along to replace the likes of home grown talent, such as Fonteyn or Sibley. But the school had been going for many years by then, and standards should have been such that they could still produce a good corps and soloists, capable of performing the existing rep, surely? I refuse to believe that there was a dearth of suitable children in the 70s. The school always attracted recruits from abroad, so even if the UK didn't have enough candidates of the right caliber, there was a little place called the Rest of the World to choose from! I am concentrating on the females here, perhaps unfairly, but they would have provided the backbone of many of the classics.
  16. Fonty
    Was it as little as that, Alison? I just read recently that De Valois seemed to like his choreography, and rated his Nutcracker one of the best she had seen. I thought he had done more than that, but I admit I don't know much about his work.
  17. Fonty
    When I mentioned the Kingdom of the Shades, I wasn't sure what the response would be. I half expected most people to say that they preferred the full length ballet. I've never seen the Nureyev version, but I would love to see it again as part of a triple bill. This brings me on to another question. Why did the Royal Ballet get rid of so much that was created by Ashton, and so many of Nureyev's creations for the company? It seems to me that a lot of this was done when Anthony Dowell was AD? As Dowell was so good in the Ashton rep, it seems a strange move to make. Also, it would appear that Makarova seems to have exerted a considerable amount of influence on the company with regard to new productions, not necessarily to the good of the company, IMO. I have deliberately phrased this in a vague way, because I am not too sure of the actual facts, only my own perception of the direction in which Dowell seemed to take the company after Ashton and De Valois no longer had any say in the matter. Given Dowell's background, joining the Royal Ballet School at 10 years of age, and coming right the way through the company, he was about as pure an example of the English style as we are every likely to get. So surely he was in a unique position to carry on this tradition. Why did he see fit to set about removing large chunks of it?
  18. Fonty
    Do let us know what it was like, Janet. I have promised to take a friend out for afternoon tea to celebrate a special birthday. I've been to a couple of places (including the Ritz), but would be interested to hear how you enjoy the Savoy.
  19. Fonty
    I can't think that any of these scenes will be any more shocking than some of the simulated sex scenes in various ballets!
  20. Fonty
    I was just trying to think of ballets that should be regularly included that fulfilled the function of making sure that the dancers kept their classical techniques in prime condition. I love Les Sylphides, but was deeply disappointed the last time I saw the RB perform it. Generally speaking, I thought a lot of the dancing looked forced, heavy and flat footed. Harsh, I know, but there are plenty of clips on Youtube showing how it should be done. Has the RB ever done the Kingdom of the Shades on its own? I am sure other people can come up with some suggestions.
  21. Fonty

    Room 101

    Fonty replied to taxi4ballet's topic in Not Dance

    It is like people holding up ipads and looking at everything through the viewer as they video it. Just enjoy it for real!
  22. Fonty
    I wonder if coughing fits are like yawning. Once one person starts, it sets everybody else off. The last time I was afflicted was when I went to the cinema to see Giselle. There were only about 15 of us in the cinema, but one woman started noisily clearing her throat, and suddenly I had this desperate desire to cough! Fortunately, I managed to overcome it, and was so involved in the action I forgot all about it.
  23. Fonty
    I just want to see the RB keep up a terrific standard of classical dancing. Anything that makes sure that they maintain the highest level of technique should be part of every season's programming. However, I am not knowledgeable enough to list specific ballets that would enable them to do that. It is my understanding that many of the Ashton ballets, danced at the correct speed, and in the style that the creator intended, helps in this respect. Especially those that use plenty of dancers, and require them to dance in perfect unison. I think this enables the entire company to raise their standards in the classics. I am never sure about the MacMillan rep. Just thinking about it, while the principals get a lot to do, the rest of the dancers seem to spend a good deal of time standing around reacting to the scenes unfolding in front of them. Great for dramatic skills, but perhaps not so good from a dance point of view?
  24. Fonty
    How about: "Hey! Do you want to buy some filthy pointe shoes?"
  25. Fonty

    Room 101

    Fonty replied to taxi4ballet's topic in Not Dance

    Seems very strange that all those children accepted an invitation, and then just didn't bother to turn up. That is very bad manners indeed. What on earth were the parents thinking? It seems to be getting more common for people to RSVP an invite saying they will, go, and then not turn up. I went to a wedding last year, which was a wonderful affair with a sit down dinner in a very lovely venue. I was talking to the bride's father at one point, and I was amazed to hear that at least 8 of the invited people had simply not turned up, and had not bothered to contact anyone. He was quite annoyed, because he said they had had to cut back on the list of people who were invited, and if someone couldn't make it, then one of the reserves could have taken their place. As it was, he had to pay for food and drink that wasn't consumed. So rude and thoughtless of people.
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