penelopesimpson

I have a ticket so am keeping my fingers crossed!

One word. Mayerling. This ballet has it all and leaves me emotionally wrung out at the end which is exactly what I want.

Hands down winner for me is Acosta's Carmen which was more pantomime than ballet and, for me, a truly terrible way for this great dancer to say his farewells. I don't go to Sleeping Beauty anymore but can understand it's place in the repertoire. I'm also going to confess that, like another poster, Jewels leaves me cold. If I could only see one ballet it would be Mayerling, no contest. I do hope RB will be doing this again whilst Edward Watson is still on peak form.

Saw Vishneva in Anna Karenina which I loved, but it didn't get a particularly good reception. Anyone else see it?

Oh, just the two for me. Cojocaru and Altynai Asymuratova. I only saw the latter twice and was bowled over by her. Cojocaru I would follow to the ends of the earth and I miss her dreadfully. I live in hope that Francesca Hayward will be her successor. I like Osipova and am amazed to see that she is dancing tomorrow as I have tickets and most of the other times she has been injured. I am hoping that if she is not fit, they would have told us by now.

Oh gosh, me too. I was a huge Durante fan. She and Mukhamedov were the dream team, for me. I never really understood why she left RB - so many different explanations and all of them convoluted - so I guess I'll never know. I did enjoy Darcey dancing and made a point of booking to see her, but I was never a fan worshipping at her feet. I stand by what I said that I think that she misses being in the public eye (and what on earth is wrong with saying that escapes me) but would support her if I felt she was genuinely pushing ballet forward - the equivalent of a muscular Christian for religion! However, I find her Strictly persona pretty nauseating, particular the way she patronises the male judges, and I don't like her presenting the cinema relays. Quite why it is, apparently, verboten, to say this is a mystery, but...there you go. And Janet, I get the rebuke even if I don't understand the reasoning. What I don't get is this board's toleration of a poster who never posts anything of any substance or raises subjects for debate, but who sits in judgement on others, jumping in like a Commissar when he feels he doesn't like something - the point of debate apparently passing him by.

You sum up my thoughts so well, Floss. Okay, I am not Ms. Bussell's biggest fan but I think I am still able to make an objective judgement. I don't think she is remotely interested in bringing ballet to a wider audience or any of the myriad other objectives that nicer people than I are attributing to her. I think Darcey misses the limelight and will do anything to remain in the media spotlight. Okay, nothing much wrong with that and she won't be the first, but I do think she could make an effort to stop the gushing and the girlishness and just talk about ballet about which she must know a great deal. You don't get to the top of RB without being street-smart and I find the persona she adopts intensely irritating. Contrast that with Steven Macrae. He is hardly a shy star and is always out there twittering and promoting himself. And why not? He is honest and upfront about it and whilst some may think it is OTT, that's what he does. With Darcey there is something faux that for me strikes a wrong note.

You are a star, Pulcinella. Have found a cinema (Salisbury) and booked a ticket. Many thanks. Oh to have been there that night in Italy!

Thanks Jacqueline. Excellent idea. Is he fantastic?

But isn't that rather a Russian thing? I always get irritated by the performers taking applause at the end of a turn when the companies come over here but I accept it is what they expect

You make some excellent points, Geoff. Yes, the orchestra were sublime for Cav/Pag and for minutes at a time I closed my eyes and let Pappano's wonderful feel for the music wash over me. Similarly, the supporting players were first-class. Yes, there was a lot to like so I should have been more appreciative. I suppose it was just the last one (I hope!) in a string of disappointments. But I wouldn't have missed it for worlds whereas Carmen was really a grim experience.

I rather hoped I'd made it clear that I was not blaming ROH, simply putting the topic up to gain the benefit of others viewpoints. Cast changes are, in my view, relatively few at ROH which is why this past season has appeared to be something of an anomaly. However, there is a difference between 'cast changes' and losing the Principal on each occasion! Yes, maybe I should be high-minded and say it doesn't matter but it does. I can't visit as often as I would like both due to funds and the travel involved so, not surprisingly, I pick my performances carefully and it is disappointing when they don't pan out as advertised.

Yes, you begin to wonder if you're cursed or something! Last night was my Christmas treat (from me to me!) and it was just so disappointing. The audience were, as ever, generous to the replacement and he was in good voice but Cavalleria is a hugely emotional piece and the fact the new guy was short and of slight figure whilst Westbroek is powerfully built with a voice to match, meant that there was no balance in the arias. Possibly with more rehearsal they could have sorted it out but it just didn't work. I know its no-one's fault but it was a costly night. I come from a long way off so had arranged a supper tray in the Hall which is pretty highly priced. None of which I would mind if the central purpose of all the expenditure - the performance - was as billed! I think I'm going to send my Gheorgiu tickets back for re-sale. I just can't take the risk anymore and will stick to ballet and hope Ms Osipova has had a chance to rest up and be ready for Giselle.

I offer this post for discussion and take no particular viewpoint I'm asking if ROH has been particularly unlucky this season re cast changes or are there other forces at work? Here's the plot: - Two sets of tickets for RB Autumn Season to see Osipova. She is injured and cannot perform in London but I can catch her if I travel - Snaffled one ticket to hear Jonas Kaufmann but he phones in sick two days before performance and we endure adequate replacement in below par staging of Carmen - Last night, Cavalleria Rusticana and I Pagliacci lose their male lead and we are only told at curtain up. Replacements flown in from New York and Latvia. Both okay (ish) but the substitution showed. I have a ticket for Gheorgiu and am wonder what my chances of her materialising are? Let me say that I have great sympathy for ROH. I understand that artistes are human beings and subject to the same ailments as the rest of us and I would not under any circumstances want anyone to perform when they are below par. I also get that in a perfect world we are meant to book for the performance and not the performers. However, the reverse side of this is that ROH puts a lot of emphasis on its star names and, with opera, prices are sometimes adjusted accordingly. Cav and Pag is this season's most expensive production and I paid and eye watering £224 for my ticket. I ended up seeing an opera whose male leads had both been parachuted in the day before and so obviously lacked rehearsal time. More importantly, the production had been created with another cast in mind which meant that in Cavalleria the full-throated Wesbroek totally dominated her partner. Yes, the standard was good but it wasn't as it should have been. The Kaufmann no-show was even more irritating. I'm not the only person who had no desire to see this rather tired Carmen but I wanted to hear Kaufmann once before I die! When you factor in the cost of tickets, train fare, dinner and, in my case, dog sitters, it's an expensive non-event. I would like to hear views. On balance my sympathy is with ROH but, at the end of the day, I'm getting tied of shelling out for something that isn't being delivered.

May I just say, Floss, that I hope you will not ever shorten your posts. They are always a mine of information and I learn so much. You have a knack of providing the answers to whatever I was wondering about at the time! Thank you for my ongoing ballet education.

As ever, Floss, you give us a mine of information and instructive comment. I have learnt so much from your posts this last year and would like to express my thanks.

God, this woman is so irritating. I think since she left RB she has been bigged up as Princess Darcey and now overdoses on the simpering. She is just as annoying on Strictly Come Dancing where she lusts after the male celebrities and patronises the other judges. However, the programme was worth watching. The footage of Mukhamedov dancing Spartacus took my breath away and I had never realised how drop dead gorgeous Erik Bruhne was. Tragic that Kobborg was completely ignored - perhaps he and Darcey didn't get on. I always got the impression that she was allowed to do whatever she wanted at RB and have always blamed her for the loss of Viviana Durante. I am probably completely wrong but DB has always struck me as one of those people who go through life getting everything they want.

I think this will remain one of the great mysteries of our time. Perhaps RB thought they owed Acosta. Personally, I would have thought they owed it to him to be honest that choreography is not his strong suit. Terrible waste of money and what a disappointing way for such a wonderful dancer to bow out.

The curse of the Iphone struck again on Monday's matinee of Cavaleria. Woman next to me left phone on in her lap for first half. As soon as there was some loud music I asked if she would turn it off as the light was distracting me. She did so but then pointedly exchanged seats with her companion. Oh dear, people can be truly ghastly. Why pay all that money (£225) to sit and look at a phone?

I don't think its criticising to say that a particular dancer is more famed for his technique than his acting abilities. I am a huge fan of Macrae and adore watching him, BUT, I don't find he moves me in certain roles. If there has been a lot of this type of comment, I think it is more to do with the fact that the RB is currently short on male Principals with the ability to convey emotion. Combined with the fact that Macrae has moved centre stage and that he is promoted quite heavily, and you get people pointing out the contrast with dancers like Watson and Muntagirov. None of which is to detract from Macrae who is absolutely fabulous but I stand by the point that Kevin O'Hare needs to take a long hard look at his available male Principals.

There was a problem with the lighting in Cavalleria Rusticana in that some members of the audience couldn't see because of the blinding spotlights reflecting off glass in the set. They posted comments on the ROH website and received a very polite response and the problem was rectified so it really is worth posting.

Polunin is simply not a grown-up. I was only privileged to see him dance twice and on both occasions I was bowled over so I get him. And I would have liked to see much more of him as he grew and matured. But he doesn't want to do that; he wants to be a maverick, which is okay, but a maverick without any respect for the traditions that have given him his star status. Yes, he makes some good points about pay but that's how it is and he would have much more ability to make changes if he worked within the system. Above all, I fear for his influence on Osipova. I think that together they may well spell catastrophe for her career.

Excuse me, but one man? If it is only one man, then Edward Watson is that man for me. He is everything a dancer should be

Yes, in spades. I find Darcey is always gushy - she does the Princess Darcey thing permanently and is, for me, always too good to be true

Get as cross as you like about Acosta's Carmen... I saw Cavalleria Rusticana yesterday and in between the wonderful singing and sublime music, I started wondering about the plot which is positively prehistoric with its blood revenge and deeply religious overtones. But the thing is, there really are only a few themes in literature - probably five storylines - and this is why original concepts are so frequently updated. Fantastic though it may seem to a modern audience, yesterday's opera still resonated, even if I felt my sympathy less with the spurned heroine (who was a cross between a drudge and a sneak) and more with the avenging husband. New works are great but it is surely a truism that in the end they are all more or less based on the same few themes?