alison

I wouldn't have thought they'd have been making changes to the database on a Sunday, then. OTOH, I've heard reports of the site claiming that shows are sold out and all sorts of things, so who knows?

Glitch with the booking system? I know they have been having problems.

Mary, thank you for starting the thread. I hope you don't mind, but I've changed the title to include all the Bolshoi broadcasts, and added a title to your post so it's clear which one we're talking about. Well, I've seen this one now, and I don't feel any great need to go and see it again. Despite all the "Orientalisms", the choreography still struck me as fairly typically Grigorovich, almost expressionistic, painted with very broad brushstrokes and rather strident in parts: certainly I felt that some of the corps work (the goosestepping, for example) could have been lifted out and inserted straight into "Spartacus" without anyone even noticing (perhaps he even did? I'm not so familiar with its choreography that I'd necessarily notice). I also get the feeling that the narrative was rather less thin than what we were given, but I was rather bemused as to what was supposed to be happening for much of the time. Perhaps I've just got used to being able to dancers expressing something more or less every minute of a ballet. Like Mary, I did become more involved in the production later on. I thought the costumes (and lighting) in the final act were very good at expressing the "ghostly" aspect of the narrative. The main thing I came away with, though, was: how sad is it that I can recognise David Hallberg's feet without thinking twice? And they weren't even "pointed", I don't think!

I kept wondering where the tassles were

Well, not only that, but she has to synchronise with the other "side girl" in a way that I don't think the "side boys" have to, so that's more demands on her. Confusing, and frustrating. I could see why the first-night cast was changed, but why not just stick with the supposed first- and second-night casts after that? Having all this mixing and matching is very confusing: I was trying to work out whether I would actually get to see everybody in the 4 performances I've booked.

Oh dear. I hope it's nothing serious.

And have a look at your hands next time you put them in an Airblade. It's not a pretty sight. I can't work out if that applies to younger women too or not. There's nothing much wrong with the cloakroom area which wouldn't be put right if all those people who insist on congregating in the area to put their coats on, thereby blocking it for everyone who's trying to leave, just applied a bit of common sense and moved out of the way. And talking of common sense, don't get me started on all the people at the Coliseum who don't seem to be able to cope with the concept that after you've turned the water on you need to turn it off again.

Yes. After the Scottish referendum, I'm even more unconfident of the British electorate's ability to look at all the issues with a clear mind and vote on that basis, rather than on one small component of the whole But a referendum we shall have.

I have: Dunblane Cathedral, in fact. And the Scottish dancing was fun. And yes, there were quite a few men in kilts, although I can't remember whether the groom wore one - I presume he did, but my photos are in storage so I can't check.

Doesn't it, Melody? What browser are you using? It lets me C+P all right: it just won't easily let me edit posts.

Were they all at the same venue? The problem with the live relays is that the cinema has to invest in the necessary satellite equipment or whatever it is in order to receive them, whereas if they're not live you just get a recording. There used to be a price difference between recorded and non-recorded showings when they first came out, but frankly if Picturehouses are going to charge the same for a 3-year-old recording as they do for a live transmission then I'm not going to bother.

Thanks Maybe I should try for Monday's insight as recompense ...

So, would anyone like to enlighten me as to what I had to miss last night?

Well, assuming that she stays around, I presume that question will be answered in due course, but it will take a lot of trial and (probably) error, I assume. Opposites can attract, of course. Incidentally, since we've got sidetracked onto partnering, perhaps I'll just mention here - having publicly doubted the appropriateness of pairing her with Acosta so much when he's on the verge of retiring, rather than looking for the longer term - that in the Evening Standard article/interview the other week she did say how much she appreciated dancing with Carlos. (The article did, I think, go on to say that she also felt a particular - affinity, I think was the word - with Ed Watson, but that's yet to translate into anything further than a couple of new modern works. Might be worth exploring, though.).

By the way, if anyone is planning on going to Wimbledon anyway and thinking of travelling by tram, check first: I know there are some engineering works coming up at Mitcham Junction, and they tend to be arranged during school holidays, which is this week.

The lack of paper towels is a long-standing problem, not helped, I suspect, by the doubtful economy measure of supplying much smaller towels (I think they're now approximately square rather than rectangular, and to judge by the holders they must be a good inch narrower than they used to be). I know I regularly have to use 3 now if I actually want to get my hands dry, and I've noticed similar behaviour from other patrons (we often comment on it - I'm not really standing there counting everybody else's towel use ), so that probably means that the towels are being used up faster than before. Probably the same applies to the now-minute pieces of loo roll (approximately 3 x 4 inches, I reckon - and again you can see the difference in width between the rollers and the holders), except that the supply of that seems to be perfectly adequate. The soap problem is also particularly acute in the Linbury toilets, where I frequently struggle to find any dispenser which is actually dispensing. OTOH, the missing taps and locks is clearly a maintenance issue, rather than just a restocking one. I should say that the above are not generally problems I find with the amphi toilets. Perhaps the demand is less high up there. What I did note, some time ago, when for some reason, perhaps lateness, I was in the downstairs toilets during a performance, was that the towel holders hadn't been topped up since the interval/start of the performance.

It's known as getting your second wind. Happens to me a lot, which is why I'm still online

Actually, now I've thought about it a bit more, I think perhaps more in the way of being in a world of their own? Literally. One which is bounded by the "four walls" of the stage, complete in itself, with no audience to interact with. So, introspective, perhaps? No, that's not quite right either. Anyway, getting back to Month, which I rather forgot to comment on: on Saturday, I felt the performance was pretty close to pitch-perfect, but last night it all felt "off" to me. For a start, I felt that Natalia Petrovna was actually on the verge of starting an affair with one or both of her admirers, and that is to my mind so wrong in the context of the ballet, which, as Bruce said earlier, requires subtlety. And whereas the first cast seemed to have the comic timing necessary for the "lost contact lens keys" part of the ballet, I didn't feel that worked last night. Also, it seems totally wrong to me that the RB should put on an Ashton mixed bill which doesn't feature Laura Morera if she's fit and well, as I assume she is

At the risk of provoking a minor stampede, I thought I should point out that there aren't exactly a lot of bottom-price tickets available at the Peacock, for those who are on a budget.

Oh, I don't know - give me a few minutes. I'm sure I could find something which would make that look mild in comparison Actually, I could say the words you have picked out about another member of the company, and they'd be perfectly apt there too. Quite. I thought I'd heard of Ashton only selecting the one cast, too, although that hasn't been the policy this century, as far as I can recall. Plus he would only programme the work when he thought he had the *right* dancers to do it justice. Not *serious* serious, but certainly serene, and possibly a little ... detached? I thought Muntagirov looked less at home in SV last night than he had on the first night, and wondered if rehearsals with Hamilton might have had to be sacrificed in favour of the first-night cast. Of the complete newcomers, I liked Luca Acri the best. I think the breaks in the waltzes may be so that Isadora can consider what she wants to do in the next piece, if they're all supposed to be spontaneously inspired? I was slightly round to the left of the auditorium, so not facing straight on, and I did notice from that angle that Zucchetti seemed to be making a bit heavy weather of the partnering. I did like Choe's playfulness, but was still slightly missing Cuthbertson's musicality in the role. I liked Pajdak a lot in the Brahms, although friends who'd seen the rehearsal said she seemed freer then.

In fact, it's totally ridiculous: even at Covent Garden the prices are only £18. I wonder whether someone set the system up for opera prices by mistake?

Gulp. Thanks for that warning, Amelia: I had been thinking of going to Wimbledon (engineering works permitting, as ever), but not at that price! Wonder if other branches will be as pricey? Funny how much things differ: I noticed that Surrey Quays Odeon was only charging £13 or so for Manon, but I doubt they're showing the Bolshoi. Oh, and according to the Wimbledon website, the tickets for Manon were £18.50, I think it was. But the seat selection option wasn't available, so I couldn't see whether it was worth turning up "on spec".

Well, my feelings weren't that dissimilar to yours, aileen - but since I'm burning the midnight oil here I don't have time to post in depth. Anyone else?

Estimated 70+ people on there this evening - Ashton bill - and that was on a fairly chilly evening, and with no seats in the heated area for people to sit there. Do feel free to contribute: I don't get to the ROH nearly often enough to do much on this.

There's an art to it, Joan I was really surprised to see quite how much of the front half of the amphi had already disappeared for one Osipova performance - a lot more than for the others.