MRR

I saw Nunez pull in for a quad seven years ago (on her first set of multiples), and she even did a quintuple at a recent gala. Opening night her fouettes were fairly conservative--singles with the occasional double--but executed impeccably. John--I'm glad you enjoy Odile's entrance, and I do love the curtain and the entire Act III set. Speaking of the Act III set, I noticed vision Odette walking up to the platform before she is lit up (and descending the backstage stairs after her vision), in every performance. This was more a problem in the pas de deux than at the end of the act where there is so much going on. As there are three windows, Odette appears in the middle window but ascends or descends the stairs apparent in the stage left (audience right) window. It's a minor distraction, but at least from stalls something which caught my eye.

One thing I miss is Odile's entrance with Rothbart in Act III. Somehow the lifting of the curtain to reveal an almost silhouetted Odile by herself doesn't have the same magic as Rothbart and Odile storming in together. Although the Dowell production did not achieve this well at all, with the weird skull minions robbing the scene of the electricity needed. I love the Mariinsky version where the lights dim upon their arrival. ABT's staging where they enter through the gates at the top of the stairs is also effective.

It's a shame that with six casts Hayward was the odd woman out. The six O/Os were all very deserving so I can't argue with Scarlett (or O'Hare's) casting of that role, but I am dismayed she is performing neither lead in the autumn Bayadere. It's possible Hayward was also the first cover for O/O, so if there had been more time to adequately prepare her to replace Cuthbertson, she would have gone on.

Yes, as you stated, Siegfried dances the transition between Acts I and II in Scarlett's production where nothing was going on in Dowell's. Perhaps Siegfried had a bit more dancing in the Waltz in the old version, but only a bit. Though I would have appreciated a Nureyev "moody" solo in the first act for the Prince, especially on Muntagirov.

The Russian Dance was not in the Dowell production, nor the production it replaced, IIRC.

I agree with this and think Campbell hams up Benno to an extent where it clashes with Muntagirov's solemn Siegfried. However, I appreciate the solidity of Campbell's technique; there isn't a moment where he is out of control. The double tours down the diagonal were perfectly executed opening night with no slowing down of the tempo. I did not see Dyer or Ella, but overall the standard of the Bennos was very high this run. Hay and Sambe were my favorites, but Acri has a lot of potential. The Royal looks to have one of its deepest rosters of male dancers in recent years, and that's before Corrales joins.

Can't remember if this was the review, but there was an ABT gala with Veronika Part doing Rose Adage where he said Aurora should get drinks for her suitors after the show Or something to that effect: Part's Rose Adage was reportedly a white-knuckle ride. Thanks for mentioning Eric's review. His reviews are hilarious and very, very accurate.

Selfishly I wanted Laura Morera to trot out one more Neapolitan for the premiere.

Francesca Hayward isn't either, so at least she's in good company! I get the draw of having Osipova and Nunez switching roles, but you could easily have Hayward/Choe in a cast with James Hay as Solor.

Yuhui Choe seems very much the Belinda Hatley of her generation. Not necessarily comparing their dancing as I saw Hatley very little, but both danced several principal parts under one director with a rep commensurate for promotion, but never received it once directors changed. Hatley performed Aurora, SPF, Giselle, Lise, and Swanhilda under Dowell's tenure, where Choe has danced Cinderella, Alice, SPF, Aurora, Nikiya, Gamzatti, and Lise. Choe's rep is more expansive than Hatley's, but my point is that if Mason were still director, Choe would more likely be a principal vs. Kevin O'Hare who will probably never promote her. Even in next season's Bayadere, Choe isn't slated for either principal role she has danced in the past. I'm relatively lukewarm to Choe, so can't disagree with O'Hare holding back as I prefer Hayward, Naghdi, and Takada. And videos of her Odette/Odile in Korea didn't show her to have the presence to carry Swan Lake, although I would see Aurora or SPF being far more suited to her.

Is Soares injured? I was surprised not to see him cast.

For starters, one of the greatest men's variations in Act III ever done. That is Siegfried's big moment in Swan Lake, and Vadim knocked it out of the park. Technical perfection in every step highlighted by the brilliant (and difficult) sequence of rebounding double tours, culminating with an impeccable pirouette to the knee. Dramatically, Vadim's Siegfried has a solitude and innocence which makes him the perfect target for Rothbart and, eventually, Odile. Act I in Scarlett's version is far more a stately military affair than a birthday party; besides Benno, it is repeatedly made clear that Siegfried has no friends. The Prince's loneliness was completely captured by Vadim, especially in his soliloquy with those gorgeous, yearning arabesques. But what truly sealed the performance was his running out in search of Odette in Act IV. Shattering and devastating, this was one of those moments when you realize you are watching an uncommon artist.

Loving all these reports about Monday's performances. I wish Naghdi were doing the cinema relay (with a different partner), as Nunez has already been filmed in SL. Sounds like her debut was an absolute triumph. Admittedly I love the fouettes, but can't fault Osipova for substituting them especially as she has done them countless times. For some reason Osipova's fouettes have always looked awkward; whereas I find her pique manege thrilling. So if this was an artistic choice, it was quite a defensible one. Where I take issue is if a ballerina cannot perform the fouettes and replaces them with something not as virtuosic. Misty Copeland's infamous video shows about 14 fouettes followed by a perfunctory manege with no sense of enslaving Siegfried. In this case, the pique turns were merely there to fill 16 counts voided by technical deficiency. It seems that with Osipova's manege, it was not only technically impressive but completely in character for Odile.

The Ashton Neapolitan has survived, but this is the only choreography of his in Liam Scarlett's Swan Lake. As for the speed, I thought only Hinkis/Sambe on opening night approached the tempo of Taylor/Streep in the 1980 production.

Thanks for linking--what an exciting Neapolitan danced to an incredibly fast tempo. Sleep's batterie was exceptional (I believe he's the only danseur credited with completing an entrechat douze). Even the battu work done on the ground (starting at 0:41) is so clear. And I'm amazed with such a high jump that he could always get down in time. I love the character dances in Swan Lake because they act as the "calm before the storm." And one can't do better than Ashton's Neapolitan, which is so perfectly choreographed.

Actually I like hyperextension on certain dancers, but never thought that a dancer without it automatically has an "unattractive" line, nor that hyperextension in and of itself makes a line beautiful. Alina Somova has all the hyperextension in the world but her placement, turn-out, and shape of her feet are very poor, and her extensions have a floppy quality to them where she never sustains a position she hits. But Sylvie Guillem's legs were some of my favorite in ballet because she had tremendous strength and control to manage her hyperextension, not to mention great turn-out and beautiful feet. Uliana Lopatkina has a gorgeous line for Swan Lake, with very straight legs which are perhaps slightly hyperextended but not to the extent of, say, Zakharova.

Ivy, no they did not. They all end in the dip.

Also, this was a collage I did of Lamb, Nunez, and Takada bowing after their respective performances.

Attended Wednesday's performance which was excellent. Lamb was a riveting O/O: if not always technically solid, she conveyed every step with such meaning that you realized why the choreography was there in the first place. The entrance scene in Act II was well-nigh perfect, with crystal clear mime and subtle shifts in her eyes and body to explain her predicament. The Act II adagio was silky and luxuriant, where she and Hirano were physically and psychologically in-tune. The variation was the only relative weakness in Act II where her ending diagonal went off the rails a bit, turning the last stepover turn from a double to a single. Impressively, however, Lamb's smaller stature still conveyed the authority the Swan Queen demands. The hope of her Act II contrasted with the despair of her Act IV made Lamb's Odette come to life. As Odile she was more sinister than sensuous. The pas de deux was taken too slowly, but it did allow for Lamb and Hirano to do multiple whiplash supported pirouettes which were very exciting. Lamb had a decent balance in arabesque (more centered and better position than Takada's, but not held nearly as long), causing sort of an awkward moment where she went into penchee with Hirano thinking she was going to stay in arabesque. There were some nerves technically: in her variation the double pirouette-double attitude were rocky (turning the second attempt into a double-single), and the fouettes got a bit unwieldy as she packed in one too many double revolutions in the 32 turns. Understandably, it wasn't until after the fouettes where her Odile fully burned, her eyes enslaving Siegfried in the traveling steps down the diagonal. Overall she had many good instincts as Odile and with a second or third performance will surely gain more control. As O/O, Lamb also had great ability to showcase the beautiful shape to her legs: absolutely straight with no slack in the knees nor any hyperextension. Just a wonderful, pure, classical line. Hirano is an ideal partner for Lamb, with handsome presence and proportions not to mention great theatrical impulse to his Siegfried. Even with limited dancing, his Act I evoked the isolated life of the Prince and the pressure he was receiving from the Queen to marry. He was suitably reverent with Odette and enamored with Odile with devoted partnering throughout. Dramatically there were many points on par with Muntragirov, though technically he was less virtuosic with occasionally labored tours and pirouettes in Act III (Muntagirov is, and presumably will remain, the only Prince to do the consecutive rebounding double tour in the solo). If anything Hirano peaked in Act IV, where his search for Odette, the reconciliation pas de deux, and his final cradling of Odette's body were masterfully modulated. He and Lamb are a beautiful pair whose connection found more success in the white acts than in Act III. Luca Acri lacked the elevation and plasticity seen from the previous Bennos, but overall a fine debut. Mayara Magri has been the only dancer in the first variation to attempt entrechat six, executing more cleanly to one side than the other but very strong. Meagan Grace Hinkis in the second variation has fast footwork but a lack of freedom in the upper body which tends to chop up the steps. Fumi Kaneko and Olivia Cowley were perhaps not the most powerful Two Swans but beautifully synchronized in both Acts II and IV. And Jenny mentioned Tierney Heap, whose arousing Hungarian Princess just added to the standout performances she has given throughout the run. How could Siegfried possibly decline her?! Much to my surprise I preferred Kristen McNally's Queen to Elizabeth McGorian's. McNally (performing Saturday and Wednesday) has a haughty regal quality which makes it very clear who is running the show. Rothbart is her advisor and they seem to work in tandem, such as the beginning scene where she fully accepts Rothbart's pressure put on the Prince to attend the ball. Elizabeth McGorian is more reticent to ask Siegried to find a bride, and if weren't for Rothbart probably wouldn't have Siegfried marry at all. Given such two differing interpretations, I'm not sure what Scarlett wanted, but McNally's sets up the plotline as to how her kingdom gets overthrown. She trusts Rothbart to do her dirty work for her, and doesn't realize how he is stealing her power until it is too late. McNally's Queen is perhaps also more successful against a weaker Rothbart, such as Thomas Whitehead's, then it would be against Bennet Gartside who is far more imposing. That is it for my stay in London, loved seeing the Royal Ballet again and especially in this new production. Can't wait for the reports on Osipova/Ball and Naghdi/Kish, and hopefully Cuthbertson if she is to perform the remainder of her shows.

Yes, I appreciated Takada more on a second viewing. Perhaps sitting father back flatters some of her work: she has wonderful rippling swan port de bras with pliant extension and a very regal back. I still didn't find myself especially moved as her dramatic instincts don't always translate to the back of the house, but overall she seemed freer than on Saturday. Her suicide scene in both shows seemed rather anti-climactic, however. She acquitted herself well with a new partner, and her strong technique helped her in this regard. Takada's fouettes were weaker than on Saturday, and there were a few partnering issues which showed a lack of rehearsal, but these are minor quibbles. Bonelli is a subtle prince, favoring a more introspective approach than Bracewell on Saturday. Technically he is showing his age in some areas (his arabesque is much lower), but his cabrioles, if not especially big, were very clean, and he finished the variation with a nifty double tour-pirouette-double tour sequence out of Theme and Variations. He was obviously pacing himself throughout the beginning of the ballet to have enough left in the tank for Black Swan pas and Act IV. Actually without Muntagirov onstage, Siegfried's role has seemed very limited in this production aside from partnering. He gets three pas de deux with O/O, but only one real variation in the whole ballet and hardly any dancing at his own birthday. Bonelli's small-scaled interpretation made this all the more evident. Pas de trois was a mixed bag. James Hay's dancing has amazing clarity, articulation, and vigor, surpassing the challenges technically with flying colors. Yuhui Choe has given perhaps the best performance of the second girl's variation so far: wonderfully serene and lyrical. I'm not normally fan of Choe, but the classical, princessy roles suit her perfectly. Claire Calvert was the one weak point, perhaps an off night? She has beautiful feet but otherwise looked tired and detached. The first girl's variation has plenty of batterie which is not her strong suit, and she had some strange spacing to her manege (both the turning sequence in the first variation and the saut de basque in the coda). One random comment, but watching Matthew Ball among the 12 corps men in Act I already makes me jealous for those who will see his Siegfried. Just standing onstage, he already looks a prince.

Also here tonight, snapped up a return at the last minute. Very excited to see Bonelli with Takada and a new PdT couple.

Yes, I think an understudy would be a last resort in this case, preparing a debut one day before a performance with (presumably) no time for a full stage call. Nunez also wasn't a good option given she danced the student performance yesterday.

A shame Lauren has had such terrible luck with Swan Lake. Hope the injury is minor and she is able to carry on the remainder of her scheduled performances.

Akane Takada replaces Lauren Cuthbertson in tomorrow (Tuesday's) performance: http://www.roh.org.uk/news/cast-change-swan-lake-on-22-may-2018

My nightmare Swan Lake is anything with Yolanda Sonnabend's designs. Even as a 7-year-old I couldn't stand them! I loathe Black Swan pas de deuxs which go back to the original music also used for Balanchine's "Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux." Gorgeous music to be sure, but the original Tchaikovsky completely dials down the eroticism inherent in the pas de deux. Some versions such as Bolshoi and La Scala use the oboe solo in minor for Odile's variation, which I do find very effective.