nevsky

Yes, but I don't read it like he does or as the two dancers describe their partnership. "Fire and ice", says Kevin. "Fumbled lifts and poor emotional characterisation from Hallberg", say I (with reference to his performances last summer).

Everything Vadim Muntagirov does is fine by me. His dancing is on a different (higher) level. Some people on this forum accuse him of a lack of expression at times but I have never found that a problem. He does not layer expression on but reacts naturally. I am grateful to him for taking me through every emotion in La Bayadere. I was always a reluctant attendee, but not any more. When you see the cinema relay, it is all there from Muntagirov, subtle and genuine. That means he gets my vote for Manon, Winter Dreams, and Swan Lake. The best Rudolf by far was Matthew Ball. He had a fortnight's notice to be ready to perform as Ryoichi Hirano moved into Edward Watson's slots. It was a compelling performance and he completely commanded the stage. William Bracewell showed that he thinks deeply about the roles he does and thinks himself into the character, so he gets a vote for his Swan Lake, Unknown Soldier and, also, Baron Tusenbach in Winter Dreams , a very moving portrayal as the soldier who others laughed at behind his back .He loses the duel but the girl is waiting for him at the end of the ballet, not for the brash soldier. I discovered that I had a DVD of the original film with Mukhamedov, Bussell, et al. It was interesting to see that Gary Avis was the brother with the baby in the the pram whereas Anthony Dowell was Kulygin in 1991. Cesar Corrales was commanding in Le Jeune Homme et La Mort. He brought the same mesmerising power to his Hungarian Officer in Mayerling and performed very well in La Bayadere. Some tall order, first full length ballet on RB stage and with two powerful leading ladies, Nunez and Osipova. He passed the test easily. Pity someone didn't tell him that he did not have to wear the ghastly turban all the time. All the other Solors were in head band with feather at the betrothal scene. He uses his face so well to create his characters that we needed to see it. Get fit soon, Cesar: you have so much more to offer. Finally, No Man's Land. Liam Scarlett captures the horror of the war and the loss of young life which includes an a emotional pas de deux with the girl whose man only returns in her memory. His choice of Liszt 'Harmonies Poetiques et Religieuses orchestrated by Gavin Sutherland somehow fits the mood so well. Footnote: Mayara Magri put in stunning performance as Gamzatti in La Bayadere.

Did anyone see Maria Alexandrova last night. I met someone on the train this morning who had been. He seemed reluctant to commit himself. I am sure others will be more forthcoming. I am due to see her soon.

And his Marguerite. In his last three ballets he has been on his knees, as the curtain falls, cradling the dead bodies of the women he has loved.

In her Evening Standard interview, Tamara Rojo said that Isaac Hernandez "has won all the awards you can possibly win". Because this was queried, and in the interests of fairness, I have now looked this up. Online records show that Hernandez was awarded the following junior prizes/medals: YAGP 2003: Best Male Dancer Junior Age Division Cuba 2004: (unclear but various bio-pics of his mention 1st Prize) Moscow 2005: Junior Male Bronze Jackson 2006: Junior Male Gold He was also awarded the Alexandra Radius prize which recognises dancers in The Netherlands in 2014. It is difficult to be sure, and this is in no sense a criticism of him, but it appears that Hernandez's guest appearances at the Paris Opera Ballet (Solor and Basilio) have been after he joined ENB. During my searches, I also came across a big feature on Hernandez in the Evening Standard (August 2015 - very early in his time with ENB). What he says there is interesting in the context of how things have developed: https://www.standard.co.uk/go/london/theatre/isaac-hern-ndez-the-hottest-ballet-boy-to-hit-london-since-carlos-acosta-10436964.html

Poor Matthew Ball. Now he is being criticised for his clothes. I do not think he was ''woefully miscast'. For goodness sake give a lad a chance. He needs to supported and encouraged. That is how dancers get stronger mentally and go on and give their best.He is a very bright prospect in the RB and I for one am glad to see him shining.

The Saturday matinee of Giselle was a splendid occasion for me. Surprisingly, I found that my face broke into a smile the moment Albrecht arrived and when Giselle appeared it got even wider. It was one of those very rare occasions when the whole cast looked so good together and danced so completely. I have followed Yasmine's career closely. She is a fine dancer and she inhabits her roles totally. She thinks herself into the character and lives it throughout the performance, never once having to check who she is. She has proved many times before she was appointed that she was principal material and every appearance reinforces that justice of that position. Her dancing was a delight and was captivating. I particularly like the way in which she challenged Myrtha 'He may have betrayed me' she said, 'but for me he is still the one and I am going to fight for him'. Myrtha was cowed. Matthew Ball, appointed a first soloist this season, has shown already that he is also a very thoughtful dancer and is very much on his way. I am sure he prepares thoroughly too and wants to get the character right. I have see him in modern works and he has given me greater insight and a finer performance in a second cast role than I have received from the first cast lead on a few occasions. He is well recognised in this field and he is honing his skills in classical ballet with good outcomes. Some people on these threads have been ready to make critical comments, particularly in the light of Alex's performance the previous night. There are a few points to make here. Alex had a long history of good work at BRB. He has been a principal at the RB for over a year, he is an older and more mature dancer. The show that he and Frankie did on Friday evening was their third in front of an audience and, when dancers have had that kind of opportunity, it helps them to really know each other and how the performance will proceed. For Yasmine and Matthew it was their one and only appearance in public. That raises the pressure, but they pulled it off, both of them. In fact I saw interpretations in Matthew's performance that I had not seen from other Albrechts, and I have seen three other casts in this run, (in addition to Vadim and Marienela, who are very special anyway ) which enhanced the story for me and in which he betrayed his feelings openly and honestly. It was unfortunate that one poster reminded us that he fell over in Beauty. Hardly did he need to know that this had been remembered. Other dancers were excellent as well. Thomas Mock was a splendid Hilarion, enlarging the character with skill. The pas de six was very well balanced, danced strongly by the men and all well matched in height, and with panache by the ladies. Fumi Kaneko was an excellent Myrtha, in control, commanding with a technique of pure quality. One other person to mention and, in the general run of a show, probably hardly noticed, but Jonathan Howells, as Master of the Hunt produces a cameo performance which draws on his years of stagecraft. When the hunting party sit for their wine he is there behind the table flicking his gloves at the locals to keep them at bay. Then, when Bathilde asks the Duke whether she can present Giselle with the necklace, he had his ear close that conversation and expressed disapproval. In all a splendid show. Bravo, brava, bravi- or whatever it should be!

But Mark Monahan and Christopher Wheeldon clearly thought they knew something was amiss. Otherwise, why would ENB have been referred to in that article and why did Wheeldon say "the issue of concern is all the other stuff".

An interesting couple of reviews in Dance Europe, received today. First, Lauretta Summerscales and Yonah Acosta in Don Quixote in Munich. "Virtuoso from start to finish, an incredible balance in attitude en pointe that seemed never to end, thirty-two fouttes, single and double consecutively, remaining on the spot" and, Yonah " an indescribable sequence of jetes en tournant in the coda that left the audience gaping in disbelief". Cesar Corrales in Le Jeune Homme et la Mort. "....he does not look ,or perform like anyone else .......... as his every move and expression appears to explode and evolve from within the darkest corners of his soul ......... His vulnerability is painfully exposed in searing chasms as he becomes engulfed with the desire for Zhang's ravishing yet callous Girl" These 3 stars were all at ENB but a few months ago. In a recent interview, Yonah said that he and Tamara "were fighting a lot". Now Cesar is leaving too. What a loss to the Company. Nuff said.

The ROH performances were in two separate weeks!

I find that respect and gratitude is a 'two-way' street.

I think that, in addition to Max Westwell and Anton Lukovkin who left a while ago and Madison Keesler who left this summer, Alejandro Virelles, another Principal, also left earlier this year.

Yesterday's performance of Giselle turned out to be something special. Established ENB dancers took all the roles. Alison McWhinney was a tender, loving and trusting Giselle. Once she overcame her shyness, she delighted in Albrecht's attentions. Her soft arms added to her inherent fragility and, when she realised she had been deceived, she seemed to carry her sense of disbelief in her madness. In Act 2, her long neck and beautiful carriage made her truly ethereal. As Albrecht, Yonah Acosta produced a stunning performance, his acting achieving heights I hadn’t seen from him before. Despite his trying to be a peasant you knew from the beginning that aristocracy was in Albrecht’s blood. Acosta’s manner and bearing betrayed that upbringing. However, this was no cad. This Albrecht was head over heels in love with Giselle. Acosta is a strong looking man but he achieved remarkable tenderness and a softness of touch that revealed his character’s true feelings for this girl. When unmasked, his contrition seemed to be token because he knew where his love truly belonged. He was totally overcome when Giselle died and his bereavement was channelled into powerful anger at Hilarion whom he saw as the cause. Isabelle Brouwers was a commanding Myrtha with huge elevation to her jumps. She controlled the second act absolutely and her Wilis were excellent, with soft arms as Skeaping would have wished, and always together. Against their woodland setting, they were disturbingly eerie. No wonder the men who strayed into their territory were scared out of their minds. Hilarion, Daniel Kraus, was ardent too. His anger at being duped by a Duke was palpable. We could feel his torment at the grave through the darkness. [but why do all of ENB’s Hilarions come to the stage so beautifully coiffured?] Some contributors here have praised individual dancers but have commented on a missing chemistry. Not this Giselle and Albrecht. We felt their pleasure, their ecstasy and their pain. Never have flowers been laid on the grave with such tenderness, grief and remorse. Throughout, Acosta bared his soul in his dancing, which ranged from very powerful to gentle and loving. In return McWhinney was protective and forgiving, making it clear to the audience that Albrecht needed to stay by the grave to be safe, and letting him be free as the sun rose. Readers may think that I am simply relating the well known story but these dancers told this story in spades, and in so doing gave their all. They made you believe. Congratulations to the home team for showing us what a quality performance looks like.

Principal next then!

These statistics raise a number of questions. Did the dancers who have virtually no shows before Christmas request a long break? If not, what message is the Director seeking to deliver. I was surprised that Muntagirov did not get cast in Anastasia. One might think a Russian, who is also a very fine dancer, would feature in this ballet and enhance the pas de deux . It would appear that Steven McRae, excellent dancer that he is, has to be in everything. Perhaps his two Nutcrackers could have been given to the younger dancers that we all want to see, especially as a guest has been brought in to dance with him.

Last night's opening performance of the Nutcracker had me smiling from the moment the curtain went up. Having seen this production several times in previous years, and having been to two performances at RB already this season, I expected to be somewhat blase in my reaction. Not a bit of it. Everything looked fresh, bright and alluring. The ice skaters at the beginning set the wintry scene well. The guests at the party were ready to celebrate Christmas with gusto and the children were excitable in anticipation of what Christmas was going to bring. Once again, the children from Tring are an important element and they excelled themselves last night. Sometimes I have a bit of a problem with children on the stage (I remember some cringemaking moments in some Russian productions), but these young dancers knew their steps, executed them in unison and acted well also. The young Clara, Cheryl Heung, was splendid and held the stage in a long solo in front of her nutcracker doll. If she continues to develop her talent she will be a name to look out for in the future. The 'adult' Clara, Shiori Kase was outstanding. She danced with great poise and sensitive characterisation and, in the final pdd, she blew us away with her double and triple fouettes. James Forbat was very polished as the Nutcracker which, in this production, is quite a significant part. The battle scene with the mice was handled really well. Here the mice are creatures to be tangled with, one feels that they are a threat, unlike the RB mice which are all small and seem more timid. The Mouse King, James Streeter, is masterful in portraying the character and pursuing Clara. The Prince, making his debut in London was Cesar Corrales. He is an astonishingly capable dancer technically, with high leaps and dramatic turns and provided his ballerina with a secure pair of hands. At 19 he is an impressive talent already. He has wowed provincial audiences in the last few weeks with his masterful Mercutio in Rudolf Nureyev's Romeo and Juliet. Yonah Acosta once again impressed in the Russian dance, bringing gasps from some members of the audience in his final flourish. I agree with has been said above about Ksenia Ovsyanick - just wonderful. Last but not least, I thought the Snowflakes and Flowers were beautifully in sync with the music and one another All in all the Company was on good form. Wayne Eagling was in the audience and I am sure he was pleased to see his production in such good hands and being performed so well.

Thank you capybara for bringing this thread back to 'The Nutcracker'. Many contributors cannot wait to go off on diversions and take others with them. I too went to the Nutcracker. I have not seen this production for a few years and found that there was much to enjoy in both acts. I am planning to go again in the New Year.

Kevin Haigen was interviewed during the second interval. It was the only time that an interview was in English (no breaking off to translate what was being said into French etc.) He explained in considerable detail that what Neumeier was looking for in a performance was the ability be the character. To immerse oneself so totally in the body and mind that one did not have to think about acting. Then you would be Marguerite. He was very happy with the outcome. I have seen this ballet in Hamburg and I was much impressed with it then but I found Zacharova's performance compelling. I came to it without the baggage that some people seem to have if someone can do 'high leg extensions', or 'are seeing the Bolshoi' or 'are watching people who are not RB'. I did not see any of that: I just saw Marguerite and Armand. Moreover, I would expect the camera to follow them. After all, what has been described as 'peripheral dancing', particularly the parallel development of the Manon story, was exactly that. It gave context and was effectively covered but M and A were the story. Frederick Ashton tells his story in one act but he is not drawing the parallel between the two stories, and .... there were two intervals, using up an hour, which may be fine in a theatre but not in a local cinema. That does tend to spoil the atmosphere, especially when a single bulb hanging from the ceiling is switched on during the interviews to light patrons' way to the popcorn counter. None of this was envisaged by Neumeier.

Vadim Muntagirov and Sarah Lamb seem to have honed their partnership so that last night's performance was outstanding from both dancers. They clearly feel comfortable dancing together and there was evidence of the essential 'chemistry' between them. For this reason among others their Faun works very well too. It was a pleasure to see Vadim back in a more 'classical' ballet after his Don Jose in Carmen. He did that really well (the third cast really pulled out all the stops for Carlos) but Vadim needs the opportunity to exhibit his full range of steps and demonstrate his superlative technique whilst continuing to live the character he is portraying - and he lives his characters so well. His Romeo was clearly in love and so was Sarah's Juliet and the passion they showed in their dancing emphasised their total experience and enriched our evening.

As the curtain went down on last night's Carmen I was hoping that the person sitting next to me was not going to ask my opinion. I was spared any awkwardness when it was dismissed as ****. In effect it was a turkey.That was my sentiment too. The dancers worked hard. Marianela Nunez gave a robust performance, but it was not ballet as I know it. It failed to exploit the dance opportunities and the orchestration sapped the music of its vigour.

It is a little disappointing that some contributors are ready to dismiss a performance after the first act and then leave.People have commented that Sarah Lamb can be rather cold but, last night with Vadim Muntargirov, she was positively fizzing. If ever a Juliet was bowled over by a Romeo this one was. From the moment she saw him in the ballroom right through to the balcony scene she threw off any childlike inhibitions and was determined to enjoy the passionate embraces. Who could blame her, since Muntargirov was a most eager and determined suitor, his dancing exhibited his grace, bearing and masterful technique. Although he has danced with Sarah Lamb on a number of occasions it should be remembered that until quite recently his rehearsals had been with Osipova. A late change of cast must require some adaptation and, although she has been dancing the role with Stephen McCrae, changing to a second partner for her as well needed to be worked on. Congratulatons to Zuchetti who was back on the RB stage after a long period nursing an injury. He is well cast as Mercutio and his fight with Tybalt and death scene were accomplished.with great panache. I predict an even more confident performance next Thursday. Well done to the harlots, especially Yuhui Choe, showing another side to their classy dancing. It is a pity that the performance is criticised as a whole if contributors find fault with the orchestral playing. The dancers are still giving their all.

I share the disappointment that Vadim Muntargirov will not be dancing this evening. However, we should not forget that dancers like him live for being on stage. If they do not perform, after all that rehearsal, it must be very disappointing for them as well. We do get to see a performance, even if it is not the person we booked for, and McRae and Salenko will give it their all, whereas, if he had performed, Muntagirov would have had the anxiety of an injury to contend with and would have been anxious that he will be fit for next week when he will surely be very keen indeed to make his debut in Fille.

The Charing Cross station on the Bakerloo Line used to be called Trafalgar Square. If you use the steps at the top of the escalator they bring you onto the Square by the lions. However, as this is Balletcoforum and not History of London Underground, my anorak is going back where it belongs, right at the back of the wardrobe.

Recently it seems as if companies are quite happy to have empty seats rather than allow concessions for 60+ or reduced prices on the day before curtain up.

I think I heard that if you pay by direct debit you can retain membership at the old price of £50.