Terpsichore

Not with this mobile phone. Believe me I tried. Thanks for editing the post and also hiding the others, Sim.

"Manchester" thanks should of course read "many" thanks. Perhaps a moderator will correct that. Still not yet used to my new mobile phone.

Many thanks and how fascinating. It occurs to me that the Soviets could have russified his name. "Rothbart" is almost "Red Beard". Or they could even have called him "Barbarossa" after the emperor and of course the code name for the expedition. That really would have conjured evil immediately after World War Ii." Or if they wanted something more prosaic "the wizard" or "magician". The main thing is that you have added to my general knowledge of Soviet ballet history for which I am grateful.

Not at all. Several other subscribers have appreciated the fool (in the sense of jester) I being one of them. While admiring the spectacular dancing that is done by the artist who performs that role I am not too sure of his role in the story unless it is simply to thrill the audience. The expanded role of the court jester was one of the things I liked about Grigorovich's story. I was less impressed by the extra work he gave "the evil genius" or indeed the name change. What's wrong with von Rothbart? And whatever happened to Benno who plays such a big role in David Dawson's production? "Change for change's sake" I thought when I saw the ballet on Saturday and indeed in the cinema last year and I don't take kindly to that. But at least there was a Siegfried. Odette and Odile were danced by the same person. No new characters like Simon, Anthony or Odilia and, above all, no bikes! Looking forward to The Taming of the Shrew tomorrow. Although I prefer Cranko's version, I really liked it when I saw the live streaming earlier this year. Particularly the score, especially "Tea for Two" towards the end. Another work by Jean-Christophe Maillot who did Northern Ballet's Romeo and Juliet which is about the best thing on offer from that company this year at least until Casanova is launched.

KNT in Manchester stays open throughout the summer except for August bank holiday Monday (see the timetable at http://www.manchesterdanceclasses.co.uk/?page_id=18). So, too, does KNT Liverpool (see http://www.manchesterdanceclasses.co.uk/liverpool/?page_id=18)and Dance Studio Leeds (see http://thedancestudioleeds.com/timetable/).

Last Thursday I was invited to the Creative Industries Federation EU Response Event at Manchester Metropolitan University. Over 45 individuals were on the attendance list from design, education, fashion, museums, publishing, local authorities and most of the performing arts. The big exception was dance and although I think I had been invited in my capacity as an intellectual property lawyer I championed the dance industry as a dance blogger as there was nobody else to do so. Even though the meeting took place in the Ormond Building which is about 100 yards from the Dancehouse Theatre and the Northern Ballet School where I attended a ballet class immediately after the meeting, I found that there a lot of attendees including senior council officials with responsibility for the arts in Manchester who had never heard of those institutions or the Manchester City Ballet. I banged the drum for dance recalling the special connection we have with English National Ballet which gave its first performance in our city and will return again in Autumn to premiere Giselle. I said that Northern Ballet had started out in Manchester and had done some of its best work in our city before crossing the Pennines. I tried to build a consensus that a conurbation of over 3 million in the centre of an almost continuous built up area that stretches from Leeds to the Wirral could and should do more. The meeting had been called to discuss Brexit and I was shocked to learn of the extent to which it had already affected the creative sector. For instance I was told that he number of applicants to our universities from Europe was already sharply down. I had previously heard that scientists had been dropped from research teams by their continental counterparts but it appears to be happening in the arts too. There was a lot of concern about restrictions on free movement of people as well funding. Geoffrey Brown of Euclid who helps arts, heritage, culture and creative industries to access funding described the referendum as "a disaster for the UK across a range of areas - ranging from reinforcing a nationalist and isolationist tendency in the age of globalization which will result in the UK being left behind by larger and more powerful trading blocs and countries." The sharpness and suddenness of the reaction took me by surprise. Although I had voted "Remain" I had a "let's wait and see" attitude thinking that there would be opportunities as well as costs to the decision. I was sorry to learn that at least one business already felt at risk from the referendum and several speakers feared for their livelihoods. Speaking selfishly for dance I think that we shall suffer less than most. I don't think the ending of free movement will stop our companies getting good dancers from the EU any more than they have been prevented from getting good dancers from laces like the USA, Japan, Russia, Australia and South America in the past, Most of their funding is generated from the UK rather than the EU. Recruitment to our universities was an unexpected problem I will be monitoring what (if anything) happens to the performing arts in general and dance in particularly and shall report back from time to time in my blog.

Just returned from London where I attended the matinee performance of Swan Lake. I enjoyed it very much with two tiny reservations. I wasn't entirely happy with Grigorovich's libretto and I found the sets and costumes a little dowdy. However the important things were the choreography and dancing and I couldn't fault them at all. I was very impressed with all the cast - Nikulina and Skvortsov, of course, but also Georgy Gusev who danced the jester. His energy and virtuosity reminded me of Wayne Sleep in the 1970s. There was an anxious millisecond towards the end when Nikulina seemed a little unsteady which made the person next to me draw in breath sharply but it was barely noticeable from where I was sitting (middle of row M in the amphitheatre), I must say the management was a bit stingy in the flowers it gave to Nikulina. I thought she did a good job as did the cygnets, Kretova and Khokhlova and the various brides. Had the flower market stll been next door I would have thrown them some of my own, I will review the show more extensively for my blog.

Anyone who wants to hear Sir Peter and perhaps buy his book and shake his hand would be very welcome at "Sir Peter Wright, in conversation with Paul Arrowsmith, on Wrights and Wrongs: My Life in Dance followed by a book signing session". The event takes place at 19:30 on 1 Aug 2016 (that's Yorkshire Day incidentally) at the Civil Service Club, 13-15 Great Scotland Yard, London, SW1A 2HJ (entrance £5, guests £8). I met him briefly at the Hungarian Ballet's cast party after the premiere of The Sleeping Beauty in Budapest and then again at the 70th anniversary party of the London Ballet Circle. I found him a thoroughly charming gentleman.

After winning by 330 runs and thereby levelling the series I think we have something to cheer about at last https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2016/jul/25/england-pakistan-second-test-day-four-match-report

I have just this minute arrived from London. I was very impressed with the performance - the staging, costumes and set designs and special effects as well as the choreography and dancing. It was good to see Janet McNulty, Rebecca and two other subscribers whose names I didn't catch. I would love to have met Trog. Janet said he was in the front row and wearing a badge. I was a few rows back in the centre stalls and could not intercept his row in time. I also love the two versions of Cinderella in Northern Ballet's repertoire. I think I prefer Gable's but ever so slightly. IMHO Gable's era was a golden age for Northern Ballet though I continue to admire them very much indeed. Two other Cinderellas that I particularly admire are Darius James's for Ballet Cymru and Christopher Hampson's for Scottish Ballet. I saw Bethany Kingsley-Garner in the title tole in Hampson's and am now one of her fans. I also liked Wheeldon's for the Dutch National Ballet when thet were at the Coliseum this time last year though mainly because of Anna Tsygankova's performance. I shall post a full review in my blog tomorrow.

I set off for London with some trepidation. The reviews were not all that great and some of the comments in this thread from subscribers were not very encouraging. To my great surprise and delight I enjoyed yesterday's matinee thoroughly. I appreciated some of the transpositions such as Odette doing the fouettes in the mad scene and the music that usually herald's Rothbart and Odile in the third act announcing Odette instead. I also liked Murphy's lifts and the skating like movements in the first. Odette's mad scene and Odile (or rather Baroness von Rothbart)'s jealousy dance were enthralling. The final epauement where Odette and Siegfried acknowledge each other for the last time was particularly dramatic. Great performances from Robyn Hendricks and Amy Harris as Odette and the Baroness, Rudy Hawkes as Siegfried and Tristram Message as the psychiatrist. A more detailed appreciation appears in my blog. Looking forward to Cinderella next week.

Your post is encouraging. I am trekking down to London this Saturday and next to see Swan Lake and Cinderella. I don't generally take too kindly to radical reworkings of Swan Lake though I quite liked David Dawson's for Scottish Ballet. I have seen Nixon's twice - when it first came out in 2004 and again in March this year because I thought I ought to give it a second chance. I am hoping for the best with Graeme Murphy's version but if I am disappointed I still have the Bolshoi's version to which I can look forward at the end of the month. I will review both the Australian and Bolshoi performances in my blog.

I have particular reason to be grateful to the Northern Ballet School in Manchester because I attend class in its studios with KNT at least once a week. Two of my favourite teachers in Leeds trained at that school as well as all my teachers in Manchester. The school hosts The Dancehouse theatre which is one of our city's institutions and the Manchester City Ballet which remains for the moment the only resident classical company in our city. The school has two focuses, namely classical ballet and musical theatre, At the end of each year the school stages a show for its talented students called "A Showcase of Dance". I saw the show last Friday and tweeted that it was not just a good students' show but a good show by any standards. The evening consisted of 20 separate pieces arranged in 3 acts which lasted nearly three hours. Even though it was a very long show and there were a lot of very young children in the audience the performers kept us riveted. Rarely have I sensed such excitement and enthusiasm. My favourite bits were a large extract from the second act of Giselle which had been slightly rearranged by the students' choreographer, Anton Alexandrov to allow his almost entirely female cast to shine. Myrtha (danced by Sayaka Sugimoto) and her acolytes Zulm (Meagan Hoare) and Mona (Sally Hind) had almost as much dancing as Giselle (Yukiho Kasai) and a great deal more than Albrecht danced by Carlos Felipe Oliviera. There was also a lot for the corps to do including the awkward bit where the dancers have to progress across the stage in formation in arabesque. Alexandrov did however give his boys a chance to show what what they could do in Lonely Town to Bernstein's music which was performed in the last act. The one female role was danced by Darcey Ferguson. Other ballets included Lisa Rowlands's A Thousand Good Nights to the music of Abel Korzeniowski and .Anthea Garrett's Final Dance. I had attended last year's how and had enjoyed it very much. This year's was even better. If anyone is interested I have written a fuller review in my blog,

Looks like we will get a parliamentary debate after all. I have just received an email from the petitions team with the following information: "The Petitions Committee has decided to schedule a House of Commons debate on this petition. The debate will take place on 5 September at 4.30pm in Westminster Hall, the second debating chamber of the House of Commons. The debate will be opened by Ian Blackford MP. The Committee has decided that the huge number of people signing this petition means that it should be debated by MPs. The Petitions Committee would like to make clear that, in scheduling this debate, they are not supporting the call for a second referendum. The debate will allow MPs to put forward a range of views on behalf of their constituents. At the end of the debate, a Government Minister will respond to the points raised. A debate in Westminster Hall does not have the power to change the law, and won’t end with the House of Commons deciding whether or not to have a second referendum. Moreover, the petition – which was opened on 25 May, well before the referendum – calls for the referendum rules to be changed. It is now too late for the rules to be changed retrospectively. It will be up to the Government to decide whether it wants to start the process of agreeing a new law for a second referendum." Even without this petition some kind of debate would have been necessary as the legislature will have to repeal or amend the European Communities Act 1972 at some stage or other. Also, the ministerial team in charge of the withdrawal negotiations will be accountable to MPs. I signed the petition not expecting Parliament to reverse the referendum (which for all its many faults did produce a plurality decision that has to be respected) but to exert pressure on politicians not to get carried away and destroy bridges that could and should remain intact. I think it is likely that this country or at least parts of it will rejoin the European project one day though perhaps not in my lifetime. Regardless of politics I will continue to build and strengthen business, cultural and social links with the remaining EU states including my financial support for the Dutch National Ballet as a Friend of that company.

Before committing yourself to a long, tiring and expensive drive along the A9 or an even more tedious journey on Scotrail it may be worth consulting the RAD and other teacher databases. I found RAD instructors as well as a couple of dance schools in Dingwall, Nairn and Lossiemouth by searching against INVERNESS on https://www.rad.org.uk/learn-to-dance/find-an-rad-teacher. No harm in ringing or emailing each of those bods and asking what they can suggest.

My fellow blogger Monica Bragagnoli who is an excellent photographer has published some lovely photographs of the Gala for Alessia (see Gala per Alessia - Cristiano Principati e Giovanni Danzatori - Teatro Silvio Pellico Trecate 28 June 2016). Monica's blog is well worth following. Recent posts include the end of year show of La Scala's ballet and music students (see Accademia del Teatro alla Scala - Scuola de Ballo e Orchestra - Milano 13 June 2016), David Dawson's Swan Lake for Scottish Ballet in Inverness 6 May 2016 and the Vienna State Ballet in Vicenza 10 April 2016.

My friend, Gita, and I attended the Gala for Alessia in Trecate on 28 June 2016; It was a splendid evening in which promising young dancers from the Dutch National Ballet, La Scala Ballet, the Vienna State Ballet and JAS Art Ballet performed 17 pieces. Some of those works had been created specially for the evening. Others had been contributed by Ted Brandsen and Ernst Meisner. The rest were extracts from Swan Lake, Don Quixote, The Pharaoh's Daughter, The Sleeping Beauty, Coppelia, La Sylphide and Flower Festival. The gala was held to raise funds for the Casa Alessia, a charity set up by one Giovanni Mairati in memory of his daughter Alessia who died in an air crash during her gap year. The charity carries out important relief and rehabilitation work in the third world and eastern Europe. If anyone is interested I have reviewed the performance in my blog at http://jelterps.blogspot.co.uk/2016/07/from-italy-with-love.html

I think Michelle Richer would be well placed to answer that question as she attended the advanced classes at KNT whereas I attended the beginners' classes. I can tell you that the beginners' class wasn't that easy. It would be nice to see you if you could come up to Manchester. You could even stay at my pad and we could drive in together.

A slightly less worrying poll than the one being conducted today on the European Union. Karen Sant of KNT Danceworks at the Dancehouse in Manchester placed the following notice on her Facebook page last night: "*** KNT DANCEWORKS SUMMER BALLET INTENSIVES! *** Okay... time for me to get things planned for this year's summer intensives. Each intensive will go on for 3 days and will be taught by the lovely Jane Tucker who knows us quite well by now! A few questions for you: What dates suit you? Beginners: 15th - 17th August or 18th - 20th August? Advanced: 15th - 17th August or 18th - 20th August? What repertoire would you like to learn? The intensives will be held at The Dancehouse Theatre in Manchester. The prices are £200 for one summer intensive (3 days) or £350 for two summer intensives (6 days). There is a £50 non refundable deposit included in the price to secure your place. Our past summer school have been great fun so I hope to see you there :-) Thanks, Karen" Jane Tucker teaches at Northern Ballet Academy and she is a very good teacher. I attend her improvers' classes in Leeds on Wednesday evenings and I think the world of her. Last year she ran intensive courses in Manchester on Swan Lake for beginners and advanced dancers and this April she ran a shorter one day course on Romeo and Juliet at the same venue. I attended the beginners courses for both ballets and you can find out what happened in the following articles: Day 1 Swan Lake http://jelterps.blogspot.co.uk/2015/08/knts-beginners-adult-ballet-intensive.html Day 2 Swan Lake http://jelterps.blogspot.co.uk/2015/08/knts-beginners-adult-ballet-intensive_19.html Day 3 Swan Lake http://jelterps.blogspot.co.uk/2015/08/knts-beginners-adult-ballet-intensive_20.html Romeo & Juliet one day course http://jelterps.blogspot.co.uk/2016/04/we-had-stab-at-that-knts-romeo-and.html In answer to Karen's poll I have told her that I am happy with either date and I have seconded a suggestion that we do La Bayadere. If you are in or can get to Manchester in August I thoroughly recommend those courses.

Yesterday my friend Gita, my ballet teacher Mark and I attended Ballet Black's triple bill at the Quays. It was very good to see them in Salford and their visit was particularly timely as it coincided with Manchester Day. The programme included new works by Arthur Pita and Christopher Marney as well as the revival of Christopher Hamson's Storyville. I enjoyed all three works, particularly Marney's To Begin, Begin. On the way out Gita and I met Janet McNulty which is always a pleasure. Mark, Gita and I had a little chat with the dancers and their director after the show. I have written a full review in my blog if anyone is interested.

In the interest of balance here is a summary of the arguments on both sides presented calmly and courteously by Lord Howard QC and Martin Howe QC om behalf of "Leave" and Dominic Grieve MP QC and Joanne Cherry MP QC on behalf of "Remain". I may add that I know Martin Howe QC very well as he practises in my specialism and have the highest possible regard for him. Having said that, it does not mean that I share his views on every issue.

I attended yesterday's matinee in Birmingham and think it was the best performance that I have seen so far all year and I have seen some really good ones already. I admire Cranko and his work very much but I think The Taming of the Shrew is my favourite even though I have seen it only once before. The other performance that I saw was by the Stuttgart Ballet when they visited Sadler's Wells in November 2013 and though I enjoyed that performance very much indeed I enjoyed the Birmingham Royal Ballet's even more. Elisha Willis has always been one of my favourites and it was good to see her one last time, She was a delightful Katherina and she was partnered well by Iain Mackay as her Petrucchio. There were however great performances by Brandon Lawrence (a local chap and another of my favourites) and Jenna Roberts as Bianca, Delia Matthews and Angela Paul as the whores, Rory Mackay as Gremio and Chi Cao as Hortensio and Valentin Olovyannikov who doubled as the publican and priest. He must have made a study of dippy vicars as I've met some just like him. All the cast did well. I was delighted to see that Katherine had written one of the programme notes which I read with interest on the train back to Huddersfield. She expressed some interesting ideas which I will discuss when I come to review the ballet properly which will be later today or sometime next week.

Yesterday Northern Ballet held its second choreographic lab entitled "Tell Tale Steps 2 Narrative Ballet" at the Stanley and Audrey Burton Theatre in the premises that the company shares with Phoenix Dance Theatre in Leeds. It consisted of a panel discussion and then five short performances of works by Charlotte Edmonds, Carlos Pons Guerra and Morgann Runacre-Temple and Northern Ballet's Tobias Batley and Lucia Solari. Although Edmonds's work was the most polished.Guerra's the most dramatic and Runacre-Temple's the most fun I was impressed by Batley's and Solari's. The discussion was also interesting, particularly the contribution from Geraldine Morris of Roehampton University. If anyone is interested I have added a note on the evening to my blog.

Melody, if there is to be a fair trial the less speculation about the accused, his politics or mental health the better. Speaking generally about the state of politics here I would agree with you. I have lived through the CND, Vietnam and anti-apartheid marches of the 1950s and 1960s, the three day week, three miners' strikes, riots in Brixton, Moss Side, St Paul's and Liverpool in the early 1980s, cruise missile and poll tax protests, the Northern Irish and related troubles, the 11 Sept outrages in the USA and 7 July bombings in London, Iraq, the worst economic downturn for decades and austerity but I have never known a more bad tempered time in British politics than the present. I was active in the 1975 referendum campaign as I am now. Even though the in-campaigners were far more passionate than the remain camp now and there was a federalist constituency in British politics the campaign was much less bitter.