Two Pigeons

me too! It is interesting that Amazon has some readers' reviews on its pages. as I remember there are 4, 1 negative but the other 3 seemed to enjoy the book. However the American site they are all pretty negative and unfortunately I think this reflects that Sir Peter's main achievements, both his productions of the Nutcracker and - mainly - his days as director of SWRB and BRB have little or no relevance to an American readership. I think this just shows how Royal Balletcentric most overseas ballet goers are when it comes to British ballet.

Could it just be that the initial print run was pretty limited and the book has turned out to be much more popular than expected?

Whether or not he is being sued I think it is a brave man who puts in print his opinion that Deborah Macmillan has damaged some of her husband's ballets.

Love this review!

I must concede this is an excellent review.

I have to agree with Janet. Interesting that she is going to Oxford. Does she usually travel that far north?

It is also amazing how many ballerinas can do the classics but cannot dance Lise. I always remember Jennifer Penney who danced pretty much everything else being asked if she would like to dance in Fille. Her reply was 'oh no, it's far too hard' and this was not someone who was too tall for the role, like Darcey.

There's no accounting for taste when it comes to mixed bills. BRB had a real triumph with The Dream and A Month in the Country this year. Both works by a genius, well performed and with familiar music and accessible plots. Result? Great critical acclaim and much enjoyed by the audiences which did attend. Regrettably those audiences were not that numerous. Put Carmina Burana on with just about anything. Great performances but definitely not a great work. Result? Very hard to get a seat. The mind boggles at times!

There is a very common theme to a number of postings on this thread and that, of course, is funding. We have the dichotomy Janet pointed out of putting bums on seats and keeping the regular, informed (if that's not too pretentious) audience stimulated and interested. The one place where this doesn't seem to be too much of an issue is the Opera House which has the lion's share of the funding and is not burdened by touring coasts. The reinvigorated ENB may not have the funding but it does have a very formidable and focused AD. However, I would be interested to see a comparison of the balance between the classically based repertoire in all its forms and the contemporary. From my distant standpoint I get the impression that it is the latter which is increasing. I think there may come a point when the pursuit of the trendy and fashionable results in the baby being thrown out with the bathwater. FLOSS's extremely eloquent posting refers to the reverence and respect afforded to both Balanchine and Crank which seems to be denied to Ashton. As always this is undoubtedly right but these are choreographers who have no equal today. I wonder why this is and suspect that there is a slight fear that to turn out a piece of well crafted classical choreography to a great piece of classic (not commissioned) music is somehow seen as retrospective and dated. Personally I think this is a real shame.

She was definitely one of the better and more rational critics of her time. I am sorry to hear we have lost her.

I think that looking at David Bintley's record is somewhat tinged by the amount of his own work that gets programmed. However, in mitigation, I must agree with Alison's point that this may well be due to cuts in funding. One thing I must raise in his favour is the great strength of the male side of the company. There are dancers at BRB now that would have bolstered the old SWRB so much. This is not to be taken as any form of denigration of the dancers of old but the depth of talent is pretty terrific now.

Although I agree with what you are saying in at least one case I have to say that what concerns me is who will replace that director. I think the heritage and traditional aspects of both Royal Ballet companies are being eroded but at least both ADs are steeped in those traditions and I would dread an outsider coming in. The history of the Ross Stretton years at the RB and the recent goings on at the Paris Opera Ballet show you how things can go badly wrong. What can be seen initially as a breath of fresh air can suddenly become a hurricane which destroys all before it as it cuts a new path.

I agree with much of what you say but Sir Peter was director of SWRB/BRB from 1976 to 1995. I think that 20 years in the job, often in very challenging circumstances, would indicate that his achievements were better than 'reasonably successful'.

It has a fair number of errors in it which a devoted fan of SWRB/BRB could have corrected. For example Arrowsmith has clearly taken his report of Sir Peter's retirement gala from the programme and not the occasion. Had he been there he would have known that Sir Anthony Dowell was indisposed and had to be replaced by Stephen Jefferies, who in turn was replaced by Stephen Wicks, in Facade. The review also said Sir Peter mentioned Fonteyn and Tait uncritically (fair enough) but didn't mention his clear enthusiasm for Miyako Yoshida which appears a number of times.

There is a review of 'Wright and Wrongs' from Sarah Compton in the Sunday Times Culture section today. She ends by saying 'Few could read this book and agree with every word, but Wright's career as a brilliant adaptor of classical ballets and a reasonably successful company director has been built on his passionate convictions'. I am sorry but 'reasonably successful'? I think many people would say he was far more than that. All discussion welcome.

No offence taken. Celine said in the programme that she has never experienced it and that is good enough for me. When i started watching classical ballet in the late 70s the Royal Ballet had no non white dancers at all. As far as i remember during that time the first non white dancer was Ravenna Tucker. I am not saying that she was the first ever but she was the first mixed race dancer i remember. SWRB occasionally had black dancers like Vincent Hantum (I think that's the right spelling) but they never progressed that far or stayed that long. Asian or mixed race dancers such as David Yow and, of course, Miyako Yoshida joined SWRB and progressed to becoming amongst its leading lights but I still remember the stir when Evan Williams joined and had such a success in roles like Tybalt. In BRB now I think it could argued that the company's leading couple is Celine and Tyrone Singleton. One of its brightest rising stars is Brandon Lawrence. This reflects the changes in just one company over a period of 40 years. I do not doubt that there has been a great deal of loss of potential over the years because non white dancers were either just not in the system or were actively held back. A dancer like Evan Williams was most unlikely to have been taken into SWRB in 1979 but in 1990 he was taken into BRB and dancing by 1992 principal roles. i bet he had to cross a lot of barriers but those barriers do seem to be coming down. The success of Carlos Acosta will have a great part in smashing those barriers down. I think it is terrific that we have the chance to see dancers like Celine, Tyrone and Brandon and I really cherish their performances. I have not touched on the soaring success of Francesca Hayward but there is another shining example. These dancers may or may not have experienced racism in life. If they have I really regret that but i would very much hope that it is diminishing fast. What I am saying is that these 4 stars (and I use the word advisedly) have done so well in their chosen careers which would probably never have happened 40 years ago.

Wonderful, intricate footwork. I remember those days.

I do so agree with what you have said FLOSS. A great friend of mine always says that the RB takes the best dancers but BRB does more with what they have. I must just hope that the season after next has a bit more scope for development and interest to give opportunities for the up and coming dancers.

I really enjoyed this programme and it made me want to see the company perform live. What we saw of their repertoire looked very interesting and accessible. Interesting to hear Celine Gittens saying that she never experienced and racism through her training and moving into BRB. I have read both Tyrone Singleton and Brandon Lawrence saying the same thing. I hope that Ballet Black continue to prosper and are not driven out on the grounds they are no longer needed. That would be so unjust.

What dreadful news. Such a loss.

The preview of this programme in the Sunday Times Culture magazine included the comment that none of the other main dance companies have leading dancers of colour (with the obvious exception of Carlos Acosta). Yes, well, there may not have enough for some dance lovers but that comment was very much less than fair.

I think this is great and I am really pleased for both new principals. Will Bracewell seems to have lost out this time round but I am sure he will be rewarded next season.

Try to enjoy the summer as much as you can. There may be the odd DVD release to look forward to.

That is a very valid point of view Emma but I think it is a chicken and Egg situation. Did he ask to tour and guest because there was so little on offer at home? I think another aspect must be the less than inspiring repertoire for next season. I realise that The Tempest is an unknown quantity but the opportunities for up and coming young male dancers to shine in Cinderella and Coppelia remain pretty limited. Added to that we only have one triple bill, again with an unknown quantity in the Ruth Brill work, but not much to offer the guys in Poll or Baiser. The one saving grace may be the mid scale tours but Luke Schaufuss was always going to have more opportunities to shine elsewhere than many of his colleagues. It was only a matter of time before he took one of them.

I do so agree Alison. I know BRB have a lot of talent but Luke Schaufuss had one or two extra assets, not least being the Guardian pick for a future dancer. I am really sorry that he wasn't used more although, to be fair, he was given leave to do other things. I will miss him and I made a special effort to watching him in Shrew by way of a farewell. I hope he does really well at Scottish ballet too. He will always be on my list of the ones who were let slip away.