Two Pigeons

I saw Maximova in Onegin on the same day as Evdokimova. I could not tell you which year it was but it was definitely at the Coliseum. My favourite memories at the Dominion were of Haydee and Cragun with Schaufuss as Lensky. Like Janet I really love that ballet and regret that there are no permanent recordings of it. Aside from that, it's a welcome from me too Chris.

I can see I may be having fisticuffs with a good friend of mine. Looks like Iain Mackay is first cast Petruchio and not Tyrone. No disrespect to Iain but the revolution starts now!

looks like the Shakespeare programme is the one to see. Really interesting casts popping up.

I have a ticket for the matinee in Shrewsbury which I am rather looking forward to. However, if I had some idea of the casting I might decide to stay for the evening as well. I realise that this is a-typical of the audience they are expecting but it is a case of loss of potential income to the company.

Not me and I have been trying on a daily basis. They are leaving it REALLY late this time. I assume that the argument is that this tour is aimed at an audience who will be less familiar with individual dancers. Can't say I agree.

I think it may be worth mentioning that there is quite a body of thought which indicates that if you want to see the Ashton rep done properly and with real respect for they speed and style needed you have to go to Sarasota and see that company. I think the performance of the Ashton rep by both Royal Ballet companies is pretty inconsistent these days, much as it pains me to say it.

thank you Ian.

Sorry, I have just re-read my post and I see that the damn spell checker thinks it knows better than our beloved Bard. Must remember to keep proof reading while the edit function is still in play.

I agree, and I think they took the Such Sweet Thunder piece more slowly than we are used to.

I think we are in for a very good cast. Iain Mackay as Prospero, Jenna Roberts as Miranda and, I believe, Will Bracewell as Ariel. My main concern is my reservation about specially commissioned scores. Anyway, a new full length work is always welcome.

When the company premiered this work they were accompanied by a fantastic jazz band called Echoes of Ellington. That first night when the band played through both intervals is one of my favourite BRB memories ever. More recently the Colin Towns Orchestra has played this score. To my knowledge it has never been played by the Royal Ballet Sinfornia.

I think that may be with Brandon Lawrence.

As I remember, and I expect Janet will correct me if I am wrong, Tyrone used to perform this with Victoria Marr. She is taller than Elisha Willis and so they were better matched. I find the disparity in height off putting when Elisha Willis danced Cinderella with Iain Mackay. She is better matched with Joe Cayley.

OK Sim. We will agree on a compromise. If Tyrone isn't first cast Petruchio we can be the joint leaders of the revolution as we batter down the doors of the BRB offices.

Tell them hands off! I saw him first!

It was within the first 25 minutes. sorry, cannot be more precise than that.

I really enjoyed it and agree that, overall, the second half was stronger than the first. Both ballet extracts were very hampered by the size of the stage but all credit to the dancers for carrying it off so well. I was very pleased they had a jazz band for the Such Sweet Thunder extracts but I thought it was a bit of a shame that Tyrone Singleton and Elisha Willis did not benefit from a proper introduction. This meant that BRB got no exposure at all, despite all the pre-publicity the company were turning out. I agree about the three ommissions mentioned but I was so pleased when Roger Allam finally appeared. I was very surprised he did Lear, but I am certainly not going to whinge. The other two extracts which really impressed me were the MacBeth with Anne Marie Duff and Harriet Walter as Cleopatra. They both really commanded the stage. As for Dame Judi, as always a total delight and the casting with Al Murray was a joy. Great evening and all credit to the BBC for broadcasting it.

Tyrone - great!

That was my initial thought as well Alison. However I was not sufficiently certain or brave to post.

My twin favourite memories of David Bintley are as Petrushka and Alain. Thinking back on it there were common qualities for both, I expect the same was true for Alexander Grant as well. This is slightly off topic but I can still see Bintley at the bottom of the staircase when he realised he had just found Lise and Colas in the bedroom and that he was not going to get married. He was heart breaking and unforgettable, rather like his Petrushka.

David Bintley had great personal success in the role and was acclaimed by a lot of very knowledgeable ex-dancers and critics. I was pretty taken with Alexander Campbell when I saw him do it about 8 years ago. Petrushka is very far from being one of my favourites but I would be sorry to see if fall out of the repertoire permanently. Regrettably that fate seems to have be fallen Choreartium. Whether it is dated or not I would rather see that again than a lot of ballets which have been performed since it was revived in the 90s.

I could not agree more FLOSS. At times it seems as though Fokine never existed, let alone worked with Stravinsky to produce some of the most important ballet music ever. Added to that there is the quality of designers employed for his works. This second point relates to Massing as well, although I am less a fan of his work.

At least you are getting some Ashton at the RB next season. Followers of BRB are getting NO Ashton, Balanchine or Macmillan.

As an update I had a phone call from the Hippodrome around 7.00 last night. They confirmed that I had been allocated my current subscription seat on the aisle of the side block in the stalls. They rang me to say that this was not a top price ticket and I was due a refund. I am somewhat amused that I have what I consider to be one of the very best seats in the entire theatre at a cheaper rate than one in the middle in the stalls where you take pot luck over how much of the stage you can actually see. So, I do not view the new season with any great anticipation but I am hanging in there in the hope of a more interesting season after next. I am a bit peeved that having finally got hubby to the ballet and him saying he'd go again the company is not presenting anything I would force him to sit through. Heigh Ho!

I agree Trog. I rushed my booklet into the post yesterday afternoon. Admittedly I am not that bothered but I wanted to preserve my booking rights just in case the season after next is a bit more interesting. I found the leaflet less than easy to follow and had to read it at least twice to extract the information I needed. Today, like you, I got the e-mail saying my tickets were reserved and all I had to do was to log in to my account (again, easier said than done) and I could have booked and paid for the over the internet. This is not the first time I have been left with the clear impression that the otherwise normally excellent Hippodrome Box Office and the less than impressive BRB publicity department just don't seem to communicate.