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Balletfanp

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Everything posted by Balletfanp

  1. Balletfanp
    Couldn’t agree more, Fiz - I feel wrung out now!
  2. Balletfanp
    I love Stix-Brunell. She would be in my Firm Favourites category! 🙂
  3. Balletfanp
    Yes - “ardent!” An excellent description, and probably what I meant to say when I was rambling on! Gentler than “passionate” but no less effective in my eyes - I prefer it, in fact.
  4. Balletfanp
    I wouldn’t say he’s a sacred cow - not everyone is going to like the same artists. For me, Muntagirov has a more subtle, gentle and adoring approach to similar roles, that, for me personally, moves me more than some more overtly passionate performances. It works very well in roles like Des Grieux, for instance. It will be interesting to see his Armand next week with everyone’s comments in mind! 🙂
  5. Balletfanp
    I haven’t seen them yet (Muntagirov and Nunez), so can’t comment personally, but a number of comments on Twitter were raving about them. Personal taste, in the end, I imagine.
  6. Balletfanp
    Funny how different people see things differently - I saw Osipova/Shklyarov last time round, and although I couldn’t fault their performance, they didn’t move me at all! 🙂
  7. Balletfanp
    I can't really add much to the reviews above. This surely has to be Lamb's best role? That perfectly conveyed mix of innocence, knowingness, and cunning - plus wonderfully assured dancing. And Muntagirov was just heartbreakingly wonderful. The performance was so intense I felt almost battered at the end. Everyone was fantastic and the drunk dance was very funny but not overdone - just totally convincing (not that I would know anything about being drunk, of course! 😉). But Muntagirov's passion and beautiful lyrical dancing (the way he uses his hands and arms conveys so much emotion - how does he do it?) will stay with me for a long time.
  8. Balletfanp
    Sorry - just reread your original post, Saodan, and realised I misread it - please ignore! ☺
  9. Balletfanp
    Muntagirov danced Basilio last time (and very well too!). Takada also danced Kitri.
  10. Balletfanp
    Yes - I think she has grown beyond that, and nice to see dancers like Ashley Dean being given a shot at Clara.
  11. Balletfanp
    Rather belated (it's been a busy week!) but my impressions on the cinema broadcast..... I can't compare this with seeing it live as I haven't managed to make it to this one at the ROH - but on the whole I enjoyed it very much. I'm not normally a Wayne McGregor fan (although he has his moments), but I really liked Yugen, to which impression the wonderful music contributed hugely. I thought the costumes were simple and flattering to all (loved the colours) and thought the set and lighting was very effective. Beautiful dancing from all concerned, especially Sarah Lamb and Calvin Richardson, and I find that Joseph Sissens is really beginning to stand out for me. Having seen some of the less than enthusiastic comments about Age of Anxiety, I didn't have high hopes for this one, but to my surprise I enjoyed it very much. It does have a cinematic, film-like quality that I imagine probably comes across better on the big screen as opposed to in an auditorium, where I imagine some of its subtleties may be lost. In any case, all the individual performances were excellent (it was very much Sarah Lamb's night!) and Tristan Dyer was especially good, especially at the end. I usually enjoy Wheeldon's ballets (Strapless aside!), and I thought Corybantic Games started off well, but after ten minutes or so I found my mind wandering and thinking about what I was going to have for tomorrow's dinner.....not a good sign! I didn't hate it, but it didn't grab me, apart from Tierney Heap (who jerked me out of my daydreams towards the end!) and the all too brief duet of Sambe and Magri. I liked the skirts (and Wheeldon's comment about the black pencil line in space on the sheer material was spot on). Didn't mind the women's "underwear" too much, but all those flapping black ribbons up top just looked messy and superfluous to me and detracted from the simplicity of the rest. I hated the men's costumes more - that sheer, flesh-coloured material they wore on top looked like wrinkly skin whenever they leaned or bent! Either put them in something more substantial on top, or don't have anything at all..... Edited to add that my comments about the costumes are not meant in any way to reflect on the dancers, who were all superb! 😉
  12. Balletfanp
    I have just been reading a book called “The Secret History of Georgian London” about the 18th and early 19th Century Georgian underworld, and, hard/uncomfortable these days though it may be to watch some parts of Manon (set in Paris though it is), the reality of the time was far sleazier and sad than even Macmillan portrays. The goings on in Manon were the norm (and worse), hard to read about and hard to watch. I suppose one could argue that if Macmillan was aiming at historical verisimilitude, he hit the nail on the head. As an aside, read the book and you will never see Covent Garden and the surrounding areas in the same way again....
  13. Balletfanp
    I sat next to a lady once in a Friends' rehearsal for the Obsidian Tear/The Invitation/Within the Golden Hour triple bill. She asked me if I had been to a rehearsal before and I confessed that it was my first one. In a condescending manner she told me that she was a regular - always there, and she knew everyone, absolutely everyone. I didn't ask who "everyone" signified as by that point I didn't want to encourage her. The McGregor started. She proceeded to tut, roll her eyes, sneer and make derogatory comments all the way through it in an audible voice, and to try to draw me into her criticisms - well, most of McGregor isn't my particular cup of tea, but I would never do that! The Invitation started. She said "Now THIS is more like it." Given the subject matter, and the traumatic ending, I had to stare at her open mouthed when she turned to me at the end, beaming, and said "Oh, wasn't that LOVELY!" Well, I can think of many ways of describing The Invitation, but "lovely" isn't the word I would use..... Then during the curtain calls - despite her assurances that she knew "everyone" - she then asked me who each and every one of the dancers were, and when told didn't recognise a single name.....
  14. Balletfanp
    I certainly didn’t hate it so would be interested to see it again. The rest - on the whole - looks really good!
  15. Balletfanp
    Very sad news. A brilliant and inspirational mind.
  16. Balletfanp
    I remember my parents going to see him and he went on for hours. No one left and no one minded as they didn’t want him to stop!
  17. Balletfanp
    Marine Rad-manufacturer 😂
  18. Balletfanp
    Great that they did that!
  19. Balletfanp
    I saw the cinema relay. I have seen it twice live and think it is a wonderful ballet but I was unprepared for the impact of seeing it on the big screen. It's one of those ballets that actually seem better in those circumstances. Act 1 I usually find a bit over long, but last night I was transfixed by its intensity. A large part of the credit for that must go to Hirano's tremendous acting - the close ups were shattering at times. Cuthbertson is always good in that role, and Morera's Paulina was every bit as moving as I had anticipated. The explosion of colour and movement that is Act 2 is always impressive and again it seemed enhanced on the big screen. Muntagirov and Lamb were just beautiful - his big smile lit up the stage - and it was good to see Sambe back and on such good form. And Act 3 brought a tear - I know it is supposed to be moving but that hasn't happened before! Well worth braving the freezing cold and snow for - with the bonus of almost empty roads, almost empty car park and no queues in the cinema! If only it was always like that!
  20. Balletfanp
    Yes, that was actually the cinema broadcast - Philip Mosley had to hop off pretty smartly to disentangle the backdrop before the whol thing came down!
  21. Balletfanp
    I have nothing but admiration for this Forum - for someone like me who “lost track” of ballet for many years and was keen to catch up again, it has been an enjoyable and rewarding experience to catch up again with the help of this Forum and all the hugely knowledgable people herein. And a huge thank you to the moderators for giving up their time to keep it - in general - a safe and civilised place. Which makes it all the more disappointing to hear that a small minority are giving way to uncivilised behaviour. Not on at all.
  22. Balletfanp
    Well - I wrote a review late last night after the performance, went to post it, in my tiredness pressed the wrong button and lost the lot! 😐 Couldn’t face starting all over again at that point, so here goes a second time and hopefully I’ll manage not to mess up this time! I enjoyed last night’s performance very much, although to my mind Act 1 goes on just a tad too long (but I did spot the bear this time!). I really go to see Act 2 which I find exuberant and uplifting, and Act 3, which, if done well, is very moving. A host of very strong performances. There is not much one can say about Nunez as she is always so good, but Soares surprised me - I’m not his greatest fan generally but he was an effective and moving Leontes. I also enjoyed Bracewell, he made an excellent Polixenes with a strong presence. I have seen Mendizabal’s Paulina before but to my mind last night she was better than before in the role, strong and dignified. Stix-Brunell was a glorious Perdita, radiant and sparkling - and beautifully danced. I love her and Muntagirov together - and of course he was superb as always. He is always such a joyful dancer, and that suits the Florizel role and the celebratory theme of the Act perfectly. Plus it is nice to see him in a less classical role with untypical choreography and finding that his beautiful classical lines and grace are still very much in evidence. I am seeing it at the cinema too and looking forward to it. It will be interesting to see what different aspects the live stream will offer.
  23. Balletfanp
    All I can say is, if it isn’t true, it’s one hell of a complex story for a whole group of dancers to make up.
  24. Balletfanp
    I do actually quite like Oduba, and I find that he has become a better presenter for the cinema screenings since taking part in Strictly. He now seems genuinely interested and enthusiastic (I felt he was going through the motions a bit before) - probably he now has a true appreciation of the skill and hard work it takes to be a dancer.
  25. Balletfanp
    Muntagirov has been quite open in a number of public interviews about his reasons for leaving ENB. Namely, that he didn't feel he was developing as a dancer by dancing a restricted repertoire, and that Rojo had flatly refused to allow him to guest elsewhere (a freedom allowed to him under Eagling). Was she worried about him being "poached" if she let him dance with other companies? If so, that backfired on her somewhat....
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