serenade

I don’t think so but who knew RAH at such a long history of ballet being performed there (actually I’m sure many on this forum know but it was news to me 😂) makes for interesting readjng https://www.royalalberthall.com/about-the-hall/news/2021/october/1913-today-ballet-at-the-royal-albert-hall/#:~:text=5 June 1913 – Fete and,performed on the main stage. But is the RAH Wheeldon Cinderella choreography much different from his regular version of it? I would still be interested to see that.

Totally agree re the choreography, the Ashton is not a perfect production but the choreography is! I saw it on Friday night with Frola and Erina, they were great but the production didn’t really do anything for me to be honest. I liked some of it in terms of the pacing/story telling but I don’t think I would see it again. I also felt like there was just lift after lift after lift. I got fatigue with it all by the end 😂 this was my first time seeing the production and first time seeing ballet at the RAH so I think we picked the wrong seats (and sat too close to the action) so I might have enjoyed it more with a different seat but I really didn’t feel like Cinderella (or a lot of the women tbh) got to dance much without constantly being interrupted with yet another lift and it spoilt the flow a lot (for me). Although as I said, perhaps we made a faux pas with the seats (we were in the front stalls) it might well have looked more visually impressive from further up. I also think RAH as a ballet venue is perhaps not for me (although I was excited to go for the first time) but I’ve always wanted to see Swan Lake in the round so I will go to that next year.

Thanks for the reminder, I watched it on YouTube a few years ago but forgot it was on there. I was wondering if anyone has a copy of the Still Life DVD? I’m wondering how good the picture quality of the dvd is.

I saw the Saturday evening performance- luckily me and a friend decided to make a weekend of it and got an early train out of London and booked a hotel for the night so weren't affected by the transport issues but sorry for everyone who was It was my first time visiting Birmingham and mainly went for Still Life as it's a real favourite but have only ever managed to see it twice over the years. However, I was also excited to see Apollo as I've never seen it before. Celine, Lucy Waine and Amelia Thompson were the 3 main women alongside Brandon- they were all great so no criticism of them but it just left me cold. Sometimes things grow on me though and it has all the ingredients for a ballet that I might love one day so happy to see it again if I get another opportunity. Still Life really didn't disappoint, it was just as quirky and beautiful as I remembered it to be. Brandon was a fantastic zebra- it's a great role to go out on! As others have said, Tzu-Chao Chou was brilliant as the kangaroo rat and I also especially liked Karla Doorbar as the flea. My favourite segment in the past has been the zebra but this time I think it was the couple with the child- Lennert Steegen and Celine Gittens played the couple, they were particularly effective I thought. I just love this ballet and overall thought this was a great performance of it.

Oh no that’s a shame. At least you’ll see Jewels! I’ve booked for both and could only go at the weekend- so a ballet packed weekend.

Thanks for posting- it looks like a great programme. Glad I booked

Same here, I still remember it vividly. I absolutely loved it. I did see her in the last run with Vadim. Their dancing was amazing of course but unfortunately it left me really cold, I just didn’t feel a thing. but maybe the partnership just didn’t work for me so I am planning to book for one show each for the Sambe and Clarke as maybe I won’t be able to see her in the role again as how many years will it be before they bring it back so that would be shame. I am really looking forward to the Magri/Corrales cast but will see it at the cinema to save some money. I can just see Magri being a great Kitri…and Corrales seems born to play Basil! if I can manage to see any more it will be either between Fumi and Will or Yasmine and Matthew. But I’m not sure as I am not crazy about the Acosta production, definitely not my favourite.

Same here, it's very disappointing for everyone looking forward to it but am really looking forward to seeing Jewels. I saw the Royal Ballet's cinema broadcast of it a few years ago but have yet to see it live.

Yes I forgot to mention I was not a fan of the white make up for Von Rothbart in act 4! I quite liked the costume though

I went to see the matinee today in Edinburgh. I had a really bad experience with people behind me which I will moan about in the audience behaviour thread at some point so the show was really spoilt unfortunately, but as I’m not sure if anyone else on here will have seen the Edinburgh show I’ll just post some thoughts. BRB’s version of Swan Lake was my first ever Swan Lake about 13 years ago and I’ve never managed to see it since. It is still my favourite version though- I think the narrative is the strongest out of all the versions I’ve seen and visually it’s the most stunning. Yaoqian Shang was a lovely Odette- bringing all the sadness and longing to the part. I really liked her in the role. I think her Odette was stronger than Odile on this performance. She was still great but I didn’t really get the wicked vibes from her Odile but of course there’s plenty of ways to play the role. And also as mentioned I was really quite distracted throughout! César Morales was Siegfried- he was great I enjoyed his performance. He was very convincing as the prince with the weight of the world on his shoulders. The weight is lifted temporarily when he falls for Odette but that joy Is soon over. Gus Payne was Benno- he was excellent. Lots to love about the production. As mentioned before, I think the narrative is the strongest. I love the beginning with the funeral procession, it’s simple but really sets the tone. Costumes are beautiful. I love what they do with the princesses in act 3- I can’t exactly remember when the princesses dance in other versions but I think the way BRB does it fits with the story better. Act 4 was really strong and the stakes seem higher in this version, as opposed to the Royal’s version where j feel like Siegfried is just resigned to losing her. With this one I feel like he puts up a solid fight! I love the sad ending and how it ends with poor Benno 😢 I will not have to leave it so long before seeing this production again as it’s just excellent.

I went to see Cinderella last night and really loved it. I didn't think it was perfect or anything but overall I thoroughly enjoyed it. I have only seen the BRB version before many years ago on DVD- I remember enjoying it but I couldn't really remember it properly. So I had no expectations with this. So anyway what I loved was Choreography- obviously it was just amazing. I just love Ashton's style...there's nothing like it. I think it's all been said before and better than what I can do but yes, just beautiful. The big solos were ballet heaven but also loved the corps work, jester, fairies and godmother choreography- really enjoyed it all, a lot of it is very unusual I thought Score- loved it, very moody, dreamy and dramatic. Although I've heard it once before it was many years ago so felt like I was hearing it for the first time. Performances- Francesca was wonderful, I think this is a really great role for her. I can't praise her enough really. Alex was great, making it all look very easy and I think always seems like an excellent partner. The entrance when she gets out of the carriage to go to the ball gave me the chills- I feel like this ballet deserves to be more famous. Obviously I know it is famous but the entrance should be up there in iconic ballet moments for the dress alone- unless it's not done the same in other productions. Aside from Francessca and Alex, I thought Annette Buvoli was very commanding in all the right ways as the fairy godmother and all the fairy variations were very strong. I think Autumn was my favourite variation for choreography but all the fairies gave strong performances. Liam Boswell was great as the jester Production- there was nothing I didn't like about the set design and look of it all. I was a fan of the lights and the projection although I didn't think I would be. I even liked the wands, I didn't think they looked cheap, I thought they were very effective from the amphitheatre. I am sitting in the stalls next time so it might be a different experience. It felt like I was discovering a whole new stage! I loved the carriage and as I mentioned before, Cinderella's entrance to the ball. But some of the fairies entrance were particularly great- I thought the way they did the Summer fairy entrance and winter were particularly good. Costumes- I was a fan of the majority of the costumes- they looked beautiful from where I was sitting. Obviously the costumes were hideous for the step sisters but definitely not for anyone else IMO anyway! The only costume I wasn't keen on was the Spring fairy in her first variation as wasn't keen on the shade of green they used but just not quite to my taste What I didn't like so much: The pacing and the way the story was told- as others have mentioned there's no scene where the ball is set up, she's just suddenly going. And everything just seems to happen very suddenly with no lead up. Cinderella to me can be quite an emotional story because of what she has to endure but I appreciate that's not what Ashton was going for. Still I couldn't get as invested as I do in other fairy tale ballets just because I felt like the story itself was not told as well- yes you can follow the plot if you know the story but it's about more than just being able to follow it Stepsisters- sorry wasn't a fan, no criticism of the dancers just not for me. Although I did laugh at the wig gag in the second act. Tbh I found the curtain call antics funnier. But comedy is the most subjective thing of all, plenty of people around me were laughing. I have booked for Natalia and will also see the cinema broadcast so looking forward to seeing if I agree with myself in the weeks to come as just my initial thoughts I am also going to see ENB's Cinderella so will be interesting to see how they compare.

I fit that criteria but didn’t get the offer…the criteria for who to offer the discount to seems pretty complex 😂. Personally I think the offer should go to anyone on their mailing list as I thought the point of offering discounted tickets was simply to sell them. Therefore I would presume the easiest and fairest way to do that is to send the offer to everyone. if they want to do a friends discount I guess I understand the point but then it has to be all friends otherwise it’s not a friends offer. If a shop you’ve bought something from sends an offer through for 10% off I would presume it wasn’t only sent to people who bought jeans on a Thursday afternoon for £50 or under or whatever 😂😂 of course maybe there’s method in the madness (let’s hope!)

I think it’s just because they can. If people buy them I guess they will just keep going up and up 😐

Programme looks great- particularly looking forward to Mary Skeaping’s Giselle- I really enjoyed it last time they brought it. And Themes and Variations which I’ve never seen live- actually I like the sound of the whole triple bill 😊

I never do usually but in this particular run I’ve found my mind drifting! 😂 hope you enjoy the matinee- it really is the luck of the draw re the audience. Everyone near me behaved perfectly on Saturday so it was a relief so fingers crossed for you. yes I am also going to try and see the relay, I’m sure Yasmin/Ball will be great 😊

I saw the Francesca/Alex cast on Saturday night. Francesca sparkled; she was so lovely, I think it’s a really great role for her. Alex was great, I thought he danced his solos beautifully. Loved Mendizabal’s Carabosse- first time seeing her in this role and I think it’s my favourite interpretation of Carabosse (in this production). It was really nice to see James Hay in Bluebird. I enjoyed Mica Bradbury as the white cat. Gary Avis as Cattalabutte was a lot of fun. However, some of the show was a bit of a mixed bag for me to be honest. When the prince and princess weren’t on it felt a bit flat to me. I really love all the choreography and music for the prologue but no-one really stood out and I don’t think the prologue fairies were the strongest. I didn’t think some of the prologue was that neat though I don’t want to nitpick. Overall I still enjoyed it; it’s just one of my absolute favourite ballets and it felt a bit of a slog in places which is sad but that’s just me and I’m happy to read the more positive review above!!

I’ve got zero legal knowledge so I honestly don’t know about that side of things. I was just responding more to the idea that she shouldn’t have air time because she somehow caused the incident (?) But yes for sure if it could be prejudicial they shouldn’t have aired it 👍🏻

But I think the only point of reviews is to hear the views of critics whether you agree or not. What does it matter if the views are at odds with the audience? What would the alternative be? Only critics who agree with the majority of the audience be allowed to review? It would then just be a giant echo chamber She is the victim and deserves to be heard.

I think they don't want to/can't. The focus has to always be on the new....new productions, new works, new audiences. Obviously new is important and I can only imagine the pressures they're under but retaining the current audience doesn't seem to be top of their priorities but just my opinion. They couldn't even do a decent classic program for the Diamond Celebration (imho) that was allegedly about friends of the Royal ballet so I doubt they will want to do the amazing sounding set that Emeralds suggested. Unfortunately!!!

I went last night to see the Aitor Arrieta/Emma Hawes cast- I thought they were both fantastic. After reading everyone's awful audience experiences on here I was prepared for the worst but it sounds like I'm the luckiest forum member who went as everyone around me behaved perfectly- so the ballet gods must have been smiling on me last night! But I am very sorry to hear everyone else's experiences! Although the music and a lot of the choreography is absolutely beautiful Swan Lake has never been a great favourite of mine but I think last night might have converted me a bit. For the leads- I thought Emma was amazing equally as Odette and Odile. I thought her Odette really came through as a gentle but strong soul; in anguish about being trapped but resigned to it. When she came on as Odile it really did feel like she was a different dancer the acting was excellent. Also best fouettés I've seen in a while. Aitor was great as the prince, I really liked the interpretation. I was immediately invested in his character (outside of the romance) and his journey, I thought he did a really great job with the character portrayal and of course the dancing was excellent. I also did really feel a completely genuine connection between them which of course makes everything better! The other standouts for me were Emily Suzuki in the Pas de Trois and the Spanish dance- I thought she was excellent. I feel like someone on this forum made a comment like she brought poetry to her dancing or something like that. It was a while ago when I read it but anyway, if I've got the dancer right then I totally agree 😂. Francessca Velicu and Noam Durand were the lead peasants, they were excellent. I really enjoyed Rhys Antoni Yeomans in the Neapolitan. I absolutely loved the Spanish Dance. Loved the ending (I have seen ENB version before but it was a few years ago and I had bad seats so I couldn't quite remember how it ended- but glad it was my favourite ending- to me it's the only ending which fits that particularly transcendent bit of Tchaikovsky's music at the end. Last but not least the corps of swans were just amazing.

I agree, I would have thought the fairest thing to do is send the offer to everyone on their mailing list. They know that some fans will want to see more than one show if they can afford to.

Sorry it might have already been mentioned and I've missed it but there's a trailer for the programme on the Sadler's Wells website in case that also helps. It helped me make a decision about whether to go.

I'm a bit late but I saw the Magri/Corrales cast last night. I agree mostly with what has already been said so won't repeat too much but Magri was a lovely Aurora. Loved the entrance. A real shame about the Rose Adagio issues, it was quite stressful so no idea how she must have felt. She of course pulled it back and danced the rest of the show beautifully I thought. Corrales I thought was very strong, loved the solo at the end. I'm not really sure about their partnership together in this particular ballet (as in I didn't feel much connection) but it's a hard one to judge with it being the debut etc. Sophie Allnatt and Yuhui were the standouts for me from the prologue fairies and I really liked Mariko Sasaki as one of Florestan's sisters. Leticia Dias I thought was beautiful as Princess Florine...her arms were amazing. I just love Sleeping Beauty overall, one of my absolute favourite ballets so it was great to kick off the new year with this as my first ballet. Already looking forward to my next cast 😂

I don’t think age has anything to do with the views here and more to do with the fact people on the forum love ballet and just want to watch something they love without distractions, are paying for their tickets and attending performances so it’s going to be those people who would have the problem with it! I don’t know, I can’t speak for people now growing up with social media the way it is today having never known any different but I’m 34 and have been going regularly to ballet performances for about 12 years. I know there’s never a point where my 22 year old self would have thought it was ok to whip out my phone and film my favourite dancer but i think it depends how much you think about those around you and I don’t think that that’s age related, it’s more just general manners. I’ve had performances ruined by fellow audience members of all ages 😂😂

I think like others have said the harm is in ruining other people’s experiences. It is so expensive to go to the ballet and then to be sat behind someone who had their phone out filming would absolutely ruin it for me at least. obviously we as ballet fans would absolutely love to see footage of alternate casts but for me not at the expense of other audience members. And unless the filming is extremely covert (like the creepy glasses with hidden video cameras you mention which are the stuff of nightmares) then it is going to ruin the night for everyone sitting behind and to the people sitting on the immediate sides of the person filming (unless they are extremely easy going about having the light of someone’s camera in their eye line). Lastly I think filming might have encouraged people to attend in the days before the companies posted their own footage but at the end of the day most of the big companies have a nice amount of footage and (imo anyway) the vast majority of people who would be watching this kind of thing online are already massive ballet fans, I can’t see it attracting more audiences personally.