RuthE

Thanks - I had a feeling I'd read something about it on here before, but my search didn't bring up any results...

While looking for something on the ROH website this morning, I happened upon the fact that this has recently appeared:

https://www.roh.org.uk/tickets-and-events/the-margot-fonteyn-international-ballet-competition-details

"The Margot Fonteyn International Ballet Competition 2020 (formerly the Genée International Ballet Competition), presented by the Royal Academy of Dance, offers the finest young dancers trained by RAD teachers from around the globe the opportunity to compete on a world stage.

Previous award winners have gone on to careers with some of the most respected international ballet companies, including The Royal Ballet.

Candidates are coached by an international faculty before competing in the semi-finals, held this year in the Royal Opera House’s Linbury Theatre on Wednesday 2 and Thursday 3 September 2020.

Booking for the semi-finals will open in early 2020.

Finalists will then dance in front of an esteemed panel of judges, including Dame Darcey Bussell, in a spectacular performance on the Main Stage on Saturday 5 September 2020.

Priority tickets are now on sale to RAD Members. General booking opens in April 2020.

More information can be found at royalacademyofdance.org/fonteyn2020."

On ‎16‎/‎11‎/‎2019 at 17:28, alison said:

The Clore is generally an improvement - the seats are much more comfortable.

There's one more row of seating than there used to be, and as Alison says, they are nicer than before.  However the rake is annoyingly shallow.

10 hours ago, alison said:

 

And I'm not sure how much of a guarantee there is that it will be the same supporting cast for each of their performances anyway.

Particularly in the smaller roles.

1 hour ago, Sharon said:

I want to mention her beautiful port de bras throughout, her hands, her arched and pointed feet but most of all the beauty and artistry of this very special ballerina.

Mine is a comment on last Thursday's performance rather than last night's, but her hands and fingers were so beautiful in the fish-dives.

54 minutes ago, bridiem said:

On the other hand, sometimes when you do show them, they don't 'get' it! I once took a friend to a performance including Serenade, and afterwards he looked puzzled and just said 'well what was all that about then?'. I was in an exalted state and was completely crushed and baffled by his response.

To be fair, I feel like that about Serenade as well...

39 minutes ago, bridiem said:

 

And when curtain calls are sometimes taken rather in character, thus encouraging such a reaction.

That's it. If we all give a big cheer when Gary Avis comes out after Nutcracker and throws a cloud of glitter in the air, then it's equally appropriate to boo a Rothbart or Carabosse who swoops out looking evil.  It would be inappropriate for a baddie in a serious adult human-story-ballet, but then, that'll be why we don't see the Gaoler from Manon coming out for his curtain call making obscene suggestive gestures

9 minutes ago, Douglas Allen said:

 

Capybara I'm really pleased to hear this from you, both because it is a difficult role to judge how to play, but also because I hope it marks the end to the ridiculous booing of a performance because the character is judged to be morally deficient! I don't know how or where it started, but it really has no place in any serious opera house or theatre. If pantomime antics like this persist, why not boo poor, absurd Catalbutte, whose gross negligence in drawing up the invitation list led to all the trouble in the first place?

I agree with you on the whole, but I wouldn't judge people for making an exception when the subject matter is - like the subject matter of pantomimes - a popular fairy tale.

Thanks, Bluebird!

Must catch this on Youtube - it isn't a piece I know well, and wish I could have been there last night.  I saw the last ENB Coppelia with Rojo and Lendorf, and the Mikhailovsky(?) one with Polunin.  But both of those were quite a long time ago, the RB hasn't done Coppelia in the whole time I've been going to ballet, and the only tune I can ever bring to mind from the score is the Mazurka, because we used to play it in school orchestra (bearing in mind I left school 23 years ago...)

On ‎08‎/‎11‎/‎2019 at 22:23, ninamargaret said:

There were some postings here about the very short 'rags' worn by Manon. Out of interest, I played my Penney/Dowell DVD. She wears rags that are definitely the ragged version of one of her dresses, definitely  knee length. All the dresses worn by the prostitutes are ragged versions of their previous clothes. So it seems as through there has been some redesigning over the years.

Incidentally, I watched a bit of my Rojo/Acosta DVD the other day to check something, and noted that Manon's Act 2 dress had sleeves.  When did it become the current strappy version?

1 hour ago, JNC said:

Again, another credit to ROH staff. (And I hope the person is in question is ok.) 

 

Also much of the same of ushers clamping down on mobile phone use too. 

I actually emailed Customer Services after Thursday's performance to commend the ushering, in particular the lady on rear stalls right who had her hands constantly full with phone users.

Excellent. I’ll send you a PM.

Tickets all now re-homed 🙂

31/12 ticket now gone as well.  Only the 28/12 evening performance remaining.

28/12 matinee ticket now sold to Bruce.  The other two remain available.

I've booked a holiday in Italy for New Year  and will therefore no longer be able to use the following tickets for the RB's Coppelia:

Saturday 28th December (2pm) - O'Sullivan/Sambe/Mosley - SCS D26 - £10

Saturday 28th December (7pm) - Naghdi/Ball/Gartside - SCS D27 - £10

Tuesday 31st December (5pm) - Choe/Acri/Mosley - Balcony Standing D32 - £10

All are e-tickets.  Please get in touch if interested, and post here so that others know which one you've asked for.

Ticket now spoken for

Thanks Andy, I await your PM.

I somehow had a different cast written down for this performance, and obtained a ticket by mistake! It's Osipova/Hallberg. I therefore have Stalls Circle Standing D30 for sale, £11, e-ticket.

That was the only technical slip I noticed, however.

I’m sorry to cheapen the discussion, but for me, most of the Prologue Fairy names sound like brands of air-freshener...

50 minutes ago, zxDaveM said:

 

I didn't notice that! Makes it even worse!

Clarification for the benefit of the general readership: zxDaveM and I were standing in adjacent positions last night.

46 minutes ago, zxDaveM said:

The current announcer (of time to be seated fame) reminds me of a Kaminoan Cloner from the Star Wars movies...

It’s a bit of a shock to the system, isn’t it? I’m trying to work out why a woman with an American accent sounds so out of place to my ear in this context, as there’s really no reason why it should.

3 hours ago, zxDaveM said:

 

I don't think these were patrons - far too young (and Stalls Circle, not Grand Tier)!!! lol

This wan't just 'after lights dimmed' - the orchestra was in flow flow - but the curtain yet to rise, thank heavens

By the time they made it to their seats, the curtain was very much up.

The techies in the lighting box must have loved being suddenly stood in front of during the performance, too...

Full marks(!) last night to the couple at Sleeping Beauty who returned to their seats in Stalls Circle row A, dead centre, after the curtain had gone up on Act 1 - thus disturbing all those on the right-hand side of the centre block of row A, and blocking the view of all in rows A-D, who had had the common sense to get there on time.

7 hours ago, Dawnstar said:

Who are Florestan and his sisters?

I googled this on Friday and nobody else seems to know either!