bridiem

[Coppelia insight, 12th November 2019]

It was Magri and Corrales, both solos and pas de deux, coached by Benjamin. Also interviews with all of them, Stephen Wicks and the head of costumes (sorry can't remember her name). I thought it was brilliant. Leanne Benjamin is a terrific coach - sees everything, very demanding, and gives them so much to take on board but also plenty of praise and encouragement. And I thought Leanne Cope was an excellent presenter. Really enjoyable. (Though I did think a quick resumé of the plot at the beginning would have been a good idea, and then saying exactly how what they were rehearsing fitted in.)

Yes  - it now says Takada replaces Kaneko and Hirano replaces Clarke. I bet you that it's meant to say it the other way round and in trying to clarify they've got it wrong...

51 minutes ago, Jane S said:

I'm struggling to remember a time when they did flag debuts in minor roles (or major ones, come to that) - was it quite recently?

I think it's a long time since débuts have been marked on cast sheets (and I think it would only ever have been for leading roles). But since they're marked in the booking/casting details, I'm not sure why they couldn't also be marked on the cast sheets. (Perhaps some powers that be think it might be open to misinterpretation, or misinterpret it themselves - i.e. that a début is somehow of less worth than a performance from an experienced interpreter of the role. If so it would simply show their lack of understanding.)

15 minutes ago, JNC said:

Another example is Hayward - who is one of my favourite dancers, I have to admit I'm not sure if she will suit Swan Lake. I can see her as a very good Odette, but wonder if she can pull off Odile (I simply can't see her as evil!).

I don't know, JNC - I think I've seen quite a glint in her eye sometimes!! Could be interesting...

42 minutes ago, Xandra Newman said:

"Standby", as far as I know, applies to thirty minutes before curtain up so if Takada at 7pm confirmed she was fit to dance Aurora, available Auroras go home I assume. Who else would have been available? They couldn't ask first soloists O'Sullivan or Magri who are yet to dance their own debut and may not have sufficient experience to take over last minute with a partner they never rehearsed with (or in the case of Kaneko who is too tall to dance with Campbell). Clearly Mr O'Hare judged that Naghdi was the only possible last-minute replacement, even as she never rehearsed Aurora with Campbell (why didn't Hayward take over? She had all of Sunday to recover from her Saturday evening performance ). Since Naghdi has danced other roles with Campbell, and they are now seasoned and experienced Principals  (it's not the first time in her career Naghdi takes over a role at the very last minute), it seemingly was the only workable option.  

 

My very best wishes to Takada and Hirano for a speedy recovery!

Hayward may not have been contactable; presumably dancers aren't actually on a bleep-type system where they have to be always available even on nights off? (And if Kaneko had been contactable, would she have been too tall for Campbell? He's danced with Magri who looks tall to me.)

At any rate, it sounds as if a difficult situation was dealt with with great professionalism all round. I hope Takada (and Hirano of course) will soon be back.

5 minutes ago, Lindsay said:

Not obvious, no but Takada looked less secure than she usually does (which is to say she was still very good but not as flawless as I have seen her on previous occasions).  They restarted with the Lilac Fairy taking the prince in his boat and Takada stayed to do the awakening scene.  Then Yasmine Naghdi danced Act 3.  The pas de deux was a bit cautious as you would expect but no major mishaps, extremely professionally done and they were both calm and smiling throughout - and their individual variations were lovely.  

Thanks for updating us, Lindsay. I hope they had a chance to have a quick run through of the fish dives at least! Must have been quite a performance.

4 minutes ago, Lindsay said:

Well much drama tonight - Akane Takada is unable to continue after Act 1 so interval extended while we await another ballerina. 

Oh no!

Hirano is still down for his other performances, which I hope means it isn't an injury (if it's correct, which I assume it is). Unless it's just a quick decision for tonight and then look further forward?

8 minutes ago, LinMM said:

But some people do ‘overreact’ to their phone. And in non theatre situations don’t seem to be even hold a small conversation with someone without getting their phone out 😩

Personally I hate it when certain friends ( luckily not most) do this a lot...especially if I’ve travelled some way to see them!! Even texts from well into adult children unless genuinely require an imminent response for some reason can wait for an hour at least....it’s usually not important news at all though! 

Yes - it amazes me how parents now seem to keep a constant tab on exactly where their adult children are and exactly what they're doing, AND the children don't seem to mind! When I was a young adult my parents would generally have had no idea where I was or what I was doing (just as well, some of the time...). It's good that (some) families are so close, but it seems a bit odd to me.

7 minutes ago, Lindsay said:

No excuse for anyone not having their phone off from the moment the lights go down until they come up again but I did just want to point out that in the modern world some of us have jobs or run businesses where we are expected to be in contact and replying to email almost instantaneously at all kinds of unvicilised hours.  It can also be wholly unpredictable (which is why I find it hard to book tickets in advance) but sometimes I do 'sneak out' to go to a performance in the knowledge I will have to spend every second of the intervals typing away until the lights dim.  Again, I'm not saying it's ok to use your phone in any way during the overture or performance (and neither am I advocating for this being a positive development in workplace culture - I think it's a curse!) but I wanted to make the point that not all phone use is self-indulgent leisure time.    

Yes; and it can be related to family/health issues where constant attention is needed. But, as Lindsay says, this should all be reserved strictly for intervals.

1 hour ago, Sebastian said:

 

This website is indeed a marvellous compendium of secondary sources and some lovely visual material (including much which is hard for the casual reader to find). However one can’t rely on it, as I discovered when doing some research around the history of the Sleeping Beauty. To give one example, the site asserts - as if established fact - that

 

>>The purpose of the Fairy Violente pointing her fingers during her variation in the Grand Pas de six of the Prologue is that she is zapping electricity, which was new in 1890.

 

I very much hope this is true, as it is a most entertaining idea and the Prologue Fairies are somewhat mysterious. However nowhere does there seem to be a 19th century source for this observation, in any language, although it pops up, unsourced, in some speculative writing after the Second World War. More than happy to be corrected by those who know more but I can’t find where this comes from. 

I also found that surprising, but I hope it's true! It is indeed an entertaining idea; maybe her gift to the baby Aurora is a load of useful electrical gadgets. (Including an alarm clock set to wake her up in 100 years' time? Maybe with a nice teasmade, so she can offer the Prince a cuppa when he finally turns up.)

For those of you who don't follow Francesca Hayward on Instagram, she posted a post-show photo and wrote: 'The Sleeping Beauty is a tough one! That’s all I’m going to say 🙀 Congratulations to all my beautiful friends in The Royal Ballet for making it through a heavy week finishing in a double Beauty show day and somehow finding the energy to keep me going mentally and physically on stage too 💛 special thank you to my Prince @acampbell_1 and wonderful to have @hayleymaloney back on stage with us as Carabosse.
Here we are... Carabosse, Aurora, Prince Florimund and the lovely @claire123 as our Lilac Fairy'.

Oh dear.

6 hours ago, JNC said:

I also have a question - where do the names of the fairies come from, and why have they been changed from the original (candide/violente) etc. This website from the Australian ballet gives a helpful intro to the meaning of their names and the 'traditional' names, but doesn't mention why the names were changed? 

 

To add another question - why was Prince Désiré's name changed to Florimund? Was 'Desire' seen as perhaps too racy for British audiences? 

I assume that names may be changed for matters of current taste or just because the producer wishes to do so. Yes, perhaps it was thought that Desiré could have been read as Desire which would be undesirable (geddit?!).

On ‎05‎/‎11‎/‎2019 at 14:45, bangorballetboy said:

Yes.  As the widow of a knight bachelor, she is Lady MacMillan or Deborah, Lady MacMillan.

 

Lady firstname surname is a courtesy title for the daughter of a duke, marquess or earl (as in Lady Mary Crawley or Lady Sarah Chatto).

I love the fact that you've put Lady Mary Crawley before Lady Sarah Chatto!

1 hour ago, zxDaveM said:

 

They could just cut some scenes entirely (the starting ball, and its walk-on parade; the fireworks show and opera bit; the hunt scene where the gun goes off; the pub scene maybe; the Hungarian officers - that sort of thing), but use the choreography and score the same, for the scenes they do perform.

At least, that's my guess.

Yes, I imagine you're right; but that's not what was said.

On ‎06‎/‎11‎/‎2019 at 20:41, Jane S said:

From an interview with Christopher Hampson by Kelly Apter in The List:

 

'We're using all of Kenneth's original choreography and the same score,' explains Hampson, 'but there will be some adaptations in terms of the scenes we present, and the order we present them in. So it's two acts rather than three, and because there will be far less pageantry around Rudolf, we'll really focus in on those iconic, key dramatic moments in his life.'

My literal mind is still querying this; they cannot actually be using 'all of Kenneth's original choreography and the same score', otherwise it would be the same length as the original... Or is it being suggested that MacMillan did not choreograph the whole work?! (Or that only the pas deux matter? Seems very reductive to me if so.) And the score must be being cut/adapted and will therefore not be 'the same'. I get the gist, but it annoys me when people are so imprecise especially in what is after all a pretty significant public statement.

4 minutes ago, Sim said:

JNC, they announce 10 minutes, 5 minutes, and “about to commence “ , plus the ushers walk around madly ringing bells so no excuse for being late to your seats if you are in the building.  
 

I must say that I almost never see anyone being allowed in after the lights are off. I didn’t realise that the rule is relaxed for those with big bank accounts!!

Well it shouldn't be!! (Even if you just take the cynical view, others with big bank accounts are likely to be disturbed by allowing in the latecomers.)

1 hour ago, Odyssey said:

This is a a really helpful, and readable, explanation to the various adaptations  to the original Petipa ballet and the 
Perrault fairytale.
https://petipasociety.com/the-sleeping-beauty/

 

edited to add that the section The Sleeping Beauty in the West is pertinent to the discussion here 

Thanks, Odyssey - really interesting. There's a lot there that I didn't know or had forgotten. I love the story about the Bluebird and Princess Florine!

I do wish that Ashton's Garland dance had been retained in the current production.

37 minutes ago, Dawnstar said:

I'm reading the Seen and Heard review of the triple bill cinecast, posted in today's links, and I'm baffled by the reviewer saying "Muntagirov is always the most elegant of dancers with bravura leaps and the softest of soft landings. I just wish he didn’t make everything look so easy". I thought one of the main aims of ballet was to try to make difficult movements look easy & that Muntagirov is so highly thought of because he is so good at this. So why does the reviewer complain about it?

Yes - if he was a fellow dancer I could understand it since it could induce exasperation or envy! But for a reviewer, it is indeed baffling.

9 minutes ago, Candleque said:

Last night was so enjoyable, I just made an impulse purchase for the matinee tomorrow. Fumi Kaneko and Reece Clarke. (Debuts?)
Can't wait to see who else is in the cast ✨

Yes, débuts! (And no doubt débuts in some other roles too.) Should be exciting and I hope you enjoy it.

22 minutes ago, JNC said:

Others seem to think she’s a very musical dancer so it’s interesting she was out of time - perhaps first night nerves? 

On one occasion in Act I, she was turning so fast it was almost a blur, and I think she put in one turn too many so she did finish up a split second behind the music. This was right at the beginning, and I put it down to excitement and enthusiasm to do her utmost best. Other than that, I thought she was superbly musical throughout.

5 minutes ago, Sim said:

Bridie I don’t know what the view was like where you were sitting, but Carabosse appears in the mirror above Aurora’s bed. As soon as the kiss happens, Carabosse clearly expires.  In previous performances the mirror shatters so it’s very obvious, but tonight it didn’t.

Ah, I see - or rather, I didn't see. I just saw Carabosse herself slither behind the bed, but it wasn't clear that she'd expired. That's a blessed relief! Thanks, Sim.

54 minutes ago, capybara said:

Thank you. Rather as expected. Luxury casting. Lucky audience.

Lucky audience indeed. Superb dancing at all levels, and a real sense of the company's total commitment to this ballet. You'd never have guessed it was the first show of the run. Yasmine Naghdi was a breathtaking Aurora. All the technical challenges dealt with with complete insouciance and a brilliant smile. Matthew Ball a handsome and supportive Florimund. Kristen McNally a terrific Carabosse, rejoicing in her evil and all but licking her lips as she cast her wicked spell. Fumi Kaneko a serenely beautiful and gracious Lilac Fairy. And so many other riches. No-one does regal like Elizabeth McGorian. Hayward and Sambé as Princess Florine and the Bluebird flew through the air and flitted and sparked like truly magical creatures. I normally find Puss-in-Boots and the Cat, and Red Riding Hood and the Wolf, a bit tedious; but they were performed with such verve tonight (by Paul Kay, Ashley Dean, Romany Pajdak and Nicol Edmonds) that they were hugely entertaining. I thought all the fairy solos were excellent, as were Hay, Magri and O'Sullivan as Florestan and his sisters (once more, Hay and O'Sullivan seeming like a perfect match). And Thomas Whitehead a convincing, fussy, indignant Catalabutte. He and the King (a lovely performance by Christopher Saunders) could both however learn something about not passing the buck: the King is happy to land Catalabutte in it when Carabosse demands to know who is responsible for not inviting her to the christening; and Catalabutte is quick to point the finger at the women who had the knitting needles, knowing it could seal their fate. What rotters.

I still find many of the costumes for this production a bit garish, and the effect of the forest growing isn't as effective as in other/previous productions. And I'm not happy with the ending in respect of Carabosse - she appears to have been defeated by the Lilac Fairy en route to the palace, but she then pops up again and creeps over to Aurora's bed, only slinking away behind it when the Prince approaches. But where does she go? She needs to be seen to be defeated once and for all, and that doesn't seem to happen (although it says in the synopsis that she is 'finally vanquished' - but that isn't made clear on stage). I was left with the horrible sensation that she and her rats (which were amazingly rat-like) might rise again. I also preferred the ending where tribute is paid ultimately by all to the Lilac Fairy, whereas here it is Aurora and Florimund who are given the final reverence.

But all in all, a great performance abounding in magnificent dancing.

21 minutes ago, MJW said:

 

I get an automated message after a visit, saying they hoped I enjoyed a performance and asking me to complete a survey  - it only has two questions: did I enjoy it (1 to 10) and would I recommend someone to visit (1 to 10)

Like those surveys you get after a hospital appointment - would you recommend us to your friends?! (At least they don't ask if you enjoyed it.)