sybarite2015@

I would also like to see some Balanchine ballets...Jewels, of course, or Symphony in Three Movements...or Agon...

Wish: a tour by the Ballet Paris National Opera Garnier as I cant ever recall them touring London in the last decade or so. Especially since I don't think the Bolshoi or Mariinsky will be coming for political reasons BNP would be a fantastic alternative.

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/may/26/top-10-books-about-ballet-watch-her-fall-erin-kelly Thought I'd share.

Thanks for the responses everyone but this leaves me with one question... Presumably - and let's take the Vaganova Academy as an example -- all those 10 year old girls and boys who enrol and get accepted into its ballet programme do so because they want to become professional dancers, ideally principals right? They must do to spend so many years at the limits of human physical accomplishment willingly so mustn't it be a really big disappointment if they manage to successfully graduate but not get professional ballet contracts with the Bolshoi/Mariinksy etc? (Since those who were not so good/talented/determined get weeded out by the course over the years or drop out?) Or am I missing something here? For example, PhDs have about only a 50% completion rate -- I know from personal experience as I was in the 50% that dropped out after some years! -- but if I had completed it (equivalent to graduating from the Vaganova in our example) I would have been even more disappointed if I then couldn't have gotten a job in academia. Or is the Vaganova not a good example as all their graduates get jobs in ballet? I'd love to read any books by any such ballet graduates who didn't get a role in a professional ballet company (if they wanted it).

As we all know, from each graduating class a certain number X of the students from a ballet school will get contracts to join a ballet company as a professional dancer. My question is what do those who do not get a dance company job do? I'm genuinely curious...

But at a 1000 pounds I'll give the dinner a miss!!

Thank you Fiona!

Is it possible to get VIP tickets to the Dinner? I know at similar galas in Geneva one can pay extra for special VIP tickets that include the dinner too.

Why no Zakharova/Lopatkina/Polunin/ --all retired now? 😔

This cast list looks amazing! I would love to see Maria Khoreva for the first time and Shklyarov as well as the Primas in that list again (Alexandrova, Krysanova, Osipova, Tikhomirova)! I am unsure whether to get stall seats or grand circle. Any suggestions? Is going to the stage door possible at the Coliseum after the Gala? I usually go for Stalls but never have Grand Circled before. Is the view better?

Hi Nice to be back on this forum after Covid! Hopefully it is soon going to be over! Anway does anyone have any info regarding the summer visit to London of either the Bolshoi or the Mariinsky?

Which reminds me, when was the last time the Paris Opera ballet company toured the UK? I'v never seen them live and I know Paris isn't far but with Brexit and all who knows what hoops we'll have to jump next year to go to Paris? After I saw Wiseman's documentary La Danse I fell in love!

Yes, sorry I meant American Ballet Theatre (i.e. Ballanchine's company) not the Aussie one! (I didn't even realise Australia had a ballet company!!)

Hi I don't live in the UK so try to see as many shows as I can when I am back in London and I'll be back during this week so I'd love to see this Osipova/Hallberg perfomance of Swan Lake. Will be willing to pay extra.

Thank you for the detailed response. Is it also because the American ballerinas don't have the same reputation as the Russian ones?