Blossom

Followed your advice RuthE and despite missing out on the last release of tickets for the main Swan Lake Insight by what must have been a few seconds, I finally got one! It's in my birthday week as well so maybe luck was on my side. I feel like the cat who got the cream.

Love this quote from a review in the Independent which is a perfect description! ‘The brothel scene plays out in Hogarthian detail’

I have been reading this thread with great anticipation for my visit to the ROH tonight. A fabulous performance - Hayward went from demure to in love to a very regal mistress and then of course to her downfall. An excellent performance. Also hugely rated Campbell as Lescaut. Knowing he is also playing Des Grieux, I wonder which he enjoys more... Being one of the nicest people in ballet (love watching when he presents Insights and World Ballet Day) I thought he did a phenomenal job of playing...a rat, for want of a better word. Particularly loved his drunken pdd with Calvert, she was also fabulous tonight. Bonnelli also danced well but I just think I preferred the dynamics of Lescaut to Des Grieux. Onto the much described lewdness... Actually I don’t think that there was anything inappropriate for the time which was being portrayed - and I’m quite a prude! In terms of the story of a woman’s demise being told from a man’s perspective, it’s worth remembering how women lived in those days- completely beholden to men, couldn’t vote, weren’t in charge of their own finances and effectively went from their father’s house to pretty much being the property of their husband, or to get a step up, becoming a mistress with all of the financial trappings that brings and perhaps even a little more independence. From Hayward’s portrayal at least, I don’t see this as a the story of an immoral woman but a tragic love story of a woman who made a choice perhaps to ensure herself a good life - before love won over. Her fate and fortune were very much controlled by her scheming brother - and oh what a schemer Campbell made!

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And here's me thinking I am the only one with the excel spreadsheet to work out exactly which dates to go! I think I'm going to find it tought to do ENB Manon and Swan Lake when it's going to be my busiest season at the ROH - I will probably forego ENB as I will see those ballets at ROH this year.

Could be a good one for Corrales?

Me too. Can’t wait!!!

Delighted so far with Bayadere, Ashton works, a good number of mixed bills which will be perfect to take my daughter to (lots of different choreographers so a good education!) and look forward to seeing Winter Dreams. Looking forward to seeing what the RBS contribution to the mixed bill will be.

I am relatively new to the forum but love the mix of opinions here. We don’t all have to like the same things but we all have a right to an opinion especially when substantiated. The world (including the world of ballet) would be a very dull place if we all thought the same way. I’ve slated something before because I genuinely found it awful and no one agreed with me, which was a bit upsetting but it didn’t invalidate the way I felt. And perhaps someone else felt the same but chose not to post. Sometimes I even disagree with the critics who are more expert than me but I am posting with regards to my personal taste. I love the forum because my ‘ballet buddy’ is no longer here to share my passion and there are very few people I can have an in depth discussion with, plus fewer to none who will have seen exactly the same performance providing an opportunity to swap thoughts. Don’t stop posting, constructive criticism and debate should continue!

A great programme in terms of heading out on tour, but being a regular at the ROH a bit disappointed to see so many repeats. Having said that, once I have seen Manon and Swan Lake at the ROH this Spring/Summer I am sure I will be hungry to see them again!!

. To be fair, my mum could probably fit into one from the dance shops...

Booked to go with a friend but she can't come! £10 and all 3 'Swan Lake and Me' events now sold out on ROH site... 31 May, Clore Studio Upstairs, 6pm

Just ordered from Flic Flac and from Love Lily thanks to this thread. Gorgeous skirts, beautifully packaged too and both so lovely to deal with, especially making sure that there would be enough fabric as I'm size 12 and making sure the skirts weren't too short as I'm in my late 30s! Really happy with my order and nothing as pretty in the multitude of dance shops around Drury Lane...

So sad for Hallberg but Osipova/Ball not to be missed. The second act was utterly wonderful last week.

Tonight was simply wonderful. Terrible shame that David Hallberg was injured, but having read comments about Ball’s debut it was simply wonderful to get the opportunity to see him. The partnership, despite the short notice was credible, incredibly emotive and I was in tears by the time the curtain came down. Osipova is just the most stunningly Giselle and I love the way she acts the scene where she discovers Albrecht is 2 timing her but ultimately I think she creates absolute magic as a wili. I was amazed at how good a fit she was with Ball given the limited preparation time. It was lovely to see her applaud him during their curtain call together. Ball is a great actor and has super expressive arms

Only in the sense that I hoped the photos would be publicly available!!

I heard the camera clicking but not sure where it was coming from, lovely to see such great photos. It was an excellent event all round, both the historical insight into the pieces and the coaching with all of Mason’s wonderful personal insight (as well as a couple of bonus insights from Sir Peter Wright). Does Mr O’Hare tend to always go to these events? A great way for junior dancers to get exposure - must be quite nerve wracking!!!

Dilemmas, dilemmas... I have supported ENB for the past few years, i thought that Emerging Dancer and the new corps de ballet award in the past couple of years was a sign that they were really forward thinking in terms of people management. So to support the dancers who remain or not?

David Donnelly! Have had the pleasure to watch him being coached in a workshop (plus he also appears in one of the Ashton Foundation workshops now on YouTube) and he is just wonderful to watch.

Definitely go and see it! Grace Maloney is a wonderful new talent. Jennifer Saunders is a comic genius - as is Oscar Wilde.

Tonight at a wonderfully non- ballet performance (Lady Windermere’s Fan at the Vaudeville, highly recommend) I was incensed by a mobile phone actually ringing in the first act as well as text message pings, slurps of drinks, rustling of some food item or other. Not sure if behaviour is getting generally more unacceptable or if following this conversation has just made me highly intolerant!!!

I have seen that happen before to people sitting near me. Unbelievable!!

Went to see ENB last night at London Coliseum. I haven’t seen Song before and when it comes to the more abstract ballets my natural affinity is not with Macmillan so I don’t really want to comment too much, except to say that Rojo and the other female leads in each of the songs dazzled. Loved the 3rd and 6th songs the most. Striking ending. Sylphide was lovely, wasn’t too overwhelmed by the bright costumes- I don’t think they are much brighter than the Danish version I have on DVD. Dronina was a perfect Sylphide and close enough to see her facial expressions I think she did convey happy/sad/mischief... Beautiful Romantic arms but not sure the corps got the memo about the Romantic style, arms not soft and delicate enough. Hernandez was a dynamic James, giving the explosive music a run for its money with his giant leaps and tight footwork. I am a a big fan of national dances which feature in the classical repertoire and the Scottish dancing was wonderful at the wedding celebration. The children who danced deserve a special mention for their contribution- and what a fabulous opportunity. Star of the show for me was Jane Haworth though for her characterisation of Madge - a truly manipulative crone! She was my first Myrtha in Giselle many moons ago!

Not sure if this has been added earlier on, but Australian Ballet's Sleeping Beauty (David McAllister) is available to watch on Sky Arts catch up/box sets in addition to the Nutcracker (Peter Wright) and Graeme Murphy's Swan Lake which have been available for a while.

This looks like a great development for RAD. Rather underwhelmed by the lower grade syllabi these days and chose ISTD for my daughters instead. I still think there is quite a gap in classical ballet between lower and higher RAD grades though which isn’t solved by this. Much preferred the old approach where contemporary style was covered by free movement....