Ruth

Having spent some time away from this forum I'm surprised to see the dislike towards McRae. Perhaps I've missed something? He was never my favourite but I always remember him as a virtuoso and reliable partner. Imported star dancers are part of every big company I feel; or at least they've always been part of companies I've visited, and I don't think the Royal Ballet has too many. I've never heard it complained about so long after the hiring took place so it surprises me to still hear arguments. One particular lady really looked down her nose at my grand dd after talking during intermission lately at the opera house, upon hearing gdd enjoyed the Osipova Rhapsody performance. Its inspired her to see more Ashton works in the future. It's not something I really expect in person, especially from a lady close to my age, so I have to ask: is Osipova really so awful, or only really good for Don Quixote, or are people just frustrated that the management didn't give the position to an in-house dancer, and as such will dislike anything she does? My friend was very much the same way with Guillem: she was French, and therefore couldn't dance anything well at the Royal Opera House. I understand differing opinions of course, but to my eye it very much reminds me of that friend. Perhaps this is controversial, to which I apologise. I have not personally seen Osipova dance as her performances usually fall on difficult days for me. Her physique has always reminded me of an old fashioned dancer.

I believe the same "wardrobe malfunction" happened to Nunez when she was cast as Myrthe, or at least that's what I've been reliably informed of by my grand dd!

I truly believe that no dancer nowadays can hold a candle to the original Ashton casts. So much has changed with regards to schooling and technique, and perhaps its simply natural transgression, that the Ashton we see performed now is not as the original was. Even the highly praised, on here, casts I've seen do not have the same effect as the original casts did. I think this also applies to other choreographers, for example Balanchine, although I never saw the original casts for his works. This is, however, not to say that Ashton cannot be performed any more; I just believe it has to be taken into account how much the style has evolved in the last few decades. And that the original cast can never be beaten. Then again, if it was performed much more frequently I might be surprised. With regards to the thread, I can certainly see many promising ballerinas who will likely make Principal in a few years time. No more names to add to others, although at the moment I see Akane Takada as the most likely to make principal first. However, looking at the male dancers I struggle to see ones who'll make principal very soon. Many of the younger ones, I feel, need a lot more partnering experience and to develop their acting skills. All it will take is a few injuries in the upcoming Mayerling performances and the male principal rank will look very bare. P.S. I am not a new user, simply someone who hasn't posted for a while and cannot, no matter how hard i wrack my memory, remember my old account details. They were possibly linked to an email account of which the password eludes me.