JohnS

I hope you were successful @Silke H as General Rehearsal tickets are quickly snapped up. I’d been meaning to say that when booking last week, by 9:20 I’d managed to put my preferred seats in my basket, including 4 Stalls Circle Row A General Rehearsal tickets, all pretty much in the centre. But when I came to pay, I got an error message/contact the box office. I was needing to be out of the house pretty quickly as I was chairing a meeting so I emailed the box office with my payment details which included dates/ticket prices but unfortunately not the actual seat numbers (which I hadn’t twigged in my rush). I was just about to leave when the Box Office phoned and they very kindly said they’d try to put together my basket. Back home at lunchtime, the Box Office had done a great job: I have my preferred tickets for all performances; and I’m pleased to have pretty good General Rehearsal tickets, albeit not quite the seats I’d originally put in my basket. There’s clearly very strong demand for General Rehearsal tickets. The Box Office team always impress me and I wonder if they have sufficient input into pricing: in-house expertise is a great asset and should be used to sense check pricing proposals, particularly if proposals are novel and consultant led.

I booked the General Rehearsal and opening and closing nights for the MacMillan and I’ll also go to the cinema relay. For me it’s been a bit harder putting together London tripsfor the MacMillan as the six performances are pretty well spread out. I prefer to catch more than one performance when I come to London, given the travel/overnight accommodation, but I’m not wanting to add Butterfly or Carmen. I know there are many other attractions in London so I’ll look again when the MacMillan casting is announced. Trips for Swan Lake were much easier to plan helped by so many performances and matinees - I was spoiled for choice.

There seemed to be a fair number of empty seats on Friday evening, certainly in the Stalls, so I doubt all seats were sold.

Many thanks @bridiem and @LinMM - a pleasingly uneventful drive home!

A fabulous matinee more than meeting my expectations and delighted to be posting this on the train nearing Penrith albeit I see there are now snow and ice warnings for Cumbria. I thought the entire cast were on too form, reprising the attack and delivering the presence that made opening night so special. Thrilling to see: Marcelino Sambé and Yasmine Naghdi (Ferryman); Francesca Hayward and Matthew Ball (Francesca and Paolo); Calvin Richardson (Ulysses); Anna Rose O’Sullivan and Luca Acri (Dido); Francisco Serrano and Joseph Sissens (Soothsayers); and the Thieves’ extravaganza. And chilling to see Melissa Hamilton’s Satan. I was sorry Liam Boswell wasn’t dancing as he had made such a telling contribution at the general rehearsal and opening night - I do hope he isn’t injured. Purgatorio has grown on me and I find I’m more accepting of the taped chant. I do like Dante’s interaction with the Penitents. The triple Beatrice/Dante remembrances/scenes I find very affecting, the Dante/Beatrice (spirt) ending rapturous, setting up Paradiso. Up thread I’d asked about the red costume for the young Dantes as I’d associated red with the enlightened Dante in Paradiso. But from the programme I got for the first run I see that red is taken as Dante’s colour and not linked to enlightenment. The programme suggests Dante’s red becomes blue in the negative world of Inferno (although there’s a question as to whether Dante’s costume looks more green than blue). Virgil traditionally wears blue so he’s in yellow in Inferno, the negative of blue. I assume the red stripe added to Dante’s costume in Purgatorio reflects the progress he is making towards Paradiso. I enjoy the celestial bodies and their interaction as Thomas Adès’s fabulous score builds and builds leading to the final Dante/Beatrice transcendence. I was again very taken with how well Paradiso works in the Stalls, the light sweeping up the rows in front and engulfing the auditorium. Fumi Kaneko somehow managed to convey a sense of weightlessness, pure spirit, just astonishing. Will Bracewell is a stupendous Dante and I found his journey utterly compelling. Fumi Kaneko and Will Bracewell have a very special partnership, a joy to see whatever their roles. A memorable weekend and I’ll happily settle for an uneventful drive home.

I enjoyed last night’s performance and was certainly impressed by Ryoichi Hirano’s Dante. For me Inferno lacked the irrepressible vitality of opening night’s cast and it was Purgatorio and Paradiso which made the most impact. I thought Matthew Ball with his attack and stage presence really helped shape the Penitents. Francesca Hayward is exquisite as young Beatrice and I do very much like the triple Beatrice/Dante interplay. Sarah Lamb and Ryoichi Hirano are fabulously well matched and Paradiso’s ending was transcendental. I was in the Stalls near the back with the benefit of an aisle seat, an unrestricted view, and thought the sweep of the light hugely effective. And I wasn't distracted by extraneous hums from the screen projections. I’m very much looking forward to the matinee and I’m pleased that for me I’ll be ending this Dante run with the Bracewell cast. I’ve been able to get a similar seat but on the opposite side of the Stalls so I have sky high expectations for the performance.

Joshua Junker is listed for tonight’s Dante cast - Soothsayer etc. The cast sheet was posted an hour ago. We’ll see if there’s a change.

It’s trying to deal with emails from ‘no reply’ addresses that bugs me. If email is good enough for the sender, it seems arrogant in the extreme not to allow an email reply. And worse still where the reply option listed is a premium rate phone number.

Looking forward very much to Friday’s performance to see the Hirano cast and staying for Saturday’s matinee to catch a third performance of the Bracewell cast having seen the general rehearsal and opening night. I find much to admire in Dante: Thomas Adès’s music; the energy of all the dancers; much of the design. I hope the screen projections hum which blighted Paradiso for me on opening night has been resolved or is at least less intrusive in the Stalls although I’d much prefer Balcony audiences not to be inconvenienced. My other gripe was the lack of a helpful synopsis. @Ondine very usefully provided a link to McGregor’s commentary and it’s well worth watching the 2 minutes clip. But I don’t think it’s sufficient to highlight: “it’s not a three act story ballet.” A few seconds later McGregor refers to wanting to create “our own emotional and narrative art” so it seems reasonable to me to ask for a few helpful pointers about the narrative which audience members can refer to should they wish. As has been suggested above by @alison and others, the headings for Inferno included on the cast sheet could readily be followed by a few words capturing what’s going on. And given McGregor happily talks about the three parts to the Dante Project in the clip, surely it’s not too difficult to put together a couple of sentences on the cast sheet for Purgatorio and Paradiso? I know McGregor doesn’t want audiences to think they have to be familiar with Dante or Woolf but providing helpful information is a courtesy to audience members. Those interested may well be grateful and no one is required to read cast sheets etc unless they choose to do so. At the general rehearsal and opening night I believe some audience members struggled and may well have welcomed a little help. The lack of information is not limited to McGregor. The cast sheet for Anemoi was blank save for listing the dancers: disappointing as Valentino Zucchetti was particularly eloquent about his ballet in the programme and two or three sentences could have been included on the cast sheet. I’d go further and say not providing helpful information is a discourtesy. At an extreme, not providing information can exclude audiences and reinforce an unwelcome stereotype that the performance is for initiates. But despite some grumbles where I know I’m rather stuck in a groove, I am excited at the prospect of seeing a couple of Dante performances this weekend. I think it’s great that the Royal Ballet can move so seamlessly from Don Q to Dante and I can only applaud the multi-talented dancers. It’s been hugely rewarding to see so many dancers giving their all in such contrasting roles: Calvin Richardson as Espada, Gamarche and Ulysses; Liam Boswell always impressing with such astonishing precision and timing (although I see he hasn’t been in the last two performances of the Bracewell cast); and countless others. They convince me they enjoy the rich variety and I find their on stage vitality wonderfully life affirming. I’m afraid Saturday is still Avanti contingent. I’ve booked a 17:30 train and there are a couple of trains after that but there’s a risk of disruption and cancellations. If Avanti find they have to cancel services, I hope they’ll let passengers know sufficiently in advance to get an earlier train as I don’t want to be stuck in London for two extra nights. But from the latest information the 17:30 has a green flag which I’m very much hoping it keeps.

A perfectly reasonable question but not easy to answer: there’s been some discussion in this thread about the absence of a useful synopsis. The cast sheet gives headings but nothing else. Here’s the cast list for the Bracewell cast (today’s cast list is not yet up but it may well be the same as for the 25th): https://static.roh.org.uk/digital/cast-sheets/The-Dante-Project-2023/The-Dante-Project-Cast-Sheet-evening-25-November-2023.pdf?_ga=2.113200708.1308188944.1701203633-1111864046.1694786165 I think the Sarah Crompton review is well worth a read: https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2023/nov/26/the-dante-project-wayne-mcgregor-royal-ballet-royal-opera-house-revival-william-bracewell-review-rhiannon-faith-lay-down-your-burdens-barbican-pit?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other Today’s links also includes a more critical piece which does run through much of the action: https://bachtrack.com/review-dante-project-mcgregor-bracewell-kaneko-royal-ballet-november-2023

Top price for Dante in 2021 was £90 compared to £130 this time, an increase of 44%. But if you bought a top price ticket as part of a subscription, you paid £73.80. A subscriber in 2021 would therefore see a 76% increase in the price actually paid. For subscribers, I think that may well be a pertinent comparison but I don’t know what proportion of tickets were sold to subscribers. Restricted Balcony seats were £55. This run the price is £80, a 45% increase.

Sorry @oncnp but I don’t recall seeing a seat map. When prices were published, the top price was £110, as for Anemoi/The Cellist, (which I thought good news) and I think the pattern looked similar to Anemoi/The Cellist which hopefully gives a guide. I was hoping there’d be changes to Swan Lake Stalls Circle bench seats but nothing so far.

Excellent news: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid037MBqGQByXCQ9XRVj4G8tUEBiCfuhNEwx9pUiuBLL8PvfFNkpMm9eRCs7qBAGqujZl&id=100064405281048 Musicians in the Royal Opera House Orchestra have accepted a significantly improved pay and conditions offer from the company’s management to settle this year’s dispute This result is a credit to the courage and resolve of all MU members in the Orchestra and a powerful example of how a successful outcome can be achieved when members organise and stand firm, even in the face of great pressure Read more: https://bit.ly/3uzEV7K #WeAreTheMU

I do hope you weren’t bothered by what I thought was an incredibly intrusive hum in Act 3 when I was in the Balcony for opening night which I assume was for the screen projections. I’d rather written off booking tickets in the Balcony for extra bookings but as you say the Balcony gives a very good perspective - perhaps the opening night hum was a one off?

I too am very keen to hear about this cast. I haven’t yet booked but only because I’m waiting for Avanti to publish its revised timetable for early December. If there’s still a Saturday late afternoon train running, I’ll see the Hirano cast on 1 December and stay for the Saturday matinee and the Bracewell cast. Avanti say the timetable will be published by 24 November but who knows whether that will be in time for Friday Rush.

I see Kevin O’Hare is Michael Berkeley’s guest on Private Passions this Sunday: 26 November 12:00 noon Radio 3 and then BBC Sounds. His selections include Tchaikovsky, Thomas Ades and Anna Clyne (no further details given in Radio Times). I find Private Passions invariably of interest: I’ll look forward to hearing what Kevin O’Hare has to say and what Michael Berkeley manages to glean from him.

I thought the Dante/Virgil costumes looked ok. But why do the two young Dantes wear red in Act 2 (when Dante wears the green/red mix). Red for the young Dantes seems at odds with Dante’s Act 3 red. Not that I’m suggesting they should wear the green/red mix as they haven’t begun the journey to hell so are earth bound and not in purgatory.

I agree with you @AnnabelCharles but I don’t think that is quite what @Bruce Wall proposes as I think he sees the Royal Ballet more as an exponent of dance theatre. I too have been surprised by some pretty negative posts this weekend on both McGregor and Osipova. I do hope you’ll post more as I’m sure your views will be of interest to all irrespective of whether people agree.

Apologies - it was Leo Dixon who I thought very impressive in earlier performances. It was my first time seeing Lukas B Braendsrod as Espada.

I was impressed with much of tonight’s performance but some issues trouble me. Tomas Ades gives a fabulous score albeit I still have some reservations about the Act 2 taped chant. But Acts 1 and 3 are tremendous and fabulously played with Jonathan Lo conducting. I do though have concerns about the sound balance where some amplification seems way too much (double basses) but that’s one of the problems of using tape and live music. The worst aspect of the sound was the very loud hum for the entire Act 3. I assume this was a byproduct of the screen display which I think was projected from the central Balcony. I was in the Balcony and the most central seats (8? seats and all 4 rows) were roped off - a significant loss of potential revenue. The hum was incredibly loud, audible throughout the Act, and completely drowned the quietest passages. I don’t recall such an issue in previous performances but it may be at its most intrusive in the Balcony. As regards the choreography there was much to admire. Bracewell made a convincing Dante, even when simply observing what was going on. I found his active dancing fully engaging, a remarkable debut as I was more convinced by him than previous Dantes. In Act 1 many roles were reprised from last time and I very much enjoyed Sambe/Naghdi (Ferryman), Hayward/Ball (Francesca and Paolo), and O’Sullivan (Dido) with Acri. I know Richardson had danced Ulysses previously but his solo was mesmerising. Sissens and Boswell were fabulous Soothsayers. As ever the Thieves almost brought the curtain down but had to give way to Hamilton’s chilling Satan. In Act 2 I do like the three Dantes and Beatrices and their interplay. Kaneko made a fabulous Beatrice and I very much enjoyed Hayward dancing the middle Beatrice with Masciari as the middle Dante. Act 3 built inexorably to the final Dante/Beatrice scene and Dante’s enlightenment, with Bracewell and Kaneko both transcendent. But I do think the ROH urgently needs to sort the appalling hum for Act 3. And whilst it’s good that the Cast Sheet names the characters, it would be far better to add a one sentence explanation of what they’re doing. Headings such as ‘The Selfish’ or ‘Ferryman’ aren’t anywhere near sufficient and I fear some audience members didn’t make it to Act 3. The ROH really needs to treat its audience with more consideration. We have decent synopses for classics but for some bizarre reason, audiences aren’t allowed helpful synopses for many modern works: a real bugbear and so easy to rectify.

That post Francesca Hayward and Anna-Rose O’Sullivan are also not mentioned. They and Yasmine Naghdi are very high on my list of ‘must see’ dancers albeit my ‘must see’ list is getting pretty long.

I very much enjoyed last night’s Don Q and was delighted to have seen Natalia Osipova’s Kitri on a special night for her and the Royal Ballet. It’s the explosion and whirlwind speed that she delivers with such gusto that I’ll remember. I thought Reece Clarke a fabulous Basilio and partner. The first one armed lift was astonishingly well executed - immediately in position and both Natalia and Reece statuesque. I was hugely impressed by the four beggars, Liam Boswell and Marco Masciari both excellent. I know there’s been some comments about the beggars’ prominence, particularly when they’re not central to the action, but I’ve enjoyed their contribution and it’s the delivery of their dance, complementing Kitri’s attack, which I’ve found so attractive. Very good to see Tom Whitehead’s Don Q, my first choice Don Q, and Daichi Ikarashi’s Sancho Panza again. Gary Avis made the most of Lorenzo. Calvin Richardson certainly put his stamp on Gamarche: it’s been great to see his Espada and Gamarche this run. I thought Annette Buvoli became more confident as Mercedes as the evening progressed: it must be a bit disheartening to lose her fan so early in Act 1, excellently retrieved and presented to her, and clip the first tankard. As others have said, her Queen of the Dryads was lovely. For me, and apologies for being stuck in a groove, Itziar Mendizabel has been the stand out Mercedes. Lukas B Braendsrod as Espada didn’t seem as assured as when I saw him earlier when he really impressed but he did well to hold an early slip. That earlier performance put him high on my list of Espadas. The dream sequence was fabulous and I very much enjoyed Ashley Dean’s Amour, Sumina Sasaki’s Queen, and the corps. I thought Leticia Dias and Mariko Sasaki excellent as Kitri’s friends. I was most surprised by Sancho Panza’s horn solo as I was expecting the usual cacophony but last night we were treated to the tune. Was this a first? Despite some blemishes, this was a night to remember and congratulations to Kevin O’Hare for recognising Natalia’s first 10 years. Here’s looking forward to the next chapter.

Apologies in advance for the diversion but I read this yesterday with pleasure: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/nov/17/hampshire-villagers-bring-streets-apostrophe-catastrophe-to-a-full-stop?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other The article’s headline is correct if not the url.

I thought Kevin O’Hare’s speech spot on, recognising both Natalia Osipova’s unique contribution to the Royal Ballet and the difficulties artists face in these challenging times. Kevin didn’t need to make any explicit reference to Russia but what he said clearly hit the mark for Natalia. I don’t think the flower throw was as extravagant as for 25th anniversaries or retirements but it seemed entirely fitting for the occasion. Quite unexpected but hugely welcome and I’m sure Natalia will have been very touched by the flower throw, Kevin’s speech, and the audience’s reaction.

I too got this and tried to reply but it’s one of those infuriating email addresses which won’t accept replies. On the plus side I must say how good the Box Office staff are. In preparations for Spring booking I wanted to change several Manon bookings to dovetail with Spring options. I did it all on line the other day only for the payment to fail and a ‘Contact the Box Office’ message appear. The Box Office answered my call bang on 10:00 and sorted everything.