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Lizbie1

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  1. Lizbie1
    Is it unfair of me to find this advert for a broadcast comms apprentice depressing? http://recruitment.roh.org.uk/vacancyView.php?requirementId=3346 The person they're looking for will, among other things: "Develop an interest in and keep in touch with best practice" Have "an interest in the arts and media" Be "passionate about pursuing a career in communications" Nowhere does it mention having an interest in opera or ballet as a desirable quality, or acquiring one being part of the job. It's far more important become interested in "best practice" (an essentially meaningless expression).
  2. Lizbie1
    Xandra, is there any ballet you admire which you wouldn’t like to see Yasmine Naghdi dance?
  3. Lizbie1
    Yesterday afternoon under the heading "Pas de douze, Polonaise" were listed six couples, but I'm pretty certain that the two had different dancers: different costumes, seven couples for the Polonaise not six, and (in this case) no distinctive blond head of Skyler Martin - who was listed - in the Polonaise. Was this a one off?
  4. Lizbie1
    There was one on the balcony entrance door at the Saturday matinee.
  5. Lizbie1
    Sorry, yes - meant cat's cradle.
  6. Lizbie1
    Off topic, but I've found the best coverage of Cardiff is on BBC Radio Wales, which is both informative for specialist and general audience alike, as well as being great fun. It beats the BBC R3 and TV coverage hands down IMO - for starters it's presented by singers with real operatic careers who know their onions, not the strange assortment of people no-one has heard of that BBC TV engages.
  7. Lizbie1
    I'm not great at spotting references, but this one was fairly extended, including a comic attempt at the lovers' knot (not specific to Ashton, I know). It may have been altered for a non-ROH audience.
  8. Lizbie1
    Oh and I'm very jealous of your getting to see Netrebko and Rachvelishvili together: Rachvelishvili is the most thrilling mezzo I've ever heard, I think, with a more exciting middle than most singers' tops. Also: completely agree about the MGM historical drama vibe.
  9. Lizbie1
    Thanks for the review! It does seem an odd choice for Netrebko: maybe it was planned when the unexpected direction her voice had taken had caused a couple of prominent cancellations, so she saw this as a safe option? Or is that too fanciful? I can only dimly remember this production now, but does the ballet reference Ashton's Fille fairly heavily or am I thinking of something else? Otherwise, I can mostly remember Gheorghiu phoning it in on that particular occasion, and the size of the stage-within-a-stage making the rest of the action appear fairly cramped at ROH. But I did like it!
  10. Lizbie1
    Thank you, Saodan!
  11. Lizbie1
    Really interesting interview - not surprised he's decided to cut down on the proportion of performances he conducts, it exhausted me just thinking about those long runs. Is it news that ENB will be touring the proscenium arch version of Wheeldon's Cinderella?
  12. Lizbie1
    True to recent form I can't find any timings for the 2 Pigeons / Asphodel Meadows mixed bill on the ROH website - can anyone help with the lengths of the component parts?
  13. Lizbie1
    Thank you Irmgard! The funny thing is: watching Act I this afternoon I hadn't checked this thread to see what (if any) of it was Ashton's and what Deane had come up with and was trying to guess, based on whether it looked as if it had been adapted from an "in the round" production. I had the pas de douze down as Deane's, but with three main thoughts about it: that it was being danced without much style; that Deane must be a better choreographer than I had thought; and that he had learned a trick or two from Ashton. And I like to think that I wasn't so far off after all!
  14. Lizbie1
    A job for FLOSS I think!
  15. Lizbie1
    And I always think it’s such a strange boast anyway, sort of forlorn!
  16. Lizbie1
    Just out of the matinee - more thoughts later, but did anyone else find the snare drum overpoweringly loud in the pas de trois and the end of Act IV? I normally have nothing but admiration for Gavin Sutherland and the ENB Phil, hence my question - perhaps it was a freak of the spot I was sitting in?
  17. Lizbie1
    Can anyone list for me which parts of the production are Ashton’s? As far as I can tell from this thread, there’s the Act I waltz, the Neapolitan dance and Act IV. Is that correct?
  18. Lizbie1
    Leaving aside the relative merits of the two productions... I'm not so sure. The "mood" of Tchaikovsky's music is frequently open to interpretation: for example, I've often seen and heard the Sugar Plum Fairy pdd music described as strangely tragic, but I don't think that was ever the intention for the choreography it was commissioned to accompany. You could also argue that Rothbart's death in the Scarlett libretto is triumph enough. But we've done this to death elsewhere
  19. Lizbie1
    My niece kept asking what cherries have to do with Christmas - that's the only reason I noticed any decorations.
  20. Lizbie1
    Is anyone able to advise me whether this is running true to the 2 hours 50 minutes advertised at the Coliseum?
  21. Lizbie1
    VERY off topic but I’m trying to chisel out a couple of hours to see the Anglo-Saxon exhibition at the British Library, which is supposed to be fabulous and a once in a lifetime thing - so maybe if all else fails you could have a look at that.
  22. Lizbie1
    I’ll go a step further and say I loved the black tutus because they were only on stage for 30 seconds. After all the greige underwear we’ve been treated to over the last decade, a bit of extravagance was very welcome.
  23. Lizbie1
    I agree, though I do wonder whether - perhaps subconsciously- it was felt that the new look justified price increases. I just wonder whether it was wise to increase prices pretty much across the board at the same time as the big opening: people were bound to link the two.
  24. Lizbie1
    I’ve found the front of house staff uniformly friendly and helpful but a several conversations with some have made it clear that they weren’t opera or ballet goers (let alone fans), or at least not at that point! I’m sure that the place works its magic and converts many of them though
  25. Lizbie1
    I so agree! I saw both on the same day and much preferred Kish: I’m a fan of Avis in many roles but think that on occasion there’s a tendency to ham it up a little where it’s not needed. (Others’ opinions will vary.)
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