BMC

I was 'only' at the rehearsal so know I shouldn't comment but what a treat for £4 to see Muntagirov, Nunez and Osipiva - and all the others too numerous to mention - at the top of their game. Luxury casting indeed. Despite sitting quite high in the amphi, I don't think I will forget in quite a while some of the looks Natalia gave Marienela. Her 'for goodness sake get on with it' during the dance with the basket of flowers was priceless, as was her nod to Muntagirov as they went off at the end of that scene as though to say 'good boy, you're doing the right thing being with me'. It will be SO interesting to see the role switch on Monday night (assuming I've got my dates and casts right!).

I suppose as well as trying to keep all his talented dancers happy, KOH is on a bit of a hiding to nothing trying to keep audiences happy too! I think he has done an excellent job of giving people opportunities and roles but, just occasionally, I go into 'furrowed brow' mode and think his generosity might be spread just slightly more widely - Ball with 6 Romeos and Campbell none, and Bennett Gartside with Winter's Tale are a couple of examples of this for me. But I appreciate casting decisions must be a total nightmare - I also have no idea about any economic aspects of rehearsal times with multiple casts etc, let alone the logistical, but when there are long runs (as in the ballets mentioned above) surely it can't be beyond the whit of man! Will nevertheless be going bankrupt in the R&J run - despite being heartily sick of its regularity!!

That was one of the many reasons Irek was so wonderful! You could watch all the flinging and throwing in the knowledge that the ballerinas were totally safe. A bit of stage danger without real danger so to speak!

Well, two very contrasting evenings at the ballet on Friday and Saturday. Much as I'm a fan of a lot of the dancers who get most of the attention on this site, it's one of the pleasures of ballet going when one of the less starry gets their chance and really seizes it. So, I was genuinely hoping that Hirano was going to do that - as he did in Winter's Tale where the emotion was displayed forcefully in the unforgiving close-ups of the cinema. But, like many above, I felt Rudolf - so far at least - just wasn't for him. But what was most odd, I found, was that his Act 3 really was excellent - but rather than that slow warming-up you get sometimes, as dancers overcome their nerves and settle in, this felt as though a different dancer had appeared! Having said that, I do agree with Varnatus that his panic attack in Act 2 was very convincing. It was such a shame because you had all these amazing ballerinas, Osipova, Lamb, Hayward (all brilliant in their roles) who looked as though they were dancing in a vacuum. My favourite scene was between Mary and Larisch with the cards because both the women played off each other so well. I hope Hirano is like Cope - the first time I saw him it felt exactly like this performance - somehow without a centre - but when Mayerling was next revived he was sensational. As for Matthew, nothing really to add - it was just for me a genuine triumph. As well as the acting feeling so real, he danced so beautifully (and you don't always get that combination!). I'm sure this will only be one amazing highlight in what must surely be an incredible career. He really does have it all. The whole cast gelled so well around him and I really liked Natalie Harrison as the Empress. Do hope Elizabeth Harrod has no after effects - I hear myself blithely saying in the interval that dropping her didn't matter in the context if what was happening in the scene, while managing to forget completely that there was a person on the receiving end who might have a few sore bruises this morning! Congratulations to everyone for a wonderful night.

Agree it was very interesting but just wanted to post my slight discomfiture about comparing interviewers etc. We're all obviously entitled to our opinions but assuming I'm right in thinking both BA and LBC are 'staffed' totally by volunteers (and happy to be corrected if I'm wrong) I'd instead to thank all concerned for putting on many a happy evening and say how much I enjoy the programmes of both organisations.

Now gone!

Ticket: Amphi, D37, £15 - would have to post as 'hard' ticket. Pls let me know if interested.

I think the Trocks should be available on the NHS - I would defy anyone not to feel better after watching them. What I love about them is that they never overdo the humour so you get that wonderful mix of watching some quite wonderful dancing and then suddenly bursting into laughter, either at the more slapstick moments or their more subtle send-ups of ballet mannerisms, like the 'girls' in the Bournonville holding their skirts and standing at the sides, gesturing to the dancers who are doing their solos. I thoroughly enjoyed all of the matinee performance yesterday but was particularly taken by the blank faced poet in Les Sylphides - and then his wonderful wig in Raymonda. It brought back many a memory of Bolshoi productions from a few years back. The very decent sized audience appeared to lap it up, as did I - what a great antidote to the outside world at the moment.

Only four of us in my local cinema - such a pity as it was very enjoyable. Lovely dancing, wonderful costumes, loads of colour and the well known music. Plus it was very short which left me wanting more rather than out staying welcome. It's such a long time since I have seen the Australian Ballet - do wish we got to see them more. The four main roles were: Hanna: Amber Scott Danilo: Adam Bull Valencienne: Leanne Stojmenov Camille: Andrew Killian Always a particular pleasure I find to go and see dancers you don't know at all, therefore have no preconceptions, and just sit back and enjoy.

On R4 Today programme - sometime in the next hour (after 8am)

On the subject of relaxed performances, I inadvertently booked for one recently - to see a romantic musical comedy at the Sam Wanamaker Theatre at the Globe. As someone who likes to sit quietly, gets incredibly irritated by mobile phone lights etc, I didn't know what to expect but it turned out to be one of the loveliest afternoons I have ever had at the theatre. One of the actors came on stage at the beginning and mentioned in a very low key way that the audience could react however they would like to, including going in and out during the performance. That didn't happen so much, except for a lady with a sleeping baby which eventually woke up and was taken out but what was particularly engaging was seeing a lady with Tourette's clearly enjoying every minute, with her carer able to relax and have a good time. We soon got used to her calling out, although very often what she said was pertinent to what was going on on stage and she had the audience in stitches - totally laughing with her, I hasten to add - while the actors didn't react at all so there was nothing to draw attention unnecessarily to anyone. Although it was the ultimate feelgood musical, I can honestly say that it being a relaxed performance made it very special indeed resulting in prolonged applause and cheering. To say a great time was had by all would be an understatement. I was chatting to a colleague about it and she told me about her young brother who has Down syndrome - he absolutely loves musicals and likes to sing along so her family are huge fans of these relaxed performances. I think this is a very long winded way of saying that I think they are a terrific idea as long as it's made clear when you book so that you know what to expect.

What a lovely suprise - have fortuitously got a Thursday matinee ticket!

Well, like so many others, I found this to be a bit of a so-so event. As an Osipova fan, I am always happy to see her dance and it was lovely to see David Hallberg at last, although I wish I had got to see him pre-injury. He does have a very classy stage presence though and they were wonderful together in Valse Triste. I also enjoyed The Leaves are Fading and, I suspect against my better judgement, Ave Maria. It does make you realise, once again, how difficult it is to get these things right. I was thinking back to the equivalents I have seen over the years with, for example, Acosta, Mukhamedov, Sylvie Guillem, Polunin and others, and it seems very rare that these events match their talents and provide something memorable. If I'm honest, Sylvie was probably my least favourite of these dancers but I can still remember the genuine excitement I felt on first seeing Two and Push, whereas as an adoring fan of Irek, only his Diana and Acteaon pas de deux with Yoshida lives on in my mind (and a bit of a strange Othello). Perhaps it's my conservative taste or subconsciously wanting these superstars to dance show stoppers, or may be it's just a reminder what a tremendous talent it is both to commission and then for the choreographer (and everyone else involved) to create a work that people want to see again. I think the best of these sort of evenings I have seen was Johan Kobborg's at the Queen Elizabeth Hall when he put on a series of Bournonville works which again says it all! I think managing my expectations is the key in future - enjoying seeing whichever dancer it happens to be in something outside the repertoire we usually get to see them in while having no expectation at all that it will produce one of those 'seared in the memory' occasions.

Natalya in Month in the Country - would love to waft around in those beautiful white dresses and bourree across the stage in the arms of a handsome tutor!! Would also love to experience the beautiful lift at the end of the Rhapsody pas de deux but suspect I would need a prop forward from the All Blacks rugby team to be my partner! Fantasies over now - back to reality!

I would cull (while noting this is in my ideal world where economic considerations aren't important!): - Romeo & Juliet, for 5-10 years (and not only the RB production but a worldwide moratorium on all productions, it seems to have been done to death) - Nutcracker, for a couple of years, not least to give the dancers who perform the same roles time after time a bit of a break - Tales of Beatrix Potter - for ever! Sets my teeth on edge! - The Acosta Carmen (which I assume has been quietly killed off as just a mistake) and, if it's still on the rep list, the Mats Ek Carmen which I loathed with a passion. - Corybantic Games - normally I am quite happy to give ballets several chances but have to admit to a slightly sinking heart at the thought of having to sit through this again. Agree about: - Raven Girl - it just doesn't work, despite the re-tweaking; - Strapless - although I still think something could be salvaged from this; - Judas Tree - not because of strong feelings about the ballet, but because I think this is one of those occasions when only the talents of a unique dancer, in this case Mukhamedov, can really do it justice and, as he was a 'one-off', I don't think that is going to happen again. Respectfully but passionately disagree about culling: - Fille - Mayerling - Onegin Just couldn't bear it ....

- Muntagirov in Sylvia - such beautiful, beautiful dancing resulting in me making odd purring noises in the auditorium! - the Hallberg / Oispova / Ball Giselle - truly memorable for a variety of reasons (one of them very sad of course) but the evening felt somehow to be a total triumph; - amazing debuts in various ballets by Hayward and Nagdhi. As I said on another thread, they seemed almost superhuman in their assuredness; - the opportunity for ENB, Northern Ballet and BRB to share the ROH stage and the MacMillan celebrations. I'm sure it took a great deal of organisation but it was a really lovely idea and I do hope something similar can be arranged at some point; it feels invidious to choose but Tyrone Singleton and Jenna Roberts in Concerto elicited further purring! - the MacMillan programme put on by Viviana Durante at the Barbican - genuinely fascinating; - Manon full stop, whoever is dancing - can never resist it!

Thanks for the clarification, BBB - it's a lovely gesture. I hadn't realised it comes from audience members which in a way makes it doubly lovely.

Well I have now completed my Swan Lakes (three performances and the cinema Encore, which unfortunately at Westfield Shepherd's Bush was also part of the 'blackout'!). I have surprised myself by enjoying every minute of every performance - surprised because, for me, Swan Lake is, alongside Romeo and Juliet, one of those ballets that I felt I could do with a several year sabbatical from, having seen so many over the years, and I must admit I didn't feel the general excitement in the run-up to the opening. So very pleased to prove myself wrong! Some rather random and incoherent thoughts: Didn't miss at all: the drunken tutor and annoying (sorry, cute!) little girls; the drunken cadets, the faffing about jumping on and off stools in the Waltz, Siegfried's frilly outfit in Act 3; the princesses all wearing the same frock! Did miss: like many, I just missed Act 4 of the old production. While I did enjoy the new one and feel it works generally, I always found the Anthony Dowell was just so beautiful. Even though the black swans in the corps made no dramatic sense, they were very lovely and the battle between Odette, Siegfried and Von Rothbart was terribly dramatic whereas the new one seems to be over in a flash. I also missed seeing the couple in the 'swan boat' right at the end even if it did occasionally judder across the stage! Loved: the new sets which look so much cleaner and uncluttered, particularly in the first and third acts - the ballroom is incredibly glamorous; the costumes, particularly Odile's black tutu, the Spanish dance (in fact all the national dance costumes) andthe uniforms for the men; the dance for the 4 princesses; the black swans pouring on at the end of Act 3 (really, really effective); the Benno / sisters roles - and numerous other touches. Dancing: first of all the 'wobbles', which brought home a) they are noticeable because we are so lucky to have such high quality dancing just about all the time and b) I find them very endearing because they are so human. I was beginning to think that Yasmine and Francesca were superhuman with nerves of steel as they both sailed through all their recent debuts so magnificently. Shame about the missed lift with Vadim / Marienela - but only selfishly because those overhead lifts are some of my all time favourite lifts. Also shame about Osipova's tumble as she ran on for the Black Swan pas de deux as it seemed to leave her a bit uncharacteristically subdued although, as a fouetté non fan, I found her substituted turns dazzling and wonderful. So, Yasmine - what can you say: stunning debut, very special dancer indeed, just a shame that as Siegrfried, Kish on this occasion seemed to totally lack 'oomph' but all credit to his partnering skills. Marienela - for me, is a world class dancer who always delivers world class performances but doesn't suprise me whereas I am a huge fan of Natalia's unpredictability - you're never quite sure what you are going to get. I also find she has an uncanny knack of making me see steps I've seen a thousand times before look different. I was surprised that other posters thought she didn't connect with Matthew - it looked the exact opposite to me, when she leaned back against him in the second act pas de deux she seemed to be gazing at him in total wonder. Takada danced absolutely beautifully although I don't know why but her Swan seemed slightly smaller scale than the others I saw although she was lovely and a fabulous Odile. Vadim - like Yasmine, what can you say, just wonderful and his 'double doubles' simply brilliant. I thought Matthew Ball and William Bracewell were both extremely elegant princes, danced very well indeed and partnered very attentively. I really like watching dancers at this stage of their careers - one minute they are Siegfried, the next they are popping up in other smaller roles. I too was very pleased to have an opportunity to see Bracewell in a major classical role and will look forward to hopefully seeing many more in the future. Other random dance standout for me: Benjamin Ella as Benno, Tierney Heap in the Spanish dance, Mayara Magri as one of the sisters, Kirsten McNally as an autocratic queen and of course the corps. So pleased the tradition of the flower presentation at the end of the run continued and that their very hard work was highlighted in the cinema screening. Finally, the 'thumbs up' photo of Natalia goes into my 'instant cheer me up' collection along with the gap toothed twin carrying Meghan's train at the Royal Wedding and the little girl who interrupted her professor father's BBC interview on Korea!! Finally, finally - huge congratulations to Liam Scarlett and everyone involved with the new Swan Lake. A huge achievement.

(Moderators - think it is ok to comment on this as I booked my ticket via a mailout from a ballet supporters' group but if you feel it is inappropriate, please feel free to delete). Just spent a lovely day at the Royal Academy of Dance watching Alexander Campbell give a series of classes to three different groups of students (classes ranged in numbers from 8 to around 30). Alexander, despite telling us he has done very little teaching, seemed a natural at it - confirmed by a lady I sat next to for a while was was herself a teacher and made quite a few notes! I was very impressed by how generous he was both in the classes themselves and in the Q&As after each one, where he answered every question fully - even if he had already responded to it a couple of times already with previous classes. I was also very impressed by the way he managed to give helpful tips to everyone, not concentrating on either the best or the ones obviously struggling but encouraging them all. He had a lovely manner with them and I'm sure, despite him being an RB principal, they were at ease with him - or at least it looked that way. There was a particularly lovely moment when one of the classes was doing turns diagonally from one side of the studio to the other and despite only five hands going up as left turners, everyone felt inspired and encouraged enough to all have a go. As an aside, as a ballet lover, I'm not bothered with the old stereotypes which are any way fading these days, but I can't help feeling that Alexander's relaxed 'Aussie bloke' style is very helpful in dispelling any lingering myths!

I really enjoyed this performance too, probably more than I did at the Linbury - although being pragmatic this may be because I was standing there as opposed to having a lovely comfy seat with plenty of legroom! didn't think the bigger space was in any way detrimental to the piece, although when it first began I thought the music was going to drown the words which didn't in fact happen at all. I must admit to missing Acosta and his particular brand of charisma for the male dancing roles - I thought he did a slightly better job of differentiating between the characters but the difference wasn't enough to in any way spoil the evening. And I totally agree about Zenaida's acting abilities - it's amazing how she is able to convey so much emotion through such small physical moves or, as mentioned above, through her eyes. Even when she was still, you could really feel her anguish at the betrayal by Essex. I also liked the way she was so reluctant to take a solo curtain call, in the end taking a tentative little half version. Very good audience at the Barbican - looked 85% full (?) - and very enthusiastic applause. So glad I saw this again.

Marguerite's red and black dresses. I love all those lovely wafting dresses worn by the Tsarina and her daughters in the first act of Anastasia. And I seem to recall a thread where Tatiana's brown dress at the end wasn't too popular - but I love it!

I thoroughly enjoyed it - it was my last one of the run and a fitting way to end my Manons! Agree with everyone that Manon is going to be, if not already, one of Francesca's signature roles.

Is there a ballet equivalent to 'mansplaining'? Have just had an experience at today's Manon where an extremely knowledgeable ballet goer proceeded to pronounce on various dancers and ballets - it felt like a coming to life of various threads on this site: audience behaviour, sacred cows and snowflakes! I am (sort of) happy to defer to people with many decades of ballet going (although I have a fair few years myself!) who have seen lots of original casts, but I do bristle a bit at opinions being given to me as facts. We can guess but have no way of knowing what choreographers would think of the dancers interpreting their ballets today and surely should remember that we all have our own opinions and they all equally valid. I think it's a question of tone more than anything - that knowing better than you - which I find difficult to deal with. I think I prefer a conversation to being lectured but perhaps I am just an (increasingly) grumpy middle aged woman!!

I really liked this triple bill. Reading the critics, some seemed to be a bit sniffy about lack of a theme but, for my part, what I look for is three very different ballets (on the basis that I will probably enjoy at least two of them) and seeing lots of dancers from across the company. I thought this was a good balance between the relatively 'heavy', serious Obsidian Tear, the passion and drama of Marguerite and the sheer fun and colour of Elite Syncopations. The dancing was excellent in OT but I feel it's just a few minutes too long - it did cross my mind when I lost concentration a bit that I might skip it tomorrow but strangely find myself quite keen to see it again. Muntagirov is definitely one of my 'sacred cows' but I was a bit disappointed in his Armand. His dancing was beautiful, naturally, but for me it was a bit lacking in passion and I thought the whole thing was a bit careful. Lots of exuberance in Elite - everyone very good but Marcelino Sambe just communicates such joy on stage - great way to end a very enjoyable evening.

I agree with all the irritation expressed above - standing ovations used to be really rare and for incredibly memorable performances whereas now they have become standard, particularly when you get big stars appearing. My most annoying one was seeing Christian Slater in One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest - granted he was very good in it (but not standing ovation good) but he actively gestured to the audience to stand which I thought was really out of order. So I remained resolutely in my seat but of course couldn't see a thing during the curtain calls. Also (and I may be a minority of one on this) I am not too keen on clapping dancers onto the stage unless it's a retirement performance or some such. Much as I love my favourite dancers I feel they haven't actually done anything when they first appear. But as I say, suspect I'm definitely in the minority on this!!