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BMC

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  1. BMC
    I found this a very interesting double bill and, as Bruce says, Judas Tree does really make you think about those (our?) dark instincts. I can't say I enjoy this ballet but I have always admired it and never felt I wanted to skip it, as I do occasionally with other pieces. I hesitate to talk of seeing original casts as sometimes doing so can have a bit of a one-upmanship feel but I do think the Foreman is one of those parts that is forever Irek. He was such a unique dancer and it is very hard not to see him in some of those huge jumps (which don't have the same impact done by others) and to remember that incredible menacing stage presence. Thought Lauren was very good. As for Song of the Earth, I either find myself bored stiff or mesmerised - often with no rational explanation as to why. I thought last night's performance seemed quite wobbly in places and agree that the Messenger of Death didn't have that omnipresent feel but nevertheless was riveted throughout with a definite lump in the throat at the end. Erina just wonderful (in my opinion).
  2. BMC
    I thought she was absolutely terrific too - not only the dancing but the way her personality reached with ease to the amphi. Great performance. And I also really liked Hirano in this very much - I find him an interesting dancer in that, being honest, sometimes I don't really notice him at all, sometimes I watch him as an excellent partner and then at other times he displays this fantastically humorous and engaging personality such as in Don Q and Elite when I can't take my eyes off him.
  3. BMC
    Clearly I haven't got my head round the various permutations - will look forward instead to whatever is on offer on next visit!!
  4. BMC
    Agree it was lovely to see 'other' dancers getting an opportunity on the ROH stageand while everyone really acquitted themselves well across the board, absolutely agree that Jenna Roberts and Tyrone Singleton were stand-outs, not only in Concerto but for the whole evening. They brought tears to my eyes and, not for the first time, this pas de deux was a great reminder that (apparent) simplicity is so often more. Looking forward to seeing Baiser again next week but suspect two viewings will be sufficient. And so good to see Elite Syncopations again - it had seemed such a long time. Great fun, great dancing and great collaboration. Hope we can see more of these cross-organisational events.
  5. BMC
    Yes, I saw it in the first run too. Can't remember too much about it except Cinderella having an absolutely gorgeous ball gown and Adam Cooper looking very handsome in his RAF uniform (oh dear, how shallow is that?). Having said that, I do remember the overall feeling of having enjoyed it very much in what I always feel to be a 'Matthew Bourne way' in that I find the choreography for his shows much of a muchness, but their theatricality makes for a really good night out.
  6. BMC
    It sounds like a wonderful evening, with a really wide ranging programme and a lovely idea for the dancers to take bows in front of the people watching outdoors. The atmosphere must have been terrific - hope the BBC does one of its updates on Hull as City of Culture and covers this (it may have done so already, in which case I missed it!). Good to see all this national coverage - heard Kevin O'Hare on the Today programme last week - just a short interview, but can't complain to hear ballet discussed on the flagship news programme.
  7. BMC
    My pet hate with the self serve checkouts is that they give you the most inconvenient change imaginable - instead of giving you a 50p piece, you end up with something like 8 5p pieces and 10 pennies. I asked once in M&S why the machines had obviously been set up to the store's convenience rather then the customer's and told it was due to the time of day - a blatant load of rubbish as it's the same morning, noon and night (and for all the major supermarkets). Couple that with the challenge of using a daily newspaper voucher and shopping turns out to be not great for health and temper! I'm ashamed to admit that I take a perverse - and admittedly very childish - pleasure in feeding all the coins back into the self serve machine on my next shop!
  8. BMC
    Thank you all so much for taking the time to respond - definitely food for thought here and so many more ideas than just leaping automatically towards the Nutcracker!
  9. BMC
    I have been asked to take a 5 year old to the ballet for her first visit and would be grateful for some advice. I'm not a parent myself, nor do I have much to do generally with younger children, but have occasionally taken them to the ballet and have, for obvious reasons, stuck with The Nutcracker. When I have taken adults to the ballet for the first time, with no disrespect to other companies, I have taken them to see something at the ROH so that even if they don't particularly like the ballet, they will enjoy the atmosphere, beautiful auditorium, Floral Hall etc. This time, rather than do Nutcracker, I was thinking of trying one of ENB's 'My First' ballets. So, couple of quick questions: Has anyone gone to an ENB 'My First...' - was it good, do children enjoy them? Secondly, and apologies if this sounds a bit odd but I genuinely don't know the answer, do 5 year olds have that 'sense of place' i.e. is a treat a treat whether it is at the ROH, Peacock or wherever or would the 'poshness' (for want of a better word) add to the feeling of what I would like to be a special day out? Any advice gratefully received.
  10. BMC
    I agree with this, Capybara - I think this season has lacked that sense of mounting excitement that others have had when you could go night after night and every performance seemed more brilliant than the last. But, like you, feeling flat today and missing them already! I was amazed that the highlight for me was Infra - I just loved the way that all the dancers seemed to have adapted so well to the style. I was also delighted to get to see - at last - Kondaurova who more than lived up to expectations, particularly seeing her across a range of ballets as diverse as Carmen, Infra and Paquita. With regards to the rep, it was good to have the chance to see ballets like Carmen and Anna Karenina but I wouldn't rush to them again. I do wish they would bring something other than Swan Lake and Don Q (just for a change) but did enjoy seeing Bayadere again, not having seen it for a while. It is just such an irresistible mix of silliness and sublime dancing. I opted out of Swan Lake and Don Q for reasons of 'jadedness' but now really wish I hadn't and had got to see and know more of the dancers throughout the ranks. Also learned my lesson with Anna Karenina to do my homework - not to assume that because I read a book decades ago and it's famous, I would know what was going on on stage. I didn't! All in all, not a vintage three weeks but definitely good enough to leave me (at least) wanting more.
  11. BMC
    A bit of a mixed reaction from me - while I didn't think this was a vintage performance by any means, I enjoyed every minute - parrots and all! From comments on this site, I had been looking forward to seeing Chebykina and she is very lovely, with the most beautiful rippling arms. I particularly enjoyed her in the first two acts where, as Sim says, she really bought some emotion to the ballet. For me, her dancing in the Shades scene didn't quite match those first two acts but I suspect that is down to experience and she will definitely be on my 'must get to see' when the Mariinsky return. It was one of those rare occasions when I wish I could have afforded a seat nearer the front as I would have loved to have seen her facial expressions. Enjoyed Askerov and Batoeva without being bowled over and the corps was truly beautiful. Loved the lighting as the dancers came down the ramp - from where I was sitting I couldn't quite tell where the ramp ended and the stage began which added to the other worldly feel. Although this season hasn't perhaps reached the heights of others, I'm feeling very sad tonight that the tour is coming to an end, just as we are getting to know these dancers. Roll on 2020!
  12. BMC
    I found this to be, overall, a really interesting evening - even if a bit hit and miss. I was trying to remember if I had ever seen a Carmen ballet that I have really liked - and couldn't think of one. Really disliked the Mats Ek production, despite Tamara being fabulous as Carmen, the Acosta one just beings to mind the words'drawing a discreet veil' and the one tonight I found very odd indeed, and totally passionless. Like others have said above, much of the choreography seemed very repetitive - are those bottom sticking out movements meant to be sexy? I certainly didn't get a sense of any real drama or great passion. Having said that, this was the first occasion I have managed to see Kondaureva and I can see why people rave about her. Thought she was wonderful in Infra, which for me turned out unexpectedly to be the highlight. I have always enjoyed this ballet but wondered how the Mariinsky would adapt to the style but I thought the whole cast was absolutely terrific. Pacquita is a lovely way to end the programme - really loved the costumes. Some great dancing of course, but was it me or were the corps out of line on quite a few occasions? Lovely to see Xander looking so handsome and elegant. I always enjoy seeing the Mariinsky do something different from the classics they always bring - hope they will do more of this sort of programming on their next visit. PS: best danced Carmen I ever saw was the Antonio Gades version at Sadlers Wells - but it was flamenco not ballet. Absolutely wonderful.
  13. BMC
    Thanks for posting the review, Jan - sums it up perfectly (in my humble opinion).
  14. BMC
    I think if I remember correctly from interviews before the show opened, Dylan had approached the playwright first and when he saw what Conor McPherson was proposing, gave him his full blessing. Hope that reassures his fans! Unfortunately or fortunately, depending on how you look at it, I have to admit to being a bit if a Dylan ignoramus, so was just able to enjoy the show on its own merits. Do hope you like it - will be interested to see what you think of it as a Dylan fan.
  15. BMC
    Just wanted to give this Old Vic production a huge thumbs up. Always worry about lots of 5 star reviews as they often seem to lead to a slight feeling of anti climax, but Conor McPherson has produced something really moving and it's wonderful the way the Bob Dylan songs are woven into the action and the characters. Most of the performers have their 'moment' and they all have absolutely fantastic voices (as well as other musical talents). Set in Minnesota in the Depression, it's really moving - tears and sniffles at the end, and a second visit definitely required!
  16. BMC
    I had really been looking forward to this - first visit to the Mariinsky this season (I had missed Don Q and Swan Lake due to both cost reasons coupled with jester aversion / Don Q sufficiency!) - and despite having been warned off by a ballet regular. Unfortunately, down to cockiness on my part, thinking of course I know Anna Karenina, I spent much of the first half desperately trying to remember: the book (read many years ago); the BBC series with Nicola Pagett; and the Sophie Merceau and Keira Knightley films. All to no avail - so I didn't have much of a clue what was going on apart from with the central trio - a lesson to remember to do my homework! Having said that, and having decided to therefore concentrate on the main three roles, I did warm to this ballet more in the second half. For inexplicable reasons, I have never been a huge fan of Vishneva but her performance as Anna definitely reached right to the back of the amphi and she looked stunning in the costumes. It felt as though many in the audience felt similarly as applause was quite muted after the first half but had definitely warmed up by the end. Overall I found it quite an odd experience - I enjoyed the dancing and seeing Vishneva, but was not moved by it at all. The music didn't help for me - certainly no earworms this morning (perhaps because I can't dislodge the last few minutes of Woolf Works now I've got it recorded). Very glad I saw it but no desire to see it again. Now looking forward to the triple bill and seeing some more of these dancers.
  17. BMC
    Agree that it's a really nice idea as long as it's clear that there is a different audience approach for these particular performances. A friend of mine has a husband with Alzheimer's and she was delighted when I mentioned that our local cinema has dementia friendly screenings so she can go and relax and not worry if he is restless or talks at 'inappropriate' moments. As this is the audience behaviour thread and we are in the midst of the Mariinsky season, I am currently reliving the moment when a member of the audience brought in a tiny baby to Swan Lake!! The baby was actually quite quiet but of course started to snuffle and whimper - a very stern gentleman soon gave short shrift. Several years ago now but I can still remember my feeling of being totally aghast!!
  18. BMC
    I'm with Huddsballetmum on 42nd Street. Just caught a midweek matinee and can't stop smiling. Terrific tap dancing - I have no idea how they are going to do it all again, fabulous costumes and sets, daft story, an all round happy experience. The friend I went with and I have put it in our 'feeling fed up, need an immediate lift' category and I suspect that it will be a multi visit show. To top it all, I got day seats £15, row G - stalls. Couldn't believe our seats. Highly recommended!
  19. BMC
    So glad I and a friend managed to pick up the last two tickets for yesterday's matinee. The whole performance is great but the choreography and dancing are just terrific. Loved the colourful costumes and how each member of the cast had their own colour, whatever they were wearing. We were all very happy campers by the end, despite being a bit muffled at times in our fleeces!
  20. BMC
    Really enjoyed the piece on Xander Parish and the beautiful photos (he sounds a very modest and appealing person). And fantastic to see him getting an editorial in the main section as well - we don't often get that for dancers!
  21. BMC
    Despite being a ballet I'm not particularly keen on, there are some wonderful colours in Scherezade. And I can't remember whether in was the a Bolshoi or the Maryinsky in Le Corsaire when it looked as though there was a real fountain in Le Jardin Anime.
  22. BMC
    I was - naively in retrospect - very surprised to find no tickets for Jeux and Sea of Troubles. V disappointing. Hope some will come up in due course as would love to see both. On another note, the flip side to all this wonderful talent in the company means my bank account is taking a terrible hammering. Can't resist trying to see lots of dancers doing lots of things!
  23. BMC
    The tree growing in the Nutcracker gets me every time, and then the moment Clara dances with the shower of glitter coming down. The corps de ballet coming down the ramp in Bayadere, the Shades scene Giselle - corps ads ballet in Act 2 when they have their veils on at the beginning of their dance
  24. BMC
    I saw Ashley Day at a matinee a few weeks ago - I really enjoyed his performance, both dancing and personality wise, but didn't manage to see Robert Fairchild, so unable to compare. On a general note, I loved the costumes, sets and of course the dancing although I must admit, despite having read several reviews and comments about the show, and the fact that it was Christopher Wheeldon at the helm, I was surprised just how balletic it was. Great for me as a ballet lover, but I did get a slight sense from some of the audience, that it wasn't quite what the expected!
  25. BMC
    I decided on impulse to come up from London for today's matinee of this triple bill. I too enjoyed Arcadia - I literally knew nothing about it so just sat back and enjoyed the dancing. Like you, Janet, I particularly enjoyed the group dances - and what is it about BRB that they always manage to convey such enthusiasm for everything they do? It's a while since I saw Baiser and I agree it goes on a bit, but having said that it was beautifully danced, the costumes are lovely and the story very clear. So all in all, one for the positive column. Incidentally does anyone know why Joseph Caley was presented with flowers and gifts at the curtain call? I was so looking forward to Pineapple Poll as I find it such a great pick-me-up ballet. So it was incredibly frustrating to find I had accidentally booked an earlier train home than I meant to (needless to say no flexibility) and had to miss it. SO annoying and doubly so because, try as I might, I could find no-one to blame but myself! So quite a journey for a triple bill that turned out to be a double but, disappointment aside, very glad I went. Shame the audience was quite thin but we did manage to generate some genuinely enthusiastic applause.
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