PatC

Right - along with potential ‘known’ rep I am wishing for … Balanchine - Jewels and / or Symphony in C. Would also like Ballo Della Regina / Theme and Variations Ashton - Symphonic Variations / Birthday Offering (surely they have the talent to perform this by now) / Wedding Bouquet / Patineurs Heritage - Petrushka or Les Biches MacMillan - La fin du jour (with original costumes!)/ Rite of Spring / The Invitation / Orpheus Works planned but not performed - Tombeaux / Prodigal Son

Two wonderful triple bills - researching flights already!

Just had an email response to my enquiry as to when next season will be announced. April 30th….

Mayerling with Marchand 💥 yes please Paquita ✅ Onegin ✅ Sylvia ✅ Now could KOH please let us in on RB season!

Cannot wait for this tonight!

Disappointed… Etudes deserved an outing again

I FINALLY managed to get to a performance yesterday matinee. This was the Giselle production I started my ballet viewing with all those years ago when the company was London Festival Ballet. In those days I was front row Balcony for performance after performance of those glorious summer seasons with a plethora of mixed bills / classics and guest artists. Giselle for me during those years was Evdokimova and Terabust - Albrecht would possibly have been Schaufuss and Armand. Maina Gielgud did shows called Steps notes and squeaks and one of the evenings was dedicated to Giselle - Anton Dolin was coaching. From it I remember him decrying the use of lilies by Albrecht in the 2nd act - he thought it should be wild flowers picked on his way to the grave which I think is a lovely thought - so I despise the lilies - is it a Russian addition? He also instructed the Albrecht that he should not take his eyes off Giselle when they cross front stage - ‘you cannot believe your eyes so you do not look away’ - I’ve yet to see any dancer do that. Quibbles aside, this for me is the OG version and cannot be faulted, even with the lighting issues. To see Kase and Frola yesterday afternoon was glorious. One small query though @Irmgard I thought the Myrtha entrance yesterday was different - my memory has 2 diagonals with veil on but only one yesterday - have my memories decieved me?

Oh yes - I’ve been refreshing all afternoon - Frola tomorrow it is!

Can we have a vote on which Des Grieux will wear the hat at the start of act 1. To me it sets his character out as a man with no worldly experience. All the other men on stage appear in hats to start with - apart from the beggars etc - so he should too. It seems now that you can tuck it under your arm and stroll on. Sambe this evening declined to wear his so 1-0 so far!

And lovely to see an excerpt of Troy Game. I remember seeing this by the Royal Ballet - looking it up only 4 performances but with a stellar cast - would love to see the current roster do this!

I’ve normally based my booking on the Giselle casting - yesterday I changed the habit and booked for the Albrecht casting for tonight - and now ……sigh

I too saw 2 performances last week. En Sol was new to me - enjoyable and light, but I mainly thought about Fin du Jour in its original costumes and wondered if that would ever make it back to the RB stage. In the Night - again seen before and by RB - could that please be restaged. Finally The Concert … here come the ghosts …Anthony Twiner / Lynn Seymour / Michael Coleman / Georgina Parkinson… then later casts Jennifer Penney / David Wall and incredibly Sylvie Guillem. So much fun and again why is this not cheering us up in Covent Garden!!

I’ve got to say I’ve been very intrigued by the young vociferous audience at the back of the Amphi. Even on opening night of DonQ it seemed to be an unusually exuberant area. I strongly believe the RB school are packing out areas undersold - great for them but I viewed that DonQ performance from not my usual area side Amphitheatre due to the exhorbitant pricing.

I’m off to double shows today - both all Balanchine - cannot wait!!

Yes they are - fewer prices so less colour!