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ninamargaret

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  1. ninamargaret
    the whole thing sounds pretty strange. Why Budapest? Why Ballet Boyz? Georgiadis sets/costumes? And Christmas Day 2019 is a long way ahead - castings announced for this filming may be less appropriate 18 months on.
  2. ninamargaret
    it seems to me that young male dancers get stuck with playing mostly love lorn men (e.g. De Grieux, Romeo, Siegfried, Lensky) before they graduate to nasty old men like Monsier GM, Armand 's father, Capulet. Quite surprised that dancers are not on their knees at KOH's door begging to dance Colas or something in Alice!
  3. ninamargaret
    Twhe documentary about Mayerling is on You Tube and is definitely required viewing. I found, the first time I saw it i got confused by who all the various women were, so it helps if you know the story. I admit to loving the whole ballet- choreography, music, story, designs They're so much of a piece, to my mind a pretty well perfect piece of work. I first came to it via the DVD with Mukhamedov, whose performance on DVD at any rate came over as somewhat over the top. Far prefer the Watson. Having seen all four casts last time it was shown I'm not going to get drawn into arguments about which I enjoyed most!
  4. ninamargaret
    Have only seen Ferri/Bonelli, but I wonder if some of the current casts tend to play it very much as a grand tragedy whereas Cuthbertson/Ball make it into a more human story? The opera.is nearly always given the full grand opera treatment, but I remember seeing it at the Innsbruck opera house,where it was played as a simpler, more human tragedy and it was very effective.
  5. ninamargaret
    He was a terrific Puck in the last run of The Dream - his fast turns and neat footwork were amazing.
  6. ninamargaret
    I think the yardstick for the interpretation of Manon herself must be Jennifer Penney's performance. She always looked so interested in everything going on, always ready to try anything or anyone new and always a look of the cat who had all the cream! It made her final act so touching with the realisation, too late, that De Grieux was the love of her life.
  7. ninamargaret
    Would have been good if the Radio Times had printed a picture of one of the current casts for Manon. And also if they could have got their facts right about the occasion of Macmillan's death. Still, let's be grateful for a few crumbs of dance among the endless rubbish that we get given.
  8. ninamargaret
    i don't think the company has ever had such excellence in depth, if you know what I mean! Obviously, most of us have favourite dancers, but it's almost got to the stage where you can be pretty sure that you will get a fine performance from whoever you see - useful when injuries etc happen. I am always impressed by the versatility of all the company, Petipa to McGregor and everything else!. And surely a lot of credit must go to the many teachers and coaches who are involved in working on the many new productions and revivals that we see.
  9. ninamargaret
    Thanks Bluebird - there's a goodly time for quaffing there!
  10. ninamargaret
    They should be able to tell you now, after all it's not a new production.
  11. ninamargaret
    in the good old days of The Ring at ENO i used to prepare a Ring Supper for husband and self to enjoy in the interval. A nice salad, dessert and a good bottle were all consumed in the auditorium, and we were by no means the only ones doing it. I think it would be frowned on now - and certainly not when I go to The Ring at ROH this autumn! But having seen their prices for a 'package' of dinners for that production i suspect there will be many surreptitious packets of sandwiches appearing!
  12. ninamargaret
    well, many of us have thought so for some time.F irst noticed him in Month in the Country when, if memory serves me right, he then went on to appear in Symphonic Variations,, both danced beautifully
  13. ninamargaret
    didn't get a picture in the print edition, so digital readers were the lucky/unlucky ones!
  14. ninamargaret
    Superman?
  15. ninamargaret
    At my local and very small theatre this week I noticed a member of staff who had seen a member of the audience using his phone after the usual announcement. She asked him to turn it off and returned a short while later to make sure he had done so (he hadn't) but after the second request he did so. Not so easy to do.I'm a large theatre but very effective.
  16. ninamargaret
    seeing this cast next week. Wish it was tonight!!
  17. ninamargaret
    I find it very odd that, in these days when Health and Safety is so ever present, so many theatres seem to totally ignore it when it comes to lighting and reasonable ease of access for their audiences. In most theatres it's impossible to read a programme because of poor lighting, and getting to your seat can be very difficult in some theatres. We pay enough for tickets, we should at least be able to get seated without walking into walls or performing strange gymnastics in the dark.
  18. ninamargaret
    I remember the Insight when this was mentioned, and I agree that the main reason for his visit was, as you say, to help with the play itself which is certainly complex. But I feel sure that work of this kind is probably more helpful to the dancers, and that they don't need actual help with how to act.
  19. ninamargaret
    Johns's comments prompt me to say that I still find, after watching ballet for many yesrs, that probably the most fascinating thing about it is the very different interpretations we can see in just one ballet.My ballet going now is very much limited to the ROH because of mobility difficulties so my comments relate to the Royal Ballet, but I am sure they apply to the many excellent companies we have now. we can, generally, assume that roles will be well danced, but I think, with the rise in popularity of 'story' ballets dancers have had to do far more than just dance. As actors nowadays seem to be pretty competent at singing and dancing, so we expect, and get, dancers whose acting ability is very well developed. I speak as someone who's seen some pretty wooden performances in the past! Do Companies employ the equivalent of a producer to help dancers 'act' their roles or do we just have even more talented dancers than I thought we had? I believe Nicholas Hytner was bought in to do sessions when Winter's Tale was first out on - is this something that sometimes happens?
  20. ninamargaret
    Just thinking idly here. I'm greatly looking forward to seeing him as De Grieux and my mind wanders to the idea of Bonelli as Lescaut. it's always interesting to see dancers take on two very different parts in the same ballet, even more so if it is in the same run of performances. I see that the castings for Mayerling and Bayadere both have dancers taking on two roles and I feel this makes for interesting casting and is also an excellent chance to give dancers the opportunity to increase their range. Particularly important, when a major ballet only appears every couple of years or so. And given the inevitable need for replacements for sick or injured dancers to have a dancer who can cope with a couple of roles must be very useful.
  21. ninamargaret
    I think people are so used to sitting in front of their tv with their never ending supplies of food and drink that they just regard cinema or theatre as an extension of their sitting room
  22. ninamargaret
    you pays your money and takes your choice! Interesting , as always , to read how views of the same performance differ.
  23. ninamargaret
    I haven't been to the Pit since the RSC left it many years ago but even in my younger and more athletic days it was always a bit tricky to negotiate. Might have been better to use the Silk Street theatre. I'll be interested to see the relay tomorrow, particularly the excerpt from House of Birds which I saw and enjoyed in the past.
  24. ninamargaret
    I must admit, first of all, to being an out and out Bonelli fan! But I think he excelled himself tonight- such beautiful lines and his partnering was so secure. I find Penelope's comments about Ferri the Elite interesting i saw her do it the last time it was done and thought that her performance then was a lot more moving.I too have little idea what Obsidian Tear is about, although as other posters on the forum have said there is an element of a sacrificial victim about it. But a super performance, particularly the two leads. I'm sorry about the Elite Syncopations experience - a horrible thing to hapoen
  25. ninamargaret
    Yes, but don't most women go for the sort of men their mothers wouldn't approve of?
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