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Sharon

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  1. Sharon
    Just because Ed Watson 'only' got an MBE doesn't mean I can't congratulate Xander Parish. I personally believe Lesley Collier should be made a Dame and Lynn Seymour should also be recognised. But should that stop me from being thrilled for Xander Parish?? No it doesn't Alison.
  2. Sharon
    Many congratulations to Xander Parish on being awarded the OBE on the Queen's New Year's Honour's List.
  3. Sharon
    An inspiration. R.I.P 🙏🙏🙏
  4. Sharon
    Hahaha yes, that's exactly what I meant. Sorry. 🙄 Message to self - don't write while in Euston! And of course it was Gina Storm-Jensen 🙄 Thanks Sim.
  5. Sharon
    So glad I made the trip down to see this programme. It was Les Patineurs that I really wanted to see, and I wasn't disappointed. All the cast were good but in particular Luca Acri and Anna Rose O' Sullivan stood out. Their sparkling and cheery personality really came across not to mention their fantastic technique. The timing was perfect especially noticeable with Calvert and ?-sorry forgot her name now, the lovely tall Norwegian girl. But it didn't spoil the ballet at all and it was their debut. I'm not a big fan of Winter Dreams but the performances last night kept my tired eyes open. Can I just say how fantastic Gary Avis was? His unhappiness and desperation really touched me. And as I watched Yasmine Nagdhi last night it was with the knowledge that I was watching a really great ballerina. Her performance was so mature and assured, she has grown so much in such a short time. O'Hare must be ecstatic having such a wonderful ballerina - and such a strong company as well. The Concert was amusing, admittedly not as funny as when I first saw it with Lynn Seymour, Michael Coleman etc - but I know that original cast was the stuff of dreams... All in all a satisfying show, but the highlight for me was Les Patineurs. That's it till next year - wishing all of you a very happy Christmas and a ballettastic New Year 😘
  6. Sharon
    I SO enjoyed reading this very amusing piece. It was so discriptive that I could picture each character and absolutely loved them all. Wish it had been longer. Thank you @Sebastian
  7. Sharon
    Yes it's sadly true I just read on Instagram - what a lovely ballerina she was. I remember watching her Swan Lake in the early 80's. She very kindly sent me a signed photo in response to my begging request. R.I.P 🙏🙏🙏
  8. Sharon
    Yes I have already, fingers crossed 🙏
  9. Sharon
    Very bad delays due to strong winds have affected all trains out of Euston, so I'm now on a train restricted to 50mph, so a long journey ahead for me. It does however give me the opportunity to think about last night's performance. I liked US, no it's not on the levels of greatness of Gloria (& how could any ballet?), Nor was it as satisfying as Dust. But it did move me - as others have also said, I find the subject matter so utterly devastating and difficult to comprehend - the absolute horror and loss of war and that war in particular. All the dancers performed well but it was Joseph Sissens performance as the Telegraph Boy that I remember most. I'm not crazy about McGregor - to my mind he is a modern/contemporary dance choreographer not a classical ballet choreographer, actually I thought last night that his movements reminded me of Tom Jobe's choreography from the 80's, but that's another discussion.... Infra for me is about the last pdd - the music is lovely and Nagdhi and Richardson were just beautiful last night. SinC was just gorgeous! Nuñez was so 'prima' which is so right in that role. Takada demonstrated great ballon. And Nagdhi was fantastic. In fact it was a pretty perfect cast and every dancer on stage deserved the applause they received. I actually attended with two friends last night, one loved US & SinC while the other described US as twee but thought Infra was the best thing since sliced bread!?? I know....🙄 The only downer for me was I lost my (£8!!) Programme and cast sheet while queuing at the cloakroom (just after I saw you Sim). I'm devastated as I've collected every single program since the 70's. 😥😥😥
  10. Sharon
    Was she a success? Did the audience like her?
  11. Sharon
    Last night's performance of Swan Lake had Francisco Gabriel Frola make his debut as Siegfried. And what a very promising debut this was. He has such a great technique, beautiful lines, high jumps, his tours in particular were very good and finished in 5th. Of course it wasn't perfect - but that seemed unimportant because he had character. His solo in Act 1 was just gorgeous, controlled, with lovely held arabesque's. This was a prince, a prince who had been told to choose a bride. Frola, a very handsome young man, was believable as a man discontented with his life, falling in love with Odette, then bewitched by Odile and finally his horror when he realised his mistake. Frola is a wonderful dancer who uses his interpretive skills and not just his technique. A great asset to the company. The rest of the cast were great. Frola'a secure and experienced Odette/Odile was Erina Takahashi, who gave a polished performance. Though once again it was the young men in the company that stood out, Daniel McCormick in the Trois, Barry Drummond in the Polonaise, and making his debut Prix winner, Shale Wagman in the Neapolitan. The corps were once again very, very good. Altogether a much more satisfying performance.
  12. Sharon
    Last night was interesting - the audience was unsettled, lots of distracting noises both inside and outside the Empire. Maybe that was one of the reasons why I wasn't really engaged in this performance. A performance I was eager to see as it was Jurgita Dronina's debut in this production. She is a lovely dancer but is definitely an Odette rather than an Odile. As she gains experience and confidence in the role I'm sure it will improve. However it might of helped if her Siegfried had given her something to react against. Hernandez spent the act 1 looking sulky rather than a Prince looking for a meaningful existence. His dancing, especially his jumps, was quite good, although I thought his turnout could be better, but his lack of interpretation/acting made me wonder why Odette would be at all interested.... Apart from Dronina's, the stand out performances came from a young dancer (Giorgio Garrett?)replacing Ken Saruhasi in the Past Des Trois, and an excellent Daniel McCormack - and Barry Drummond showed off some fantastic batterie work in the Neopolitan. The swans were all really good, very 'well drilled' I said during the interval - lovely to meet Jan, DonQ and northstar - but generally not a memorable performance.
  13. Sharon
    I'm sure many of you have already seen it but ROH are using Yasmine Nagdhi dancing the slow variation - seen on Tuesday's screening, to advertise the Encore screenings of the performance. She is so utterly beautiful in this variation her control and her smile as the music quickens. I shared it on FB and quite a few of my friends normally uninterested in ballet actually 'liked' it. I think ROH used the best excerpt here 😍
  14. Sharon
    I booked to see Naghdi on the 28th - booking annual leave, bought train tickets, so how will I see her on Opening Night and 3 more performances?
  15. Sharon
    I've never seen this before. Thank you Richard for posting it. It's wonderful. I have long been a fan of Romany - I notice her every time she's on stage - as I do Isabella Gasparini. This production of La Bayadere has brought (belated) attention to her beautiful dancing, first on WBD and then the video last night, which is great. Hopefully her hard work will be rewarded and this year finally she will be promoted to soloist.
  16. Sharon
    But apart from Darcey. I absolutely loved tonight's performance - the whole company were fantastic. I was looking forward to seeing Yasmine Nagdhi dance my favourite variation - I've never seen anyone perform it so well since Viviana Durante. And after seeing Corrales, who I liked - and McRae, I wanted to see Muntagirov, and he didn't disappoint. Of course the corps were fantastic, despite the stumble in act 1. But for me the highlight of tonight's performance was Marianela Nuñez - my God she was utterly beautiful. I really preferred her Nikiya than Osipova. Osipova suits Gamzatti much more. In my opinion anyway. I just hope there will be a DVD.
  17. Sharon
    Please bring back Deborah Bull. No matter what RB is performing, who is dancing, if it happens to be raining?? - Darcey will always manages to talk about herself. 🤪
  18. Sharon
    So I've just experienced two glorious nights of ballet. All the performances different but all wonderful in their own way. On Monday watching Corrales make his debut in a principal role was memorable, at the age of 22 dancing with two of the most famous and accomplished ballerinas in the world he more than held his own. You could see that he was slightly nervous in certain parts - but who would blame him?! He is a huge talent. What can I say about Osipova and Nunez? They were all that be you expect of them. I now want to see them in the opposite roles. Last night was different in that we had a mature McRae dancing with two young ballerina's, the opposite to Monday night. McRae partnered well, although I agree about the messy flashy jumps that he did instead of the iconic double tours en menage. Corrales did them. I also wondered why Corrales wore a turban throughout but McRae didn't. I think I prefer without. Takada demonstrated some amazing balances and there were some lovely moments to her performance. But my heart wasn't engaged - there was no connection between her and McRae - I did not believe it was a great love. For me the star of the night was Naghdi - she was fantastic. Her interpretation was right - I felt for her but not too much, she did poison Nikiya after all. Her absolutely assured and breathtaking technique was astounding. I can't wait to see her Nikiya one day. That girl can do anything and is the most exciting young ballerina in the RB. Now home to Liverpool - what a great two nights!
  19. Sharon
    I did buy a programme -but didn't notice the sign. I only knew of the changes when the dancers appeared (or didn't) on stage.
  20. Sharon
    Me too - can't wait!
  21. Sharon
    I really hope not! I bought a ticket to specifically see Yasmine Nagdhi. Yes! I've booked time off work, booked & paid for trains - thankfully I'm staying over at a friend's otherwise I would have booked a hotel too. I really like O'Sullivan, but it was Naghdi I was wanting to see. So unfair! Nothing I can do now. Not happy!
  22. Sharon
    I really hope not! I bought a ticket to specifically see Yasmine Nagdhi.
  23. Sharon
    It was on the RB's Artistic Administrator's feed on Instagram earlier on. I asked her if Hiraku had retired and she confirmed she had.
  24. Sharon
    Just read on Instagram that Hikaru Kobayashi is to retire. Maybe I've missed this but I've not seen any announcement. Apologies if this has already been discussed. A lovely dancer in my opinion - good luck with her future plans.
  25. Sharon
    Really disappointed that Alina is not dancing in Liverpool 😥
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