Dawnstar

I'm glad I'm not the only person who found the character swaps were all too obvious. Yes, I could hear various noises from the set in Act I once pieces started being flown out. I could understand an older production being a bit noisy but you'd think that a new production would be quieter. I'm not sure if deconstructing the set like that added much either - except it presumably added to the cost!

I wouldn't actually think it unusual if two people did choose to sit separately. On the occasions when I go to the theatre with my mother we usually sit separately as she likes to sit towards the back on an aisle, as she can get claustrophobic in theatres, whereas I like sitting as near to the stage as I can afford to do so.

I think "stimulating interventions" sounds rather painful, as if they're giving their attendees electric shocks or something! Actually that's probably the sort of "art" installation that would be nominated for the Turner prize nowadays...

Thanks for alerting me that the rush tickets went on sale today rather than tomorrow. I'd forgotten about the Bank Holiday changing the day. As I have yet to receive any replies to my seating query, I've decided to swap tickets for next Monday matinee & hope I've made the right seating decision. Thanks. I will try to have shorter thoughts about the other casts!

(Apologies, this has ended up much longer than I thought it would be when I started typing. I've included some curtain call photos to break up the text a bit & don't expect many - any?! - people to read it all!) I'd like to start my comments by thanking @oncnp whose generosity with a spare ticket meant I was able to see Cinderella for the first time from a fabulous full-view seat. With the prices being so high for Cinderella I thought I was going to have to try to piece it together from a succession of restricted viewings. I think it does make such a difference to be able to see everything for the first time seeing a piece. Mind you, there was so much going on much of the time that I felt I needed several pairs of eyes to be able to really take in everything! Going by order of creation, I found I liked the music more than the first time I heard the score at ENB's Wheeldon Cinderella in 2019. So I hope it will continue to grow on me. While some ballet scores I have immediately loved (R&J, Manon) others have take me a few listenings to fully appreciate (Mayerling, Onegin). I thought the choreography was consistently attractive & graceful - well, apart from the Stepsisters' but that's deliberate! As I have no technical knowledge of ballet, I thought I could see some typical Fonteyn style in Act I but I can't say I would have realised Act II was then choreographed on another dancer if I hadn't already heard about it. It felt it could have equally been due to the difference in Cinderella dancing in private & in public. There were a couple of narrative points that I didn't quite get. I'm not sure if that's due to me missing things, the original choreography, or this particular production. - It didn't seem to be obvious in Act I that the Stepsisters had been invited to a ball & Cinderella hadn't. They were evidently getting ready to go out somewhere but it didn't seem to be indicated where. - Is the ball specifically for the Prince to choose a bride, as it is in many versions of the Cinderella story, or is it just fortunate that the Prince happens to be single & falls in love with Cinderella? There don't seem to be any other girls trying to attract his attention & even the Stepsisters seem more interested in quarrelling over the better-looking of their 2 suitors than over the Prince. - I think someone commented somewhere upthread, or perhaps it was in one of the reviews, that the Prince searching in Act III has been cut? He seemed to arrive only minutes after the Stepsisters got home from the ball! Have previous productions tried to indicate a longer passage of time at this point? - And a more minor Act III point: the Dressmakers, Dancing Master, Hairdresser, Jeweller & Shoemaker are presumably visitors to the house rather than live-in servants, so how come they all reappear in what is presumably the middle of the night to start undressing the Stepsisters?! Overall I liked the production, bearing in mind I have no other productions to compare it to. Perhaps at times it was a little too bright but that might have been partly because I was seeing it close up & it has to reach to the back of the amphitheatre. I thought the sets were attractive. The Act II palace exterior reminded me strongly of Waddesdon Manor, though I imagine that's because Waddesdon was built in the style of a French chateau & the set designer was copying French chateaus rather than the set designer copying Waddesdon specifically (Waddesdon, if anyone's interested https://postimg.cc/212Sf1Yk ). Most of the costumes I liked, especially the corps de ballet's Act II ballgowns (it's perhaps unsurprising those were my favourites as they're very 1950s style & the New Look is for me the peak of fashion). The Fairies' dresses & tutus are pretty bright but I liked the colours. There have been a number of comments about the Prince's Friends' tights having stripes down the side but I was surprised that the stripes were only on the thighs & not right down the legs (like Rudolf's in Mayerling). I think it would have looked better with no stripes at all rather than abbreviated ones. I agree with the previous comments on the Fairy attendants' costumes. I too would have put the fluffy yellow Spring one down as a chick rather than a dandelion! I'm afraid I could have happily done without the attendants at all as I found they distracted from the Fairies without adding anything (and the RB could have probably saved a few thousands on the costume budget without them). Oh and one costume that slightly puzzled me was Cinderella's tutu, which I thought was gorgeous overall but where the skirt met the bodice at the sides there seemed to be narrow bits visible that weren't the same shade of white as the rest. It could have just been a trick of the light or my eyes though. Some of the hairstyles were quite something. It felt as though the ticket price rises might have been just to cover the wig & hairspray budget! Considering the advanced publicity about there being a magic consultant, I was surprised at how little stage magic there seems to be. The switches for the Fairy Godmother in Act I & Cinderella in Act II were fairly visible, as was that of the prop pumpkin for the carriage. I assume selective camera shots will hide them a bit more for the cinecast. Did I blink & miss any other magic? I thought all the cast danced very well. Even though I've seen Nunez & Muntagirov live a number of times in the last 5 years, during their Act II pdd I still had one of those oh-goodness-2-of-the-best-dancers-in-the-world-are-right-in-front-of-me moments! It is interesting having it the other way around with the pdd after the solos. I wish the Prince had had a longer solo, including a manege - but Prokofiev in the 1940s couldn't know that I'd want to see more of Muntagirov in the 2020s! He was, as always, a perfect prince. I'm not sure Nunez made Cinderella quite pathetic enough in Act I, perhaps because she's so naturally buoyant & sunny on stage, so she didn't really seem unhappy with her lot apart from missing her mother, but other than that I thought she gave an excellent performance. I am deeply envious that she can walk downstairs en pointe without looking where she's going whereas when I got home last night & wasn't looking when going upstairs on ordinary flat feet I fell over! I thought Kaneko was lovely as the Fairy Godmother. I hope the back-up filming that was being done last night doesn't have to be used as she had a small slip in her Act I solo which I'm sure she won't want preserved for posterity, as she's usually technically flawless. I rather wish the same dancer played the Fairy Godmother both disguised & in full glory. I know it wouldn't be possible with the very elaborate costume the disguised Fairy Godmother wears but I would have preferred a simpler costume so a single dancer could do a quick cloak removal or suchlike. I'm looking forward to seeing Kaneko as Cinderella later in the run. It was a pretty starry line-up of season Fairies, with 2 Principals & 2 First Soloists. Knowing that the RB tend to have the starriest line-ups in solo roles for first night & cinema casts was one reason why I wanted to see this cast (as well as seeing Nunez & Muntagirov, obviously). I enjoyed all 4 solos & thought they also went quite well together as a quartet. I think on first viewing I may have liked Summer's solo best but I think I'd need more viewings to be certain. Autumn's solo seemed to borrow some hand gestures from the Fairy of the Golden Vine in SB, presumably a deliberate homage by Ashton? Avis & Acri looked like they were having the time of their lives as the Stepsisters. Avis managed an extraordinary range of exaggerated facial expressions at times. I knew Acri was a good actor but this is the first time I've seen him in an outright character role. They were so vibrant & dominating that it was hard to look at anyone else while they were on stage. At one point during a break for applause in Act I I realised guiltily that I had barely noticed Cinderella for the last couple of minutes as it had been impossible to look away from the Stepsisters' antics. I can understand that the schtick may get tiresome on repeated viewings (I'll be finding out in the next couple of weeks if it does!) but as it was my first time seeing it I found it pretty amusing, though I was mostly smiling rather than laughing out loud (many in the audience were laughing loudly though). The costumes were something else & the headgear looked like it has been inspired by Carmen Miranda! Though I didn't understand why they had been made up with partial bald caps which were visible when they were dressing in Act I. Since the characters are supposed to be young(ish) women, why would they be partly bald? It's not as if the production was set in the Medieval period when it was fashionable for women to shave their front hair to show more forehead. In hindsight I wish I'd videoed the Stepsisters' part of the red run curtain call rather than take still photos because they carried on their antics in character, including Avis draping himself around the edge of the curtain just before exiting, which sadly I didn't manage to get a photo of. I was a bit puzzled by the Jester. I couldn't quite work out what tone he was supposed to be conveying. Usually jesters are humorous but this one came across as rather sinister at times. I thought Nakao danced well though. I could quite understand why the Stepsisters were fighting over Braendesrod as, with all due respect to Mosley as a character actor, he can't compete with Braendesrod in the looks department. (Best cheekbones in the RB?!) Cinderella's Father doesn't have a lot to do but Gartside was fine. Did he appear for the curtain calls? I can't spot him in my photos. Were some of the corps dancing the stars RBS students? I could only recognise about half the dancers so I'm not sure if my dancer recognition, never that good for the lower ranks, was even worse than usual or if some of them were students. I'm now looking forward to seeing 5 more casts in the next 3 weeks. Has anyone yet seen the production from the far right of the stalls circle (seat numbers in the 90s)? I have C92 & C93 booked for 2 casts & based on my full view last night I'm a bit worried that Cinderella might not be visible for much of Act I, given she spent quite a lot of time close to the side of the stage on that side. I'm wondering whether I'd be better trying for Friday rush for the left, low numbers, side (which I have booked for the other 3 casts) & returning my current tickets if I'm successful. If anyone is going to be at either of the two performances on Monday 10th & would like to meet up in any of the intervals please let me know. As I feared, I found 2 half-hour intervals a bit long last night. In the second interval I went right round the ROH vertically & still had 15 mins to spare!

I'm pleased by the switch personally, as I've not seen Jewels live in full & I had no interest in seeing Kunstkamer. However I can see it's disappointing for those who have seen Jewels many times & wanted to see something new.

Having just seen Act 1 for the first time, I'm impressed by those of you who have been able to make detailed comments on the production after a single viewing. I think it'll take me several viewings to fully assimilate everything. There's a lot going on visually!

@rosefairy One more tip on going to the stage door: there's not much room to wait inside so I'd advise heading there as quickly as possible after tonight's performance because it's forecast to be heavy rain tonight so it'll be pretty miserable if you have to wait outside. I'm sorry I can't volunteer to accompany you, as I'll be at today's performance, but I'm afraid I'll have to head off to get my train as soon as the performance finishes. I have to restrict my stage dooring to matinees or shorter ballets.

As long as they're done in that order so I can see the first two then leave early to skip the third!

I haven't got a previous SB programme so that won't be a problem for me. Maybe for the 2nd SB run they might add a few photos from the 1st run this season. (Probably not though!)

Thanks for the warnings about the programme. I was thinking of getting one for my annual ROH programme but it sounds like I'd be better going for an SB one next month.

How about both O'Hares: borrow Michael from BRB. Real life siblings dancing the roles could be fun!

Given ENB lost 3 out of their 4 male Lead Principals last year I'm surprised they're not borrowing dancers from the RB too!

Reading through the reviews in today's links, may I ask if anyone can explain the following from the BroadwayWorld review: "It is wonderful to see a full and successful attempt at the legendary cambré/recover combo." I don't think I've ever heard of a cambre before. Searching indicates it means a bend at the waist but presumably in the context of the choreography it's something harder than just bending & straightening up again?

Thank you very much. The dates I'm due to attend (assuming no train strikes or anything occur!) are 5th, both shows on 10th, 18th, 19th and 27th. I very much hope I will react very positively to Cinderella but do warn people that if I don't then I'm no good at lying & say I'm loving something if I'm not - as I'm sure @Rob S can testify from meeting up in the intervals of Woolf Works! I walk back to Kings Cross for the 23.09 after near-3-hour performances. I've not missed it post-ROH in recent times but the finish time does make a difference in how quickly I have to walk & whether I have time to go to the loo before leaving the ROH - though admittedly the latter will be less of an issue with a 25 min final act than it is for SB with its 70 min final 2 acts!

I see that the running time has been amended compared to the dress rehearsal & first night cast sheets so it's now 2h55 in total. I'll be doing some rather rapid post-show dashes for trains next month then. And are the new sets so complex that two 30 minute intervals are needed to change them? Seeing a 30 minute interval followed by an only 25 minute Act III makes my heart sink a bit. It's a lot of hanging around when you're attending alone - especially as I'll be doing so 6 times over!

Another very depressing article. https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2023/mar/28/uk-theatre-staff-audience-behaviour-abuse-drunken-theatregoers

Oh, I didn't realise she had got to 25 years. I know she joined the RB very young but thought she still had a year or so to go. The ROH has just tweeted a few production pics. Gives more of an idea of costume design but I still can't really envisage what the sets look like.

I think another win-win would be to throw the fruit or nuts at those using their phones, until they put them away!

I certainly didn't intend to imply I was blaming the dancers in the slightest. I was questioning the RB's decisions, not the dancers'. If they're not being given stage time at the ROH for months then I can quite understand why they'd go & dance elsewhere. I just wish the RB would give them more stage time.

Given the ROH has said so much about needing to be careful with their finances in the last couple of years, I wonder if they have considered whether they are getting value for money with their Principal dancers. Presumably the dancers are getting paid a full-time salary by the RB and then getting paid for guest apearances separately. Could the RB try to get more value for money by casting the dancers in more performances rather than have them sometimes not appear on the ROH stage for months at a time? The first cast of Woolf Works included 5 female Principals so if they can dance non-lead solo roles in that then why not in the classics? There are plenty of solo roles in SB yet apart from Kaneko as the Lilac Fairy I don't think any of the Principals have danced any role other than Aurora this run. Why not some more Principal Lilac Fairies or Princess Florines (Naghdi & Hayward I believe did dance that role in the last run) or even the other fairies?

Checking a couple of listings, there's 5 West End shows that have regular Sunday evening performances & 3 major London music venues (Barbican, RFH & Wigmore) with concerts scheduled that evening. So I imagine if that's multiplied throughout the country then, while there are fewer performances than Mon-Sat eves, there will still be quite a few performances that could be disrupted depending on the exact time of the alert.

This article made me wince https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-64999417 Any performances taking place that evening are going to be horribly disrupted as you can bet half the audience won't have their phones turned off so there will be alarms going off all over the place.

The longest I've spent trying was over half an hour for Mayerling last autumn. Though whether that was the website not releasing the tickets until then or whether someone had several tickets in their basket then decided not to buy any of them I don't know. I was after both matinee & evening performances so didn't get onto the page for the second performance until a minute or two after 1pm.

While not ideal, that would at least have some logic. But it doesn't explain why last Friday I had to spend 4 minutes frantically refreshing for the Woolf Works Saturday matinee before tickets finally popped up. Surely tickets for a Saturday matinee should be the first to be released.