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What makes them look so odd is that most of the men wear trousers but Armand is in the classic tights, due, I believe to Nureyev's insistence. He also trimmed the length of the tailcoat because he said it made him look like a head waiter. Incidentally, the addition of the riding crop in one scene is (unintentially, I trust) hilariously camp. And Armand's exit in that scene was mimicked by Morecambe and Wise in many of their shows. No wonder I can't take it seriously anymore. Linda

Since these tickets can't be exchanged or returned to the Box Office, I will consider reducing the price. No reasonable offer refused! Linda

The repeat is scheduled for the 18th near me (Stratford, East London) if that's any use. I was thinking of going and can get 2 for 1 tickets if anyone else wants to go. Linda

I wish I could sell my ticket for M & A (at a third of the face value, naturally). I've never liked it and Polunin is not on my must-see list. If only the ROH would consider selling tickets for individual parts of their mixed bills, I'm sure they would never have empty seats again! Linda

I have 2 stalls seats for May 15th, 7.30 which I won't be able to use now. They cost £69.50 each (face value) and are next to the centre aisle (Row P, 26 & 27). I may be able to swap them at the Box Office for a different date but thought I would offer them here first. If you're interested please let me know before next Tuesday. Linda

How about the appalling toll it takes on the body? Most top dancers end up with dreadful arthritis - I hope the memories of glory make up for the pain. Linda

The more I read about Polunin the more I am reminded of his friend and compatriot, Ivan Putrov. He, too, decided to go it alone but apart from one show dedicated to male dancers I have heard very little about him since he left the RB. What is he doing now? Just the odd 'project or two'? Just another wasted talent? Sad. Linda

Fonteyn was also in the news when she was arrested in Panama for suspected gun-running for her husband, Tito Arias. Today's dancers seem too busy with their careers to be newsworthy - at least as far as the popular press is concerned. Linda

There's a long ballet sequence in Billy Wilder's The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970) which features many familiar faces from the RB. I can recommend the film too, very clever and witty with a brilliant score by Miklos Rosza. There's a DVD and it's also on Amazon Video. Well worth watching. Linda I forgot to add that the cast includes Tamara Toumanova, one of the three 'baby ballerinas'.

David's comment about the scarcity of recordings of Sylvie Guillem is a good point. It's all very well ballet fans lobbying the ROH for a recording of Osipova in Mayerling but if the artist herself refuses permission, what can the company do? I note that her partner has stated that he feels dancers are undervalued so she may well support that view and intends to control her career to her advantage, rather than the company's. I have a certain sympathy with that approach but I agree that the deciding factor for most people would be the dancer portraying Rudolf. Since I've already seen Watson, I'm looking forward to Bonelli's interpretation. He too, may not have many performances left in this demanding role. And Morera, I'm sure, will be truly exciting. Have they danced together in this before? Linda

Well that's nice to hear. Is he dancing with another company now? He didn't look old enought to retire. Linda

He looked familiar to me too but then I spotted the resemblance to a young Alec Baldwin Linda

Can't wait to see this new version with its 'werewolf Prince'. Sounds like a perfect role for Polunin!

Re hearing aids - I have a friend who has hers built into the arms of her glasses. Not that she's embarrassed by needing them but simply for comfort and convenience. That would have been a great solution for my father whose hearing aids were so tiny they were continually being lost and were only found when the batteries ran down and they started to whistle. However, he hated wearing his glasses and when we looked through a box of old photos at Christmas everyone including Dad showed him with his hand in his breast pocket as he hastily whipped off and put away his glasses before the shutter clicked! I would say that deafness is far from being a stigma these days and there's even a movement in the USA denying that deafness is a disabliity, to the extent of trying to persuade parents not to allow their deaf children to have cochlear implants. Linda

Thanks for the link - something else to look forward to. One of the few really Christmassy programmes in this Christmas-saturated period. Linda

Thanks for drawing my attention to this, Bruce. In the chaos of having my kitchen re-built I hadn't had time to check TV listings but I shall really look forward to seeing it as a little light relief to cleaning up all the dust! Sky don't seem to be listing Nutcracker on that night but it may be updated later - they're not infallible. Linda

I have to say I agree with many of the posts above. With the VOS pdd, the sheer exuberance and joie de vivre of Park and Eagling's performance is intoxicating. I remember watching the original exciting broadcast with its bevy of superstars (including the stunning Joan Sutherland) so I suppose that all added to the atmosphere at the time, but by contrast, K&C in their more recent performance seem downright dull. There are too many pauses/long-held poses (for photo opportunities?) and the general effect is rather effortful and 'look at me, aren't I wonderful', sadly typical of so many gala pieces and divertissements danced today. I'd like to think the dancers were aware of Ashton's intention to parody just such performances but I fear today's dancers occupy an irony-free zone. Licensing issues apart, there is so much to be learnt from these old performance clips. I would like to think they are used in ballet schools as teaching aids but I doubt they are. Can anyone enlighten me or are we doomed to see all modern performances given with no awareness of ballet and performance history? The saying is that those who know nothing of history are doomed to repeat it but in this case: if only that were true! Linda

I'm sure I've asked before but I cannot remember how to post a link without displaying the entire URL. John, could you please remind me of the correct procedure? Thanks Linda

Interesting that two tall principal males in the company are injured (and that doesn't imply a lack of sympathy for them - both lovely dancers that they are). In my skating days I was told that taller athletes find jumping & spinning harder on the body, tending to more injuries and shorter performing careers. People in the West grow taller and bigger every generation and with so much emphasis on specialised training in sport you'd think that ballet too would have specialised training routines, tailored to the taller dancer. Or is it too anchored in the past to consider modernising? I know a lot of people will respond that ballet is an art, not a sport (and I agree it should be) but when you look at the new ballets being created today, it does seem far more demanding and more like gymnastics than the purely classical ballets of the past. And younger, newer audiences expect so much more pure athleticism than before, used as they are to seeing more sport than dance in the media. Shouldn't training be modified to adapt to the new demands placed on the dancer? Or at least, dancers shouldn't be expected to dance in both styles in one short season. Linda Note to moderators: if you think this is too off-topic please feel free to start a new thread.

It's also repeated at 11:50 that night. If you want to record programmes I've often noticed that the later the transmission, the shorter it is. That's because there are fewer and briefer ad breaks - always a good thing! Linda

I have a feeling I might have liked it better without the added dancers, marking out the stage as if in rehearsal. I thought that was unnecesary and a bit alienating, rather in the style of Brecht as performed by the Berliner Ensemble. (Ghastly memory, please don't ask, I'm trying to forget)

May I add 'Invitus, invitem' [apologies if misspelt] to that pile? I'm so glad I didn't book for this triple bill. At my age, I grudge wasting an evening!

Please no Kalashnikovs! I recent watched Bayreuth's latest version of the Ring Cycle and after listening to Siegfried forging the famous sword, to see him using a machine gun to finish off Fafner was a distinct anti-climax. As others have pointed out, better lighting and costumes, no redundant jester and a leading man in lighter tights would make me quite happy. Oh and perhaps some way of distinguishing the different princesses would be helpful. If they all look the same, why bother having the ball? I don't expect ballet to be realistic but a little internal logic does help the drama. Linda

I'm going to the performance tonight and look forward to seeing everyone after a long absence. Is the terrace still the meeting place? Linda

I am currently reading this and have to say there is a lot of truth in the comments made by Floss and Mary. Enjoyable though it is, it really would have benefitted from better editing and proof-reading. No disrespect to Paul Arrowsmith who has captured so much good material but maybe a non-ballet fan should have done the final edit? It just needs re-organising IMHO. Linda Ed for spelling.