JNC

I wonder when they'll announce casting for DAAG? I have a faint hope that for it to be before general booking but perhaps this is too optimistic. Also not ideal for members who have already bought tickets! Despite the late announcement I feel casting should be decided by now as surely the dancers will be starting rehearsals for this soon anyway?

A bit of a late reply but having only seen the two Bourne productions you mention, The Red Shoes and Swan Lake, my answer would be perhaps, but not necessarily. Between the two, I think the Red Shoes has more 'pure' dance and has less pantomime type scenes which are designed to be funny/satirical (and which some of the audience love and find hilarious, but I find quite cheap). I would say that both productions are not ballets (which is perhaps stating the obvious but I made the mistake of thinking they were, as I was not overly familiar with Bourne and both works are based on ballet, with the Red Shoes especially featuring an ad of the main character en pointe). The Red Shoes is probably more ballet style as there is some dancing on pointe. The majority of dancers do not have then classical ballet skill that you may be used to seeing to RB/ENB etc, however the choreography does work well and play to their strengths but left me feeling underwhelmed. I was personally disappointed by both productions, I appreciate what Bourne is trying to do but it's just not for me. I am glad to have seen both but neither made me want to see future works of Bourne, or see either of the shows again (with a very very small exception of perhaps Swan Lake perhaps if Ball danced it again, as I booked to see him but then unfortunately he wasn't able to dance that evening due to injury). I respect what Bourne is trying to do and clearly lots of people love his work, but it's not my thing. If you were underwhelmed with Swan Lake you may prefer this, and I would encourage you to book if you are curious as despite my comments above I did enjoy the interpretation, even if it wasn't my thing. In my opinion it is very much contemporary dance inspired by ballet, not 'pure' ballet (whatever that may mean!). However if you didn't enjoy Swan Lake I personally wouldn't expect to enjoy this much more - but of course you may feel differently. I think if you are able to detach it from 'classical' ballet or the type of thing you may see at ROH you may enjoy it more, but if you are expecting a RB/ENB/BRB type production you may be disappointed.

Agreed!

Of course she is the headline act. But Kobborg is named as he is well known in the ballet world, and as is Polunin (whatever your opinion on him may be). I wasn’t suggesting Alina ‘needed’ Polunin to be named to shift more tickets, more that (for some people) he would be an added bonus. For others, he would be the opposite!

Do you think it'll be Sergei dancing in M&A with Alina? I had a faint hope this might be the case, although I presumed it wouldn't be him as otherwise he would be advertised as appearing in order to boost ticket sales? Alina does seem to have a packed schedule, I believe she is shortly off to Japan after this! I do hope she appears in ENB's Le Corsaire in January in London as she doesn't have any other ENB performances scheduled other than the current Giselle at SW's right now...

Perhaps with audience feedback they may reduce the sound levels?

For those in London, Curzon Mayfair seem to have tickets available on the 16th at 6.15pm (not sure if they part of the original cinema list). Curiously they are also showing a 6.15AM screening on the 16th, which may be a mistake...anyway I made sure to click the 6.15 PM one!

I agree with pretty much everything Ruth/ninamargaret says above. I would slightly caveat limiting entry to bars etc an hour before a performance to ticket holders only. In an ideal world, yes, but ultimately the ROH needs a revenue stream, and if this supports the overall coffers I don’t mind it. If you think about it a lot of theatres don’t have seating areas outside of the auditorium, so anything ROH has I see as a bonus. Generally by the time you get to intervals it’s quite late and so most people in these areas are ticket holders anyway. I do agree that ticket holders shouldn’t be barred from areas like the terrace though, this is going too far. Completely think more mini ‘exhibitions’ and information on dance/opera would be great. And the pasta pots sound good.

Is it an overrun or just overly long intervals (planned in advance)? I understand people want to get a drink and most want a toilet break but I really think a (planned) 25 minute interval is too long. Have intervals always been this long? Perhaps this is harsh but I think 15-20 minutes tops should be long enough for everyone, and perhaps one longer interval and one shorter one would suit better (although give less opportunity for drink revenue). Having said that I prefer longer intervals to people being allowed to take food/drink into the auditorium! It’s quite a bold statement from the critic but a highly valid one and I hope ROH take note. (Including very valid points around brochures and overpriced food.)

Wow I’m surprised it’s sold so quickly! Pleasantly surprised on one hand, showing appetite and support for this sort of thing but personally disappointed as I hadn’t booked a ticket yet! Hopefully this will mean it gets more cinema screenings - I know Osipova’s documentary had a few more screenings added.

In all honesty I haven’t seen any of these and nor have I even heard of them. This is probably due to the fact that I only started following dance quite recently, and also only moved to London a few years ago. But I also think dance really doesn’t permeate the public in the same way that exhibitions and theatre does. Works are often not reviewed, and if they are you often have to seek out reviews rather than stumble across them. Also because a lot of dance runs are quite short (compared to a few months of theatre or even years for musicals) often by the time something has been reviewed, or got through by word of mouth, you’ve missed it. Dance is a bit of a risky bet in this sense. Agree it is rather London centric - not only neglecting regional but also more international pieces (ok this is a London/UK based newspaper but perhaps the text should have made a ‘works performed in London’ caveat clear). Whilst I can’t comment much on the choices themselves, it did make me wish for Woolf Works to be revived. And also sorry that I didn’t get a chance to see Akram Khan perform live. And sutra looks fantastic from the clip. Perhaps it’s because it’s in revival now but I’m surprised Khan’s Giselle isn’t on there - it’s reached huge audiences across the U.K., has reinvented the wheel a bit for ballet, revived a somewhat stagnant ENB (a U.K. company that performs outside London so reaches a more ‘diverse’ audience) and also is a fantastic production. Also slightly disappointed to see no Wheeldon (I’m no fan of Alice but it was well received, as was Winter’s Tale and his contemporary pieces). And I also loved 1984 by Northern Ballet, and though I’ve not seen it but I’ve heard good things about their Little Mermaid production. I guess my main gripes are not enough ballet (which I am willing to accept is a personal thing) but also not enough recognition to ENB/BRB/Northern Ballet considering the ‘UK’ focus. I’m not suggesting they should have got ‘pity’ entries but surely their output over the last 20 odd years has produced at least one work that is deserving of a place on here? Oh and I note that similar pieces the guardian has published (for theatre, comedians, video games have 50 slots, tv, albums, and films have 100 and even buildings and art gets 25). I guess there is a proportionality as there are more films being produced but still... Fair enough these things are subjective and don’t really mean much in some ways, but it’s a shame that ballet seems to be neglected in this list, as does our regional companies who are investing in new works and reaching a wider audience outside London. But I will try and focus on the positive that dance generally is going nowhere and it seems to be growing in popularity which is a good thing.

Thanks for the news! I’m very interested in Creature, Alina’s work (looks like her and Kobborg will be doing Marguerite and Armand) and the BRB mixed bill. I wonder if Acosta and Ferri will dance every single performance? NYCB looks like an interesting mixed bill too, though they are only appearing in one part and it seems to be more of a focus on music than dance.

Looks amazing! Shame it’s only one night but hope it will be screened by BBC at Christmas as someone has said. I’m curious as to how this came about if anyone has the context? Did BBC approach RB for a filmed production and they said yes? Also agree re Hayward’s wider exposure. Very pleased for her but hope this doesn’t mean a jump to an acting career and less performances of hers at ROH from a selfish perspective, although if that is what she wants to do by all means she has the talent and ability to succeed brilliantly and I would wish her the best. RB as a company looks great in the trailer and I hope this will get more people appreciating ballet!

That is awful, I feel for the poor man. The performance would have been ruined for him. And left an unpleasant taste for those who witnessed the whole thing. I hope SW at least gave him a part or full refund, or at the very least vouchers, though after that experience I doubt he will ever return to SW (or at least not to a matinee). Children that young don’t belong in theatres (with the exception of perhaps pantos or productions aimed at children) and shame on the patents/guardians - not the child’s fault as they don’t know any better. No one should be eating in theatres, let alone crisps. And no one should be abused in this way. And I hate that they pulled a race card when if a white or Asian or whoever person was behaving in that way the situation is the same. But despite the appalling family, my blame is put on SW. Ushers should be monitoring during a performance to stop this sort of behaviour and be a neutral arbiter so audience members don’t need to get involved and potentially face personal attacks. Where were SW staff? And the fact they (seemingly) allowed this behaviour to continue after complaints made is absolutely shocking. I would have wanted stern words with the family and threats of ejection/permanent bans if the behaviour continued. This certainly puts me off SW and confirms my last few experiences there. Not to the extent where I wouldn’t go because sometimes I do really want to see things there, but I remember paying for expensive (to me, although not ROH prices of course) stalls seats to see Bourne’s Swan Lake. Whilst not the level of this family, I was surrounded by people drinking fizzy and alcoholic drinks, snacking throughout. Now when I go to SW I will only go for the cheap seats so at least I can feel slightly better in putting up with these sorts of behaviours if I have only paid £10-20 for a ticket. (In fairness this doesn’t occur all the time but more often than not anywhere other than ROH now it seems due to theatres desperate needs to try and increase revenue through food and drinks, pretty much anywhere will let you take this stuff in). SW really need to step up their standards and not pander to these behaviours, as do other theatres. I really do think food/drink needs to be banned from theatres again, or at the very least train staff to spot and deal with these scenarios and give audience members (seemingly obvious) guidance and reminders around behaviours and respecting other guests.

Complete speculation but any guesses as to when they’ll release London casting? I don’t know whether to wait or take the plunge now. Do they typically announce casting 2 months in advance?

Would quite like to see Takada in Sleeping Beauty so if anyone is selling an SCS ticket for her performances (11/15/23 November) please let me know! Thanks!

Ha! Gave me a small chuckle

@FLOSS thank you for a comprehensive and well informed comment! It’s interesting to note that styles are also about settling character and could be perceived as altering choreography/choreographer’s intentions. @Richard LH only 10 seconds, wow that’s surprising! It’s quite interesting how such a small time span actually makes quite a lot of difference. Fonteyn does seem to move as if she’s been sped up (and maybe she had been slightly, I don’t know?). I saw the Cuthbertson clip first and was impressed by the speed of the fish dives but after seeing Fonteyn’s they look so much slower! As for the clip, it was found quite easily under a google search for ‘Cuthbertson Sleeping Beauty’. Of course happy for a mod to remove it if it breaches some sort of forum rules. Sleeping Beauty seems to have its detractors but generally it seems to be a well liked ballet. I don’t worry about it being lost from the repertoire as it is a classic but I do worry (and Floss has made me think) that we do risk losing some of the essence of the ballet as originally conceived musically and choreographically, as Geoff mentioned Beryl Grey highlighting. I hope RB (and other companies) do their best to treasure this historical knowledge and preserve ballet history, as well as of course allowing new dancers to make the roles their own - a tricky balance which I don’t envy companies on how they tackle this!

Thanks Geoff and Anna, I think it's true to say that dancing is now is no better (and equally no worse) than 50 years ago. I think it is a case of styles/preferences changing as well as different training? I really don't know enough about it but I feel that perhaps the 'Russian' style has influenced a lot of the emphasis on extensions? I don't think this is necessarily a bad thing in general, and I think the RB has historically always been about 'blending' styles, but at the same time I don't want ballet to be homogenous and lose that kind of style that Fonteyn/Grey etc had, which I fear is a risk. Perhaps it is unrealistic and or undesirable for us to have carbon copies of performances from the 50s etc as different generations will either willingly or unwillingly put their stamp on things, but I would like to think that the RB is invested in a core 'British' style that is differentiated from the Russians/French/Italians etc. I have to admit based solely on the two clips above I do prefer the faster tempo - but then perhaps I am being overly skewed by the brilliance of Fonteyn's dancing? (I do think Cuthbertson looks glorious by the way and have booked to see her later this year.) To balance it out I do prefer Polunin to Fonteyn's partner (controversial?) and generally prefer the style of male dancing today as I think they can jump higher/faster (but I will also say I probably haven't seen enough 'vintage' male dancing for this to be a fair comparison so accept I may be wrong on this!). Surely today's RB dancers could dance at the pace Fonteyn does in that extract? (Similarly not just RB but other premier companies?) If they can, does this mean they are choosing not to for a style preference for the 'emoting' and emphasis? Or do they have to dance at a 'slower' pace to do certain extensions which are now the fashion? And to diverge slightly, when different dancers dance the role does the tempo change at all according to their style/preference (e.g. would Hayward for example dance this 'faster' than Cuthbertson)? Or would it remain consistent across RB performances?

I know this topic has been vaguely discussed/mentioned in other threads, but I was watching this video of Fonteyn in Sleeping Beauty (from around 20 minutes in). Contrast that with the same extract with Cuthbertson and Polunin. There are passages which are notably slower, for example about two minutes in when Aurora pirouettes/spins around and then dips to the side and back up. Also around 3 and a half/4 minutes in where Aurora again spins around and then opens her arms out. (Apologies my ballet terminology isn't great). Maybe they aren't actually slower and I just think they are due to Fonteyn's style? But the music definitely sounds much faster with Fonteyn, at least to me! I appreciate these are fairly minor differences in the grand scheme of things that also have an element of individual dancers' style also, and perhaps Fonteyn was particularly fast, but I'm curious as to whether people think things have 'slowed down' and whether this is good/bad/neutral? I for one appreciate both and find the different styles both have pros/cons. I don't mean to start discussions/criticism around 'oh they were much better and faster back then' or alternatively 'oh we are so much better now with technique/extensions and narrative emphasis on certain places' etc, and neither do I mean to compare Cuthbertson/Fonteyn directly, it just so happens that these were the two clips of that specific section I stumbled across (in 'preparation' for the upcoming RB production which I am very much looking forward to but haven't seen the ballet in years so wanted to refresh my memory!) In short - has ballet actually 'slowed down'? And if it has, I'd be curious to know why, and people's thoughts on this? (The videos automatically embedded when I copied and pasted the link so hope this is ok).

Thanks Lynette. Utterly bizarre, I actually managed to pick up a ticket when they released a few randomly last week as well (also due to being notified by this forum!). Why they can't just release at general booking (and or keep a certain number back for Friday Rush as per main stage) is quite frustrating as without checking the ROH website constantly (and or this forum) one would assume it was sold out and give up on tickets.

I do understand why they have priced it so...for all the reasons you mention. It will sell very well, I have no doubt. I think my point was more that at these prices you are definitely pricing out a lot of people. I understand there are seats available at £30/40 and under but it's such a small proportion, and I wonder at the availability on general booking. This means I will either have to be very quick off the mark and lucky, or will simply not end up going due to being unable to afford £50+ tickets. I am beginning to resign myself to the fact that it looks unlikely there will be these cheaper tickets available at general booking to be honest. I completely understand that ROH needs to make money, and does this by spreading the cost among more/less popular productions across ballet/opera, but I'm really disappointed they can skew their stats (x number of seats at £25 and under or variations of this etc) across all productions, rather than fairly distributing x% at each production. I do know that opera does cost more than ballet and I accept the reasons for this, and I think La Traviata/La Boheme are priced fairly (if not still higher than I would be able to afford but at the level where I could budget and go to a performance or two a season). However if Fidelio style prices continue I will be priced out of opera (or unable to get tickets in my price range due to lack of availability which is practically the same thing) if this continues. And I haven't even really started going properly yet! I guess at least there is an option of a live cinema stream for this one if I don't get tickets, but I really do want to experience it in person if possible. Cinema streams are a great alternative but ultimately not the same for me as a live performance.

Yes only 5 seats! I am willing to give a shot but it honestly depends on what is available on general booking day...perhaps even nothing in my price range! This is Fidelio by the way, I note there is better seat choices/pricing for La Traviata/La Boheme (both of which I have actually seen before). I can understand Fidelio's popularity but is it really fair to justify such increased prices just because they know it will sell due to Kaufmann? I guess there are similar discussions around pricing for Sleeping Beauty vs some of the mixed bills in ballet, but honestly Opera really takes the biscuit, even at Sleeping Beauty prices I would get more than the very back of the amphi for £40. I guess my bank balance should thank me I'm more of a ballet fan...at these prices it's looking highly unlikely I'll be able to afford Fidelio to be honest. Thanks all for advice, I definitely feel more informed now. At general booking I'll be looking for upper/lower slips, balcony standing or very back of the amphi. Anything available under £30, apart from SCS where you can't see the subtitles.

Thanks both, looks like no to SCS then. I’d be fine with the back of the amphi but even those tickets are stretching my budget, they’re around £40 which I’m not really prepared to spend!

Thanks! I am not a fan of heights so this could be a bit of a worry but I’m willing to give it a try...! Perhaps maybe the second row or lower slips though...it honestly depends on what tickets are available when I book as I know cheaper tickets tend to be the first to go...