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BalletBoysDad

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  1. I think it’s coming next week, as I queried arrival and departure times as I’ll be travelling by train.
  2. I second this too. I’ve been lucky enough to see all 3 performances with Vadim and Marianella. The gala was wonderful, simply for what it was. The second performance, I watched from the slight sides of the balcony, and although I’m a massive fan of the balcony, I felt that some of the subtleties in the choreo became harder to see. I also sensed some nervousness that wasn’t so apparent in the opening night. As it human, I saw some wobbly landings and an unfortunate stumble into the table. It’s also the first time I ever felt myself slightly squinting and missing details (as opposed to, say, Like Water for Chocolate that looked ravishing from any section of the auditorium). I watched again last night from the stalls, and it somehow all fell perfectly into place. All the dancers seemed to have relaxed into their roles and it all felt effortless and seamless. Whatever people think of the stepsisters, I personally think they look totally committed to their roles, never break character and perform it with real conviction. They are delivering exactly what Ashton wanted. The score, like all Prokofiev, gets more lyrical and memorable with every fresh recital. The lyricism is there from the beginning; you just maybe have to open yourself up to discovering it. The grand pas de deux was aching with longing, dare I say a very subtle eroticism. Marianella appeared to be floating on air. Although I agree that there is a feeling that Vadim is underused, it’s wonderful to see a production that really showcases the breadth of female talent. I seem to remember coming away from Mayerling thinking it was a showcase for the male dancers, and I’m glad to see parity for female dancers in Cinderella.
  3. I snorted my coffee when you said ‘Molly Goddard’. I thought exactly the same thing, with a brief contemplation of Giambattista Valli. Then fully settled on Molly Goddard 😂
  4. I was mulling over this morning, slightly in the angle of the Broadway World review, if Marianella’s Cinderella was a touch ‘one note’, or very understated. But I stared to think of the consequences if different emotions were on display. We see and feel her yearn for her mother, and we see and feel her yearn for the memories of her time at the ball, but the rest of the time she appeared in a state of kind content. She seemed bemused by her awful sisters rather than a victim of them. She seemed to have a contentment with her life and circumstances that never invoked self-pity, and it appeared her only disappointment of not going to the ball is that she longed to dance with a real human, regardless of the status of the ball itself. Had she appeared overly sad or distressed with her existence, or overly abused/tormented by her sisters, I imagine it would have steered the narrative to her being ‘saved’ by the prince, which would have probably totally rewritten the personality and character of the Cinderella Ashton had in mind. Maybe this is why Ashton chose not to have a cruel stepmother?
  5. I thought it was an absolutely wonderful evening. For me, the orchestra were on excellent form and Prokofiev is very safe in their hands. You could feel the yearning, longing and sense of sadness in the score right from the overture, and it set the perfect tone for the evening. The midnight waltz is thrilling. I personally loved the step sisters. The only ‘niggle’ which I imagine is in the choreography/direction is that sometimes their presence can be overpowering, for example their disappointment at the shoe not fitting detracted from that important moment where Cinderella’s slipper DOES fit. But it’s only testament to their conviction and commitment to the role which shone through. Whatever modern technology was at play, this production felt positively traditional. I loved the way the house gradually ‘pulls apart’. It felt genuinely exciting and magical. I can’t remember the last time I let out a massive ‘ahhhhhhhh’ at the end. There are ‘wishlist niggles’ where it would have been lovely to see her dress ‘transform’, which was a special moment I seem to remember in the Australian Ballet production. But overall I found it a joyous and captivating production that flashed in the blink of an eye. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it and am placing bets on this running over Christmas 24/25
  6. Does anyone have a link to (or image of) the cast list for tonight’s opening?
  7. True. It also felt similar during the early sales stages of ‘Like Water for Chocolate’. Unless you were familiar with the novel, the trailer and marketing gave very little away. Though mid-run, and after mostly favourable reviews it became ever more difficult to get a ticket.
  8. I’m not seasoned enough to make any comparisons, but would it be fair to say that Cinderella ticket sales look worrying at this stage?
  9. Ah, thanks for that. That was the first time I had ever watched Coppelia and I thought it was extremely charming. My prediction is that they will have another Nutcracker this Christmas (23/24 season) , and depending on the success of this Cinderella, possibly look to run it over Christmas 24/25 season and give Nutcracker a rest.
  10. Pre-pandemic, I have in the back of my mind that I heard whispers that a new Cinderella was being planned for a Christmas run. Then it probably went into a period of covid-induced hibernation. Post-pandemic, maybe swapping a revenue-assured 34/36 performances Nutcracker run at Christmas for Cinderella wasn’t something they felt comfortable with. If indeed, it was originally planned for Christmas. I’m sure I watched Coppelia in 2019, when there wasn’t a Nutcracker that Christmas. (I am probably wrong)
  11. It wouldn’t have bothered me for an opera. Sight lines of legs and feet are maybe less important there. 😂 But I’ve had some quite misfortune experiences with sightlines for ballet in the stalls, more so from the sides. That’s why I was surprised they were all a flat price for the performance-only gala stalls seats, when clearly some are much better than others.
  12. It all got happily sorted out in the end. Two (not that great side stalls) tickets were £550. I could have bought the ‘better 2’ new tickets like you say and have asked to convert the previous 2 to credit. But with moving house etc I rather keep the money. During Nutcracker, I had some side balcony seats and on 2 occasions, at a later date I saw some centre front row balcony seats become available. I can’t remember the exact amount I paid, but it was the relatively small cash difference in ticket price and maybe a £4 or £6 rebooking fee. I can’t quite remember, but it was definitely worth paying it for changing to much better seats without a huge price difference. That’s what I planned to do for Monday, but the issue was really the effort it took to get through to the box office. I’ve always found the box office to be fair and reasonable. It’s just on this occasion it was very hard work.
  13. Thank you, was just curious to know how the pricing structure worked, as I’m not a ‘friend’ and never saw what was available from the original releases. It’s been a frustrating week as I bought my tickets very late. It was the ‘best of a bad bunch’ that was available in the stalls at the time, but I was looking forwards to it. As each day went by, I saw really good stalls seats come available again, several at a time. On Tuesday, almost an entire central row became free. Numerous attempts to pay the booking fee and swap for a better seat failed due to phone calls going unanswered for ages, the ‘press 1 and we will call you back’ not working, emails being unanswered. Some very good seats were available for 4 hours and I had no success getting through in that time frame.
  14. Sorry, I haven’t read through the whole thread yet. I bough gala tickets very late. Still, ‘performance only stalls’ were £275. I wonder if they sold fewer of the ‘super premium’ tickets, and later raised the prices when it opened to general booking? All orchestra stalls, performance only, have been showing £275.
  15. Sorry, I rarely comment these days. But I always felt that my DS’s training belonged to him and me, not a specific school or teacher. I trusted my own intuition and my sons enthusiasm to try other things. Therefore, I never sought the permission of another teacher or school. However, out of respect, I always told them my/our plans, and would have listened if they expressed valid opinion. Deeply subjective and personal (and clearly open to disagreement), it feels like an employer saying you can’t seek or apply for other jobs. We are all masters of our own destiny, and if we feel it’s in our children’s interest to have new or alternative experiences, I believe we should follow that instinct.
  16. We’ve taken Ubers and Addison Lee cars into the park. I just gave them a printed copy of the parks pass as some of the cyclists can be quite confrontational to vehicles entering the park. Not sure however about being able to book a car pick up from white lodge itself. I’ve always walked to Sheen Gate and ordered a car from there, though clearly it’s going to be absolutely baking today.
  17. I did genuinely consider this route. I was extremely impressed with YDA, which although ‘vocational’ doesn’t have boarding, so meant my DS could stay at home. However he really wanted to go to WL. I was also really impressed with the Russian school I assume you’re referring to in West London. My DS did their Easter course and not only really enjoyed it, he found the content enjoyably challenging. This could have been a perfect option for blending ongoing, challenging and purposeful training that keeps you ‘well in the game’ for others pursuing all sorts of routes. But having only recently moved back to London, our ‘regular school choice’ isn’t a choice at all. It would be a dreadful high school where (without a crystal ball) I’d be extremely worried my DS would be miserable. But I do think that, if you’re London based and are confident with your regular school choice, those non-vocational options are absolutely viable. I’ve also seen a number of their boys go to Vaganova.
  18. I don’t take any offence at all. I find the discussion extremely interesting. Not necessarily concerning the opinions of anyone here, I often find conversations concerning age, hothousing, vocational or non-vocational routes very black and white, without all the ‘shades of grey’ and that maybe make decisions and routes more personal from student to student. If people take time to better understand what people mean, rather than taking immediate offence, it removes the ‘heat’ and makes the discussion more balanced and interesting.
  19. Thanks for replying. It’s indeed an fascinating subject and it’s always interesting to know what people think about such descriptions. I imagine that my DS would be viewed as ‘hothoused’ to some degree, judging by people’s thoughts. But I totally respect that it’s a subjective opinion everyone is entitled to. There are many other (hidden) factors that would might explain the number of classes he did, and why we chose them, some of them simply because of friendships etc. I know this thread more looks at this topic in relation to girls. But looking at boys of the same age in Japan, USA and some European countries on Instagram, there are boys of the same age going tens of hours a week, including physio and PBT that, entering competitions at very high levels, winning scholarships to international intensives, clearly with their eye of becoming PDL and YAGP winners. That would be my definition of hothousing. And as others have said, it must cost an absolute fortune. In comparison, I don’t know of any UK boy coming anywhere near as close to this level of training at a similar age. Even boys going to WL and other vocational schools might not even come close to this level of time and content…. though we can mostly only comment on what we see shared in social media, not what people are doing in private. In relation to opinions about doing multiple classes, some of our UK associate classes are fortnightly with huge breaks between terms, so even appearing to do more than 1 or 2 associate classes doesn’t (in my view) come close to hothousing as the number of hours might still be relatively modest. Maybe to waters become a little bit muddier when private tuition starts to play a part, and for what outcome.
  20. Purely out of curiosity and interest, regarding the observation about ‘hothousing for young WL auditions’, what do you think qualifies as hothousing? Where do you think the line between ‘pursuing at a deeper level to recreation’ (even if that’s with a view to vocational school), and ‘hothousing’ exists?
  21. And in the spirit of lively, respectful, dynamic and multi-opinionated debate, I very much hope this thread stays open.
  22. Reading both positive and negative opinions on the vocational route can indeed be very helpful food for thought when making immense decisions about your own child’s future. Any well researched or well intended parent should be doing that, as no one has a crystal ball. The majority of the parents I know accepting their offers for WL (and other vocational schools) have not done that ‘in awe of the name’ or lightly. In the same way people who have chosen to decline their offers (or not even audition) and not go down this route also gave it immense consideration . However, the frequent reality seems to be, in my short time on the forum, any mention of vocational training immediately comes under immense critique. Accusations from ‘hothousing’ our children at one end of the spectrum, or sending them on a ‘massive sleepover’ at the other. It feels like no one can proactively and with good intention discuss their participation in the path without being made to feel foolish or immensely naïve. I am as interested as anyone as to what the full three year foundation programme achieves, and what the results/statistics look like for those entering this year who will have done the full 3 years. And certainly hope it’s an improvement for the better.
  23. Yes, European fees are a dream in comparison to U.K. fees. That’s why we explored POB. I believe a full terms tuition and boarding is the same cost as 2 weeks at WL or Tring.
  24. If, for example, we were discussing the National Ballet School in Canada, where their summer programme can lead to/function as audition time the main school…. Their annual fees are, off the top of my head, pretty much the same as RBS full boarding fees. I think the fees for the Australian Ballet are much the same: I don’t know, because I genuinely haven’t done the research, if there is any government scheme or grant similar to MDS that covers international fees. If there isn’t, it means that these schools are only for those who can afford £3-4K a month in fees, yet alone uniforms and modest living costs. I’d be fascinated to know if schemes exists to make English language training in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, even the United States an option.
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