Only got around to watching it last night and overall I thought it was very strong, very much a showcase for heritage and the English style I felt (not sure if others agree). I wouldn’t necessarily recommend the whole thing for someone who wasn’t so familiar with ballet, but for loyal ballet fans it’s a real treat.
Highlights for me were:
-William Bracewell’s Dance of the Blessed Spirits. He seemed so peaceful and at ease, no princely showboating. Dancing as if it was instinctive. I noticed I’d held my breath by the end.
-I have to say I really liked Osipova’s dying swan, yet I understand the criticism. That’s how she is, she’ll go with her gut and commit to the character, I loved this raw interpretation.
-Speaking of commitment to the character; the magnificent Romany Pajdak. A real actress. She imbued so much emotion into this without making it schmaltzy or overindulgent, I agree that she could -and frankly should- be a contender for Juliet. I’d also quite like to see her Manon or Marguerite.
-Nuñez and her evergreen Gamzatti variation. Admittedly -I’m a great admirer but not necessarily a fan of Nuñez (and I will take the jeers and looks of disgust), however you can’t deny her mastery of the classical technique. She still churns out a Gamzatti like no other.
-I agree that Monotones I is a bit long for a gala setting, but the serene grace of this trio (particularly Hamilton) shows a really pared down idea of Ashton’s aesthetic. Lovely épaulement with that trademark elasticity and clarity of line. I remember in one interview Ashton mentioning the moon landing (as had been mentioned previously) as a source for inspiration, and it certainly has an spacewalk zen to it.
-The hunger of the corps! They ate the stage and faced everything with great enthusiasm, for me they even outshone the central couples in Within the Golden Hour. Zucchetti really bestowed a glorious gift to those young dancers in his new work.
-For me the major discovery of the night came from one of the most established pairs in the company. I was absolutely bowled over by Morera and Bonnelli in the bedroom PDD from Manon. I’ve only had the chance to see Morera on a few occasions in the past, I can never quite forget her virtuosic performance in Chroma. But of course time passes and the roles become a little less punchy, and I haven’t managed to see her in a performance that wowed me from a dynamic standpoint for a while. But with this PDD it felt like we got the best of her, the abandon and daring paired with the charisma and character that only a ballerina with her experience can supply. ¡Mucha emoción! And of course Bonnelli is as valiant a dancer as ever. They really felt like a young couple in love.
No gripes with the evening. Again I felt it was a bit of a retrospective in style but that’s to be expected from a company like the Royal. Hayward is well on her way and I’m sure she already has many ideas on what to do with her Odette, time is on her side with a role like that. She’s a really really wonderful dancer and I think truly brilliant in the Ashton and McGregor rep, however I feel she has a strong Royal Ballet School reservedness that she’s still coming out of with her port de bras. O’Sullivan and Sambé had the unenviable task of doing the iconic tchai pas, and while I felt I was a little surprisingly underwhelmed, I also understand that it’s almost cruel to be up against every iconic couple that have done it in the past. I felt it ironic as it’s a PDD that’s almost made for them but not every performance can be the best for all tastes, maybe I was expecting them to leave burn marks on the stage from igniting it (fair play to Anna Rose for spotting forward though!). Campbell and Takada were lovely but good lord I really do dislike the costuming for Rhapsody!!!
