Jamesrhblack

At some point the management is going to have to decide where its priorities lie between casting its established dancers and giving the younger ones their opportunities. We all have to accept that at some point a lot of people whose performances we have enjoyed are going to retire.I would rather see evidence that management recognises this fact and is engaged in doing something about developing the next generation of dancers than see the same names crop up in everything whether or not they are suited to the roles in question.There are a lot of unknowns which may well have an impact on this and subsequent booking periods. Who is dancing in the revised Elizabeth?How many casts will the company field for Winter's Tale? When will Scarlett begin work on his new full length ballet and who will be in it?It is a very difficult to strike the right balance between the established dancers and the aspirants.So far it looks as if it is succeeding in getting it right. Morera gets Giselle and the casting for Two Pigeons is not merely a repeat of the first run. Stix-Brunell gets to dance the Girl and there is a gap in the casting which I assume is the young man rather than the Gypsy man.I would be more inclined to see Takada's Giselle in the context of giving aspirants an opportunity than as evidence that she is going to be the next principal.It may merely be a case of what Mary Clarke used to describe as "civil service casting" having more to do with her place in the pecking order than assured principal status.Not all her debuts in the classics have been equally well received.There are still gaps in the casting.The Wheeldon mixed bill seems to be short of a few names even if the names listed are the casts for all three ballets and not just for After the Rain and in the Golden Hour.As far as Watson and Marquez are concerned I don't read anything into their absence from this booking period.Unless we hear something official to the contrary I assume that the absence of a name or names from the current programme is of little or no significance as far as the future of those dancers is concerned.

You always write so intelligently Floss and I invariably agree with almost everything you state. Watson is in the new Wheeldon, and I am inclined to think his absence from Romeo, like Morera's from Rhapsody and Soares' from Nutcracker is quite as much to do with a move area from civil service casting towards what management and / or the dancer concerned feels appropriate / comfortable.

 

The absence of Marquez seems different, as I think others have sensed. She doesn't dance the fullest range of the company's work yet was featured on the cover of About the House when Giselle was last performed and has had cinema relays of Fille and Nutcracker. The dissolving of her partnership with McRae is sad as they seemed to work so well together and it is particularly unfortunate that it seems that she is being replaced, and at what expense (?), by somebody who is now a Principal Guest Artist in all but name. She was delightful in Don Q and Fille with Alexander Campbell, and they evidently enjoyed great rapport, but the Fille partnership was last minute and she had been due to Fille with Zucchetti. Despite her success as Lise, she is not in Pigeons (for which she would have seemed ideally suited), she is not in Nutcracker and she is not in Giselle. Perhaps some of us over over reacting to our rune reading and there is a perfectly logical explanation.

..........and Swan Lake.

Hint, not hunt and thanks for reminding me that she has also made a debut in Swan Lake.

 

I've not seen her in a full length role as yet but thought she was really strong in Woolf Works...

 

 

http://www.roh.org.uk/productions/giselle-by-peter-wright

 

 

 

 I'm guessing that the Giselle debut is the clearest hunt yet of who the next female principal dancer is likely to be as this completes a sequence that now includes Beauty,, Don Q, Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty and Two Pigeons....

Just quickly, as I want to get back to take it all in, the RB's winter casting (not included in the ROH Magazine) is now on the ROH website, although one has to search under each production. The repertoire in question is, of course: Giselle, the Wheeldon Triple Bill, and Rhapsody/Two Pigeons

 

Some delights in store.

Marquez not cast in Giselle (although Salenko is). As she is not in Pigeons or Nutcracker either does anybody else think this means she will be leaving after Romeo and Juliet in the Autumn? I do think it is very sad that her performance schedule has been allowed to wither and although not invariably a favourite of mine I thought her Manon terrific and her Lise absolutely outstanding.

There's also a podcast , Alison, if that's any help. 26 days left to listen.

Really enjoyed this. He is one of my favourite dancers and he speaks so naturally and interestingly. 

I think that Melissa Hamilton is being very astute. She will not get much opportunity to dance classical works at the Royal Ballet this season so going to Dresden with the repertory that it is said that she will dance there will certainly assist any ambition for promotion that she may have. It is one thing to have a good stage presence but you need the technique to go with it. Her dancing of the Queen of the Dryads is better than last year but with that role as with Lilac Fairy, at present, she lacks the necessary technical command that is central to those roles.She would also improve her chances for future promotion if she can learn to dance with greater speed when occasion demands. She had difficulty with the speed required in Symphonic Variations.It will be interesting to see her on her return from Dresden.

 

A name to look out for in a year or so Reece Clarke a very assured Jean de Brienne at the RBS Opera House matinee in 2014. He danced the Somes role in Symphonic Variations earlier this year dancing the performances for which Muntagirov was not available. As with Muntagirov he looked far better dancing with Nunez than with Hamilton.

Sticking my neck out here re Melissa Hamilton. I have immense admiration for her grit and determination to forge a career against what has seemed hefty odds and salute her courage in moving to Dresden. Whether or not she will return remains to be seen (which I imagine will be determined both by the success of her German venture and whether or not there is a principal position available to her in London). She has always seemed much more successful with contemporary works and consistently to struggle with the classics if what I read on her is to be believed. I have to be honest and say I've not seen her in a major classical role. My question is, does this seeming lack of a technique that will respond fully to the demands of the classics can be traced back to what seems to have been a rather erratic early training experience? Also, watching the ROH clip of her rehearsing Manon with Sibley and Dowell (she and Golding tower over them) I'm struck that she seems to lack a musical response. Sibley is singing away and curving those beautiful arms whilst Hamilton words to the effect of "So do I do that on a 3?" The clip is worth watching though if only to see the magic of Sibley and Dowell as well as Dowell's astonishment at the extremely passionate kiss even in a rehearsal (they had giggled through it the first time) ....

Janet,  I will try to give you some points of reference that we probably do share to explain what I find lacking in Choe's dancing.  Some of Choe's fans try to deal with criticism of the lack of scale in her dancing by pointing out that she is not very tall which is why I mentioned Anne Jenner who was petite but danced big and could dominate the stage. If I say that for me she lacks the grandeur of Samsova and Barbieri both of whom were great in the classical repertory and equally capable of playing Lise extremely well; the  stage presence of Yoshida and the sheer voltage of Donovan and Tait in performance I think that you will get an idea of what I think is lacking in her performances. 

 

I don't think that it is simply a question of coaching. You can help a performer make the most of their abilities but coaching can't put in things that are not there to begin with.There are dancers who are not very interesting in class or in the studio but are transformed when performing on stage in front of an audience. There are also dancers who catch the eye of the powers that be in class or in the studio where they give fine performances but lack the ability to perform in front of an audience because they are not stage animals. They may be fine in ballets that only require musicality and the accurate reproduction of steps to make their effect but if they have to evoke a mood or play a character they are lost. Perhaps it is the difference in sensibility between someone who regards ballet as  purely concerned with the reproduction of steps and someone who understands innately that ballet is a theatrical art form.

 

I recall Ann Jenner's dancing with a lot of affection as The Firebird, Giselle and, particularly, Lise in an unforgettable matinee with Baryshnikov. I was also there the night she danced the Rose Adagio immaculately before collapsing with appendicitis - Brenda Last took over the performance. Unfortunately, I never got to see her dance the complete role (I believe of the other lengths then in in the repertoire she also danced Cinderella and one Juliet). She had a fantastic jump and an exhilaration in movement that was really exciting to watch: in Act 2 of Giselle you really believed she had achieved weightlessness. If I recall correctly she was also one of the team selected by Jérome Robbins for those first Dances at a Gathering performances by the Royal.

Oh dear! What a shame for Pennefather. One cannot help but feel that his is a career which, blighted by injury and having never really blossomed as it should, is now on the wane. He does not seem to have been cast much this season and, for 2015/16 Period 1, he has only 2 R&Js and 3 Nutcrackers.

 

I like Hirano but would have preferred to have seen Muntagirov in the role.

At least Pennefather is getting the R & J broadcast....

Looking forward to tonight. Astonishing though that with a sold out house and a queue for returns there are no programmes available (and the Amphitheatre restaurant isn't open either). Very pleased I made the effort to read Mrs Dalloway (can't say I enjoyed it much) and to find summaries of Orlando and The Waves online, Impresions of the piece to follow in due course.

I'm not sure if this should go in casting or promotions, but I wondered if anybody else that thought Salenko's casting in three productions in the first booking period suggests that she wit have a contract of a more permanent nature, essentially as partner to McRae, I'm guessing as a Prinicpal Guest Artist rather than Principal, as the latter would, in theory, imply participation in a wider range of repertoire. Given the repertoire and the casting so far announced I fear that we may be losing Marquez, rarely a favourite but a captivating Lise, who would surely have been obvious casing for Pigeons but is in neither that nor Nutcracker: I'm not sure if the her two R & J's will be valedictory but if she is still here for Giselle I'd predict that those are likely to be so....

Sadly, as I think many of us are aware, being a longstanding company principal doesn't appear to be a guarantee of being treated "politely".

Granted, but she seems to be being taken out of roles (Symphonic. Titania, Tatyana, Sugar Plum) whilst still dancing very well and being treated without much professional respect.

To be fair, there's no repertoire that would really suit Yanowsky (apart from possibly Monotomes 2) but I'd agree that it is odd to bring in Salenko, excellent as she is, when Matquez is a contract principal and increasingly under employed. The two Juliets and no Pigeons and no Nutcrackers would seem to imply that she may be leaving soon. She's never been a favourite of mine (and yet her Lise has seemed, post Collier, definitive and I've enjoyed her Juliet and Manon) but it doesn't seem a polite way to treat a company principal of more than ten yeat's duration.

How very odd.  It took me a long time to warm to Marquez, I don't know why, but once I did I found her delightful in so many things. 

 

While it is great to have youngsters taking a turn, it seems puzzling to cut out someone who would be perfect in Pigeons, and I would have thought she would get at least one performance.

 

And in Nutcracker too.....

And Janet is a very happy bunny, assuming she will be able to purchase a ticket!

Just wish he were partnered with Marquez. They were lovely in Don Q and even better in Fille....

Realistically, Morera as Juliet wasnt going to happen. Naghdi and Hayward to be expected and jolly nice too, as well as Ball. No Romeo for Watson?

 

Thin pickings for Marquez. I'd have thought she would have been a shoe in for Pigeons especially after Lise this time round and she's not in Nutcracker either(and nor is Soares) unless she will be in the second run.

 

Also, given the sheer number of Nutcrackers (and Hamitlon absent and Marquez and Osipova not cast, I'm surprised there is no new Sugar Plum Fairy and with Soares uncast no new Prince either. Reece Clarke anyone?). I'm surmising that no Cope Clara means she may welll not be returning and one could hardly blame her: she has seemed astonishingly undervalued over the years and I would imagine that after her American in Paris success the thought of returning to, essentially, leading the corps is not an appealing one.

 

Delighted to see Heap as Carmen. I thought she was fantastic in DGV last time round,

 

Is Salenko coming on fiull time contract or Principal Guest Artist as partner to MacRae?

I'm not sure she would expect a promotion to principal on her return, unless staff were sent to monitor all her performances - it would be hard to assess her progress otherwise. Whether she wants to stay permanently might depend on the roles she is offered here vs what she is offered in Dresden for the following season, whether there would be an expansion of roles, or whether she would dance very similar ones to the ones she is being offered now.

 

I thought I read somewhere that Ferri was dissatisfied with the coaching she was receiving at the RB, whatever that means. Did she really dance a more classical repetoire at ABT? I have to admit I only caught the tail end of her career and without getting off-topic, did she dance in Swan Lake and Sleeping Beauty? I am a bit curious about how she was received in more classic roles.

She certainly danced Gisella, also Swan Lake with ABT. There's a You Tube clip of her as Aurora with Manuel Legris, but note sure if it's from a complete performance. For the Royal, she danced the Shades scene from Bayadère as Nikiya but I think that was it.

I don't think it is out of frustration. Looking at the rep of that company for next, I think it is an opportunity for her to maybe dance some roles that she would not be top of the list at the Royal Ballet.

 

Having just looked at the official announcement, it would seem that all parties see it as an opportunity for her to develop in the classical roles.

The situation seems a little analogous to that of Alessandra Ferri, who, admittedly, did reach principal status, but was regarded as unsuitable for the classical repertoire and had to move to ABT to get her chances there. Of course, she didn't come back, and if it is as a principal that Melissa Hamilton is going to Dresden (indeed, a beautiful house - I had an artist singing there earlier this season and loved both the house and the city) I doubt she would wish to return to the Royal Ballet unless they would promote her on such a return (which also raises the question as to why a Comoany feels that classical experience should be developed by another company to justify such casting by them). Of course, such situations are rarely simple and it's an exciting opportunity for Melissa Hamilton, and I'd think quite a brave decision too (unless repertoire and status made it a no brainier). I have a definite feeling that we will be in for some surprises when the Royal Ballet casting is announced later today. There's a Juliet vacancy for a start now....

???

I'm guessing Albrecht was a slip for Colas in the context of the discussion ...

Reading the Fille thread, people are talking about Marquez.  I think she might be a good casting for Pigeons?  What does everyone else think?

I'm inclined to agree, especially with Campbell. Now that MacRae seems to be partnered elsewhere, she really blossomed with Alexander Campbell in both Quixote and last night in Fille, and it if her body language is to be believed really loved dancing with him...

Did Penney ever dance Lise? Glad you liked Campbell Jillykins? Sally and I thought he was truly delightful :-) The umbrella was a problem (Sally, who starred as Carlotta in Phantom was muttering "I hate props") but the whole evening and such joy that criticism seemed obsolete.

Total enchantment tonight. What a delightful ballet Fille is. Was it Alistair Macauley who said words to the effect that the subject matter might seem light but the treatment of it is anything but, Marquez and Campbell work so well together, it's surprising that they weren't cast as a matter of course. As Barry Wordsworth commented at Stage Door, they have a natural empathy, and it was very touching to see Marquez come on for her solo call clutching a flower, summoning on Campbell and presenting it to him. His was a debut of absolute confidence: charming, manly, supportive, technically adept, whilst she was roguish, enchanting, amorous and beautifully fluent. I've an early start so won't write in mudh detail, but it really was a total delight.

There hav been several comments in this interesting, if inevitably speculative, thread regarding some stalling of dancers' progress. Given how hard they work it seems a little unkind but there seems to be some truth in the notion, especially around what seems to me, with a couple of exceptions, a rather stagnant First Soloist section. Is it invidious also to contemplate who may be leaving? If this post is inappropriate, I will quite understand if it is removed, but it does seem to me, especially given some of Kevin O'Hare's comments re younger dancers and late confirmation of casting that we may be in for some changes....

 

I really love Nunez and Acosta in these roles but must admit was completely bowled over by Baryshnikov's performance when he did it all those years ago.......he just put such energy into it and had a great cheekiness too.

 

 

I still remember seeing Baryshnikov with Ann Jenner in 1977 and the sheer speed of the end of the Fanny Essler Pas de Deux is clear in my mind's eye. Looking forward to Campbell with Marquez this evening :-)

If she can regain her fitness, I'd tip Fumi Kaneko to go all the way. She is exquisite in this Masterclass and the Dish is splendidly supportive too. Wonderful to see Collier and Cope coaching, and to see Cope's gallantry to towards Lesley Collier.

 

https://youtu.be/TAVd5lsbonE

My apologies, Nina.  I misread the listing in the summer brochure.  Yes, he ought to be promoted, then.

 

 

 

Is there now?  

 

Benjamin was, I think, 49? so her retirement was hardly unexpected, though.

 

Possibly not, although given her excellent physical presentation and seeming ability to choose the repertoire she wished to dance, not inevitable. The fact remains that there wasn't one female First Soloist deemed suitable for promotion even under slightly dramatic circumstances.