art_enthusiast

2 hours ago, Sim said:

I liked Joe Sissens’ incredibly moving portrayal of Siegfried. So many little touches of love and intimacy that really added to the feeling of sorrow and tragedy at the end.  I also was very impressed with Giacomo Rovero’s Benno.  

I totally agree. I think Joseph really injected a lot of emotion into Siegfried from the get go, from where he's standing at the side watching everyone else dance, to his first solo connecting Acts 1 and 2... loved it. I actually got quite teary during Act 2. I think it was a mixture of them being brilliant, the music - which always stirs me - and I was having some rather deep thoughts about ballet as an art form, how my grandmother (now passed) introduced Swan Lake to me, and how its emotional impact on me has increased over the years. And just life in general... The power of Tchaikovsky!

Giacomo impressed me hugely with his soaring leaps as Benno. I sometimes find that the sister parts drag a little, but I actually really enjoyed them in this performance - Meaghan Grace Hinkis always injects such energy into everything he does. I was very glad to see Rebecca Myles Stewart as one of the swans.

Act 3 definitely gave fireworks, I think Mariko was so on form and confident as Odile. Extremely impressive. I think the absence of the Act 3 balance was very subtly disguised as she went straight into an arabesque/penche there? I'm not too sure, it was very smooth anyway. I always notice her on stage in other roles, and I think she has such strong technique and a very commanding stage presence. Even when she performed the courtesan role in one of the Manons this year, I couldn't help noticing her more than the Mistress at times! And I really enjoyed her and Joseph as Mercedes and Espada in the recent Don Q run. So of course, they continued to impress here! I also really enjoyed her as Odette as well, I think she gave an equally good performance in both characters. Although some adjustments may be needed her and there, on the whole I found her partnering with Joseph very strong, particularly in the final Act 4 PDD.

I'm not a trained eye but I think she was adding some extra personalised flourishes here and there throughout the whole performance, her balances were so rich and creamy and confident - I can't exactly describe it but I had the feeling that she was really pushing herself to the maximum, as of course everyone does, but it was really evident and very strong for someone new to the role. Definitely an Odette/Odile I would love to see again. At certain points I was holding my breath in awe.

I have really liked and followed Joseph in particular on stage since I started watching the RB live in 2021 (he really impressed me in the Dante Project which is one of the first performances I saw live). I am also so glad that he is dancing Siegfried, a principal classical role, with the hairstyle he has chosen. He talked about it a bit in this article: https://hero-magazine.com/article/256103/joseph-sissens-royal-ballet So great and inspirational for all aspiring dancers from every background to see.

4 minutes ago, lady emily said:

You could see on her face she was relieved the fouettés went well!

She controlled them really well though - no petering out in that last set before the finish. She’s so perfectly on the music throughout. Maybe a few slight adjustments at certain parts of the PDD - I think she was in the mood to take some risks at the beginning Odile lifts, which were carried off beautifully but made me slightly anxious. Very hard to tell, and partnering of course evolves with more experience.

Joseph absolutely flies, and their partnering is very well in matched. I can see both of them getting better and better in these roles, as they are already at such a high level.

Absolutely reeling from the Act 3 brilliance. Mariko and Joseph were sublime. As others have said, they do not seem like a debut! Superb.

49 minutes ago, Rob S said:

It's Rebecca Stewart of the RBS

I haven't caught her as a swan or a snowflake, but I think she appeared in one of the recent Insights. Hope to see more of her!

1 hour ago, Rob S said:

Many of the dancers are posting a lovely backstage pic of the cast and Kevin O'Hare with special guest Harry Styles 🙂

Interesting, didn’t know he liked ballet 

47 minutes ago, oncnp said:

ANASTASIA ACT III (2023) Laura Morera 

I had no clue that was on there! Wouldn't have cancelled my subscription

6 hours ago, JennyTaylor said:

There's a cast change for Swan Lake on Saturday evening on the ROH website.  Matthew Ball for William Bracewell. 

I would be tempted to see Hayward/Ball (if I could afford another SL which I can't!) as I've very much liked them together in  recent years - LWFC and the Dante Project (didn't see Onegin). After seeing the clip of Swan Lake with Corrales/Hayward on the ROH YouTube channel, I would also like to see them paired for the full length at some point.

7 minutes ago, balletyas said:

Yes I saw him too - looking as wonderful as ever and it was a reminder of what a great Polixenes he was to Watson’s Leontes. They suited each other physically in a way that I felt was lacking in the Brandsroed/Ball pairing -  largely a matter of height I think. 

Aren't Brandsroed and Ball of a similar height?

I suppose Houston Ballet isn't likely to ever visit the UK? I would certainly like to see them

1 hour ago, Paco said:

Full of charisma as well, as usual Joseph Sissens filled the stage with his phenomenal presence. However, I must say that in terms of virtuosity, yesterday was not his most brilliant performance compared to what he is used to delivering, probably because he was wisely focused on securing his last-minute partnership with Ms Pantuso.

Understandable as they had to step in last minute! And he's also got his Siegfried performance this weekend.

Great to see all the positive reviews of this pairing, I'm very much looking forward to seeing them.

On 07/05/2024 at 10:29, Emeralds said:

Marianela Nunez has danced Alice in the first run, but she wasn't in the last run

Has Marianela danced the Queen of Hearts before?

12 hours ago, Jan McNulty said:

I saw Houston Ballet when they performed at the Edinburgh Festival in the late 1980s including seeing Li Cunxin as Siegfried in Swan Lake!

Wow, that must have been an experience!

1 hour ago, JNC said:

If Sissens posted a few days ago

I think he posted yesterday, and he didn’t say who he was standing in for so I assumed he was talking about a stage call

24 minutes ago, Dawnstar said:

I see there's a last minute double cast change for tonight. I hope whatever illness or injury has caused it is only short term so Naghdi & Bracewell will be able to do their later, filmed, performances.

 

Interesting - Joseph posted on Instagram that he was performing it this week which confused me as I thought his first was the 24th. Now I see why. Good luck to them!

So is this the cast that will now be filmed?

12 hours ago, FionaM said:

Maybe someone from Gasparini, Dean, Maeda, Pantuso, Tsembenhoi, others (so many good ballerinas at all levels) …. will get a big debut chance.

I certainly hope so, especially as there are quite a few performances available. Definitely room for debuts I would think!

1 hour ago, OnePigeon said:

I would be prepared to place heavy bets on Fumi and Vadim dancing Romeo and Juliet together.

It would be interesting if they copied the Manon pairings for R&J, so Fumi/Vadim and William/Yasmine. I personally would like to see Ball/Magri as I'd like to see them paired on the ROH stage more often.

1 hour ago, OnePigeon said:

 I can’t get to the depths of the emotion and be transported on the journey and the emotional turmoil of the characters in the way that Manon, R&J or Onegin, to name a few, plunge you into their world and mesmerise you. 

 

I agree there, regarding Manon and R&J anyway (haven't yet seen Onegin). I'm not completely sure what it is about The Winter's Tale that isn't as emotionally gripping, given that the play has a lot of drama. Maybe because we're not exactly following the same characters and seeing them evolve throughout, as we are in R&J/Manon.

We go from Hermione/Leontes to Florizel/Perdita - we're not particularly endeared to these two in terms of supporting their love story as we only see them in Act 2... I guess there's not enough of a relationship being built up between the main characters and the audience.

I agree about the music not being particularly memorable, but I did like and remember certain sections. Certain parts of LWFC's score also stick in my head (though I definitely wouldn't put it on the level of Prokofiev or any other).

Just now, zxDaveM said:

 

Yes, Akane has danced Alice before

I would be interested to know who the must-see Alices are considered to be, from people who have seen previous runs (apart from Lauren Cuthbertson of course)
As I'm only likely to be going once, would be useful to have some indication!

On 04/05/2024 at 06:37, Mary said:

For me it would be the only reason to go to Alice which I very much dislike. He was fantastic though in this role, literally made for him. I remember opening night when he brought the house down. I do hope  Steven will be fit enough.

Yes indeed - I also would be compelled to go if Akane happened to be dancing Alice! (I don't know if she's done it before) Fingers crossed.

2 minutes ago, Bluebird said:

It did look like that from the amphitheatre. Maybe it looks different from the stalls circle?

I was in the stalls circle and didn't see it! Maybe because I was focusing on the animated baby too much, I wasn't really paying much attention to the projections.

I had a bit of an awkward encounter last night at the Winter's Tale, regarding seating. I was sitting in A100 of the stalls circle (which I chose specifically to avoid people leaning in front of me as it's right at the end, though I know it cuts off some of the stage).

Before Act 3 several people next to me in A98, A97, A96 didn't come back so there were a few empty seats. A man sitting behind me in row B asked if I knew whether those people were coming back or not. Act 3 was about to start so I said, probably not.

He then said, "Could you move down and let my friend sit in that seat" - gesturing to my seat, A100. (I think his friend was in row C or B, not sure.) I said, "Feel free to sit in these seats" - tapping the empty ones next to me - "but this is my seat."

Meaning: I would be fine with them sitting in the empty seats next to me, but I'd rather not move down from the seat I originally booked and paid full price for.

He then said in rather a disgruntled tone to his friend - "Stay where you are, she won't move down" and then Act 3 started, so I couldn't really hear them after that. (They did speak a bit during Acts 1 and 2, making a few comments on the dancing - it was a bit annoying as I'd rather people didn't speak until the interval, but I ignored it as it wasn't too disruptive).

I was a bit confused by this interaction. His disgruntled and entitled tone insinuated that I should have moved down into the empty, no longer occupied seats and let his friend have my seat. I'm not sure why his friend couldn't have just got up and walked around me to sit in one of the empty seats. He had three to choose from and it's not a particularly taxing thing to do.

If the friend had some sort of disability or other reason for taking my seat at the end he could have explained that, but didn't. (And even so, I paid for that seat specifically so... it would still be a bit of an imposition). Quite bizarre really.

33 minutes ago, Paco said:

I don't know how marketing teams build their pricing strategy, but wouldn't it be more profitable to have a sold out house at reasonable prices than a 60% filled theatre at such ridiculously expensive prices?

Yes exactly. What tends to happen, as people on this forum have noticed, is that there's difficulty selling out seats to the point where, usually right before it opens or during the run, they will release some discount code (happened with the Macmillan triple I believe). Or they'll give away some seats to ballet students or NHS workers/charities, something like that, so the auditorium is full.

So they would never sell out fully at those prices anyway... might as well just admit that from the beginning but clearly they seem to think they can. But in a cost of living crisis I'd be a bit surprised if they manage it.

33 minutes ago, Paco said:

Because if not, due to the lack of classical ballet next season at RB, we would have to wait until 2025/2026 to see her again in a classical ballet, what a disappointment it would be!

Yes, and I absolutely am praying that she will make it. If she can't do the Ashton, hopefully she could still do Swan Lake as it might not be back for a while.

Hopefully she'll be in Onegin next year though, something to look forward to!

3 hours ago, Sim said:

I wish they could find better material for the costumes in Act 2....sweat patches abound and whereas of course it shows what efforts the dancers are making it is unflattering.  

I noticed those - I don't think it was too obvious but I'm surprised the costume department hasn't addressed it before, presumably they've been using the same costumes for a while

2 minutes ago, FionaM said:

The other video projections … the boats and seas, and the silks used as sails are all very effective.  

Yep, I thought the boats were great