art_enthusiast

Instead of ice cream, they should sell cough sweets in theatres. (Or even hand them out for free, they don't cost that much)

I'm no longer going unfortunately, due to work commitments. I was able to swap my ticket for one of the Frida performances in February next year. Not sure what to expect from that it sounds interesting.

Looks like it. I thought they were only standing in together for the Nutcrackers with Bomin Kim hope they're not too overworked! Tsembenhoi/Junker is still happening in Jan (I hope!)

I really enjoyed this yesterday. I echo the reports above - Act 1 did feel like it was missing something, probably due to the absence of the first cast. But I was glad to see the younger dancers taking on those roles, as I believe many didn't actually get to participate in the Dante Project last time round (except Marco Masciari). (Viola Pantuso, Marianna Tsembenhoi, Sumina Sasaki, Sae Maeda et al were all very good.) I really enjoyed Acts 2 and 3 more than Act One. Ryoichi and Sarah were splendid as usual, and I was particularly stunned by Mariko Sasaki as one of the celestial bodies, she was brilliant. I do wonder at the idea of bringing TDP back so soon, as to me it felt a bit too familiar, I guess. As I went to nearly every performance in 2021, plus watched it on repeat when they released a streamable version, and on BBC iPlayer, maybe I exposed myself to it so much then it didn't have the same impact this time round. Perhaps part of the reason I was so stunned by it was because it was one of the first ballets I saw properly live, as I only started attending regularly in 2021... Still, I do think it's a great work of art. It's definitely a Wayne McGregor favourite, alongside Woolf Works.

I invited a friend’s niece to see it last year (9 years old), she really enjoyed it.

Is Marianna Tsembenhoi doing the Francesca role tonight?

AI probably would have spelt it right.

Was she one of the dancers who appeared in Apollo for Carlos at 50?

I guess so, but don't all the decisions lie with the director though? (And also down to their personal preference I guess.) I remember listening to a podcast with Francesca Hayward where she discussed casting and said even as a principal, not all the principal roles were guaranteed, and dancers aren't completely sure what roles they're doing until they get an email which confirms it for the upcoming seasons, apparently.

Could anyone tell me who Lara Turk is? I see her down as a first artist but I don’t think I’ve seen her on stage much this year/last year. Ditto Kevin Emerton, I’m not sure if I’ve ever seen him perform. Most of the other artists/first artists/soloists I do recognise.

Exactly. As there are quite a few great dancers stuck at First Soloist level (Melissa Hamilton/Claire Calvert/Yuhui Choe being the longest standing ones) it makes it so much harder to predict how promotions actually work.

I agree. I would say next promotions to principal (male) would be Joseph Sissens and presumably Calvin Richardson. (Luca Acri maybe...? I really like him.) Female - much more difficult to say. Mariko Sasaki, Isabella Gasparini, Annette Buvoli maybe? There is such great talent at the soloist level - Joonhyuk Jun, Sae Maeda, Ashley Dean, Leitia Dias etc. And indeed at the First Artist/Artist levels as well - I really want to see more of them going up.

Good to know. After seeing him several times as Rudolf in last season's Mayerling (with Osipova/Hamilton/Takada when McRae was out) I think he brings a lot of depth to his acting. I'm interested to see what he makes of Dante. I probably went to every single performance in 2021 (or near enough) - have restricted myself to one this time round!

I actually prefer January as I feel there's less crowds and less chance of disruptive audience members post the Christmas holidays. Plus the Clara I want to see (Marianna) isn't doing public shows in December.

How is it going tonight? I’ve also booked to see this cast

Hope it improves, good for you showing consideration to the audience though!

Do you mean Naghdi and Bracewell? I think it’s Cuthbertson/Ball for Manon

Hopefully they’ll leave it up for a bit, as I’ll miss the beginning

I hope so!

Exactly - and so is Reece Clarke with Natalia Osipova, so both of the newest male principals are getting to perform Des Grieux. Or has Clarke done it already? Not sure. And Calvin Richardson is also being cast (can't wait to see him with Melissa Hamilton). I would hope for someone like Joseph Sissens maybe getting a go, but he's already getting a big opportunity as Prince Siegfried (and maybe Richardson will be cast for a June SL who knows). Alexander Campbell is also doing DG/Lescaut. I guess another obvious DG candidate would have been James Hay, who is also doing Lescaut? I think it's great Hirano is getting the opportunity to perform it at 40 - we've just seen Carlos himself do the bedroom PDD at 50, so I've got high hopes! I won't be seeing him though as I haven't booked for Sarah Lamb this time, but I will be seeing him as Lescaut in the Nunez cast. Back to Natalia - I loved her Kitri, my first time seeing her perform it, and I also can't wait for her Manon which I have booked for (and hopefully her Odette/Odile in June). Hopefully she will make an appearance in the Winter's Tale or The Dream? I've got no idea if she has been cast in those before.

I really liked Dante in the last run but I have only booked for one performance (featuring Hirano) primarily due to the ticket costs.

Hope to see more of him. I remember one of his draft works from 2021/2022, may have been Autumn or Winter, can’t remember. Very intriguing performance.

I agree that Yasmine is extremely brilliant technically. I also saw her Juliet last season and thought it was wonderful. She doesn’t move me as much as some others like Kaneko, Nunez, Lamb, Hayward, Osipova but I appreciate her enormously. If prices were more reasonable, I would have booked for her Kitri and Manon.

That is true, but it’s great to hear that he still moved you. I never would have seen him live, but I have read Nureyev: The Life by Julie Kavanagh which goes into detail about his decline health-wise and how he still pushed himself to perform so much - as a dancer and retraining as a conductor I believe. I found it heartrending to read. I can’t comment on how truthful that book is as I wouldn’t know - I was seriously shocked at some parts! But he was terminally ill at that time. I think it would be bizarre to claim that Natalia Osipova is anywhere near that stage - I know you didn’t say it, I just want to point that out. She’s still relatively young and healthy and even if she pulls out of classical at some point in the next few years, I hope she will continue with contemporary. I really liked her Carmen last year. i just hope she takes care of herself to avoid any further injuries as much as possible - the same goes for all dancers. This Don Q run has been a bit unlucky with others like Akane Takada pulling out and McRae being injured on stage (wishing him a swift recovery) and a few trips and falls here and there. Emphasises what a difficult ballet it is to perform! Another reason why I am glad that Steven McRae is using social media to bring light to rehabilitation journeys, and how important it is to take care of oneself physically - as a dancer and as a human being! I am really looking forward to Natalia’s Manon. I have everything crossed for Akane Takada in Manon - and hopefully her Odette/Odile when further casting is announced!

I guess that’s because they started with the RB and did not join a bit later in their career, as Osipova did. Now seems the right time for her to get a recognition award IMO.