Emeralds

This cancellation decision actually occurred after the train had left London, halfway through the original announced journey! 😳 This was 2023. And not the first time- cancellations en route are quite the Thameslink 'special' down south! The minicab driver did take credit cards, thankfully. You MUST remember to get a receipt from the driver to make the online claim. That said, the service is great when it's running normally, with nice big carriages and plenty of seating and space. 😀

Re: the discussion on what age children should be "allowed" at ROH/ Swan Lake, I do recall one of the youngsters in our family going to the RB Swan Lake for the first time aged....5 and a half! (Dear me, could have sworn it was actually older ....but newspaper reviews don’t lie!) No chatting, no yawning (helps if the kids have a nap beforehand or aren't tired out before the show by a whole day of sports or other tiring activities).....child's only faux pas, if one calls it that, was applauding her fouettés halfway because the music was at the part where it sounded like they were finished! To be fair, her fouettés were very fast and spectacular......some audiences in other cities would be applauding too. NB this is not a recommendation to take all children at the age of 5 or 6. You have to know the child. (Or prep the child adequately- and lead by example.) The child was also the one who reminded us grownups to turn off our phones before each act and to stop talking when the lights were darkened! 😀 On the other hand, the most disruptive behaviour I've seen at Swan Lakes or at the ROH has still been from adults- including a few who boasted loudly to their companions that they attended the ballet a lot and knew a lot about the dancers.....

If it's the solo in the scene where he is first confronted by Rothbart (in his Royal senior employee guise), then he puts down the crossbow and begins his solo, that's Scarlett's choreography. Ashton did make a solo for Siegfried in Act 1 but to different music.

Haven't used the Great Northern for several years but Thameslink gets a lot of train cancellations on overtime ban days. The very last service of the night tends not to be cancelled but you often find that it contains passengers from 2 or 3 services that were cancelled so.....sardine time. Once, the last service was cancelled but the second last service became the last one....a bit scary if you didn't know! That's rare nowadays but can still happen. If the last train is cancelled and you're forced to take a cab instead, the rail company should reimburse you (the usual online form to apply). But you still have to pay the [hefty] cab fare yourself first until you get reimbursed. (That's for my area- in the past you didn't have to but the system has now changed.)

Yes, Monday 8th April is going to be a nightmare if you use both train and Tube or have a lot of travelling that day. Commuters whose tube and rail provision are gone will also be adding to the numbers relying on buses and any alternative rail/DLR/tram services they can find. 😞😓

@Sim is right- I've had a search, LinMM, specifically looking for reviews, and while The New York Times, Pointe Magazine and Dance Australia, The Guardian, and Dance Magazine have all supported it pre-performance and pre-streaming, encouraging readers to watch, none have reviewed it ....except our forum - and Reddit! I couldn't be sure how many dancers in the show were student amateurs and how many planning to dance professionally. Might that be a reason why it wasn't being reviewed in the usual way a professional show might- because it wouldn't be fair to those who were university students and not necessarily dancing in a professional capacity?

I think Oberon is more of a mercurial, imperious Fairy King than an ethereal one....at least that's the way I would describe it from the choreography....maybe some would say ethereal? Oh wow, @Dawnstar, it seems unbelievable that you haven't seen The Dream yet, but I suppose the full ballet hasn't been performed for a fairly long time at either ROH (RB) or Sadler's Wells (BRB)! - the last would be June 2017 (Morera and Campbell were Titania and Oberon, Acri was Puck....Matthew Ball was Lysander in that run). You're in for a treat; it's simply genius 😊.

I ended up watching the livestream in 2 sessions as our Easter weekend has been busy. At first I couldn't see how cowboys and Old Hollywood could blend into a Bayadere story but it seems to have worked. I'll have to put a caveat here that I couldn't see the performances closely (it's a bit like sitting in last row of ROH Amphitheatre or Coliseum Balcony with no opera glasses or binoculars) as I could only watch it on a phone (the other devices were in use) and somehow couldn't put it on full screen. As a reboot or reworking it works very well, with great performances from the dancers and those in acting roles particularly impressive. I hadn't realised how much of a cowboy/Westerns vibe and Busby Berkeley Hollywood vibe Minkus's melodies had but they do indeed seem to (they certainly sound very oompah oompah in parts of Act 1!) but the music rearrangements do work! The various divertissements and Variations are in different places to the conventional productions we know, but there's still a Kingdom of the Shades act in white with arabesques being performed on the ramps, the 3 shade solos (tempi and a few steps slightly altered), an engagement party divertissement with the showpiece grand pas de deux, the Golden Idol variation etc. The costumes were colourful and well made, simple but effective sets, and the dancing great. A lot of the tempi are more brisk than many traditional Bayadere productions- not a bad thing as some versions drag on a bit. I enjoyed it and if Messrs Chan and Fullington were to tour it here with their dancers and either their musicians or local musicians for a short run I would certainly buy tickets to see it in person. I don't think it would replace existing classical versions completely but I would like to see some of the dodgy classical ones tweaked (the toy parrot dance makes one smile for the wrong reasons for example, and the cowboys' dances are a vast improvement on that) but I would certainly like to see this version take its place among all the professional productions in existence. So well done to Phil Chan, Doug Fullington and the creative team, and all the performers. Really enjoyed it.

I should have elaborated that I meant the 2015 revival and the 2016 run, Dawnstar, and I also had a typo I didn't see - the last few times, not last two times. You're right that Tomas Mock was first cast Her Lover/Gypsy Lover in 2019. The male lead in Les Rendezvous has a lot of partnering and tall dancers like Reece Clarke and Roberto Bolle have performed it (and another tall dancer, Muntagirov, will be alternating it iwth Clarke) but I don't think height is a prerequisite other than to be tall enough for whichever ballerina is in the lead. For some reason (to reflect Baryshnikov?) a shorter or medium height man has always been cast in the male lead role of Rhapsody but I don't see why a tall virtuoso like Muntagirov couldn't dance it. I think Hirano is more of a Florimund/Siegfried than Rhapsody male lead though. Oberon was originally made on a tall dancer (Dowell) and Matthew Golding (who is very tall) has danced it successfully. It needs good lines and someone who is good at changes of weight/position the way Dowell was. It can suit dancers of any height as long as they're not shorter than their Titania or Puck. I can see Hirano doing it successfully, especially the acting. In a way, it's a pity the Ashton bill doesn't start in spring as I think a Rendezvous/Short Works/The Dream combination would also sell well and give opportunities to more principals and first soloists who would be great in Rendezvous and Dream.

Yes, Ryoichi Hirano danced Gypsy Lover (or Her Lover, whatever they called him!) in both runs the last two times, was in the first cast too. Admittedly not the Young Man role - although I have seen him dance the final pas de deux in a Gala with Helen Crawford and they were both glorious and beautiful. He's also danced La Valse and (if I recall correctly) Thais pas de deux. No reason why he couldn't dance Young Man or Les Rendezvous really. The RB triple bill should really repeat Les Rendezvous rather than Rhapsody as we've had a lot of Rhapsody runs recently.

@LinMM, there's a white act/Kingdom of the Shades that looks very similar to all other Bayadere productions. I must say these dancers are very good! (Am watching live but will have to stop soon)

Yes. the BRB Bintley & Samsova Giselle has a horse that Bathilde makes her entrance on! The horse was still present when they performed Giselle at Sadler's Wells in Nov 2019. The horse seemed happy. I don't think we had salukis or other dogs. Maybe it depends on the dogs'/horse's availability and some runs will have neither. I understand that San Francisco Ballet's Giselle has dogs as well (just to illustrate that nothing strange about Ms Samsova and Mr Bintley's choice!) However I can also see @FionaM'a point that maybe the stage should just be for human performers. Rather like Cirque du Soleil. There are pros and cons to both views. The main thing is to ensure no performer is or feels exploited or distressed, whether animal or human.

Music (Brahms waltzes, naturally) played on a piano on stage, one dancer in an orange/golden dress, barefooted, dances alone. Not a very helpful description, so hopefully this ROH video gives a better idea.... https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&opi=89978449&url=https://m.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DFcqzmFl0DhI&ved=2ahUKEwjV4oXn1ZyFAxX4X0EAHXZMAwgQwqsBegQIDRAG&usg=AOvVaw1W2newTg2TWiFSqxI6atRW

I must say I'm impressed that Kevin O'Hare replies at all, as many artistic directors of similar sized arts organisations or dance companies don't, not even a form letter or note to say thanks for writing/your feedback. Kudos to him for that.

Hmm, JNC, that's always what I assumed too- that etoile was the same as principal dancer and that premier danseur/premiere danseuse must mean first soloist. But Tamara Rojo indicated that wasn't the case and some etoiles at the Paris Opera have in the past stated in interviews that premier danseur/premiere danseuse is already principal dancer and etoile is extra, like Senior Principal or Leading Principal, something like that. Perhaps the real answer is that there is no equivalent. I think in Vienna State Ballet their principals are called first soloists. I was assuming that the Paris Opera might just make a transliteration of "principal dancer" or "dancer principal" in his bio, but refer to him as Guest Artist. Curious to see if any members who bought a souvenir programme would have the answer though! I visited the Palais Garnier and Opera Bastille for ballet years ago and really liked their colourful, high quality and informative programmes (very damage resistant too). Haven't been there for a long time. The other unusual practice that the Paris Opera has is that to get promotion from artist to first artist to soloist etc (although they have more junior ranks than just three) they have to perform a solo on stage like a competition or exam in front of a panel (artistic director and senior coaches I believe) and get awarded marks by each panel member. Marks get taken off for slips, stumbles, wobbles, being out of time with the music etc.....like a real exam, and more unforgiving than many performances in front of paying audiences. If they earn a high combined score they pass and get promoted. (Etoile promotions do not depend on or require the exam.) Mathilde Froustey has spoken of how nerves used to get to her during these exams and she never made it past sujet- but she had artistry, danced very well in real performances, and was even cast frequently in lead roles, but could not be promoted. She was later offered a principal dancer contract at San Francisco Ballet so she accepted it. I suppose the system is to avoid favouritism preventing technically skilled dancers from being overlooked for promotion. It has its advantages I suppose. The question about equivalent ranks just came up because of the audience member's comment about why Sambe wasn't promoted like Battistoni (clearly a misunderstanding as Sambe is already a principal at another company) so it made me wonder.

If they were to present a Swan Lake piece next year it would probably be either the Waltz, Act 3 pas de Quatre (?if there's enough space- the men cover a lot of space dancing the "solo" at the same time, sometimes travelling in opposite directions) or Neapolitan Dance as those have notable choreography by Ashton. Nice woodwind and brass in the PDQ and the female variations don't travel much.

I feel very old when I recall seeing their Balanchine stager dancing with New York City Ballet years ago! 😀 Glad to hear Gregory Dean was in Serenade- I was a bit worried that he was might be dancing less to focus on choreography! Likewise to hear that Alban Lendorf is dancing in Etudes. Also enjoyed the dancing of Sebastian Pico Haynes (on tour), Tara Schaufuss (on tour) and Guilherme de Menezes (at ENB) so it's great to hear their news. Thanks for your reviews, @Estreiiita!

Sorry, we clicked our posts at the same time, @LinMM. 😊. You found his Stravinskys I see. He also conducted Debussy's Jeux and Ravel's Mother Goose ballet with various orchestras but I don't think those two are actually danced much. Sad to say, I fear that nowadays a number of the Ballets Russes Stravinsky ballets are gradually being lost from the ballet repertoire and more often heard in the concert hall, unless companies do cheaper reboot/update versions. But for now, back to RB Sinfonia. I think for next year's announced Ashton theme there's an Ashton/Stravinsky overlap= Scenes de Ballet. Not in the BRB repertoire but it could be performed as an instrumental piece for the orchestra. Or a pas de deux learnt as a bonus piece like the Florimund solo this year. Just a possible option. 😀

Ooh yes he has! Not Giselle or (as far as I know) Swan Lake though. He's conducted Ravel's Daphnis and Chloe with the Berlin Philharmonic and Stravinsky's Rite of Spring, Firebird and Debussy's Prelude a l'apres midi d'un faune with London Symphony Orchestra. And Mahler's Song of the Earth, Stravinsky's Agon, Pulcinella, Petruska, etc with City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. He's fond of the 20th century repertoire. 😉....and Haydn, he says. But speaking of Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty..... one of his successors as Chief Condiuctor of City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla chose a very unusual encore when she conducted the CBSO at their Royal Albert Hall Proms concert in 2017 - the coda from the Act 3 Florestan pas de trois (I think it's a Pas de Quatre in Peter Wright's BRB production.)

I think for the rights to the Florimund solo it is easy for RB as Ashton made it for RB (but a Peter Wright production! - for RB though, not BRB). For the ENB Swan Lakes that use Ashton's Waltz and Neapolitan Dance, I guess a fee is paid - the rights for those were, according to the Ashton Foundation, held by Anthony Russell-Roberts so I guess they now pass to whoever or whatever (eg a Trust) has been named to inherit. The fee could be small, as I think they're keen for the dances to be danced and staged correctly rather than to be lost due to companies not being able to afford high fees.

Thanks, Jan, sounds like what you saw is that RB/Ashton one made in 1968 on Dowell that I'm thinking of (the one in the video @Roberta posted). I think Peter Wright wanted to make the productions of classics for SWRB/BRB all his own work if he didn't have the original notation from Petipa, Ivanov, Perrot et al so that's laudable that it's consistently the same style..

Well that didn't take long....according to two sources it is the Sarabande near the end of Act 3 (just before the coda where the courtiers get up from their chairs and standing positions to dance before the final pose of the apotheosis). It was cut by Petipa soon after the ballet's premiere. It certainly does have the rhythm of a sarabande. The original description was "Sarabande- a quadrille for Turks, Ethiopians, Africans and Americans" (:Sarabande – quadrille pour Turcs, Éthiopiens, Africains et Américains"). Quirky geographical grouping there, haha, and I think I both dread and feel curious about how the choreography might have looked! (With any luck maybe they all did a courtly "intetnational diplomat" style generic Sarabande!) Anyone with a music library copy of the full score should be able to see it and play it through. So looks like Ashton selected music from the original ballet itself, which is nice.

This is probably one for the geeks (usually that's me but I haven't got time to do it today).... I'm curious to know what or where the music originally was, as the original Sleeping Beauty music score is very very long and most productions cut out or edit a lot. (Not to get sidetracked into Swan Lake but Swan Lake is even longer, and just to ruin everyone's lunch- or dinner or whenever they read this - Tchaikovsky never wrote an Act 3 pas de deux (or Black Swan pas de deux), a lot of the music used in Act 3 nowadays was originally in Act 1. I think Sleeping Beauty is more "intact" than Swan Lake and mostly in the original order but there are still lots of cuts and bits moved around. It's possible Ashton might also have used music by Tchaikovsky not from Sleeping Beauty, like he did with the Fairy Godmother solo in Cinderella where it was Prokofiev but not from the ballet.)

I think the Ashton solo that Chou danced could be the one that the Royal Ballet production has (Monica Mason did retain a solo for Florimund in Act 2 made by Ashton for Anthony Dowell). I'll check when I see Peter Wright's production in late April if his version leaves it out. The Mariinsky and Bolshoi versions don't have it either (with anybody's choreography) I believe. Nureyev's version uses the Entr'acte music instead.

Could your phone be having trouble loading all the pictures, ads and various pop up items, LinMM? Broadway World seems to have a lot of colour "extras". I think I've seen a phone with the same problem for Broadway World. Have sent you a DM to try to get you access to it.