ellyb

Thank you so much for that @lady emily - I had to surrender my ticket at the last moment so very grateful I still get to see the send-off, even if I had to miss what I have no doubt was a wonderful performance. I take small comfort in knowing that had I been there I would have suffered with very sore hands and very red, swollen eyes! I do very much hope this isn't the last we see of him - he's a fabulous presenter so I'll be furious if he gives that up too!

Very reluctantly having to relinquish my ticket for Friday, if anyone's still looking - have listed it on ticket exchange forum.

Superb performance, very difficult to believe it was a debut - and very frustrating there was only one show which won't be repeated for three years. The whole cast was strong, Richardson was a wonderful Des Grieux; a slightly shaky start led to an absolutely heart-breaking finale and I can't wait to see how he develops. Hamilton is an absolutely phenomenal Manon, and I'm not sure anyone does Act III better. I do wish we could see more of her, and that she would get some classical principal roles - I would book her Odette in a heartbeat! Supporting cast also all extremely good, though unfortunately we had the same issue with the shorter Lescaut it didn't seem quite so noticeable as it has done previously. Hinkis brought personality to the Mistress and I felt Braendsrod has already improved enormously since his debut, he was very menacing. I must be in the minority in rather liking Christopher Saunders' GM, he's not as overtly gruesome as Avis' but I think he's all the more believable for that; he just seems to be a typical dirty rich old man, an awful everyman illustrating the fate of so many young women throughout history. I think that's something I take away from the best Manons, that she is just one of so very many - every woman that is at the brothel and who disembarks the ship has her own horror story of a man - or men - very like GM. Terrifying thought. As it turns out, this was to be my final Manon this season and feel I've finished on a high.

Stalls Circle B86 £79

Have PM'd back

I've always interpreted it as Lescaut working both worlds - Lescaut tells GM that the beggar found the watch and the beggar gets a coin and also doesn't need to worry about being found with the watch, and so Lescaut has gained the beggars' trust and possibly useful contacts in the criminal underworld. Lescaut has also helped GM and shown himself to be an upstanding citizen, which will help him gain GM's trust and further his ambitions to move within the upper echelons of society. Not sure if I'm right though!

Row J, Seat 43 | Amphitheatre (end of row) £25

Maybe not so surprising as I feel he has been very underused recently, but sad all the same... I very much wish I'd seen his Romeo. Extremely fortunate to still have a ticket for the 8th; I've already seen this pair before and had booked for Takada so planned to cancel but hadn't gotten round to it, now going to try and rearrange diary so I can keep it! They were very good when I saw them, though that was just rehearsal - I thought he made an absolutely superb Des Grieux so pleased he gets to go out on such a wonderful role.

Agree about the Arabian dance; with the three men it looks like the woman is in control and the men are her servants whereas I feel that the pas de deux looks more like the man is displaying or offering the woman, pushing her forward to gyrate for the audience ... which I personally find rather less appropriate, though it might just be me!

Upper Circle A 17 £67.25

Aw, I know I'll be in the minority but I'm a bit sad about that if it's true! Might it mean they're intending a revamp, this production is getting on a bit so might this be the last time we see it? It seems a bit of an odd financial decision as I believe it's the one production across both ballet and opera that is guaranteed to completely sell out, and at top dollar prices? If they're needing to keep prices so high as they are struggling, is it really sensible to get rid of their most profitable show?

My mother and I used to go regularly to High Wycombe and never had any problems, I don't blame you for being put off but it's really not always like that! ***Sorry, ignore this - just realised we used to go to Empire at the top of the hill and Cineworld's the one in town, of which I have no experience whatsoever!***

Very definitely second the Mayerling recommendation, it's why I fell in love with that ballet. Also the phenomenal Viviana Durante ... while we're all lamenting those dancers we didn't see live, those two absolutely top my list. Mayerling: The Royal Ballet (Kenneth Macmillan) [DVD]: Amazon.co.uk: Barry Wordsworth, Derek Bailey, Irek Mukhamedov, Viviana Durante, Darcey Bussell, Lesley Collier, Jane Burn, Derek Rencher, Nicola Tranah, The Royal Ballet: DVD & Blu-ray

I do hope you feel better, it's pretty soul-destroying having to walk out early. I'm not doing Dante as a bit contemporary for me - plus all my money's gone on a record 5 Manons, including Mr Richardson... I certainly hope I can forget the walk before then!

I really didn't like her Dying Swan! I wonder if it's just the evolution of her artistry though; she was known for pushing boundaries to great effect and she's still doing that, maybe it's just gone a bit too far? I did like her Mary Vetsera though, and I believe she has the cinema showing of Manon so am looking forward to that. I think I agree with all your other assessments as well, of those I saw; I was looking forward to seeing what Buvoli would do with Mercedes after her wonderful Dryad Queen but she didn't really 'sizzle' as much as she might. It is a very different role though of course, it may just not suit her. I was very conscious of Braendsrod's cloak which he seemed to find a bit distracting. I think that made him look a bit awkward, which is not what you want from Espada! I was wondering if they both settled into the roles a bit more as the night progressed, but seemingly not. Also agree about the matadors, they were a bit messy and didn't always seem to be totally in sync. More positively though, I really really loved Richardson and am disappointed I didn't get to see him to the end - that walk! I am glad I went as I would be kicking myself if I hadn't taken the opportunity to see Osipova in her 'signature role', I only wish I'd seen all of it.