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OnePigeon

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  1. OnePigeon
    All their performances are Monday - Wednesday though. One Thursday, Friday or Saturday would have been most welcome to the many people who have to get up for work the next day. Ah well, I might actually just give it a miss.
  2. OnePigeon
    I so agree with you, it’s not a trend I’m very keen on. Personally, when tickets are so expensive and priced the same across all casts, I’m not as thrilled to see a soloist get a top role when there are so many amazing principals at the top of their game who have worked hard to get where they are, only to get a few performances each, or none at all. I would be more prepared for this trend if there were a certain amount of performances with non principals which were slightly cheaper, but it doesn’t make economic or artistic sense to me to keep casting lower ranked dancers in top roles when there are already so many principals. I also don’t understand why a ‘premium’ cast with 4 of the top and most popular principal dancers in the company are dancing on early week day nights when surely they should be given at least one weekend. It’s almost like the audience aren’t really a consideration.
  3. OnePigeon
    Those Nunez/Ball etc dates are really unfriendly for anyone who lives and works outside London!
  4. OnePigeon
    Glad it’s not just me that found the music a challenge to get through. It’s not unbearable, but I found it incredibly bland and lacking in soul and depth. Music is incredibly important to me and I found myself thinking it must be quite challenging to dance to something so lacking in a strong melody - how does one interpret something so bland? When I think of how glorious the music to R&J and Manon is, for example, it really stirs your soul, conveys deep emotions and takes you on the journey of the story. The ballet and music are inextricably bound together - this not so much. Glad the Ashton is comparatively cheap and it’s two pay days away until booking opens, giving me time to save for a stalls seat. I really hope we get casting before booking opens though. I’m not prepared to pay top whack for TWT as I don’t love it, but I’ve only seen it on the stream so would like to give it a go live once with the right cast.
  5. OnePigeon
    I’m probably in a minority here, but when the company is so heavy with principal dancers and then casting is announced and roles that could go to a principals seem to mainly go to soloists and first soloists, I find it quite puzzling. It seems a shame for the audience that they don’t get the opportunity to see more principals when they have such an abundance of riches in that department. I know it’s important for non principal dancers to get experience and opportunities - and they should certainly have a fair amount of good roles as there is a great roster of talent in those ranks too and I mean absolutely no disrespect to those wonderful dancers - but when I look back at old programmes of triple bills it seemed you used to get more principals for your buck, so to speak. I used to find mixed bills a great way of seeing different pairings and dancers from my preferred usual dancers, so I could see Bussell, Guillem, Acosta, Rojo, Kobberg and Cojocaru etc all in one evening. I also think lots of people book to see principals more than soloists, so a more starry roster can only be good for box office takings.
  6. OnePigeon
    Yep, wish I’d held off booking before casting was announced! Luckily I was able to swap my ticket and I can live with the £4 fee. I’m surprised (and disappointed) there’s no Yasmin Or Fumi in any of the pieces though.
  7. OnePigeon
    I don’t think you’ll be disappointed - I was mesmerised from the minute the curtain went up. It was an incredible ensemble with top performances from a stellar cast and one of those performances where you’re totally immersed and not being distracted with the odd critical thoughts (but maybe that’s just me?). I loved Osipova’s interpretation of Manon and her willingness to act as the character, sometimes moving in a more naturalistic way and not just always being the perfect ballerina. I would love to have stayed to see Naghdi and Bracewell, but as that wasn’t possible I’m very happy with the cast I saw.
  8. OnePigeon
    Marquee TV did have the 2018 Merry Widow when I had it just over a year ago, but not sure if it’s still available on there as I no longer subscribe. Amber Scott is a very beautiful dancer, I’d definitely like to see her in other roles.
  9. OnePigeon
    Not dance, but dancer related, BBC IPlayer has a 1972 Play of the Month version of The Merchant of Venice starring Maggie Smith and a certain young and lovely Christopher Gable as Bessanio.
  10. OnePigeon
    It’s most likely to be the 2018 version with Amber Scott as Hanna and Adam Bull as Danilo, as opposed to the 1993 version with Heathcote as Danilo and Lisa Pavane as Hanna (which is still available on dvd.) The 2018 version is also available on Sky Arts on demand if you can access it. I fear it’s the only way we’re ever going to get to see the joyful ballet in the UK.
  11. OnePigeon
    Absolutely - all that hard work and training for two nights of performances. It seems mad to me that there are so many principal couples who only dance the role a few times each. Surely fewer casts and three or four performances each would make more sense, giving people more opportunities to catch the pairing they want to see and giving the dancers more time to really get into their roles.
  12. OnePigeon
    I’m seeing Osipova/Clarke, mainly because my friends wanted to do a matinee, though I am interested in seeing Osipova’s interpretation of Manon - it should be interesting. I’m also seeing Kaneko/Muntagirov as they’re both firm favourites of mine and I’ve decided to try and see Muntagirov in as many roles as I can while he’s still in his prime and with us in London. I think if it was only my decision I would have picked Naghdi and Bracewell instead of the Osipova cast, but I’d probably be fretting about that too. I love the Lamb and Muntagirov version on the streaming service and would have loved to see them paired again. The last time I saw Manon was with Tamara Rojo and Carlos Acosta, so I’m really excited to see it again live. I’ll be interested to see Campbell’s drunken Lescaut. I’ve yet to see anyone better David Wall, but it requires someone with some subtle comedic acting skills (and the nerves to just drop down like a dead weight) so I’m hoping Campbell will get it.
  13. OnePigeon
    I’m the same - it gets so stressful reading these glowing reviews😆. There are too many dancers whose interpretations I would love to see, plus the partners have been changed about a bit from the past few production pairings. Often there is a dancer I would like to see but am not as keen on their partner, so I end up going with the pairing who tick more boxes for me. I just can’t financially or time wise see more than the two I’ve booked, but I have huge regrets to not see Naghdi and Bracewell - I have a feeling theirs will be very special- especially as Laura Morera is coaching William Bracewell in his debut and she proved how amazing she is at coaching in the insight event! I’m already wondering if the FOMO will get too much and I’ll end up booking a Friday Rush for them. I think I might be afflicted with some kind of post-lockdown frenzy to see as much performing art as I can when I can, lest it be snatched away again.
  14. OnePigeon
    Wow, that’s a very safe way of ensuring you get your preferred dancers! I’m jealous. The ‘cheaper’ seats are actually quite affordable for this triple, but I can’t keep travelling into London and I’m having to rein in my spending so have taken a punt on one of the performances they’re filming and used my Xmas present gift card to treat myself to a stalls seat. I hope they release some casting info before it’s too late to swap a ticket if I’ve booked the wrong date.
  15. OnePigeon
    Just rub some salt in the wounds there @Sim for those of us who booked to see him on Friday! 😭 No disrespect to Arrieta who was great and whose performance I really enjoyed. I’m glad to hear he was as wonderful as we expected, hopefully we’ll get to see him one day.
  16. OnePigeon
    Guests aren’t necessary and I feel our principals are under used as it is, but I would welcome the opportunity to see some world class dancers who I may otherwise be unlikely to get to see. Seeing as the RB dancers seem to be guesting all over the world, it might be nice to have some reciprocal arrangements on occasion. The best situation would be for our principals to have more opportunities on their home stage and to have the occasional guest.
  17. OnePigeon
    I haven’t booked my Macmillan triple tickets yet as I’m still not sure about casting. I seem to recall triple bills I’ve seen in the past have had the same cast for every performance, whilst others have had alternate casts. I haven’t seen a RB triple for a good number of years though - is there a pattern to these things these days? I see two of the performances are being filmed and feel one of these might be the date to book, but there’s no guarantee my preferred dancers (basically, my decision will hinge on if and when Vadim is dancing 😄) will be filmed. I wonder if the lack of information on dancers indicates it will be the same dancers for all performances and therefore all uninjured principals will be cast in one of the works, or is that just wishful thinking?
  18. OnePigeon
    It’s incredible, I wondered if they were on some kind of wheel contraption, but I did briefly get a glimpse of some feet under a dress when I saw it a few weeks ago and saw they were in fact moving along on flat feet.
  19. OnePigeon
    Despite being very interested in her, I’ve seen very little of Seymour, especially in classical roles - but my goodness, what an incredible performance that was! She breathed something very fresh and special into that performance, really inhabiting the music and dancing with her entire body, not just doing a set of steps. Her arms and hands were so expressive and interpreted the phrasing of the music so beautifully. It was one of the most musical performances I have seen by a ballet dancer and possibly my favourite interpretation the Sleeping Beauty pdd I have seen. She had a real style of her own, I only wish I had been born in time to see her dance. Nureyev wasn’t bad either. 😉😆
  20. OnePigeon
    I also noticed the laughter in strange places, glad I wasn’t the only one who was bemused by what they found so amusing. I’m not usually a massive Giselle fan, but I really enjoyed this production and loved some of the beautiful Cecchetti style footwork and epaulement. It was frustrating not to see either of the principals I had booked to see, but enjoyed Khaniukova’s fragile beauty and innocence and Arrieta’s charm. My reaction to his Albrecht was that he was a charming but spoilt and thoughtless young man behaving just like the entitled nobleman he was, indulging his whims without thinking about the consequences. He had a very rude awakening when she died as the result of his behaviour and realised too late the gravity of his dalliance with this beautiful young girl, who I do believe he cared for, though wasn’t desperately in love with. I can see why he came across as just a bit of a nice young man though. I thought Henry Dowden made a great Hilarion and his acting and mime made the story really clear - even his stance and the way he held his arms conveyed a person with an internal rage and frustration. The corps were beautiful and I didn’t mind the lighting as I found it atmospheric, but I wonder if it depended on where you were sitting?
  21. OnePigeon
    I would hazard a guess that the Arts Council would prefer anything that isn’t really ballet, especially not anything traditional or classical and I wonder if this may explain some of the appointments given to people without any actual ballet background. I would imagine the chances of the RB being allowed to do a year of revivals would be nigh on impossible and very much against their Arts Council funding remit. The AC are obsessed with organisations finding young new audiences, forced innovation at all costs, levelling up and eschewing anything that might be perceived as elitist - even when what is being offered isn’t actually innovative, commercially sensible or desirable for the vast swathe of audience members, but these are the times we live in.
  22. OnePigeon
    Aha, I didn’t know that! Well I have a strong suspicion that we have our answer as to which production they’ll be using then. 🧐
  23. OnePigeon
    They’ll still be performing the Nutcracker, but obviously want to retire this version for whatever reasons. I personally didn’t mind it, but it seems to be unpopular in some quarters, so it will be interesting to see which version they choose to perform. I too wonder about the Semperoper’s or if there was a preferred ENB version from Aaron Watkin’s time as a dancer? Time will tell. I’m sure to Joe Public having a Christmas treat at the ballet it’s not a huge deal, as long as it’s not some crazy new version.
  24. OnePigeon
    I believe they will be using a different version of Nutcracker next year, though I’m not sure if it’s an existing ENB one, a new to the ENB but existing elsewhere, or they will be staging a brand new version.
  25. OnePigeon
    Not to mention a RB premiere of Ronald Hynd’s Merry Widow, which several of us have already cast....
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