OnePigeon

I really wanted to see this but could find no way of purchasing for the month. It’s really disappointing as I don’t have a spare £64 at the moment.

Do you know where the recording is from? They are utterly mesmerising together. I adore the version with Dowell and Sibley, but would love to see more of this performance. Wasn’t she just pure magic to watch here? And I do so love Dowell’s partnering - none of that awful waist spinning from him!

Sorry to hear about your horrible injury and impending operation @LinMM. I hope you’re able to keep the pain at bay and wish you a speedy recovery. 💐

I would love to see NYCB bring a Robbins triple bill of Fancy Free, The Concert and maybe En Sol, or perhaps throw in a bit of Balanchine instead and have Who Cares.

I like the sound of this, I’d definitely go - you can’t have enough Gary Avis to my mind. It could be the ballet equivalent of Andrew Scott’s one man (Uncle) Vanya.

Oh how I love this, it’s pure joy! I’ve only seen it on the streaming service, but I thought Muntagirov and Osipova absolutely sparkled with their incredible authentic Russian flair. I’d love to see them partnered in something similar as I thought they really complemented each other in this.

Same here, I saw Choe and was underwhelmed. She had quite a few Kitris to dance instead I suppose, but I wonder if another under, or not at all, used principal could have done the role? Not that it need be a principal necessarily, but Morera was a principal when creating the role and it’s not like there aren’t enough principals in the company.

Thanks, I had a nagging feeling she had danced it this run - I should have checked.. Did you see her, and if so, did she bring more to the role?

Well, yes indeed, there are an embarrassment of gorgeous male dancers currently and I too swoon away for all of them to be honest - they’re absolutely gorgeous, masculine and handsome men who indeed have great stage presence. I didn’t mean that Mukhamedov and Acosta were more attractive, just that they had a real power house dancing style and vey muscular physiques.

I think it’s hard with the Mercedes role as it was created on Morera, an experienced and very beautiful principal dancer with a strong artistic sensibility - not to mention a Spanish dancer who was collaborating with a fellow Spanish speaker which probably helped bring so much more authentic feeling and fire into the role. I wonder if the role should have possibly gone to a principal, as it did with Morera and Hirano, with a bit more artistic flair - possibly Magri could have done more justice to Mercedes. I definitely felt the fire and sass required was underwhelmingly conveyed.

Oh yes, it does indeed! Check out his Spartacus with the Bolshoi for starters and I recommend his Mayerling, which he worked on very closely with Macmillan. His was my defining Prince Rudolf (though I missed the recent much lauded Muntagirov performance) and he was dancing it the night Macmillan died backstage. Yes, I was thinking that after I had posted. I’ve only ever seen him in Swan Lake, but he’s certainly got that bravura style which I think is missing a bit currently. Such a shame he’s been out for so long at this point in his career.

I think every generation brings something special which we may regret missing, and some generations seem to be extra special. I am sad to never have witnessed Gable and Seymour, Dowell and Sibley or Baryshnikov in his prime - to name just a very few. I started attending the ballet just over 20 years ago and then stopped going for many years when life, parenthood etc came along. I missed the beginning of Osipova’s career and the end of Rojo/Acosta’s etc, but did see them at their physical and artistic peak. I think it was a special era and, if I’m honest, I don’t think as many of the current dancers have quite the same sheer magnetism as the likes of Acosta, Rojo, Cojocaru, Kobborg, Mukhamedov etc. We are lucky to still have Nunez, who I was a big fan of from very early in her career. However, I do believe the company has some wonderful dancers who bring something different from those ‘stars’ of the previous generation. No, we don’t currently have a magnetic, virile performer in the mould of Acosta or Mukhamedov - which I do miss and wonder if the RB will opt to bring in a dancer of their ilk again - but we do have the grace, technicality and beauty of Muntagirov and the charm and musicality of Bracewell etc. I think the company seem like a they are currently in a good place with a large amount of talent across the ranks. We all have our personal favourites, but I feel that each principal pairing brings something special to their roles and it can be hard to choose who to see sometimes. We should sit back and enjoy what we do have - there is lots to be very positive about.

There are a few different performances with different casts on YouTube, though none of them official unfortunately. I love the 1977 version with Wall/Eagling/Coleman and Park/Penney/Jenner though it’s very grainy footage. It would be great to see it revived soon as, despite being a huge fan, I’ve never had the pleasure of seeing it live.

I doubt they knew that the people weren’t going to turn up. If you’re given a free ticket and can’t make it, you’re unlikely to return the ticket as there’s no need to from your perspective, and as the tickets have been paid for, the RB can’t really re-sell them.

Muntagirov definitely wasn’t asked to join the RB and I don’t actually know about whether Bracewell was asked (I would assume not), so stating the benefits of their being with other companies, although there were clearly many, isn’t answering the question of why they weren’t offered a place when they are clearly exceptional talents. Unfortunately, as we aren’t privy to insider information or Mason’s mind, I’m afraid we can only speculate on the whys and wherefores and quite frankly, what’s the point in speculating as ultimately they are now exactly where they deserve to be - and aren’t we lucky to have them!

That’s interesting, I know it used to be the case where there was a hierarchy - hence the shock and disrespect Lynn Seymour felt at being bumped down the Juliet cast from first to fifth (or thereabouts). Am I correct in thinking that it’s generally Nunez/Muntagirov who dance the opening night, with Osipova/Clarke often dancing towards the end of the run? It seems they start and close with their most senior/popular principals, which makes sense, but I’m not sure how it works in between as they seem to vary partnerships and their placing within the different programs. Is it me, or does anyone else feel that Mayara Magri is being given a lot more opportunities lately? If the casting hierarchy theory is correct, she’s now second cast for Swan Lake (no judgement on it, just an observation.)

Well that’s put the cat amongst the pigeons (or should that be swans), it’s another interesting mixing of pairings and I don’t know which to choose yet. I had thought I wouldn’t bother with Swan Lake, but who am I kidding? I really hope Cesar Corrales is fit and finally makes it back onto stage.

I feel your pain @Dawnstar, I saw Don Q a couple of Thursdays ago and ended up with a rail replacement bus for part of the journey. I didn’t get home until gone 1am and had to be up for work at 6am - that was not an easy day! There’s just no knowing how they’re going to potentially ruin your lovely ballet trip 😣. Fingers crossed we get there and back easily on the dates we choose.

I’m holding my nerve until nearer the time when I can ascertain if there will be trains running without the dreaded rail replacement buses - not to mention the fact that I can’t quite decide which cast I want to see most of all.

I’m always interested until they mention it’s £10 to enter - er, no thanks, I’ll just put that towards the ticket I’m buying! I guess they have lots of wealthy patrons who would spend a tenner like it’s £1, but it’s a big ask considering the probability of winning is very small. I agree re Sylvia and will also throw in the usual comment of, “What about about Fille?” Surely we’re all desperate at this point - I’d even take out a loan to get stalls seats for every performance... and that’s a promise Kevin, if you’re reading. 😆

Hi @Occasional audience member. I would say don’t look out for anything, just let the dancing and performance speak for itself. It’s a lovely warm hearted ballet with plenty of wow moments and stand out solos and pas de deuxs. You’ve got a great cast and Osipova is well known as a great Kitri, though I’ve never had the privilege of seeing her myself. Enjoy your evening! If you want to feel more familiar, you could always check out the 2013 version starring Carlos Acosta, whose production this is - it should give you a good idea of what to expect, but every dancer will bring their own special qualities to their roles and that’s what makes it so amazing(and addictive 🙂).

I find Friday Rush a bit hit and miss. I generally can’t look until I get home from work, a good few hours after 1pm, and have managed to get tickets easily enough, but some weeks they seem to sell out very quickly and I have no luck. I’ve been lucky getting Nunez/Muntagirov (which I was annoyingly too ill to attend) and Osipova/Clarke too in the Cinderella run, so you never know with Manon - don’t despair. I’ll be trying my luck for a couple of Des Grieux I really want to see too.

I agree @alison, I only have to pay £6 to take my son to see the LSO and I really appreciate the discount and it’s very affordable - I don’t actually want to it to be free as I believe we need to ensure people understand that art isn’t and can’t be free, otherwise we’ll end up with no artists. Younger generations are growing up not having to go out and invest in purchasing albums etc so I think it’s really important they understand that artists need to eat and pay bills too.

@Fonty I couldn’t agree more! I don’t know why we need to just accept the premise that the RB is now a largely contemporary company - I’m not sure many of us want this and we need to make this clear, by talking here and anywhere else and voting with our feet. I don’t accept that we should just forget about seeing Balanchine, Robbins, Cranko and most of Ashton and embrace McGregor. If our British based dancers never get the opportunity to dance works by these choreographers, of course they won’t be able to do them enough justice, but I believe there is enough talent in the ranks that they could perform them given the opportunity. It’s very narrow of the RB to place such emphasis on a handful of modern choreographers, many of whom have a questionable ballet background, some none at all, when there are interesting choreographers such as Peck and Ratmansky, or David Dawson, out there who could create work for the RB (if their contracts allow.) I have only seen a little of Zucchetti’s work, but it was certainly recognisably ballet and I would be more interested in his talent being nurtured than the programming of endless contemporary dance projects.

Personally, I hate dynamic pricing and it’s most inconvenient for people outside London who need to plan ahead and find week nights difficult, especially if they have to work. It just adds a whole layer of stress to booking something up - wondering if you’re booking at the right time and if you’re going to regret or be pleased with the price you paid. It puts me off and with ballet where you’re often choosing a particular cast, as opposed to a West End show where dates don’t depend on casting, it would be really annoying and might actually put me off booking at all. I always used to book for week nights in my early days of seeing the RB as being in my early 20s there were other pressing matters to attend to at weekends, like going out dancing and partying. I worked and lived in London so it made perfect sense to go after work. Those were the days.