annamk

This opened yesterday evening, I was at the matinee today. I've seen it at every revival and I still find it a mesmerising, raw and powerful piece, perhaps even more than I did when I first saw it. Personally, I find it better not to spend too much time trying to work out the detail of what is happening; it wasn't entirely clear at the premiere and it still isn't. But for me the broad brush of the story line is there and is more than enough to be satisfying. The hypnotic beat of the music (brilliantly played by the ENB orchestra) drives the ballet forward and enhances the sense of raw and ferocious tribal energy in the opening choreography. I love the choreography: there is a frantic intensity for much of the corps in Act 1, but moments of stillness too. In Act 2 the Willis are terrifying, but the final pdd for Giselle and Albrecht is sublime, full of tenderness and forgiveness. I found this afternoon's principle performers simply superb: Giselle (Fernanda Oliveira), Albrecht (Aitor Arrieta), Erik Woolhouse making a stunning debut as Hilarion. The second circle was filled with many young teen school kids and it must be a huge tribute to the quality of the performance to note that even in the quiet moments you could have heard a pin drop (except for a mobile phone going off which I cannot say belonged to the kids) !

I think I made a mistake here and it was Hinkis/Sambe not Choe/Acri.

Definitely the tempo of the music has been slowed down. Extensions are higher and the feet not as quick. Is it better, worse or just different - I tend to prefer it quicker. There are many examples - I was watching Swan Lake Ashton’s Neapolitan Dance a few months ago and there was a noticeable difference between Sleep/Taylor and Acri/Choe.

I agree, avoid the stalls. You could take the 2nd row seats and if some of you are taller than others you can swap around but also take cushions with you to sit on - the seats are loose chairs. Or you could look at the Mikhailovsky - it is a lovely historic theatre, smaller than the Mariinsky. Their productions of the classics are charming and the cafe has the best cakes !

I went to the matinee today - Programme B. I didn't originally book for any performances. I thought I'd seen Revelations enough times and wasn't particularly inspired to go. So glad I did - and with the excellent ticket offer. What a TERRIFIC programme. Three great pieces I hadn't seen before: EN, The Call and Juba. All different in style and music but totally worked together as a bill. In all three pieces the choreography was always interesting, the (recorded) music appealing (and not deafening), the costumes attractive and the lighting and staging simple but effective. Revelations, like always, sent everyone off in great spirits. As for the dancers - they were mesmerising, outstanding. Sad that this has sold so badly, maybe too many performances ? Maybe not marketed well. Honestly anyone who loves dance should really go and see this.

I have not sat in the 1st tier but in the dress circle the seating is not raked enough for me (I am 5ft 4") so that if you are in row 2 you can find your view very obstructed by a tall person in front of you. Personally I would choose to sit in the front row further on the side rather than more central 2nd row. If you are a group maybe you can buy some front row and some 2nd row and put the shorter people in the front row !

Thank you Anna, a very interesting read. I hope it comes to London.

I've been to both cities for the ballet and I agree with others here who favour St Petersburg as a city. It's partly that it is just smaller, so more relaxing and it is more beautiful. I also personally think the Mariinsky theatre has more of a sense of history than the restored Bolshoi (called the Historic Stage on the Bolshoi website). I find Moscow like London price wise but St Petersburg more reasonable. You don't need to book a hotel to get a letter of invitation for the visa, you can just get the letter from an agency online. As for the tickets, make sure you are booking direct on the official theatre website and not through an agency: top price tickets on the Historic Stage (for productions like Swan Lake) are 15,000 roubles which is about £190, for productions on the "New Stage" for example Onegin or La Sylphide top price is 5000 roubles. https://www.bolshoi.ru/en/

This probably belongs in a separate thread but since it has been raised here. I agree that you do not need to be tall to be elegant, or to have a line and being tall does not necessarily confer elegance or line automatically. I think it is about proportion and maybe technique .... I am less sure. To me Campbell does not have a beautiful or elegant line, whereas James Hay who is a similar height does, as of course does the taller Vadim Muntagirov. Interestingly, I don't feel that Matthew Ball does although he is tall. They are just a few examples.

Surely Royal Ballet current principal Alexander Campbell does not belong in a thread of under appreciated dancers ? I can see that for those people for whom he is a favourite would like to see him cast in everything eg Romeo but maybe KoH is trying to pursue a policy of casting more to type e.g. neither McRae nor Campbell as Onegin. Campbell has plenty of opportunities.

They have updated the link now and there are actually more tickets with discounted prices. But they have quite a hefty extra charge so don't buy anything that isn't discounted.

A few thoughts from Thursday and last night. The production is sunny and joyful, after the initial scene with the doddery Don Q & Sancho Panza, the lights go on and the stage is filled to bursting with colourful dancers. I felt as though I smiled all evening on Thursday. The reviews I have read so far may only have been 3 stars but I agree with my friend who said she got more than 3 stars worth of enjoyment out of it. I enjoyed the performances of the leads. Shrainer is good dancer with a nice jump, her fouettes were strong except for the untidy finish and she has a warm smiley presence. Tsvirko has a strong stage presence but for me his acting was slightly too hammy and his dancing slightly underwhelming. Some of the partnering, the lifts particularly ,was wobblier than I would have expected from a dancer of his experience. On Friday evening Basilio was David Mottta Soares, a later addition to the casting. He''s a young (22) Brazilian who finished his training at the Bolshoi Academy and then joined the company. Although he is still only an artist (although surely not for long) he has already danced a number of lead roles in Moscow - Albrecht, Franz, Romeo. From his performance last night it was easy to see why he has been singled out. He is a tall, slender dancer with great elevation, an excellent turner he finishes neatly, he partnered well (no trace of nerves, no problem with those fiendish one handed lifts). His Kitri, the formidable and experienced Ekaterina Krysanova , was clearly delighted with him, warmly embracing him at the curtain calls. Krysanova herself was faultless in dancing and characterisation; I know fouettes aren't the be all and end of a performance but Krysanova's speed and attack was quite astonishing - as my friend said it was all over in 60 seconds. Noteworthy performances over the 2 evenings from Daria Khokhlova (Kitri's friend), Biktimirov (Espada) Vlashinets (Street Dancer) Sharova (Mercedes). I'm not sure that I think all the changes in this 2016 production are for the better. Maybe my memory is faulty but I think that some of the choreography is less spectacular than it used to be.

All the casts are ridiculously tempting but if I could only see one it would have to be Fernanda Oliveira, Aitor Arrieta and Erik Woolhouse. IMO Arrieta has a very special quality; he had great chemistry with Oliveira when he stepped in to replace an injured Fernando Bufala, of real interest too is Erik Woolhouse (winner of YBDY 2014) as Hilarion.

😂! Autocorrect SkvortsovA Actually I omitted to say that I have also enjoyed the pd3 the choreography is lovely and the friends have danced to a high standard. Last night was Bochkova/Shrainer.

Back for another Swan Lake yesterday evening The leads were Krysanova/Belyakov. Krysanova was technically very good as you would expect but she also expressed vulnerability and showed emotion to her prince. The white and white act pdd were well executed. Krysanova's fouettes were very strong and fast : she did singles and doubles and some pirouettes a la seconde although she travelled slightly; there was plenty of enthusiasm in the audience at her super quick pique turns (?). Overall I found her different to the other Odette/Odiles I've seen rather than superior/inferior. Possibly because she’s smaller in stature she isn’t as striking and she makes slightly less impact., or maybe it's just me. Idk. I was looking forward to seeing Belyakov because his Crassus was terrific (danced with charisma and technically strong) he is clearly the next star man ? In terms of stage presence he did not disappoint, he responded with feeling to Odette . His partnering was generally excellent although it has to be said that Krysanova turns so well all her partner has to do is make sure he doesn't pull her off centre (easier said than done ?) she is also smaller and slighter than some of the other Odettes so the high overhead lifts looked pretty effortless. Belaykov's dancing in Act one was impressive, he has great elevation in his jumps which combined with his height looked pretty spectacular. But his solos in the black act were more effortful, his landings were heavier and, like 2 other Siegfrieds before him, his finishes in the manege of assembles were sloppy - I don't understand all 3 Siegfried's who have chosen this particular variation can't execute it tidily. Why don't they do something different ? Am I misunderstanding the step they're executing ? In his enthusiasm Belyakov ran on too early in the final scene - the swans were not properly in place. I feel there are some mitigating factors : we have to make allowance for the smaller stage, for a tall man like Belaykov there is presumably some adjustment to made so you don't end up in the orchestra pit; the workload here in London is heavy at the end of an already long season, Belyakov has already danced Crassus here a number of times. As a couple I felt Krysanova/Belyakov were better suited than Stepanova/Ovchrenko and I was left wondering whether they might have been better the other way round. As for the corps the dancing was excellent and co-ordinated as it has been on every occasion. I have liked the dancers in the waltz generally the same names every evening ( Severnard, Zhiganshina, Trikoz, Yakusheva, Kromushin, Alexeyev, Motta Soares (looking forward to his Basilio) and Efimov (another to watch). As I said before I love the national dances, I prefer them on pointe even though I know they really shouldn't be. The Russian dance is particularly beautiful in choreography and the solo violin music. Last night was danced by rising star Denisova but I have to say I much preferred Skvortsov the previous evening. Anna Tikhomirova who made such an impression on these boards in the last Bolshoi tour has been present most evenings as either the Spanish or Neapolitan both of which she has danced with joy and vivacity. I liked Marchenkova's Hungarian bride and Severnard's Polish bride. There has been much to enjoy although I have not been at all moved in the performances, maybe I've seen too many Swan Lakes ? I think this production and it's ending is difficult to love.

Really, thanks for that useful comment.

This is a ballet lovers forum so why do you think it is an appropriate place to make offensive and upsetting comments like this ? It is nothing to do with ballet, is not in the spirit of this site and it spoils the positive and courteous atmosphere that exists here.

I've seen 2 more Swan Lakes both with the principal cast Stepanova/Ovcharenko. She has a curious history: having languished in the Mariinsky corps she made her way to the Bolshoi maybe 4 years ago (via a spell at the Stanislavsky). She joined the Bolshoi as a Soloist and was promoted straight to Principal not long after the last London tour. Anyway, I enjoyed her performances, she is technically strong, her Odette has an attractive soulful quality and her Odile is steely. Unfortunately, she had to emote for two because her handsome partner was mostly rather blank. Maybe it was a conscious decision on Ovcharenko's part to interpret Siegfried as such or maybe he doesn't have much charisma, he certainly did not command the stage in any way yesterday evening. They did not seem well matched to me emotionally and physically was not ideal either as she is too tall for him on pointe. He has a good physique, a reasonably attractive line, he can jump and he lands softly but much of his dancing was actually quite muted, somehow lacking in energy and his black act solo on both occasions was sloppy with clumsy landings. The corps and soloist performances were of a high standard and again I enjoyed all the national dances hugely.

Very sad news. John was a lovely man - a quiet gentleman. He will be much missed.

Thank you Sebastian.

I went yesterday evening and to the matinee today. I remember really disliking the production last time so I was surprised to feel that, apart from the very dated sets and costumes, I enjoyed it. I agree with Capybara's pluses above but not really about the central performances of the young couple this this afternoon which, unexpectedly, I enjoyed more than I did the first cast evening. IMO Tissi's height, long limbs and looks take him a long way in a ballet like Swan Lake. To me he looked elegant and commanding on stage and although his solos were certainly not executed at the level of say Vadim Muntagirov I thought his dancing was more than respectable, as was his partnering, excepting the high overhead lifts which were heroic (Kovalyova is 5ft 10"). He had a more vivid stage presence than that of Chudin on Friday evening who seemed rather oddly muted. Kovalyova is, I think, only 20 and her youth gives her an appealing vulnerability as Odette but her black act was impressively steely (unlike Smirnova who rather faded in the black act). The final scene was a highlight in Kovalyova's performance, she used her extraordinary body to show us Odette's sorrow & despair. Tissi's entrance at the lakeside was tremendous, reminding me of Bonelli in his prime (and no one ever ran on stage like Bonelli in that final scene). The corps were commendably synchronised although maybe they lack the lyricism of the Mariinsky. I was impressed with Zhiganshina in the pd3 and she, Vinogradova, and Severnard in the character dances. I think Siegfried's choreography in this version requires incredible stamina. The audience seemed very appreciative, the curtain calls were enthusiastic with many in the back part of the stalls standing.

Exactly my picks too

All tickets now spoken for.

Only D44 for Sat eve is left.

Have sent you a PM for 17th