jmhopton

I wish the RB would announce their new season. Even if they can't perform all of it it would be wonderful to have something to look forward to. If they're waiting for a steer from the government about opening theatres I fear we're in for a long wait.

Yes that seems a good idea. Why didn't I think of that?

This time it actually says at the bottom of the page that all other monies for that order will be refunded. I did consider filling in another form and asking for a credit note for the second ticket but thought that might confuse things. I suppose you could fill in two forms and specify dates and seats on each form if there is room. Ironically the previous refund situation did seem to allow you more flexibility per ticket even within the same order no. Though it could be more time consuming and no option for a partial donation. Perhaps they will get it right third time if the July operas and RB school show have to be cancelled

I've had my email about the cancellations but having just followed the link the options still didn't allow me to carry out what I wanted. I wanted to donate one of my Swan lake tickets and have the other credited to future performances. But if you want to do a partial donation there is no option for a credit note with the rest (or not if it's on the same order No.). You just get the rest refunded back to your account. OK for me but I would rather have had the remainder at least stay in the ROH and earned a bit of interest for them and not so much capital outlay for me when we can book again. I was able to donate my Thurrock tour cost (disappointing to miss this as I'm not often in London on Friday mornings and this was arranged for the day after stopping over for the RB triple bill and BRB at Sadlers Wells) and got the reply thanking me for donating. Now I just need to cancel the hotel. One disappointment after the other. Just hope now all this is sorted we can soon hear plans for next season. I know it will have needed a lot of tweaking to accommodate performances we've lost this season but we all need something to look forward to and a bit of light at the end of the tunnel.

Must try and see this to see Anastasia and try not to think it should have been the day when I saw the debut of Sambe/Magri in Swan Lake. How long ago it all seemed.

I'm sorry to have missed this as I'd have loved to have seen her. I remember her being born in this country when the Kirov (as they were then) were on tour here in the early 1990s. I remember Zaklinsky appearing at the stage door at the Coliseum looking very bleary and saying he hadn't been getting much sleep! On their next visit a couple of years later I took a photo of him carrying her through the stage door. She had her mother's lovely dark hair (though hers was wavy) and very dark eyes. She's obviously been steeped in ballet from an early age so it's not surprising she became a dancer. Hopefully they may repeat Giselle at some point. I'd love to see her as I'm sure she will be a great dancer if she's anything like her mother.

Hi Balletfanp and JohnS I was just going to do it. hadn't realised people had already seen it. Well done the BBC! Last Sunday night (15th March) it was wonderful to settle down and watch the incredible ballet Mayerling danced and acted impeccably by the fabulous Royal Ballet. In these uncertain times it was such a treat to switch off from the everyday depressing reality and be transported to another world and another time. It was a wonderful tonic for the soul and the senses; you could really engage with the struggles and problems of the characters and forget your own problems. The two ballet documentaries that followed were really good as well; a remarkable evening of tv heaven. I hear too more is to come when the BBC launch their Dance Season a little later this year. It's just what's needed in these uncertain times when visits to the theatre to see the 'real thing' will become just a memory. Returning my Swan Lake tickets won't seem such a hardship if I can rely on evenings like this on the television. Long may they continue! I've only ever written 3 letters to the Radio Times; all were about ballet and all were published. the first one got Letter of the Week as well. Perhaps someone who works there is a ballet fan. Just realised this was a copy of the actual letter I wrote. Not sure if it's exactly what the Radio Times reproduced. Sometimes they alter things a little. Yes they cut out the bit about engaging with the struggles and problems of the characters and also the last sentence which i thought was rather important!

According to the box office no tickets for the Linbury heritage programme have been put aside for public booking.

ROH Twitter says it's to be followed by a repeat of the Kenneth Macmillan documentary Dark Knight and both will be available on iplayer afterward.

Was listening to the requests programme on Classic FM this afternoon and there was an advert for the ROH which I didn't recall hearing before. it went something like 'if you want a night at the opera but can't make the theatre go and see the Royal Opera production of Fidelio at the cinema on March 17th' . It then followed it by saying You can also see the ballet Swan Lake at the cinema on April 1st. Why start off saying a night a the opera if you were also including ballet in your advert? Surely they could have said something like 'If you want to see world class opera and ballet but can't get to London you can see Fidelio and Swan Lake in cinemas worldwide'. Classic FM is broadcast all over the world but I don't think there was a mention of the international reach of the cinema broadcasts. A little later on there was a request for Swan Lake music by a lady who sounded super excited as she was having her first visit to the ROH tonight to see Nunez/Muntagirov in Swan Lake. Lucky lady to see such exceptional dancers in such a great production as her introduction to the ROH! I only hope she has good enough tickets to see everything and would be interested to know what she made of her experience if she reads this column.

Beatrix was also really excellent as The Girl in Two Pigeons. I too hope she will have more high profile roles in the future.

Sorry Toursenlair, I expressed myself badly there; a bit over dramatic! What I meant to say was that for me the overall season is rather disappointing and as I am not personally a great Balanchine fan the fact that the only ballet that might tempt me to see anything was one of his is indicative as to how disappointing the rest of the offerings were though I am hoping to see Brandon Lawrence in Don Q though I'm not a great fan of Carlos' production. I do hope to see this triple bill at Sadlers Wells as when public booking opens I'm hoping to book for a couple of ROH triple bills on the 10/11 June specifically so I can see the BRB matinee at Sadlers Wells on the 11th. So hopefully I will be won over and enjoy the other 2 items on offer. I've also booked a tour round the costumes at Thurrock on the Friday morning so a great cultural few days!! Apologies also for forgetting that Pineapple Poll is by Cranko. It's just it's so fun and light hearted it always makes me think of Ashton. I'm always getting it wrong.

David Bintley used to be a good curator for some more unusual Ashton that the RB have rather abandoned such as Pineapple Poll and Daphnis and Chloe. I've a feeling I saw both in a triple bill at Birmingham only a few years ago with (I think) Checkmate, another great ballet that no one seems to do any more. It's triple bills like this, interesting but a bit different that I think are great programmes whereas none of Carlos' triple bills seem to contain much of the heritage he pledges to preserve. None of them make me want to travel 100 miles to Birmingham or 200 miles to London. The only ballet that might tempt me is Themes and Variations. I'm not even a great Balanchine admirer so if that's the only attraction it's scraping the barrel for me. Also I think his small scale programme could be a big mistake unless he puts more traditional ballets with the modern ones already announced. Places that don't get much traditional ballet see the words 'Royal Ballet' and many immediately think tutus, pointe shoes and classical music because they think thats what the Royal Ballet is all about. I know the RB Dance Bites programme suffered from this misconception when it used to visit Blackpool and possibly other places as well. People felt mislead. However, London City Ballet and ENB Tour de Force planned really good programmes for small towns with a great mixture of classical and modern ballets? and were really well received.

This is exciting news though a shame its only for one night. I haven't seen ballet at the Albert Hall since the Bolshoi brought their series of ballet suites there in the 1990s. Frankly the sight line problems we had then put me off seeing ballet at the Albert Hall ever again. Does anyone have advice, please, either on reccommended seats or seats definitely to avoid?

Well the Palace theatre suits me very well. Can get the train direct and it's only just across the road from the station. Just hope the return trains are OK. Tamara's take on Raymonda sounds intriguing. If ever there was a ballet story that could benefit from a sympathetic reconstruction I think it's Raymonda. Even by ballet standards it always seemed a particular non story with endless variations. The only interesting character being the villain! Looking forward to it and as a proud northerner thrilled it's being premiered here, hopefully with Alina on opening night.

I signed in and it worked fine. Very good quality broadcast. I had seen it earlier at Blackpool Odeon cinema as Preston don't seem to be showing the Bolshoi. I was impressed with the sets and costumes. The hunting scene in particular was very opulent looking and the white horses very splendid though unlike the pony in Fille they didn't really seem to add anything to the production. Liked the idea of the castle in the backdrop in act one so we see where Albrecht really comes from. It did look rather Disneyish but then Disney's trademark castle was modelled on the Bavarian castle of King Ludwig so it might be more authentic than it looked. Liked the backdrop in Act 2 with the church in the distance and convenient lake for the death of Hilarian! (Hans in this production.) I'm no authority on dance technique but the dancing looked good to me. Liked the characterisation and acting of both Hans and Albrecht's squire whose name was mentioned in the broadcast but not in the cast sheet. Thought Belyakov was a terrific Albrecht both in acting and dancing. He reminded me a little bit of Matthew Ball or Vladimir Shklyarov. Here was someone who seemed genuinely in love with Giselle and was devastated by her death and repentant in the last act. Their final moments together I find almost unbearably poignant. I'm afraid Smirnova did little for me. She didn't seem to me to be a young Giselle yet she didn't have the warm personality and infectious smile that makes someone like Nunez still make us believe she is a young person very much in love. I'm sure her dancing was excellent but I didn't really get a sense of her 'journey' from young person in love to the madness of betrayal. I thought her more believable in the second act and admired the way she stood up to Myrtha and the Wilis in defence of her man. it was interesting to see a sympathetic Bathilde that I actually quite warmed to and sympathized with as well in her moment of betrayal. Some of the mime scenes seemed a bit rushed. I was barely aware of Albrecht discarding the daisy petal though the scene was rather confused as for some reason Giselle took 2 daisies. Also when Giselle was taken ill when dancing, to start with the camera was too far away from her to see what she was doing and when it got closer she didn't seem to be miming anything that specified illness. I thought I know what she's meant to be doing but I can't see her doing it so if you were new to the ballet I don't know what you might have thought. Also Berthes 'wili' mime was rather truncated and didn't really seem to make sense. Once I got used to it I quite liked the second act starting and ending with the 'real people' even though the ones at the start reminded me of the 'yokels' in The Dream! I thought Angelina Vlashintets (never heard of her before) a terrific Myrthe and someone you definately wouldn't want to meet in the dark! The corps de ballet were terrific also and I loved the aerial shots that I usually dislike, as they were used sparingly but to great effect though I wish they'd used one to see the wilis crossing the stage which is my favourite moment in the ballet. I thought when they lined up in a cross formation was especially effective from high up even though it perhaps seemed an odd thing to do as they were so allergic to the cross! The only thing that slightly spoiled the stage crossing and other jumping especially in the second act was their stage landings were very audible. I think it must be more to do with the stage than individual dancers. Did they not have a properly sprung stage when the Bolshoi was renovated not very long ago? Some of the special effects I could have done without. Not sure about the Wilis veils being whizzed off them and the shots of Myrthe and Giselle 'flying'. the appearing of Giselle rising up from the depths was very effective as was her second act disappearance from the top of the tombstone she was lying on into the earth and where she had been been lying covered up with greenery. The final mime she gave to Albrecht to marry Bathilde I found very touching too as was the entire final scene. However I never wish to see another Myrthe cross the stage on an electric scooter!! As others have pointed out the performance was rather spoiled by the continuous clapping and I couldn't believe it when they started clapping along to the music in Giselle's poignant act 2 solo! I know Russian audiences do participate more than we do but there should be limits. But on the whole I found much to admire in the new Ratmansky Giselle and I hope they bring it next time they come as I'd like to see it with a different Giselle though the same Albrecht.

Great to see the collaboration between Marston/Cuthbertson/Sambe. it seems a real team effort and some of the pas de deux look really dramatic and exciting. Must be wonderful for Marcellino to have his first major role choreographed on him. A great milestone in his career. I hope it's a success. there still seem to be plenty of tickets on sale. Looking forward to seeing the first cast at the cinema and second cast at the ROH though once again shame about no matinees. I'm sure I'm not the only person who can't get home at night and appreciates a matinee (even if tickets are now full price!). Also for a programme which isn't so well known or obviously appealing to non-ballet regulars I'm sure people are put off attending if they know they have to pay extra for accommodation. I would have thought if one of the evening performances had been a Saturday matinee it would have done better.

Yes I saw the photo of Vadim. It's lovely. He looks about 18 never mind 28! Many thanks for the info Capybara. I'll keep checking the website.

Do we have any idea when and where details of tonight's meeting will be available, please?

I actually hadn't realised this was on at the same time so thanks very much for telling me. I might follow your example and try and get a cheap ticket for Themes and Variations matinee and not bother with the others.

I've been thinking I've hardly seen Tristan Dyer since the Bernstein triple. Has he been injured? I even wondered if he'd left the RB but he still seems to be in the list of soloists. Unfortunately the only matinee doesn't have an evening performance either the same day or previous day. So if I want to see both casts I will have to have 2 overnight stays. At least there is a matinee which is more than there is for the Dante Project and the modern triple. So if i was tempted by the fabulous casting (versus, for me, the potentially dubious choreography of the latter two), I would have to pay for a hotel as well. It's not going to happen! (I know I can see Dante at the cinema and don't know if I can even bring myself to do that.) No mention of Vadim in the casting. That seems to mean since his Sleeping Beauty last week he's only doing a few Swan Lakes and presumably the Gala between now and the new season in September/October. I know he'll be guesting elsewhere but still... Perhaps he'll say in the Ballet Circle talk this evening what his future plans are.

I know about the Cranko estate but the RB currently has so many great dancers who are ready or will be ready in the next couple of years to dance any of the four leading roles as well as others who debuted this time who I'm sure would love to reprise their roles before too long it would be terrible if we (and they) had to wait another five years to see them. I also wonder if the cinema broadcast has some influence on Kevin O'Hare's decision. Full length classical ballets are probably the 'best sellers' from this point of view (though I admire Kevin' O'Hare's recent commitment to filming mixed bills and modern work). However, putting on a full length work that probably won't be allowed to be filmed might play some part in negatively influencing his commitment to repeating Onegin (though I hope not!!).

Thanks Sim

Come rather late to this Saturday night thread to have everything I was going to say already said!! I totally agree with everything said by pas de deux. All four leading dancers were truly excellent but it was Ball's performance which has remained with me longest. To start with he looked like a poet. With those Byronic good looks I kept expecting him to dash off a sonnet! His dancing was impeccable. I think I've only seen Vadim do the act 2 solo as good as him. But it was his acting that made his performance so memorable. I was glued to that solo in particular with my binoculars and you could clearly see every tormented 'what have I done' expression clearly etched on his face. It was so sad, such a waste of a loving, thoughtful, honourable human being it was almost unbearable. Like others I hope we don't have to wait too long for his Onegin debut but it would be great if he could alternate both roles in the same run like Alina did with Tatiana and Olga. if his Onegin is half as good as his Lensky it will be totally mesmerising. I'm sure the same goes for Vadim as well. The other three were virtually as good. Reece had a tremendous debut; well done him! I never understood why he wasn't promoted in September (same with Joseph Sissens). However not being promoted doesn't seemed to have harmed their careers as they've been awarded great roles since. Like pas de deux I thought he grew into the role the more the ballet progressed and by the final pas de deux the House was transfixed, not a cough or a whisper (even the chatty people standing near me shut up!). Then when the curtain came down there was a huge spontaneous roar of approval and appreciation which was so well deserved. For Osipova as well as Reece. She too acted and danced as if she was possessed and the final pas de deux was almost unbearable in it's poignancy. I mustn't forget Francesca and Gary Avis who both contributed terrifically to the amazing whole with their dancing and acting. I thought the corps de ballet were great too. I love some of the Cranko choreographic touches such as the 'gallop' across the stage (twice!) and the waltz where the girls raise both legs in the air. Both very simple but amazingly effective. The four turns in the mirror pas de deux when Tatiana is completely wrapped round Onegin are fabulous too. I thought the first one was a bit tentative, the second one was good and the last two really stunning. I really enjoy the music too. To me it doesn't feel at all like a 'cobbled together' score even though it's taken from several Tchaikovsky sources, mainly the Seasons. The music enhances the ballet and contributes to the drama. Well done to Cranko or whoever compiled it. Can't wait for my next Onegin this Friday (more debuts!) and really pleased I am seeing two performances of both these two casts. Has Anna Rose played Olga before? Like others I hope we don't have to wait too long for this great ballet to be revived. So many great debuts to come (especially Vadim's!!!) However, it is always annoying that the RB invest so much time and effort into getting everything so right for this ballet and yet they're never allowed to film it for the cinema. Please Mr Reid Anderson let that happen next time. Let the world see this wonderful ballet performed as immaculately and passionately as it should be!!!

I've got a very old recording (possibly introduced by Margot Fonteyn), of London Festival Ballet as they then were dancing Graduation Ball and The Sanguine Fan. Would be great to see them. Graduation Ball in particular used to be a fairly standard ballet for companies but now seems to have fallen out of favour along with many ballets that can't be easily pigeon holed into modern, classical or heritage ballets.