Ian Macmillan

Further to Wulff's final sentence, above, I have been told that, in days now long gone by, two seats for Royal Ballet performances were routinely reserved in the Grand Tier for the Queen Mother and Princess Margaret and released an hour or so before Curtain Up if they did not plan to attend.

Tony: Your observation noted - but have you any idea of whether your career progression might have been better, and I take it that you were able to continue beyond, say, age 35 or so? Naomi: Your remarks go along way towards explaining why we see so many Japanese dancers here and in Europe.

For anyone interested in historical comparisons, the basic dancer's rate at the ROH in 1957 was £7-10 shillings/week, making £390/year. This rate applied under the 'Esher Standard Contract for Ballet, approved by the London and Provincial Theatre Councils,' and the contract was between each dancer and David Webster, the then Chief Exec. In 1963, the minimum rates were: Corps 1st Year - £9/week rising to £12/week Corps 2nd Year - £14/week Corps 3rd Year - £16/week Coryphee - £16-10s/week Soloists - £18/week Principals - £25/week Touring allowances in the UK and Eire: essentially £5/week. The period of engagement was to not more than 48 weeks, but with 4 weeks paid holiday for those with more than 3 years' service. (2 weeks for those with less than 3 years or leaving of their own volition.)

I have not seen the stage version, but caught the film in Cambridge last night. It is a bit long - be ready for 3 hours without interval, including ads etc. From press reviews, I had known it would be sung start to finish with, in effect, recitative passages - and so it is. I found some of the close-up work a bit relentless and occasionally closed my eyes to just listen but, overall, I was quite impressed with the result. The voices vary in quality, as one might expect from non-singers, and I can imagine that stage musical lovers might be put off as a result. The best were, I'd say, Anne Hathaway as Fantine and Samantha Barks as Eponine, both excellent - something that the girl singing the older Cosette with a tremulous vibrato was not, I'm afraid. Hugh Jackman handled the Valjean part with assurance, making no effort to be a Micael Ball or Alfie Boe tenor, and was entirely credible; Russell Crowe's voice was very much of one colour as Javert but his performance did all that was needed. Eddie Redmayne as Marius had some very nicely voiced tenor moments indeed. And Ms Bonham Carter wore her hair much as she always seems to do - predictable, but effective for what was asked of her. And just a word on the young lad, Daniel Huttlestone, who carried off the Gavroche Jack-the-lad part with aplomb. It emerged as the credits rolled that he was in the house, together with quite a party of family and friends. No surprise to overhear that he's also playing the Artful Dodger in Oliver in town at the moment!

Strictly speaking, for me Matthew Bourne's Sleeping Beauty missed 2012 by just 2 days, but it was so thoroughly enjoyable I have to mention it here. (And I'd also been quite taken by his touring Early Adventures bill, as I recall.) Beyond that, just some brief, random recollections: Ballet Boyz, The Talent - an exuberant, indeed exhausting show but the work seemed very samey. Heresy, I know, but I seem to recall suggesting that the addition of a couple of girls would have helped. Ballet Black's “Storyville” touring bill - a good show. Chris Hampson's Storyville covered the narrative succinctly and I remember being rather impressed by Sarah Kundi in one of the supporting pieces. Royal Ballet of Flanders: William Forsythe’s “Artifact” was odd but intriguing, with some strange wandering and garrulous characters. Scottish Ballet and Ashley Page's “Streetcar Named Desire": this proved to be intelligently conceived narrative dance, clear and direct, almost certainly as a result of involving a theatrical director alongside the choreographer. That clarity was widely held to have been missing from Liam Scarlett's complex narrative Sweet Violets for the Royal Ballet, a piece that was nonetheless full of good moments. San Francisco Ballet did what they do so well in their Triple Bill - a wonderful company. The Royal Ballet's MacMillan Triple Bill did not disappoint, with “Las Hermanas” something I'd particularly looked forward to. The Bolshoi's “Pharaoh’s Daughter” in HD streaming - a joke! The Royal Ballet's live streaming day, class, rehearsals etc was simply addictive! Not as much Zenaida Yanowsky in the year as I might have liked, but there might never be enough either.

I've bumped this as a reminder to myself, first of all, to get a response in - hopefully tomorrow once I've gone through last year's Diary - but all are free to join in. Don't let Janet's response discourage you - short and pithy works too!

Well, there was little chance of my going, but that Trailer eclipses any lingering possibility. The music and action in such clips is often not well-matched, of course, but just that hint of the likely treatment of the Lachrymosa from Mozart's Requiem convinces me I should put my cash elsewhere. Not my cutting edge, I'm afraid - I've sung it too often to get in Schaufuss' groove.

As the day went on, my experience was of increasing and lengthening 'freezes' of the streaming and, eventually, around 7pm, I just gave up. There had been comments since the start by people having considerable difficulty in maintaining a picture. One response mentioned the ideal setups for reception and mine satisfied the requirements stated, so I'm left wondering what the problem was today as I don't recall there having been one on the RB streaming day last year. Different tech teams with different approaches? An inability of the servers involved to cope with increasing demand as the US population got involved? Who knows? It's a pity, because much of the day had been fascinating, and I'd say they have a bit of thinking to do before attempting another day like this one. (PS: to repeat: Kirsty should give up Newsnight, where she sounds just strident and looks miserable half the time - I'm sure she doesn't need the cash - and do more Arts stuff where she is patently happy, smiles, and is clearly at home. She has never been at success at emulating Paxman.)

Some Russian language coaching at the moment with the chap who did a night with us (Cambridge Phil chorus) a year or so back as we approached a performance of Prokofiev's Ivan Nevsky.

Like the Ballet day it's undeniably addictive, but I have to go out now! A fascinating tussle between Kasper Holten and Simon Keenlyside over a point of interpretation in rehearsal for Eugene Onegin about an hour ago. (And Kirsty Wark is once again confirming my impression that she is much more relaxed and happier doing Arts-related programmes than Newsnight.)

For the record and, if need be, further discussion: In today's Links, probably describing the same performance of In the Night as Ms Levene, I note that Judith Mackrell (Guardian) remarks on Yanowsky and Kish as being "unnerving in their mutual ironic reserve." And behind the Times paywall today, Debra Craine has the pair as "strangely disengaged" in the same work. (And whilst we're at it, Ms Craine also notes Mr Kish's "lacklustre Jean de Brienne" in Raymonda Act III.) Personally, were I ever to be within touching distance of Ms Yanowsky, I fear that I'd be so tongue-tied and overcome with genuine reserve that 'doltish' would be a hopelessly inadequate epithet for the situation. And I can say with some confidence that I would be rendered incapable of dealing with any nearby flat-pack wardrobe requiring assembly.

In this centenary year, from the pages of Nicolas Slonimsky's "Lexicon of Musical Invective" I give you: Who wrote this fiendish Rite of Spring, What right had he to write the thing, Against our helpless ears to fling Its crash, clash, cling, clang, bing, bang, bing? And then to call it Rite of Spring, The season when on joyous wing The birds melodious carols sing And Harmony's in everything! He who could write the Rite of Spring, If I be right, by right should swing! From the Boston Herald of 9 February 1924 - by when one might have thought the fuss of 1913 would have died down somewhat, but clearly not so. And where stands such an appreciation today? If all else fails, take refuge in the oft-repeated line that today's newspaper is tomorrow's fish and chip wrapping .... well it used to be, but I rather think the Elf n' Safety tendency may have put an end to that these days. (Nicolas Slonimsky was dedicatee of John Adams' Slonimsky's Earbox.)

Safely back after a mildly prolonged bus journey - ah, the joys of weekend rail travel - and I'm happy to third Bruce's sentiments, and to have had a chance to put faces to some names. Well done, indeed.

Not just TfL - looks like it's Bus + Train from here tomorrow. We shall overcome!

Links – Saturday January 5, 2013 Preview – Liam Scarlett/Miami City Ballet, Euphotic: Jordan Levin, Miami Herald Feature – Paris Opera Ballet at 300: Martine Robert, Les Echos (Via Worldcrunch) Review – Royal Ballet, Firebird, In the Night, Raymonda Act III: Louise Levene, Telegraph Preview – English National Ballet, Sleeping Beauty: Graham Watts, LondonDance Feature – Daria Klimentová – her daily routine .. and her cat: Jessica Salter, Telegraph Home town commemoration of Sir Kenneth MacMillan: Lucy Clapham, Eastern Daily Press Preview – “Ballet’s Greatest Hits” Gala Performance: Cloe Cabrera, Tampa Bay Online Review – Northern Ballet, The Nutcracker: Stephanie Ferguson, Yorkshire Evening Post Reviews – Fuerzabruta, The Roundhouse, London: Sarah Hemming, Financial Times Bruce Dessau, Evening Standard Montreal Preview – Billy Elliot the Musical: Victor Swoboda, Montreal Gazette Photo Exhibition, London: Now is all there is – Bodies in Motion: Charlotte Cripps, Independent Preview – Sarasota Ballet, Inside the Studio Series, 2013: Carrie Seidman, Sarasota Herald-Tribune

Links – Friday January 4, 2013 Obituary – Brenda Averty, Dancer & Choreographer: Gerald Masters, Guardian Review – Scottish Ballet, The Nutcracker: Zoë Anderson, Independent 25 Dancers and Companies to Watch in 2013: Wendy Perron & Staff, Dance Magazine Some London Highlights in 2013: Neil Norman, Express Review – Fuerzabruta, The Roundhouse, London: Zoë Anderson, Independent Nureyev’s Legacy in Paris: AFP Staff, News Tribe Preview – New York City Ballet in January & February: BWW Staff, Broadway World Edited later to add: It will be behind the Times paywall, but today's Times 2 has a feature on 'Names to drop in 2013' and in Dance, Debra Craine has chosen the RB's Dawid Trzensimiech.

Lynette: By last night I'd forgotten that Matthew had said that about the 'baby.' And as rapturous as was the reception at the end for the cast, had the puppet been produced I'm sure the roof would have been brought down - and I, for one, felt 'she' was a bit of an omission!

Links – Thursday January 3, 2013 Review – Matthew Bourne/New Adventures, Sleeping Beauty: Roslyn Sulcas, NY Times Stravinsky and the modernism that still has the power to stir: Sarah Bakewell, Guardian Gallery (18 shots) – Royal Ballet Firebird Bill: Tristram Kenton, Guardian Feature – “The Enchanted Wanderers,” Ballet Memorabilia Exhibition: Robert Johnson, NJ Star-Ledger Dancer Exchanges announced – American Ballet Theater, Royal Ballet, Royal Danish Ballet: Daniel J. Wakin, NY Times Five Song-and-Dance Movie Tough Guys: Liesl Bradner, LA Times 2012 Dance in San Francisco: Paul Parish, Bay Area Reporter 2013 – A Canadian Dance Preview: Paula Citron, Globe and Mail Preview – “Focus Dance” at New York’s Joyce Theater: Valerie Gladstone, City Arts Video - Kite Ballet in Sunderland: Mark Masterson, Sky News Costume Issues for Turkish Ballet? Staff, Hurriyet Daily News And as the holiday season ends, back to: Ballet-Inspired Workouts, A choice of seven: Louise McCready Hart, Huffington Post

Just back from tonight's storming performance at Sadler's Wells - a supremely well-wrought piece of theatre. If you can make it before 26 January, just go!!

Katherine: A well-constructed Menu, and no surprise that there's a Pavlova in there. I understand that back in 1958, when the RB did its long Australia/NZ tour, in almost all of the places they went 'Pavlova Cake' would regularly be produced as 'something special for you folks.' (Possibly with some justification, as I'm not sure that it was something widely available over here by then - and it certainly wasn't anything I grew up with in the post-war West of Scotland.)

Links – Wednesday January 2, 2013 Reviews – Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, Laurencia etc (New York): Robert Gottlieb, NY Observer Apollinaire Scherr, Financial Times Feature/Interview – Yonah Acosta, ‘A Tough Nut To Crack ‘: Mark Riddaway, Covent Garden Journal Feature – Soledad Barrio teaching Flamenco class: Tobi Tobias, Arts Journal Review – Paris Opera Ballet, Forsythe/Brown Quad Bill: Wendy Perron, Dance Magazine Feature – Ballet Manila’s Outreach Programme: Teresa Cerojano (AP), Washington Times

Links – Tuesday January 1, 2013 A very happy New Year to all our users! (Some images at: NBC News Sky News BBC News ) Review – Boston Ballet, The Nutcracker: Alastair Macaulay, NY Times Feature – Danielle Rowe at Nederlands Dans Theater: Philippa Hawker, Sydney Morning Herald Video Games and Ballet?? Helen Lewis, New Statesman (Picks up on a NY Times link from last week.) A very personal look back at 2012: Laura Cappelle, Bella Figura Review – Royal Ballet, Firebird, In the Night, Raymonda Act III: Vera Liber, British Theatre Guide A personal Australian look at 2013/2012: Valerie Lawson, Dancelines ….. and don’t forget – The Vienna New Year’s Day Concert on TV, usually with some dance in pretty ritzy surroundings.

BBC 4 ran the film of the Royal Ballet's "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" a couple of nights ago - filmed in the early days of the 2-Act first run, and I'm fairly sure I was there that night. I greatly enjoyed it, though I do recall being a bit visually overwhelmed from time to time. Seeing it on the TV screen (not for the first time) I've come to enjoy it more and more, partially thanks to the restricted camera view and the close-ups of Lauren Cuthbertson that I find help the story along - just as they make me think more than I did on the night just how hard she had to work in that 70-minute first Act. (And I relish Zenaida's manic 'Red Adagio' more each time I see it!)

For anyone who may have missed this morning's Links, Pia Catton of the Wall Street Journal saw the RB Nutcracker live at the ROH on 13 December and then, again, as a HD Cinema screening back in New York some 10 days later. She compares the pluses and minuses of the two experiences here: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323820104578211783270850290.html Has anyone else been able to make a similar comparison?

Links – Monday December 31, 2012 Report & Reviews - 23rd International Ballet Festival of Havana, 2012: Sheila Cross, DanceTabs Being there: Is it over-rated? Pia Catton compares the same live & streamed performances of the Royal Ballet’s Nutcracker: Wall St Journal Review – Royal Ballet, Firebird, In the Night, Raymonda Act III: Judith Flanders, Arts Desk Looking into 2013: A general Arts survey with some Dance references: Jan Dalley, Financial Times Dance in UK: Judith Mackrell, Guardian … and back at 2012: London: Lynette Halewood, DanceTabs Bay Area: Mary Ellen Hunt, SF Chronicle Moscow: Laura Cappelle, Bella Figura/Time Out Moscow Interview – Chris Wheeldon, why Cinderella? Wiebke Hüster, Frankfurter Allgemeine (via Tanznetz.de)