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In this morning's Today's Links there is an article by Ismene Brown in Arts Desk regarding this thread and peoples' views of whether or not to see the Bolshoi in London this summer.

I've only just found this thread.....I'm so sorry your daughter was so unwell, Charlie, but the fact that you are at the ballet tonight shows that she is on the mend. For inspiration, you could tell her the story of Royal Ballet principal Lauren Cuthbertson, who was so ill three years ago that she couldn't get out of bed, and had to start walking again for two or three minutes at a time. From that state, she never gave up, returned to full health through good care and incredibly hard work, and returned to the stage much the better dancer than she had been before, both technically and, more especially, dramatically/emotionally. She had been out for a year. Unfortunately, she has been plagued by injuries since then, but is still fighting to come back strong again. Tell your dd that your mind can often beat your body if they work together. Do let us know how your evening went! By the way, I'm very impressed with your dd's drawing on the profile pic....for a 10 or 11 year-old, it's excellent!

Welcome Nottsballetlover, and thanks for posting...looking forward to hearing more from you! Like you I had to think long and hard before buying Bolshoi tickets, but finally decided on Flames of Paris and a couple of others.

Congratulations to all who made it through to the Upper School, but I feel incredibly sorry for those who started in Year 7, worked so hard all the way through and have not been assessed out, to be told they can't go through to the US. A real shame.

Gosh....this looks like a very interesting and varied season, especially at the Linbury. So pleased to be seeing Serenade again...that and Symphony in C are my favourite Balanchine pieces. I look forward to seeing the castings for all the productions! Many thanks for posting this up, eliamato.

Many thanks, as always, for this update, Angela. It looks like there are many interesting things coming up in your part of the world!

The dancers from Elmhurst performed a piece called 'Sailors'....and very good they were, too! The boys looked great - lovely, high, precise jumps, and it's so nice to see them all take off together and land together! The girls were also lovely, and the whole cast were very well rehearsed. They danced with character and really looked as if they were enjoying it. A real treat to see these students; I've never seen Elmhurst dancers before and now I'd like to see more! Ballet Central danced a very contemporary piece called Signature 31/30, and I very much enjoyed it. Again, a very good standard of dancing from all six of the students. Finally, English National Ballet School danced an ensemble piece called Une Lecture de Danse. A good showcase for the dancers, who all danced really well. This was more of a classical style. Three different schools, three different styles of dancing on display, with lots of good, talented future professionals on stage. What a treat it was to see them all. A very enjoyable evening overall, and I must say I wouldn't have liked to have been a judge. I think they made the right choices; I was very impressed with the three winners, but also with a few of the others as well. Isabelle Brouwers, who came second, really moved me with her interpretation of Nikiya's variation. She's only 17, but really managed to convey the emotion and tragedy of Nikiya's situation. That is very hard to do taken out of context of the whole ballet. She was beaming from ear to ear when she won second prize and looked absolutely thrilled. I look forward to seeing more of her in the future. Many congratulations to all the dancers.

Yes....this was my only viewing of this triple, and I enjoyed it. Apollo with Bonelli/Hamilton/Choe/Kobayashi was lovely....and there was no doubt about the moment Bonelli became a god! I enjoyed 24 Preludes very much, and it is a pity I can't see it again this run as there is so much to see. I was impressed by all the dancers, and must say that Melissa Hamilton and Fernando Montano kept up to the same standards as the six principals with whom they shared the stage. It was a pity what was done to Chopin's music; maybe if Ratmansky had kept to the piano version it would have invited even more comparisons with Dances At A Gathering!! Other people have disliked the girls' costumes; I quite liked them, but could do without the crinkling noise that the dresses make. For me, Ed Watson was the stand-out dancer in this piece, dancing with feel and technical excellence....speedy and precise. As for Aeternum....I was a bit worried when quite a few of the 'regulars' told me they were going home in the interval as they'd all seen the piece before and once was enough. Needless to say this worried me....and my worries were sort of borne out, but not as badly as I thought they would be. This was the piece I liked least; on first viewing I found it very rushed and too busy and over-crowded. I enjoyed the last movement best, which was a lovely pas de deux danced by Marianela Nunez and Federico Bonelli. I'd have been happy just to see that, although James Hay did a wonderful little solo which was also well worth watching the piece for. Jean-Marc Puissant's set was fabulous, moving upwards and outwards almost imperceptibly....my eye kept straying further and further upwards just to keep an eye on it and marvel. Maybe on a second viewing I will derive more from the piece....but I must say I don't feel like I'd run back to see it again.

LInk to a story on Sky News this morning.....it gets worse and worse!! http://news.sky.com/story/1061292/bolshoi-acid-attack-dancer-paid-perpetrator

I know, but I was pointing out that there was a link put up by Farfallina that mentions the girl....

MAB, there is a link above from Farfallina which apparently mentions the girl, but as it's behind a paywall I haven't been able to read it. The Courtney Weaver article in the print copy of the FT today does not mention a girl.

Ian, the FT article is behind a paywall. Is this a new thing? I've never been blocked by the FT before! In any case, unfortunately I can't access it.

Unfortunately this article seems to be behind a paywall so I can't access it......

Gorgeous! He looks so happy and relaxed. Thanks Amelia.

Thanks Bluebird I hadn't written their names down! Also worth mentioning that it was ENB principal Elena Gljurdidze who coached the class that began the programme.

A very enjoyable semi final,, which began with a long class at the beginning so we could have a good look at all the competitors prior to their solo. There was some very good standard of dancing on display, and the fact that I guessed 14 of the 16 finalists tells me that the judges and I were on the same wavelength...which is often not the case The judges were Marguerite Porter, Deirdre Eyden and Chairman Gary Avis. The 16 finalists, in no particular order, are: (all the male semi finalists were from the Royal Ballet School, so of course all the finalists are. Females are also from the RBS unless otherwise indicated) Isabel Lubach, Grace Blundell, Naomi Bottomer (English National Ballet School), Julia Roscoe, Estelle Bovay, Isabelle Brouwers (ENB School),Grace Horne, Chisato Katsura, Augustus Payne, Thomas Bradshaw, Henry Dowden, Scott McKenzie, Jerome Barnes, Barnaby Rook Bishop, William Beagley, Joseph Sissens. Good luck to them all, and from what I've seen today, I look forward very much to the final next Saturday!

Lee don't take this so seriously....it's just a bit of lighthearted fun!!

Here is a medical site which will help you diagnose whether a man is suffering from Man Flu, and if so, how to treat it/him, what the effects are, etc. Do look at all the different areas of the site to enable you to understand this most serious of illnesses.... I do hope it's helpful.... http://manflu.info/index.htm

I'm so old I haven't got past the Harlem Shuffle yet!!

Here is a link to a film a friend of mine made with Bridget Breiner in 2011. Bridget danced and choreographed, and it's designed by Jean-Marc Puissant, who designed Wheeldon's new ballet Aeternum. I'd be interested to know what you think of it.

Yep!!

I see Ismene Brown didn't think much of either new piece, and was very negative about the orchestrations and playing. I won't be seeing this bill until the 7th, so can't pass an opinion until then!

Yes it sure will!

Hi Chris. Flower throws usually work like this: the organiser speaks to the stage manager to request permission to do it. Once granted, either a very kind and/or wealthy person pays for it or, more likely, a collection is started. There is a cut-off date for the collection so that the organisers know how much they have to spend and have enough time to go to the florist and order. The flowers are then packed up in boxes (individual stems, not bouquets) and either collected or delivered to the ROH. The throws almost always happen from a box near the stage, from on high for the best effect. As mentioned previously, last night's was one of the best ever!

Thanks so much Bruce....puts a lump in my throat all over again! It was so lovely when Carlos came out and gave her flowers....and that photo of her holding one of his hands and one of Sergei's says so much....it's so appropriate that both of her best partners were there on each side of her saying farewell!