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A friend and I are big fans of Danil Simkin (Berlin) and Friedemann Vogel (Stuttgart) so when we spotted an opportunity to see them on consecutive evenings in Giselle and Onegin we couldn’t resist making the trip. In Berlin the Giselle production uses Peter Farmer’s costumes and sets with choreography of Patrice Bart, after Coralli and Perot. Many of the steps were familiar, some looked very much like the choreography in Ratmansky’s recent production, although there seemed to be much more dancing for the corps (male and female) in Act. Evelina Gudanova was making her debut as Giselle but you would hardly have known- it was a very pleasing performance with no amateur dramatics, but entirely convincing and danced very well. Daniil Simkin was absolutely wonderful, he’s a fine partner, he dances brilliantly, his was a really rich performance. The corps seemed under-rehearsed in act 1 but were much improved in act 2. The Myrtha of Aurora Dickie was very strong and we liked both Zulma Luciana Voltolini and Moyna Alizee Sicre. Among the unfamiliar pieces of choreography were some beautiful bourees for Giselle where she leaves Albrecht by boureeing swiftly backwards to exit the stage side left. The orchestra were fantastic playing with an excellent brisk tempo. On the day of the Giselle performance there was a cast change announcement in Stuttgart: Jason Reilly would be replacing Friedemann Vogel. It was too late to alter our plans even if we’d wanted to but since we’d seen Jason Reilly’s Onegin when he guested with the Royal Ballet opposite Alina Cojocaru, replacing an injured Johan Kobborg, we thought he would be very good. What we didn’t expect was to witness a phenomenal performance that was a masterclass in every respect. Like Friedemann Vogel Jason Reilly is now in his early 40’s, but he danced like a man at least 10 years younger with flawless tours en l’air, astonishingly youthful jetes entrelace, incredible fury turns, and so I could go on. His partnering was flawless. In some hands the exhausting mirror pdd can seem like a series of increasingly fumbled lifts as Tatiana is hoisted high into the air but Reilly moved entirely seamlessly from one lift to another so that the pdd became the perfect flowing expression of all Tatiana’s youthful longings and she melted in his arms like a whisper of gossamer. Reilly’s characterisation was so complete, so multi faceted, with every little detail correct, he revealed nuances that can only come from a lifetime of performing experience. Tatiana was Elisa Badenas who trained at the Royal Ballet school and whom I’ve seen dance on several occasions in Stuttgart. In the great Stuttgart tradition she is a remarkable actress and a beautiful dancer. She has no mannerism, nothing is exagerated for unnecessary effect. The partnership with Jason Reilly was the truest, most genuine, most passionate, intense performance I’ve seen since the days of Johan Kobborg and Alina Cojocaru. In the supporting roles were two younger dancers: Mackenzie Brown as Olga and Henrik Erikson as Lenksy. Mackenzie Brown won the gold medal at the prix in 2019 and has risen rapidly in the Stuttgart ranks to Soloist. She’s a lovely dancer and very much captured the personality of the flighty Olga. Her young Lensky was the tall and slender demi-soloist who partnered remarkably well for someone with relatively little experience and danced gracefully with a beautiful line and soft landings. The well known Lensky solo in the pre duel moonlight was executed with great aplomb - unlike many dancers I’ve seen tackling the exposing solo, Erikson didn’t hold every step and shape and force them into (im)perfection rather he moved seamlessly creating a beautiful flow of movement. Absolutely one to watch. The Stuttgart opera house is unsurprisingly somewhat smaller than London and I’d say that Onegin is a ballet that benefits being viewed from the intimacy conferred by a smaller stage. At the end of the performance the audience were invited to stay and be filmed applauding the cast and watching Erikson perform the Lensky solo again. It was for a documentary that’s being made to celebrate John Cranko, next year being the 50th anniversary of his death.

The remarkable United Ukrainian Ballet, established with support from local government and several sponsors in The Hague, Netherlands, by former Het Nationale Ballet star ballerina Igone de Jongh with artistic support from Alexei Ratmansky, Jiri Kylian, Vladimir Malakhov and other artists, providing accommodation and a company for refugee Ukrainian ballet dancers and Ukrainian diaspora dancers following the invasion by Russia and ensuing war, gave their first ever performance on Friday the 13th of August (hopefully an auspicious day for these artists and their performances! ) to a packed auditorium in the Castellum Theater in Alphen aan den Rijn, a small theatre in the Netherlands. Starting this thread for any members who travelled there or who live near enough to attend, or who will be attending in other venues eg Amsterdam, on their Dutch tour, and also for those of us who are due to see them at the Coliseum. Unfortunately I couldn’t be there myself, but friends of friends who were able to attend reported a moving and attractive production with excellent performances, and a curtain call with the Ukrainian national anthem sung by the whole troupe moved the audience to tears. Katja Khaniukova, the Ukrainian first soloist of English National Ballet, who has previously danced Giselle as a guest artist in Kyiv, danced Giselle at the premiere although I didn’t manage to get other casting details. Alexei Ratmansky’s Facebook and Instagram accounts, the company’s Ukrainian Giselle social media accounts, have some attractive short clips and photos (too many to squeeze onto this post) from the dress rehearsal and the first night, where the company look wonderful in their costumes and in front of the lovely sets- I believe these are the same ones (not totally certain without a printed programme to confirm!) designed by Hayden Griffin on loan from BIrmingham Royal Ballet that they are due to use in London. If you have attended or are due to, do post your reviews and thoughts. Looks amazing, and lovely to see messages of congratulations and good wishes from various ballet legends from Amsterdam, New York, etc etc among the posts.

I've upgraded my ticket for the Wednesday Sept 14 Giselle (Alina Cojocaru) so am selling Upper Circle J58 (aisle seat) £10. If interested please send me a PM and also post here. Scheduled cast is as follows: Giselle: Alina Cojocaru Albrecht: Alexander Trusch Hilarion: Danylo Butenko Wilfried: Viktor Lytvynenk(Ali Peasant pas: Vladyslav Bondar & Maria Shupilova Myrtha: Vladyslava Kovalenko Moyna & Zulma: Veronika Hordina & Daria Manoilo

I've upgraded my ticket for this performance so have Upper Circle aisle seat J1 available (£10) If interested, please send me a PM and also post here. Scheduled cast is as follows: Giselle: Katja Khaniukova Albrecht: Stasnislav Olshanskyi Hilarion: Sergii Kliachin Wilfried: Viktor Lytvynenko Peasant pas: Veronika Hordina & Nikita Hodyna Myrtha: Christine Shevchenko Moyna & Zulma: Vladyslava Kovalenko & Daria Manoilo

https://tickets.londoncoliseum.org/events/giselle/2022-9-13_19.30/london coliseum?area=1217de3f-5586-43e3-98e8-c73c7724eee3&type=&sb2m=1 https://tickets.londoncoliseum.org/events/giselle/2022-9-14_19.30/london coliseum?area=1217de3f-5586-43e3-98e8-c73c7724eee3&type=&sb2m=1 https://tickets.londoncoliseum.org/events/giselle/2022-9-15_14.30/london coliseum?area=1217de3f-5586-43e3-98e8-c73c7724eee3&type=&sb2m=1

I have a two tickets that needs to be rehomed. Balcony standing, D-30, £8 Stall Circle, C 22, bench seat, £22 PM me and leave a message if interested. Thank you

It really breaks my heart, but due to a work engagement I have to find a new home to this pair of Giselle tickets 😭. - SCS D1/D2 for the Takada/Corrales cast. £8 each and would rather sell both together. Cast Giselle: Akane Takada Albrecht: Cesar Corrales Myrtha: Mayara Magri If interested, PM/email. Linda.

I have a good SCS for Morera/Bonelli on Friday 3rd December that needs to be rehomed. Face value £8. PM me and leave a message if interested. I will return ticket to the box office on Wednesday lunchtime if no takers on here. Thanks

For Sale Lamb Sambe Giselle 2nd December 7.30 D14 Stalls Circle Standing D15

SCS D22 for 11.30 Saturday 27/11 looking for a good home. face value £8. please PM me and leave a message here.

For Sale: Giselle 3rd December 7.30 Morera Bonelli St C St D14 £8

For Sale Giselle Matinee 27th November 11.30 Morera Bonelli St C Standing D38 £8

if anyone as a spare SCS ticket for Nela/Vadim this week 18/11 or Frankie/Alex on 27/11 (5pm) please message me. thank you Peter

I have SCS d29 looking for a good home. £8. PM me and leave a message here if interested . Thanks

With the Royal Ballet currently performing Giselle at the moment, would you like to have a go at dancing sections of this beautiful ballet? My name is Laëtitia Lo Sardo and I am a former First Soloist with Birmingham Royal Ballet and I have been teaching ballet for over 22 years. I currently offer Repertoire classes on Zoom and we are working on Giselle Act II at the moment! Classes are on a drop-in basis so you can join in any time you wish/can. Classes are running on Zoom: Wednesdays 1:45pm - 3:15pm Thursdays 10am - 11:30am If you can’t make it, recordings of live classes are also available. Your first trial class is FREE! For more info, contact me on: Email: lklosardo@hotmail.com Insta: laetitialosardo www.laetitialosardoballet.com Image by Bill Cooper

Yesterday I stepped inside a theatre for the first time since February 2020 and not without a fair degree of trepidation to see Darius James and Amy Doughty's new production of Giselle for Ballet Cymru. I had already seen a screening of the premiere in Lichfield and reviewed it for Terpsichore in Giselle Reimagined and I had attended a workshop on the ballet at Yorkshire Dance the day before so I knew what to expect. I have remarked many times that James and Doughty take the essentials of the great ballets and remould them for a small cast that is constantly on the road. They succeeded sin my view with Cinderella, Romeo a Juliet and Beauty and the Beast and I think they can chalk up Giselle as another success. Certainly I prefer it to Akram Khan's and I liked it at least as much as Dada Masilo which I also admired. If you want to remake one of the world's best known and best loved ballets that is the way to it. James and Doughty commissioned Catrin Finch to adapt Adam's score. She had worked with them before on Celtic Concerto and The Light Princess. The opening bars of Adam's overture for Acts I and II remained unchanged and there snatches of his score in the mad scene and there was a Welsh folk air at the beginning but most of the rest of the score was new. The choreographers had left the story more or less intact but there were a few changes. Albrecht was not the lord of the manner but a bounder who was cheating on his wife. At Wednesday's workshop Andrea Battagia who danced Albrecht suggested that he might be a social worker. The costumes were contemporary and the ballet seemed to bve set in post-industrial Southeast Wales. The choreography was very different. Giselle's theme was a complicated hand and upper arm movement which Beth Meadway taught us in the workshop instead of the familiar jumpty jump. Ballet Cymru's scenery is projected into a backcloth and I have to say that the projections and lighting were impressive. I particularly liked the country churchyard at dawn as the wilis (renamed zombies in this version) scuttled away. Everyone in the cast danced well. I was particularly impressed with the leads, Battagoa and Meadway. Meadway is tall with a naturally expressive face. In a couple of scenes in Act II when she appeared en pointe in a romantic tutu I was reminded of lithographs of Carlotta Grisi. Battagia crossed the stage with grace and elegance assured of the attention of the crowd. Izzie Holland and Robbie Moorcroft as the female and male leaders of the zombies were awesome in both the old fashioned and contemporary senses. Yasset Rolden was a smouldering Hilarion. I will follow his career with interest, For those who do not know the story this is the best possible introduction. I did miss the dreamlike floating quality of the traditional Giselle but this Giselle is set in contemporary brexit Britain where unpleasant things oozing out of cracks are much more common than aetherial spirits. Not everybody's panad o de but it is mine.

if anyone has a spare SCS ticket to Giselle on any of these dates 08/11, 18/11, 20/11, 27/11, 1/12 please message me. many thanks Peter

I'm looking for a Stalls Circle Standing for Giselle on Wednesday 10th November. As I will be travelling the day that I had originally booked for Yasmine and Matty I am now trying to catch them in their first show of this run. Please get in touch if you have a good spare SCS ticket. Many thanks in advance, Silke

Published casts now include Myrtha, Queen of the Wilis. Some interesting choices. Full list: Thursday 4 November 2021 7:30 Natalia Osipova, Reece Clarke, Mayara Magri Friday 5 November 2021 12:30 Schools Only Yasmine Naghdi, Matthew Ball, Julia Roscoe Friday 5 November 2021 7:30pm Lauren Cuthbertson, Federico Bonelli, Claire Calvert Monday 8 November 2021 7:30pm Marianela Nuñez, Vadim Muntagirov, Mayara Magri Wednesday 10 November 2021 7:30pm Yasmine Naghdi, Matthew Ball, Marianela Nuñez Friday 12 November 2021 7:30pm Natalia Osipova, Reece Clarke, Mayara Magri Thursday 18 November 2021 7:30pm Marianela Nuñez, Vadim Muntagirov, Mayara Magri Friday 19 November 2021 12:30pm Akane Takada, Cesar Corrales, Annette Buvoli Saturday 20 November 2021 1:30pm Lauren Cuthbertson, Federico Bonelli, Julia Roscoe Saturday 20 November 2021 7:30pm "LIVE" STREAM filmed but shown from 03 December Yasmine Naghdi, Matthew Ball, Marianela Nuñez Monday 22 November 2021 7:30pm Francesca Hayward, Alexander Campbell, Claire Calvert Wednesday 24 November 2021 12:30pm Sarah Lamb, Marcelino Sambé, Gina Storm-Jensen Saturday 27 November 2021 11:30am Laura Morera, Ryoichi Hirano, Gina Storm-Jensen Saturday 27 November 2021 5:00pm Francesca Hayward, Alexander Campbell, Claire Calvert Wednesday 1 December 2021 7:30pm Akane Takada, Cesar Corrales, Annette Buvoli Thursday 2 December 2021 7:30pm Sarah Lamb, Marcelino Sambé, Gina Storm-Jensen Friday 3 December 2021 7:30pm Laura Morera, Ryoichi Hirano, Claire Calvert

Ballet Cymru will dance Darius James and Amy Doughty's new production of Giselle in Leeds on 4 Nov, I have not yet seen it live but I watched the premiere online and reviewed it for Terpsichore on 9 July. In my review I wrote: "If Ballet Cymru ever offers this choreography as a workshop we [Powerhouse Ballet] would love to learn it. Once this third wave has subsided we shall learn the Coralli-Perrot-Petipa version of the dance of the wilis but the James and Doughty version would be such fun." Our wish was granted sooner than we had expected. The company has agreed to give us a workshop at Yorkshire Dance on 3 Nov between 17:15 and 18:30. Although Powerhouse Ballet are hosting the event we are not monopolizing it. It is open to any dancer who is in or can get to Leeds on Wednesday evening. My law practice is sponsoring the event so it is free to attendees. All they have to do is complete this registration form. After the workshop we shall be holding a little get together in Martha's Room from 18:30 to 20:00 which is open to balletomanes who don't want to take part in the workshop but would like to meet the choreographer and dancers. As they are Welsh and we are from Yorkshire we shall serve cacen cri, Yorkshire parkin and maybe an Indian treat to celebrate Diwali. Anybody wishing to attend the reception but not the workshop can register here. The main event of the get together will be my interview of Darius James and Beth Meadway who danced the lead role at the premiere between 19:00 and 19:30. For Ballet Cymru's fans throughout the world we are live streaming the interview over Zoom. Anybody wanting to watch that interview can sign up here.

Hi I have SCS D38 for Giselle opening night. Looking to exchange for a similar ticket on another date. Doesn’t have to be the same cast. Please PM me and leave a message. Thanks

I am looking for one extra ticket for Giselle Thurs 4 Nov PM Osipova/Clarke thank you!

Hi, I'm looking to purchase a Giselle or peasant style ballet costume. Colour not important for the right style. Hoping you can help 😊, RichieN

I think Joaquín De Luz's Giselle is brilliant in so many ways. I can't wait to watch it succeed worldwide! Here's my review of the world premiere.

Absolutely loved the Mariinsky Ballet's Giselle, top quality dancing by Diana Vishneva, Mathieu Ganio and the entire company, my join favourite production of the ballet along with Sir Peter Wright's for The Royal Ballet, so glad they put up a 2016 performance of it on their YouTube channel - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_XJZTf4zHlA It was nice to see it in HD quality as I only have on DVD a 1980s performance (with the amazing Galina Mezentseva, Konstantin Zaklinsky and Tatyana Terekhova) so like the costumes looked faded but in the 2016 version you could see all the pretty detailing in the costumes and the scenery as well. Not familiar with Diana Vishneva but she was wonderful as Giselle, conveyed innocence and happiness in the first act and then was very ethereal in the second act and Mathieu Ganio was extremely elegant as Albrecht Yekaterina Ivannikova as Myrtha was also good, all business and pretty unforgiving plus excellent dancing.