penelopesimpson Posted September 18, 2015 Share Posted September 18, 2015 With Osipova out, again, the female Principals at ROH are looking thin on the ground. How about a call to the much missed Alina who should never have left. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Q Fan Posted September 18, 2015 Share Posted September 18, 2015 I would think Alina is already well committed with ENB's UK Autumn Tour so I don;t see how she could fit it in if she even wanted to. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capybara Posted September 18, 2015 Share Posted September 18, 2015 If I recall correctly, Alina said at the Ballet Association that she now had three companies: ENB, Hamburg and Bucharest. Her website also shows that she is guesting in Australia next month. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melody Posted September 18, 2015 Share Posted September 18, 2015 I'd rather see the RB bringing on some of the younger dancers who are actual RB dancers than going out and getting another international superstar ballerina in her mid-30s who dances with several companies already. If the company is a bit thin on female principals at the moment, it does at least have some very good first soloists to help take up the slack. 15 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nina G. Posted September 18, 2015 Share Posted September 18, 2015 and several very talented soloists too to help take up the slack. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capybara Posted September 19, 2015 Share Posted September 19, 2015 (edited) Post deleted. I misremembered something. Apologies! Edited September 19, 2015 by capybara Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
penelopesimpson Posted September 19, 2015 Author Share Posted September 19, 2015 I'd rather see the RB bringing on some of the younger dancers who are actual RB dancers than going out and getting another international superstar ballerina in her mid-30s who dances with several companies already. If the company is a bit thin on female principals at the moment, it does at least have some very good first soloists to help take up the slack. In principal I agree with you but I am a ballet lover and open to new experiences. That said, however, ticket prices are now so high that audiences expect a sprinkling of stars and however good the existing Principals and however promising the youngsters, there really is only Osipova in the top category. That is too much weight for one person, particularly somebody who has more than their fair share of injuries. By all means move people through the ranks - and I look forward to Francesca Hayward as a Principal - but in the meantime I would like to see somebody of the calibre of Alina Cojocaru return. I was devastated when she left and still believe there was no good reason for it to happen. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
penelopesimpson Posted September 19, 2015 Author Share Posted September 19, 2015 and several very talented soloists too to help take up the slack. 'taking up the slack' is hardly a motivating marketing ploy! Ticket prices are now terribly high and people expect star appeal. That may not be right but it is a fact. I attend regularly but made a point of booking for Osipova as well as Salenko and Macrae. Maybe I'm being picky, but I am now left with a ticket for Sarah Lamb which is not what I wanted. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jacqueline Posted September 19, 2015 Share Posted September 19, 2015 Perhaps Mr O'Hare could put in a call to Alessandra Ferri. The tickets for Cheri are currently not flying off the shelves and Miss Ferri is not bad at Juliet I have heard! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aileen Posted September 19, 2015 Share Posted September 19, 2015 I agree with you, penelope. I also have a ticket for the Muntagirov / Osipova (Lamb) cast and I'm considering exchanging it, which I did when Muntagirov's partner in Swan Lake was changed owing to injury. Tickets for SL, R&J etc are so expensive now that I have become much more choosy about casts at the ROH, plus I have very fond memories of Klimentova's last performance as Juliet at the RAH last year, with Muntagirov as her Romeo. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balletfanp Posted September 19, 2015 Share Posted September 19, 2015 I can appreciate the disappointment, but I feel a bit sorry for Vadim, with people returning tickets because his partner has been changed. It's as if there is no point in the performance without Osipova, and it's not worth bothering to see him with anyone else! After all, he is well worth watching just on his own merit. And Sarah Lamb and he made a wonderful partnership in Manon. I too was looking forward to seeing him with Osipova, and admit to some disappointment on that score, but c'est la vie.... I'm happy to be seeing him because I know he will be fantastic, having also seen him with Klimentova in R&J last year. 12 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melody Posted September 19, 2015 Share Posted September 19, 2015 The problem is, how are the RB dancers ever going to become stars in their own right if the solution of first resort is a phone call to Alina Cojocaru or some other big-name ballerina who's already a principal with ABT, the Bolshoi, and two or three other European and Asian companies? If we're happy with the notion of getting like the opera companies, where the stars are imported while the company provides the chorus, fair enough, but ballet dancers have shorter careers than opera singers and this seems a bit hard on the British kids. The Paris Opera Ballet manages just fine without bringing in the international-flavour-of-the-month ballerina every season, and at least it has its own distinctive style which is more than can be said for some of these other companies who are all showcasing the same half-dozen ballerinas. According to at least one bio I read recently, Natalia Makarova didn't feel the need to accommodate the British style and the requirements of Ashton's choreography when she was dancing with RB, she did her own Russian thing and everyone just had to put up with it. If we're that keen to see people doing their own Russian thing, we have regular visits from Russian companies. Apparently I'm in a minority, but I'd rather see RB be a genuinely British company than a wannabe Russian one. 24 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
betterankles Posted September 20, 2015 Share Posted September 20, 2015 Paris Opera do bring in guest stars, and to replace their own. Stars are born and not made - although it is true that there is presently a sprinkling - of real stars, and real ballerinas (not necessarily the same thing) - untapped in the international market... As long as they get seen, potential stars become stars because the AUDIENCE recognizes and promotes them beyond a principal or soloist status. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melody Posted September 20, 2015 Share Posted September 20, 2015 Yes, POB does have some foreign principals - maybe two or three - pretty much as many as RB has British ones (and they studied at the POB school before joining the company). I wouldn't mind if some of these international stars were brought in as guest artists as and when, I just really object to seeing full-time principal slots going to foreign ballerinas who didn't go to RBS and who are also principals at several other companies. You can't work as a full-time employee for IBM, Apple, Google, and Amazon at the same time, and you shouldn't be able to do likewise for ballet companies. It doesn't make sense. Either a person has a commitment to the company or she doesn't, and if she doesn't, then she should be a guest artist. 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anna C Posted September 20, 2015 Share Posted September 20, 2015 I understand the disappointment when a dancer has to be replaced due to injury; we all have our favourites after all. I struggle to understand the mindset around selling a ticket though if you are only seeing one cast. It's one thing if a balletgoer has the time, physical and financial resources to see multiple casts perform the same ballet - then I can understand not - for example - wanting to see Sarah Lamb multiple times if she is replacing Osipova and you are already seeing her with McRae. However, I can only afford the physical and financial expenditure to see one performance of a ballet, in which case I would still go and see it regardless of who is dancing. I was naturally sad not to see Lauren Cuthbertson as Manon, but actually Lamb and Muntagirov were wonderful together (and Vadim alone danced so beautifully it was worth the ticket price). It's sad enough for the injured dancer and their partner when they have to miss performances due to injury, but sadder still for people to miss Vadim's beautiful dancing just because of Osipova's injury. 13 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MAB Posted September 20, 2015 Share Posted September 20, 2015 I'll be selling my ticket because I hate watching a ballet that has vastly deteriorated in quality over the years and I was going purely to see what an Osipova/Muntagirov partnership will look like and no other reason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aileen Posted September 20, 2015 Share Posted September 20, 2015 Lamb just doesn't do it for me. She was good in Manon, but I just can't imagine her as Juliet (she's too sophisticated). Of all the full length ballets R&J is (for me) the one in which both leads need to be equally convincing otherwise the performance is a let down. In Swan Lake, Beauty, Don Q it's all about the beauty of the dancing and the drama of the set pieces (eg swan corps, Rose Adagio) but R&J is all about the central relationship. I love Vadim's dancing and I'd love to see him as Romeo again but I just don't feel much enthusiasm for the performance which I have booked for and wonder whether I should spend that fifty odd quid on something else. R&J will be back again soon enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anna C Posted September 20, 2015 Share Posted September 20, 2015 Ah, that's where we differ. MacMillan's R&J is my favourite ballet. I love the music and choreography so much that I'd be happy to see almost any RB Principal in the lead. Still, horses for courses! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fonty Posted September 20, 2015 Share Posted September 20, 2015 Yes, POB does have some foreign principals - maybe two or three - pretty much as many as RB has British ones (and they studied at the POB school before joining the company). I wouldn't mind if some of these international stars were brought in as guest artists as and when, I just really object to seeing full-time principal slots going to foreign ballerinas who didn't go to RBS and who are also principals at several other companies. You can't work as a full-time employee for IBM, Apple, Google, and Amazon at the same time, and you shouldn't be able to do likewise for ballet companies. It doesn't make sense. Either a person has a commitment to the company or she doesn't, and if she doesn't, then she should be a guest artist. Yes, I agree with this. Although having said that, being a guest artist doesn't cut down on the amount of performances you are giving for the company, does it? I am not sure how it works, to be honest. Why have the Osipova performances been given to Lamb? Is it because she has already danced with Muntagirov before, and therefore they know each other quite well as partners? Or is it something to do with height? I believe Muntagirov is quite tall, so perhaps pairing him with someone like Marquez would be a difficult adjustment for him at short notice? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balletfanp Posted September 20, 2015 Share Posted September 20, 2015 Lamb just doesn't do it for me. She was good in Manon, but I just can't imagine her as Juliet (she's too sophisticated). But she made an excellent Alice - not a role requiring sophistication. She came across as very girlish and playful in that, I thought. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
loveclassics Posted September 20, 2015 Share Posted September 20, 2015 Lamb just doesn't do it for me. She was good in Manon, but I just can't imagine her as Juliet (she's too sophisticated). Of all the full length ballets R&J is (for me) the one in which both leads need to be equally convincing otherwise the performance is a let down. In Swan Lake, Beauty, Don Q it's all about the beauty of the dancing and the drama of the set pieces (eg swan corps, Rose Adagio) but R&J is all about the central relationship. I love Vadim's dancing and I'd love to see him as Romeo again but I just don't feel much enthusiasm for the performance which I have booked for and wonder whether I should spend that fifty odd quid on something else. R&J will be back again soon enough. I have no problem with Lamb as Juliet but for me it's McRae who doesn't feel quite right for Romeo. His dancing has an assurance and a certain degree of knowingness that works brilliantly in many roles but is a little too mature for this ballet (IMHO). On the basis of his Des Grieux I think Muntagirov can project the vulnerability of a very young man and I hope people who booked for Osipova will stay with the performances they originally booked and appreciate his performance. Linda 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capybara Posted September 20, 2015 Share Posted September 20, 2015 Why have the Osipova performances been given to Lamb? There must be a variety of factors in play: height and familiarity, as you say, and maybe dancer preference, but also, surely, whether it is logistically feasible for a given 'substitute' to dance the extra shows alongside his/her existing performances. One has to feel for Kevin O'Hare in all this. After all, this is the year when he has delayed announcing the casting in order to minimise the changes. Then, firstly, Pennefather leaves and, now, Osipova is 'off'. One also needs, I think, to feel for Muntagirov whose advertised partners so often seem to fall by the wayside. He also gets called upon to 'stand in' at short notice (witness the first night of Alice and Fille last season). But he never gives any sign that he is stressed by these situations and seems to turn in wonderful performances nonetheless. I shall not be returning any tickets. 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beryl H Posted September 20, 2015 Share Posted September 20, 2015 I'm looking forward to seeing Sarah Lamb and Vadim Muntagirov in R and J, I saw them in Manon, but have decided not to go to the cinema on Tuesday (hadn't booked yet). I like the fact that replacements were announced at the same time, and good to see that dancers not already in roles will replace Natalia Osipova in Connectome and Carmen! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taxi4ballet Posted September 20, 2015 Share Posted September 20, 2015 Stars are born and not made - although it is true that there is presently a sprinkling - of real stars, and real ballerinas (not necessarily the same thing) - untapped in the international market... As long as they get seen, potential stars become stars because the AUDIENCE recognizes and promotes them beyond a principal or soloist status. Perhaps a few years-worth of promotions from within the company might help. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capybara Posted September 20, 2015 Share Posted September 20, 2015 Perhaps a few years-worth of promotions from within the company might help. But fair play to kevin O'Hare, he does seem to be doing this - as many of us have noted in other threads. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taxi4ballet Posted September 20, 2015 Share Posted September 20, 2015 But fair play to kevin O'Hare, he does seem to be doing this - as many of us have noted in other threads. That's good to hear. Since I'm a parent of a young dancer I generally only hang out on the 'doing dance' bit of the forum, so I don't see much in the way of other threads. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
balletqs Posted October 5, 2015 Share Posted October 5, 2015 Such a shame they couldn't draft in Evgenia Obratsova again. She has danced RandJ before with McRae last time. Stunning and def in league with Osipova. There are so many beautiful Russians they could seek surely?! Are superstar ballerinas declining now, with opportunities quite rightly being spread and many are older now. Ferri, Dupont, Galeazzi (who is still dancing I am surprised they didn't get her in for a show). However in Lambs defence I saw her and Samodurov in R&J years ago and personally she was the best one I had seen. Her moment in her room before travelling to Friar L I will never forget. She spoke so much with no movement it was incredible!! He was not so good, very heavy footed and not the most youthful at the time. Shame. Of course their huge Juliet loss is also Miss Hamilton! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capybara Posted October 5, 2015 Share Posted October 5, 2015 Since this thread has been resurrected, and in the light of recent events, I cannot resist reiterating that there is more than one female principal waiting in the RB's wings. Noone who saw Yasmine Naghdi's superlative Juliet last Saturday would surely want to countenance someone being drafted in from elsewhere ahead of her and Francesca Hayward. 12 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zxDaveM Posted October 5, 2015 Share Posted October 5, 2015 CLUNK - nail on head Capybara! :-) 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Q Fan Posted October 5, 2015 Share Posted October 5, 2015 What's happened to Roberta Marquez has she left? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nina G. Posted October 5, 2015 Share Posted October 5, 2015 Since this thread has been resurrected, and in the light of recent events, I cannot resist reiterating that there is more than one female principal waiting in the RB's wings. Noone who saw Yasmine Naghdi's superlative Juliet last Saturday would surely want to countenance someone being drafted in from elsewhere ahead of her and Francesca Hayward. I saw Francesca Hayward's wonderful performance in Rhapsody last Season, and now I can also visualise Yasmine Naghdi dancing all those glorious Kenneth MacMillan pas de deux's in Mayerling, Manon...Her physique, her line, her technique is so well suited to dancing MacMillan's ballets. She also proved herself to be an outstanding actress. Let's hope we won't have to wait too long! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamesrhblack Posted October 5, 2015 Share Posted October 5, 2015 What's happened to Roberta Marquez has she left? No, she remains in the artist list but apart from two Juliets has not otherwise been cast so far this season. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Q Fan Posted October 5, 2015 Share Posted October 5, 2015 ^ thank you that is good to know as I like Roberta Marquez. I wondered if she had moved because her husband (Arionel Vargas)left ENB. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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