Shakespeare Live!

[Two Pigeons]

You will have to knock me out of the way first!!  

OK Sim. We will agree on a compromise. If Tyrone isn't first cast Petruchio we can be the joint leaders of the revolution as we batter down the doors of the BRB offices.

[Sim]

Woody Allen said that Shakespeare is five women....????

[tabitha]

I thought Ball and Naghdi were really lovely last night but am bemused by some of the extremes of enthusiasm for Naghdi, although she is a beautiful dancer. I saw Delia Matthews as Juliet at BRB recently and would put her interpretation and presentation above Naghdi.

[Sim]

Did you see Naghdi and Ball's full performance last October?

[Billyelliott]

What a treat - the whole thing - so good to see dance song , music and theatre all combined to celebrate the work and influence of an amazing man . The combination held the attention of my 12 year old all the way through and helped him to see how dance is such a great way to interpret a story .

[Sim]

OK Sim. We will agree on a compromise. If Tyrone isn't first cast Petruchio we can be the joint leaders of the revolution as we batter down the doors of the BRB offices.

OK 2P, it's a deal! ????

[JulieW]

Thanks both!

[SusanR]

I thoroughly enjoyed Shakespeare Live last night, a lovely way to celebrate the bard.Matthew & Yasmine were fabulous. My goodness that was a small stage for them to negotiate! I was also delighted to see Ian Bostridge, one of my favourite singers. Don't see nearly enough of him. Rufus Wainwright was great too!Now we need a show in a similar vein to celebrate the Bronte family.It was the 200th anniversary of Charlotte's birth last week.

Susan

[Tony Newcombe]

I thought Ball and Naghdi were really lovely last night but am bemused by some of the extremes of enthusiasm for Naghdi, although she is a beautiful dancer. I saw Delia Matthews as Juliet at BRB recently and would put her interpretation and presentation above Naghdi.

I have seen both of these two brilliant Juliets and prefer to enjoy them both rather than argue who is the best

[cavycapers]

I loved having the actors speak the lines of the balcony scene and then it segueing straight into the ballet. Hearing the words just before made me so much more aware of what the moves meant, although I have seen it hundreds of times. Well done BBC. I also loved the fact that the coupkes crossed on stage, and that they acknowledged each other at the end.

 

Yes, where was the credit for Tyrone and Elisha and the BRB? Was it somewhere before, and I missed it.

[LinMM]

Probably not fair to compare a full performance you have seen with an extract like this though Tabitha!

 

Haven't watched the full programme yet.

[Indigo]

Odd one out, it seems.  I turned off after half an hour - hated it, other than the R&J extract.  But it sounds as if I missed the best bits as a result!

 

Not quite the odd one out. As a result of the rather poor opening number & a camera shot of Charles & Camilla, Mr Indigo exclaimed in horrified tones, "This isn't Royal Variety Show Shakespeare, is it?"  So we watched half of it (up to BRB) & based on the positive comments above about the second half being better than the first, we'll watch the rest!

 

So far, some of the acting has left a bit to be desired IMO. The seven ages of man speech in particular felt flat - in the most recent staging I've seen of As You Like It at the NT, Paul Chahidi did a great job of making Jaques' speech sound more like thought becoming word, rather than a script. On the plus side, Judi Dench & Al Murray were a hoot. The opera was good too.

 

Really enjoyed the BRB's Tyrone Singleton and Elisha Willis. I hadn't seen either of these dancers before & will look out for them when BRB's next touring to Southampton. It certainly was a small stage at the RSC & both the BRB & RB dancers did a great job adapting.

 

Just loved Yasmine & Matthew's R&J - made me cry again reliving that magical matinee. As cavycapers says, it was a good idea to precede it with actors speaking the balcony scene words but unfortunately I share Bruce Wall's view that their rendition was rather stilted. So I was heartily glad when the ballet started - far more moving, uninhibited & expressive! As others have said, it would be wonderful to see much more of Yasmine & Matthew's partnership at the RB throughout 2016/17.

[Fiz]

I told Yasmine on Twitter that it had made me cry and she favourited my tweet.

[cavycapers]

There was, however, something I felt was not quite right with David Bintley's Othello piece, though it pains me to criticise my darling BRB.

 

I wonder if it was that Tyrone Singleton and Elisha Willis were such a mismatch. Tyrone is so imposing that I felt that a taller dancer would have been a better match for him. Someone was talking about Delia Matthew's Juliet earlier, and I could imagine her making a good feisty Desdemona.

 

As it was, he came across as a physically powerful bully striding about the stage and swatting Desdemona about like a little mouse. And there should have been more tenderness in his actions, even when he kills her, and she should have been fighting back more, trying to convince him of her fidelity. It didn't work for me, I'm afraid.

 

Although, I'm quite surprised I noticed any of this with Tyrone's bare chest!

[Two Pigeons]

As I remember, and I expect Janet will correct me if I am wrong, Tyrone used to perform this with Victoria Marr. She is taller than Elisha Willis and so they were better matched.

 

I find the disparity in height off putting when Elisha Willis danced Cinderella with Iain Mackay. She is better matched with Joe Cayley.

[Jan McNulty]

As I remember, and I expect Janet will correct me if I am wrong, Tyrone used to perform this with Victoria Marr. She is taller than Elisha Willis and so they were better matched.

 

I find the disparity in height off putting when Elisha Willis danced Cinderella with Iain Mackay. She is better matched with Joe Cayley.

 

 

Quite right TP!  I still miss Vicky Marr tremendously, such a wonderful actress and she had a great on stage rapport with Tyrone (Fortuna especially...)

[Tony Newcombe]

There was, however, something I felt was not quite right with David Bintley's Othello piece, though it pains me to criticise my darling BRB.

I wonder if it was that Tyrone Singleton and Elisha Willis were such a mismatch. Tyrone is so imposing that I felt that a taller dancer would have been a better match for him. Someone was talking about Delia Matthew's Juliet earlier, and I could imagine her making a good feisty Desdemona.

As it was, he came across as a physically powerful bully striding about the stage and swatting Desdemona about like a little mouse. And there should have been more tenderness in his actions, even when he kills her, and she should have been fighting back more, trying to convince him of her fidelity. It didn't work for me, I'm afraid.

Although, I'm quite surprised I noticed any of this with Tyrone's bare chest!

I believe Delia will be dancing Desdemona in The Moor's Pavane on the split tour

[Two Pigeons]

I think that may be with Brandon Lawrence.

[aileen]

I'm confused. Was this a segment of The Moor's Pavane or has DB choreographed a new Othello?

[Tony Newcombe]

I think that may be with Brandon Lawrence.

The pictures I have seen on BRB website show Brandon with Jenna Roberts

[Indigo]

I've never even heard of the ballet piece the BRB danced yesterday evening so interesting to read the comments above about how well (or not) the dancers were matched & interpretation.

[Jan McNulty]

I'm confused. Was this a segment of The Moor's Pavane or has DB choreographed a new Othello?

 

 

It was the Othello segment from David Bintley's Shakespeare Suite which is being seen in full in Birmingham in June and (I think) as part of the season at Sadler's Wells in October.

 

The music is Duke Ellington.

[aileen]

What is BRB bringing to Sadler's Wells in October, Janet?

[Jan McNulty]

As far as I am aware, but nothing is on the website so I can't remember how I know, it is The Tempest and a mixed programme of Wink, Moor's Pavane and Shakespeare Suite.

 

The Lowry and Plymouth are getting The Dream instead of Shakespeare Suite, which I assume is because the Royal also do The Dream.

 

Here is a bit more detail about the mixed programme, which is being shown in Birmingham in June:

 

https://www.brb.org.uk/whats-on/event/shakespeare-triple-bill

[Coated]

There was, however, something I felt was not quite right with David Bintley's Othello piece, though it pains me to criticise my darling BRB.

 

I think they might have been better off with their usual orchestra

[Scheherezade]

General comments on Shakespeare Live: more enjoyable than I would have expected for a programme of fragments. The acting, I thought, improved as the evening progressed. It might just be me but I found the younger actors early in the programme to be a little precious and a bit too 'try-hard'. The comedy worked, and the experience of the older actors showed - or were they just more talented? I liked David Tennant but wasn't so keen on Catherine Tate. Rufus Wainwright, as always, was just fabulous and I enjoyed both the opera and the ballet. Yasmine and Matthew did a great job, despite the constraints of the stage and I thought Tyrone Singleton was mesmeric but felt that the music was all wrong for Othello - too buoyant, which somehow diminished the helplessness of Desdemona's plight. Was anyone at the RFH? How did that fare?

[Two Pigeons]

I think they might have been better off with their usual orchestra

When the company premiered this work they were accompanied by a fantastic jazz band called Echoes of Ellington.  That first night when the band played through both intervals is one of my favourite BRB memories ever.  More recently the Colin Towns Orchestra has played this score.  To my knowledge it has never been played by the Royal Ballet Sinfornia.

[Jan McNulty]

When the company premiered this work they were accompanied by a fantastic jazz band called Echoes of Ellington.  That first night when the band played through both intervals is one of my favourite BRB memories ever.  More recently the Colin Towns Orchestra has played this score.  To my knowledge it has never been played by the Royal Ballet Sinfornia.

 

 

According to another member of the forum, Colin Towns Mask Orchestra has some of the best jazz musicians in the world!  They certainly sounded wonderful, as did Echoes of Ellington.  I too loved the "jamming" in the interval.  I can't wait to see the full performances again this summer.

[Mary]

Just sat down to watch Naghdi /Ball clip on this freezing wet Monday morning while doing the laundry and waiting for my shopping to be delivered: it made me cry so much I will have to tell the Waitrose man I have a cold! :-)

 

They are beautiful together, perfectly matched, I love the way her facial expressions are perfectly suited to the dancing throughout-very difficult to do and she avoids getting her smile fixed into a rictus as can happen.

 

Full marks.

[trog]

I liked most of it, apart from Rufus Wainwright (poor diction), The Shires (why does Crissie Rhodes think she needs to sing with an American accent?) and the hip-hop Shakespeare (I hate bastardisation). Loved the Hamlets, and ending and of course, the ballet (even though I don't especially like R&J).

[zxDaveM]

I thought Ball and Naghdi were really lovely last night but am bemused by some of the extremes of enthusiasm for Naghdi, although she is a beautiful dancer. I saw Delia Matthews as Juliet at BRB recently and would put her interpretation and presentation above Naghdi.

 

I've not seen Ms Matthews, so can't compare but I'm somewhat bemused that you can, from 5mins cutdown version of the pdd, danced on a stage about one fifth the size it was originally staged on. Many of us raising the rafters for Ms Naghdi are basking in the glow from her full performance last autumn, and this 5 minute snippet was just an all too brief reminder of that.

[Tony Newcombe]

Dave, I have been lucky enough to see both on more than one occasion.

I consider myself very fortunate to have seen two such wonderful dancers in this role

Edited April 25, 2016 by Tony Newcombe

[tabitha]

I've not seen Ms Matthews, so can't compare but I'm somewhat bemused that you can, from 5mins cutdown version of the pdd, danced on a stage about one fifth the size it was originally staged on. Many of us raising the rafters for Ms Naghdi are basking in the glow from her full performance last autumn, and this 5 minute snippet was just an all too brief reminder of that.

I wasn't comparing only the two performances you suggest, I was talking generally. I have seen Nagdhi in a number of full length performances inc. R&J and she is a beautiful dancer but I was just expressing my bemusement that she attracts so much hyperbole (even for a 5 min turn on stage) on here when there are other soloists who are just as good, perhaps better, who barely attract a whisper.